#just wanted to share something for now while i work on rewriting question six
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TPP 36 Questions AU, Scrapped Content:
The nice, warm inviting fuzziness evaporates. Reality returns. Peter Ransom is dead. He was never real. And maybe neither was their marriage. It all comes crashing back in waves. Four years of the rest of their lives, the suits, the note, two weeks alone in a lighthouse. He came here for one thing, and that one thing still found its way back to him. That one thing is a thief. An actual con artist. And a stalker, a liar, a disillusioned washed up son-of-a–
-question six, "If you were able to live to the age of 90 and retain either the mind or body of a 30-year-old for the last 60 years of your life, which would you want?"
#just wanted to share something for now while i work on rewriting question six#sharing scrapped content is my favorite thing#tho one of these lines will definitely be working its way back into the fic#mark my words.#a hotboy's writing#private eye's keys go jingle jangle#the penumbra podcast#tpp#the penumbra fanfic#tpp 36 questions au#ALSO it /is/ my birthday this month so if anything I am aiming to have question six posted the day of my birthday#will i say when that is? no. it'll be a surprise for you all#and a splendid lil gift for me
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Six Sentence Sunday
It's the first Six Sentence Sunday of 2025 (even though I'm posting this on Monday, shhh, the executive dysfunction kicked in last night as I was typing this post!)! Thanks for the tags @artsyunderstudy @nausikaaa, @martsonmars, @bookish-bogwitch and @mooncello, love seeing what you're all working on.
I haven't written anything new yet for either of my WIPs, but I thought I'd share a little something from both.
First off, The Trails We Blaze. I'm hoping to crack back on with this WIP in earnest in February, once I finish off my three month PaWriCo challenge with ASR. The last few days at work all I've been able to think about is the later plot points of Trails and I'm so excited to get back into this world.
I think this snippet is new, but apologies if not. This is Baz POV, way more than six sentences, and I've redacted one character name for spoilers!
The bedroom door slams shut and I slowly turn to face [redacted] and Fiona, both of whom are glaring at me and blocking my path out of the room. I cock an eyebrow and it sets [redacted] off. “What the bloody hell d’you think you’re playing at?” “Good morning to you too, [redacted].” “You think you can just waltz in here—” “You’re going to answer some questions,” I say, my tone brooking no argument. “Like hell I am.” “Leave it, Baz,” Fiona snaps, standing at [redacted]’s side, hands on hips and a scowl on her face. “Tell me everything I want to know, and I’ll leave.” [redacted] scoffs. “That simple, is it?” I nod. “It is.” “You jumped up little shit.” “Flattery will get you everywhere.” I perch on the edge of the desk, leaning back on it and playing with one of the figurines,
Now, onto the gremlins! I've been deep into ASR rewrites since November, and while I don't think I'll hit my target of a full rewrite by the end of the month or 100k (whichever comes first), I'm still plugging away at it.
In my last post I mentioned the change up in tense and how that's really helped, and I think working on Trails for the last couple of years (my God, it's been 2 years since I started working on that fic 🤯) has been a game changer for me.
Action has always been something I struggle with, but everyone has been leaving such lovely comments on the action scenes within Trails that it's given me a little more confidence when it comes to ASR. ASR is HEAVILY action reliant, and I still don't know why I thought this would be a good idea 😂🤦🏽♀️
That being said, read on for a snippet with Lauren being extra stabby.
I slip into another group of scientists who are frantically racing to the opposite side of the lab. No one notices as I slip the already knotted fabric over my head and tighten it. With my face hidden I shuck the lab coat and flick up the hood of my dark coat. Immediately the scientists are reeling away from me, shouting warnings to everyone close to them. They don’t get far. Throwing knives embed themselves in the lower spines of two, my sai plunges through the back of one man’s ribcage and out the other side, and as I’m pulling it from his limp body I sense someone coming up on my left side. The mercenary lunges with his combat knife, the blade whistling past my waist and stomach in a gutting motion; I’m now to the side of him, his momentum keeping him travelling forward as I angle my sai to penetrate his throat. His warm blood gushes down the blade and slicks my hand around the grip, the weight of his dead body threatening to rip the weapon from my hand. The whole thing happens so quickly it’s like the rest of the lab enters slow motion. I watch the light leave his eyes as he crashes to the floor, blood splattering around his head. Then the screams begin in earnest.
Tagging for other WIPs days this week: @artsyunderstudy @aristocratic-otter @blackberrysummerblog @bookish-bogwitch @cutestkilla
@emeryhall @erzbethluna @hushed-chorus @iamamythologicalcreature @ic3-que3n
@ileadacharmedlife @ivelovedhimthroughworse @letraspal @martsonmars @nightimedreamersworld
@orange-peony @shrekgogurt @theearlgreymage @you-remind-me-of-the-babe
#the trails we blaze#snowbaz fanfic#1920s london#cotta2023#historical au#six sentence sunday#but on a monday#we live in chaos#like the chaos gremlins#original fiction#asr#a survivor's revenge#espionage#science fiction#speculative fiction#Lauren doing what Lauren does best
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20 Questions for Fic Writers!
I'm finally getting around to doing this after @professorsaber, @mythical-bookworm, and @daryfromthefuture tagged me! Sorry for the delay (it's been a week)!
Under the cut because it seems I felt the need to write my life story today as it relates to my body of fan work. :)
1. How many works do you have on AO3?
I'm currently sitting at 51.
2. What's your total AO3 word count?
650,606 (of which 58K are shared with co-authors)
3. What fandoms do you write for?
Predominantly Back to the Future with a lot of Pirates of the Caribbean, Iron Man, and National Treasure in my rearview mirror. I've also contributed one-shots/ small works to 19 other fandoms over the years!
4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?
What to Expect When She's Expecting - (137) - Iron Man
Where You Were (Time Circuits #3) - (95) - BttF
Where You're Going (Time Circuits #1) - (72) - Bttf
Principles of Compromise - (70) - Pirates of the Caribbean
A Fracture in the Space-time Continuum - (69) - BttF
5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?
Most definitely! I love interacting with the people who have taken the time to read and comment on my work, even if it's a simple thank you!
6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?
Ooo hoo hoo. I might have to poll some people for this one. My first reaction would be There Are No Roads (Time Circuits #2.5), but as the ending is technically an alternate series of events, I'm not sure it counts as an official 'end'. I'm big proud of it, though, because most initial reactions were somewhere along the lines of "oh my GOD." :)
That being the case, Once Upon a Time in the West wins hands down, mostly because I didn't even see the plot twist coming until the fourth chapter of this six-chapter fic! And it delivered an epic sequel!
7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?
Oof. Don't come at me like this; I'm just now realizing how much angst I really write because I've narrowed it down to maybe two of my Ao3 fics? Sheesh.
I'm going to go with the only 5+1 fic I've ever written, The Manner of Giving. It was five times Marty failed at giving Doc a gift, and the one time (the end) is when he succeeded.
Where You Were (Times Circuits #3) also gets a nod because it's the end of my trilogy rewrite, and I like to think I ended it on the happy note everyone deserved.
8. Do you get hate on fics?
I've never gotten a scathing flame of a review, thank goodness. I did have someone ask me on FFN once why I was writing an OC for Marty when he had Jennifer in canon, and while it was tempting to just say "don't like, don't read," we ended up exchanging a mature and constructive dialogue and respectfully parted ways.
I also once, long ago, before I ever planned to seriously pursue writing, had one of my fics added to a "Worst of the Worst" fandom collection on FFN. It was a terrible fic written by an inexperienced teenager, but I still find something like that distasteful and uncalled for, mostly because, as the author, I wasn't able to remove my work from the collection. And it's still there. And I'm still mad about it. Oddly, it's ensured I hold myself to a high standard and never put anything out there that could be considered for a "Worst of the Worst" collection again. So, screw that guy, and thank you.
9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?
No. I've never wanted a tell a story where that was essential to the story. Now, I've recently included/ alluded to more mature situations in the last year for the first time in my 20 years of writing to get me out of my comfort zone, but no graphic, extended scenes.
10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?
I have! And the craziest crossover I have is FFHQ. Imagine all the characters in all the fandoms in one giant office park drawing up contracts to appear in fics, meeting with fanfic authors, collaborating on crossovers, etc. It's a lot of paperwork, meaning each character has a secretary. That's a lot of secretaries, so there is a list of "subs" who fill in as floaters when a secretary is out, and this crazy crossover follows three OCs as they bounce around random fandoms each day. This baby is my crackfic, the idea I escaped to in those eight years of depression when I wasn't doing so hot. If you're up for it, I promise it's lots of fun!
Honorable mention goes to the BttF/Elf AU I wrote for our server's Secret Santa exchange last year: Pennies From Heaven.
11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?
*inserts Ben Affleck smoking meme*
Yes. And it's… I'm just very over this form of "flattery".
When I was still in high school, I was writing a pretty successful National Treasure fic when a reader told me they found the story on another site. The person who stole it was writing author notes at the beginning, like "Find out what happens to them next time! I've got great stuff in the works!" I emailed that website, and they kindly took it down and banned that user.
Last year, I had someone on Wattpad steal the Time Circuits Series, rename it the "Flux Capacitor Series", and switched out Emma's name with "Dawn". Two things that had me cackling: When I have Marty call Emma "Em," Marty was calling Dawn "Da," and you could see several places where Emma's name wasn't backspaced all the way out of the text. I confronted the "author", and they wisely took it down, telling me it was just so hard to write it themselves. You bet your ass I have this person still on my alerts list to keep an eye on them, and once a month, I am searching Wattpad for my own fics.
Novel HD/ Novel WW also stole Time Circuts off Wattpad for their website, scrubbed my name from it so that it said it was written by "Anonymous", and put the stories behind paywalls. I caught wind of this about a quarter of the way into the last story and took everything I had off Wattpad. I saved the links but they no longer work, and I can't even access the website anymore. I'm not sure if it's gone or if, because it is a foreign site, they somehow blocked our region from accessing it.
I also had FictionHunt take all of my stuff off FFN! It took several months, but I finally got them to remove my stuff from their site. I might not have minded so much if they had asked me, but that's too hard, I suppose.
There was one website called MovieFanficChains way back in 2005 I gave permission to to host my PotC fics, but aside from FFN and Ao3, that the only place with my permission to have my stuff.
If you see my work elsewhere and it has not been linked back to me, let me know. I'll do the same for you. :)
12. Have you ever had a fic translated?
Not that I know of.
13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?
I've done a few roleplays with @daryfromthefuture, where I wrote for Doc and she wrote for Marty. Our most well-known roleplay-turned-fic would be the 1885 scarlet fever sickfic Lean on Me (When You're Not Strong).
I've also been part of the silly blind writing game in our Discord server aptly named Back to the Future: Discord.
14. What's your all-time favourite ship?
I don't know. This is hard. I'm a romantic, and I make the excited Andy Dwyer face every time a ship is hinted at. I have so many I love, but the mainstream ones that immediately come to mind are Tony/Pepper (Iron Man), Sherlock/Molly (BBC Sherlock), Jamie/Brienne (Game of Thrones), and Reylo (Star Wars).
15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?
I wrote a National Treasure story in high school called Another Clue, and it was one of my first real attempts at an OC insert. It did fairly well, given my talents at the time; I incorporated an OC, but I focused on crafting a canon-like treasure hunt more, and a lot of people complimented that.
So I started a sequel, One More Clue. It built a bigger story around the first, highlighting a treasure hunt that required the help of a rival and two friends seemingly trying to out-betray one another. I got about 12 chapters and 69K into One More Clue before life took over. I last updated it on June 1, 2010, and I left it at quite the cliffhanger with Riley turning Ben into the FBI only to learn the FBI guy was working for the rival and UGH, I keep meaning to go back to it. I have all the notes!
The problem is, I would have to rewrite Another Clue at this point because it's a hot high schooler's mess. You could tell as I wrote One More Clue that I was applying what I was learning from my writing classes in college. While Another Clue didn't have that luxury, it showcases some strengths that compelled me to pursue a writing major (AKA I can make a decent history-driven treasure hunt).
So, while I could finish One More Clue if I really wanted to, it would be pointless unless I overhauled Another Clue first. Which I've thought about. Because National Treasure is my guilty pleasure. I'm just fairly certain no one would be around to appreciate it if I put all that work in now. :)
16. What are your writing strengths?
I've consistently been told it's dialogue, and I find myself agreeing with that. The single lines of dialogue that turn a whole story on its head or tell a whole story of their own are what I live for.
This is the DUMBEST example, but there is an episode of Spongebob Squarepants where Mrs. Puff is freaking out because she gave Spongebob his boating license just to finally get him out of her class, and she's spiraling. She arrives at "I'll have to change my name, move to another city, and open another boating school!" or something like that.
And then her voice just goes dead flat and her eyes narrow and she says, "No. Not again."
And I lose it every time! But you know there's a WHOLE story there just by that little bit of dialogue! I love that! And I love implementing it where I can, whether it be in a comedic or dramatic setting.
17. What are your writing weaknesses?
I'm wordy. When I give myself a word count goal for a project, it inevitably goes over, but it gets shaved down some in editing.
Thankfully, I got a hard lesson in this in one of my college writing classes. I turned in a prose-y poem I was quite proud of, and in the next class, the professor handed out copies to everyone. We proceeded to workshop (i.e. destroy) my work, whittling the word count down by half when it was all said and done. And while I was mortified at the time, I've since thanked my professor a few times for that day. That one lesson lives in my brain every day, and I am right back in that classroom every time I edit a work, trying to figure out what the most succinct wording is, what is un/necessary, and how to play with my line breaks. Criticism is daunting but so, so worth it if you can find the courage to apply it!
18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?
I did this for the first time in Once Upon a Time in the South. I have a headcanon that Buford's baby momma is a Spanish actress at a small theater in Pine City, and he had to get something from her. This woman speaks very little English, and it was a challenge to stay true to that because (a) I don't speak Spanish and (b) my brain just struggles a lot with foreign language translations. Me being me, I wanted the most accurate and realistic translations I could get, ones that didn't sound too formal. Then you add in the fact that it's 1893, so there's a time-period language barrier, too. Ultimately, I'm happy with the end result, but I don't see myself going out of my way to do this again.
19. First fandom you wrote for?
Pirates of the Caribbean! What a fantastic playground in which to practice storytelling! What really got me hooked on this "I might try writing for real one day" thing was listening to the writer's commentary on The Curse of the Black Pearl DVD when I was 15.
Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio gave excellent insight to this story I was enamored with and how they came up with it! "We had Sparrow and Swann, so we figured we shouldn't give Will a bird name" cracked me up. They covered everything — what challenged them, what rules ("guidelines") they stuck to ("leave the kiss for the end"), stuff like that. But what lit me up was hearing the entire backstory while the credits rolled, about how Barbossa was Jack's first mate until Barbossa committed mutiny and all that jazz. There was so much story to the story! That was a big, big day that influenced me. :)
20. Favourite fic you've ever written?
Oh, gosh. This is tough because the favoritism depends on the reason!
I'll forever love Principles of Compromise because after abandoning it several chapters from the end and not touching it for eight years, it was the first story I came back to and finished before returning to the Time Circuits Series. It was the first plot-heavy story with canon characters I attempted and completed (most of my works up until that point had been rewrites or headlined OCs). Finishing it was the stepping stone to all the writing I've since completed (30-some works)!
Favorite all time though? I'm a mom; you can't just ask me to pick a favorite kid, and this is just as mean. :)
(But for real, it's probably a tie between There Are No Roads (Time Circuits #2.5) and Once Upon a Time in the East )
Tagging @retro-hussy, @jowritesfanfiction, @writingwife-83, and anyone else who wants to play!
Thank you so much for tagging me, friends!! I don't know why, but I love doing these! Sorry again it took so long for me to get to. ❤️
#20 questions for fic writers#ask game#tag game#answered asks#fanfic#fanfic writing#fan fic writer#back to the future#pirates of the caribbean#national treasure#iron man#ao3#bgsparrow
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Let’s make some introductions!!
Hey! I’m currently writing the first of hopefully a trilogy of books, and I want to share the progress and my drawings for them! You can call me Kay, and I use They/Them and She/Her pronouns, I don’t mind.
Anyways, this has been my brain baby for the last six years but I’ve never shared any of it nor thought to write it into a trilogy until I started reading Adalyn Grace’s Belladonna trilogy (Love it, really, highly recommend them). But I spent those last six years working on this world and building it up, so I’d like to share it with as many people as will listen! Let’s get to brief overview of my - hopefully to be - trilogy:
Stage one:
When Mars II and her sister stations - Phobos and Deimos - are hit with a sudden and massive solar wave, the delicate portal technology within is damaged. This invites hell’s incarnates into the world. As Death’s Invaders arrive, they wreak havoc upon the some forty-thousand inhabitants of the main station. Flynn O’Brien, the only security officer left on the station, is set to find the source of the Nightmares while also trying to keep as many people he can safe. Along the way, he finds an unfamiliar face among those he’d lived with for five years. Valentino seems to be the only hope of stopping this all, he’d seen it before four times, each more devastating than the last. Instead, he breaks something in the man’s mind and sets loose a brand new ascendant God upon the Marydian system. With the help of Brains - Vega Clarke - and Samuel James, he stops things as they are. But, it seems the battle has only just begun when he and Vega find Earth crawling with Nightmares tearing their way across every planet and space station Humanity has found themselves upon.
Stage two:
Upon reaching Earth again, Vega and Flynn get separated from Samuel - whether that is a bad thing or not, they are still undecided - only to find Earth engulfed in fire and destruction. Where humanities ingenuity had built great skyscrapers and cities sprawling across the planet now lay irradiated wastelands, with only a few safe zones in the northern and southern hemispheres. Faced with this, and the help of a few odd friends made on Mars II, they set a plan. First, to find Samuel for his extensive knowledge on the portal experiments. Due to the shut down walls of the Shadow world, the next step was one that took them backwards. Through the Sun God’s realm of Isonkast, then that of a Godless warrior race known as the Sentinel, and the Sea God’s mighty dimension of Eri Hymmn. Though, the last step in their way seemed to be that of Death’s, but a powerful new friend comes to their aid with his galactic train and passages of magic. There, Vega faces their destiny spoken my Omera the Time God before Flynn and Samuel can face Death face to face.
Stage three:
When all is said and done, Sam stands at the end of the apocalypse with less known about the world than he began with. Though an ascendant himself, he comes to the brutal truth of his birth through the plagues of Calamity. An age old prophecy from Omera’s first Timekeeper reemerges, and a new foe rears her head to finish reaping what Death had sown. Though not actively fighting for his life the way he had been just five years prior, it feels all the same when Calamity takes fate into her own hands and rewrites his, sealing any and all magic away behind a gate of mystery that takes its toll. It becomes uncontrollable, and thus unreliable. Right back at the beginning, he and Flynn take to the dance floor of Calamity’s façade without Brains. Caught in the whirlwind of her chess game, they find her web woven of dark secrets. That is, until a familiar face returns to turn that mahogany dance floor into an aged battlefield. Aten Mei returns to Calamity’s side in the supernova that destroyed Maquia.
Right, that’s the spoiler free premise of what I’ve got, some weird combination of all sorts of media that inspired it. Any questions, I’ll answer, and I’ll occasionally post my work as spoiler free as I can get it but some of my favourite parts are very spoilery. Anyway, it’s poly, it’s queer, and it’s fantastic in my opinion. I hope you like it, here’s my trifuckta—
Flynn O’Brien


This is Flynn, Soldier and train wreck of the Gods. He’s my first main character and the first point of view. A little grumpy and a tad bit violent when push comes to shove but his heart is n the right place when it needs to be. Chosen by a Deity that had never reared her head to humanity, he’s faced with a Time War not even the brightest minds of the 22nd century could foresee. When the Dakarvian Invaders come at the will of the Death God, he faces the fact that not everything is what it was made out to be. The immortal soul fighting for control, Faydley, all the while he’s facing living Nightmares for the sake of his own survivors guilt after the explosion of Mars II.
Vega Clarke



This is Vega, the brightest mind of their graduating cohort. Loud, optimistic, and strong headed, with the biggest heart who’s key lays in Flynn’s hands. Vega the largest of seven departments on the space station, Mars II. They use their eidetic memory for good use when the Gods involve the mortals in their War, managing intel and griefing systems they designed to make life hell for Samiel during the second stage. All that to say, they play a major role as the second POV, paving the way for Flynn and Samiel to take on the God of Death himself.
Samiel James

Finally, this is Samiel - formerly Samuel. A cynical, quiet anti-hero, betrayed by the Gods from his birth. The brains that wouldn’t survive without his curse offered up by the Titan God, Maquia. Born mortal, but divine deep down somewhere. He is my third POV, the aftermath of the Time War is his to bare. After spending years fighting it, destiny wraps him up in the Gods mess one and for all so he can find his own way with a little help from Flynn and the rest of their little army. In spite of all that he is, he stands face to face with Death and his proxy with a power entirely unknown to him.
That’s it. That’s my Trifuckta. Thank you for coming to my TED talk :]
#art#my art#my ocs#original story#digital art#artwork#artists on tumblr#author#im just a little guy#the trifuckta#that’s now my tag for these three#tow the line#that is what I’m calling this whole thing for now#tagging all this for myself—
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Ask game! 3, 5, and 9 for 3 Sovereigns!
Ooooh, great question, Queenie!
#3 ... Actually, my all-time favorite line of narration hasn't happened yet, hehe! 😁 So far out of what you guys have seen, hmm... (There's so many great ones aaaaaaa) I'm gonna say, for now, it's that line in Chapter Six, when Bethesda is pushing Silver through the Time Window: "His survival depended not on her ability to hold him close, but her ability to push him away." It takes such strength as a mother to do what's best for your babies, even if that means sending them away where you can't follow, and it breaks my heart for her every time. 💔 (I cried so much writing Bethesda’s death. 😭)
#5 All of Chapter Three. Literally. I dithered over that Chapter for weeks. Even if I knew what had to happen, getting it out was worse than pulling teeth! I just wanted to skip ahead into Four, to get into the real meat of the story, but aaaaaaaaaaa I couldn't. 😭. I think Chapter 3 of the rough draft took me three months. I literally had to put it away for a little while and work on something else because it was making me insane. 😵💫
#9 Yes, actually, there were FOUR. Three Sovereigns underwent FOUR major rewrites before it finally settled into the story it is now. Originally at inception, it was a fanfiction of The Murder of Me, then it actually started plotting, and became an original AU about Triple S as reincarnated Gods in hiding... and then because I was worried about being too close to TMOM's plot, the hedgies became Kings! There was one more rewrite between that version and now, and unfortunately, I'm unable to share the details of that one before Three Sovereigns finishes because it's too spoilery... but I had to rewrite it because of a huge plot hole I couldn't figure out how to get around. 😭 Ugh, it still hurts me to this day, and I still have the outline for it! I just can't make myself get rid of it, even though it's a version of 3S that won't get told. 🥺
Thanks for the ask, Queenie! And if anyone else wants to play the ask game or just send in asks in general, please do! 🥰
Three Sovereigns: Act One Chapter Eight: Prepare the Way posts this Wednesday, 2/19!
#the three sovereigns#three sovereigns au#sonic au#saphstories#sapphire storybook#saph's ask box#sky queen asks#saph answers#saph q&a#ask game#fanfics
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Inner Conflict
Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avenger!Reader
Word Count: 3586
Warnings: !FATWS SPOILERS!, Cursing, Some Angst, Some Fluff, Sam and Bucky being idiots, Mentions of PTSD, Anxiety, and Depression
A/N: Here’s Part Three to my FATWS Series, which I’m making a masterlist for that you can find Here.
Uh…it’s a little long, and I apologize for that. It doesn’t even encompass the whole second episode, only the first half, so a Part 3.5 will be coming out later today probably (it’s my day off work so I have all day to relax and write!) I tried not doing a line for line rewrite of the episode, but there are quotes from the show in here. Mostly it’s Reader’s thoughts and feelings towards what’s happening while conversations are going on around. Reader’s backstory is a bit more unfurled. It’s more action packed and more scene-for-scene of the episode than the previous two. Less emotions shared and less hurt/comfort type of thing, but that’ll be back in the next part probably along with more scenes not in the show. The next part I’m planning won’t be as long, it’ll mainly just be the Couples Therapy scene and a bit more angst with her and Sam and her and Bucky.
Because there’s four more episodes and I don’t know what’s going to happen in them, I’m kinda hesitant on spilling out exactly what is going on with the Reader and what her role was on the original team, but we’ll get there. Also, I wasn’t expecting to be writing multiple pieces for one episode, but if the other episodes are as packed as this one, prepare yourself for more parts than anticipated. We’re already on Part 3 and I’ve got Part 3.5 coming. Just bare with me as I don’t know what’s going to happen in future episodes! Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy it!
(Not beta’d so excuse any mistakes.)
!SPOILERS UNDER CUT!
Walking out of the shower, ruffling a towel through your hair to dry it off, you froze at the sound of the TV. A sigh left your lips. It’s all he’d been doing the last few days - watching the news. Keeping up with the tour for the new Captain America.
You peeked out of the small bedroom to find Bucky sitting on the floor, brow creased as he watched John Walker talk to the Good Morning America hostess.
“You shouldn’t be watching that.” You spoke up, leaning on the doorway, still patting your hair dry. He glanced over to you, taking in the towel wrapped around you, before looking back at the TV. Seeing you like that wasn’t anything new. “Buck, I’m serious. Brooding over it won’t make anything better.”
“What do you want me to do?”
You let out a sigh, shifting your feet and biting your lip as you thought about how to respond. “I-I haven’t figured it out yet. But obsessing over the new guy-”
“Aren’t you mad?”
You frowned at his question, his eyes meeting yours once more. “I told you already that I am.”
He tilted his head, which he did when he was confused, his eyes narrowing. “Why don’t you show it? Why aren’t you screaming or cursing or crying or something? You, of all people-”
“Because it won’t help anything, Buck.” You shook your head, pushing off the wall. “I want to. But if I let myself go down that road…” Dropping your gaze to the floor, you take a breath, collecting your thoughts. “This is such a complicated situation, James. I’m being contacted left and right for a statement on the new Captain. People trying to see my reaction. Senators trying to get me to meet with him. I can’t let myself snap. I can’t.”
He scowled. “They’re still bothering you?”
A dry chuckle escaped your lips and you nodded. “Makes me miss the days when no one knew who I was; when I was the behind-the-scenes seventh Avenger. But I made that choice to come out, and I have to deal with the consequences now. Blowing up will only-”
“Even though I never met him…he feels like a brother.”
That one statement stopped you in your tracks. Bucky’s head whipped back to the TV, his jaw ticking, his nose scrunching up.
“Did he really just say that?”
Bucky merely nodded, his chest heaving as he tried getting his breathing under control. “Feel like snapping now?”
You purse your lips as you held in the tears stinging your eyes. After composing yourself, you moved over and grabbed the remote, letting out a tiny sniffle as you did so. You tentatively touched Bucky’s shoulder, silently asking him if he needed anything from you. His response was to open his arms, so you quickly got down besides him to hold him.
“He is my brother, doll.”
“I know, Buck.” You pressed a soft kiss to his head, which rested against your bare shoulder.
Your bare knees are pressed harshly against the wooden panels of the floor, and you’re twisted awkwardly, but you couldn’t bring yourself to care. As long as he was comfortable, you would take the uncomfortable position. As long as he was being held, you would take the soreness it would leave. As long as you could help him be some sort of okay, you would take not being okay in this position.
You two sat like that for a few more moments before your phone buzzed. You gave a sigh, pulling back and holding his cheeks in either hand. He wasn’t crying, although he was on the verge of doing so. You’d seen him cry before, so you knew he didn’t mind. For you it was a different story.
Bucky had maybe seen you cry twice since the whole Blip thing went down. And one of them was over the phone, so he didn’t see it so much as he heard it. You didn’t let yourself cry in front of him. Or anyone, for that matter. It was a part of you. The only person you ever felt comfortable enough around to cry in front of…wasn’t there. And you couldn’t change that.
“We’ll figure it out.” You told him, nodding gently and letting a small, sad smile quirk the corners of your lips up. “Okay? We’ll figure it out.”
The clench in his jaw loosened as your fingers worked circles into the hinge, making him relax and nod back. You pressed a tender kiss to his forehead before standing up, moving across the room to where your phone was on the counter. You assumed it’d be another government official or news reporter, so you were slightly shocked to see ‘Sammy’ flashing up at you.
Your eyebrows furrowed as you read his message, a slight pout forming on your face.
“Doll?” Toned arms wrapped around you, warm and cool, his chin setting on your shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s Sam. He needs my help with something.”
“I’m coming with you.”
You turned in his arms, eyes narrowing in suspicion. “Why?”
He shrugged, licking his lips. “You might need help.”
“Bucky, you can’t go if you’re just going to yell at him.”
“I won’t.”
You studied his features. He was lying, you knew that. Of course he was going to snap at Sam for giving up the shield. He was mad and they got on each others’ nerves every chance they could find, so of course he was going to.
But you still found yourself saying yes and telling him to go pack a bag. You were never able to say no to Steve and it seemed that got passed on. What a nuisance it was.
****************
And you were so right. It was the first thing he said once Sam came into view coming down the stairs.
“You shouldn’t have given up the shield, Sam.”
“James.” You squeezed the hand he was holding, voice pleading for him not to do this right now. He huffed, stepping back to let you greet Sam properly, giving the man a hug. “Hi, Sammy.”
“It’s been a while.” Sam commented, pulling back and holding you by the shoulders. “You look good. Not that you’ve ever looked otherwise.”
You gave him a small smile. “You do too.”
“Thanks for coming. I know it’s short notice, but-”
“It’s fine, Sam. Really.” You insist.
Sam nodded, before eyeing Bucky. “Did you have to bring him?”
“Samuel-”
“This is wrong.” Bucky cut in, staring Sam down, falling into step besides him as the man started heading outside.
“James-”
“Hey, hey. Look. I’m working, all right?”
You rolled your eyes as the two started arguing, stopping your stride to take a breather. You used to joke about babysitting them, but it didn’t feel like a joke anymore and you were getting tired of it. All the bickering for no reason. The contempt they held for one another. Steve made you promise that you would look out for them, and you were trying, but they weren’t making it easy.
When you joined them again, you raised an eyebrow at the direction the conversation turned. How the hell did they get from arguing about the shield to what a wizard is?
“Ahh! Haha! A sorcerer is a wizard without a hat!”
You gave Sam a look as he babbled about how he was right. “Sorcerer Mickey has a hat. Isn’t that, like, how he gets his powers and everything?”
Bucky grinned at you. “Thank you!”
“Excuse you!” Sam scoffed, pointing an accusing finger at you. “We were having a conversation!”
“Yeah. A stupid conversation I just ended. Now I’m gonna be in the plane. Feel free to join me when you’re done being idiots.”
They both spluttered, but you were already walking away, leaving no room for arguments. As you loaded onto the plane, you spotted the Lieutenant whom Sam mentioned who had been helping him out with missions. Torres, you thought, remembering his name from a previous phone call with your friend.
“You Lieutenant Torres?” You asked, walking up to him.
He blinked, before his eyes widened, a grin appearing on his face. He seemed young, which you were perfectly okay with considering you’ve been working alongside old men for the past decade. It was always nice to work with a fresh face, which you found after you started working with Wanda and Peter.
The thought of the two youngest members made you falter, not having heard from either of them since Christmas almost six months prior, but you quickly recovered yourself, shaking away the worries you had for them.
“You’re Y/N Y/L/N! I’m a huge fan! I’ve read all your files!”
Chuckling a little, you held out your hand. “Most of those are heavily classified.”
He ducked his head with a little blush, rubbing the back of his neck after shaking your hand. “I, uh, I might’ve…used connections.”
“It’s okay.” You reassured him, throwing him a wink. “I won’t tell. Can you tell me what’s going on? Sam didn’t exactly explain the situation.”
He nodded, getting into ‘work mode’, something you’ve seen in most military men, informing you of their recent missions and the group known as the Flag-Smashers and giving you a file on them. He was in the middle of telling you about his solo mission in Germany when your two fellas came in, sending each other small glares, but remaining quiet.
Bucky caught your eye and sent an apologetic look your way, to which you just smiled at before turning back to Torres.
“Well I’m glad you’re okay.” You told him once he was done.
“Oh yeah. It wasn’t that bad.”
You laughed and nodded. “I’m sure. You seem like a tough kid.”
He smiled, before looking around and jabbing his thumb behind his shoulder. “I-I’ve gotta go, but-”
“We can talk later.” You promised with a grin.
“Really?!”
“Of course! I have a feeling we’ll be working together more, and I like getting to know who’s gonna have my back.”
He beamed and nodded, walking backwards. “That’d be awesome! Talk to you later then!”
You giggled as he turned around and jogged off, pumping his fist in the air. You turned to a grinning Sam and nodded towards where Torres left. “I like him. Seems like a nice kid.”
“He is. Very energetic. A little reckless, but he’s got a good heart.”
You hummed, the smile falling from your face as you flipped through the file Torres gave you. “So…Munich?”
“Yeah. Listen, I’m sorry again for taking you away from the search, but-”
“Search is off.” You informed him quickly, not looking up. “Until further notice.”
The plane went quiet, before Sam cleared his throat. “So…no sign of Wanda yet, then?”
You shut the file, looking up at the men whose features were laced with concern. “I’m gonna go talk to the pilot. Behave while I’m gone. No pushing each other off the plane.”
“Doll?”
You were stopped by the hand that grabbed your wrist as you passed Bucky. You shot him another smile, knowing it wasn’t convincing enough for him, but it being the best one you had. “I’m okay. I’ve just gotta ask him some questions.”
************
Opening your mouth to stop him, you groaned when Bucky jumped out of the plane before you could speak. First Sam jumps without sharing the plan, then Bucky jumps without having a plan. Or a parachute. Or wings. Or anything.
Torres looked at you, but all you could do was shrug. “I dunno what to tell you, kid.”
“You’re not gonna do that, are you?”
“No.” You reassured him, shaking your head. “I’m gonna wait ‘til we land like a normal person and take my bike. I just have to pray that they’ll wait to do anything stupid until I get there.”
They didn’t wait. You’re pretty sure they didn’t even think about waiting. By the time you got to them, they were fighting - and losing, might you add - to six really strong people on top of two semi trucks.
Because why wouldn’t they?
Oh, oh. And on top of that, the fake was there, throwing the shield. The shield that didn’t belong to him. The shield that meant so much more than he would ever know.
“Hi, doll! Sorry we started the party without you!” Bucky shouted from where he was hanging off the edge, that close to the street and getting his head torn off by the tire.
“I’m so tired of babysitting you two, you know that?!”
“Oh! Sorry we’re such an inconvenience for you! Blame him! He jumped the gun!” Sam shouted, coming to fly next to you as you rolled up your sleeves, standing on your bike, using one hand to steer.
“Can I get a little help already?!”
“Sam-!”
“On it!”
Knowing that no matter how much they pissed each other off, Sam would make sure Bucky was okay and vice versa, you focused on getting to the top, where Walker and a buddy of his were struggling a little bit.
You climbed up to the roof of the semi no one was on, wincing when you heard your bike skidding across the pavement. There goes half your salary.
You couldn’t dwell on it for very long, considering one of the guys appeared in front of you. You recognized the fighting - the strength - and faltered, a memory resurfacing at a very bad time.
~
“C’mon, honey. You can do better than that.” Steve grinned at you, holding out a hand to help you up.
“Excuse me for not having super strength, Rogers.” You huffed out, taking it and letting him pull you up.
“You don’t need to be stronger than me. You just need to be smarter.”
“That’ll be easy.” You teased, stretching your arms before getting into your stance again. “You’re a dumbass sometimes.”
“Yeah, well, who chose to be friends with this dumbass?”
“Everyone needs a dumbass for a friend.”
He cocked an eyebrow. “So I’m your dumbass?”
“If you want.”
The grin he shot you made your heart skip a beat. “If you’ll have me.”
~
You blinked, but Steve wasn’t in front of you anymore and you weren’t in the gym in DC.
The guy caught the punch you distractedly threw and twisted your arm, making you cry out, kicking him in the back of the knee and flipping him over your shoulder.
You went to kick him again, but he caught your leg and threw you against the side of the other semi. You were able to grab onto where Bucky had ripped through the side, but you winced as the metal cut through your palm. Sam had just flown under the trucks, taking Buck with him, and you knew when a fight wasn’t worth it, so you quickly moved around the truck, letting Walker and his pal distract the Flag-Smashers, before letting yourself fall onto the side where the grass was.
You wanted to lay there, to catch your breath and curse yourself for getting distracted. You hadn’t had a flashback like that in a while. But you didn’t let yourself. You had to make sure the guys were okay.
Standing up made you cringe; you could feel the throbbing in your shoulder from where it was no doubt dislocated and your leg was aching, the muscle probably pulled when the guy threw you.
“Doll!” You turned, seeing Bucky and Sam sprinting towards you a few yards down the road. “Hey, hey.” Bucky immediately had his hands hovering over you, scanning your body. “Are you okay?”
You nodded, shoving his hands away. “I’m fine.”
“What’s wrong with your shoulder?”
“I think I dislocated it.”
Sam frowned. “What the hell happened?”
You gave him a weird look, starting to limp across the field to where you noticed a side road earlier. “They were super soldiers, Sam. And we got our asses kicked.”
“Yeah, but you know how to fight a super soldier-”
“It’s been a while.”
“Bullshit.” Sam side stepped in front of you, making you stop. “What happened?”
“I-I just got distracted, okay?”
“Y/N. Look at me.” Bucky took your face between his palms, eyes worried. “Are you okay?”
You nodded. A tired sigh left your lips and you looked anywhere but his eyes. “Yeah. I’m fine. Just hurting. My leg, I think I pulled it or something-”
“C’mere.” Bucky turned and crouched down, making you blink.
“What?”
“You shouldn’t be walking. We don’t wanna make it worse.”
“But it’s just a strain, it won’t-”
Sam rolled his eyes. “Just get on the man’s back, Y/N.”
You bit your lip before sighing and carefully climbing on his back. He shifted you gently, making sure to hold your leg with caution, leaning his head into yours when you hooked your chin on his shoulder. “You-you don’t have to talk about what happened. Just-just know that when you do…I’ll be here, okay?”
You nodded, moving to press your nose against the column of his throat. “Okay.”
But you could never tell them. How could you? How could you tell the world’s longest POW that you were having nightmares? How could you complain to an Air Force vet who served two tours in Afghanistan and watched his best friend get blown out of the air that you were having flashbacks?
You weren’t sure if it was PTSD or anxiety or depression. Maybe all three. It didn’t matter, though, because you didn’t want to admit it. You wouldn’t admit it. No one thought the Blip messed you up that badly. No one thought Steve leaving did that much damage. And you were okay with that. You were okay with them thinking you were healing - that you were fine - because they needed to see that it could be done. That they could be fine, too. Especially the men walking, Sam teasing Bucky per usual.
It wasn’t until a horn honked that you allowed yourself to be pulled out of your thoughts. A scoff left you when you realized who it was, switching the side you were laying on so your cheek pressed up against the cool metal of his left shoulder, facing away from the jeep.
You tried ignoring the guy as he talked about working together and shit, taking a shuddering breath, making Bucky squeeze your uninjured thigh. There was no way you were working with him. You couldn’t. It’d be like betraying Steve and you didn’t need that on top of all the other things you were dealing with.
You couldn’t deny the need for a ride though. The airport was 20 miles away and you were hurting pretty bad. You suspected that was the reason the guys relented, Bucky tenderly setting you down in the jeep between him and Sam, careful of your injuries.
You stared at your lap as Walker and Sam talked shop. You understood where they were coming from, you were always able to see both sides of the coin, but it didn’t mean you were going to willingly work with him.
“I got mad respect for all of y’all, but you were kind of getting your asses kicked till we showed up.”
You scoffed at that, finally raising your eyes to meet Walker’s friend’s. “Like you were doing any better?”
Bucky reached over to grab her hand that was resting on her lap. “You know, I’ve been trying to get in contact with you.” Walker faced you, eyes raking down your form. Bucky shifted in his spot, but you ran your thumb over his knuckles before he could do or say anything stupid.
“Yeah. I know. My phone hasn’t stopped blowing up for a week. Thanks for that, by the way.”
Walker frowned. “If you just answered-”
“I don’t care who you are. I don’t care what you’ve done. I’ve been a little busy doing my job to blow smoke up your ass on national television. Sorry if my saving people’s lives has been an inconvenience for you, but some wannabe playing dress up isn’t my top priority.”
Walker’s brows furrowed and he was about to say something, when Bucky cut in, asking his friend who he was. You were already that close to jumping out of the jeep, when the guy, Hoskins, told you three that he went by ‘Battlestar’.
If the situation wasn’t so aggravating, you would’ve laughed when Bucky immediately told the driver to stop, opening the door before the car even stopped. “C’mere, doll.” He murmured, lifting you up into his arms bridal style, before walking off, tuning out Walker as he shouted after you two.
You pouted a little when you saw Sam still talking to the guy. “What’re they talking about, Buck?”
“Some nonsense about him not replacing Steve. Just trying to be the best Captain America he can.”
You laid your head against Bucky’s chest. “The best Captain America is Steve. He can never be Steve.”
“I know, doll.”
“Steve told me once that all he was trying to do was be a good man…it’ll always amaze me that he didn’t see he was the best.”
You missed the distraught look Bucky shot towards you, the look in his eyes almost heartbroken while you talked fondly about his best friend. The tortured scrunch to his features seemed to melt away at your next words, though, and he held you tighter as you curled into his hold.
“Just like it amazes me that you don’t know how important you are to me too, Buckaroo.”
#cjsinkythoughts#cjswriting#cjsspoilers#fatws spoilers#tfatws spoilers#falcon and the winter soldier spoilers#fatws#tfatws#falcon and the winter soldier#bucky barnes x reader#bucky x reader#bucky barnes x you#bucky x you#bucky barnes x y/n#bucky x y/n#bucky barnes x avenger!reader#bucky x avenger!reader#❤🐦💙🦾#💙🦾#fatws series#fatws pt 3
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Investigations (Part 3): Ran Haitani x Fem!Reader
synopsis: when things are uncovered, can you handle the truth? Or are you doomed to make a mistake you can't rectify?
wc: 2.1k
tw: violence
masterlist
song recommendation:
Ran's past was a lie.
When you met him at the country club five years ago, your pasts had been explained in hushed tones and excited flurries of memories; sharing photos of the time before he was an executive of the communications company he worked in and the time before you were a journalist.
Ran said he had gone to jail twice, both for crimes he had been an accessory to as a delinquent kid, but that he'd cleaned up his act after and made his way up the corporate ladder. Nothing about gangs or being a Heavenly King in Tenjiku made it past his lips.
You had been honest, too. Your tales included the time you'd accidentally happened upon a massive gang fight, and that's how your investigative journalism skills began to bloom.
Who was fighting?
What were they going to do after?
Where did these gangs come from?
When did this argument start?
Why were they fighting?
How did gangs form in the first place?
Those were all the questions you sought out answers for that night and the next five years after, devoting your time and effort to finding the truth about everything.
"Babe?" You freeze, hands hovering over the keys at the sound of Ran's voice. You don't turn around - you can't even look at him the same these days - but he fixes that by walking over to you and turning you around in your chair. "What are you doing up so late?"
"Just doing some writing." His violet eyes search yours for the truth, but you know he won't be able to find it. Not while you're still trying to unravel his past. Ran kisses your eyelids sweetly, cupping your face in his large palms and littering his love across your face as you try your best to remain still and not confess about your research.
"Come to bed. It's late."
"I've got a few more paragraphs," you explain, motioning to the small print on your screen. "I'll be in bed soon."
But your lie is discovered shortly thereafter. It's five a.m. when Ran returns, seeing you slumped against your desk, arms cushioning your head, laptop screen blank. Instinctively, Ran pulls you out of your seat - making your notebook fall to the ground - grunting softly as he scoops you up into his arms and cradles you against his chest.
You willingly allow your husband to carry you to bed, where your two-year-old is also nestled among the sheets and pillows, thumb tucked into his mouth. And for a moment, Ran appreciates the view, seeing the two people he loved the most - besides his younger brother - laying in the bed he paid for, in the house he built, in the city he owns.
But then he remembers the slight disarray you left your things in at the desk and returns, picking up your pencil and notebook before laying them beside the laptop. Then his eyes catch "Ran's past?" written in bold, red letters, along with the words: "Tenjiku" and "Tandai" also written in the web of other words surrounding his name. "South Terano" is also on that web.
He'd have to take care of that in the morning.
And for the first time in a long time, worry bubbles to the surface of his mind, and Ran rips the sheet of paper from your notebook, tossing it into the kitchen trashcan and considering his deed done. He concealed his past to protect his family. And he's concealing the present to achieve the same goal; all for the future to be revealed later. That's how everything should be.
Right? _____________________________________________________________
"Ran," you whisper, lips running across his knuckles. His fingers cup your jaw, and his own lips press against your forehead, violet eyes darkening slightly. "It's six am. Where are you going this early?"
"I have to go into the office for a little while," he murmurs, kissing your forehead again. "I'll be back around lunchtime." Thoughts of Tandai and Tenjiku flash into your mind for a moment, but you smile at him sleepily anyway, absolutely sure these things are part of his past and not in the present.
"We'll be waiting for you, my love."
Despite all of your best intentions, though, you can't help but be consumed by the idea of Ran out, fighting, stealing, maiming... You consider asking him about these things, these concerns, but you decide against it as you're helping Kai with his lunch. If he wanted to leave it in the past, there's a good reason for it. He would have told you if it would be a problem later. Right?
Ran wouldn't jeopardize your family, your home, your life for something so... juvenile.
Right?
The clatter of keys on the counter in the living room brings you back to the present, and you perk up, your two-year-old mimicking your expression.
"Daddy!" Kai slides down from his seat and runs to greet Ran, clutching his father's legs with all his little might.
"Hey, buddy," Ran laughs, stooping to pick up his son with excitement. "How are you doing?" As son and father have a very stimulating conversation about playtime, you watch them in wonder, observing the way Ran makes his child a priority, just like he makes you a priority. But your countenance falls as soon as you see the blood spot on the bottom of Ran's lavender suit jacket. You know its blood because of the way it dried - that's no ketchup stain.
You fake a smile anyway, giving Ran a kiss on the cheek and tugging his jacket off after he sits Kai back on the tile floor.
"Hard day?"
"Kind of," Ran mumbles, and you catch the sight of a long scratch down the side of his neck. "But I made it through." You hum, taking the pin-striped jacket to the laundry room and slinging it over the side of the washer. You'd need that later.
"Need to relax?" you wonder, and Ran grins at you mischievously.
"Maybe later, after bedtime?"
_____________________________________________________________
But "later" never came.
Instead, Ran and Kai fell asleep on the sofa, watching a kid's movie, and you retreated to the office, powering up your laptop and pulling your notebook closer.
You immediately notice something's wrong, as the notes you had before were missing. Everything is gone. Not even a word of all the research you had done was there. Hadn't you written meticulous notes and names and things about Ran's past that could be interconnected? You break out in a sweat and search in every drawer of the desk, every place it could possibly be. You come up with nothing, and let out a frustrated sigh before slumping down in your seat and pulling up the computer history from yesterday. If you had to rewrite every single thing, that's fine. You'd just need more time to gather your evidence for the meeting on Saturday.
You're knee-deep in articles and police reports when you stumble across a more recent - actually as recent as this morning - article titled: "Ex-gangster found dead in meat factory". The picture of South Terano startles you, and you click on it, feeling a sense of dread as the article details how he was found hanging upside-down in the warehouse with a bullet hole in his head. And just like that, your newest lead has fizzled out. You groan, writing down "South Terano, deceased" on your notepad, then exiting the tab.
There had to be someone else you could ask. Shuji Hanma only provided you with Ran and Rindou's names, no one else.
"What's this?"
The door to the office shuts softly, and you look over your shoulder at Ran, who is walking toward you with measured steps, his eyes taking in your exhausted expression and the way you're hunched over that notepad. Again.
"What are you doing? You look tired, babe. Let's go to bed, yeah?"
Suddenly, pieces begin to click as Ran leans his hip against the desk, staring down at you in the chair with squinted violet eyes. "You threw away my notes... Didn't you?"
"What are you doing in my business, y/n?"
"Why didn't you tell me that you were in two gangs?" you counter, fingers shaking slightly. "Ran, this is something I needed to know before--"
"You wouldn't have married me if I told you." Ran's tone is cold, almost as if he's turned into the past version of himself without batting an eye.
"You don't know that." Ran leans forward, coming to eye level with you a smirking.
"I know you. And that's all I need." Ran reaches out a hand to close the laptop, still smiling and maintaining eye contact. "Now here's what you're going to do. First, you're going to stop digging into my past. There's nothing there that you need to find. Second, you're going to come to bed. It's late, you're tired. Finally," Ran cups your chin like he did this morning, except his fingers aren't so tender this time. "You're going to cut off contact with both Shuji Hanma and Taiju Shiba. I'm not really fond of either of them, and I'm not a fan of having them tell my business to my wife."
"They were only doing it because I asked."
"Taiju, maybe. Shuji isn't so eager to fuck you. I doubt he did it out of the kindness of his heart." You can't say anything to refute his claims. Ran is probably right. But you can't get one question out of your mind.
"Why are you trying to hide your past? What's there that I won't like?"
"What isn't there is the real question."
"What can you tell me about the gang that's just surfaced in Tokyo?" Ran's face slackens, transforming into a half-surprised, half-blank look that you realize is one that means he's been caught. "Oh, my fucking god," you breathe, tears stinging your eyes. "South, the fish, the murders, the crime... It's you. It's been you this whole time. I've been chasing my own husband down." Panic begins to set in, and your mind whirls around as you shake in your seat, bringing your hands up to your head. "Just tell me Rindou isn't in this," you breathe, but Ran doesn't answer you, still wearing that dumb look on his face. You let out a cry of shock, covering your mouth and trying to back away from Ran as much as you can.
The source is a lot closer than you think.
You slide down the wall, shocked into stillness as your sobs quiet, and Ran straightens up, placing his hands in his sweatpant pockets. The long nights, the early mornings, the bloodstains, the damn suits... It all led to this. Ran had never really left his old lifestyle behind. He'd gotten caught up in it, and brought you and Kai into it unknowingly.
"I never meant for it to get this... unhinged." You can't reply, tucking your knees into your chest as you stare past Ran and at the opposite wall, wondering how you'd missed the signs, the obvious signs that Ran was up to no good. "I know this is a lot to take in, but we can--"
"I can't stay here."
The words fall from your mouth and Ran flinches, shaking his head.
"No. You can't leave."
"Yes, I can," you mumble, standing and wiping your tears. "I can do whatever I need to do to keep Kai safe, and--"
"Kai is safer here than out there," Ran snaps, pointing at the window. "I'm not letting my son out of my sight. Your snooping has caused enough trouble as it is; I wouldn't have had to go and clean up this morning if you hadn't--"
"Don't blame this on me," you retort, pointing at Ran accusatorially. "You're the one who joined a gang and is still in one! What kind of role model are you for our son now?"
"I provide the best way I can," Ran grits out, clenching his fists. "You've never gone hungry, cold, or ill-clothed a day in your life while you were with me."
"I would rather die than enjoy a life paid for with blood money."
"Blood money? You really think--" You try to push past Ran, but he grabs your shoulders, yanking you back in front of him. "You're not going anywhere except to our bed."
"Let me go, Ran Haitani," you mutter, hands balling up into little fists. "Or I'll scream."
"Who will hear you? Kai?"
How had you been so foolish? Ran's lips press together momentarily as his violet eyes run over your figure, taking stock of all your five-foot-six stature. You're no match for Ran. Not mentally, and certainly not physically. Ran notices your defeat and his hands slide down to your wrists, tugging your delicate hands up to his chest.
"Everything will be fine," he whispers, drawing you close. "I'm taking care of us. Just trust me."
Just trust me.
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lavender, honey and coconut (e.p. x fem!r)
summary: Penelope Garcia can sniff out secrets like a cute security dog can sniff out drugs. y/n had been amused but had brushed off the warning. That had been her first mistake.
pairing: emily prentiss x fem!reader
word count: 4k
a/n: okay, this is my first time writing for cm and emily prentiss, so I hope it isn’t too ooc! this is definitely a different vibe to the show lmao, i mostly wrote this to amuse myself, and then decided it might be worth sharing. I hope you’lll enjoy it xo (tell me if u do, i’m nervous)
warnings: some alcohol is consumed, light swearing
ao3
Penelope Garcia can sniff out secrets like a cute security dog can sniff out drugs.
It's a well-known fact that if you want to keep something hidden, one, you don't tell Garcia because she's incapable of keeping anything secret and two, don't breathe near her because she will be able to figure out that you're hiding something, and she will know which buttons to push to get you to spill everything.
Penelope likes to think that in another life, she would've made a great interrogator. In this life though, she uses her powers to get what she wants out of her friends.
This was one of the first things y/n found out when she joined the BAU. Derek spoke about the tech goddess' powers with reverence while the rest of them spoke of it with fear. Even Hotch seemed a little disconcerted by the whole thing.
y/n had been amused but had brushed off the warning.
That had been her first mistake.
***
Paperwork days were the worst.
y/n should probably love them more because if she's stuck behind her desk, it means that no one is out there getting brutally murdered. Still, it's a lot less exciting. It doesn't help that the bullpen is oddly quiet, everyone focused on their files. Spencer is going through his about a mile a minute, stopping from time to time to rewrite something or to look up some kind of information. Derek is slower and y/n can almost see the boredom oozing out of him. Yet, he doesn't look up when she looks over at him and keeps diligently going through his notes.
Finally, her eyes land on Emily. Her head is propped up on her left hand as she writes with the right. Occasionally, she will bite her nails as she focuses hard on part of her notes. y/n thinks she looks extra cute when she frowns, trying to understand her own writing. It makes y/n smile before refocusing on her own work.
y/n is almost done with one of her reports when she notices some missing information. She could easily look it up herself, but she's bored and this is the perfect excuse to get away from her desk for a bit. So she stands up, gathers her papers and walks to her favourite tech genius' lair.
y/n opens the door and sees Penelope's back turned to her. Before she can say anything, Garcia's voice rings out.
"Well if it isn't my favourite ray of sunshine, what can I do for you, y/n?"
y/n smiles at the blonde's greeting, as she sits down next to her, "Are you busy?"
"Not at all!"
"Great, I'm missing some information on this file, but most importantly, I'm in dire need of entertainment."
Garcia happily grabs the file from y/n and starts tapping away at her computer, putting up the information she needs on her screen in no time. She prints it all out and hands it to y/n with a flourish.
"Here's the info you need," She starts, but her eyes quickly turn regretful, "Sadly, I have no recent office gossip to entertain you with."
y/n pouts at that, "Damn, not even from Slutty David?"
Penelope shakes her head and opens her mouth to speak when she suddenly frowns at y/n. She pulls back slightly and y/n wonders if she'd forgotten to put on deodorant that morning. Penelope says nothing, just watches her.
"What?" y/n finally asks, unnerved by the staring.
"What are you not telling me?" Garcia asks simply and it's y/n's turn to frown. She can't think of anything that she might be hiding from her friend.
"Nothing?"
y/n is pretty sure that's the wrong answer and that Penelope is going to keep asking her questions until she confesses to something she didn't even know she was hiding. To her surprise though, Garcia only stares at her for a few more seconds before dropping it. As quick as it disappeared, her bright smile is back on her face and she goes back to telling a story.
It turns out that yes, she did have something to tell y/n about Slutty David.
y/n leaves Penelope about twenty minutes later with a refreshed brain, ready to get back to work. When she gets back to her desk, Emily looks up to give her a smile. y/n smiles back and winks at her as she sits down. Emily's smile broadens before she turns her focus back to the file in front of her.
y/n does the same, her smile staying even while going through an autopsy report. It's only hours later when y/n is almost done with paperwork that she freezes. She looks up at Emily and realizes.
That's what she's been hiding.
She frowns. There's no way Garcia knows that though, she and Emily have made sure, they've been careful.
Yeah, it was probably a fluke.
***
Mornings where she gets to wake up next to Emily are y/n's favourites. Even the early ones, when they get called in for a case, having Emily next to her makes it all easier.
That's what happens that morning, both of their phones going off at 5:45 am. Emily is the one to reach for her phone while y/n latches onto her and drops a kiss on her girlfriend's shoulder.
"It's JJ. We have to go in."
y/n nods and painstakingly opens her eyes. She drops another kiss on Emily's shoulder and turns away from her to get up, but before she can go too far, Emily reaches for her and kisses her. y/n scrunches up her nose even though she's smiling into the kiss.
"Morning breath. Gross," She manages to mutter against Emily's lips.
"Don't care."
y/n had wondered when they started dating if it would get to a point where it'd be too much to be together and then work together as well. Now, six months into their relationship, y/n knows she had worried over nothing. They have a system and boundaries. They keep the PDA to a minimum at work, which isn't a problem considering they had decided to keep their relationship a secret from the team. It's not that Prentiss and y/l/n don't trust their coworkers, it's more than they don't want to screw up the group's dynamics.
And it's also ridiculously funny to see how long it's taking a whole group of profilers to figure out that two members of their team are dating.
After getting dressed, y/n starts packing a new bag, taking clothes from the one drawer Emily had emptied out and gifted to her on their 2 months anniversary. Emily had a similar one at y/n's place. Considering their jobs and the amount of time they spent at each other's place, they figured it was smart to always have enough clothes at each other's place for instances like these.
Not even 10 minutes later, they're out of the door. They kiss one last time before Emily gets into her car and y/n gets into hers. As usual, y/n takes the long way to work, her place being famously further away than Emily's. So when she finally gets to the conference room, everyone is already there and waiting for Hotch.
y/n sits in between Derek and Spencer, "Good morning, my people!"
"It certainly is not," Hotch deadpans as he enters the room. y/n closes her mouth and nods to herself. She should've seen that one coming.
The others chuckle quietly, but the laughter quickly dies. Hotch was right. This is far from a good morning.
The murders are gruesome, the victims are all women which bear a striking resemblance to Emily. y/n doesn't bring attention to it, it wouldn't bring anything to the case except worry over a detail that isn't of much importance, at least not right now. Instead, she watches her girlfriend look at the pictures, and by the way her jaw clenches and unclenches repeatedly, she's come to the same realization.
"Alright everyone, wheels up in 20." Hotch dismisses them, and almost everyone rushes out of the room to get their bags. Garcia stays behind though, and so does Emily. y/n gathers her stuff slowly then, waiting for Garcia to leave the room so she can have a moment alone with her girlfriend.
Garcia doesn't leave, though.
She's staring at y/n ominously. She's missing a furry cat to be petting and she'd look like a supervillain from a cheesy action movie. y/n tries smiling at her, but the blonde doesn't respond in the slightest.
y/n leaves the room. She'll check up on Emily before take-off. She is big enough to admit that she was a little freaked out by Garcia.
She thinks nothing of it until hours later, when she's setting up their evidence board in a small town in buttfuck, Texas. JJ is standing next to her, writing the name of the second victim.
"Garcia has been asking about you."
It's such a weird thing to say that y/n is a bit taken aback. She pauses and slowly turns to look at JJ, "Uhm… Okay?"
JJ puts the cap on the pen and turns to y/n, her face probably too serious for whatever this is about.
"Remember when we told you about Garcia's weird ability to tell when someone is hiding something juicy?" y/n nods, still confused as to where this is going, "Well, she's smelt whatever it is that you're hiding."
y/n briefly wonders if no one is bothered by the constant comparison of Garcia to a literal hound dog, but apparently not. She lets out a small chuckle and nods at JJ, clearly not believing the warning tone the blonde had used, "Yeah, okay, I'll sleep with one eye open."
"y/n, I'm serious," JJ lowers her voice and looks around before confiding, "Penelope is the reason the whole team knows I had a one night stand with Slutty David."
"You had sex with Slutty David?"
JJ shudders, "Everybody makes mistakes."
***
y/n tells Emily about JJ's warning as they cuddle into bed that same night, exhausted from a day of leads getting them nowhere. To her surprise, Emily agrees with JJ.
"Garcia has a way of getting you to admit to things you thought you'd never say out loud."
The way she talks about it has y/n looking up from her very comfortable spot on Emily's shoulder to her girlfriend's face. She's staring off in the distance as if haunted by whatever it is that Garcia had dug up on her.
"What the hell did she find out about you?"
"I don't wanna talk about it."
***
"So, are you seeing anyone?"
It's Saturday night and they're out at a club for a Girl's night. After the case they'd had, they deserved a night to unwind. They've chosen a bar where the music is loud, but not loud enough to drown out Penelope's question. JJ and Emily are gone, lost somewhere in the crowd fighting for the bartender's attention, in search of more drinks. As y/n's brain finally processes what Garcia has just asked, she fights the urge to smile and look for Emily.
y/n has drunk enough to be on the dumb side of gay.
"Why do you ask?"
"Answering a question with another question, very telling," Garcia smirks.
Penelope seems oddly composed for someone who is two cocktails and three shots deep into the party. Usually, a drunk Garcia means sloppy kisses on the cheek and getting her away from attractive strangers before she can say anything overtly sexual or inappropriate. So something doesn't add up. y/n squints her eyes at the blonde in front of her, like that will somehow help her see things clearer.
It doesn't. Everything looks fuzzy and she probably should stop drinking.
"I'm not."
The lie tastes gross in y/n's mouth and if there's one thing that could make her feel better, it would be kissing Emily. Before she can stop it, a smitten smile makes its way onto her face. Garcia slams a hand on the table, making y/n jump. She focuses her eyes on Penelope who's pointing an accusing finger at her.
"There! Who did you just think about?"
y/n sputters, racking her brain for a more convincing lie but she can't stop smiling so she gives in. Damn her inability to lie when she's drunk.
"Okay, fine" y/n amends, "I am seeing someone, but please keep it quiet."
Penelope obviously does not keep quiet. Instead, she squeals loud enough that she startles a few people passing by their table. Of course, that's also the moment JJ and Emily pick to come back.
So when Garcia basically yells, "I knew it!" for the whole bar to hear, there's no way y/n is getting out of this one.
"Knew what?" Emily asks with a smile as she puts down a drink in front of y/n. She immediately grabs it, thinking that maybe if she blacks out, this conversation will also be erased from the history of the universe.
"y/n is seeing someone!" Penelope happily informs the two recently arrived. JJ whips her head, excitement filling her eyes, about a million questions fighting to be asked first. Emily, for her part, chokes on her drink.
"Why haven't you told us anything?" JJ says, her blue eyes even more glassy than usual, "Who is it?"
y/n shrugs, going for a nonchalant vibe. She goes with something vague.
"You don't know her."
Penelope's smile widens, "Oh, so it's a her."
Shit. Not vague enough.
What follows are a series of questions that y/n refuses to answer and thankfully, with Emily there to mediate, they manage to change the subject. Seriously, y/n could kiss her right then and there. Instead, she takes a sip of her drink and glances towards Emily. They decide to leave less than an hour later. JJ is about one sip away from taking her top off while y/n is just about ready to throw caution to the wind and start making out with Emily. To hell with consequences.
Penelope is still suspiciously acting sane.
"Oh, Pen, be careful, someone dropped their drinks right behind your chair."
JJ's heads up makes y/n glare at Garcia who looks a little too guilty.
***
When they get back to Emily's place, y/n barely waits until the front door is closed before kissing Emily. Emily welcomes it, blindly throwing away the keys to wrap both hands around her girlfriend's neck. The kissing is sweet, the taste of their last drinks still sticking to their mouths. It's a little messy due to the fact they're both smiling like two goddamn idiots in love. When they stop, Emily grabs y/n by the hand and drags her to the kitchen so they can both drink water to make their hangovers hopefully less painful in the morning.
They're almost done when Emily speaks.
"We have a problem."
y/n stops moving. She should've known this moment would come.
"Listen, if this is about the burnt toaster, I've already ordered a new one."
"Garcia- What?" Emily turns around to look at the spot where her toaster usually rests, "What happened?"
Realizing her mistake, y/n puts her empty glass of water down and wraps her arms around Emily's waist, "Nothing you need to worry about," Emily looks back at her girlfriend who looks too innocent, "What were you going to say?"
"Garcia knows you're with someone."
y/n nods slowly, wondering where Emily is going with this. She doesn't see any problems. Sure, Penelope knows that she might be sort of taken by a woman, but that's it. Even in her drunken state, she'd managed to keep any other incriminating details to herself.
"Garcia has a way of finding things out, it's only a matter of time until she puts two and two together."
Emily looks genuinely fearful and y/n wonders again, what kind of dirt Penelope had gotten Emily to disclose. She thinks back to JJ's warning as well. y/n turns it over in her head, but in the end, she scoffs and leans up to kiss Emily.
"Don't worry, babe. I'll make up a fake break up or something and we'll be fine."
Thinking she could fool Penelope Garcia so easily was y/n's second mistake.
***
Derek is getting himself coffee when y/n swiftly approaches him from the side.
"What secret did Garcia get out of Emily?"
"Which time?"
"There's more than one?"
"Oh yeah."
***
The whole thing with Garcia does make y/n and Emily reconsider telling the team, or at the very least, Hotch and HR.
They hadn't at first because of team dynamics, but mostly because they themselves were figuring out how they worked as a couple. It turns out they worked great, and hiding each other from their coworkers and best friends was getting a bit much for the both of them.
They wanted to show up at Rossi's dinner parties together without worrying about what their friends would think. y/n wanted to hold Emily's hand after a rough case on the jet without it being questioned, just as much as Emily wanted to drive with y/n to work every morning and walk into the building together.
So the next morning, Emily and y/n get to work before anyone else and walk into Hotch's office.
He doesn't have much of a reaction, not that they were expecting anything more.
What does surprise them is that, after giving them the whole speech about professionalism and whatnot, he smiles at them and says, "I'm happy for you both."
Aaron Hotchner smiles at them and y/n feels like her relationship has just been blessed by the angels from above.
***
"Hey, Spence? Do you know what Garcia dug up on Emily?"
"Emily sprained her wrist a few years back and told us that it had happened at the range. It turns out that she'd sprained it falling from her skateboard."
"Her skate- What?"
***
When y/n had told Emily they'd be fine, she wasn't being cocky, but she just knew that there was no way Garcia would suspect something with how careful they had been.
They never showed up together at work. At first, they always timed their arrivals carefully, until it became second nature. They were never overly affectionate with each other. If they needed to be comforted during a particularly hard case, they'd wait to be behind the closed doors of the hotel room they shared on most trips. As much as y/n wanted to, she never showed up to work wearing one of her girlfriend's sweaters, no matter how warm and comfortable they were.
Bottom line was, there was no reason for Garcia to suspect anything when their teammates who were literal profilers hadn't caught onto anything.
No one except Hotch knew. And only because they'd told him, so.
y/n should've known though, from being a profiler herself, that being too confident meant she was bound to slip up and make a mistake sooner rather than later.
It all happens very quickly.
JJ asks y/n if she can grab a couple of files she had left with Garcia and bring them back to her because she was waiting for someone to call and she couldn't go too far. y/n, of course, accepts, always happy to get away from her desk and the paperwork begging for her attention. She quickly knocks on Garcia's door before entering and the tech doesn't turn around as she greets her.
"Bonjour, Emily, what brings you to Casa Garcia today?"
y/n chuckles at the blonde's eccentricities, "Sorry, but you got it wrong, it's me."
Penelope rolls her chair around to face her and she looks truly distraught to have gotten it wrong, "But I always get it right. I'm the all-knowing Penelope Garcia."
y/n gently pats her shoulder as she reaches past her to some files she sees on the desk, "Are these JJ's? She asked me to get them for her."
Garcia nods, but she still looks defeated at having failed to guess her visitor's identity, so y/n tells her she'll come by later with some coffee for a chat. Penelope nods and turns her attention back to her computer and so she leaves.
It's funny, y/n thinks, that of all the people Penelope could have confused her with, it was Emily. Maybe some of Emily's fears had planted themselves into her brain unbeknownst to her because y/n suddenly feels very uneasy. Why did Pen think it was Emily walking in? Had she unconsciously started walking like her girlfriend? No, no, that was ridiculous. Emily had a very distinctive gate that was very different from y/n's.
Still, something is off. y/n trusts her gut, it has never failed her, and her gut is telling her something is off.
She doesn't know what though. She had woken up with Emily that morning and they'd actually had time to enjoy a nice breakfast together and had plenty of time to get ready together. In fact, they had even gotten to enjoy a very pleasant shower together. y/n smiles at that particularly good memory until she realizes.
"Shit," she mutters, but not quietly enough. She's standing in the middle of the bullpen, her coworkers' eyes on her. Before she can tell herself that it's fine, that she was just paranoid and that there was no way Penelope had noticed, she hears a familiar but hurried clicking of heels approach the bullpen. y/n turns around to see Penelope standing on the other side of the glass window and one look at her is all y/n needs.
She knows.
Before Garcia can make her way inside the bullpen and bring mayhem with her, y/n hastily makes her way to her. She drops JJ's files on her desk haphazardly under Derek, Emily and Spencer's bewildered eyes. When she gets to Penelope, she gently grabs her by the arm and urgently leads her away.
"You smell like lavender!" Penelope exclaims with no preamble, "You usually don't smell like lavender, you smell of honey and coconut, but never lavender and that's why I got confused!"
y/n confidently nods in greeting at an agent passing by Garcia's office as y/n shoves her inside. He looks unsettled but only smiles in return, preferring to ignore whatever is going on. Smart man.
"That's why I thought you were Emily! Because Emily is the one who smells of lavender!" Penelope is pacing while y/n stands with her back to the door.
"Okay, Pen, I need you to breathe," She says when the techie is still going on about lavender, honey and coconut.
"Breathe? How can I breathe when you and Emily are dating."
y/n thinks that's a bit dramatic, but Garcia has finally stopped pacing and talking. y/n slowly steps towards the blonde and puts both of her hands on her shoulders. She debates for a few seconds, wonders if she'd get away with a lie but at this point, y/n's pretty sure the cat is out of the bag.
"Yeah, Emily and I are together."
y/n should've been prepared for it, but when Garcia lets out a high pitched squeal, it still gets her by surprise. Her pained grimace is quickly chased away by laughter when Penelope hugs her with all the strength and excitement caffeine was providing her.
"This is so great, I'm so happy for you two!" She lets you go long enough to see the smile that's made its way onto her face. It's the same smitten smile she always gets whenever she thinks about Emily and Garcia honest to god pinches her cheeks, "Aww, look at that smile!"
y/n laughs and tries to get her cheeks away from anymore pinching. That's when the door opens enough for Emily to sneak her head in, "Hey you two, is everything okay?"
She looks at Penelope first, but her eyes end on y/n. Before she can say anything though, Penelope smirks, "Why yes, lover, everything is just fine."
At that, Emily gets in and closes the door behind her. She looks at y/n for confirmation.
y/n just nods, "Yeah, she knows."
"You bet your sweet ass I know!"
And with no further warning, Penelope tackles Emily in a hug much as she'd done with y/n minutes prior. When she lets her go, Emily steps closer to y/n, and with a hand on her lower back, she says, "I told you she'd find out."
y/n ignores the I told you so her girlfriend apparently couldn't wait to give her, but yeah, she's not wrong.
It'll teach her to ever doubt the abilities of the all-knowing Penelope Garcia.
***
Months and months later, y/n meets up with Penelope for brunch on a Sunday morning. Before she can even greet her, the blonde fixes her with a stare that is both strange but oh so very familiar.
"What are you planning?"
This time, y/n grins and tells Garcia not to worry, that she'll know in due time. After all, she can only hide the little velvet box in her coat pocket and its content for so long.
***
#emily prentiss x reader#emily prentiss x y/n#emily prentiss x you#emily prentiss imagine#reader x emily prentiss#cm imagine#criminal minds imagine#criminal minds x you#emily prentiss#criminal minds#mywritings
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false accusations; (erwin smith x reader)
chapter one; gambler (3k words)
SUMMARY: Erwin Smith has always been a gambler. His decisions have always had promising outcomes. However, when one of his gambles ends with you in the custody of the Military Police accused of perjury, he is forced to come up with a scheme that will have only one solid outcome, the one which he needs to happen for thee wiring your safety.
His plan- to any other bystander -looks to be another one of his unpredictable gambles, but his long time friend Nile Dok knows Erwin's smile all too well to know that he had predicted every single consequence and what the outcome would be to the bitter end. The military Commander had proved to be far too clever for his own good on multiple fronts.
[canon divergence; season 2]
AUTHOR’S NOTE: This is my first time writing for Erwin that isn’t a headcanon. It’s also my first time writing a chapter story in months. I’ve had crazy writers fatigue so I had to take some breaks, but the idea for this story made me excited to write again! This chapter may seem like it drags on and is kind of dialogue heavy (at least I think it is), but it’s mainly just an introduction chapter to prepare for the actual story. So far, what I have planned out is 10 chapters and a prologue but it might change in the future. I hope you all enjoy, and feel free to leave feedback or constructive criticism!
It was the afternoon before the Scout Regiment was to make their way to the capital within Wall Sina. The Commander stood at the head of the oak wood table in front of a map of Stohess that covered the length of the table. The map was covered in short nails and strings with red, green, and black dots, made with ink, marked along certain points. Erwin was hunched forward a little, pointing to one exact spot on the map and revising over the plan that he and the young recruit, Armin Arlelt, had come up with to capture the Female Titan.
Tapping his finger on the map, Erwin looked up at the four sitting along the sides of the table. "Here. This is where Armin, Eren, and Mikasa will be leading Annie Leonhart for the capture squad to trap her." After a brief moment of silence, an invite for somebody to speak up, he continued. "While I am likely being detained by the Military Police, Levi and Hanji will be planted in Stohess already to engage should anything get out of hand," directed Erwin, who looked at the two in question for confirmation. He was satisfied once both nodded.
"Good. Now, Miche will be supervising a group of recruits in an isolated base located in Wall Rose. We can assume that there are more titans similar to Annie and that they could be conspiring together, Armin suggested this would be a good way to avoid interference from others," Erwin explained, lowering himself into his seat. "This plan has already been told to Mikasa and Eren but I'd like you four to talk with them at dinner to confirm that they're prepared. Everyone is dismissed."
Miche and Levi, who both sat across from you and Hanji- who was on your right -stood and saluted the Commander, Levi sharing a few words with Erwin, before they left the office. Hanji took a moment to gather the map they had brought for the demonstration and said a quick goodbye to both you and the Commander before exiting as well.
You remained seated, brows furrowed slightly in confusion. "Sir?" you asked, as he stood and made his way towards his work desk a few feet away. It was sitting by a window that stretched a large part of the back wall, overlooking the training grounds. The desk was filled with papers and had a few ink stains that must have been only a day old since the desk looks to have been cleaned fairly recently.
"Yes, Squad Leader?" Erwin questioned mentioning your name after your assigned title, raising a brow as he looked up to you from the letter he had grabbed before taking a seat.
You sat, silent for a moment in confusion. "Commander, what would you like me to do tomorrow?" you asked, standing and pushing in your chair, walking closer to his desk so that you stood in front of it.
Erwin placed the letter down at his desk, giving you his full attention as he folded his hands on the desk. "You'll join me to the capital. I'm expecting to be arrested by the Military Police once they find out about this plan so I'll need you by my side. Once the situation is explained I'm sure we'll be let go and allowed to join the others, but until then I'll need you to be with me in case a tricky situation arises," Erwin explained. "I was going to mention this later in the night since I'm still questioning whether it would be better for you to be with Miche, but for now the plan is for you to accompany me tomorrow. Understood?"
You fixed your posture into a salute and nodded. "Yes sir!" you exclaimed. Erwin offered a tight smile in response and dismissed you, returning to his paperwork.
Walking out of the office and shutting the door behind you, you made your way to your room. It was at the opposite end of the hall along with Captain Levi's- who had a slightly larger room than you -Hanji's, and Miche's. This floor was reserved for Squad Leaders, the Captain, and the Commander.
Your room was a decent size, comfortable for one person. It had a bed, bookshelf, desk, and lounge chair that fit comfortably within the room without feeling like it was cluttered. The bathroom and closet doors were beside each other on the left wall, both providing enough space for what they were required for. Your room had two windows on either side of the bed and two gaslights hung just barely above them.
All in all, the room was perfect for somebody who didn't spend much time in it. With most days either on the training grounds with your squad, in town gathering supplies, or on expeditions not much time was spent here. However, now was the perfect opportunity for you to take an hour or so to relax in bed before dinner time.
Grabbing your matches, notebook, and calligraphy pen off the desk you made your way to the right side of your bed, striking the match and igniting the gaslight. You walked over to the left side to do the same before blowing out the match and tossing it into the empty glass on your bedside table that was once filled with water.
Sitting up in your bed you grabbed the notebook and pen you had placed beside you. Using the ink container on the bedside table to dip your pen in you began to rewrite the plans explained earlier by the Commander. This was something you did often to keep everything you needed to know fresh in your mind so that should any mistake happen you could readjust a situation to fall along the original path intended.
This habit had come in handy many times throughout your years as a Squad Leader and has saved many misfortunes from happening. Your quick thinking and leadership in tough situations were often praised by young recruits and even your fellow veterans alike.
While writing your last few sentences the bell atop the headquarters had rung, signaling that the clock had struck six o'clock and that it was now dinner time. Lying the notebook open on your bed to dry and closing the ink container, you stood up and made your way to the mess hall once you put on your boots.
Hanji had left their room at the same time you had, calling out your name and walking up to you to join you on your walk downstairs. "Are you ready for tomorrow?" Hanji asked, pushing the door that leads to the steps downstairs open for you both.
"I am. In fact, I'm currently writing everything down in my notebook," you informed, quietly thanking them for the door.
Hanji clapped their hands together once, the sound echoing in the stairwell. "Great! That may very well come in handy tomorrow, especially since the plan is set to take place inside Wall Sina," Hanji said, opening the door to the mess hall once more.
You hummed, bowing your head down slightly as another thanks. "Yes, that's a little worrisome, but I trust Erwin and his plan so really, I'm more anxious for tomorrow to come than I am worried about it going wrong," you replied.
"I feel the same!" they exclaimed, taking a seat once you both reached your usual table. Levi was already sitting with his tray of food while Miche was grabbing both yours and his. Levi had already grabbed Hanji's tray for them.
You smiled at Miche when he returned, setting the tray he got for you down. You gave a small thank you and properly sat down so that you were across from Levi. The meal was relatively silent between you four while the others in the mess hall were rather rowdy as always. Miche was the one to break the silence.
"We should ask Eren, Mikasa, and Armin to join us quickly to confirm the plan with them like Erwin asked," he suggested, setting his fork down on his empty plate.
You nodded in agreement, "yes, we should. I'll go gather the three of them quickly." With that, you stood from your seat and walked over to the table where Eren, Mikasa, and Armin sat. "You three," you pointed to them, "follow me." You gesture with your finger to follow the order, leading them to the table. Usually, you'd have been more polite in requesting them to follow your orders, however with how few people knew of the plan and you didn't want to arouse suspicions and questions you were required to be more firm.
Once you led them to the table Levi instructed them to each take a seat, to which they took across from you- where you now sat beside Levi. "Commander Erwin requested that the four of us went over the plan with you three to ensure you guys know what needs to be done tomorrow. Are there any questions?"
Eren looked to be holding something in while Armin and Mikasa remained silent and shook their heads. You frowned at noticing Eren's inner conflict. "Jaeger, what is it?" you asked.
The brown-haired boy looked up at you, eyes wide for a moment before he sighed. "Are we really sure that Annie is the Female Titan?" he questioned. "Look, I know how smart Armin is and I'm not saying that his suspicions are wrong, but well... what if they are?"
Mikasa was quick to elbow him, her face as blank as ever, but a sound of disappointment left her lips. "Come on Eren, you know that all the signs point to Annie. You will see the truth tomorrow, accept it." That was the harsh truth. A young girl that the cadets had grown up with was a traitor.
Eren shook his head quickly, clearing his thoughts. "Yeah yeah, you're right, I'm sorry. I'll be prepared tomorrow, no matter what. We'll catch her, I promise!" Eren vowed, growing more enthusiastic with each word.
"You better be," was Levi's reply. "We need you three in order to get Annie to where we need her to be, so please, don't fuck this up."
You frowned, flicking Levi's shoulder. "They're children! Stop putting so much pressure on them!" you scolded, turning your head towards the cadets. "Just do your best, Hanji, Levi, and the others will be there as a backup just in case," you assured, alleviating some of the worries you saw in Eren's and Armin's eyes.
Once the three of them nodded you allowed them to stay with you for the remainder of dinner until the bell rang, signaling it was time to make their way to their rooms. You and the others remained still in the mess hall, however. Nanaba, Moblit, and a few other Survey Corps veterans joined you at the table.
It was common for you all to share a bottle of beer each before a serious plan. Not enough to get even close to drunk, but enough to mask some of the stress if even for a few hours. So, as Miche and Moblit returned back to the table with the bottles of beer, everyone cheered and took a swig from their bottles, settling into a small conversation.
The conversations went from one topic to the other, even a few stories shared amongst one another until the doors were heard creaking open. Everyone's head turned, assuming it was a cadet that'd have to be ordered to return to their room immediately, but everyone was surprised when they saw the Commander.
It wasn't often Erwin came down to the mess hall for dinner, typically getting his meals sent to his office so that he would be able to continue his work, but occasionally he'd make his way down to get his meal himself. He hadn't yet noticed everyone, since he was at the complete opposite end of the large room, but a quick glance around and his eyes had landed on your table.
He made careful steps towards you all, his eyes roaming each and every one of you, and then the bottles you all possessed- some empty, some nearly there, some barely dipped at. "Everyone," he greeted, dipping his head just a centimeter as a sign of respect.
"Commander," was everyone's reply, followed by the same action. You and Levi moved closer to the end of the bench you both were sitting at as an invitation for Erwin to sit, which he gladly accepted.
"A beer sir?" Nanaba asked, offering to grab him one from the kitchen.
"Please," was Erwin's answer. As Nanaba made their way to grab a beer for the Commander, he took the opportunity to ask a question. "Stressful night?" His lips formed a slight smile, almost like a knowing grin.
Levi scoffed, drinking what little was left in his bottle before placing it down on the table with a little less force than a slam. "You know damn well it is Eyebrows," he said.
You rolled your eyes, "Oh please, not this again!" you groaned. "Does it ever get tiring of using the same old stupid nickname? Honestly, be more creative!" you told Levi, causing Hanji to let out a surprised laugh beside you, nearly spilling the beer from their mouth and covering it with a napkin.
Levi was about to retort, pointing his finger at you when Erwin interfered, reaching his hand across the table to gran the beer Nanaba offered him. "Thanks," he said before looking at you both. "Now you two, is there ever a day you both get along?"
"Hey! We get along just fine," you defended, looking surprised when everyone laughed. "Oh come on! We just have a sort of sibling relationship, fuck off," you said, feigning anger when you grabbed your drink and took a sip.
Conversations once again picked up, this time with Erwin participating this time round. It was a nice relaxer before a day like tomorrow, and it was nice for you to see the Commander so at ease. Everyone knew how much he overworked himself, but all attempts to remove himself from his desk were rendered fruitless when he was so focused on his work. It was only at times like these did he allow himself to take time for himself, and times like these also helped everyone else.
Seeing their Commander with a slight smile and loose shoulders, enjoying himself, was a relieving sight for all soldiers. It could even be a sign of hope for some of them, much like yourself. With little driving you forward, other than the freedom of humanity, it was difficult to find reason in why you fight. It was not uncommon for you to question your goal when it seemed unattainable at times, but when the leader of it all seems to have the hope and the drive for it, it gave you the motivation to do the same.
But unfortunately, like most things, all good things come to an end and it was time for everyone to rest up for what tomorrow would bring. Clean-up and 'good nights' were done quickly, everyone departing towards their rooms, all but Erwin who stayed seated. He allowed you to take a few steps forward before calling out your name.
"I've decided on a definitive plan for you tomorrow," he started, standing up and making his way towards you. He tossed out his beer in the trash near you. "I'll need you with me. Miche can handle the cadets by himself, and should he need help Nanaba is going with him. I don't yet know what tomorrow is going to bring, and you're one of our best when it comes to easing a tricky situation. We need you on the front lines, so you'll come with me."
His tone gave no room for questions, Erwin's plan was settled and nothing would change. Still, you replied with an, "understood sir," before making your way to your room again. You paused when you reached the door, and without turning around, said, "good night Erwin."
"Good night," he responded, a hint of a smile in his voice. Allowing the doors to shut behind you, you walked up the stairs and into your room, deciding to take a quick, cool shower. The cool, almost warm, water helped to clear your thoughts so you only focused on the temperature of the water. It wasn't your usual or go to temperature, but on nights like this, it was a good way to get your mind off things without writing yourself to death.
Once out of the shower, you dried yourself, brushed your death, and did your usual nightly arrangements before walking towards the bed. You took a few minutes to think to yourself, like you did most nights, and allowed for yourself to soak in the silence. Zoning in on one particular spot in the ceiling, you thought about tomorrow.
Everything about this plan Erwin had come up with was a gamble. It relied on the soldiers there to capture Annie without trouble, but there would be no idea what would happen. Stohess was in the center of civilization, in Wall Sina, and the fear of Annie transforming into a titan within that wall was frightening to you.
You had good reason to be frightened too, with what the results of this plan, this gamble, could mean for you and for many. However, while many feared for the lives of their family and themselves, you feared the truth that may arise, because although discovery could be a great thing, change was often terrifying in a world ruled by titans.
But, Erwin had trust in himself and his soldiers. He believed that sacrificing lives for change was necessary in war, much like many leaders before him would agree. Death was a result of war, and Erwin risked people's lives. However, he was a gambler after all.
And he would regret that by the time the sun set tomorrow night.
#false accusations#erwin smith x reader#erwin x reader#erwin smith#attack on titan#attack on titan x reader#aot#aot x reader#shingeki no kyojin#shingeki no kyojin x reader#snk#snk x readers#levi ackerman#hanji zoe#miche zacharius#moblit berner#nanaba#mikasa ackerman#eren jeager#armin arlert#annie leonhart#fanfic#fanfiction#angst#action#titans#x reader#my writing#commander erwin#commander erwin smith
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Bags
(not my gif)
Summary: After another duffle bag of supplies washes up on shore, the girls realize that they’re going to be stuck here for a while. Episode six rewrite. 3.0k words.
Pairings: Toni Shalifoe x fem!reader
Warnings: Swearing, throwing up
A/N: Okay listen I just wanted Toni fanfic but no one was writing it so here you go. Also I really tried too hard to get the bed sharing trope LEAVE ME ALONE I LIKE IT PSLFDLJ (this is your reminder to turn on Interactivefics xx) oh and also theres a bit in here thats heavily inspired by @ drewstarkeys Toni fic which you all should go read asap its amazing.
This was weird. It was really fucking weird. It had only been four days since we found Jannette’s grave empty. Four days since we found a clean water source. The longer we stayed on this god forsaken island, the more it felt like we were never getting off. And now another round of duffle bags have shown up. You know, as crazy as I think she is sometimes, Leah’s starting to have a point. Something is way off about this place.
Nora and Rachel were the ones who spotted the bags. They washed up on the rocky side of the beach, covered in weeds. Dot was hoping for some more food, maybe more medicine if we were lucky. But to all our confusion, all the bags contained were blankets and pillows. Ten pillows and five blankets, Dot so cheerfully announced. My first red flag was that the insides were completely dry. I didn’t want to say anything though. I was sure there was a reason for this.
“There’s enough shit here for us to double up,” Dot told us while Nora and I laid out the makeshift beds. “Except for one person who gets to sleep alone.”
“Well that’s not fair, why does one person get a bed all to herself?” Rachel asked, standing up defensively.
I rose to my feet as well. “Why don’t we rotate it?” I suggested, hoping to relieve some of the tension. “W-with our off days. That way whoever’s off can have an extra good night’s sleep before they have to work again?” The girls all nodded their heads and mumbled words of agreement. Rachel sat back down on her log.
“Great idea y/n. So who’s bunking with who?” Dot asked. Rachel and Nora instinctively reached out for each other. Beside me, Toni looked to Martha. Martha gave Toni a weary look before reaching a hand out in the opposite direction. Towards Shelby. Even I had to stop myself from dropping my jaw.
Fatin gleefully agreed to pair with her “new bestie for the restie,” Dot. That left myself, Toni and Leah. I glanced between them. Leah was avoiding my eye and Toni...Toni just looked mad. It’s not that I don’t like Leah, I just don’t know her. Not that I know Toni any better, but at least Toni hasn’t gone batshit crazy more than once. On the other hand though, I didn’t find Leah unbelievably beautiful the way I did with Toni. And Toni would never want to bunk with me anyway. I crossed my arms, not doing a very good job at hiding my uncomfortableness. I was about to open my mouth to ask Leah to share when Toni called my name.
“Y/n,” I turned to face her, eyes wide. “You’re with me?” I nod and swallow hard. Fuck.
The sun was getting lower and lower in the sky, just like our food supply. Rachel offered to go foraging for something meatier in the morning, so at least I could look forward to that.
I shuffled under the blanket Toni and I shared. “Sorry you got stuck with me,” I whispered. “I can go sleep with Shelby if you want, so you can be with Marty?”
“Nah,” Toni shook her head. “I don’t mind. Besides, I don’t really think Marty wants anything to do with me right now.” I didn’t know what to say. I felt bad for her. A lifetime’s worth of friendship thrown out of the plane. Literally.
I wondered if anyone else was awake. The light from the fire was enough to see everyone’s feet but that’s about it. I still wasn’t accustomed to how dark it got at night. I was limited to just my hearing after the sun went down. I would try not to listen though. The more you listen, the more you realized how we definitely were not alone out there. Focusing on Toni’s breathing beside me was enough to keep me sane.
Couldn’t say the same for Leah though. She sat straight up and I thought she got bit by a crab or something.
“Does anyone else think that this is crazy?” She asked us.
Fatin groaned. “Leah, we got into a plane crash. Is that not enough crazy for you?”
“No seriously Fatin, what the fuck is going on?”
“What are you talking about,” Dot sat up.
“I mean these,” Leah held up a fist full of her blanket. “Where did they come from? Do none of you think that something’s up?”
I pushed myself upright. “I’m starting to agree with Leah.”
“Oh God, not you too,” Dot flopped back down onto her back.
“No, think about it,” I started. “A bag with medicine just happens to show up? And then we find Jannette’s grave empty!? And now these duffles appear with nine peoples worth of blankets and shit? Who brings that to a resort retreat? That’s weird. It’s really fucking weird.” Everyone was sitting up at this point, staring at me. “I didn’t say anything when we opened them, but these things were dry. Everything bone dry. Rachel and Nora found the bags on the shore, like they were washed up. They should have been soaking. Hell, they should have sunk!” I took a shaky breath in. “Every day we stay here the more it feels like we’re not leaving. It’s like someone wants us to stay here. I know I sound crazy but come on!”
“Y/n...”
“We don’t even remember the crash!”
“We all blacked out.”
“That’s not how plane crashes work though!” I realized how loud I had gotten. I noticed how Nora was sitting, hugging her knees tight. Shelby’s face was pale, even in the orange glow from the fire. I closed my eyes. “This isn’t my first crash.” I kept my eyes shut. I didn’t need to see their faces while I told this story. “I got into another one like eight or nine years ago. The engines broke and we crashed in a forest somewhere near Chicago. And I remember it all. I remember the engines failing, and the plane falling and the back coming off when we hit the trees. I didn’t black out until I was on the ground. So yeah, I think something is fucking off. This isn’t right, none of this is right! We shouldn’t be here, we shouldn’t-”
I started to choke on my own words. I think I was starting to throw myself into a frenzy. Something grabbed at my hand. It was Toni. She looked me in the eyes. There was something in her gaze that told me I was safe. Told me to calm down.
“Okay,” Dot said slowly. “I think we’re all starting to lose it a little bit Y/n. And no sleep isn’t gonna help. Let’s all try to get some shut eye, yeah?”
I nodded profusely and flipped onto my side, embarrassed now from that outburst. I guess I didn’t realize how far off the rails I’d been slipping. Silently, I started to cry.
I tried to stay as far away from Toni as possible. With my back to her, I figured that my crying could be somewhat camouflaged. I was very wrong.
“Hey,” Toni murmured. When I didn’t respond, she tugged on my shoulder to roll me over. I quickly wiped the tears off my cheeks. I couldn’t look at her directly. Her gaze softened. I realized then how close we were. Even in pitch darkness, I could still make out the outline of her face, her cheeks, her nose, her lips- I prayed she couldn’t hear how loud my heart was thumping. Toni reached a hand out and brushed another tear away. Had I started crying again? Jesus I was so far gone. “I know how you feel. I wanna get out of here too.’ I said nothing.
Toni moved to create some more space and put her arm out. I looked at her, questioning, though I doubt she could see my face. “Come here,” she said quietly. “I heard what you told us yesterday, about what your mom says? Sometimes you just need a hug.” I nearly started crying again right there. Slowly, I squirmed closer until my body was curled into hers. I smiled inwards. Besides the fact that my heart was trying to beat right out of my chest, I felt better. We both drifted off soon after.
I woke up to the sun shining way too bright and the sound of…snickering? I opened my eyes and tried not to get totally blinded by the light. I looked up to see Nora, Fatin and Dot standing over me, all chuckling.
“What?” I mumbled. I must have woken Toni up because she started moving underneath me.
Oh.
That’s why they were laughing.
I had fallen asleep curled into Toni’s side and woken up completely entangled with her. It wasn’t a one-sided thing either, she was holding on to me for dear life. What. The. fuck. I jolted upright, maybe a little too fast because the three girls around us started to laugh more.
“Good morning love birds,” Fatin cooed.
“Shut up,” Toni said, using a hand to shield her eyes. “We were conserving heat.”
“Yeah, what she said,” I smiled. “Is it breakfast already?”
“Not quite,” Dot shrugged. “Martha and Shelby are still getting some berries and shit.”
“Oh well in that case I’m going back to bed,” Toni grunted, rolling over. Her and I were on water duty today, so technically we had no need to be up before breakfast anyway. Dot and the girls made their way back to the fire. I was half awake though. Might as well start the day early too. Except that Toni seemed to have other plans.
Before I had the chance to get up Toni was tugging at my arm, silently asking me to come lay down. I gave in immediately. “Come keep me warm,” she mumbled. And so I did. As I laid my head down onto her chest, I noticed Shelby looking at us. She turned away when she met my gaze, but there was something behind her eyes. Disgust. Great, just what we needed. Stranded in the middle of nowhere with a fucking homophobe.
“Do you think Shelby is homophobic,” I asked lowly.
“I dunno, maybe? Why?”
“No reason, I just….That would be pretty awkward if she was.”
“Yeah…”
Nora woke me up a second time that day for breakfast. We ate in silence like we had done for the last few days. Food was running short and we were getting antsy. Toni and I broke away from the group after we ate with half of Fatin’s luggage bag. We trekked up and through the forest towards the waterfall. Neither of us said a word the whole trip. I was starting to overthink. Like, heavily overthink. In normal circumstances, overthinking might be appropriate. The night before was…not normal. But these were not ordinary circumstances. The middle of nowhere is probably the best place to have not normal and still be fine. Whatever. Right? Was it weird? Does she think I’m some weird crybaby now? Was that just a pity hug? Am I going absolutely crazy for no reason?
I’d gotten so wrapped up in my thoughts, I didn’t even notice we’d arrived back at camp. As Toni and I got to work, filling bottles to boil, Rachel was shouting from the top of a cliff. She was holding up a sack of something, I couldn’t quite make it out.
“Who’s ready to fucking feast?”
Mussels. Rachel found mussels. Now, I’d never been one for survival training but the one thing I knew was that seafood was a no.
“I really don’t mean to be a bubble burster, it’s just that seafood can be really dangerous,” I explained. Rachel looked like she wanted to take my head off. “And we do not have the vicinities to properly prepare these.”
“So what, you’re saying I’m trying to poison all of us?” Rachel challenged.
“No! No, no, not at all Rach. This was a great find, you did good.” I smiled wearily. “All I’m saying is that maybe someone should sit this one out, you know? Just in case. If we’re all sick then we’ve got no chance.”
“Great then who’s gonna be the starving one?”
“I don’t mind. I got berries.”
Turns out Shelby wouldn’t eat either. An allergy, I think she said. It felt good to see everyone this happy. Leah was genuinely smiling, Dot seemed a little less stressed. For a second it felt like we were actually on the retreat we were supposed to be on. Toni started to make out with her mussels. Or…well you know, with them. We all found it hilarious. Except for Shelby...
“Fuck you.” And with that Toni was off, running down the beach. I myself was on the brink of tears. Some churches man…they’ll brainwash even the best of 'em. I stared at the sand, not sure where to go. I wanted to chase after Toni, I wanted to stay right here and hide in the sand. The rest of the girls had gone quiet too.
“What?” Shelby asked. “Am I not allowed to have my own beliefs?”
“Not those ones,” I spat. I pushed myself up and jogged around the bend.
I saw Toni near the shoreline. She had her feet in the water. Cautiously, I crept up behind her. I didn’t want to startle her. “You good?”
Toni turned and her stance signaled she was ready for a fight. Her shoulders relaxed when she realized it was just me. “Yeah. No. Whatever, I just need a break from barbie bitch.”
“Yeah, you and me both,” I chuckled. “Will you though? Be okay?”
“You don’t need to worry about me. I’m fine.” She looked back out at the sea.
“G-good. Okay, I, uh…good, I’m glad,” I was muttering. I mutter when I’m nervous. Avoiding eye contact, all that fun stuff.
“Why are you so nervous?” Shit. So she did notice. “I mean you’re chill around everyone else but you get all twitchy around me. What’s with that?” She paused and her face fell a bit. “Do I scare you?”
“Oh god no,” I grasped her hand. “No I promise Toni, I’m not scared of you.”
“Then what?”
I look down at my toes. “I-I um…you-“ I swallow hard. “You’re pretty.”
She didn’t say anything and I was about ready to jump into the ocean and never come back. And then she laughed. She fucking laughed! Oh my god I was going to cry. I felt like I had just been publicly rejected in middle school all over again.
“That was cute,” Toni said, still chuckling a bit. I looked her dead in the eyes and she wasn’t kidding.
“Okay, I’m gonna go back now.” I turned on my heel and started walking back, very briskly might I add. I could not believe that just happened.
“Yeah me too-“Toni cut herself off and started heaving. I looked back. Toni was throwing up her entire stomach and then some. I rushed to her side, brushing the hair from her face. In the distance, I could see Rachel throwing up too. Oh Jesus Christ.
Shelby and I spent the rest of the day running from girl to girl, holding hair and passing out water. It was one huge haze of running back and forth, trying to make sure no one died. I knew that the mussels were a bad idea. God, how could I be so stupid? This was all my fault. Once Dot resurfaced from the dead, she took charge. Leah was sent to go find the medical bag while Dot and I boiled more water. She had me look over Toni and Marty while she took after the twins.
Toni was not good. By the time I got back to her, she was practically lifeless. Fatin was trying to get her to drink some canned water but it wasn’t working. Matha, who was equally unwell sat by idly, crying into her can of water and trying not to throw up again. I pulled Toni off of Fatin and into my lap, trying to get her to drink the water from my bottle. She kept turning her head away or pushing my hand. I pulled her closer and upright with one arm and got Fatin to hold her face in one place.
“Drink,” I told her. She couldn’t even speak but she shook her head. “Toni, drink. Please. You need to rehydrate for me okay?” I got her to drink a little, but she just couldn’t swallow. Martha started crying at some point. Luckily, Leah made it back with the medicine.
Trying to fight Toni into taking the pill was not working Especially not when everyone started crowding and screaming at myself and Dot. Shelby crouched to our level and took the pill from Dot. This only made things worse. No way in hell was Toni ever going to accept anything from Shelby. But blondie wasn’t going down without a fight. In one motion, she’d shoved me out of the way and climbed on top of Toni, dropping the pill into her mouth and forcing her to swallow.
Night fell and everyone was exhausted. Toni hadn’t woken up since Shelby drugged her and honestly I was getting a little worried she died in her sleep or something. Martha wasn’t looking too hot either. She’d broken into a sweat despite the cold of the night. Everyone else is tucked into their respective beds, dead silent. The cold night air made it easier to relax. After a day like today all i wanted to do was curl up next to Toni and never wake up.
Beside me, Toni started to stir. The weight I’d been carrying finally lifted off my shoulders. “Toni?”, I chimed. “Are you alive?”
“No,” she grumbled as she sat up, rubbing her eyes. I didn’t give her a moment more to readjust to life before I tackled her in a hug.
“Oh my god, you’re okay.” She laughed at me again, but this time I didn’t mind. Cause she wasn’t dead. Or close to dying. I pulled her back down on top of me. She fell asleep again in my arms. I smiled down at her. Once again, there was a moment where I wasn’t in living hell. It was just me and Toni. Somewhere safe. And warm, preferably. Everything was going to be okay.
And then Marty dropped dead.
#erana james#toni shalifoe#the wilds#amazon prime#shoni#shelby goodkind#leah x fatin#martha blackburn#dot campbell#rachel reid#nora reid#toni shalifoe x reader#toni shalifoe imagine
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an introductory rec list (that no one asked for) to some of my favorite ships: drarry [4/10]
First fic I read for the pairing: Obsession by yesbocchan [2k,T] Harry thinks Malfoy is up to something evil. Until he finds out maybe he's not the only one with an obsession. [just a cute little eighth year fic i saw on tumblr back when i was first getting into fandom stuff (and back into harry potter in general) when i was near the end of high school. it’s cute, it’s sweet, and i was curious about drarry as a concept so]
Fic that really sold me on the pairing: Stealing Sweaters by DorthyAnn [12k,T] It's their eighth and final year and over the course of several months, Harry and Draco have managed to become close friends. Their friends are entirely certain that they ought to be much, much more. So they just decide to... help things along. [listen, everything that DorthyAnn writes is phenomenal, so how could i not fall in love with this ship after this?]
Absolute favorite fic(s) for the pairing: Animus Nexus by MystyVander [96k,T] It's Eighth Year at Hogwarts and it seems Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy hate each other more than ever before. Everybody is sick of it. Somebody was tired of the two enough to curse them, binding them together. What at first appears to be a death sentence to both Harry and Draco turns out to be the thing the both of them needed the most. [it’s enemies to friends to lovers coupled with accidental bonding coupled with discussions of magical theory coupled with wizarding traditions with a few misunderstandings and some angst all set in eighth year and that’s basically the perfect combination for me.] Twist of Fate by Oakstone730 [302k,T] Draco asks Harry to help him beat the Imperius curse during 4th year. The lessons turn into more than either expected. A story of redemption and forgiveness. Pairings: HP/DM (Slash) Timeframe: 1994-2002 Goblet to 4 yrs post-DH EWE Rating T for language, high angst, content. [this fic has lived rent-free in my head for three years and it fucking slaps. there’s angst and fluff and so many bittersweet moments and it’s both canon compliant and completely canon divergent and i am obsessed with it. 40000/10]
Most recent fic I’ve read for the pairing: love me now (touch me now) by swisstae [3k,G] Harry's never had a bath. Draco plans on changing that. OR in which Harry gets his hair washed and Loves It (and Draco. He loves Draco too.) [this fic is adorable and sweet and i enjoyed it immensely.]
Favorite AU(s) I’ve read for the pairing: Alternate Sorting AU (Slytherin!Harry): Malfoy Flavor by Vorabiza [199k,E] Harry’s ready to banish the Golden Boy image and take charge of his life. Unfortunately for him, or fortunately, there are surprises in store for him. [Slytherin!Harry but it’s not an entire canon rewrite like most of the alternate sorting fics i love so much, so that’s fun. also severitus and just the right amount of soul crushingly painful angst. oh and it has a delightfully fluffy little sequel. ] Alternate Sorting AU 2: Electric Boogaloo (Ravenclaw!Draco): Chaos Theory by Tessa Crowley [102k,E] Chaos: when the present determines the future, but the approximate present does not approximately determine the future. One gene varies, one neuron fires, one butterfly flaps its wings, and Draco Malfoy's life is completely different. Draco has always found a certain comfort in chaos. Perhaps he shouldn't. (warnings for: major character death, graphic depictions of violence, psychological torture, implied/referenced non-con) [as my notes on my bookmark said: GOD DAMNNNNN. I LOVE THIS FIC. I CRIED SO MUCH AND ALSO THERE WAS LAUGHTER AND JUST GOD DAMN. ONE OF MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITES. so that about sums it up.] Time Travel AU: Annus Mirabilis by Ren [39k,E] Harry and Malfoy are trapped at Hogwarts around the time the school was founded. Stuck with a different way of doing magic, with no chocolate, and with each other, they have to find a way to work together if they want a chance to go home. [i almost never fuck with time travel aus but… this one slaps. also? hogwarts founders era?? hell yeah. also also? their relationship progresses in a way that feels so natural and the tension is so palpable and the writing is excellent.]
Favorite Series for the pairing: Leo Inter Serpentes by Aeternum [746k,E,6 Works] Just one conversation between two eleven year old boys goes slightly differently, and the world changes. Just how much will be different with Harry being sorted into Slytherin, and how much will stay the same? [Slytherin!Harry? Harry, Draco, Hermione friendship? Severitus? All in a complete series re-write that’s currently six completed works deep? What more could you possibly need?]
Longest fic I’ve read for the pairing: I Do What I Want by XxTheDarkLordxX [509k,E] They say you shouldn't touch what isn't yours... Too bad no one told Harry that. A simple mistake that Harry made in his first year at Hogwarts is coming back to bite him in the arse. The war is over but the threat to his life is just beginning. This story begins with a simple apology that changes Harry’s life. It starts a domino effect that leads to unbelievable connections, undying love, unique past lives, unknown villains and an unstoppable family. Follow Harry and his friends on an epic adventure filled with twists, bumps, comfort, enemies, a new life and a lot of love. (warnings for: major character death, some character bashing) [the first (or first few? i forget) chapters are written in first person but they’re an internal monologue and the rest of the fic is not in first person, just so you know. Also, the concept slaps and the fic is cute and i love to see it (and i’ve read it thrice).]
Fic(s) with some of my favorite tropes: Matchmaking: Ron Weasley: Accidental Matchmaker by Phoenix_Waves [2k,T] "There's not a sexual tension out there that the man can't accidentally detect!" George beamed. "And then ask the stupid arse question that's going to light the spark and fan the flames." Lee added matter-of-factly. A fluffy Christmas one shot featuring our favorite older Gryffindors. [god this is excellent: the obliviousness, the mutual pining, the matchmaking, having the older gryffindor kids around and having a good holiday time- it’s all excellent.] Soulmates: Kiss Me Not by DorthyAnn [21k,T] Sometimes a witch or wizard's magical signature is so completely incompatible with another that they repel one another like magnets. On the other hand, if two magical signatures mesh well together, well there are no stronger relationships in all the world. In a sample of a thousand people, the average witch or wizard will be slightly repelled by four or five people and strongly repelled by only one, at the most. The opposite is true for attraction. But Harry Potter can't kiss anyone at all. [this is actually such a fascinating take on the classic soulmates trope. there’s no predestined person for everyone and there’s no magical guarantee of anything, just magic being a little difficult and i adore that. also the writing style is excellent and the characterizations are spot on.] Accidental Bonding + Bed Sharing: Let's Take A Chance On Happiness by endless_grey [21k,E] Harry works with Luna at her magical antique shop, and everything is going pretty well until a mysterious ring makes an appearance. Cue curse-breaker Draco Malfoy and an accidental bond, and suddenly Harry is magically married to his former nemesis. They need to break the bond before Hermione's fundraiser, but Harry doesn't remember "fall in love with the git" being part of the plan. [i discovered this fic while looking for something else, but it’s so good. i love their dynamic and it’s shift as the story progresses and i love both of their friendships with luna just as much. it’s funny and a little angsty and well written and has two of my favorite tropes in it. what more can i say?]
#drarry#drarry fic rec#drarry rec list#drarry fic rec list#drarry fics#drarry recs#hp fic rec#hp recs#hp fics#hp fic rec list#hp fic list#hp fic recs#drarry fic recs#intro to my fav ships rec list#queue is for quibbler
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kh3, recoded spoilers:
another part to my data boys as gummiphone assistants crack lol. Basic concept: Data Sora and Data Riku get sent to Riku's phone to accompany him on his ventures through unreality.
in this installment: Riku realizes his kh munny doesn't work in Unreality, so Data Riku pulls some bs in order to help Riku win prize money in a motorcycle race.
warnings: some cussing, ig, crack
___
“That’ll be $25.03.”
Riku blinks. He looks down at his munny. He doesn’t know how to divide a single munny into “point three” munny. He’s never needed to do that back home.
He does the next best thing, and holds out twenty-six munny.
The cashier reflexively reaches out his hand, then pulls away. He stares at Riku’s hand, then glares at Riku’s face.
Riku pulls his munny back just an inch. “...I’m sorry, I only have twenty-six.”
The cashier squints, then glares again. “Is this a joke or something?”
Riku’s phone rings in his pocket, but Riku feels himself growing confused, and doesn’t want to add the data kids to the mess. “I don’t understand. What’s wrong? Is it the total?”
The cashier looks to the side, as if attempting to take a mental break from the situation, before turning back to Riku. “Dude, stop with the prank. You already ordered your food, just—”
“What is it?” someone calls from within the kitchen of the restaurant.
“Hold the food,” the cashier calls back. “This guy’s trying to pay in marbles or something.”
“What the fuck?”
Riku blinks. What did that mean? The word, the marbles, the prank, all of it?
“I’m sorry,” Riku apologizes again, and he knows Data Sora is going to give him a talking to for it. “I’m—Cancel my order, I—”
The cashier sighs, and taps on the monitor of the register. “Alright, man, just—don’t do this kinda stuff; no one watches prank videos anymore.”
Riku nods, despite not understanding a word being said, and ducks out of the restaurant, munny in hand.
He wanders the streets for a good while, until his confusion and embarrassment simmer down. Only then does he finally answer his phone, which hasn’t stopped ringing incessantly.
“Hellooo?!”
Riku braces himself. “What is it, Sora—”
“Riku! What was that? What happened? Why didn’t you answer? And what did I tell you about over-apologizing?”
“I was busy,” Riku quickly answers, if only because otherwise, Data Sora would keep asking questions.
“Busy not eating! And right when you finally decided to! Go back!”
Riku thinks about the munny he’d stuffed back in his pocket, and feels his earlier frustration returning. “And what? They wouldn’t take my munny, and I don’t think it’s because of something I did.”
Data Riku scoffs, and it’s the first sound he’s made this whole time. “That’s why I was calling you. Was there a weird “S” looking symbol on the menu?”
Riku doesn’t have to think twice. It had stood out to him instantly. “Yeah.”
“I thought so. That symbol represents the currency here. Your munny from home is different, and it won’t work here.”
“Then why didn’t you warn him?” Data Sora chides, lightly smacking Data Riku's elbow.
“I didn’t check until just a while ago, okay?”
Data Sora gasps, his mild anger seemingly vanishing. “Riku? Not planning ahead?”
Data Riku rolls his eyes, but Data Sora’s antics instantly improve Riku’s mood.
“So now what?” Riku asks, and now there’s less tension in his voice. “I haven’t run into any monsters here, and who’s to say they’d drop munny anyway?”
Data Sora crosses his arms into his usual thinking pose, humming. Data Riku, on the other hand, raises an eyebrow at Riku. The little smirk is back, and Riku can’t believe he used to do such a thing.
“I think I found something,” is all Data Riku says.
Data Sora’s arms fling out beside him in surprise. “Huh?”
Data Riku answers by strolling over to his beloved keyboard, and calling up a holographic display.
Riku blinks, and Data Sora gasps.
“So,” Data Riku asks cheekily, “do you remember how to ride?”
~<~>~
“How did you know about that?” Riku asks as he follows the gps on his phone. He glances up to read a street sign, then looks down at his phone again.
Data Riku scoffs. “Come on. If there’s one adventure of yours I have data of, it’s your time in The Grid.”
“That makes sense.”
Data Sora is turning from one Riku to the other, eyes wide. “Huh? Adventure? Grid? What’re you guys talking about?”
Data Riku points at the hologram in the middle of the room, and Data Sora is transfixed on it once more.
“What I understand so far is that you have to sign up for these things in advance,” Data Riku explains. “Because it’s an official event, which is the only kind that will even give you a chance at winning prize money.”
“Prize munny?” Data Sora asks. “I thought munny was no good here.”
“Currency,” Data Riku clarifies. “Money, different from ours. Or at least this world’s equivalent of munny.”
Riku turns a corner, and suddenly he hears the echoes of squealing tires. It sends a rush of excitement through Riku’s veins.
An obvious hole in their plan then makes itself known.
“How am I supposed to race? I don’t have a bike.”
Riku’s words cause Data Sora to turn back to the hologram from before, and he practically drools over the flickering image of a motorcycle. “Biiike…”
Data Riku keeps typing without missing a beat. “I was going to focus on the process of registering you for the races in the first place, first. But—” and Riku’s screen suddenly shows a different display “it’s done. Almost. Basically.”
Riku scans the webpage on his screen, slightly distracted by the increasing sounds of revving engines and the smell of burning rubber.
“This is the login screen for current racers,” Data Riku’s voice explains. “This will serve as a pathway between the gummiphone and the servers housing the roster data. I’ll do some tweaking, and if all goes well, you should appear on the roster as if you’ve been entered the whole time.”
Something about this situation feels vaguely familiar to Riku, but’s it’s a barely-there sensation that’s interrupted by the sound of Data Sora snoring in the background. Riku smiles. “What do you need me to do?”
The gummiphone screen switches back to the room in the datascape. “Here? Nothing,” Data Riku answers. “What I do want you to do is find me a vessel.”
Riku stops walking midstep. “What?!”
Again, Data Riku doesn’t even blink at his monitor. “It’s not for me. It’s for you. Or, more accurately, your bike.”
At this, Data Sora wakes up from his standing nap. “Bike? What bike?”
Both Riku’s smile.
“Exactly,” Data Riku says. “I can’t just make a bike out of nowhere, not out there. The code needs to exist within something tangible, preferably something which’s code I can simply rewrite.”
Riku nods, and looks around. “Alright. What exactly could you use as this ‘something’?”
The display on Riku’s phone screen changes, flickering between various images of different types of electronics.
“Any smart device should work. They’re like your gummiphone, devices that can be personalized and connect and interact with you as its user and other compatible devices.”
Riku commits the appearance of said devices to memory, and resumes his search. “Where could I find one?”
“...Go into that restaurant.”
Riku looks at his phone to see what Data Riku is referring to. Across the street is what looks like a fast food place, but Riku doesn’t understand.
“Why? I can’t buy anything there. That’s the whole reason we’re going through all this trouble to win prize money at the races.”
Data Riku is grinning, and it’s unsettling. “Just go in.”
Against his better judgement, Riku listens.
Once inside the restaurant, Data Riku instructs Riku to approach one of the booths labeled “self-checkout”. In the booth is a large tablet fixed in place, where it seems customers can place their order themselves without the need for a cashier.
Riku is about to experimentally tap at the display, when suddenly, the tablet starts to seemingly leak pixels—
—until it disappears in a shower of code.
“Oop—”
“Okay, leave the building,” Data Riku instructs.
Riku blinks. “What—Where did the screen go?”
“Don’t worry about it, just leave.”
Riku gapes at his phone. “Are you—Are you stealing?”
“Mind not announcing it to everyone here?” Data Riku’s arms are crossed. “And don’t forget we’re the same person. If I’m stealing, you’re stealing. Now let’s go.”
“Excuse me?” a voice calls, and Riku spots a woman in a uniform walking toward him. “Sir, do you need any—?”
Of course, this is the moment Data Sora decides to join the fun. “We’re stealing?! Awesome!” His voice rings clear from the phone speakers, and the woman balks.
Riku panics for a second, then bolts out the door. Behind him, he hears a voice shout, “What the fuck?”
He isn’t of a mind to ponder the word meaning this time.
On his phone screen, Data Sora is cackling, throwing his arm over Data Riku’s shoulder, who’s having way too much fun at Riku’s expense.
“I can’t believe you just stole a whole tablet,” Riku grunts as he flees the scene.
“Thanks for the vessel,” Data Riku answers, sounding unusually cheerful. “Hurry and get to the track.”
“I’d get there a lot faster with that bike you promised. It’s the least you can do after stealing from that restaurant. I can’t believe—”
Data Sora is still having the time of his life. “Way to go, Riku!” And Data Riku looks way too proud of himself at the praise.
Riku rolls his eyes after glancing over his shoulder for any pursuers. “Teenagers.”
“Alright, jump!”
“What—”
“Jump!”
Riku sees the pixels up ahead, glittering and reforming into a familiar shape.
He jumps.
And he lands on something solid just as the pixels settle into their new form.
People, cars, and buildings all flash past Riku as he crashes down the street, toward his original destination. Data Sora is absolutely losing it as he watches from the gummiphone (which Riku had docked on the console), and looks like he might pass out when Data Riku emulates the scene within their world, with the two of them cruising on a shared bike.
“Wait,” Riku shouts over the wind, and the engine. “Couldn’t I just sell this thing for money?”
“You’d really sell something that you stole?” Data Riku calls back, grinning when Data Sora wraps his arms around his waist.
Riku would swerve into a post if he could focus on the gummiphone for more than a split second at a time. “I didn’t steal anything; that was all you.”
“You keep telling yourself that.”
___
i didn't even get to write him actually racing lol oops. and there's a whole other side to this i'm imagining where sora drags yozora to the very same races riku is about to pop up in, sort of a rapunzel/eugene vibe lmao. yozora really doesn't know why tf his heart tells him to put up with sora's shit but he does it anyway. my poor amnesiac boys.
i also know i didn't really explain my bs logic for how data riku turns a tablet into a motorcycle (i never even mentioned the motorcycle once it appeared either LMAO). i would have, in data riku fashion, but it would've made for a block of text full of made up nonsense lol
#kh3 spoilers#recoded spoilers#data soriku as cummiphone assistants#soriku#riku#data riku#data sora#riku on a motorcycle#riku's motorcycle my beloved#data bois#data boys#crack#crack fic#writing#my ramblings put to paper#my daydreaming put to paper#data sora and riku as cummiphone assistants#data soriku my beloved#lmao crack ideas in my head#look at my brain being dumb lmao#my bs#my bullshit#give us data soriku as siri and cortana pls#fanfiction#riku is a broke boi in quadratum lmao#broke riku#street racer riku#at some point hopefully LOL#thief data riku oop#hey remember data sora is like 14 he still thinks stealing is cool alright
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Part Two: Watch Your Tone With Me, Boy. (Bad Boys S09E07)
Episode Summary: When an old friend of Dean’s asks for help to solve a murder, Sam and the reader discover that the older Winchester as a secret past—one that will help solve the hunt. Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader Word Count: 4,533.
Previous Part | Supernatural Rewrite Masterlist
You slipped the knife back into the waistband of your jeans and adjusted your jacket when you saw Ruth visibly relax a little bit to see that it was just you. And not some ghost that was supposedly haunting this place. You were an avid believer in the fact that every home had its own set of spirits and secrets. Eventually they struck without warning, but never without reason. It was your job to find out and put a stop to it before someone else could get hurt. Lucky for you, Ruth was more than a local. She knew the ins and outs of this farm since she was little. And even better, the tragic history from the previous owners and how Jack was tangled up in all of this mess.
"I grew up in this town. I used to come up here as a little girl. The Wasserlaufs—Howard and Doreen—they used to own this farm back then. My co-worker, Jack, may he rest in peace," Ruth began to give you a bit of backstory to help explain things a little better. Ever the religious woman, she made a swift quick sign of the cross in hope he might be at peace after suffering his time on earth. "He worked here as a farmhand. Howard was a nice man, but…”
Ruth never liked to talk ill of the dead. You could tell from the hesitation in her voice and how she trailed off for a second before going back to the story. “Well, he’d get into that corn liquor. And one night he got it into this thick skull that Jack and his wife, Doreen, were rolling around in the hay. It wasn’t true—but Howard’s paranoia got the best of him. He tried to kill the both of them. Jack got away, but Doreen…”
“He killed her?” You asked, taking a guess of how this story ended.
“With a meat cleaver.” Ruth whispered, nodding her head. You psychically winced at the gruesome details of a life cut short. “Which for Howard ended a year ago. He always swore he’d get his revenge on poor, old Jack, and...it looks like he finally got it.”
A year was plenty of time for a spirit to grow powerful enough to seek his revenge that he wasn't able to get while still alive. The pieces were starting to come together. You thought there was no one else to blame, there was no need to. Ruth had been nothing but helpful to you. Still, there was one more question you wanted to ask her. An odd one that made her look at you with a confused expression. "Is Howard buried in town?"
+ + +
You and the boys headed to the cemetery during the usual time when the sky was pitch black and everyone was asleep in this little town. Easy access with no chance of anyone disrupting you form the several laws you were about to break. While you stood over the grave with sore arms from doing your share of digging, the brothers continued with the rest of the work under the light from the small lamp you brought out here. Most of the digging had been in complete silence with the occasional sigh and grunt from shoveling down six feet beneath the earth. You found yourself leaning against your own shovel and drifting to your own thoughts.
Ever since you left Sonny's home, you kept wondering why Dean kept this place a secret for so many years. He wasn't much of a talkative person about his past unless it was for a funny story or if he was feeling particularly vulnerable, which happened rarely for you. Sam was finding himself caught up with his own personal questions. He had been lied to for years about a story that didn't seem like such a big deal just to tell the truth. He wanted to know why his brother kept up this lie for so long. You had a sneaking suspicion there was more to this story than Dean was admitting to, or wanted.
"So...Dad didn't want you to tell me." Sam decided to strike up a conversation when he threw another pile of dirt into the growing one just a few feet from where you stood. His growing curiosity was hard to ignore anymore. Sam decided it was the best time to strike now before all of you headed back home. He needed to know the truth. "How come? was this place really so bad?"
"I don't really remember." Dean said. At first it sounded like another little lie to get himself out from talking about this any further. He felt the need to give you and his brother a peace of mind to keep from dragging this out more than it needed to. "I mean, look, nobody bad touched me. Nobody burned me with their smokes, or beat me with a metal hanger. I call that a win."
You furrowed your brows slightly from his examples. You peered down into the grave where Dean caught your concerned expression when the both of you made eye contact for a second when he threw another shovel of dirt into the pile. "I'm afraid to ask if anyone actually ever did that to you."
"No." Dean mumbled without much of a thought, hoping you'd drop it. Only the same expression remained on your face as you wondered if he was telling the truth. "No! No, Y/N. No one beat me. I was kidding. Besides, if anyone tried to lay a hand on me back in the day, it'd be the last thing they ever did."
Sam chuckled when he caught your eye roll at his brother's attitude that hadn't changed much since his teenage years. Dean felt his shovel hit something hard from the thunking sound he heard when trying to dig up another pile of dirt. You leaned over the grave a little more to see the boys had finally found the coffin. Sam did the honors of lifting open the lid to reveal a corpse that was well past the decomposition stage. You grabbed the supplies you needed while the boys made their way out of the grave for you to complete the final step.
Your favorite part of burning a body was pouring the lighter fluid and salt over the body, a strange cocktail mix you had grown accustomed to doing as your part of the hunt when spirits were involved. The easiest part of a salt and burn while the boys were stuck with the manual labor. You mumbled a thanks to Dean when he handed you a book of matches and his lighter, the last thing you needed to wrap up this hunt.
"All right." Dean said. "Let's barbecue old McDonland here, get the hell out of Dodge."
You flicked the lighter and watched as a small flame ignited from doing such, allowing you to catch fire to the book of matches. You threw them into the grave when you saw the orange hues grow enough for you to be confident the body would catch fire as well. Like the dozens of times you had done this before, you watched from a safe distance as the corpse quickly burst into flames from the fluid. If you ignored the several laws you were breaking and the smell of human flesh, the fire during a cold night like this was refreshing. You placed your hands over the fire and rubbed your hands together, smiling in amusement when Dean rolled his eyes at your behavior.
+ + +
The next morning you hoped to be back on the road and halfway to the bunker already, instead Dean wanted to stick around for breakfast at some local diner. You were a little bit annoyed at the change of plans he made without telling you or Sam. His brother didn't oppose the idea of having a warm meal for a change. You were tired from being up all night burning the damn corpse, Dean seemed a bit too cheerful. It wasn’t like him. Normally the trick took a few cups of coffee and an hour of being up for him to stop using grunts as forms of words.
You scanned the menu to see if there was anything decent here you might want. To you, it seemed like every family run diner you’ve been to, and you’ve been to a lot from the years you spent on the road. Dean had a deeper connection to this place, it was the spot where Sonny took him after a month of staying at the farm. A tradition for every boy. For some reason it felt more special to the older Winchester than he realized until coming back here.
He remembered the conversation shared with the older man over the best pancakes he ever tasted. Both of them discussed things that felt like something Dean should've been able to do with his own father. The littlest of things that were normal for most people, but to Dean, the topic of conversations like how he was doing in school and how he was overall, were strange and new territory. They were the stupidest things that made Dean feel like a teenager for the first time in his life—and not some kid who was forced to watch his brother for weeks at a time. Who spent days worrying if his parental figure was going to make it back alive. Sonny even opened up a bit about himself and the life he had back in the day.
"Dean, you know I'm fine just grabbing a burger to go somewhere, right?" You turned the menu around to see if there was anything that you wanted, but for some reason you just weren't in the mood for anything offered. "Besides, I wanted to get home sooner than later. I'm tired. I miss my own bed.”
"What, and miss out on the best banana pancakes you ever had? Come on, sweetheart. Live a little." Dean's infectious behavior didn't seem to rub off on you like he'd hoped. You glanced up from the menu to see his eyes weren't focused on you like you thought, instead they were wandering over to the busy counter. A frown stretched across your lips when you saw him eyeing one of the waitresses. "You can take a nap in the car."
"Mmhm. I'm sure that's the reason." You muttered to yourself.
The waitress seemed to be more than just a pretty face that caught Dean’s eye, on the rare occasion that it happened. She appeared to be about your age and overly friendly among her customers, as if she’d been doing this her whole life. After passing by a few tables and checking up on things to make sure everything was all right, she headed her way over to your direction, greeting the three of you with a welcoming smile, pen and pad ready to take your breakfast order. It took you a second to realize Dean must’ve known her from back in the day before he could say something.
"Hi. Welcome to Cus's.” She greeted all of you. “What can I get you three?"
"Bet you've never thought you'd see me here, huh?" Dean offered the woman a little too friendly of a smile he’d flashed her plenty of times during their teenage years. You remained quiet as you watched the interaction unfold, curious as to how this was going to play out.
Robin, from what gold name tag pinned to her shirt read, didn't return the overly friendly smile. She merely stared at him, wondering if she was supposed to remember him. "Uh, look, I'm a little bit slammed right now." She said. "Do you guys want to hear the specials?"
"Robin...Dean Winchester." He introduced himself to the woman, hoping it might spark a memory in her. You and Sam looked over at one another for a brief moment from the awkward interaction before focusing your attention back to the unraveling conversation that wasn’t heading in the direction Dean hoped for. "I used to live up at Sonny's farm."
"Oh, oh. Uh, look, sorry. There's just so many boys that pass through there, it's hard to remember every name and face." Robin apologized for failing to remember someone from well over a decade ago. You bit the inside of your cheek from the way Dean's face immediately dropped in embarrassment from the way he was acting.
"Yeah. Uh, no. Sorry, I just—I remember you coming up there with your mom. She'd give us guitar lessons. It's uh," Dean shifted around in his seat as he told of a memory that you'd never heard of before. You perked up at hearing how Dean learned guitar. He never told you that. You were suddenly intrigued to hear more, curious even more now of how Robin played into all of this. And how well he knew her from the way he was suddenly acting. "It was a long time ago."
"Yeah. Mom—she loved helping out the boys." Robin said, a small smile crossing her lips at the mention of the woman. You offered one yourself when she looked around at the table, retelling of a fond memory at least shared between the both of them. "I guess that's why I kept giving lessons after she passed."
The conversation slowly veered into another pause of awkward silence as Robin and Dean's eyes darted back and forth between one another, not sure if full eye contact was appropriate. You bit the inside of your cheek from how the atmosphere was changing. Dean felt as if he'd made a fool of himself, Robin was embarrassed at the fact she didn't remember him. Luckily before things could get worse, Robin heard her name being called by another person on staff, needing help somewhere else. The woman excused herself with a polite smile before dashing off elsewhere.
“Dude…”
“Let’s go.”
Dean didn’t want to waste another second here after a simple conversation nosedived into something mortifying. He didn’t know why he felt like such an idiot. You and Sam followed after the man when he snatched his jacket from the back of his chair and beelined for the door without saying anything else. So much for having those pancakes.
You slipped on your jacket as you picked up the pace to try and catch up with Dean, wanting to know why he was suddenly acting so upset. You could put the pieces together on your own, but you wanted to be sure what you were about to say was the right thing. And you always liked to dig a little deeper into things that never quite concerned you. It was in your nature.
"What was that all about?" You asked. Dean rolled his eyes from your pestering, shooting it down with a one worded answer that he hoped would make you drop the conversation once and for all. Of course it didn’t, for it only fueled your curiosity even more. “And don’t tell me it's ‘nothing.’ Because it was obviously something.”
“Who was that waitress?” Sam questioned his brother, deciding to join in for himself.
“Is she an ex-girlfriend of yours or something?” You pressed for more when a teasing smile crept on the ends lips at the way Dean stiffened at the mention. “Come on. I’m not jealous.”
"I said it was nothing, Y/N, all right? Drop it."You could tell by the tone of Dean's voice he wasn't in the mood to play this childish game anymore with you. It was your turn to roll your eyes from the way he was acting. You reached out to open up the backseat door as Dean's phone continued ringing. Finally answering it, you heard the familiar name of Sonny come out of the older Winchester's mouth, followed by a reaction from a call that wasn’t to congratulate you on a job well done. "What?!"
+ + +
You and the boys headed back to the farm after hearing the disheartening news of Ruth's strange passing. You thought the case was wrapped up for good, but it seemed the person whom you thought was to blame for all of this was the wrong target. Someone else was to blame. You watched as the coroner's van pulled away with Ruth's body after they took a look around the scene for themselves to figure out what happened. You overheard the hushed conversation among the officers who suspected it was most likely an accidental drowning. She probably fell asleep in the bathtub. While the cause of death might have been correct, their hypothesis of how it happened was wrong. There was nothing accidental about this.
You crossed your arms tightly over your chest in frustration. Whenever someone else fell victim to the creature you were trying to hunt, it was the worst feeling of all. You let another innocent person die. You had been so sure. Ruth told you herself. She was set on the fact that Howard would get his revenge. And if he was to blame for this, it didn’t make sense of how she died this morning when you burned the man’s bones last night. Someone else was to blame for this. And you needed to find out quickly before another person suffered a terrible fate.
“I tried to get in to save her, but the damn door wouldn’t open.” Sonny told you the story himself about what happened this morning, finding it all a bit strange from an invisible force that wouldn’t let him in. Sam wondered if it was because the door happened to be locked. A woman must’ve wanted privacy while she took a bath, but locks weren't a privacy the boys on his farm were allowed to have. Which made things even stranger. “There’s no locks on the farm.”
Dean let out a sigh from the situation that was only growing crappier. “That means our little field trip to the cemetery was a bust.” He muttered. Sonny gave a slightly confused look as to what the hell you were doing there in the first place. He decided it was best not to ask. “Sonny, is there anything else weird you can remember?”
“What, ‘cause we’re not already chest-deep in weird already, kids?” Sonny asked.
“I know, I know.” Dean said. “I mean anything—really.”
“There was one thing.” Sonny suddenly remembered now, feeling it might be important for you to know, and hoping it might help. “Ruth always had her rosary beads with her, but now I can’t find them anywhere.”
"All right. Let's start with the vics, okay? I mean, both lived in the house. They both worked closely with the boys." Sam listed off a few similarities between Ruth and Jack that might tie in the reason why they were targeted in the first place. It wasn’t much of a solid thread, but you had to admit a small lead was better than nothing.
“Why don’t Y/N and I go have a chat with the rugrats, see what’s up?” Dean suggested. You nodded your head in agreement. “Play bad cop, worse cop.”
The both of you headed off to go search around the grounds to see if you might be able to find any of the boys to ask them a few questions. You figured most of them weren't doing their daily responsibilities Sonny gave them from all the commotion that went down earlier. It wasn't hard to find a few boys when you heard a set of voices echoing not too far from where you and Dean were standing, and from how the conversation was unfolding, it was anything but playful banter between friends.
“Come on, whatcha gonna do about it? You gonna cry?”
“Timmy, you’re such a little weirdo.”
Dean picked up the pace when he heard a familiar name dropped, making him realize who the two older kids were tormenting. You followed right behind to see the older man come to the rescue of a young boy who was cornered by two older and larger ones, making for an unfair fight to protect himself. Dean shoved the two boys away from who you guessed was Timmy before they could try and inflict anymore harm.
“Timmy, what’s going on?” Dean asked the young boy, hoping for some kind of answer. The kid remained where he stood, cowering in his spot against the house, as if he was too afraid to speak in front of the bullies. The older man decided he’d get back to the kid in a minute, for now he focused his attention on the others. “All right, you two. Where were you this morning when Ruth had her accident?”
“Unless you’re a cop, we don’t need to tell you anything.” The taller one of the two bullies thought he was funny when he replied with a sarcastic comeback. You chuckled in amusement from how tough the kid thought he was. He was about to be in for a rude awakening.
“Rude and smart. Well, guess what.” You took it upon yourself to pull out your fake badge from your pocket and flashed it to them, Dean doing the same in a more aggressive fashion when he got dangerously close. As if he was proving a point that he wasn’t fooling around. He was the worst cop in this situation. “Now, since you two obviously love running your mouths, why don't you answer our questions?"
“We weren’t even here this morning. Sonny sent us into town to get some chicken feed—we swear.” The kid said, making sure to add the last part when you gave them both a glaring expression their parents lacked to give from their foul behavior.
“What about Ruth?” You asked them. “What can you tell us about her?”
“We used to call her the warden.” The shorter, skinner bully answered. “She was a real bible thumping hard-ass.”
“Obviously. What else?” Dean pressed for more information that might be useful. “Anything different or weird you can think of?”
“You mean besides Timmy?” You rolled your eyes when one of the bullies thought it was funny to try and go for a jab when you and Dean were standing right here, you had enough of their juvenile behavior. So did Dean from the reaction they were able to get out of him.
“Hey. Either one of you touch him again, I’m gonna go all Guantanamo on you. Understand me? Now get the hell out of here.” Dean’s threat made the smile on the bullie’s face quickly drop from how serious he sounded. “Go on! Get!” It didn't take much else for the two boys to go running off somewhere else where they'd be useful. You let out a sigh before turning your attention over to Timmy. The poor kid was able to finally step out from the corner he was backed into and pick up his action figure. Dean made his way over to the kid, wanting to make sure he was all right. "Hey. You and Bruce okay?"
“Yeah.” Timmy was soft spoken, obviously still shaken up about what just unfolded.
"I want you and Bruce to meet someone." Dean said. You realized this Burce was the action figure Timmy was holding. You felt a smile grow on your lips at how natural Dean was around Timmy, they must've shared a moment together when you were here last. "This is Y/N. She's helping me find out what's going on around here."
“Very nice to meet you both.” You greeted the kid with a warm smile. You stretched out your hand for Timmy to take it, not expecting much. Most his age either would ignore you or give a limp shake. But the kid did it properly, even better than most. Firm and exactly like how Dean taught him. The older man smiled to himself at how the lesson paid off.
“Listen to me. I wanna tell you something important.” Dean crouched down so he was at eye level with the kid, wanting to make sure he felt like he was being treated like an equal. Not looked down upon. “Guys like that—they’re cowards, okay? All you got to do is stand up to them one time and they’ll stop, I promise.”
"You can trust this guy." You reassured Timmy, softly nudging Dean to help further prove his point. "You don't have to be big and strong to defend yourself, kid. All it takes is guts. And I bet you have lots of them."
Timmy seemed to have started feeling better from the smallest of smiles that crept across his lips at your kind words. You were happy to see the kid was able to brush off the situation and go back to his daily chores. While Dean went to find the rest of the kids, what few of them were left, you decided to head back to the house to help Sam with the files to cut down on time. You needed to find out who was behind this before someone else got hurt.
As you made your way back to the house, the layout of the farm started to grow a little bit familiar to you, you looked around to see the chaos of this morning was starting to slowly drift away. The boys were getting back to their chores and life picked back up again. You found yourself slowing down to take in more of the sights around this place, how many things that needed to be done in order to keep this place properly running. Not to mention little things around the house that made it personal. For some reason you must've overlooked the wall of awards and trophies hanging by the stairs.
“Looks like you found our hall of fame.” You turned your head away from examining all the different sorts of awards that ranged from academic achievements to sports trophies from countless boys over the years to see Sonny had spotted you. He came up and stood next to you, looking over the achievements the kids he looked after got. “We had some pretty great athletes come through here, including Dean.”
“Wait, really?” You followed the direction Sonny’s finger was pointing to find out what Dean had won an award for. You broke out into a smile at learning something else about the man you never would’ve guessed might have been an interest of his.
“He was Sullivan County hundred and thirty-five pound wresting champion.” Sonny said.
Hearing the accomplishment Dean was able to make on his own during his stay here made you happy, but at the same time, overwhelmed with sadness. Sonny sounded so proud of the kid for what he was able to do. But all you could think about was how John handled the news. Did Dean ever tell all of his adventures to his father, only to be brushed off as things that were nice—but not logical. It didn't fit the narrative of what John wanted for his boys. The reality of how he thought things needed to be. You were starting to slowly understand why Dean wanted to keep this place a secret, and not his father.
[Next Part]
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Luca Marinelli: "Without growing you get lost"

When director Pietro Marcello asked him to play Martin Eden in his film in competition at Venice, Luca Marinelli was moved. "Many things have changed in recent years, maybe me as well"
From written words to moving images: «When you make a film based on a book, the book, at a certain point, tends to overlap. You no longer know what the novel is and what the screenplay is. Today I remember the end of Jack London's Martin Eden: that poignant conclusion, with him in the cabin reading that poem and deciding about his life».
Luca Marinelli, star of Pietro Marcello's Martin Eden, in competition at the next Venice International Film Festival and in theatre from September 4th with 01 Distribution, brings together memories and emotions, and gives them a precise order: everything starts from there, from the novel by the American writer.
"What was the soul of the book, which in my opinion is above any kind of discourse, political, social and idealistic; that soul, I said, was respected. Because it’s embodied in the character of Martin Eden. And then when you translate a book into a film it happens that some things take another form: it's normal in an adaptation." In the case of this film, says Marinelli, it all started from Marcello's point of view, from his vision: "Which perhaps is not like what someone else can have or like mine, because it’s a vision that belongs to the director: it’s the vision of the artist Pietro Marcello. The first scripts were certainly different, they were longer, denser, full of references to the book. The very first, if I'm not mistaken, was nearly 300 pages long. And this is because we were dealing with a masterpiece, and we didn't want to leave out anything».
Could this film be different?
“No, this film is how it was supposed to be. But with a book like this you can do anything: a 12-hours play, a film, a short film. Martin Eden is one of the best books ever written. Cinema imposes different times and measures from written narration; the balance that Pietro and Maurizio Braucci, co-screenwriter, found and the work they did were excellent, in my opinion".
Let's start with when they proposed you the role of Martin Eden.
“I remember my tears as I was watching “Bella e perduta”; I remember my emotion, and I also remember that immediately after I finished watching it I told myself that it would be nice to work with this director. It was 2015. Three years later they call me, and they tell me that Pietro Marcello wanted to meet me. Imagine my happiness. Knowing, then, that this film would be born from Jack London's book moved me even more».
What convinced you to accept?
«Martin Eden is a human being of great sensitivity, great curiosity and great empathy; he has an enormous desire to discover, to see, to touch with his hand. However, he suffers countless disappointments. He climbs a mountain only to learn, once he reaches the top, that a sad camp resides there, and that the best thing was never to get there, to the goal, but perhaps the very start. The journey".
And was it difficult to make this journey?
“It's a question that I have asked myself too, and the answer I have given myself is both yes and no. No, because being next to Pietro, Maurizio, colleagues and all the people who collaborated on the film, I found the right push and the right support to get into the character. But the difficulties, of course, are always there. What I really wanted to understand was Martin Eden. I abandoned myself to the first sensation I had while reading the book and the screenplay».
What was that feeling?
"A gigantic emotion. This character speaks directly to each of us because everyone shares something with him. Each of us wants to do, to exist. To reach a goal. Only then we come up against obstacles that make us lose hope - in part or in whole».
But when did the spark go off?
“I've always been passionate about writers like London or Stevenson. Adventurers, capable of creating worlds, of giving life to characters with their eyes open to the society around them. Entering a life like that, a life where the sea is so present, a life made of traveling, of seeing, made of pure passion, intrigued me a lot. And then there was Naples".
Compared to Jack London's book, Pietro Marcello's film is a rewrite set in the Neapolitan capital.
“I had never lived all this time in Naples; and I had never known it so much. I have not yet been able to fully understand it; not completely. Naples is a place apart. I have come to love it. Naples is a whole people. Something fantastic. It’s a place with a huge identity. A very strong identity. Think of the language: it’s not a dialect, it’s a language. And then you meet people who make you realize how beautiful it is to be Neapolitan: how welcoming it is, how fascinating it is, how deep it is. Naples, for me, was a great discovery».
Is sensitivity a condemnation?
"I don’t know. On one hand, yes, it can make you suffer more. But I wouldn't see it as a sentence. Sensitivity allows you to see the world; it leads you to respect what is around you».
But it also brings loneliness with it.
«Martin Eden distances himself from everything and from himself: he can no longer be in contact with anything or anyone, he is disappointed».
In this film, the clash between the class of intellectuals and the so-called people also finds space.
"I think that the true intellectual, like Pasolini was, manages to put himself on the same level as the society, to look at it in the eye, to speak to the common man without being opinionated, just showing what is there: what is happening".
At one point, you find yourself sharing the scene with Carlo Cecchi, who plays Russ Brissenden.
«I was very excited because I found my teacher. And it was great to be with him there, on the set, more than six years after we had last acted together."
You said you got excited
“Because in the film he plays Martin Eden's mentor, and Carlo was a mentor to me too. It was a real gift”.
How many things have changed over the years?
"Many."
And you? Have you changed as an actor?
“I don't know, I swear. But maybe I was better before (laughs)».
What do you mean?
"I started with the theater, where there is no safety net, there is no" stop, let's do it again!" and there is no possibility to stop, start over, rethink. I miss that courage».
Is theater a torment or an obsession?
"It’s never a torment or an obsession. Sometimes at night, however, I dream of going on stage and not remembering anything anymore».
Perhaps it’s today's cinema that tends to be not very brave.
«In my opinion it’s experiencing a new period. And it’s not a coincidence that Marcello's Martin Eden arrives right now, in this moment. Surely we could give a voice to many more people. Even that, if you like, is a question of courage».
Martin Eden also speaks of talent and perseverance. What is more important, in your opinion?
“They go hand in hand. Talent is the first thing you see. It’s the primordial spark. But you can't just rely on that. You have to be curious, eat life, live it to the fullest, intensely and consciously. But to live it, one must also commit oneself: and one must be prepared».
You need to read.
«For me a book is always a victory. Because you have been elsewhere and have lived a story that is different from yours."
What kind of reader are you?
“I wouldn't call myself an avid reader: but the more I grow, the older I get, the older I get and the more I read. Because I am more and more aware of how beautiful it is».
Reading isn’t just a hobby.
"Thoreau says: "As if you could kill time without injuring eternity". It’s important not to waste time; but it’s important to do it without causing anguish or fear. You have to be there, stay there, live in the moment. But without exaggerating».
When you were younger - when you were a child - what were you like?
“I've always been surrounded by curious people. Even my friends, the ones I had as a child and the ones I still have now, are curious. We liked to move, to go around, to be together; we lived the street. We also enjoyed listening to music, reading comics and books, and watching movies."
And curiosity soon turned into fascination.
“Acting has always fascinated me. And only at a certain point did I manage to find the right courage to try. And I don't know why: I really don't know. In the Academy this phrase was always repeated: “play seriously”. And maybe was this that interested me; or not".
We talked about teachers. Who were they to you?
«People like Carlo Cecchi or Anna Marchesini. They were moments, very important meetings».
How did you come in contact with Marchesini?
"We studied with her for three months at the Academy, and it was wonderful because for the first time I wrote something of my own. Each of us, each of the students, had to write something about himself, starting from his identity card - this was the initial task. And it was, believe me, very difficult».
What impressed you about her?
"The energy, the dedication, the beauty. I remember the moments with her, the wonderful phrases she said. What has always fascinated me to see was the passion she put into it».
Other teachers?
"My grandfather. I always liked the job he did: he was a carpenter. In the academy they told us many times: "you have to be a craftsmen". And I was always thinking of him».
What, in the end, do you have left of Martin Eden?
«The sense of collectivity. Passion. The importance of looking around. To always look at others and at themselves. The adventure of life, and the wonder it represents. What deeply tears Martin Eden apart is betraying himself and being disappointed in his own dreams. We can fight against this only if we are faithful to ourselves, to our beliefs, to our places of origin. And then, you know, all the rest remains: remains all that world».
VANITY FAIR
Just wanted to translate this old interview for the non-italian’s fans ^^ (sorry for my English)
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Happy FFWF! Try to find snippet of one of the following words from your WIPs: defenstration; jumbotron; proton; fiber; parenthesis; alphabetical; gross; zebra; semi-colon; runner; quaint; bearded; married; time; cold; right
i could only find a couple of them, but i really like the snippets i have, so here we go!!
fiber (from an incomplete prompt fill)
“Parker Curse,” Ben laughed when they showed up late for Ned’s seventh birthday party because Peter couldn’t find his left shoe.
“Parker Curse,” May tsk’ed when Peter was twelve and slipped on spilled water and had to wear a cast for his broken wrist.
“Parker Curse,” Peter whispered as he stood next to Ben’s grave, feeling like there was still blood soaked into the very fiber of his being.
gross (from my ironhusbands big bang fic)
James wakes up to someone knocking on his door. For a moment, he ignores it, hoping no response will be enough to send the mystery person away—until he hears that familiar voice call out a, “Mr. Rhodes?”
He sighs, slow and sluggish as he reluctantly pushes himself into a sitting position, brings up a hand to dig his fingers into his eye and rubs at the sleep crusting them shut. Even still, he contemplates staying here, wonders the likeliness of his surprise visitor giving up and just coming back later, but—
“Mr. Rhoooodes.”
It’s wishful thinking, at best.
As he clambers to his feet, there’s another round of knocking at his door—though, this time, it sounds like it’s in the tune of happy birthday, which he rolls his eyes at as he pads his way out of his rooms and heads down the hall—followed by a muffled huff and what sounds suspiciously like someone stomping their foot, to which he almost snorts. “I’m going to literally die out here if you don’t let me in! I’m going to die, and then you’re going to have a gross corpse outside your door, because I’ll be dead in the hallway!”
Thankfully, he reaches the door just then, reaching for the knob and pulling it open as he says, “No, you won’t.” He quirks a brow at the teenager that is now pouting at him standing in the hallway, trying not to let his amusement show on his face, instead pushing to project how tired he is in order to make an attempt to discourage random arrivals like this, though he knows, by this point, that there’s not much he can do to stop them, and he’s not sure he actually wants them to stop. “What do you want?”
“Summer,” Peter says—freshly fifteen and with a hip cocked out, showing the little bit of attitude that he knows how to show, the little bit that, not all that long ago, James had no clue even existed.
“It is summer,” James tells him, brows raising even higher.
“Only for, like, two more weeks!” Peter complains with a groan, head tilted back and looking seconds away from stomping his foot like some kind of toddler. It makes the ends of James’ mouth twitch, just a bit, almost betraying his already barely concealed amusement—something that’s even harder to fight off when Peter then makes his way into James’ apartment like it’s his second home, letting a backpack that James didn’t realize is hanging off one shoulder slide to the floor by the coffee table before collapsing onto the sofa with an even more exaggerated pout, brows furrowed and arms crossing over his chest. With a light laugh, James just swings the door shut and makes his way over, taking a seat on the other end of the sofa and resigning himself to the fact that this is going to be the start of his day, knowing that he’s going to have to entertain this conversation before he’ll be able to get away for long enough to start a pot of coffee and change out of his pajamas. “I want it to stay summer. Like, permanently, you know?”
quaint (from the next chapter of the portal closed)
“Have you talked to Rhodey yet?” Mr. Stark asks—before Peter’s even standing upright after landing on the carpeted floor, wheeling in on him with something manic in his eyes. “Did you get ahold of him?”
“I’m working on it,” Peter replies, somewhere between meek because of the fact that he hasn’t made it happen yet and defensive because he is trying and he’s getting somewhere, somehow, isn’t he? He got Mr. Rhodes’ number, left a message today after trying to call twice yesterday, and that’s something. That has to be something and he just wants it to be something good. “I’m trying my best,” he adds after a moment, and he doesn’t mean to sound quant, or small, but that’s how his voice comes out.
married (from a peppermay one shot i’m working on titled all the way happy)
Peter tells her one day, “You don’t have to stop loving him, but I think you need to move on.” He says it while they’re eating ice cream out of the carton and watching How I Met Your Mother, because it’s Ben’s birthday and he loved this show, even if May never really understood why he would watch it on repeat. Understanding or not, she’s seen the damn show ten times over, at least, since they got married, and ten times more since Ben was murdered.
May looks at Peter and suddenly realizes that she isn’t looking at a kid. She’s looking at her nephew, seventeen and childish in ways, but more grown up than many adults will ever be. She sees the contemplative look on his features and the way he appears bashful to have spoken up at all, yet certain that he’s saying something he really needs to say. It’s shocking, to say the least. “What?” she asks.
“I just—” Peter stops, and considers, and takes a bite of their ice cream. “I mean, like—like, you hold yourself back, you know? I can tell. And I know he was—he—I know you love him, and you’ll never stop, no matter how long it’s been, but… but you don’t have to stop yourself from loving other people, too. Maybe you don’t need to, and that’s fine, as long as you’re happy, but sometimes I think that you stop yourself from being all the way happy because you think you could only be all the way happy with him.”
time (from the next chapter of the portal closed)
It’s a gun.
It’s also definitely not a gun.
Like, it’s—it’s something straight out of a sci-fi movie, glowing a bit and way too big to be practical and intimidating, and it’s a gun, yeah, but it isn’t, like, a pistol, or a rifle, or any sort of gun that Peter is familiar with. That sixth sense tingles at the back of his neck as he looks at it and he has an undeniable feeling that something like that doesn’t belong here.
Here, as in Queens.
Here, as in New York.
Here, as in Earth itself, because just looking at the thing is enough to know it’s quite literally out of this world. That it isn’t technology anyone on this planet has seen or heard of or used before.
The sixth sense tingles at the back of Peter’s neck again and makes his palms feel clammy underneath his fingerless gloves and makes his lungs feel like they suddenly aren’t taking in enough air, so he sucks in a sharp breath that whistles, just a little bit, but the sound is just loud enough to bounce off the walls.
And then the person holding the gun is looking Peter in the eyes, and Peter knows that he’s screwed.
There are approximately three seconds between the gun wielder looking at him and the gun actually going off, only this time it’s pointed at Peter and not at the weird industrial barrier that’s been placed in front of the alley wall, and there’s more guys, five or six, if Peter is to guess based on the quick look he gets, but only one of these guns—and when it fires, something bright and blue and baffling comes flying Peter’s way, and he barely manages to dive to the side with a strangled yelp before it hits the ledge of the roof where Peter had been peeking over and that explosion sound is a lot closer than it was before.
Because the explosion sound is coming from the impact of the gun and whatever kind of energy or laser or something that the stupid thing is firing. Peter scrambles to his feet, looks at where he had been standing moments before, and finds a crater of cement and rubble and debris in his place.
So, it’s powerful. It’s strong, and dangerous, and Peter can’t let these guys have it.
He wishes he had enough time to take a deep breath and sort his thoughts, clear his mind, but life has never been super nice to him and the gun is firing again before he ever have the time to blink.
cold (from my mcu rewrite)
“Is he really complaining about us not wanting him to die?” Rhodey asks—rhetorically, of course, as he turns his head to share a bewildered look with Happy, who merely shrugs and plops into his own seat with a barely concealed smile of amusement. “You haven’t even apologized for making me stand in the sun for three god damn hours, and now you’re complaining about us not wanting you to die?” This time, the question, still completely rhetoric, is aimed directly at Tony. “That’s just rude, man. That’s cold.”
Tony doesn’t look very sorry—mostly because he knows that Rhodey is playing up his annoyance in good fun, is well versed in what it really looks like to look a truly pissed off James Rhodes in the eyes, which is just… terrifying, and inspiring, almost—but he still offers a half-assed, “I’m sorry?”
Rhodey glares at Tony for a second, then sits directly across from him. “Sure you are.”
right (from my ironhusbands big bang fic)
Peter shrugs. “Well, now you don’t work there, so you can’t. Sucks to suck. Do you have any coffee?”
“For you? Absolutely not.” James gets back to his feet, ignoring the way Peter whines, making his way to the kitchen. He calls over his shoulder, “There’s some other options, though, if you want to look around. Eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes—whatever you find is up for grabs, as long as it’s an actual breakfast item and not something full of caffeine or sugar. If you’re going to be bugging me today, I refuse to let you give yourself a sugar rush or get so energized that you start doing laps around the room again.”
When Peter heads into the kitchen after James, he looks slightly reluctant, but still grateful as he starts to poke around the pantries and the fridge. “It’s not coffee,” he says defensively, “but thanks.”
That’s the Peter Parker way of saying you know how poor we are right now and I know you’re trying to be subtle about feeding me so now I’m trying to be subtle about saying thank you because I don’t feel comfortable addressing the issue, let alone accepting help for it. James is well versed in how to see through the hidden message, tilts his head in a nod and offers a warm smile before starting up a pot of coffee, leaving it there and only pausing shortly to level Peter with a stern looking, telling him, “Not a drop of that better end up in your system, Parker,” before ambling back to his room to get changed.
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Imagine this situation: MC, who always has hair tied up and suddenly one day ... boom! It turns out that MC has soooo long hair like "Hewwo babe I can choke you with my own hair uwu". Can I request headcanons with main six reacting to this? XDD Pretty pwease~
Thanks for requesting! I hope you enjoy it!
Request Are Open!!!
Main six reacting to an Mc with really long hair! :)
Asra
He already knows you have long hair, I mean, in he brought you back to life after all, it would be awkward if he didn’t know almost everything about you, and all your deepest darkest secrets
He often wonders why you choose to keep it up all the time, it’s just so pretty...why not show it off? He most definitely wants to see it, wants to run his fingers through it, braid it...
When he finally catches you with your hair down his jaw drops to the floor, he didn’t realize it was that long! He immediately is running his hands through it, braiding it, Faust even manages to get tangled in your hair and asra has to fish her out
He makes you magick shampoo and conditioner to keep your hair extra soft, and silky smooth, and shares with you all his hair tips on how he manages to keep his hair as soft as it is (it’s canon that in a modern au he uses kids shampoo) will spend hours shampooing and conditioning it for you, and practically begs you to keep it that long, and to leave it down more often
Nadia
Look, she has some long ass hair, there is no doubt in my mind that she would be able to tell how long your hair is just by looking at it pulled up. She also has six sisters, she’s learned a thing or two, trust me.
She will drop small hints that you should let your hair down and let her look at it, in it’s full glory. She’ll drop hints by buying you expensive shampoo and conditioner, or asking if she can wash your hair, etc etc
When she finally see’s your hair down, she audibly gasps, then she immediately calls for the servants to start up a bath and starts brushing through all the knots and tangles you have from keeping it up for so long, and when you get in the bath, words can not describe how long it takes her to wash your hair (just let her savor this, her ex-husband was balding)
As I mentioned before, she has six sisters, so she’s picked up a hair style of four from them, and she wants to try them all on you, she even picks out outfits to go with whatever hair style you have that day, (which is a major turn on for her, espically if she’s the one that did your hair) also I’ll be praying for you if you let her sisters see how long your hair is, because god only knows what they’re gonna be doing to it.
Julian
I mean, he knows your hair is long, but it can’t be that long can it? It’s what, shoulder length? What to short? Fine. Hip length at most. There’s no way it can be longer than that.....right?
He often warns you that having your hair up to tight is one of the leading causes for headaches, and by often I mean atleast once a day, he doesn’t mean to nag you he’s just.....worried that’s all. And curious of what your hiding in your hair, (him and Malak conspiracies about it)
When he sees your hair down- holy mother of pearl he did not expect it to be that long. He is also very pleasntly surprised. He tells you stories about his pirate days when he had long hair, (not as long as yours of course) and Portia when she was little and had really long hair, longer then it is now, all while he’s combing through it, apologizing after every knot.
He loves to run his fingers through it, he finds it very calming.he also thinks it’s cute if you were to leave your hair down while going to the market or at sea and your hair blows right in your face, (he buys you a headband to help with that) it’s just soooo. Nice
Portia
Ohhhhhhh she knows how you feel. Her hair is preeety long, so she knows better than any one else the struggle of, 1) pulling it up everyday 2) making it stay up every day, and 3) untangling it everyday
But the thing is.....you’ve seen her with her hair down before.....what are you hiding??? There has to be some reason you’re not letting her see you with your hair down, is it magick related? A secret bald spot maybe? Come on tell her she won’t judge, she just has to know.
When she sees you with your hair down, she immediately does the ‘cat knife face’ (you know exactly what I’m talking about) and tackles you to the ground, and starts to tickle you until you tell her why you were keeping it from her. (And if you’re not ticklish, well that’s not gonna stop her from trying.)
You two share almost every hair product imaginable,(kind of like how you and asra share a tooth brush if he’s you LI) and you share all your hair secrets with each other, in a “pillow fortress” as she calls it, and then immediately try them out afterwards, (depending on your hair type some work better than others)
Muriel
Long hair brings back a lot of....unpleasant memories for him. He’s honestly glad you keep yours up, he’s almost positive that it’s pretty, and he knows it smells good, it’s just....ugh.
His curiosity does get the best of him though, he wants to see what it looks like, just once, even if it hurts a little bit, just let him see, he’s curious. Very curious. Not only see it, he wants to run his hands through it, wash it like you wash his, but he’ll have a hard time directly asking for it.
When he sees your hair down his heart stops. You made something that was once so ugly to him, seem beautiful. How? When you catch him staring he’ll very timidly ask if he can run his fingers through your hair, then ask if he can wash it like you wash his.
It takes you by surprise, but your even more surprised when he starts asking you questions about it, like why you keep it so long, or if you’ve ever though of cutting it. ( sighs with relief if you say no, but if you say yes? Angrily asks you “why?!”) when the two of you are laying in bed, he likes to just burry his face in your hair, it’s comforting for him, it makes him feel safe.
Lucio
Won’t. Stop. Bugging. You. With. Questions. To better phrase this, he won’t stop asking you the same question over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over land over and over and-
He wants to know why you keep your hair up all the time? Is it ugly or something? A bad hair cut maybe? If it’s a bad haircut you let him know he’ll have the best barber in vesuvia come fix you right up! On him! Or maybe it’s a super secret magick related problem oooooo. Don’t worry you can tell him. He won’t tell a soul he promises. Scouts honor. (He was never a scout)
When he finds out it’s just long he’s kind of disappointed. Like that’s it. It doesn’t do anthing cool? All that time he spent thinking about it for it too just be long??? Don’t get me wrong he loves it! But for real? You got to be kidding me-
He also likes to burry his face in your hair. He asks you what your hair routine is, then shares his, but it kills off like half your hair so you do it once to amuse him, and then never again. (No wonder he’s balding) but he adds your whole hair routine on top of his, so it’s kind of counterproductive in a way?
Thanks for reading I appreciate it! :) sorry about it not being my best work, I’m having a rough night, (if you want me to rewrite any of it lmk!)
Next Headcanon: Main six reacting to mc with wings!
Request are open!!!
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