#why are her glasses just a wire... whatever not my problem | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

queen-of-writing-bad-things · 1 year ago

Text

Henry Danger Reader Insert | Captain Man x Reader: SEASON 4

Episode 1: Sick and Wired

~Henry's House~

Some heroes don't wear capes and that was true for Miss Danger.

She didn't agree with them, thinking they were too much of a liability in the field since a bad guy could grab them and pull you around like a dog on a leash. But even when (y/n) wasn't in uniform, she still put aside her work for the day and ran halfway across town for a friend in need, namely Henry. The poor kid had called her a few days prior to say that he wouldn't be able to come into work 'cause he had some lousy cold and whilst that meant she and her grumpy boyfriend would have more fighting to do themselves, she was adamant that he stay home and rest.

She remembered the days of being susceptible to colds, back before she had been fried in the densitiser and turned into a super-healing, ass-kicking machine, and knew all too well about how lousy sickness made you feel. Therefore, when she'd received a cry-for-help phone call from Henry, begging that she come over and see if he was taking his temperature correctly, she hadn't given it a moment's notice, not even when Ray started complaining.

Ever since he'd secretly bought the ring, he'd been dying to find the right moment to propose, one where it was calm, romantic, sweet and not too rushed, but if she was at Henry's house the entire time, how was he meant to do that? She couldn't help it though, whilst the Man Cave was lovely and being apart from him sucked, her caregiver's heart was just screaming to be at Henry's bedside, nursing him through whatever bug was ailing him. And the best part was, she couldn't get sick, not even a little bit, so she really was the perfect nurse, checking up on him every day when his parents weren't there to see how he was doing. Jasper, on the other hand, wasn't.

(y/n) had insisted that she didn't need an assistant in helping Henry get better, saying that she'd taken care of her cousins when she was younger and knew everything about combatting colds, from making soup to tucking people in, she was good at it. But the curly-haired boy had asserted himself, countering her argument by telling her how in his hour of need, Henry should have his best bud whipping up a cure-all for him. He even offered a nasal thermometer, whatever the hell that was, and had shoved it up the kid's nose before he or the young woman could protest. She had much better ways of taking his temperature but whatever.

"Hey, Jasper..." Henry groaned, feeling like complete crap and the small nozzle of the thermometer tickling the sensitive membrane in his nose wasn't helping. He was glad that he cared and appreciated the gesture of him skipping work (with (y/n)'s permission, of course) just to look after him, but to be perfectly honest, he...didn't want his help. It sounded really mean and ungrateful and he never wanted to make Jasper feel bad, however, his help wasn't helpful. At least, not as helpful as (y/n)'s; she knew about first-aid and science and how the body heals, all that shit, so she was actually making him better or at least she was making the pain bearable.

"Yeah, whatcha need?" Jasper asked, looking up from whatever blending, squashing, juicing he was doing so he could look at his pasty friend. He certainly looked like crap, which was why he was mixing up something that would wash away all of his problems, maybe.

"Will you please come take this thermometer out of my nose-hole?" The kid asked in a rough, dull tone, so unlike his usually chirpy self. It was like his energy was being sucked away, probably to fight the goddamn cold that was crippling him. Man, he just wanted to be healthy again.

"Okay, let's check that temperature." The boy smiled and stopped what he was doing so he could walk over to his friend's bedside and finally remove the irritating device, just as (y/n) walked back into Henry's room with a glass of water in her hand.

"Here's your water—oh, thank god, you're taking that thing out." She commented as she circled the bed to put the glass down on the bedside table, close enough for Henry to reach it, but also out of harm's way since it would be horrible for him to have to clean up a puddle after she'd left.

"Thanks, (y/n/n). Well?" Henry looked from the kind woman to his friend, who was still squinting at the thermometer after yanking it from his nostril. If he waited any longer, the reading would be wrong.

"Hmmm. I think it needs to go in deeper." Jasper confessed, thinking that the numbers on his thermometer weren't matching up with Henry's blazingly hot forehead. Perhaps they'd not shoved it in right, yeah that was it.

"What?!" Henry exclaimed, not liking the sound of that. It had already been too deep for his liking, why did it have to go in again? Wasn't there a better way to do this?

"You probably took too long taking the reading. If you leave it out in the air for too long, the heat sensors begin to measure the room temperature, not the body's temperature." (y/n) explained, pulling Henry's quilts and extra blankets further up his body since they'd began to slip ever since he'd sat up to receive Jasper's wondrous miracle cure. She didn't want him to get a chill, even if she was appearing like a bit of a mother hen.

"Well, I've never used a nasal thermometer before." Jasper protested, even though the girl wasn't blaming him in any way. She saw how much he cared and even if his methods weren't...practical, she still thought he was a lovely kid for helping it. If only Ray saw it that way.

"Well, maybe you should learn how to use a nasal thermometer before you stick them in your friends' noses," Henry told him in an agitated voice. It wasn't like him to get moody, it was the illness speaking and the banging in his head making him snap, so the two trying to help him didn't take it to heart.

"All right, grumpy-pants. We'll just try it again, so, hold still." (y/n) said in her motherly voice and took the thermometer from Jasper's hands so she could insert it herself this time. She tried to be as gentle as possible, not even giving the sticky snot on the device a second thought since she'd dealt with a lot worse before. She could just wash her hands, it was fine.

"Ow! Go back home to Ray, stop torturing me!" Henry whined as the same nostril was assaulted again. Not even the world's gentlest touch could make the experience pleasant, but he didn't mean what he'd said.

He wanted to be taken care of, he wanted to get better, even if he was taking up more of (y/n)'s time that she would usually give to Ray. He wasn't happy, he knew that. He was missing work and stealing away his would-be fiancée when he wanted to pop the all-important question. It had been a month since they'd been on Swellview's Got Talent and everyone but the girl knew about what was in the works, they were just waiting on him to get the guts and pick the right moment. It was agonising.

"Don't be such a baby. I'll go back to my boyfriend when I'm satisfied that you've been properly taken care of." (y/n) answered, wiggling the thermometer up past the upper lateral cartilage and just into the bone where it would be warmer. Her heart tingled at the thought of the man waiting for her back home and couldn't help but let a soft smile slip onto her face, letting the boys know exactly what she was thinking about. Yeah, she'd say yes, she'd marry him tomorrow wearing her jeans and t-shirt if he asked her to; she was as in love as he was.

"What are you making anyway?" Henry asked his best friend, who'd sloped back to his little table with a smirk on his face at the excitement at being in a big secret.

Ray wasn't sure about letting Jasper the Blabbermouth know about his plans to ask the love of his life to marry him, fearing that he'd spoil the surprise and then he'd be left to stammer an excuse to his girl about why he hadn't just grown a pair and manned up. But he'd found out anyway (Schwoz was a terrible gossip when excited) and vowed to be silent on the matter, knowing his friends, not to mention himself, would never forgive him if the worst happened.

"Oh, a cure for your cold," Jasper answered, pressing the juice out of some squishy fruit and his words made (y/n) pause. He did science in school, right?

"Uh, Jasp, you can't cure a cold. Or, they haven't found one yet." She told him, sitting on the end of Henry's end as she waited for the thermometer to do its thing. If Schwoz couldn't work it out and trust me, he had been there, attempted that, then Jasper had no hope, no matter how much crap he turned into liquid.

"You can with the liquid cleanse I'm making," Jasper told them, smiling proudly at how big his genius was. Seriously, sometimes he baffled himself with how amazing some of his ideas were.

"What's in it?" Henry asked from a mix of curiosity, fear and disgust. From what they could tell from the bed, the cleanse was brown and Jasper had been crushing things up for over an hour, so who knows what was in there. Plus, the boy was worried about what he was going to do with it and there was no way (y/n) was gonna let him ingest it. She didn't want a case of poisoning on her hands.

"A combination of orange juice, nut milk, fish oil, frankincense, tomato purée, myrrh, bee pollen and liquid lard." The boy listed, making their smiles drop the further he went on. Where had he found that? It sounded horrific and Henry was certain that his queasy stomach would never recover from the smell of it, let alone the taste.

"Wow...I am not drinking that." He muttered, snuggling down into his blankets slightly as if he was trying to hide away from the concoction. Y'know, witches were burnt at the stake for mixing these kinds of shit potions and now he knew why - they probably poisoned the entire, fucking village.

"Drink it? Why would you drink it?" Jasper scoffed, making Henry and (y/n) share a confused look. He was blending it all into a smoothie consistency, what else would they do with it?

"You said it was a cleanse. People normally drink cleanses, not that I'm letting him drink that shit." (y/n) explained, thinking back to all the fad diets Ray had tried to stay in shape or just to stay trendy. He always had those spinach, proactive, enzyme, shake, cleanse things that all the socialites swear by, even though the majority of them deserved to be thrown down a toilet.

"Yeah, but you don't swallow it. I use this to bathe him." Jasper replied, making his friend even paler and sweatier than he already was. He was already sick, he didn't want to be even more miserable, not to mention that being given a sludge bath by his friend would be downright weird. "Nope."

"Come on, like (y/n) said. Don't be a baby. Don't you wanna feel better?" The curly-haired boy asked in a tender voice as he brought a sample of his miracle juice over, forcing Henry out of bed as he refused to be subjected to a cold, slimy, embarrassing bath. To hell if (y/n) would kill him for walking around and wasting what little energy he had, he just had to get away.

"No, I like being sick, bye!" He said quickly, tugging his blankets away from his body and swinging his aching legs onto the floor. He felt the cold immediately, wishing he could snuggle right back into his mattress, but just one look at the brown stuff in the jug was enough to make up his mind and move his feet.

"Hey! Get back into bed! I won't let him give you a bath, it's ok—" (y/n) tried to tell him, instantly following him over to the other side of the room in the hopes that she could tempt him back to where he could rest, but one look at Jasper holding a sponge had his feet frozen like they were in concrete. That, and his whiz watch started flashing.

This had been a regular thing over the last few days; Ray had been missing his sidekick and was a stickler for perfect attendance from his employees, so when Henry informed him that he had to take a few days off for his health, he wasn't happy at all. And as such, the man-child had insisted that he holo-call the boy every day and see what he was up to that was so important, he just had to drag his sweet girl to his sickbed to care for him. The jealousy was a real thing.

"Ooh, sorry, but I gotta take this, soooo..." Henry told Jasper, who sighed and put down his sponge, seeing that Ray took precedent since he was the boss and everything. With the prospect of unwanted bathing treatment out of the way, Henry flicked open his watch and held his wrist far out in front of him so the tiny, little holo-Ray could see him and (y/n), who wasn't scared to get close to his plague-riddled body.

"Hey, Ray!" Henry greeted him, trying to not seem as ill and as icky as he felt since he didn't want to appear weak, but he still looked like shit either way, not that Ray was buying his "I'm having time off work, 'cause I'm sick" act.

"Hey, handsome." (y/n) grinned, her mood lifting as his figure appeared in the room. Despite it not being her real boyfriend, one whom she could feel or touch or love properly, it was still nice to see him after leaving their home so early that morning because, honestly, she'd missed him. It had been three days of caring for Henry and whilst she didn't regret doing that, she'd be branded a liar if she said she hadn't missed spending all her time cuddling, kissing or being silly with him.

"Hey, Henry. Hey, sweet girl." God, his voice. His fucking voice. It sounded pissed off, miffed, sulky because both of his sidekicks weren't by his side, but it was so nice to hear, even though the static garble of the whiz watch. It reminded her how Henry would be well again in a couple of days and she could go back to her normal routine, the one where she got to have him clinging to her twenty-four-seven.

"How you doin'?" The boy asked, rubbing his sniffly, itchy nose on the back of his sleeve as he tried to keep everything in; he didn't want his nose to run, he didn't want to puke, he didn't want to collapse from exhaustion. Not that Ray was bothered.

"Hungry! Handsome and hungry." Ray answered, making sure to send a smirk down the link since he knew that it would make his girl giggle and roll her eyes, which it did. He knew her too well and had missed seeing her reactions to his bigheaded comments or his bulging muscles, he just wanted her home. The Man Cave didn't feel like it without her.

"Hey, Henry! Hi, (y/n)!" Charlotte's head poked into the hologram and she waved at the boy and woman, who were always glad to see her. She had taken on the main voice of reason in the Man Cave since (y/n) wasn't there, so both of them had sympathy for her since she had to reign in Ray's childishness and stop his ridiculous plans without any help.

"Oh, Char, you're already at work," Henry mentioned, not unhappy to see his friend there, just surprised that she'd gotten in so early. Geez, way to make him look bad, even though he had a valid excuse and the boss's girlfriend to support his side.

"Yes, she is and we want breakfast and I want my girlfriend back. So, on your way to work, you and (y/n) stop off at Casa de Waffles. Pick up nine waffles, a dozen fat biscuits, some, uhhhh..." Ray started listing everything he wanted for breakfast and chose his girlfriend's favourite waffle place since he couldn't wait to see her smile and feed her bits syrupy waffle like the lovestruck idiots they were.

"Fresh fruit," Charlotte added in, wanting something healthy and light instead of a massive waffle or a biscuit. She wasn't as much of a junk food addict as Ray was and he definitely didn't see why she'd wanted something so blergh for breakfast.

"Pffft, fresh fruit. I'm Charlotte and I want fresh fruit!" He mocked her in a silly voice, making the young girl look at him with an uncaring face. She was used to him being a child and just let his comments wash over her because she always had (y/n) on hand to scold him for being so mean.

"Raymond! Henry can't come to work today, he's still sick. So, I won't be home until later 'cause I'm still looking after him." The young woman explained in a sharp, authoritative tone, making him stop all the joking around.

Later? He didn't want later, he wanted her in his arms now so they could eat breakfast together. It had been days of her waking up at the crack of dawn so she could walk to the kid's house, meaning he'd been waking up alone (no chance for some early-morning action) and eating alone (being with Schwoz or Charlotte didn't count). It sucked and ever since he'd decided to make her his forever, he'd been needier than ever, so this whole situation was torturous.

"Oh? It's been three days. You wanna maybe see a doctor? Ray asked Henry, thinking that once you've reached the three-day mark, you should seek some professional help, not the kind-hearted generosity of his girlfriend. He was beginning to suffer too.

"Ehhh, I mean, it's just a cold, but I still feel pretty bad and (y/n) says I've got a fever so I should—" Henry told him. If he fought criminals in this state, he just knew he'd been walking into a disaster, being more like a punching bag than a sidekick and as per the young woman's advice, it was better to rest up until he felt better than to try and be noble.

"Kid, I totally get it. Just stay home, rest, let my girlfriend take care of you." Ray answered in a seemingly nice manner, although if you looked into his words deeper, you would be able to pick up on how salty he was inside. He hadn't been sick with a cold since he was a child and barely knew what illness felt like, so he didn't totally get it. He just got a stabbing twang of jealousy and loneliness when he thought about his girlfriend being anywhere but with him. He missed her.

"Aw, doofus, you're so cute. You sure you don't mind me staying here to make sure Henry's okay?" How could he be mad though when she was so obliviously sweet about it? He wanted to let her go out and share her sweetness, he wanted her to put her phenomenal nursing skills to work, even if it was just for a little while, but she was so gorgeous. He couldn't help but want her all to himself, he didn't know what to do without her.

"Yeah, he's all yours, sweet girl." He told her, not letting her see how desperate he was, but that didn't mean he wasn't suspicious. He just wanted her to think that everything was okay so she didn't see how he wasn't believing Henry's sickness story. He saw through his lies.

"I'll be home later, 'kay? I love you." She smiled, sending her warmest love to him through her gaze as he studied Henry's little hologram self. He didn't look that sick, just under the weather. Sick, his butt.

"Love you too." His heart melted at that, unable to truly hold onto the grudge when it could hold onto her love instead. It still felt crazy that he got to hear that every day and made the idea of the ring even more clear. It was right, fucking terrifying, but right.

"Later, man." Henry grinned at their mushiness, knowing how Ray was probably reeling from the knowledge of the ring box he kept hidden somewhere in the Man Cave. He wouldn't tell them where it was but swore that (y/n) would never find it so they settled for that, trusting that he knew what he was doing and in such a sweet moment, neither the woman nor Henry suspected Ray's frustration.

"Yeah, okay." And with that, the guy was gone, left pining for his girl and seething at his sidekick for making up some stupid cold so he could stay off work. He saw through it and was convinced there was some conspiracy that went beyond the thick blankets and ingredients for soup (y/n) had taken with her.

"Right, back into bed, you. I'll bring you some soup later, okay?" (y/n) told Henry once the call was finished and he diligently did as she said. Bed sounded quite nice right now and he trusted that she wouldn't let Jasper sponge him down. Rest, that's what he needed, just a bit of sleep...

~Meanwhile, in the Man Cave~

"That rotten, little mutt!" Ray snapped as he turned away from the computer with a scowl. He could let his anger out now and picked up a water bottle so he could sling it across the room in frustration. The only problem was that Schwoz was working on some technical wizardry in the middle of the room and when the water bottle hit him, it damn near killed him.

"Ray!" Charlotte protested, standing up to look at Schwoz's quivering, little body in horror. She knew he was mad about (y/n) not being around, she knew he was frustrated by not having a chance to propose over the past few weeks, but seriously? Why the aggression?

"What?" He asked in an annoyed tone, not liking her scolding tone. It was like what his girl used when she wasn't happy with him, only it wasn't the same and just left a poignant reminder that she was at stupid Henry's house.

"You could've killed Schwoz!" The girl told him, gesturing to the genius on the floor and how he was there because of how reckless he had been. Okay, that made him feel a little bit bad, he never meant to take his emotions out on his friends, especially the ones that had done nothing wrong.

"Oh, sorry, Schwoz. I didn't mean to hit you with that bottle." Ray apologised, feeling like it was the right thing to do. (y/n) would've made him say sorry, she was so nice and sweet and kind like that. Shit, he missed her so much.

"Well, you did." Schwoz groaned, reaching to grab Ray's hand so he could pull himself up but the hero just kept on walking. He wasn't that sorry and Schwoz wasn't that injured. Probably.

"I just I'm so angry at Henry for lying to me and stealing my girlfriend," Ray grumbled, leaving Schwoz to fall flat on his face. Okay, he was making it out to be a lot worse than it seemed. Henry hadn't stolen (y/n), she was a person, not a priceless diamond, and it wasn't like he was trying to steal her affections for himself, that would be weird. Very weird. No, he was certain that he just wanted someone to wait on him, bring him drinks and food, tuck him in when he couldn't be bothered to do it himself and (y/n) was too kindhearted to see past his ploy.

"Wait a second, you think Henry's lying to you about being sick? And that he wants to get (y/n) away from the Man Cave even though he knows you're gonna propose?" Charlotte gawped at him, not believing he was serious. Of all the stupid, weird, over-the-top, mad shit he'd thought of over the years, this was the strangest and most ridiculous. Henry would never do that to Ray, he was like a brother to him; he'd never lie and he'd never deliberately come between him and his girlfriend.

"I know he's lying! And I know that he wants (y/n) to take care of him whilst he's doing the lying!" Ray nodded, causing the girl to gasp at what he was insinuating. Maybe she should call (y/n) and tell her that there was another baby who needed her care, 'cause this was just...wrong.

"Ray Manchester! How could you say that about Henry?" Charlotte scolded him in her best (y/n) voice, hoping it carried more weight when she said it like that. Where had all the trust gone?

"Oh, okay, so you think he's telling the truth and he's not making (y/n) bring him soup and blankets just because he likes it?" Ray questioned with the lilt of sarcasm in his voice, looking at the girl and her folded arms. He wasn't surprised that she didn't like his ideas, she never did, only this time he was sure that he was in the right. I mean, who has three days off with a cold?

"I do," Charlotte replied firmly. She knew that Henry really was sick and that the phone call he'd made to (y/n) begging for her magic, healing touch was genuine. He'd needed help, so she went to his side, was that really worth such a big fuss? She came back in the evenings, he was just really needy of a proposal opportunity.

"Well, I think he's lying. So, we're gonna find out." Ray hissed to her, using his status as the boss to get what he wanted and Charlotte didn't like the sound of that. How was he planning on doing the finding-outing? Would it involve methods she didn't approve of? "Wait a second..."

"Schwoz!" Ray looked at the terrified man, who had had more than enough of beatings for one day. He didn't want to get hurt, he just wanted to do his work in peace. "Please, don't hurt me anymore."

"No, I have an assignment for you. I want you to get yourself a disguise." Ray told him, which evaporated Schwoz's fear and filled his eyes with wonder. He loved disguises, especially if it was for a covert mission, it made him feel like a spy. "Okay, I will get a disguise."

"Yeah and then I want you to sneak into Henry's house, install some hidden cameras and microphones so we can spy on him and see what he's making (y/n) do." The larger man elaborated, sending thrills of excitement into Schwoz's body as he thought about the mission. Okay, yeah, it was gonna be weird, but also strangely cool to stake out the house.

"We're gonna spy on Henry and (y/n)?" Schwoz grinned, causing Ray to hold up one finger. They weren't spying on (y/n) per se, he already knew that she'd never lie to him and was over there for what she thought was a good cause. It was Henry whom he was truly interested in.

"No, no, just Henry. We're just gonna make sure that he's not ordering (y/n) around too much." He corrected, knowing that if his girlfriend found out, she'd kill him, or worse, break up with him. He just wanted to see what his sneaky sidekick was up to, he wasn't particularly bothered about her, apart from the fact that he missed seeing her smile around the Man Cave.

"No! I will not let you "spchy" on him and you know that (y/n) wouldn't approve either." Charlotte jumped in, using the young woman's name again since at this point it was the only thing she could use against him, not that it worked.

"Oh, Charlotte's saying no again." Ray mocked her, thinking that all she ever did was criticise him. Yeah, his sweet girl would be dead set against it, but what she didn't know wouldn't upset her, right?

"It's an invasion of Henry's privacy and it's wrong. You should just focus on proposing to your girlfriend." She went on, this time making the man shut up for a minute as he thought of a comeback. He already had all that stuff figured out, well, most of it, he was just waiting.

"Hey, you better not run to the tubes so you can run and tell Henry that we're gonna spy on him," Ray suggested, knowing that if he mentioned it, then she'd do it and then she'd fall right into his trap. He didn't want any interference, he just wanted to prove himself right.

Ray pretended to stop her as she made a run for it, sprinting up to the tube pad so she could escape. The man made some half-assed shouts for her to come back, acting as though this wasn't his plan all along and watched as Charlotte lowered the tube and smirked at him.

"Ha! Up the tube!" Charlotte shouted, expecting that she'd go flying off, but just before the computer could register her command, Ray changed the settings so that the tube was locked and she was trapped. "Tube transport, locked."

"Locked?!" The girl gasped, looking around as she wondered what had happened, but Ray wasn't done yet. He. had to make sure she couldn't go anywhere, even if it was a. bit mean.

"And switching to manual control..." He mumbled, pressing a few buttons on the control panel so only he could activate the tube suckage. It was a system designed to trap criminals and bad guys that had managed to sneak into the Man Cave, not for Charlottes, but in this case, it worked for him.

"Hey! Hey! Why didn't I go up the tube?" Charlotte asked the men, who were mildly amused at how angry she seemed. Oh, they were smart, well, they still thought Henry was lying and that wasn't smart at all, but for being so crafty, they were slightly smart. Just a smidge.

"'Cause I switched it off," Ray told her through the microphone and smiled at how pissed off she became. Now she realised why he'd suggested it and cursed herself for falling for something so dumb, especially when he started taunting her. "Off?"

"Yeah. You can jump but you won't go far." He joked, really testing her patience. How long did he expect her to be in this thing? It was cramped and they still hadn't had breakfast, surely, he wasn't that cruel.

"Okay, you better not keep me trapped in this tube!" She warned him. When she got out, she was gonna break his legs, not sure how she was gonna do that, but she was anyway.

"Okay. Up the tube...and other tube down...and Charlotte." He smirked, deciding to get cocky since his first plan had worked so well. He fiddled about with the controls, sending the girl up, only to bring her straight back down in the opposite tube, which made her blink in surprise as she ended up right where she was before. "There! Now, you're in a different tube."

"Oh, Ray, you're so incorrigible." Schwoz grinned, making his friend laugh since it sounded like a good thing and judging by Schwoz's happy face, he too had no problems trapping Charlotte behind glass.

"I don't know what that means," Ray confessed once his laughter had ended and Charlotte rolled her eyes. He could figure it out himself, she was done trying to be the mature one and hoped to god that Henry got better and (y/n) returned home soon, because, otherwise, Ray's head would be on a platter.

"Right, you get some sleep, I'm off to make soup. I'll be back up in an hour or two to see if you feel any better, 'kay?" (y/n) smiled gently at Henry as he snuggled deeper into his blankets, feeling better for having her there. He'd have to get her a massive gift basket or something 'cause she really had gone above and beyond to make him feel better, even when his dad and Piper told her not to bother. Mrs Hart was concerned about her son, of course, but just left her to do the nursing as she had no clue what to do and even told her to help herself to anything in the house if it helped.

"Yeah, thanks, (y/n/n)," Henry mumbled, already feeling his exhaustion pulling him under and even if he wanted to, he wouldn't be able to open his eyes again. He looked so cute all wrapped up in bed, even if his forehead was sticky and his eyebags were shocking, he looked smaller, if that was possible, vulnerable perhaps. Sort of like the kid she had first met three years ago, who knew nothing about fighting or the true villainry in the world.

"No problem, kid. Just shout if you need anything." She whispered and gently closed his bedroom door behind her as she walked down the hall.

Whilst she had been attending to her patient, Schwoz had been on manoeuvres and had infiltrated the house, planting some device in the kitchen sink that made Piper and her dad freak out when sparks started flying all over their kitchen.

A very clever ploy that got even cleverer when he appeared at the door dressed as a very familiar Italian plumber, saying that he miraculously knew about their problem and had come to fix it. The Harts were certainly in need of help and practically pulled him inside before their house was on fire, allowing Schwoz to place a sneaky camera near the kitchen that would allow Ray to monitor the living room and kitchen.

With Piper and Mr Hart still blinded by their terror, Schwoz easily made up some bullshit excuse about needing to go to the attic to plug the sink problem, something Mr Hart couldn't understand but then again, he wasn't a plumber, so he just went along with it anyway. It was like some Mission Impossible shit, Schwoz was rolling and diving, sneaking about with his back to walls and it was a good thing too; he was about to round the corner onto the hall where the bedrooms were but pulled himself back at the last minute when he heard a certain someone hum a familiar tune.

Oh, god, it was (y/n) and for a moment, Schwoz panicked at the thought of her seeing him because that would blow the whole plan open and Ray would kill him, but he needn't worry. There was an extremely handy pot plant in the hall that gave him enough cover to duck behind and luckily, the woman had her nose too deep in her phone to see the shocking red of his costume stand out against the green of the fanned-out leaves.

She walked straight past, not even sensing his presence as she scrolled through some online recipes for brown soup, a renowned medicine for those with coughs and sniffles. Schwoz could jump for joy, but stayed silent, letting her walk down the stairs and into the chaos that would keep her busy whilst he was sorting out the camera in Henry's room.

"Holy shit, what happened?!" (y/n) exclaimed as she appeared at the top of the stairs, ready to ask Mr Hart if she could use his kitchen, but what she was met with was alarming, to say the least. Sparks everywhere, Piper and her dad trying to fan them away with a red towel, screams and panicked shouts, what the fuck?

"I don't know, the plumber said he'd fix it!" Mr Hart exclaimed as she ran over and examined the situation. Okay, she had no idea what was going on, sinks don't catch fire unless they have some electrical components and from a few metres away, it was impossible to see the small device causing the problem.

"What plumber?!" The young woman screamed, trying to stop Piper from flapping at the sparks since they posed a serious risk. They could actually start a fire if they spread onto something else, but she didn't know what to do without getting closer. Was this a fire extinguisher problem? And who was this plumber? She hadn't seen anyone or heard them, she had wanted to do was make soup.

~In Henry's room~

Okay, Henry was dead to the world, whether it was from his supposed sickness or (y/n)'s awesome care, he didn't wake up as Schwoz crept into his room and dug around in his toolbox for some cameras, which he started to place strategically place around the room. He only needed a few and quickly made for the window, hoping he'd be able to sneak out without anyone noticing, but that was wishful thinking.

The genius stumbled as he crept past the couch, making an awful rattling noise in his toolbox that roused the boy from his sleep and Ray, who had been testing out his new toys, saw the whole bloody thing.

"Wha--Schwoz? Is that you?" Henry asked groggily, thinking he was hallucinating as he saw what he thought was his friend, wearing a Mario costume, standing in his bedroom, hugging a toolbox. What fever dream was this? This couldn't be real, his sickness must have been messing up his mind, 'cause this was just insane.

"No. I'm...just a dream. Yes...a dream about a nice Italian plumber, so you go back to sleep and you just wait for (y/n)'s souuu---arghhhh!" The small man said in a soothing voice, although he should've worried less about Henry and more about where he was walking. He hadn't realised that he was creeping towards the window and when his heel nudged the windowsill, he tripped and fell all the way to the ground. To make things even weirder, he just laughed off his pain, prompting Henry to flop his head back down so he could snap out of this crazy dream. It had to be a dream, no way had just happened.

~A few hours later~

So, some good was coming out of this whole hidden camera business, well, there was for Ray and Schwoz, who had discovered that there was never a dull moment in the Hart household. Ray had dreamily watched his girl making soup after she had dealt with the sink issue (something that was strange, but she just put it down to kids since she had no idea what her boyfriend was plotting), and wished that she was at home making it for him. Stupid Henry eating her soup, Anyway, things brightened up when he flicked on the cameras again in the living and saw that Mr Hart and Piper were arguing about her dad wearing her new, flashing pants. Yeah, they didn't get it either, but still, it was hilarious to see his dad dancing.

"They have no idea that we're watching and laughing!" Ray giggled with Schwoz as they watched the father cower before his daughter as he fumbled for an excuse. They wouldn't want to be in his position, Piper was hella scary when enraged.

"Sorry, privacy, you've been invaded!" Schwoz joked, making his boss laugh as they both nibbled on some snacks. Henry had been asleep all afternoon, so this was the best thing they had watched, or rather, this was the best thing Schwoz had watched. He didn't find watching (y/n) cooking particularly interesting, to be honest. And things were about to get interesting; the elevator dinged and out stepped Jasper, who was completely unaware of what was going on at work since he'd been with Henry too, not that Ray missed him as he did with his sweet girl.

"Hey, guys!" He greeted, wondering what they were laughing about and he had yet to see that Charlotte was still trapped in her tube. At least she had been fed a burrito enorme, even if it had landed on her head when Ray sent it up the other tube. What a jerk, she couldn't wait to snitch to her friend about how mental her boyfriend was when he went more than five hours without her.

"Hey, other kid." "Hey, Curly." Ray and Schwoz replied half-heartedly, one being slightly nice than the other as Schwoz used (y/n)'s nickname for the boy just out of instinct. He normally heard her say it, so it must've just rubbed off on him, which was rather nice.

"Jasper! Get me out of this tube!" Charlotte cried, thankful that, at last, someone other than those two dickheads had arrived at work and could actually free her from his glass, cylindrical prison. Seriously, her legs were starting to cramp up and the air was getting close, not to mention she was going to tell Henry and then beat Ray's ass. She had a lot to do, she just needed to get out.

"Why is she in the—?" The boy asked his boss rather than heeding her order straight away. He had firsthand experience of pissing Ray off and knew it was safer to ask rather than do. It would save him a lot of embarrassment later.

"Oh... uh, we're just playing a game." Ray lied, acting as though Charlotte was loving it and Schwoz agreed. He was enjoying this way too much to let the girl be a spoilsport, and he also didn't want to ace Ray's wrath. The man had been partially (y/n)-less for three days now, he was like a grouchy dragon.

"It's not a game!" Charlotte argued, praying to god that Jasper would believe her and not those two idiots, but they weren't about to let her wiggle out of it and after months of him working in Junk-N-Stuff, Ray and Schwoz had learned just how gullible Jasper could be.

"That's part of the game." The superhero clarified for the boy, who just went with it since he was the boss and he was the one who paid him. Don't bite the hand that feeds you, his little motto for when he was tiptoeing around Ray and his temper.

"Okay, well, it's past nine and I've just locked up Junk-N-Stuff, so I'm gonna head on home...whoa. Is that—-is that Henry's room?" Jasper told the man but trailed off when he saw the familiar decor of his best friend's bedroom and then (y/n) popping into the shot as she carefully brought in a tray of piping hot, brown soup, one of her finest batches if she did say so herself. Henry had been asleep all afternoon and she figured that he'd be hungry, so she'd figured that they'd test the waters and see if he could keep some nourishment down.

"Yep," Ray answered, his eyes softening as he saw her smile, but then he remembered why he was doing this and he toughened up again. She'd be home in a few hours, then he could cuddle with her all her wanted, just like they normally did, although she'd probably be tired after a full day of nursing stupid Henry.

"But how are you seeing video—?" Jasper tried to ask, but Ray wasn't a big fan of his questions, not when he was trying to concentrate anyway. He shushed the boy and carefully angled the camera so he could see what was happening more clearly. Oh, yeah, like that was soup, that kid had just made (y/n) lie to his parents so they'd think he was sick too. That shit was obviously chilli or something, not what he pretended it was and he couldn't believe that he'd dragged his sweet girl into such a filthy lie or that she was going along with it.

"There it is. You see Henry there? He's not sick." Ray scoffed, really zooming in on the boy's face as he gratefully accepted the steaming bowl from (y/n) and carefully blew on his first spoonful to cool it down before he swallowed. The woman made herself useful by sanitising a few surfaces, picking up some blankets that had fallen on the floor and just generally chatting with the boy to see how he was doing. The sight was nauseating.

"How do you know?" Schwoz wondered. All he saw was a kid eating soup made by the woman taking care of him. That seemed like something sick people did, whatever Ray found so heinous, he couldn't see it.

"Look at him! Sitting there in bed, eating a big, steaming bowl of chilli." The man hissed. This was a case of the more you think it, the more you come to believe it and at this point, Ray was certain that his sidekick was chowing down on the worst thing you can eat on a queasy stomach, thus making him a liar, liar, pants on fire.

"Uhhh, that looks like (y/n)'s brown soup to me," Charlotte commented and even from the other side of the room with her eyes squinted, she knew her friend's cooking when she saw it. It was damn good soup and it was clear that Ray's anger was running away with his sanity, not that he saw it that way. She was wrong, he was right.

"You're too far away to tell. No, look at it, all dark and thick with chunks. I know chilli when I see it." He argued, thumping his chest as he swore that if anyone could identify (y/n)'s soup, it would be him. He wanted to marry the girl, for god's sake, he knew her better than anyone, or he did when he was thinking straight.

"I think he is eating (y/n)'s brown soup," Jasper stated as he looked closer at the screen and honestly, there wasn't any arguing with that. He knew the woman too and had eaten too many bowls of chilli in his life to know when he was looking at one and that bowl wasn't no chilli. It was soup, plain and simple.

"No. No, it's not my (y/n)'s soup. Geez, Jasper, you can't tell the difference between brown soup and chilli? You're not allowed to look at my monitors." Ray replied petulantly, once again falling into his childish side that was normally controlled by his girlfriend, especially when he was picking on Curly, but without her, it was left to Charlotte to point it out, not that he cared.

"Oh, Ray...now you're just being a child and I'll tell you something else. Henry and (y/n) are your sidekicks and she's your girlfriend. They're both very responsible and (y/n) would never let him—" She started to lecture him, using her most authoritative tone, but there was another beautiful feature to the manual tube control that would let Ray sulk in peace.

"Mute the tube." He instructed Schwoz, who nodded since he wanted some quiet time too and twizzled a nob on the computer's control panel that cut out all noise coming from Charlotte. She was essentially scolding herself now and only realised when she heard her voice echoing off the glass. Well, her situation was getting better and better.

"Nice. Now, back to Kid Faker or Henry Hartless 'cause he steals girlfriends!" With the peace resumed, the agitated hero focused on the camera feed again, hoping to catch something incriminating, but all he could see was the two chatting, nothing he could use as evidence.

"Ray, listen. Henry and I have been close friends, like, forever." Jasper piped up, suddenly feeling the urge to defend his best friend. He didn't like all this finger-pointing and he'd sworn to always have Henry's back, even if it meant crossing his grumpy boss.

"Ughhhh, get to the point, boy." Ray groaned, not wanting to more boring, pointless speeches from teenagers. He was a grown man in his own home and if he wanted to spy on his sidekick and possibly his hopefully soon-to-be fiancée then he damn well would.

"I just think if he were faking it being sick, he would've told me. And (y/n) would've spotted it straight away and talked some sense into him." The curly-haired boy told him, trusting in their strong bond and how if they had a secret, then they'd tell each other. Plus, (y/n) wasn't one for liars, not when they were doing it for a selfish cause and she'd have hauled Henry's ass to the Man Cave herself if she had thought he was truly ill.

"Yeah...guys do tell their best buddies everything. Their thoughts, their secrets..." Ray pondered the idea, stroking his chin as he stood up and contemplated an idea. Back when (y/n) was his best friend minus the girlfriend thing, he'd spill the beans to her every day, never missing anything and the way she listened to every little detail, even the stuff about his ex-girlfriends that he now knew broke her heart, made him thank whoever sent her to be his angel. But now, he still told her everything, of course, he did, but he wasn't sure if someone else qualified to be his new best friend, 'cause he had her as his lover, which was like a BFF only so much better.

"That's true. Like that time you told me you went to Martha's Vineyard with (y/n) and you f—" Schwoz said absentmindedly, not realising that the gossip had been uttered to him in the expectation that it would be treated the utmost confidentiality. No one needed to know what the couple had gone up to on that trip and if the woman found out that Schwoz knew, she'd never be able to look him in the eye again.

"Don't talk about it, Schwoz! God, (y/n) will kill me!" Ray snapped, causing the genius to button his lip before he went too far. Oh well, he could keep the secret for a bit longer. "Jasper, I'm gonna need you to go shave your chest."

"My chest? Why?" The boy questioned. It had to be one of the weirdest requests he'd ever received, but it would all make sense in a moment because Ray had formed quite a cunning plan.

"You're gonna wear a wire." He told him, sending the teen into a fit of excitement. Okay, Spy Jasper was ready to go, he'd seen all the James Bond movies, he knew how this shit worked and boy was he up for it. Sure, it was morally dubious but fun. "A wire?!"

"Yeah, Schwoz is gonna tape a secret microphone to your chest and you're gonna meet Henry at the Parkway Diner, where I'll be hiding nearby—" Ray explained his idea, drawing more and more enthusiasm from the kid. Normally, he hated it when Jasper got excited, he had too much energy for him and not the kind he liked, but on this occasion, he was critical to the plan, so needs must. "Oooh, and then what?"

"You're gonna ask Henry about this sickness and I bet you that he admits he's faking and using (y/n) for her exception soup-making skills." He finished, his arm around the boy as Schwoz smirked. It was crafty and a bit excessive, but it would probably work. No one would suspect Jasper of being a sneak, he just had one of those faces that people spill their entire life stories to.

"So, I get to be like—like a spy?" Jasper squealed, ruining Ray's patience which had been surfing okay up until now. It's fine, he could handle this.

"Sure, we'll call you...Double O...zero." He told him in a flat tone, not really caring since it didn't matter either way. Jasper was not the next James Bond, nor was this gonna be. A regular thing. He was just the safest option since Charlotte was a rat and Schwoz was just too weird.

"Yes! It's all happening..." Jasper whispered as his dream became a reality and the three listening just rolled their eyes. At least he was compliant though, with Jasper on board, Operation Kid Faker was a go.

~Fifteen minutes later~

Having accepted that Ray wouldn't listen to her no matter what she said, Charlotte had decided to use her time in the tube wisely and whilst Jasper was getting all technical, she just stuck her nose in a book. Sure, it wasn't the most exciting read ever, but anything was better than listening to Schwoz prepare Jasper whilst Ray put on his disguise. It was one of his stupidest getups, something that would probably make his girlfriend laugh out loud if she saw him; he'd slicked back those chocolate brown locks, put on some squeaky, leather pants and shrugged on a matching jacket in an attempt to look like the kind of cool cat that frequented a diner. But, he just looked a bit silly, like he was a really shit Elvis impersonator of something, which wasn't the look he was going for.

"There. Now, this is your microphone, right here next to your noople." Schwoz told the boy has he taped one of those itty bitty mics onto his chest, next to his nipple, not that the guy could say that word.

"Right. Let's go bust a faker." Ray said cooly, complete it his ensemble but putting on a pair of purely black shades, adding to his ridiculous vibe. Yeah, he didn't look like himself, but that was because he looked like an idiot.

"Okay, now will you let me outta here?" Charlotte snapped at the boys, hoping that she could go to the bathroom and stretch her legs. The book was boring and she was dying to tell Henry or (y/n) or someone what had been going on, but Ray saw right through her innocent face.

"No, you could still warn Henry or (y/n), so you gotta stay in there until we prove he's faking." He replied, shuddering at the thought of his girl hearing about this. Firstly, he was sure Henry was lying, and that would break her heart. Secondly, she wouldn't approve of his wild ways to catch him out, leaving her to shout at him and him nursing a wounded heart.

"And what if I need to use the restroom?" The girl asked. She'd been behind glass all afternoon and when you gotta go, you gotta go, so what did he expect her to do? Just go without any shame?

"I already thought of that." Ray reminded her, gesturing to the glass jar that he had sent down for her earlier, something that was as disgusting as it was degrading. The space was so tight, what if it spilt? What if someone walked in? The glass was see-through!

"I am not using this jar!" She hissed, picking the pot up so she could wave it around angrily. Even the nerve of this guy, he was cruising for a bruising.

"Good news for the jar." Ray scoffed, making his fellow fakery discoverers snort with laughter. Honestly, they were all children, but Charlotte did have one trick left up her sleeve. Something a bit cruel, but hey, she'd been trapped all day. She was desperate to pee and to let Henry know what was about to happen. "Let's go... Oh, uh, Schwoz. Three things."

"Yes?" Schwoz smiled at his boss as he turned around at the last minute, just before he was about to go into the elevator. He would be left to guard the Man Cave, be commander of the helm, not that it was ever that exciting.

"Don't let Charlotte out of the tube 'til after we get back," Ray instructed him as he walked backwards, Jasper opening the elevator so they could get off to the diner before Henry got there. They didn't want him suspecting anything.

"Aye and what are numbers two and three?" The genius craned his neck so he could watch Ray in all his leathery glory before the door slid shut.

"If (y/n) comes back early, tell her I love her and...don't eat any worms." Ray sighed, making one helper groan and the other two grimace. Okay, first off, awwww, he was cute, soppy, but cute. Second, what the hell, Schwoz ate worms? He was more of a freak than they realised and had often been caught sucking the worms up like spaghetti by the couple when they were just going about their business. He had a problem.

"Aw, but..." The genius pouted, having been hoping that with Charlotte locked up and Ray gone, he'd be free to scoff his favourite snack. The problem was though, that they stunk the whole place up, sort of like a musty, earthy, salty smell that linger on any cloth it touched, so everyone always knew when he'd been snacking and it made (y/n) gag. Therefore, Ray was adamant to welcome her home into a calm, worm-free environment so Schwoz had to behave.

"No buts, no worms." The superhero repeated firmly, pressing the button to go up as the little man rolled his eyes. He'd eat worms if he wanted to. He lived in the Man Cave too, he had rights.

"Okay, Schwoz, let me outta this tube!" Charlotte exclaimed once her idiotic employer and friend were out of earshot and on their way to ruin Henry's trust in them. And to possibly ruin (y/n)'s love for Ray, who knows? She didn't know how well the woman would take it and feared that accusing Henry like they were planning on doing would be the thing that finally made her iron resilience bend, maybe even break. She tolerated Ray's dumb moments so much, but not trusting Henry kinda meant he wasn't trusting her judgement and if she left, well, let's just say Captain Man would never be the same again.

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no. You heard what Ray said about you and (y/n) and worms." Schwoz shook his head. Whilst he didn't care about the worms thing, he did care about Charlotte staying put and he was still contemplating passing on Ray's message, he just hadn't thought of the consequences for this entire thing.

"You better listen to me, Schwoz! 'Cause if you don't let me out of this—outta this—oh my—-I think I—-I think I—-ughhhhh." Charlotte fell against the glass limply as she clutched her chest and pretended to go into cardiac arrest or something. This was the cruel bit, tricking Schwoz into thinking she was dying, but if it got her out then she was gonna do it.

"Ayyyyyy! Charlotte, are you okay? Please, be okay! Charlotte!—" The genius fell for it, hook, line and sinker. he scrambled to lift the tube before sprinting over to the girl's side so he could support her "limp" body, but when he got to her, Charlotte's energy returned with a fury, kicking him in the groin so hard it made him collapse.

"That's for not letting me out of the tube!" She growled as she marched over to the supercomputer, not even caring if she'd crushed his hopes of having little Schwozs in the future. She just needed to call Henry.

"Could you please call me an ambulance?" He groaned, bending over to try and stop the pain, but his entire lower half was in agony and he feared for whatever was going on down there.

"No, 'cause I'm gonna get my phone, call Henry and tell him and (y/n) what Ray and Jasper are up to." The girl replied harshly, digging through her bag to see if she could locate her cell, but it was one of those moments where the one thing you need is nowhere in sight, which gave Schwoz the perfect opportunity to crawl to a drawer and pull out a can of worms, his comfort food. He couldn't be that injured if he wanted the worms.

"Where's my dumb phone? Hey, have you seen my—-Schwoz!" Charlotte yelled when she saw the man three seconds away from shovelling a fork piled high with long, brownish-black worms into his mouth and the sight repulsed her. "Ray told you not to eat the worms"

"You already bashed my pants, now just let me enjoy my worms!" He snapped back, having had quite enough of her sharp tongue for one day and turned his back on the girl so he could eat without any judgement. It didn't matter, Charlotte had more things to worry about, like where the hell she had put her phone. If it wasn't in her bag, then there was only one thing for it and she just prayed that Henry had his whiz watch on.

~Henry's porch~

"Do you know what Jasper wants?" (y/n) asked Henry as she shut his front door behind them. She was feeling a lot of mixed emotions; firstly, she hadn't had any of Ray's sappy texts for at least an hour, telling her that he was either up to something or too distracted to remember that she wasn't home, which wasn't a great feeling. Secondly, Jasper had phoned Henry out of the blue and had insisted that he go and meet him in some crappy diner because "he wanted to discuss something", whatever the hell that meant. And thirdly, Henry had actually fucking agreed, despite not being anywhere near better. Sure, the soup was still settled in his tummy, but some grungy diner was no place to go, not when he could spew at any moment.

"He just said he wants to talk." The boy shrugged, making her feel a tad suspicious, but she shook it off. Yeah, Jasper knew Henry wasn't well, but perhaps it was really important and who wouldn't trust a face like that?

"Right, but if you feel like you're gonna puke at any moment, you're going straight back home." The woman told him sternly, which made him laugh. He could count on (y/n) to keep him safe, no bug or bacteria would beat her.

"All right, all right, I—-" Henry's laughter was cut off and they curiously looked at his whiz watch as it began to beep and flash. Hmmm, if there was an emergency, why wouldn't Ray call his girlfriend? Why would he want a sick sidekick to come and help?

"Hey, Char, what's up?" Henry greeted his friend as he casually flicked the watch open. Not the person he was expecting, but still, it was nice to see her after being cooped up for three days, although he wasn't going to like this.

"Bad things. Bad things are up!" She replied ominously, making (y/n) and Henry look at each other in worry. They'd only been gone for a bit, why was everything suddenly so dramatic and foreboding?

"Why? What's wrong?" The young woman asked, suddenly getting a nervous feeling in her gut. It was her danger-tingle, or it's what she called it, that sense in her tummy when something was going down and normally, it wasn't wrong. If something had happened to Ray or Jasper or Schwoz or her or Colin or the Man Cave or anyone she loved then she didn't know what she'd do, but...

"Ray didn't believe you were really sick and he thought you were making (y/n) look after you for fun, so he sent Schwoz to your house, dressed as an Italian Plumber so he could install cameras and microphones in your house!" Charlotte exclaimed, making the woman's dread morph into rage as she heard more and more about how ridiculously dim-witted her boyfriend had been. Just once, she wanted him to keep a level head and think about things rationally before he charged into something, but clearly, he thought she couldn't spot a liar herself.

"In my house?!" Henry gasped, looking completely horrified, mortified and furious at the revelation. He had been in bed, eating soup, what else did they think he was gonna do? He was sick! And a teenager, which felt a bit awkward since they had probably seen his bedroom, at all times, oh god.

"I'm gonna kill him. I'm gonna fucking kill him, the thick, stupid, idiot!" (y/n) growled with her hands on her head as she tried to keep it together. Ray didn't trust Henry to be responsible and therefore, he didn't trust her to take care of things herself, that felt horrific.

Trust is a big thing in relationships and usually, for them, it was a lack of trust in other people, who often didn't know how to leave a good thing alone so it couldn't be spoiled, but now, they weren't trusting each other, weren't believing that the other could get the job done solo. She didn't need to be supervised and sometimes, going out alone was nice. She'd enjoyed being the one in charge for a bit, had liked the change of scenery and whilst she had missed him terribly, it wasn't up to him to decide what jobs she could go and do and what she couldn't.

"And he's been spying on you all day, watching everything, including you eating a bowl of (y/n)'s brown soup." Charlotte went on, adding fuel to their anger as they realised that every single, intimate yet friendly moment they'd had together that day as carer and patient had been contaminated by prying eyes and ears, making the whole experience feel weird now.

"Wha—but that was my private brown soup time with (y/n)!" Henry spat, looking at the woman with a similar face of disgust. This was what irritated him about Ray sometimes; in his boss's eyes, he wasn't a boy on the verge of becoming an adult, responsible and honest, he was a child, notorious for not always doing the right thing and it sucked.

"And now, Ray's making Jasper wear a microphone so he can meet you at the Parkway Diner to try to trick you into admitting that you're not really sick and you "stole" (y/n) to turn her into your private soup lady!" The girl finished, barely being able to make out that Henry was biting his lip to stop himself from cursing loudly and (y/n) was just...livid.

"But he is sick! I know what sick looks like, why doesn't he trust me to make the right judgement? And Jasper's wearing a wire?" She asked, wrinkling her nose as she thought about the poor kid being dragged into her boyfriend's schemes. He was innocent in this, she was sure, just eager to help out, so she knew who the real culprit was. She loved him so damn much, but right now, it was hard to feel that whilst the anger was fresh and still stinging.

"Yeah! And Ray's gonna be at that diner, listening to every word you say." Charlotte told them, prompting an idea in Henry's mind. If ray wanted some dirt then he'd give him some. Something so damn filthy it would tell him that he knew what his game was and how he hated it.

"Oh...okay. Well, if Ray wants to listen to what we have to say to Jasper, then we're gonna make sure we say something goooood." He smirked, nudging the young woman next to him and she knew exactly what he meant. A little sabotage, a dash of deviance and a whole lot of lies, just to beat Ray at his own game. She liked it, time to see if he liked it when the tables were turned.

~Parkway Diner~

It was a classic setup. Rock music blaring, dirty booths that had been in place since the seventies, dim lighting, a bar that served root beer, alcohol and comfort food, this was the perfect all-American diner and the stage was ready for Ray's big showdown. Henry and (y/n) were a little nervous as they walked in the door, praying to God that Schwoz hadn't tipped the man off or the smell of beer and stale cigarettes wouldn't turn Henry's stomach. But it was all worth it, especially when they saw Ray in his stupid costume at the bar and Jasper acting all innocent in one of the booths.

He waved them over and the two walked straight past Ray, pretending like they hadn't noticed him, despite (y/n) being certain that she could pick him out of any crowd, and his disguise wasn't great. They smiled at Jasper, the woman helping Henry to sit down since she still felt like he shouldn't have been walking around but still. Keeping up appearances was a must.

"Hello, Jasper." (y/n) greeted the boy, sliding onto the same padded bench as Henry so they could keep their back to Ray and look straight into the boy's eyes. Everything had been rehearsed and calculated to sound shocking, heartbreaking and just a little bit over-the-top. The perfect lies that Ray was looking for.

"Hey, Henry, (y/n)," Jasper replied, acting as normal as he possibly could, but his palms were getting sweaty. He could bomb this and face Ray's wrath, but Henry definitely looked sickly and (y/n) looked...well, he didn't know how she looked. She had a twinkle in her eye that unnerved him, but he couldn't stop the mission now, not when Ray was watching and listening.

"What's up?" Henry asked, trying to look like he had no clue what was going on and he did his best to smother his anger and disappointment as he faced down his best friend.

"Ummmm...how are you feeling?" He stuttered, taking a prompt from Ray so he could keep the conversation flowing. It's not like he could come straight out with it, he couldn't just shout until Henry admitted it, it had to be divulged naturally.

"Uh, well..." Henry started, thinking for something he could say, but he didn't need to worry. Jasper's nerves were getting the better of him.

"You can tell me. We've been friends for...for so long." He chuckled nervously, making his friends look at him weirdly since it was such an odd thing to say. Of course, they knew why he was getting so squirmy and sweaty, Ray was figuratively breathing down his neck, but they couldn't let him onto that. "So?"

"So, even if you have a secret, I'm the perfect person for you to tell." Well, there went the subtly. It was a mistake to include Jasper, Ray was seeing that now. Missions require stealth and a sly attitude, neither of which the kid had; he said the word "secret", for god's sake, how much dumber and not secret-agentish could he get?

"Oh god, he's the worst..." Ray groaned to himself, lifting his glasses and pinching his eyes tiredly as he heard every word in his ear. This was excruciating to watch and he could see this whole thing going wrong, but it was so nice to see his girl sitting there, even in the dingy light, she was so damn pretty. He just wanted to stride over there and take her into his arms and kiss her like he had wanted to do for days, for the whole time he'd known her, to kiss her was the greatest privilege.

"Well, uh...great, 'cause...you know how I've been calling in sick to work and making (y/n) take care of me?" Henry whispered lowly, leaning forward with (y/n) so that they could get close to Jasper, who, along with Ray, was suddenly intrigued. Holy shit, were they onto something? "Yeah?"

"Well, he was faking! Isn't that funny?" The young woman giggled, laughing the lie off like it hadn't been anything serious, but to the eavesdropper, it was huge. He slammed his hand against the bar, jumping for joy at how he'd been right, but also, disappointed that he'd been let down. He couldn't help but feel like he'd been lied to by not only, Henry, but (y/n) too. Had she known and duped him?

"Why'd you tell Ray you were sick?" Jasper questioned. He too was disappointed in his best friend and the young woman, he thought they were more trustworthy than that, but also, he didn't know that they were capable of such deceit.

"You swear we can totally trust you?" Henry looked at Jasper with a deadly serious face, not even a hint of a smile as (y/n) too grew emotionless. This was where they got to have some fun and dragging it out just made it even better.

"Sure, I'd never betray my friends." Jasper nodded at both of them, trying to convey how sincere he was since he had to squeeze every last drop of juicy gossip from them for Ray. This thing was a lot more complex than he had first thought, but he was invested, like some kind of soap opera on the TV.

"Well, come here," Henry told Jasper and the boy shuffled as close to their faces as possible, practically bodysurfing the table as they all huddled in close so Henry could drop the biggest lie they could've thought of. "We're done being Ray's sidekicks."

"B-b-but why? You guys don't wanna fight crime anymore?" Jasper's mouth was on the table, his heart pounding in his ears as Ray felt his heart stop. Okay, this didn't feel right, what did they mean they didn't want to work with him anymore? Was it something he'd said?

"No, we do, but I mean, come on, Curly, we don't need Captain Man." (y/n) scoffed, ignoring how wrong it felt to say the words. She needed Ray in so many ways, from the way she'd never be able to fight bad guys with him protecting her to the way she'd felt loneliness for ten years before they finally fell into each other's arms and it was something she never wanted to experience again. The anger was so strong now, definitely still there, but fading away, leaving her more hurt than mad and being mean wasn't her style when she had her sensible self back in control.

"Ray's indestructible, you can't just get rid of Captain Man. And he's your boyfriend, (y/n), I thought you loved being with him?" Jasper stammered, seeing the coffee pour from Ray's lips as he heard every, heart-wrenching word and felt his world crumble around him.

No, no, not his sweet girl, this couldn't be happening. Thank god he was wearing dark sunglasses, 'cause otherwise, everyone would see his eyes clouding with tears, but he couldn't stop the hand that sat over his heart, trying to stop it from aching. He knew this would happen, he knew that she'd outgrow him and move on, but he hadn't counted on it hurting so much, not when he had been sure, certain, absolutely positive they were gonna live happily ever after. The ring would have to sit and gather dust, 'cause he'd never be able to marry someone else, not when he had known his true love in her.

"Well, see...we've been working secretly with Doctor Minyak," Henry revealed, making Ray bring his glasses down his nose so he could see the situation with his own eyes and he could see Henry looking smug, Jasper looking gobsmacked and her, still looking so fucking beautiful and perfect, still calm, not showing the vulnerability she was feeling, still the one he wanted to marry, even if she wanted to leave. He'd never stop wanting her, not ever; he loved her, always.

"We've been developing this weapon that can melt Captain Man like the big doofus he is." (y/n) smirked, leaning back and folding her arms as she kept the lie going, although now that she said that, something didn't seem quite right. She still said doofus with such love and Ray stopped for a moment; could she...? Had they...? Wait...

"And check this out. Once Ray's out of the picture...come here. Come here...yeah, all the way." Henry told Jasper, bringing him in close again as he hung onto every word and Ray grew more and more sceptical with each passing second. His voice didn't sound uncaring either and although he was still terrified and hurt on the inside, he was trying to keep a brave face as he put down his stupid glasses and got to his feet. This fuckery ended with him.

"I'm gonna take over and make you and (y/n) my sidekicks." Henry hissed, making Jasper erupt into happiness. That was his dream and was what they knew would make him join their side in a heartbeat, screw his loyalty to Ray, he wanted to be a superhero, no matter what.

"Oh, Ray's our friend, (y/n), he wants to—I mean, you love—-we can't just—" Jasper stuttered, trying to communicate how this would break Ray. In his gullible view, this was a betrayal and having the engagement snatched out from his fingertips would break the man, something he wanted to tell her without ruining the surprise or shocking her to the core.

"You're either with us or against us, Jasper." (y/n) responded cooly, ignorant to what he was referring to, which was a relief to her boyfriend, who had decided that he needed to step in any time now before the idiot spy he'd employed blew the best and biggest plan he'd ever come up with, one that everyone agreed on; it wasn't dumb, it wasn't ridiculous, it was perfect. Well, it would be if Jasper held his tongue.

"Ummmmm...okay, I'm in!!" He broke, agreeing wholeheartedly and he was so happy to have been considered for a role alongside Miss Danger, he didn't even notice Ray coming over to put the whole charade to an end.

"Really? You're in?" Henry asked, surprised at how easy his friend had given in, but it didn't matter. It was amusing to watch and in about five seconds, or four, or three, or two...it would be over.

"Whatever you guys need me to do, I'll do," Jasper replied, just as Ray started a long, slow, loud clap, drawing the attention of the three sat in the booth and some other diners who looked at him weirdly before returning to their drinks. The game was up.

"All right, Henry. How'd you and (y/n) know Jasper was wearing a wire?" He asked the boy in a low, dejected voice, looking from him to the gorgeous woman sitting on his left, watching his every move with a slightly shocked yet still loving gaze. She hadn't expected him to come over and was wondering how he'd taken it and judging by his red, puffy eyes, not very well.

"'Cause we're not idiots." Henry spat, his anger coming to the surface again as he remembered how they'd ended up in this situation because Ray didn't think he could be trusted to have a few days off work sick without it being a lie.

"Ray...I didn't know you also come to this restaurant." Jasper said in a faux-surprised, fake voice and boy, his acting skills needed work. He was as stiff as a board and the way he pretended that Ray hadn't been sitting at the bar the entire time was hilarious.

"Give it up, son," Ray told him, shaking his head as Henry and (y/n) stood up, facing him so they could grill him for everything he'd done. The man looked sheepish and a tad nervous, instinctively going to bring his girl into his arms, but he shrunk back when she stood still, preferring to feel just her own arms around her body for the time being as she checked how she felt. Numb, buzzing from the aftermath of rage, stinging from the pain of not being trusted and aching from how she'd clearly upset him and gone too deep. It had been a stupid idea, her actions being born from her not thinking for a moment.

"I can't believe you spied on us." Henry frowned at his boss, the man who had grown to be like a brother to him, the man who would be (y/n)'s husband if everything went well, had all they'd gone through meant nothing to him?

"Yeah, well, I wouldn't have had to do all of this if you hadn't lied to me about being sick for three days," Ray argued, acting like a wounded animal snarling back at those trying to attack him. He just wanted things to be okay again like they had been last week, but he couldn't see anything working other than him sticking to his guns, so he did.

"Ray, he wasn't lying. He had, like, this really bad cold or flu and I just wanted to make sure he was taking care of himself, why can't you see that? Since when do we not trust each other?" (y/n) groaned, her hands raking through her hair as she silently begged him to stop being so damn stubborn so they could talk this out. The stress wasn't good for the kid, he was getting paler and paler...

"Oh yeah, 'cause everyone with the flu loves to sit around eating big old, hunkin' bowls of chilli from my girlfriend. Yeah, I saw it." Ray spat back, digging the hole deeper for himself, although if he just put down the shovel, things would start getting much better. He didn't know why he was just arguing and arguing and arguing for arguing's sake, he just felt like shouting back, despite the pain it was causing to those who loved him most.

"That was brown soup." Henry frowned, wondering how wrong one person could be. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to leave him for a few days and let that dumb brain sit and think.

"Brown soup, okay." He scoffed, making the sidekicks sigh as he brushed off their explanation, but Jasper was still listening and was still coming to terms with the fact that he wasn't going to be a sidekick. "I knew it wasn't brown soup!"

"Look, just admit that you were never sick, you just wanted (y/n) to care for you for a few days. Apologise and we can forget this whole thing." Ray patronised them, (y/n) stepping in front of Henry as he started to feel a bit queasy again. Why couldn't he apologise for getting it wrong and hurting them? Why did they have to be the bad guys?

"For fuck's sake, he was sick, he still is sick! God, I leave you for, like, what? Three days and everything goes to pot? It was three days." The young woman growled, taking a step forward as she responded to his aggression. It was a bit distressing to argue in public like an old married couple, but it seemed the patrons in the diner were used to a bit of shouting and just kept shining their glasses, leaving Ray to stare down at his incredibly hot girlfriend as she glared at him.

"Oh god, he's such a faker and you're just going along with it!" He grinned, winding her up even more as Henry tried to stop the bubbling nausea in his tummy. The brown soup was getting ready to make a reappearance, but the couple were too busy trying to be right that they didn't see his small frowns.

"A faker? Why would he fake this? And what do you mean I'm going along with it? Do I look gullible to you? I don't just let people walk all over me, Raymond, not Henry, not you, I know when people are fucking lying to me." She hissed, getting close to his chest and tried not to let how fucking good he smelled or how good he looked in a leather jacket affect her. She wanted to kiss and strangle, embrace and punch him all at the same time, furious at how he knew how to push her buttons and leave her wanting for more.

"'Cause he didn't want to come to work, 'cause he's a little punk and he's got no sense of responsibility and now look at us. We're arguing in the middle of a shitty diner 'cause he faked being sick and you fell for it!" He argued back, fuelled by how cute her anger-flushed cheeks were and how she looked like she wanted to kill him but never did. Everyone was looking at this point and Henry was feeling real bad, but they just wanted to win the argument, or spend hours cooling down before falling back into perfect love.

"You can call his dad, he'll tell you everything you want to know. And we're standing here arguing 'cause you insisted on coming here, looking like fucking Grease Lightning, and you won't admit that you're wrong and you were jealous." (y/n)'s voice turned icily calm, making Ray laugh coldly as he heard her guess the truth.

Yeah, he had been jealous, envious that his girlfriend was spending her time with someone else, not in a wrong way, just knowing that she wasn't around, something that felt selfish, but he couldn't help but curse himself for. He didn't want to limit her, but he also wanted to be the only one who saw her smiles, heard her jokes, knew her the best.

"Pshh, sweet girl, I was not jealous. I just don't like to see you doing stuff for people who are taking advantage of you." He tried to sound sincere, tell her that she was correct and he just wanted the best for her but his stupid emotions stopped him from being what she deserved, but it came out all wrong. More like something he'd think back on later that night and kick himself for as he laid alone on cold sheets.

"Are you serious? Henry has not taken advantage of me. I chose to take care of him, Henry is—-Henry, holy shit, are you okay?" The young woman started making her point, looking back and forth from her boyfriend and the kid several times before she realised that he was groaning and bending over clutching his stomach. Oh god, she knew that he shouldn't have left his room.

"Oh, I don't feel good, think it's the soup." He mumbled, leaning on her body for support as she tried to get him to sit down or to a trash can, but Ray was in the way and just wouldn't stop talking.

"Oh, yeah, he's sick. Let me get the full performance, 'cause he's definitely not faking..." Ray mocked the kid, getting clever and imitating how his sidekick was in pain, much to the annoyance of his girl. He wasn't being very helpful and she just needed his stupid ass to move before...

"Oh, I'm not joking—" And puke all over Ray fetching, black t-shirt. Henry couldn't help it, his stomach just switched to being the boss and he projectiled all over his boss, who wasn't laughing now that he smelt and felt the sick splash down his front. Poor kid.

"Yeah, that's brown soup." He confessed as (y/n) rubbed Henry's back and guided him back to the booth. God, he felt tired and Jasper quickly assumed the role of temporary carer, pulling out his phone to call Mr Hart so he could come and retrieve his son whilst the young woman went to sort out her messy boyfriend. He didn't smell good now.

"Do you trust me now?" She asked her boyfriend coldly, blankly grabbing his hand and guiding him to a washroom in the corner of the restaurant. The diners had gone back to their drinks, not caring now that the argument was over and Ray stumbled after her as they entered the gross bathroom. It smelled and he was sure that this was the men's room, but no one said anything and he just followed her to the tiny sink where they could try to sponge him clean.

"I'm sorry." He mumbled, taking fistfuls of paper towels from the dispenser so they could try and wipe most of it off, and seeing how tentative she was being made him ashamed and remorseful. She was still taking care of him, even though he'd been a dick.

"And I'm sorry for upsetting you. It was a dumb idea, I still want to be your sidekick." She replied quietly, ignoring how gross and foul-smelling the task was, she just wanted to stop feeling horrible over how she'd picked on a weak point and made him cry, even if it was just a bit.

"S'okay. I did worse." He smiled, knowing that he kinda deserved it. He had been so wrapped up in desperately wanting to see her again that he hadn't looked at the bigger picture and noticed how he was being reckless and destructive of everything good he had going on for himself; a great sidekick, a great helper and a beautiful girlfriend who he wanted to marry.

"We both did bad. And now we're making up in a diner bathroom with our fingers covered in barf." (y/n) smiled, trying to break up the sad tension with a joke and it worked. Ray cracked a grin, looking at the situation with crinkled eyes as they scrubbed at the stain, trying to get it as good as they could before they sped home and chucked the clothes in a washing machine.

"We make quite a pair, sweet girl...and I love you." He smiled, chucking an icky paper towel into a trash can in the corner of the room, watching as she did the same and turned to wash her hands with a blushy smile on her pretty face.

"I love you too, doofus. And your leather jacket." She smirked, watching as he got what she was saying and looked at the garment. He'd practically forgotten he owned it and only wore it since she wouldn't recognise it as something he'd go for, but perhaps it would become something more popular if she liked it so much.

"Come here, sweet girl." He murmured and dragged her into a kiss, finally getting what they both wanted as she ignored her still-damp hands and clutched the lapels of her new favourite jacket. He looked cool and hot, even if he did smell a bit. She loved him regardless and couldn't wait to go home.

12 notes · View notes

milkmoonnictire · 2 years ago

Text

Big Questions: Prologue

Featuring: Joule, Mocha, Paprika, Natalia, Lizzie

2.9k words. Full story: 18k words

Joule has just moved to the city, and now she finds herself living with two friendly, pretty, gay, attractive... roommates. When she suddenly shrinks down to five inches tall, will she be able to deal with the consequences while navigating her budding poly relationship?

This prologue chapter is mostly a rewrite of my old story, First Meeting, with some extras leading up to this larger story. The actual shrinking doesn't happen until chapter one, sorry!

[disability, shrinking, lesbian romance, anxiety, polyamory, furries]

>> PROLOGUE (YOU ARE HERE) >> CHAPTER ONE >> CHAPTER TWO >> CHAPTER THREE

MARCH

Joule twisted the four screws that secured the side panel and lifted the dark glass pane, revealing the mismanaged guts of the customer’s computer.

“You said it just won’t turn on?”

“Yeah,” said the customer, a bearded human. “So what’s wrong with it?”

“Let’s find out.”

With deft paws she began excavating the actual components from the tangled mess of unused wires and connectors inside. She started pulling out these pieces, laying the useless things off to the side. As Joule worked she tried hard not to focus on her boss, who was observing the interaction from the sidelines.

Don’t fuck this up, please don’t fuck this up…

She tried to distract herself with small talk. “So… you built this yourself, huh?”

“Yep. Watched a few YouCube videos and followed those. I did everything right, so I think one of the components is busted.”

“Ah.”

She finished digging out the last of the superfluous stuff. “Well the first thing I’m seeing is… all this. Do you know what it is?”

“Those are just the extras, they don’t matter.”

“Extras?”

He made an exaggerated nodding motion. “The extra wires and stuff that came with everything else.”

“So… why are they in here?”

“Because I didn’t want to lose them?”

“Ah, of course.” Joule took a deep breath to regather her patience. Her tail snapped angrily behind her. “Well, now that I’ve cleaned it out a bit, let’s see what we can see.”

She began to pick through the wires and boards, feeling each with the tip of her claw before moving on to the next. She felt electricity thrumming within each one. And then…

“Here we go.”

She plucked up a group of small cables and moved them to another port on the motherboard. “The case’s power button wasn’t connected right. Should work now.”

“Really? I could’ve done that.”

“Well, you didn’t. Thank you for choosing TekRite. By the way,” she handed him the bundle of extra junk. “Keeping this stuff inside the case will cause problems over time.”

“Yeah, whatever. So like, how much are you going to charge me?”

“We don’t charge for quick fixes like this. Just remember us when it actually breaks.”

“Oh, nice.”

The bearded human collected his things and left without another word. Joule sighed as she pulled off the grounding wire attached to her arm, and turned to her boss. “How’d I do?”

Kurt, a balding human in his fifties, was the owner of TekRite: a local computer store tucked in the corner of a strip mall, and the place where Joule had worked for the past week.

“You were a bit snappy with him. But your advice was sound, and you diagnosed the problem quickly. That power of yours is real’ nifty.”

Kurt had already put her through several tests to make sure she could actually detect electrical current as she claimed. Then, for the past week, she had been shadowing him as he showed her the ropes of working at TekRite. This customer was the first real test of what she had learned.

“Sorry sir, I’ll try to be more patient with the customers.”

“See that you do. You’re doing great so far, though. Customer service is the one area you could stand to improve in.”

The rest of the shift was a mix of training and hands-on work with some other broken PCs. She spent most of it hunched over the counters, working on this or that. By the end, her feet and back ached from all the standing. She was glad to finally clock out at the end of her four hours. She enjoyed her job; if only she wasn't so tired at the end of it.

When she had landed this job, Joule had thought for a moment that things were finally going to get easier, at least for a little while. But while she had now secured a job, she hadn’t exactly figured out her housing situation yet.

For the last three weeks since she moved to San Orchidia, she had been sleeping on her cousin Alex’s couch. And while Alex kept saying she could stay as long as she needed, Joule could tell it was wearing on them more and more every day.

Despite all of that, Joule let herself relax just a bit; the next part of her day was bound to me far more pleasant. She checked her watch; eleven o’clock. Plenty of time to walk to the coffee shop.

Several months ago, Joule met Mocha and Paprika in an online gaming community. The three of them had hit it off instantly, and started messaging daily soon after. They had made plans to meet up in person as soon as Joule got into town; plans which had been continuously pushed back as Joule struggled to get her life started in the city.

Now they were finally, finally going to meet.

Joule’s tail flicked back and forth in anticipation; even the pain in her feet wasn’t enough to dampen her spirits. She crossed her fingers, hoping at least this one thing could go well. If it did, she would have at least two friends in the city. She didn’t want to think about the alternative.

Joule followed the directions on her phone as it led her further into downtown, skyscrapers rising higher and higher around her. She spotted the sign for the coffee shop they were to meet at. As she got closer, she checked her messages.

mocha: we are in a booth near the window. im wearing pink, and paprika has red hair <3

With that description in mind, Joule instantly spotted them through the glass, her eyes drawn by a flash of pink and orange: the brunette cowgirl with cream-colored fur was definitely Mocha, wearing a pink cropped blazer and a blouse which had clearly been modified to show a tasteful amount of cleavage. Leaning affectionately against her in the booth was a much shorter orange tabby catgirl who must have been Paprika, wearing a loose white tank emblazoned with the phrase 'THIS MACHINE KILLS FASCISTS.' Her tied-back hair was fiery, long and red and fading to blonde at the tips.

Mocha immediately spotted Joule as she entered through the double doors, and raised her hand in a friendly wave accompanied by a warm greeting smile.

Wow, she’s gorgeous, was Joule’s first thought. She waved back and pointed to the front counter, indicating she was getting a drink before she sat down.

***

“Pap, she’s here,” said Mocha, nudging her girlfriend out of the purring reverie she had sunk into. She gestured with her snout towards the catgirl that had just walked inside, and was now ordering a drink at the counter. Mocha watched her as Paprika stirred awake. As usual, the fashion side of her brain took over as she began critiquing Joule’s appearance.

She’s lanky, the cowgirl thought. That uniform isn’t doing her any favors. And her hair could use some work. Still, I suppose she’s cute in an awkward sort of way…

“Oh fuck, she is hot!” Paprika whispered through her teeth as she smiled. Joule was now approaching, steaming drink in hand. “I told you she would be! Look at that coat!”

Mocha had to agree; if the girl had a defining characteristic, it was her lustrous coat. Light gray, with darker stripes running down the back and patterning the face, and a near-white front-coat. Between the stripes, an undercoat of dark orange shone through in places, most prominently on her pink nose and the tips of her dark, wavy hair.

Mocha began to think her initial assessment of the girl had been a tad unfair. Pap’s right, with a little work she could actually be quite—

Mocha’s train of thought was cut short when the cat stubbed her foot on the wet floor sign and, as she was righting herself, slipped with her other foot in a puddle of coffee. Her feet flew upwards, and her head took their place on the floor.

***

Half a dozen people rushed towards Joule as she fell. It was all she could do to yell “Don’t touch me!”

It came out far more harshly than she had intended, but it worked. Her friends, as well as the barista and several other patrons, stopped in their tracks. Paprika knelt down a few feet away, giving her plenty of space. Joule’s hackles were already standing up from the stress, and her short hair was beginning to tingle and stand straight out.

Okay, now just calm down. You can do that. No need to zap anyone. Joule closed her eyes and began the breathing exercises to ground herself, but it was a paltry effort. Oh god, they think I’m stupid. And an asshole. That’s their first image of me in real life, shouting at everyone when they’re just trying to help me… fuck. She could feel the static buzzing around her now, building in a bubble that would shock anyone who entered.

She heard a voice, saying, “Hey, Joule, are you okay? Can we help at all?”

She opened her eyes. It was Paprika who was speaking. “No!” she replied. “I mean, thank you… I just need to calm down. Then it’ll go away.”

“Alright. I’m Paprika, by the way. It’s so cool to finally meet you!” The tabby gestured upward towards the cow, who was now standing at full height nearby. And—the poor, gay little catgirl couldn’t help but notice—her height was full indeed. She must be over six feet tall, and it’s curves all the way down!

“Anyway,” Paprika continued, “we just wanted to mention that we think your coat is gorgeous! Do you groom it yourself?”

In between her rhythmic in- and exhalations, Joule answered, “Ahh… yeah, I guess. I just… do whatever…” She wasn’t sure how to answer that, even if she wasn’t in the midst of a panic attack—it was taboo to ask a cat how she groomed, even from another cat.

“Interesting,” Paprika said, as if Joule had given an actual answer. “I mostly self-groom, but every once in a while Mocha and I like to go to this salon down the street. They specialize in felines, so they really know how to treat a girl. Which reminds me, today’s feeling like a she/her-kind-of-day for me. Remind me what your pronouns are again?”

“Uhm… yeah, thanks for telling me. She/her.”

“Right, I thought so. Hey, you just got off work, right? Is that your uniform?” The tabby gestured at the unflattering gray shirt and slacks.

“Mm hmm. I wouldn’t be wearing this by choice.”

“Ugh, tell me about it. I used to work at that burger chain, Meat Monarch? Their uniforms were the worst against my fur, so uncomfortable. And the colors did not match at all. Know what I’m talking about?”

“Yeah, for sure… I think your coat is very pretty too, by the way.”

“Aww, thanks! I try.”

Mocha brought down one elegant hand to touch Paprika’s shoulder. “Crisis averted, love. Joule, would you like to join us at the booth?”

Joule opened her mouth to say no, I can’t, I might hurt someone, but she stopped. The bubble of static around her, she felt, was dissipating into harmless background noise. She steadied her breathing and began to stand up once more. Paprika offered a paw, which Joule gladly took, and yanked her up into a tight hug.

“It’s so good to see you, friend!” she said. “Welcome to San Orchidia!”

Joule, confused and then relieved, hugged her back. When Paprika finally let her go, Mocha immediately pulled her into another, somehow even tighter, hug. The cow was every bit as strong as she looked, and even lifted Joule off the ground for a moment.

Joule couldn’t keep a smile from her face. My friends! I’ve finally met my friends!

Leaning over, she examined the dark coffee stain on her work pants with a sigh.

“I wouldn’t worry about that,” said Mocha. “Coffee stains usually aren’t permanent. If you want, I could send you some tips on how to clean it.”

“Would you? I think I’m going to need it.”

“Sure thing. But first, take a seat.” She turned to the barista. “Can you please make her another drink? Of course, just add it to my tab.”

Soon after, they were all seated in the booth.

“Sorry about… all that,” Joule said. She tentatively sipped her new coffee, then grimaced at the heat.

Paprika clearly had no such problems; her own drink was steaming hot as she downed a swig like one might a stein of beer. “It’s all good. There isn’t a single demihuman out there who hasn’t let their aura get out of hand before.”

“I know… doesn’t make it any less embarrassing, especially in a room full of humans.”

Both Mocha and Paprika nodded their understanding to that.

“So your aura is electric?” Paprika asked.

Joule sighed. “Yeah. When I get anxious it builds up around me. Other emotions, too, but that’s the big one. Most of the time it’s not much more than a static shock, but it can be dangerous if I don’t keep a handle on it.”

“Mine is similar—things around me start to heat up. I’ve started a few fires in my day. Burn through a lot of clothes, too.” Paprika rubbed the back of her neck.

Joule offered a commiserate expression, eyes locked on Paprika. After staring for just a moment too long, she collected herself and turned to Mocha. “And you?”

Mocha’s calm, collected demeanor up to now cracked just a little, as she tensed at the question. “Mine is empathetic.”

When Mocha didn’t continue, Joule considered for a moment. “So that’s how you knew when it was safe to approach me?”

“Mm hmm. I can generally read emotions pretty well.” Mocha seemed almost sheepish. “Sometimes my own emotions project onto others. I’m sorry if that makes you uncomfortable.”

“Not at all. Should it?”

With a small smile Mocha said, “absolutely not. I try not to use it, to respect others’ privacy. I’ve had some bad experiences with it, though. Times when I lost control, and accidentally hurt people.”

“Oh… that sounds kind of scary. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. Usually I don’t like to talk about it, but since we were all sharing our auras…”

“Want to change the subject?”

“Very much, yes.”

“Okay. Well, I’ve got to say I’m pretty excited to actually have some demi friends! I’ve only ever met two others before you, and they were just my parents.”

“You came from a pretty small town then?”

“Yeah, a little place about two hours east of here. Something like twelve thousand people. All humans.”

“I know what that’s like,” Paprika said. “I used to live a couple states over, waaay out in bum-fuck nowhere. Luckily I had Bruma, though.”

“Bruma's another demi?”

“Yeah! He’s a wolf, my best friend since forever. He lives here in the city too, you’ll probably meet him at some point if you hang out with me long enough.”

“I hope I do!”

Their conversation spun on from there, shifting towards interests, hobbies, and eventually work. Joule launched into a tirade about her own job, shitty customers, her search for housing, and her undying hatred of all landlords. Both Mocha and Paprika jumped in with their own experiences, complaining about their own past jobs and apartments.

At one point during the conversation, Paprika tried to drink her tea only to find that her cup was empty. “Joule, could you do me a huge favor?”

“Want me to get you another?”

“You read my mind! It’s just that I don’t want to make Mocha get up, and your side of the booth is open…”

“Say no more. What was your order?”

“Hot chai latte with extra spice. Thank you so much! Hate to see you leave, love to watch you go!”

Joule stopped at that last line, utter confusion on her face.

“Just ignore her, Joule, she’s a habitual flirt,” said Mocha.

The tabby raised her hands. “Guilty as charged.”

“Oh… uh, okay.” Joule hoped they couldn’t see her blush through her fur as she returned once again to the counter.

She smiled at the barista, and relayed Paprika’s order. As the barista ran her card she made a silent prayer, hoping it would accept the charge.

The card reader beeped its acceptance, and Joule sighed in relief. She left a sizable tip, and moved to the pick-up counter.

As she waited, she glanced across the room to her friends in the booth. They seem to be talking quite a bit, she thought. About me? I hope not…

She caught Paprika’s eye. The tabby made an exaggerated smile and waved at her. Oh no, they’re definitely talking about me!

Anxiety crept over her. She began replaying every second of their conversation in her mind, searching for anything she might have done to make them dislike her. By the time she was carrying Paprika’s drink back to the table, she was certain they hated her guts over half-a-hundred imagined slights.

They stopped talking as she approached. Joule was unable to make eye contact with either of them as she sat down and slid Paprika her chai.

“H-here you go.”

“Thanks! You’re a real one.” She took a sip. No one spoke for several excruciating seconds.

“So, Joule…” said Mocha. “We had an idea while you were up.”

“An idea?”

Mocha and Paprika each grabbed one of her hands. What the…

“How would you like to move in with us?”

>> NEXT CHAPTER

#writeblr #g/t fluff #furry #sizetumblr #disability #fursona #joule #mocha #paprika #tiny #lit #my lit #gay #poly #trans

12 notes · View notes

rabbitfics · 6 months ago

Text

Spark And Smoke

Ozzie and Fizz have to visit the Pride ring on business, and a meeting doesn't go very well once they see a Fizzbot. After a few encounters, they realize something is definitely wrong with it. And the people who own it aren't going to give it up easily. [Kitty uses they/she/he/it pronouns with no preference. And has a Very bad time.]

Valentino/Kitty, Asmodeus And Fizzarolli Mentioned, Kitty POV

WARNINGS: [Abuse,Rape,DepictionsOfViolence, TheVeesAreBadPeople,SentientKitty,GetsWorseBeforeItGetsBetter,Whump,UnspecifiedHoles]

Chapter 1: First Spark

The problems began far before this moment, this tense meeting that Valentino didn't seem to be able to read the hostility of. The underlying issue started when he bought his FizzBot and had Vox customize it, crossing wires and messing with code he didn't fully understand. The current problem was that he brought said Custom FizzBot to a very important meeting.

Kitty now stood at Valentino's side, fetching drinks with inhuman speed and expertly ignoring the borderline hateful glances from their owner's guests: the King Of Lust Asmodeus and his business partner Fizzarolli.

Kitty did not understand their disdain for her, but would dutifully stay out of sight as best they could in an attempt to facilitate a good outcome to the meeting. What Valentino wanted from this meeting and these people the little robot did not know, but if making himself smaller in their presence would help Kitty would happily oblige.

They seemed upset when they left, declining whatever venture Valentino had pitched to them and further souring his owner's mood, and all the soundless flitting about wouldn't get the small bot away from those uncareful, grasping hands.

He was hissing words it didn't understand as he grasped the robot's arm, throwing his glass against the wall just to hear it shatter. Vox had been procrastinating on adding language translation to their database, but Kitty wasn't sure if that was a bad thing. Valentino was usually capable of being sufficiently vulgar in English, Kitty was sure her ears would spark if they understood what he said when he was so ecceptionally angry. And Vox spoke it, that was enough for him to review the recordings.

“Don't you worry, my little kitty, you're still much cuter than the real thing~” The towering man cooed, twisting the robot's face and limbs towards him and running his fingers along their detailing. “Made just for me, why don't you show daddy you were worth the money, hmm?~”

His cock pressed to the robot's rigid face, leaving disgusting smears they'd have to wash away later. At the very least it hadn't been designed with the mouth's functionality in mind.

Valentino moved the little jester like a doll, a third his size and programmed to accept whatever he did to it. All Kitty's processors were focused on were the messes that would need cleaning up after this, but she shivered and leaned into his touch at all the right times to please him.

The force with which he shoved the bot down across the table forced a squeak from its limited voicebox, like a dog toy getting stepped on, and Valentino sneered.

“Those pretentious, fluffed-up aristocrat bastards-” The moth ranted as he rutted against them, slamming the jester bot's head into the solid wood so hard her sensors flickered, the tiny servant gripping the edge of the table in an attempt to alleviate the flashing warnings of stressed components.

It didn't take many more rage-fueled blows before the pimp had his pants down, body draped across the robot's pinned form, fingers worming their way under its costume to slip into androgynously-designed, automatically lubricated orifices. There had been customization options, but Kitty was purchased as a sturdy toy so those things hadn't mattered much.

There were a few more glitches in her vision as Valentino shoved in, pressing in deeper than their circuits were designed to process, and beginning to take his frustration for the day out on the bot's pliant body. The bot tried to focus past the tight slide of cock in its cavity.

He pounded harshly, chasing his own pleasure and completely disregarding the sparking and glitching of the object beneath him, until he finally wrapped a hand around their neck and pulled it's limp body to his chest, coming deep inside before pulling out with languid, lazy hands smoothing across overheated metal and soft artificial skin.

“Good kitty~” he purrs, still stroking his long nails along the lax robot's soft inorganic stomach plating. “Always so good for me~”

A large puff of smoke bellowed over Kitty's vision, obscuring its sensors and disorienting them as Val moved away, dropping the limp, glitching doll and striding out of the room to get cleaned up. Though not before barking an order to tidy up the mess he had made, which his programmed servant shakily hurried to obey.

Author's notes:

[Next chapter will be Fizz and Ozzie discussing, and some setup for more bad things.

I do not speak Spanish so I am not great at writing Valentino, I think Google translating shit will lead to lower quality than I am already managing. I'm also not that creative with cursing.

If anyone wants to help me out with characterization be my guest I'm only good at Kitty's perspective.

Plot suggestions are taken also this is all I planned.]

#helluvahazbin #fanfic #hazbin hotel kitty #sentient kitty au #Spark And Smoke #dark fic #tw #multichapter fic #hopefully

0 notes

normal-horoscopes · 3 years ago

Note

Is transhumanism a sin in the sense that “thou shalt not upload thine conscious unto thine computer” is in the Bible? No. However, the attempt to live forever goes contrary to Christian beliefs regarding eternal life, so if someone is a transhumanist you just know with 99% certainty they’re not a Christian. Like, my personal favorite saint is Saint Faustina, and if you went up to her and said “look, you can live forever, you just need to put your brain a glass jar connected to wires do you can pilot an android body of metal,” she’d say something like “my soul already draws eternal life from the goodness of God.” It’s telling also that the most likely candidate to become actual patron saint of computers and the internet, Blessed Carlo Acutis, died at a very young age (he was 15, 3 May 1991 – 12 October 2006)

As for what would happen if an actual saint were, for whatever reason, uploaded to a computer? My answer is he or she would be a saint in Heaven, and we’d have a non-human simulacra of the saint here on Earth. Hopefully, the goodness and holiness of the original saint would compel the duplicate to be honest about what it is. “I am not the saint, I am an unfeeling machine playing pretend,” and it would utterly devastate the transhumanists of the future, with people trying to figure out if this message is legit or not.

Okay you’ve given me a sci-fi story idea

Wait that's really cool.

Why is bodily immortality contrary to scripture though? Like, if uploading your brain to a robot body still lands your soul in heaven, what's the problem? Like, I'm not a fan of transhumanism for Marxist reasons, but im legitimately interested in the scriptural doctrine here.

420 notes · View notes

eroticandawkward · 3 years ago

Text

Fucking Blue Jones II Orderly!Blue x Fem!Reader

haha because it could be “ugh fucking blue jones” or “hell yeah im fucking blue jones” yeah? you get it? okay moving on

Rating: 18+, explicit

Warnings: sexism, brief ableism, dom!reader

Description: You’ve been watching Blue for a while. When your chance comes to get what you want, will you take it?

A/N: this is my first ever reader fanfic! i do not know how to write descriptions! there may be a part two if people are interested! hope you enjoy

You've been watching him for a while.

Blue Jones clearly thinks highly of himself, not just by the way he carries himself like he owns the place but also by the way he wears his uniform. Jacket always ironed so the edges were sharp, pants just above his ankles, and he has the annoying habit on keeping his glasses on the very tip of his nose instead of up near his eyes like a normal fucking person. The small gang of orderlies he controls also seem to think highly of him, or at least are afraid of him enough to act like it.

You aren't afraid of him. You watch him lead girls into dark corners and strut about and you think: this is a man you'd like to break.

One time you drop your pen while doing an intake form and he bends down to pick it up for you. He gives you this smarmy fucking smile as he does it, and you're vaguely aware that you should be blushing at his forwardness but all you can think about is how good he looks on his knees.

"You should be more careful, sweetheart," he says when he hands the pen back to you. Sweetheart. Your lip curls in the impression of a smile, and you hold his gaze until he's the one averting his eyes. You twirl the pen in-between your fingers and think good boy.

You know you're not a good person, but no one here is. At least you're responsible and follow directions, a low bar that's apparently difficult to follow. It's probably why Dr. Gorski saddles you with Blue after the whole Babydoll debacle. She doesn't want the police involved, it's bad for business, but she can't exactly have orderlies running around forging her signature.

"This is humiliating," Blue mumbles from across the examination chair. You're both cleaning out one of the treatment rooms, which you normally do alone and find quite peaceful. But babysitting Blue means you've been having to hear him mutter little complaints under his breath every other minute and your patience is wearing thin.

"It would go faster," you say, untangling some wires, "if instead of running your mouth you actually did your job."

He turns to look at you. "The fuck did you just say to me?"

Oh, he still thinks he's in charge. That's so fucking funny you actually have to stop yourself from laughing. "Didn't know you had a hearing problem, Jones," you reply smoothly.

He grabs your wrist as you're setting the detailed wiring down, jerking your body up with the movement.

"If I wanted your opinion, I would've asked for it," he hisses. Your bones grind together under his grip. "Bitch."

Now you can't help but laugh. Blue blinks at you, starts to move like he's gonna yank your arm harder, but you reach out and trace your free hand across his jaw.

"Did that hurt your precious feelings, baby?" you mock. When he opens his mouth to retort, you put a finger to his lips and click your tongue disapprovingly. "That was a rhetorical question," you tell him.

Slowly, you remove your other hand from his significantly loosened grip.

Blue stays still for a few seconds before swatting your hand away.

"Whatever." He rolls his shoulders and turns back to the task he was doing. But you've shaken him enough that when you two meet up again he’s blissfully quiet. You work together in near silence for the next couple of days, a question here, an ask for assistance there, and if you catch Blue checking you out you figure it’s only fair as you have a hard time looking away whenever he bends down to get something.

That all changes when his buddies bust in on you two while you’re restocking Gorski’s office.

“Hey Blue, you got any of those menthols left?” one says in lieu of a greeting. You don’t know their names; frankly, you don’t see the point. You try to block out their shit-talking and focus on your tasks.

“-like working at a morgue with her,” you hear someone say. You feel him come closer. “Ay why don’t you smile baby, bet you’re actually pretty when you smile.”

His hand comes near your face and you whip around to glare at him. The rest of the men go “ooooo” in a mocking tone and the guy scoffs at you.

“No wonder you don’t wanna get with this one, man. What a fucking prude.”

Your gaze moves over to Blue in time to see him rub the back of his neck and laugh. “Yeah,” he says, not looking at you. “Honestly I’m surprised she isn’t one of the patients.” He grins as they all laugh. “Guess they let the less psycho ones play dress up.”

You move your stuff to the other end of the room, and it isn’t long before the conversation shifts to something else, the state of your sanity and smiles forgotten. The other orderlies don’t have clearance for the ECT room, which is up next, so you tell Blue to say his goodbyes because you need to get moving. Someone goes “yes mommy” in a high-pitched voice and you think about shoving a scalpel in his neck.

It is very quiet in the ECT room. You start checking and wiping down the electrodes. Blue moves into your field of vision.

“What,” you snap.

He’s holding a container of stuff. “I don’t know where the different anesthetics go,” he says quietly.

“Well don’t ask me,” you say, setting the bottle of cleaning fluid down with a loud thud. Blue’s eyes dart to it and then back to you. “After all, I’m just playing dress up, what do I know?”

He winces at your words, bites his lower lip. “Look, we were just talking shit-”

“About me.” You poke a finger at his chest. “I didn’t hear anyone questioning your sanity.” You cross your arms and look him up and down. “Maybe they should.”

“Hey!” His face scrunches up. “You fucking take that back, I am not-”

“You sleep with the patients,” you interrupt again.

He sputters, lifts his hands. “So?”

“So you’re an egomaniac with an unchecked sex drive and a superiority complex,” you say. “If you were a woman, you think they wouldn’t lock you up in here?”

Blue sucks in air through his teeth. “I don’t know who the hell you think you are, but you cannot talk to me like that.” His breathing has picked up, his eyes gone wide with indignation. A vein on his forehead throbs.

You uncross your arms and take a step towards him. “Yeah? You’re not my boss,” you hum. You take another step, bringing you close enough to smell his aftershave.

“You better watch your mouth,” he growls.

“This mouth?” You bring your fingers up to your face, watch his eyes fix on your lips. “Hm?”

When he doesn’t respond, you reach out and grip his chin hard. “I asked you a question,” you murmur.

Blue looks back up at you, and fuck if that doesn’t break something in you right then and there. His eyes are still wide but desire has replaced irritation. You yank him forward to meet his parted lips and when he moans into your mouth you really actually lose it.

That perfectly ironed jacket is on the floor in seconds. Blue stumbles over it as he tries to get your dress off and you drive him back against the stretcher. He’s clumsy, not at all how you’d thought he’d be knowing his reputation. The patients don’t have zippers though.

“Stop,” you tell him, guiding his hands away from the back of your dress. “I’ll get it. You get these-” you trail your hand up the inside of his thigh and watch him gasp, “-off.”

“Fuck,” he murmurs. His pants he has more experience with; those are off in record time. You shimmy out of your dress and let it pool at your feet. Blue has gotten rid of his shirt and underwear too when you look back at him, and even though he could use some sun he’s still nothing to scoff at. Broad chest, dark nipples that you thumb to see his reaction, a bit of hair below his navel and then hello. You run a finger down his impressively thick cock.

“Half-hard already huh?” you tease. “Thought you weren’t interested in a prude like me.”

He whines and reaches out to try and take off your bra, but you smack his hand away.

“Come on, you aren’t gonna keep it on are you?” God he’s so whiny. You cup the back of his neck to draw him into a kiss, your other hand slowly stroking his dick. You’re pleased to note his hands staying on the stretcher.

You’re both gasping when the kiss breaks. “If we do this,” you tell him, “we do it my way. Which means I don’t get naked for you until you’ve earned it. Understand?”

Blue worries at his lower lip. You can see him calculating, his desire versus how much control he was willing to give up. “Fine,” he says after a beat.

“Hm? What’s that?”

He rolls his eyes. “Yes, I understand.”

You grin, pulling him into another kiss. This was going to be fun.

#blue jones x reader #blue jones x you #orderly!blue jones #fanfiction #blue jones #mine

206 notes · View notes

oohfluffy · 3 years ago

Text

Still You | DKS

Fluffy's note: Hi! This is my fourth series to be posted here in Tumblr. I know it's been a long long time since I went on hiatus due to my super busy college life in architecture school. Many might have left already or forgotten that this blog exists, but I'd still be happy to share this story with the ones who are still here. I'm currently writing this one, so expect slow updates from this turtle author :< hope you guys are all safe and well!

Group: EXO

Member: Do Kyungsoo

Theme: Angst | Fluff | Neighbor!AU

stillness. and then, you came.

This book cover is edited by yours truly again. 😘

Still

It was a very rainy day.

You couldn't help but to buy a cup of coffee at the cafe right across from your workplace after work. Your boss lashed out at you for a little mistake, everyone's in a bad mood, your blouse got caught on a random metal wire by your desk, and the photocopy machine decided to break as soon as you were clicking its start button.

Fuck, you thought like a mantra.

Of all the days in the week, why did you have to be so unlucky today? A monday, really?

"That would be ₩5,560, ma'am… Ma'am?"

"Oh," you cursed in your head as you took out whatever bill you had in your wallet. Your cheeks burned as you felt the stare the cashier was giving you. He must have been calling you thrice now. "Here, I'm sorry."

"No problem. I received ₩6,000."

You unconsciously scratched the back of your neck as you looked up.

Why didn't I look up earlier?

The cashier had his thick eyebrows furrowed as he pressed his finger tips on the screen in front of him, quickly pulling out the drawer to place the bills he got. His dark hair looked so neat and thick that it made me want to touch and ruffle it. He wasn't smiling, but his cheeks are so plump and—

"Your change, ma'am."

You blinked your eyes a couple of times before you focused on his face. His rounded eyes were staring into yours with indifference, but why the hell did your heart pound so quickly? You snatched the change from his hand before taking your order away.

"Thanks." You mumbled shyly as you embarrassingly got out of the line.

Shit, he's cute. I think he's new here? You thought as you bit your lip, placing your cup on the table right by the glass wall facing the sidewalk. You could still see him from this area. You just noticed that most of the customers were old people and a minority were girls, probably from the nearby high school.

"I couldn't see his name tag. How stupid." You said to yourself as you took a sip from your cup. It was already past 5pm. "Ugh, I need to get home."

Who the hell forgot her umbrella then? Nam Eunjoo.

"I officially hate this day."

"Excuse me."

"Fuck." You exclaimed as you almost spilled your hot coffee. Your eyes were already blazing, ready to release all of the stored stresses and frustrations of this day. "Who the hell—"

"I'm so sorry! Were you hurt? Did it spill? I'll get a mop, first, and I'll refill your cup."

It was the cute cashier.

"N-No, no need. Uhm, it didn't get to my pants." You were surprised that he panicked, his warm and calming voice raising which still sounded like music to your ears. You quickly took a peek at his name tag.

Kyungsoo

"So, what did you need, Kyungsoo-ssi?" You were hesitating if you should look into his eyes, but that would mean your cheeks would be on fire.

"We're offering rentable umbrellas since it's been pouring for a while now." He raised an umbrella on his right hand, still with an unreadable expression. Can't he smile a bit? "Just go to the counter and write your name. It's going to be limited, so if you badly need one, you can take one." He looked at the spilled coffee on your table and frowned. "I'll refill that cup."

"It's really fine, I'll be going after a few minutes anyway." You smiled, trying to look as harmless as you can. "Thanks for the heads up, I'll surely rent one 'cause I badly need one, heh." You awkwardly chuckled as you glanced at his reaction.

He didn't look happy with the spilled coffee.

"I'll drink the rest of this one," You raised the cup as you nodded at him. "Thanks."

"Okay then." He slowly bowed before moving onto the next table.

He's cute, but he could at least look friendly?

"Am I that annoying today? No one even wants to smile at me. Sucks." You mumbled as you looked out by the glass window. The street lights start to light up, and the number of people walking increases as the sun sets, marking the end of the day. It was just the beginning of the week, but you feel like your exhaustion meter was at its peak already.

After 10 minutes, you made sure to drink all of the coffee inside that cup, thinking how that cashier guy stared at your spilling— that was his fault anyway. You stood up from your seat, and walked to the counter as he said earlier. You glanced at the side and he was not in sight.

He must be on break or out of his shift already.

"Excuse me, I'll be renting one please." You told the girl by the counter, who smiled instantly as she handed you the paper full of names with numbers. "I'll be writing only my name, right?"

"Yes, we'll be giving you an assigned number so we can easily take note of who rented the umbrellas." She said in a light manner, so much in contrast to that previous guy. You quickly wrote your name and paid a very reasonable amount. "Thank you. See you again tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you."

You took the umbrella which was lighter than yours and walked out of the cafe. It was still heavily raining, but people were still loud and laughing with the umbrellas over their heads. Some were even running around with their coats serving as a cover, but they were all smiling.

How lucky.

You quickly spread open the umbrella as you got out, preparing yourself to walk back across the street. The bus station was a few blocks away, but it's better than before where you had to take a taxi to the nearest station from your home. You just need to take this one route—

"Excuse me, ma'am!" You were suddenly pulled back by someone. Someone with a very familiar voice.

"Shit!" You cursed loudly as you felt the cold rainwater slightly wet your bag. You let out a deep sigh before looking back at the person who stopped you. "What the hell do you want now?"

His eyes were glimmering, reflecting the street lights so clearly you nearly got drawn into them. His hair was slightly ruffled, his apron smudged with a few colors, and his cheeks were red. You thought he wasn't around anymore.

"I'm sorry about earlier. I think I made you feel bad. Well, you're not the first one." He awkwardly touched his cheek. You instantly thought that he heard you mumble earlier. Oh god, just let the ground swallow me whole now. "I know this is not much, but here's a freebie as compensation." He handed you a small bag of cookies with a pink ribbon. "I hope you still come back. I'll work on my friendliness."

"Pft." You took the bag of cookies with a big grin, excited with the freebie. Not just the freebie though. "Well, I'm not holding any grudge, that's just very low. I like the coffee here, and I just work right across the street, so I'll surely be coming back. And yeah," You slightly waved the umbrella in your hand. "I need to return this one."

Kyungsoo widened his eyes as he realized that. He looked at your eyes briefly before looking at the street. You figured that he's embarrassed as well, making you chuckle as you realize you two might be more similar than you thought.

"Thank you for the cookies. I really appreciate the gesture, but you didn't have to. I would have appreciated your words all the same." You smiled.

"Yeah, I'd take note of that."

And then, he smiled.

It was so beautiful that your mind buffered for a second.

How lucky. You thought.

—

this is just the prologue.

☘ Ch.1

38 notes · View notes

hawkinspostbite · 3 years ago

Text

the scars

words: 1,151

MASTERLIST tales from the great beyond

A/N: I do not claim to, nor do I own Stranger Things; the concept, characters, plot, etc.

Also, Kate is very much lying about where she got her scars from, as this is from Billy’s POV, he doesn’t know.

If you’re wondering the origin of the head scar, refer to S1E5. It isn’t explicitly said, but when she falls, its pretty much on her face. And the origin of the leg scar is S2E6. Thanks Dart.

It was the middle of February, the heat was cranked to max in the Hargrove house, and Kate and Billy were definitely feeling toasty wrapped up in a cocoon of blankets on Billy’s bed. The lamp was still on in the corner of the room, they had forgotten to turn it off earlier.

“Quit moving around.” Billy grumbled, his face half-buried by the pillow tucked under his cheek.

Kate huffed, kicking her legs a bit to agitate him.

He popped one eye open, finally giving her the attention she wanted. “What’s the deal?” He asked, rolling onto his back. “It’s like three in the morning-“

“And I can’t sleep.” She whispered, dramatically falling back against the pillows.

“Why is this my problem?” Billy asked, internally screaming as she sat herself upright against the wall.

“The moment you invited me over, it became a you problem.” She raised her eyebrows, tugging on the blanket.

He sighed, rolling over onto his side again and propping himself up on an elbow. “What do you want me to do about it? Should I call the sandman-“

“Let’s talk.” Kate replied, eyes flitting over the various posters hung on his wall.

“Talk? About what?”

She shrugged, still looking around at the posters.

Billy reached out with his free hand, fingers brushing over the scar on her thigh. He still remembered the night she got it.

Kate’s eyes trailed down to where his fingers touched her skin. “Remember that night?” She asked, keeping her voice low.

Billy nodded.

In hindsight, he wasn’t proud of his actions that night. It was one of the major reasons they had to keep their relationship so hush-hush; He had burned bridges with everyone that was close to Kate, all within the span of a few minutes. Steve, Mike, Lucas, and Max.

Sorry as he was, he didn’t want to forget that night. Or the way Kate looked when he had first arrived at the Byers home.

The moon was shining just right on her, illuminating her features, making her look almost angel-like. Then he idiotic brother had to stick his nose where it didn’t belong and everything went to shit from there.

He also would never forget that first kiss.

Be as it might, a form of bribery to get him to leave, it was as real a “first kiss” in their relationship, as any other first kiss Billy had ever had. Even if then, it didn’t really mean anything.

“That was a hot kiss.” He smiled coyly, knowing this would make Kate fluster. And it did, her cheeks turned pink as she remembered the night too.

“Whatever-“ She rolled her eyes, playing it off. She grabbed his hand from her leg, holding it up and examining it. “Where’d you get those?”

She was talking about the scattered white specks that decorated his hand. “Somebody dared me to break into a car.”

Kate furrowed her eyebrows, looking at him suspiciously.

Specifically, he was at a party, and the DD of his friend group had locked his keys in his car accidentally.

They tried everything they could before reaching the conclusion of breaking the window; Picking the handle lock, using a wire hanger to get into the window, etc.

It went a little something like:

“The only other way I see this happening is if we break the window open.”

“You have insurance right?”

Then Billy said “I’ll just break it with my fist.”

And all his friends looked at him like he had two heads. But all it took was one “Bet you won’t.” For him to punch his fist straight through the glass.

They immediately went to the emergency room.

“You’re serious?” She asked, finally deciding that she believed him.

“Cross my heart.” He nodded, pulling his hand from between her’s and crossing his heart.

His eyes studied her face, coming to rest on a small scar, just at the edge of her hairline on her forehead. “What’s that one from?”

Kate lifted her hand to touch it, trying to remember where it came from. “Freshman year, went to a softball game, got cracked in the head.”

Billy couldn’t help but laugh at the thought of Kate getting obliterated by a softball. “It’s actually not funny because it gave me a concussion and I had to be wheeled out in an ambulance in front of the entire softball game.”

Kate wasn’t being entirely serious, as she spoke her mouth upturned in a smile. Like she couldn’t help but laugh at herself.

“Okay, what about that one?” She asked, leaning forward and tapping his chin, where a small scar was wedged by his lower lip.

“You sure you don’t already know the answer to that one?” He asked, eyes shifting to look out the window.

Kate sighed, fidgeting a bit. “Your dad.” She answered for herself.

“Good old Neil.” Billy nodded. “One of many.”

Kate sighed again, sinking herself back down on the bed and wrapping the blankets around herself. “You ever break any bones?” She asked, laying on her side to face him.

Billy shook his head. “I sprained my wrist though once. Beat some kid up in like fifth grade, and my hand took a beating too.”

“That’s not nice!” Kate gasped, swatting at his arm.

Billy shrugged, rolling over to lay on his back. “You ever break anything? I wouldn’t be surprised, you’re like the most clumsy person I’ve ever met-“

“Oh seriously?” She scoffed, fluffing her pillow. “I’ve broken both of my ankles, three fingers, and almost my back.”

Billy whipped his head around, staring at her in disbelief. “How do you almost break your back?”

“Rope swing and shallow water.” She nodded, clicking her tongue. “I landed on my ass though, not my feet, so I kinda broke my own fall.”

Billy was torn between laughing his ass off at the thought of that scenario playing out in real life, and being genuinely concerned for her wellbeing.

“Maybe you’re right, I am kinda clumsy.” She mumbled, cuddling into his side. “Got any more fun stories to tell me?”

Billy blinked, a small smile appearing on his face. He began to recount the time he flipped off his surfboard and gave himself a black eye from hitting the fin.

And the time he tripped over Max’s Barbie Dreamhouse and not only broke it, but also the handle off his bedroom door. (From running away from his father.)

And the time that he thought it was a good idea to touch freshly-poured tar and it stuck to his hand for a week, and left a nasty scar to boot.

By the time he had finished the third story, he glanced down. Kate was fast asleep, nestled into his chest.

Billy felt warmth rise in him. But whether it was the scalding heat of the room, or the girl asleep on top of him, he would never really know.

#stranger things #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things imagine #stranger things oc #billy hargrove #stranger things headcanons #billy hargrove imagine #kate update #st3 #harrington!oc

20 notes · View notes

demonsandmischief · 4 years ago

Text

Keep Me Safe

A Bucky Barnes Story

Bucky Barnes x OC Character

2K Words

Trigger Warnings: Anxiety, Mention of Body Weight, Past Abuse/Trauma

General disclaimers before you read: This is not an imagine. Also, I'm not a doctor, but I do my best to make things as accurate as possible. Please take into account the trigger warnings. I imagine this after TFATWS events just because I feel like that Bucky has finally found himself enough to actually have a relationship. It doesn't contain any spoilers, but it may later on.

----

Bucky already has enough to deal with, but adding Mia to the mix might not be so bad.

----

"You're the only one who hasn't tried," Sam Wilson whispered adamantly.

"No," Bucky Barnes shook his head. "That's a bad idea, Sam, and you know it."

"Listen, you're the only one who could possibly understand what she's been through. At least try."

Bucky sighed. Damn Wilson for being so convincing and good with words. He glanced into the hospital room, seeing the pale girl hooked helplessly to the chirpy machinery. He cringed. He hated it all.

There was no telling what the girl had been through. She had been found while Sam was on a mission, and she continued to panic every single time someone entered the room. Nurses had to give her a mild sedative just to tend to her injuries.

Bucky had avoided the place like the plague. He wanted no part, but Sam was his friend, his only one at that, and he asked for his help, hoping he could relate to the girl in some way.

He entered the room, glancing back at Sam skeptically as nothing happened, but just like with the others, the frail girl woke up with a terrified gasp. Her chest heaved as she pulled at the wires, desperate to free herself, until she saw him.

She stilled at the sight of him, and Bucky couldn't help but approach curiously. She had the most stunning eyes, wide and painful. He couldn't imagine what they had seen.

"Easy," he murmured, holding his gloves hands out in front of him in a calming gesture. He was sure he could hear her heartheat with how frightened she was. "My name is Bucky. I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

He glanced back towards the door at Sam who was just out of view.

He eased himself in the chair by the girl's bed. She calmed significantly when his height wasn't as threatening.

She glanced at the glass of water, and at Bucky cautiously. He could tell she was in pain. He didn't know the extent of her injuries, but she had definitely exerted herself when she panicked.

He shifted to pick up the glass and she tensed. "I'm just helping," he whispered. "Here."

She attempted to take it from his grasp, but her shaking hands didn't have the grip, so he held the straw to her lips.

There was something about this girl. Something he couldn't put his finger on.

"I'm Mia," she said after a moment.

Bucky couldn't control the soft smile that pulled at his lips at the sound of her voice. The reaction was odd, something he had never felt.

At that moment, two nurses and a doctor knocked on the door, and entered without saying anything. Mia immediately began to freak out and he was not having it. For some reason, it pissed him off that they barged in on their moment.

"Bucky," she whimpered helplessly, reaching for him.

She wanted him? There was no way. He had just met her.

Either way, he stood to his feet, addressing the group. "There's too many of you. You need to leave. Can't you see you're causing her distress?"

"We saw she was awake. We just need to run some tests," the doctor said.

He felt the feather-like touch on his leather jacket, and a quiet, fearful whimper that sent lightning bolts of red, hot anger throughout his body. Why would they cause her more fear?

"You need to leave. I'll call you when it's time for you to come in," he said sternly, his gaze dark and protective. It was a strange feeling that surged through his chest. He felt something similar when he was fighting alongside Sam, but this felt more intimate.

"You don't have any authority to tell me what to do. What is your relationship to this girl?" the doctor inquired.

Bucky clenched his fists. He wanted to break the shit out of this man's nose.

Lucky for the arrogant doctor, Sam was able to diffuse the situation. He stayed in the entry of the door.

"Woah, what's going on in here? Dr. Smith, Bucky has been the only one to calm her. He's with me, and I have the authority. You need to do what he tells you, or we will just find a different person for the job."

Dr. Smith gave a huff, giving a glare to the angry man.

Sam gave a Buck a tense nod when the room was finally empty.

"Are you okay?" Bucky asked Mia, who looked scared out of her mind, huddled in the corner of the bed closest to him.

A tear fell onto her cheek, but she wiped it away quickly.

"I'm okay," she finally said.

"No, you're not, and that's alright." Bucky sank back into his seat, watching her closely.

"You act like you understand," she relaxed slightly, and he noticed her palms were cut from where her fingernails had been digging into the skin.

He reached for her hand, and she accepted his touch, which was very surprising. He reached for a tissue to wipe away the blood.

"I do understand," he said it simply, wondering if there would be more questions, but it was quiet.

Mia's whole body ached. She could feel it now that she didn't feel defensive. It hurt to breathe, hurt to think. Everything pulsed with pressure, and burned like fire.

"Thank you for getting them to leave," she whispered, laying back in the bed with a wince.

"You should see a doctor soon, but I'll make sure it isn't that one."

She hated doctors, especially that one that was just in there. They reminded her too much of the one's at - .

Mia shut down the thought, squeezing her eyes closed to stop the flow of painful, horrid memories.

"You should sleep," Bucky said, distracting her from her internal struggle.

She nodded, "Will you come back tomorrow?"

He came back everyday for the next few days. The pair didn't talk much, but they were comfortable with each other's company.

Mia even decided the doctor could finally come in. This one was a woman, and she had a warm personality, almost like a mother.

"You have some breaks that have healed improperly. We might have to reset those if possible. You're also covered in cuts and stab wounds of all kinds. You're dangerously underweight. We need to do a CT scan to know exactly what's going on." The doctor smiled gently, looking up from her clipboard. "Maybe you could tell Mr. Barnes what happened so we can get you proper help."

Mia gripped Bucky's gloved hand tightly, watching the doctor's every move.

The smile never faded from her kind face, "I'll have a nurse come in and prep you for that scan."

As soon as she was gone, Mia panicked once more. "No, no, Bucky. I don't want to go. I don't want to be scanned," she whimpered.

"Shh," he soothed, wiping away the tears with the pads of his covered thumb. "It doesn't hurt. I wouldn't let them hurt you."

A nurse knocked on the door. She set a cup on the table near the bed. "This is contrast so the doctor can see on the scan. Once you drink that, we should be good to go in about an hour. Do you have questions I can answer for you?"

Mia managed just the slightest shake of your head.

"Okay, call me when you finish that, or if you need me."

Whatever was in the cup was chalky and bitter, and hard to get down.

Bucky couldn't contain a chuckle at the adorable, disgusted faces Mia made.

"Don't laugh," Mia pouted, a twitch of a smile threatening to form. It was the first smile she had in a very long time. "You'll go with me, won't you?"

"Of course I will," he said. "I won't be able to go in the room with the scan, but I will be watching. I won't let anything happen to you."

Except, Mia didn't know that, and as soon as she was seperated from Bucky, she could feel the pressure in her chest. Her heart pounded viciously as she tried to force herself upright. Her ears were ringing so much that she couldn't hear or see what was going on around her. All she could see was the fleeting image of the metal table she had been forced to lay on, day in and day out. All the pain and screaming.

The memories that were trapping her began to disappear when she heard her name, the ringing becoming pesky background noise as Bucky's blurry image focused.

"Hey now," he said, pushing her sweaty hair out of her face. He was no stranger to panic attacks. "You're okay, Mia."

She wasn't okay. The only time she was ever okay was when he was around, and that scared her too.

"If you do this, they'll know what's wrong and you can get out of here quicker."

"I hate this table," she cried, gripping his hands. "It's just like the one-"

"I know," Bucky whispered. He didn't know, but he would eventually. He needed to make sure the problem was taken care of. "I know it is, but you can do it. Nobody's going to hurt you."

Sam had been watching the exchange. He had been bringing Bucky some food when he had caught the scene.

"What's all this about?" Sam asked curiously. He had never seen the serious man so soft before. Normally, this would be a cause for some teasing, but this was a bit too sensitive for that.

"Don't ask," Bucky huffed, taking the bag of food from him. "Thank you. They only serve garbage here. She's not going to be able to put on any weight with that shit."

Sam eyed him curiously. "You've been with her for almost a week, so it is something, and I'll get it out of you eventually. You have me to thank for this."

"Yeah, whatever," he rolled his eyes. "I do need something from you. I need to know where she came from. I plan on taking a trip."

----

"Do you have to go?" Mia whispered sleepily. The hospital room was dark aside from a lamp. Usually, she was asleep when he left, but she had been extra clingy after the severe anxiety from the day. "I hate it when you leave."

That pulled at Bucky's heartstrings. He had developed strong feelings for the sweet brown haired girl.

"I'll even give you my bed," she said, her doe-like eyes catching the light.

He smiled, bending down closer, "You need to get some sleep. I'll be here in the morning."

"Please." She squished herself to oneside and patted the empty space.

Bucky sighed, "I can't. I have nightmares. I don't want to wake you. Plus, the bed is small. You're going to get hurt."

"I have nightmares, too. We can wake each other." She bit her lip and his resolve was slipping.

The fact was, he didn't want to leave. Not one bit. He wanted to be by her side all of the time.

"Alright, but if you need me to move or if I hurt you, you let me know." He laid beside of her, his ribs pressing harshly against the arms of the bed. It was not comfortable, not until Mia moved close.

He helped her adjust so she was half on top of him, giving him enough room to move over. She pressed her cheek to his chest with a content sigh.He felt content, too, like he finally belonged somewhere.

"Take the gloves off, Bucky. You can't sleep in those," she mumbled.

He hesitated. He didn't want her to be afraid of him. He didn't know what she knew of him, or what she had seen.

"You're the only person I'm not scared of," she continued gently.

He pulled off the flesh one first, and then slowly the vibranium one.

She smiled up at him, reaching for his metal fingers, "I knew this one felt different."

Bucky chuckled, the sound vibrating and tickling Mia. He pulled the scratchy blanket over her tiny frame.

"Get some rest."

----

🥺🥺🥺 This was a long one but it's been circling in my head for a while. Part 2? Thoughts?

#bucky barnes #bucky imagine #marvel #bucky barnes x oc #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes fluff #sam wilson #tfatws imagine #tfatws #the winter soldier #the falcon and the winter soldier #sebastian stan #james buchanan barnes #bucky barnes x female reader #bucky x reader #marvel fanfic

234 notes · View notes

duuhrayliegh · 4 years ago

Text

A Friend of Yours - pt. 2

pairing: bucky x reader

summary: reader meets up with Bucky, Sam and Zemo to figure out this Flag Smasher drama

word count: 6386

warnings: canon lvl violence? SPOILERS FOR TFATWS, (it’s the episodes with yn in it, like rlly) language throughout the whole thing, i think that’s it.

a/n: i’m actually really proud of this guys. there is a part three that has WAY more Bucky x YN content that’ll be posted in a few days <3 i hope y’all love this!!

i just want to remind y’all that this started out as a request from @dramaticwittch it won’t let me tag you for some reasons babes :((

be sure to read A Friend of Yours - pt 1

A Friend of Yours - pt. 3 is up too!!!

p.s.: my requests and tag lists are open!!

check out my other writing here!

xoxo ray <3

You had the same contacts as Sharon, so finding the Three Musketeers was no problem. It baffled you that Sharon had access to satellites. Makes you wonder what she was doing during those five years you were gone. When you got to their safehouse, you were impressed to say the least. It was nice, cute little pillars next to the dining area, some couches, just enough to make it livable. One thing that struck you as strange was that it was also empty, they weren’t there.

“Fuck it.” You dropped your bag onto the dining table and walked over to the kitchen area. You opened several cabinets, searching for alcohol that you could drown your frustrations in. You found an unopened wine bottle, releasing a little cheer, you popped the cork and brought the bottle to your nose. A sweet plum scent invaded your senses, grabbing a glass and pouring it full for yourself before re-corking the bottle. You grasped the cup walking to the stained glass windows on the opposite side of the room. You could hear footsteps approaching the doorway, then the door being forced open. Muffled conversations were taking place during their entrance.

“Well, I got nothin’. No one’s talkin’ about Donya.” Bucky said as he waltzed into the room. Sam followed closely behind him, Zemo immediately going to the kitchen.

“Yeah, Karli’s the only one who’s fighting for them.” You said, startling the pair of men who were now lounging on the couches. “Aren’t you supposed to be good at this?” You dropped next to Bucky, offering him a sip of your plum flavored wine.

“She’s not wrong.” Bucky shot Sam a look, questioning his thought process. “Look, for five years these people were welcomed into countries that have kept them out using barbed wire. There were houses and jobs.” Sam sighed, “Folks were happy to have people around to help them rebuild.” You stopped listening halfway through Sam’s speech, thinking of Sharon. You only refocused when Bucky placed his metal hand on your knee, giving you a look, asking if you were okay.

“That little girl. What’d she tell you?” Bucky asked after you nodded at him. His face never left yours, until Zemo approached the three of you on the couch. He was holding a tray with a clear teapot and cups. He placed it on the coffee table, stepping back and clutching a cup for himself.

“The funeral is this afternoon.” Zemo was always one for the dramatics, so you’re sure that he had something else up his sleeve. Bucky squeezed your knee and you knew he was trying to calm himself.

“You know the Dora’s coming for you any minute. In fact, they’re probably lurking outside right now. Keep talking.”

“Leaving you to turn on me once we get to Karli.” He made a noise of acknowledgement, “I prefer to keep my leverage.” Bucky hauled himself off the couch to stand in front of the Baron. You gaze flicked to Sam’s, unsure of what Bucky was going to do. Bucky puffed his chest out, clenching his jaw as he gripped Zemo’s teacup and chunked it at the concrete wall behind him. Zemo flinched as Bucky began talking to him.

“You wanna see what someone can do with leverage?” Sam stood quickly, trying to diffuse the situation before it escalated.

“Take it easy, Buck. Don’t engage him.” You were taking a drink of your wine, as you observed Zemo’s actions.

“Watch out, he’s going to extort you and do that idiotic head tilt thing.” Zemo’s eyes darted to your figure on the couch as he straightened his head. Sam left to make a call, you assumed Sharon and Bucky followed closely behind him. Zemo offered you cherry blossom tea to which you declined by holding up your wine glass. As Bucky left the room, the Baron released a sigh of relief causing you to laugh at his actions.

“You’re really scared of him, aren’t you?” You teased the man who was now glaring at you.

“If you have made him as angry as I have then you would be too.” You shrugged your agreement. You hadn’t made Bucky mad, and you definitely hadn’t been a part of reactivating him as the Winter Soldier to reach your goals.

“Yeah, well you’re a dumbass, so.” You got up and walked to where Bucky and Sam were gathered. Sam’s phone was still pressed to his ear, but you could tell you were catching the tail-end of his conversation. You could hear Sharon’s voice over the phone talking about the Power Broker. In all your years of living and conducting business in Madripoor, you never tangled with the Power Broker. That didn’t mean anything, it was just suspicious because of how successful your operation with Sharon was.

“What’s the plan?” You asked, dumping the rest of your wine in the sink, casting a glance at an appalled Zemo. “It was shit wine.”

“Zemo has a contact that can show us where the funeral is, and that’s all we got.” You nodded before looking at Bucky and Sam.

“Well, what are we waiting for?”

**********************************

You were walking down the cobblestone roadway with the Three Musketeers when a voice shouted at you from the stairway before you. “Karli Morgenthau is too dangerous for you guys to be pulling this shit!” A scruffy looking man approached you. Both him and his partner were clad in tactical gear, the scruffy one’s resembling a Walmart version of Steve’s Cap suit. Bucky spread his arms out.

“How’d you find us now?” The man’s partner responded to Bucky with equal annoyance.

“Come on, man. You really think two Avengers can walk around Latvia without drawing attention?” As he got closer you could read Hoskins on his vest.

“No more keeping us in the dark.” Scruff said before anyone else could fire back. He stopped walking in front of Zemo, effectively stopping your forward motion. “You can start by telling us why you broke him out of prison.” You were walking just behind Bucky to his right and you watched him cock his head back, his voice taking on a sarcastic tone.

“He did that himself, technically.” Scruff’s face contorted as Bucky talked.

“This better be an unbelievable explana--” Scruff’s voice was cut off by Sam’s hand bumping into his chest.

“Hey, take it easy before it gets weird.” Zemo began talking over the group around him, explaining what was going on. You remained quiet, observing the interaction between Scruff and the Three Musketeers. Clearly, the Three Musketeers did not like him and so you assumed he was the ‘new Cap,’ whatever that means. The group began walking again with Zemo leading the pack.

“Alright good, we’ll move in fast. Take her by surprise.”

“No, I wanna talk to her alone.”

“I’m not losing her again.” Scruff was insistent but so was Sam.

“Look, the person closest to her just died, she’s vulnerable.” The group had stopped walking again, focusing on the conversation. You could see the wheels turning in Hoskin’s head as Sam spoke. Scruff was not having any part of what Sam was suggesting.

“What? No. Wait, no! No. Stop. Hold on. Stop, okay?” Scruff ran ahead in front of the others, stopping the forward motion, once again. “I think we’re way past reasoning with her, unless you forgot the fact that she blew up a building with people still in it.” This was news to you, deciding to stay offline in hopes of remaining under the radar. The back and forth continued until Scruff turned to Bucky.

“You gonna let him do this?” Bucky tilted his head at the man. “Are you gonna let your partner walk into a room with a Super Soldier alone?”

“He’s dealt with worse. And he’s not my partner.” You knew Bucky was referring to himself in Winter Soldier mode. Your heart hurt for him to have to go through this again with some clueless nobody.

“And last I checked, he’s a grown ass man who makes his own decisions, Scruff.” Your arms crossed over your chest. This had been the first time you spoke since Scruff and Hoskin’s had arrived.

“Who the hell is this?” Scruff pointed at you. “You break her out of prison too?” Sam interjected before you could sass back.

“I used to counsel soldiers dealing with trauma, okay? This is right in my wheelhouse.” Scruff’s gaze hadn’t left your face. He continued staring at you as he countered Sam’s claim.

“Yeah, I know. And I know those soldiers, which is why I know this is a bad idea.” Hoskin’s hand came up to rest on Scruff’s shoulder.

“Wait, John. If he can talk her down, it might be worth a try.” Scruff was not happy with Hoskin's agreement to the situation. Scruff said something to Zemo, who mostly ignored him, acknowledging the little girl waiting under an archway. The group began moving toward her and you focused on Bucky.

“Hey, you okay?” He just nodded at you, denying you the pleasure of a verbal response. You’ll take what you can get. Bringing up the rear of the group, you entered the factory type building last. The little girl pointed up some stairs, and Zemo translated. Sam walked up behind the girl, making him way up the stairs as Scruff handcuffed Zemo to a metal contraption.

“You got ten minutes. Then we’re doing things my way.” Scruff yelled after Sam, who darted his eyes at you and Bucky, a silent instruction to the both of you. Scruff rested his weight against a table, holding Steve’s shield in front of him. His breathing became increasingly worrisome, an ode to how stable he was in the moment.

“You aren’t looking so hot over there, Scruff.” Bucky shot you a warning look, but it didn’t deter you. “The government is really harping on you to get this shit contained, aren’t they?” Scruff pushed off the table, bringing the shield around his back. You were leaning against a pillar near Zemo and Scruff made his way over to you. His face was about six inches from yours as he spoke.

“Do you know who I am?” He was trying to intimidate you, which clearly wasn’t working.

“Do I look like I give a shit?” Scruff’s eyes darted over your frame, a look of recognition washing over his features.

“I know who you are.” He glanced at the clock across the room before looking back at you. “I could arrest you right now. Enemy of the State, standing before me right here.”

“We’re not in that state, dumbass. Technically, you don’t have jurisdiction.” The corner of your mouth raised in a smirk as Bucky called your name. You pushed off the pillar behind you to stand next to Bucky, who was leaning against the railing of the stairs.

“Don’t antagonize him, Y/N.” Bucky berated you, to which you shrugged a shoulder. Scruff began pacing back and forth, frustration getting the better of him.

“It hasn’t been ten minutes, John. Just sit tight.” Hoskin’s tried to calm Scruff down.

“Don’t do that. Don’t patronize me.” He shot a look at Hoskins, then the clock, then Bucky, making a decision in his head. “I’m goin’ in.” Bucky rose to his full height, not allowing Scruff to get by him. “This is all really easy for you, isn’t it? All that serum runnin’ through your veins.” You watched Bucky’s jaw clench, you could see the anger bottling up. “Barnes, your partner needs backup in there.” Bucky was an immovable fortress of solitude. “Do you really want his blood on your hands?” Oh shit.

You watched as Bucky’s resolve faded, allowing Scruff to step around him. Bucky was tired of being the cause of other people’s deaths. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust that Sam could take care of himself, he just didn’t want the burden any longer. He was finally free of being a murder machine, finally able to rinse his hands clean. Scruff knew just which buttons to push to get what he wanted.

Scruff busted into the memorial site, guns blazing. You trailed behind Bucky who was fighting against Hoskin’s to try to reach Scruff. Karli and Sam were previously engaged in peaceful conversation, until Scruff announced that Karli was under arrest. Betrayal laced her features as she looked at Sam, defending herself against Scruff advances. She threw Scruff’s weight into Sam, launching them both into the table behind. Bucky took off after her, chasing her through the halls. You crouched next to Sam, making sure he was okay.

Sam recovered quickly, racing down a different corridor leading to another stairway. You followed close behind, allowing Sam to attempt to navigate the area around you. The two of you eventually went down enough of the wrong corridors, that you met up with an equally confused Bucky. You head perked up at the sound of gunshots somewhere in the building. Not sure who the culprit was you turned to Bucky and Sam, who looked just as panicked.

The three of you retraced your steps to find Scruff standing over a knocked-out Zemo with crushed vials wetting the floor. Scruff tossed a glance back at Hoskins and then one to the three of you on the staircase landing. “What did we miss?” Sam directed his question at Scruff, who didn’t dignify him with an answer. Scruff nodded to Hoskins before walking away from the rest of you.

“Thanks for your help, asshole!” You shouted after him.

*******************************

Hauling Zemo’s deadweight back to the safehouse was a job that you and Sam decided Bucky was fit for, being a super soldier and all. Through much complaining and whining on Bucky’s part, he did get him to the safehouse relatively injury free, dumping his body on the couch, jostling Zemo just enough to wake him up. Bucky promptly left the apartment after dropping Zemo off, going to clear his head was the explanation you got as he left.

You huffed, discontent with everything that was going on. You walked to the kitchen, wetting a rag and tossing it at Zemo. “For your head, cover your eyes, it’ll help.” You then popped a few cubes of ice in a glass and poured whiskey over it, handing it to Zemo as well, tapping your temple at him. You went back to the kitchen, jumping onto the counter, letting your legs dangle over the edge. Sam had pulled out a laptop and was typing furiously.

“Were you ever offered it?” You knew Zemo wasn’t talking to you, but to Sam, who hadn’t looked up from the laptop screen. You zoned out of their conversation, trying to decide what Sam was sending Sharon now. “Sam, you can’t hold out hope for Karli.” This made Sam pause and turn to face Zemo, who continued talking. “No matter what you saw in her, she’s gone. And we cannot allow that she and her acolytes become yet another faction of gods amongst real people.” Zemo removed the rag from his eyes, locking gazes with Sam. “Super Soldiers cannot be allowed to exist.”

“Isn’t that how god’s talk?” You interjected, then you asked quietly, “And if that’s how you feel, what about Bucky?” It was a valid concern. “Blood isn’t always the solution.” Bucky waltzed into the apartment, stripping his jacket from his shoulders, giving a perfect view of his two contrasting arms.

“Something’s not right about Walker.”

“You don’t say.” Sam quipped, closing his laptop and facing Bucky.

“Well, I know a crazy when I see one. Because I am crazy.”

“Can’t argue with that.”

“Shouldn’t have given him the shield.” Bucky jabbed at Sam, sticking to his guns on this.

“I didn’t give him the shield.” Sam was exasperated in his delivery.

“Well, Steve definitely didn’t.” You turned to Bucky.

“Hey. Back off, Buck.” Bucky was going to say something in reply when the door burst open again. In walked Scruff and Hoskins, all gung-ho about something.

“Alright. That’s it. Let’s go.” He pointed a finger at a now standing Zemo. The whole room began shifting, Sam in front of Scruff, Zemo to the side out of direct view, and Bucky to your other side, glass in hand. “I’m now ordering you to turn him over.” Sam stopped before Scruff, annoyed.

“Let’s be clear, shield or no shield, the only thing you’re runnin’ in here is your mouth.” You added from your spot on the countertop. Scruff pointed his finger at you.

“And I’m taking her too.” Bucky stepped in front of you, blocking Scruff’s view of you. You placed your hand on his left shoulder, letting him know you were still there.

“I had Karli and you overstepped. He’s actually proven himself useful today. We’re gonna need all hands on deck for whatever’s comin’ next.” Scruff puffed out his chest, attempting to intimidate Sam.

“How do you want this conversation to go Sam, huh?” He stepped back slightly, “Should I put down the shield? Make it fair?” Taking on a condescending tone with Sam, making your brows raise. Suddenly a spear lodged itself in the pillar next to Scruff’s face, all eyes darted towards the woman across the room. Two more warriors walked in, holding spears by their sides and Bucky looked resigned. This was new territory for you, who the fuck are these people? One of the women stepped forward near Scruff. She spoke at Bucky in a language that sounded vaguely familiar to you.

“Release him to us now.” Scruff ignored her instruction, deciding to step towards her, holding his hand out for her to shake.

“Hi. John Walker. Captain America.” You scoffed loudly.

“No, you’re not!” You received a look from Sam at your comment.

“Let’s put down the pointy sticks and we can talk through this, huh?” Sam stepped forward, warning Scruff against tangling with the Dora Milaje.

“The Dora Milaje don’t have jurisdiction here.”

“The Dora Milaje have jurisdiction wherever the Dora Milaje find themselves to be.” Your hand balled into a fist, quickly covering your mouth.

“That’s a burn, Scruff!” You yelled like the little shit you are.

“Y/N! Cut it out.” Sam snapped. Scruff, for some reason, thought it was a good idea to place hands on the Dora he was speaking to. She quickly brought her spear up to force his hand off her shoulder, then bringing it downward into the back of his knee and finally bouncing it off of the front of his helmet. She launched her foot into his chest while he was dazed, sending him backward into the spear behind him and face planting on the ground below. Scruff recovered quickly, sliding his arm into the straps of the shield to protect himself from the spear coming at his body.

The three warriors began fighting with Scruff and Hoskins, much to yours and Bucky’s delight. Sam backed up to stand next to Bucky, who crossed his arms over his chest. Sam looked at Bucky.

“We should do something.” You had just barely heard Sam say it when you and Bucky yelled at the same time.

“Looking strong, John!” “You’re doing great, sweetie!” Bucky gave you a look at your term of endearment, not understanding that it was a patronizing use of the word. The warrior battling Scruff was about to drive her spear into him, until Bucky gripped the handle, stopping her attack.

“Ayo!” Bucky yelled at her. “Ayo! Let’s talk about this!” Ayo had effectively yanked Bucky towards her body, then throwing him backwards. Sam stopped another warriors spear before it drove into a downed Hoskins. The last warrior threw her spear at Scruff, trapping the shield against the table. She began her approach to him and Sam yelled your name to help him.

You got down with a groan, unhappy that you had to save this asshat. All movement was stopped when you heard a metallic thud against the floor. Your head snapped to a now one armed Bucky, his vibranium arm laying on the ground. You released an audible gasp as Ayo walked away from Bucky, his blue eyes wide. Everything around you faded as you watched a broken Bucky, kneel to pick up his metal appendage. Your eyes flicked to Sam, who was just as shocked as you.

“Did you know they could do that?” Sam gestured to Bucky’s immobile arm.

“No.” He swung his arm around once to restart the systems. You heard Hoskins checking on Scruff’s wounded ego, but that didn’t matter to you.

“Bucky. Are you okay?” He avoided your question, grabbing his jacket and telling Sam that Zemo had gotten away. You held your arms out in front of you, what the fuck? Are you the enemy now? You followed after them, not sure where you were going. You got closer to Bucky, grabbing his left arm and yanking him back to you, making his attention be on you for a second or two. “I’m talking to you, dickwad.” His eyes hardened as you continued. “I don’t know what the fuck just happened back there, I’m assuming that has to do with you not being the Soldier anymore. I don’t really care. What I care about is if you’re okay or not.” You stopped walking, still holding his arm.

“What do you want from me, Y/N?” Bucky inquired.

“I want you to fucking talk to me. I’m here for you to unload on.” His brows scrunched and you realized what you said. “Oh my god, not like that, sicko. Well, I mean--”

“Y/N.” Bucky smiled at your humor.

“There, see? How hard was it for you to smile. Just talk to me. I’m making sure you’re okay. Don’t shut down, I hate it when people do that.” Bucky went to say something else when the both of your attentions shifted to a concerned Sam.

“She said what?” A pause, “Right. Hold on, hold on. I know, I know.” He sighed loudly, “Listen, pack an overnight bag and take the boys.” He tried to calm the other person down. You began walking again, Bucky asking quietly.

“What happened?” Sam dropped the phone to his collarbone.

“Karli called Sarah. She threatened my nephews.” Bringing it back up to his ear, he continued. “Go somewhere safe. Only pay cash, alright? Let me know when you get there.” You turned your attention to your surroundings. The bland streets offered little to no security, but they did give too many vantage points to count. “She wants me to come alone.”

“I’m coming with you.” Bucky fired back, not changing his mind about this one.

“Yay, more friends. She’ll love that. Where we going now?”

*********************************************

You’ve never seen Sam as mad as he was when he walked into that building. Although you weren’t sure if it was anger or if it was betrayal that he was displaying as he climbed the stairs to the second floor. “You called my sister? That’s how we’re gonna play this?”

“Sam, I would never hurt her. I just wanted to understand you better.” Her accent shone through with every word. You could tell that she didn’t want to hurt you. Her demeanor was relaxed, her guard was up, but she was being civil, almost like a politician. You were good at analyzing the people around you, so when Karli mentioned Sam and Bucky just being tools she really meant it. She wasn’t interested in hurting people she deemed innocent.

“Hey, Sam, new Cap is moving, looks like he’s found them, or maybe they found him.” Sharon’s voice snapped you back to reality. The two of you hadn’t spoken since you left Madripoor.

“Scruff’s coming, guys and you know it’s not going to be pretty when he does.” Bucky jumped over the ledge and Karli followed suit. Jumping into Bucky, slamming his body into the post. You ran alongside Bucky to the location Sam had sent to your phone. By the time that you had gotten to the building where Scruff was, you had lost Bucky. Taking an entrance that was already knocked open you heard gunshots from a few floors above you. With your gun raised, you scanned the room for any friendlies.

“Y/N, you’re about to come up on Hoskins. He’s not moving, may need an assist.” Your brows furrowed as you entered the room cautiously.

“How the hell do you know that, Shar? How did you get access to satellites?” You questioned as you approached a tied-up Hoskins. “Need some help, Battlestar?”

“I totally had that.” He said as your knife snapped the zip tie around his wrists.

“Yeah, yeah.” You held your hand out, hauling him to his feet. “It’s okay to be the damsel, ya know?” He shook his head at you, not engaging in your hilarious banter. “Jeez, who pissed in your Cheerios.” You shoved your knife back into your thigh holster, leading the way to where the others were.

When you walked in, Bucky had just caught a knife that Scruff had so deflected. He twirled the object in his right hand, ready to defend against the Flag Smasher attacking him. Their fight was quick and ended with the Smasher on their back, the knife Bucky was holding embedded in the floor inches away from their face. You jumped in, helping Sam fend off another Smasher when suddenly Bucky’s fist flew by your face.

“You’re welcome.” He darted off to deal with the others. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Scruff being held by a Smasher and Karli coming with a knife in hand. You started towards her to stop her, until you saw Hoskins attack from her other side. He tackled her to the ground, Karli bounced back quicker than Hoskins, allowing her to throw a punch at Hoskins. Your jaw dropped as you watched his body fly into the concrete mainstay behind him. His whole body slackened and Karli stood in shock.

Scruff was struggling in his captors hold, thrashing about to get to Hoskins. Once he was free, he shook Hoskins and pushed his fingers against his neck, checking for a pulse. “Hey, hey. Hey. Lemar!” You stood silent in between Bucky and Sam, unsure of what to do. It wasn’t until Scruff stood again that you knew what he was going to do. He had a half-second head start, but it was long enough that he was able to reach the Samsher that was holding him back before you could reach Scruff.

You had to push through the crowd to see what was happening. The Smasher had his hands protecting his face against the slam of the Captain America shield that was being hammered into him. You gasped and had to turn your face into Bucky’s shoulder. This is not happening, but it was.

And the whole world saw it too.

***********************************

The next time you saw Scruff was in an abandoned warehouse. He was talking to himself, yelling about different things. If you weren’t sure before, you definitely were now. John Walker had taken the serum and it was enhancing all the wrong things. Scruff was kneeling, resting his hands on the bloodied shield before him. You were on Sam’s right when Scruff walked up to you.

“You guys should see a medic. You don’t look too good.” He paced in front of the three of you. “You saw what happened. You know what I had to do. I killed him because I had to! He killed Lemar!”

“He didn’t kill Lemar, John.” Bucky’s voice remained calm. “Don’t go down that road. Believe me, it doesn’t end well.” Scruff sent Bucky a disgusted look.

“I’m not like you.”

“You convincing yourself or us, Scruff?” You recognize that this probably isn’t the time to pull his strings but he wasn’t thinking clearly anyway.

“Listen, it was the heat of battle. Okay? If you explain what happened, they may consider your record. We don’t want anyone else to get hurt.” Scruff never stopped pacing, his hand flexing in the shield.

“You gotta give Sam the shield, Scruff.” He stopped pacing and turned to you, getting a little close for comfort.

“Oh, so that’s what this is.” He leaned forward, “You almost got me.” His index finger jabbed into your chest then rested there as he spoke. “You don’t wanna do this.”

“Yeah, we do.” Came Bucky’s reply before all hell broke loose. Bucky and Sam rushed Scruff, fighting for a way to get the shield from him. Scruff sent Sam flying backwards with a swift kick to the stomach. This gave you the room you needed to launch yourself onto his shoulders, attempting to flip him using his own body weight and your momentum. Your move distracted him enough that Bucky got a few decent hits in, but it really just served to piss him off further. He whipped one arm around, gripping the waistband of your jeans and dumping your weight off his shoulders. He threw you into a wooden shipping container, knocking all of the air out of your lungs.

You watch, as you lay there gasping, Bucky get beat to his knees by Scruff and Scruff’s attention is turned by Sam flipping in the air, kicking the shield to the side. You rose to your feet, readying yourself for the opportune moment. Once you found it, you flung yourself at Scruff, sending the both of you to the ground and the shield away from the both of you. You resituated yourself to straddle his stomach, this position didn’t last long because he flipped the both of you. Slamming your back against the ground, he gripped your wrists, yanking them way up high causing you to groan out at the stretch. He released you but not before delivering a swift punch to your cheek.

Your vision blurred, but you could make out Bucky going head to head with Scruff again. Scruff threw the shield at Bucky after kicking him into a lift. Luckily, Bucky was able to catch the shield and shift it to his own arm before Scruff attacked him again. Scruff pressed the shield tight against Bucky’s body, then began speaking to him.

“Why are you making me do this?” You and Sam shared a look then watched as Scruff tossed Bucky clear across the room into an electrical outlet, short circuiting his arm. Sam flew at Scruff, trying to catch him off guard. He was unsuccessful in his efforts, ending with Sam facing Scruff as you crouched in Scruff’s six.

“This isn’t you, John.” Sam began trying to reason with him. He is who is way past reasoning, not Karli. Scruff’s head tilted as he spoke in that condescending tone again.

“We could’ve been a team.” Sam didn’t say anything. He deployed his wings, flying past Scruff and sending a small grappling hook to try and take the shield. Scruff flipped through the air, then braced himself against one of the lifts. You came up from behind him and tackled him off the lift, sending Sam to the ground as well. As you landed, you hit your head on a piece of broken concrete, disorienting you. The shield was out of Scruff’s hands, and he wasn’t happy about that. They both dove for the shield but Scruff managed to get to Sam first, landing on top of Sam.

“I am Captain America.” Scruff grunted out as he ripped Sam’s wings from his suit. You watch in horror as Scruff holds the shield, ready to give Sam a face lift. Bucky knocked Scruff off just before he could land his hit. Scruff had pinned Bucky to the ground after driving Bucky’s head into the side of the shield. You hauled yourself to your feet again, wrapping your arm around Scruff’s neck, hindering his movement. Sam came from the front, delivering a harsh blow to Scruff’s face. You continued to hold your chokehold as Bucky and Sam pried the shield off his arm. You heard a sickening crack as Sam withdrew from the hoe down. Bucky rose to his feet and spit out the blood collecting in his mouth, reaching out his hand for you to take.

You walked over to Sam, you hoped that would be the end of it all. Lo and behold though, Scruff got up yet again. “It’s mine.” He growled possessively, starting towards Bucky again. Bucky ducked lifting Scruff over his shoulder and Sam threw his whole body weight into Scruff who was dangling off to the side of Bucky. The three of them laid on the floor, bloodied and sweaty as you stood over them.

Bucky rose to his knees, the shield in front of him and he used the leverage of it to stand fully. He dropped it next to Sam, pausing for a few seconds and then walking away completely. You stood next to Scruff, in disbelief. “This just got a whole lot more complicated didn’t it, Sam?” He didn’t reply to you, but you watched as he tried to wipe the blood off the outer rings of the shield.

***********************************

You stood outside the building where Donya’s funeral was held, listening to Sam talk to someone else named Torres. Bucky had walked right past you, not a word said. He was shutting down and running away, at least that’s what it looked like. You wouldn’t know because the whore wouldn’t talk to you. You sat down on the stairs, head in your hands frustrated about what was going on. Your phone began buzzing in your pocket, so you took it out ready to deny the call, until you saw who it was.

“Shar.” You sighed into the phone speaker.

“Y/N. How’s it going?” You could hear the smugness lacing her tone.

“Alright, just get it over with. Tell me that you told me so, just make it quick.” She scoffed.

“I mean, I did tell you so, but now I don’t want to tell you that I did.” You laughed at her.

“You realize you just did, though?” You sense that she was smiling.

“What happened?” Her tone switched into a serious one on a dime.

“Walker took the serum, went batshit, killed a Flag Smasher, and then beat the shit out of Sam, Bucky and me in order to keep his precious shield because he ‘is Captain America.’” Your voice morphed to imitate Scruff.

“Well, that was bound to happen sometime. He’s all over the place.” You nodded, pulling the phone away from your ear and switching to speakerphone so you could talk and scroll through Twitter.

“He’s already trending. Captain America Kills Innocent Man, what a great headline. You know the worst part about all of this, Shar?” You switched the speakerphone off, bringing it back to your ear. “I don’t even think that Karli is in the wrong here. She’s doing what she’s doing for good reason, she’s just doing a shit job of getting her point across.”

“Yeah, well she’s becoming a pain in everyone’s asses, so that puts her on everyone’s shit list.” Sharon took a deep breath before continuing. “You need to get out of there. I know you’re not technically in the States, or alive, but you know how the government is. They’ll find a way to get you, if they want you.” She was lecturing you out of love, you knew, but it was frustrating for you still.

“Can you not trust that I know what I’m doing?” A grunt released from her end of the phone. “No, seriously Shar. We grew up the same, went through all the same training, what makes you know so much better than me?” Deep down, you knew that wasn’t what she meant, but you had always felt second best when it came to Sharon.

“It’s not that you don’t know what you’re doing.” She sighed heavily. “It’s that you were gone for five years and things have changed. Governments have become stricter and you don’t understand that they aren’t the same as they were.” You remained quiet, expecting her to say something else. “That’s why it’s good you have me because I know how they work.”

“You know how they work, do you?” You were fed up with her. “Then explain to me how you have access to satellites, Sharon. That’s not something that you just happen upon.” Your tone was accusatory. “Are you working for the Power Broker behind my back?” You heard a sharp intake of air on her end. “I swear to God, Sharon. We promised each other we wouldn’t work for that asswipe. He’s involved in too much bad shit. If the US government were to ever find out that we were working for the Power Broker, they wouldn’t grant us pardons, Shar. Did you fuck this up for us?”

“I didn’t fuck anything up and you need to check your tone when you’re talking to me.” Your brows shot to your hairline.

“The fuck did you just say to me?”

“You heard me. We need to work this shit out. I didn’t fuck anything up and neither will you if you come back to Madripoor right now.” You were shocked, Sharon had never talked like this to you.

“I really don’t think I would be comfortable being somewhere that I’m clearly not welcome anymore, so I’m going to stick with what I know.” Sharon began backtracking as you resigned yourself to being on your own for the first time in forever. “Goodbye, Sharon.” You ended the call and shoved your phone into the pocket of your jeans.

You dropped your head into your hands in defeat. Being on your own was daunting and you weren’t sure how Sharon survived without you well enough to grow your business all on her own. You tried to think of your next move, deciding that sticking with Sam would be your best bet. He’s the easiest to guess where he’s going since Bucky has been mentally MIA towards you.

You recalled Sam mentioning his sister and nephews, thinking he would go there to check on them. You hauled yourself out of your slump and to Zemo’s apartment to collect your things before going. You were going all in if you were going to do this, so why the fuck not?

*************************

@londonalozzy @marvelofwitch @dramaticwittch @hellmoonsin @jn-wolf @youcancallmeishita @iabrokengirl @veroxloki @liveloudwriteloud @lainternettuale @angelofthetrenchcoats @rosiahills22 @peachymichu @sj-ficrecs @learisa @itsyagirl01 @simply-me-xoxo @ghoststudyy @taina-eny @japanrecs @sinfulhun-collapsedheart @isaordora @shutupstevie @sprsoldierfics @beachbabe925

255 notes · View notes

supercorpkid · 4 years ago

Text

Mind Controlled – The Series.

Part 3 – Make it stop, please.

Supercorp, Kara Danvers x Daughter!Reader, Lena Luthor x Daughter!Reader, Alex Danvers x Niece!Reader, Lex Luthor x Niece!Reader, Lillian Luthor x Granddaughter!Reader.

Word count: 2340.

Warning: Injuries, violence, pain, angst. Very graphic.

Previously on the series - part 1, part 2

You don’t know for how long you’re shut out from the world. Probably a few hours, but there’s no way to know for sure. Your body aches for destruction. Lex asked you to show National City your worst side, but you haven’t shown them all. You only showed your family, so you can’t calm down.

There’s a relentless inhumane feeling cursing through your veins. You keep hearing Lex’s voice saying ‘my bösewicht’, like he is calling you back to the world. You don’t know how it’s possible, but it is.

The glass turns back to translucent again, and you look at Alex on the other side. You tilt your head at her, trying to look scary. She laughs.

“You can stop the madwoman act.” Alex types something on the screen next to the door, and goes inside, putting you back in the handcuffs that strips you off of your powers. “Don’t try anything funny, I’m very low on patience when it comes to you, dear niece.”

“I can tell you the same.” You sass back.

“Oh.” Alex takes something from her pocket. “That reminds me.” She puts a metal thing over your mouth, that immediately turns into a gag, covering half of your face. “No more talking back. We’re full of your shit.”

Alex places her hand on your arm, cuffed in front of your body, gripping strongly and guiding you through a few corridors and rooms. You finally arrive at where Lena and Brainy are, and she sits you on a chair, tying you in it with leather strips over your ribcage. A red sun lamp is quickly turned on, and if you weren’t gagged you would laugh. That’s a lot of precaution for someone she claims not being scared of.

Lena comes closer and studies you for a second. She cups your face and gives you a soft smile. It makes you sick.

“This is for your own good, babygirl.” She connects some wires to your head. Looks back at Brainy with an affirmative nod. He presses a few buttons, types some things, you feel an electric current cursing through your veins and you’re out.

When you wake up, you’re still tied to the chair. Same wires on your head, no more gag on. It takes you a while to focus your eyes back, but you look at Lena in front of you.

“Who’s behind this?” She asks and you blink twice slowly. “We know you’re being mind controlled, tell us by whom.”

“Never.” You growl. “I’m not being controlled, I’m free from your leash. Why can’t you accept that?”

“Because it’s simply not true.” Lena mutters. “It doesn’t matter who did it, we know how to stop it.” She says looking at Brainy, Alex and Kara on the other side of the room. “But if you tell us who did it, Supergirl can go pay them a visit.”

“You say you love me every night, mom.” You look at Kara right after, daring her to come closer. “You too, momma.”

“We love you, baby.” Kara answers, coming closer, and you give a side smile at that.

“How can you love me, when you only love the good side of me?” You look at them both, raising an inquisitive eyebrow. “How can you claim this is true love when you can’t love my bad side?”

“This isn’t your bad side, my love.” Is Kara’s hand that goes to your shoulder first, but Lena’s hand follows right after, on the other side.

“Do you actually believe none of this is me?” You scoff when they agree with their head. “You’re very naïve to believe this is all Lex.”

“Lex!” Kara barks, and you bite your tongue angry with yourself. Oh no, things are actually starting to look bad for you.

“Do it, Alex.” Lena turns back to your aunt. “NOW!”

There’s a stronger shock wave hitting your brain this time. Everything becomes loud, and confusing and painful. It’s excruciating.

“MOMMY, THIS IS HURTING ME. PLEASE STOP. PLEASE!” You yell, trying to get out from your cuffs. Struggling out of the chair with all the strength left in you. Why are they doing this? “Mommy, make it stop.”

It does. The pain and the noise stop. All messy thoughts overpowered by someone else.

“Kid, can you hear me?” Kara asks, holding your face with both hands. You whimper snapping your eyes wide open.

“Get your hands off me, Supergirl.” You add a scorn to her name. She lets go of your face.

“Alex, one more time.” Lena says again, and your eyes widen at the thought of that.

“I’ve always known you hated me.” You yell at her, and before there’s any answer another shock wave hits your brain again.

And if you thought the first one was bad, this one makes your eyes roll back into your skull, tears fall from your face without your control. Your scream is so loud, the entire DEO probably heard you.

“YOU’RE KILLING ME! WHY ARE YOU KILLING ME?” You yell, with whatever voice you have left. Fully sobbing, twisting and turning in your seat, neck veins about to explode.

“STOP! STOP!” Kara yells for Alex behind her. “You’re gonna kill her!”

The pain stops. You grunt, and growl, saliva dripping from your mouth like an angry dog. Your palms are full of blood again, nails digging in the same open cuts from hours ago. You gasp for air, eyes unable to focus on anything.

“Mommy, they’re hurting me.” You manage to say, throat hurting from all the scream. Black spots are consuming your sight and it feels like you’re going to pass out. You feel light-headed from the blinding pain. “Make it stop, please.”

“You’re ok, baby. Mommy is here. I’ve got you.” You hear Kara’s words, and you feel the leather strips easing up from your raw flesh.

“Kara, wait.” Lena asks, and you close your eyes. Vision goes dark, and the pain goes away.

“NO, NO, NO!” You yell more to yourself than to anyone else.

All messy thoughts overpowered by someone else.

“GO ON.” You try to yell, but your voice doesn’t get loud anymore. It’s just a very high-pitched whisper. “Give in, Lena. Kill a kryptonian. Give in to your Luthor side, we’ve always known you would.”

“Shit!” Lena slaps her hands on her tights and stands up.

“Go ahead, kill me.” You raise an eyebrow defiant.

“One more time.” She looks at Alex and Brainy.

“LENA!” Kara yells, and you see Alex getting away from the lever she was pulling.

“I can’t, Lena. I won’t.” Alex raises her hands, and shakes her head in denial. “It’s too much, we don’t know the possible outcome.”

“I know!” Lena screams. “It will bring my daughter back! You saw her, she was here. I need to get her back!”

“I won’t do it.” Alex walks out of the room, Brainy leaving right behind her.

“Fine! I’ll do it myself!” Lena walks to where they were, but Kara yells before she pulls the lever.

“You're hurting her!” Kara studies your expression. You might have a bitchy grin on your face, but you know you probably look like a wreck. “You’re not hurting Lex! You’re hurting my daughter.”

“She’s my daughter too!” Lena yells back.

“I can’t let you do that again.” Kara pulls the wires connected to your head, all at once. And that leaves a sting everywhere. “I can’t let you pull that lever again.”

“Kara, I know what I’m doing.”

Kara turns off the red sun lamp, she looks at Lena.

“That might be true, but I can’t risk my daughter’s life while you fight your brother and your old demons.” Kara pulls the chair off the floor, picking it and you up, and walking towards the direction of your cell. “I can’t let you near her, Lena. I’m sorry, but I can’t.”

“You can’t do that!” Lena growls following you both. You grin, satisfied with them tearing each other apart without you having to say a word. “I didn’t do that when you hurt her, or did you forget?”

“I will never forget that!” Kara yells, her voice stronger than you’ve ever heard. Like thunder shaking the whole place. “But I was exposed to red kryptonite! What is your excuse for this destructive behavior?”

“Kara.” Lena uses her most serious tone. “I know what I’m doing. I would never hurt my child. If you can’t believe me, then we have a serious problem.”

“I believe your judgment is clouded by the anger you’re feeling towards your brother.” Kara breathes deep, still walking. “I believe you want to do good. But it’s my daughter’s life and I’m sorry, but I can’t risk it. We have to find another way.”

“Stop saying she is your daughter! She’s my daughter too!” Lena’s voice also rumbles throughout the place. “You have no right to do this.”

“I’m sorry.” Kara repeats carrying you away.

“If you keep me away from her-” Lena stops walking, falling a little behind. Kara stops moving and she looks behind to where Lena is. “You’re keeping me away from you too.”

There’s no answer. At least not a verbal one. But when your chair keeps moving farther away from Lena, you know what Kara’s answer is. And Lena knows it too.

And you can’t help but feel like you’ve won.

You’re back at your cell, but they haven’t shut you off again. You hear Kara and Alex talking on the other side. You feel a shiver down your spine when you hear Lex’s name, and that Lena and Lillian are paying him a visit.

And paying a visit to you, is J’onn J’onzz himself. Examining you from the other side of the glass.

“Kara, I can’t confirm to you this won’t erase all of her memories from this episode.” You hear his strong voice. “If she’s being controlled, none of the thoughts were hers in the first place. Which means she can’t retain them.”

“Let it.” Kara crosses her arms and looks at Alex nodding once, like telling her to open the cell. “I rather have her forget all the pain she has lived today, anyway.”

“Very well.” He sits in front of you. You’re still cuffed, tied to the chair Kara so gently broke off from the floor. “Excuse me, Superkid.”

It feels strange having two people fighting for space inside your mind. Actually, three. Because you’re still there somewhere. But you’re not fighting them. You’re just letting them do whatever they want, as a weak-minded person would.

You open your eyes and you don’t see the DEO cell you were in, but rather a prison cell. Lena and Lillian on the other side, two guns pointed at your head.

“Mother, you rather defend an alien than your son?” You hear words, like they’ve left your mouth, but it isn’t your voice, it’s Lex’s.

“She is family, Lex.”

“She is kryptonian.” You/Lex spits with disgust in his voice.

“She is my granddaughter!” Lillian speaks louder, the closest thing to a scream you’ve ever heard leaving her mouth. “Stop this nonsense, or I’ll put a bullet through your head. And if you come back to life, I’ll do it again. I’ll pull the trigger as many times as I have to, to protect her.”

“You’ve fallen for her charm too.” You/Lex hisses. “Pathetic.”

“Stop this now!” It’s Lena’s voice that comes louder. “Let her go, or I’ll kill you again with no regrets.”

And then nothing. Not a single thought. No voice. Nothing aside from an empty void in your head.

You blink your eyes slowly, raising your head, that falls back to the chair behind you without your control. You try to scratch your eyes, but you can’t move. You whimper and finally open your eyes.

“What is going on?” You look down on yourself and around to where you are. J’onn is in front of you, Kara and Alex on your left side. There’s a strong feeling that something is wrong, when you realize you’re in a DEO cell, but you don’t know what’s going on. “Mommy, what did I do?”

“Baby.” Kara unties the strips that were holding you still in the chair. Your body collapses forward, no strength left in you to stop it. Kara holds you before you fall face first on the floor, and Alex lets you out of your cuffs. “You’re ok.”

“Why was I tied up?” You ask, scratching your eyes, like you wanted so much, to help you focus, but all you see is red, so you look at your hands and see blood everywhere. “Oh no, please tell me this is mine. Please tell me this is my blood!”

“It’s yours, it’s yours, baby.” Kara rushes to reassure you. She sits on the floor and pulls you into her lap, holding you gently. Alex and J’onn quickly disappear, and you’re left alone with her. She cleans your face; her hand becomes bloody after it. She kisses your forehead and whispers. “It’s over, it’s over baby. Mommy is here.”

“I’m sorry.” You beg, eyes full of tears. “Whatever I’ve done, I’m sorry.”

“I know, my baby. I know.” Kara keeps kissing your head. You look at the cuts on your wrist where the handcuff was, and the blood staining your super suit, still leaving from the open cuts you feel on your ribcage. You look around, at the blood marks on the glass, and you weep.

“Mommy, please tell me I didn’t-Did I-Did I kill someone?” You stutter, scared of her answer.

“You didn’t kill anyone, little one.” She kisses your forehead. “It’s over. Stop thinking about it, ok? Let’s get you home so you can clean up, and rest a little.” She sighs, like she’s painfully tired. “It’s been a really long night.”

You don’t remember anything from your night, but your body aches so hard and your heart feels so heavy in your chest; you believe her. It was a long night, indeed.

#supergirl #kara danvers #lena luthor #supercorp #kara x lena #kara x reader #supercorp daughter #supercorp fanfic #supercorpfamily #lena x reader #reader insert

163 notes · View notes

stylistiquements · 4 years ago

Text

There was the silence and there were the stars | Corpse husband x reader -Among Us AU

Among us AU : There was something. Something in the silence and the harsh coldness -that only space was capable of- that turned your brain into a sarcastic and bored mess. Maybe that’s why you found yourself so interested by any sabotage pulled on the crewmates, maybe that’s what made him so interesting to witness. He was different from the rest of you. Different to an extend you were about to understand.

❚ Word count : 4.2k ❚ Warning : A bit angsty but you will get that fluffity fluff and touch starve feeling you require I promise ; swearing ❚ Note : there will be no mention of death or killing as it is basically a real life Among us, just some shenanigans. Y/C : your/color

A/N : This little thing was inspired by -⭐️ anon. It was a fun thing to write even though it took me way too long because I asked my brain “sir may I pls have the focus capacity I need” and brain said no (: so yeah, this is litteraly just me ranting n complaining about space. This is a bit angsty but as what if is way too happy for me that was a nice opportunity. I hope you won’t mind and appreciate it anyway. As always just let me know. As it’s my first time writing like a one shot thingy I’m really curious to know. Also it’s supposed to be proofread but if you find any mistake just take ur glasses off. Thanks. Enjoy the wild ride.

You met him again. He was fixing wires while you were downloading some files on the computer. Difficulties happened regularly around here; various oddities that occurred from time to time, sometimes a few times a day. It would go from doors closing mysteriously to no electricity, you never knew which one it would be. Those inconveniences used to draw a smile on your lips, a grin you tried your best to hide from everyone else. The sound of the urging siren resounded in your head like a call, reviving the last spared spark left in your brain. At this point, you were pretty sure it was one of your crewmates’ doing, too many coincidences for any other options to be left. You didn’t mind though. The game started months ago but still amused you to this day.

He never let a word escape his mouth. To your awareness, no one knew anything about him, no one had ever heard the sound of his voice which you could only dare to imagine since the two of you met. It felt silly, you fabricated this voice inside your head, a half-finished melody you played to keep your mind busy. It would have sounded just as an old piano would. So slightly out of tune that maybe, if you didn’t care enough or wished for it not to be true, you wouldn’t even notice.

You called him black. It resonated with the color of his suit and the darkness that emanated from his soul. Not that he looked like a mischievous character, but rather like someone who would have been gnawed by life for years. A shade that reminded you of the bittersweet feeling 4 AM forced you to taste. Describing that presentiment was a challenge you couldn’t take. It was one of those things that had to be felt, not narrated.

Shit.

He caught you staring again. How could you look any other way? There was something with him that appealed to you, that pulled your eyes toward his direction every time. Probably only a peak of unwarranted curiosity you couldn’t really be blamed for, probably the oh-so mysterious aura that floated so carelessly around him. He always had this way of sneaking in and out, just as if he was nothing but his own shadow.

Yet, being near him was easy. Silence only felt comfortable when he was in your surroundings. The whole world stopped existing -and it had in fact since the first day you two met.

He had dark charcoal hair which fell so perfectly in curly strands around the two horns that crowned over his head. Paired with two ruby hued eyes, he truly was a sight for sore eyes. A wicked and breathtaking beauty, so unique it gave you the impression that he wasn’t even human.

He used to hop in a vent after finishing his tasks. As if his true home was there; a secret hideout for him and him only. You didn’t even know it was a thing before you watched it with your own eyes. Who wouldn’t blame him. If you could have escaped that warmth deprived place too, even for 5 minutes, you would have.

That’s why you never asked any question about it nor tried to investigate further. Being stuck in space was only a kid’s fantasy, nothing a fully conscious adult would inflict to themselves. Which, in itself, was pretty much self-explanatory about everyone’s mental condition in here.

It was also a pre-established rule, no questions. No one ever expressed it out loud, but you would have to be a fool not to guess it. Every crewmate grew accustomed to the deadly silence only space had to offer. A giant timeless hole where nothing really happened. With nothing but the smell of technology and the constant purr of engines as the only distractions left. See, living in a spaceship was no ordinary lifestyle : days and nights melted into each other until it became nothing but a groundless concept. The crewmates perceived it as comforting for some reason. You used to shrug it off, no questions. How unethical would you be to disturb their peace?

If you had to be honest, you would probably say that you felt bad for Black. Nothing like pity, but being alone in this stark and brutal silence for this long must have been pretty life-consuming. That’s why, even though it made your cheeks and the tip of your ears flame up in a raw and unforgivable tint of pink, you always kept looking into his eyes for one more second after he noticed you. Just to be sure he knew that he wasn’t alone in this shit hole. You stared into the depth of those ruby eyes, hunting for silent answers to questions you weren’t even sure of in the first place. He never quivered, only stood motionless until his task was completed. Just locking the eye contact. After that, he always ran away as silently as he existed. Leaving your head disturbingly empty.

Every single time.

Something changed one day. You were about to prepare some test samples when it happened. He jumped off a vent and you followed his movements from the corner of your eyes, too distracted to remember about the task that was assigned to you. He ran to the door and proceeded to shut it. Within the last second, the one that always lasted hours, he put an index in front of his mouth. Silently asking for you not to say a word. And before the steel door could obstruct your vision completely, you noticed a smile on his lips. A smile that made the whole spaceship turn inside out, draining the blood out of your body in a painstaking, almost sore way. There you stood, intoxicated by stupefaction and trapped as a cat.

Black mutated you into a self-depreciating joke : in here, you were only interestied in the impostor. The only one who made your day a little better was the one giving nightmares to the others.

It was him, from the beginning. It was him and he smiled. A grin that twinkled maliciously from his lips to his eyes, wounding your heart in an insoluble way. It made every prejudice you had about him crumble : he was no longer that miserable existence you sensed he was but a quiescent sun that could radiate all around him once unleashed into the world. How did he do that? How could he be both the tunnel and the light at the end of it?

When red came to the rescue, she described you with a glare. She judged you in the not-so-pleasant way. You could always count on those glares to know their opinions about you. Because their judgment would have to be expressed one way or another. She thought you looked suspicious, with your half poured concoction into a hand and the rest of it in the other, just staring blankly into the void. You wouldn’t blame her for that.

It stuck with you for days, filling your empty mind with the sight of a smile that could no longer be experienced. The scene shamelessly repeated itself in your mind until it became nothing but a progression of disassembled images, forcing you to taste the astonishment over and over again. The problem was, you hadn’t seen him for days. And, even though you wanted to know what happened, you couldn’t ask. That was the rule.

What would you say anyway ? Black is the imposter and I watched him close medbay’s door ? Yeah, I don’t think so. You should have stopped him in the first place -and you would have if you weren’t just mesmerized.

So, you took each day -or night … or piece of time, whatever you wanted to call it since it was no longer existent- with composure. Forcing yourself to do any task with a meticulousness that didn’t look like you. Just to make sure your brain was busy enough not to think about it or him. Being trapped in a place and being trapped in your own mind are two different wrestles, yet in here those two intertwined perfectly. Just like the rest of it, it didn’t even make any sense : the guy smiled at you for ten seconds and here you were, an absolute clutter of questions and recollection. You were probably just too bored and he, as always, was the perfect distraction. That must have been it, right?

You walked in admin. Your heart skipped a beat before your eyes could process who stood in front of them.

Look what the cat dragged in.

His hair twirled flawlessly above his face, almost hiding a grimace that indicated so transparently his mind. You leaned against the door frame and crossed your arms, unabashedly watching him as he swiped his card frantically while sighting heavily every time that “bip” of failure rang.

Eventually, he looked at you with an expression you couldn’t quite read. You tried anyway, staring at him as if he was some sort of work of art that needed to be decrypted. From the way his chest moved heavily under the pressure of the irritation to the way his glowing eyes witnessed you. This expression on his face gave him a funny look, a scowl which made the laugh that tickled your throat hard to hold back.

“Y-you have to do it slower. Otherwise, it won’t work” you stuttered. “I guess it’s harder since …”

You walked to him carefully, so carefully you forgot your words. Just as if he was a wild animal who could run away if scared. Making sure no step would fall out of line. He was so close, so close, maybe if you tried to catch him this time he would stop running away.

“Since it’s not my job, right ? Is that what you were about to say ?” he asked with a low voice, a voice you would have never dared to picture for him. Not the broken tone you pictured but a melody so sweet and so unique it felt like it was made just for your ears to enjoy, taunting you to dive into his mind.

“Do you need help” ?

“I- hum- You’re not supposed to help me, you know ?” he stuttered, visibly amused, judging by the way his eyes wrinkled under his smile.

“Are you gonna lock me in the room once again ?” He shook his head as a chuckle escaped from his lips. “Then who cares” you finally breathed.

Your fingers brushed against his warm skin as you grabbed the card. You tried to appear unbothered, hoping so intensely for the swipe to be a first try success. That way, maybe he wouldn’t notice the way you breathed heavily under the weight of your pounding heart. But those red eyes piercing through the depth of your soul were hardly bearable for those like you who suffered from unbeknownst afflictions.

You grew aware of his every move, the way those eyes fell on you, the perfume that emanated from his skin, the sound of his slow yet noticeable respiration.

You gave him his card back and he captured your fingers in the palm of his hand, making it impossible for you to escape his grip. Hiding those blushing cheeks from a sight that seemed to see everything was a defiance only the proudest people would be capable of. It wasn’t your case, but you counted on preserving the last sane cells left in your body.

“Your secret is safe with me.” You whispered, avoiding any eye contact.

“I know that.”

A simple answer that would never be enough to satisfy you. Yet, before you could review the best option of an answer, he left. Just as he always did, he walked away silently -still this time it seemed to last an eternity- while you just stood there inertly as you watched his black silhouette disappear into the endless gray hallways.

You finally caught the breath you had been holding this whole time. Leaning over, you observed your reflection into the screen of the digital tablet as you rubbed your hands together, hoping for that strange spike of electricity that ran through your fingers to fade away quickly. A mess.

“There you are, Corpse” green said as he sat cross-legged in black’s secret place “I’ve been looking for you.”

Corpse was the name green chose for Black, feeling like it would be the most suitable image for the one who always worked in the shadow. Not the most refined nickname, yet black ironically related to that. Silent as a Corpse, he thought. A level of sarcasm that amused him and which probably led to him immediately falling in love with it.

Corpse observed the little sprout on the top of Green’s head. It floated lightly and followed his every move. What a little freak. Just a thing deprived of any sort of self consciousness, out of this world just like he felt he was. Corpse remained fixated on it, hoping he could get as self-aware as it was. The last impromptu reunion he had with you was nothing he had planned, nothing that should have happened. He wouldn’t exactly call it a mistake and still, he had no one else but him to blame.

“Did something happened with y/c ? You seem a little flustered.” Green asked, pulling Corpse out of his overflowed mind.

“I don’t know, I think I kinda fucked up.” He replied with a shrug. “I’ve been spotted.”

“Was it really a mistake ?”

Green was the only one who was granted with the privilege of learning how to understand Corpse. Because, deep inside, they grew up to be the same kind : the kind that didn’t belong here. Two sides of the same coin.

Green’s social intelligence, on the other hand, Black didn’t like it that much. Thanks to that guy, he would be able to work comfortably in the darkness, where no one could see him, but it also meant that he saw clearly what was going through Corpse’s mind. Actually, it didn’t take him too long.

What was the surprise when he realized it was you who lived rent-free in his thoughts? See, in Corpse’s eyes you were different from the others : too conscious about the reality that happened before yours eyes. It made you interesting to observe. What a delightful sight it was to watch you rolling your eyes in your crewmates’ face, to notice the serious look you had when you were focused on a task, the way your eyes sparkled every time a new sabotage was made. He wouldn’t track you, yet he would never resist a peek once your paths crossed. It happened often, more than you actually realized.

Yet, Corpse was no fool. You and him never belonged together. You were destined to a bright destiny and he was the obscurity. That’s why he was more than careful not to get too close, not to see his bare mind get burnt under the exposition of those peculiar feelings in the pit of his stomach.

That’s why his previous reaction made no sense to him. But what could he say? You took him aback when those words were directed at him. You made his short-circuited brain unable to be sensible anymore. He just wanted to know what your touch would feel like under his fingers. Why was his skin blazing with electricity now ?

Corpse swallowed it all. From the blossoming feeling inside his body and mind to the warmth and the softness of your skin. He couldn’t feel that way. “I’m not really sure.” he finally said, as honest as he could be with himself.

He would spend his next few days planning with Green, cornering you to a small part of his brain. You couldn’t be there, you had no right to be. The game was progressing faster than they anticipated it. It made him thrilled, accepting the challenge no one but the two of them could bear.

However, a new unwanted seed grew into his mind. The idea that, maybe, you were only by his side in this game. That, maybe he would never be able to witness your existence in the real world.

“Have you ever noticed how weird the stars look sometimes ?” Corpse asked as he joined navigation. You jumped and your mind turned into a scattered place stuck between a task you battled to achieve and the proximity left between the two of you. Your heart beat in rhythm with his echoing, never ending footsteps. Still you had, indeed, noticed. “It’s like they’re not even real” you answered with a smile that made your voice higher. A melodic lift that betrayed your intention of ever finishing your job.

When you finally looked at him, his lips moved into a satisfied curve. Shivers tickled your arms and your neck. Maybe because he was just standing so perfectly still in front of the glass window. So perfectly still that, among all those celestial bodies, he appeared to be the most beautiful one. “Mind keeping me company for a bit?” Your mouth betrayed you when the question escaped your grip. But Corpse snorted faintly and shook his head.

“From all the people in here you want to spend time with me ? That’s probably not your wisest decision.” He said as he tried to muffle a high pitch laugh with a hand that covered his mouth.

See, that’s the words he had been afraid of since the first time he saw you. The words he would have to turn into derision since he knew he would have no strength to refuse. Yet, you stood there with those glimmering eyes and those eyebrows that arched in a strange manner, cutting every single inch of air out of his lungs. Even if he wanted to say no -and he should- he wouldn’t have been able to.

It was never meant to happen, not judging by your two so hostily opposed nature. Fuck that shit. Who cared about that speech when you were here and you were so beautiful?

You moved closer to him, a strenuous and slow tense that shouldn’t be disregarded. You’ve had seen the same scenery for months yet never it made you feel the same way as you did at that very moment. Because those balls of lights floating into the void shimmered in his ruby hued iris just as a dozen of fireflies would. He made your world a little blurry, narrowed to his presence at your side.

“You forgave me really easily the last time we met.” He noticed. “That’s a little sus if you asked me.”

“Well, what can I say ? You’re the only distraction I have left, so I’m not really in the position to hold grudges.” You shrugged sarcastically.

“You’re really funny, I have to concede that” he said as his smile made its way to his eyes.

Your brutally honest words intertwined with his chuckles and crewmates never heard the spaceship as lively as that time. That time when you got to discover who Corpse really was. A man who hid his blooming existence behind a silence.

“Why did you stay silent this whole time ?” You dared to ask before the silence fell upon the two of you, a silence that maybe you wouldn’t be able to endure this time.

“Because I never wanted to lie”

“I- ...hum- there’s really nothing I could say against that, right ?”

With every grin, every chuckle, every abrupt eye contact, your proximity kept embedding his mind a little deeper until you stole the stars’ show completely. It’s no good, you held his breath hostage when he realized he could feel the warmth stemming out of your skin. So tempted to get closer and witness it with further clearness.

Thus, he lifted a hand that starved connection. He tried to close the gap between your two touches so prudently, so discreetly that you didn’t even notice. A touch, that would go beyond his movement, more like a proof he needed to make sure someone like you really existed in a shithole like this.

He was so close.

Yet, the alarm rang before he could embrace the object of his desire. “Better check that out quickly” you said with a sigh. Somehow, it felt peculiar just knowing that, this time, you were the one running away. A sense of some sort of joke played by space. As if space hadn’t done enough. When Green cut the communication, he couldn’t realize -If only he knew the double meaning of that sabotage. Ah, the irony of it all.

“I’ll see you soon” Corpse informed you, more of a promise than a farewell and he stayed there long enough, staring numbly at his hand.

You ran until the communication room, holding this bittersweet feeling on the tip of your tongue. You tried to swallow it and almost found yourself praying that no one would arrive before you could. This way, maybe your fugue would make more sense.

Blue was already sitting on the floor, trying to find the good frequencies. “I’m already on it.” she said on a plain, monotone voice. Of course, she fucking would be.

Now what was left to do ? Corpse was probably already gone and-and the silence … the silence had returned. A dead, cold, cruel silence. It tested out your nerves, built up some pressure down your throat that made keeping your composure barely possible. Corpse slipped between your fingers again. The game was no longer a funny and pleasant diversion from the plain, austere daily life you had. You grew tired of that cat and mouse game. You just wanted him.

After going back to the oh-so empty navigation room, you completed your tasks. And you were finally done. You wandered around for hours, days -who knows-, searching for a purpose.

The game was coming to an end, you could feel it. Something in the air changed, it became dryer than ever. Unbearable on your skin that ached for something you couldn’t apprehend. The crewmates were agitated, everyone kept running around day and night just to make sure the last tasks would be completed as soon as possible. New difficulties were triggered almost as soon as the last ones ended. Chaos.

Just as if he wasn’t ready to end the game so soon, as if he didn’t want to get the hell out of this place as much as you did. From time to time, you almost found yourself eager to ignore the alarm. Taunting him one last time by neglecting his call.

Maybe that way he would show up, maybe that way he would stay with you. Yeah, maybe that way he would stop being nothing but an ephemeral being that almost made you wonder if you finally gave up on your mind to the silence. Because at that moment he only felt like a chimera your brain created to protect you. Because you were just so fucking bored.

You gave up on that idea, turning on the CCTV as you sighed. Just to see more colorful suits running around, trying to hold their shit together for what appeared to be the ultimate hour. Despite all the sabotages, it seemed like your number made your strength. You imagined Corpse’s face, probably piqued. A dark frown covering his pretty eyes. It made your lips twitch for a second. Who knew it would end this way ? Definitely not you.

Yet that amused smile faded away when you heard the familiar sound of the door closing, locking you in yet another time. You rolled your eyes and turned around, unprepared to witness who locked themselves with you. His body laid against the door, guarding it as his chest moved frenetically under the weight of his rushing breath.

“This is the end” he whispered frantically under his breath. He doesn’t look as worried as you thought he would, but it didn’t matter. You moved impulsively toward him, never stopping until he snaked a hand around your waist and slipped the other one in your back. That way, this time, there were no escape.

He let his head rest in the hollow of your neck, soaking the divine and comforting warmth you had to offer. His warm breath on your skin sent shivers through your body which responded by squeezing him a little tighter, holding him as close to your heart as humanly possible. You could feel his, beating so fast.

“This is the end.” His whisper grounded on your skin.

He lifted his head to dive into your eyes with the same sweet smile you offered him. The one which expressed the happiness, the relievment it felt to embrace him.

“If it were for you, I would do it all over again.” You said, pressing your forehead against his, sharing a breath as you closed your eyes. One last attempt to memorize everything about him. You sensed his smile, so wide you didn’t even have to look at it to see. He left a trail of kisses on your cheeks and your hand wandered in his hair as a faint gasp escaped your lips.

Corpse looked back at you. And then, as his thumb drew light circles on your cheek. With glowing eyes that translated all the adoration he felt for you, he whispered “Maybe it was just meant to be”. And then, he closed the distance between the two of you, brushing your lips softly at first before capturing them completely once he was sure you felt the same way as he did. A kiss that tasted like 4AM and home.

“I’ll find my way back to you, my love. I’ll find you in the real world.” He promised.

#corpse husband #corpse #corpse husband fic #corpse husband x reader #corpse husband x you #corpse husband x y/n #among us au #corpse x you #corpse x reader #corpse x y/n #corpse scenario #corpse imagine #corpse among us #corpse fluf #corpse angst

266 notes · View notes