#(so you don't get any practice at finding middle ground and figuring out what areas of disagreement you can push back at)

[aeide-thea]

the thing abt this website (and really, every other website and also people irl) is that you'll be introduced to a new person who seems interesting (read: has some stuff to say that you agree with), and you'll think, ooh, maybe i should follow them! and then you'll check out their blog and realize, oh, fuck, right, they're the same person who was advocating 'systematic and targeted online harassment' of people who spread a message they dislike, as though that were either an acceptable way to behave or, for that matter, an effective way to convince anyone of anything—like, hello, if you harass your enemies they will shut their ears to you and become further entrenched in their current positions! also decent people will see what you're doing and distrust you even if your cause would otherwise earn their sympathy!

[merlot-and-chardonnay]

A Lark Among the Wolves and Dragons: Chapter 30

Chapter 29

Masterlist

Now we introduce another character from the video games.

Aemma found herself standing in the middle of a forest...or at least she was. There was snow on the ground, but last she checked, there was no snow anywhere in this part of the world at this time of year.

She looked to the sky to see it was overcast, and when she looked around to take in her surroundings once more, she could see the terrain was a little more mountainous then what she remembered. Did that little miracle that saved her once before actually work this time around?

Aemma noticed the wounds from her encounters with the Crones and the nekkers were absent from her body. How was this possible? Even if they somehow healed over, they should've left scars (also in that moment, Aemma wondered about how she would have to explain such afflictions should she find herself betrothed once again and eventually wedded). 

Aemma heard sounds, noises that sounded like people who were in conversation. She followed the voices and hid behind a tree when she saw the figures. A man and a woman were hiking this mountain trail; the man was on the taller side with short dark hair and a long magenta coat. Strapped to his back was a gold looking lute, similarly crafted like the one her mother left behind the day she disappeared from Maegor's Holdfast. The woman had long dark hair and wore a cloak, trying her best to keep up with the man.

The woman stopped for a brief moment, catching her breath which fogged up from the cold as she exhaled. The man stopped, concern in his expression, "We can stop for the night if you want," he offers. The woman shakes her head, "No, brother, we have to keep going," she insists, "we gotta get to Kaer Morhen as quickly as possible we...I can't stop until I know I'll be safe." The man frowned a bit, placing a hand on the woman's shoulder, "why is this so important to you, sister?" he questions, "who are you afraid of that you must seek refuge in a...well less then ideal stronghold, castle, uh, whatever it is." The woman shakes her head, "I can't say." "Why not?" "I just can't." "(y/n)-" "I can't risk endangering you anymore then I already have!"

The man was taken aback by the outburst, "I'm sorry, Julian," the woman says, "for the sake of this little one, I just can't say. No one can know."

The scene changed before Aemma had time to react.

She heard laughter, that also came from a man and woman. The same woman she saw before, her name being (y/n), and the man...his voice she recognized right away; it was her father. The scene before her, Aemma realized was a bedchamber somewhere back in the Red Keep. Did that mean this (y/n)...was she Aemma's mother.

Aemma followed the voices, into an open area with a bed. The princess's eyes widen in embarrassment and her face heating up as she saw more of her father then she ever cared to see. Her mother, on the other hand was wearing a sheer black robe as she laid in next to Daemon...yeah, still a little too much then Aemma would have ever cared to see, no matter how much she'd yearned to see her mother after so many years.

She turned around, practically fanning her face to cool off, which was difficult as she could hear both her parents talking.

"So, what does my lady wish for right now?" Daemon inquires of the Lady of Larks, "if you could wish for anything at this moment, what would it be?" "Hmmmm," (y/n) pretends to ponder, "I've really been craving a pierogi  lately," she admits, "A dozen pierogis sounds really good right about now." "What is a pierogi?" "It's sorta like a pastry stuffed with...well you can fill with all sorts of things," (y/n) explains, "Meats, cheese, vegetables, or even fruits. Mmmm, potato, onion, and cheese, oh how heavenly that sounds."  "Well I can see if any of the kitchen cooks know how to make something of the sort," Daemon says as he reaches out to stroke his lover's arm.

"Daemon," (y/n) warns, "don't even think about it." "I have no idea what you're talking about, Little Lark." (y/n) rolls her eyes in response. "Will you at least sing to me?" Daemon lightly pleads. "*sighs*, I've already sung so much today, my vocal cords have gone raw," (y/n) sighs, "I need to rest them so I can entertain your niece tomorrow," she moves about so she was resting on top of Daemon, "if I didn't know better I would say you want me horse so others will know of our...clandestine affairs." "You put words in my mouth, Little Lark," Daemon says with a smirk, placing a hand on her backside, and giving her a kiss.

"Why don't you sing to me for a change, Prince?" (y/n) offers, "surely you have an exceptional singing voice." "None compared to you," Daemon says, "your own voice is so beautiful even the larks will stay silent if only to listen for a few mere moments." "Mmmmm, faux humility doesn't quite suit you Daemon," (y/n) admits, "come on, indulge me for once. Maybe something in that seductive language of yours perhaps?"

"...I might know something of the sort," Daemon tells her before he begins his song. It was a song Aemma recognized; a song she remembered her father singing occasionally to Aemma and her sisters, and one that Jaehaerys himself had supposedly sang to his dragon Vermithor.

The song for some reason gave Aemma a sense of foreboding, when it in fact should've given her a sense of comfort as it brought her back to happier times spent with her family.

The scene faded before Aemma as she turned and reached out, whether to her father...or to her mother, she could not say for certain.

----------------------------------------------------

Aemma groaned as she started to come to. She found herself laying on her back again, on a cot of some sort, at least from what she could feel. As her vision slowly started coming to, she could see the outline of what looked to be a wooden ceiling. The princess tried to move, which was possible, but came with its own pain. She slowly worked her way to sitting up, the blanket covering her had fallen off and rested on her lap. The leathers that had covered her top half were gone, not that they would've been much use at the point given the tears and the fact it had been caked in mud at this point from her constant tripping in the bog.

Aemma noticed her small clothes were still on, but underneath she could see the bandages: One wrapped around her scrapped knee from when she fell off Cirillia and a larger one wrapped around her chest and shoulders from where the nekker got her. There was even a small bandaged wrapped around her hand from when she made the cut to present her blood to the Crones.

Fighting through the pain, Aemma managed to sit up, head spinning like she's recently been giving milk of the poppy...actually she's never been given that stuff before, but it's a feeling she imagines what it would feel like based on seeing the maesters give the poppy to various people in her life such as her uncle when he experienced pain or her stepmother or cousin when either of them went through labor. She tries to stand up with hopes of looking for her clothes and getting out of this place, wherever it was.

"You should not be moving so much in the state you are in," a deepish voice catches Aemma's attention; the princess looks around, trying to match a person to that voice, "over here," he calls over to her. Aemma turned to the person that presumably treated her wounds. A tall man stood by the doorway of this little hut, dressed in green, a bow strapped to his back, and short dark hair with two small braids in front. He also possessed two pointed ears, a lot more prominent then the ones on Ivan. Aemma's eyes widen some when she realized she was in the presence of an elf; a full blooded elf. 

"You're...you...." "An elf?" the elf finishes for her, "I suppose I should expect such a reaction from someone who doesn't many of my kind, if ever."

 At this point, Aemma picked up he was also slurring his words, and the glazed look in his eyes, as if he had a few too many drinks. Great, she thinks, and I thought Aegon's drinking was bad. She also looked down to see she was still in her underwear. She wrapped her arms in embarrassment, turning to quickly grab the blanket in an attempt to hide herself from this stranger.

"Are you the one who tended to my injuries?" she asks. "I am," the elf confirms, "with a little help from the village herbalist. My name is Cedric. I have been waiting for you for some time, Princess Aemma." Aemma's eyes widen at this realization that Cedric knew who she was; she also felt herself tensing up, as the last time someone claimed they have been expecting her for some time, it didn't end well for her, "I don't...how did...?" "I simply know," Cedric tells her, "I know certain things, things that have happened, and things yet to come. All this in spite of turning to drink as my vice if only to forget for a short while; hmmm, I believe that is the reason why many turn to drink. You can think of me as Daenys the Dreamer in a sense, if that makes you feel more comfortable."

Aemma was silent for a bit before she remembered the last thing she saw before she passed out, "how did you get me out of the pit trap I fell into?" she asks as she sits back down on the cot, "and how did you drive the nekkers away?" "I didn't," Cedric answers, "the Scoia'tel took care of that for me. They had plans for you the moment they saw you, especially from their commander. It appears he still holds a grudge against your father after all these years. I don't know why, the elves who perished at his hands should've known better then to confront a full grown dragon head on." "My father...," Aemma mutters, remembering her vision before she woke up.

It was two different visions, actually; one where her mother and father were laying in his chambers enjoying each other's company, clearly happy and in love, but the scene before that showed Aemma's mother fleeing into the mountains in hopes of seeking some kind of refuge in a place hidden. What was it called? Kaer Morhen, she remembered. But it didn't make any kind of sense. Aemma's mother was intent of reaching this place with hopes that no one would find her, all while she was with child, that child presumably being Aemma, and she didn't want anyone to know who the father of this child was. Her father, prince Daemon.

By why? What made her leave? Why would she leave her father when the two had looked so happy together, none of it was making any sense.

"How did you save me from the Scoia'tel then?" Aemma asks, pulled from her thoughts when she saw Cedric swaying a bit in his drunk state. "Mmm, I knew you would be coming to these lands for some time...I knew it would be soon," he states, "I was taking a nice stroll through the forest, when I heard the commotion. I ran to investigate and saw the Scoia'tel had pulled your body out the pit and had just bound your hands and feet. The moment I saw your hair, your Valyrian features, I knew right away. I...persuaded the commander to release you into my custody. I was once one of them a lifetime ago, but I had left when I saw the futility of their cause. Nevertheless I still hold ties to some, to the commander, and reluctant as he was, he was willing to listen, though I sense he will not the next time he sees you. If I were you, I would watch your steps next time you set foot in that forest."

"Thank you," Aemma nods, "I...am grateful for your help." "You come seeking questions," Cedric states again like it's obvious, making Aemma tense again as that was another thing said to her in which the outcome wasn't good for her. But on the other hand, this man did save her life and tended her wounds thereafter. "Uh, yes I do," she admits, "but maybe I should wait a while...at least until you sober up some." "Then I am afraid you will be waiting a very long while," Cedric shrugs, still slurring his words, "we Aen Seidhe live very long lives, more so then humans. You may very well be on your own deathbed before that day ever comes." Aemma sighs a bit, annoyed as this wasn't the first drunk she's had to deal with, but at least Cedric wasn't an obnoxious drunk, unlike her cousin Aegon. "Fine," she concedes, "what do you know about me?"

"I know you come seeking questions," Cedric answers, "I know you are a princess from a realm across the sea, the daughter of a prince, a second son...and a daughter of a Continental whose voice has dubbed her a lady of birds...no larks, that's what it is." "The Lady of Larks, yes I know all that,"Aemma deadpans, "that's all anyone has ever told me about my mother, that she was a gifted singer, a troubaritz, that she and my father loved each other and I was a product of that love, that she disappeared into the night when I was still a tot. No one has ever deemed to tell me the whole story. Did my mother leave on her own? Or was she abducted by the White Wolf?"

"The White Wolf?" Cedric snorts, "him? Abducting anyone? Whoever told you those things?" "My...father?" Aemma frowns in confusion. "Hmm, interesting," Cedric mutters, "but not at all surprising." "What do you mean?" Cedric merely shakes his head. Aemma huffed, feeling annoyed; this elf may not be intent on killing her as the Crones had, but in the state he was in, it would be like pulling teeth trying to obtain any kind of concrete information out of him.

"Okay, then how about this?" Aemma changes the subject, "I was in a bog previously when I first came to the Continent. I was captured by these...witches, crones. I escaped then, but then I was almost captured by this giant figure in dark armor, astride a dark stallion. I was almost captured by this being, and then next thing I knew I was no longer in the bog anymore. I was in this forest. I don't know how that even happened."

"You've...the Wild Hunt," Cedric mutters almost like a revelation. "What?" "You escaped a huntsman from the Wild Hunt," the elf tells her. "What is the Wild Hunt?" "In this world, humans believe them to be wraiths," Cedric explains, "they are often seen riding through the sky. Often they raid villages and capture folks to take to their realm to become slaves for their kind. They are also seen by many as an omen of war." "Wraiths?" "In truth, what they are really is elves," Cedric says, "but not quite like my brethren the Aen Seidhe; they are the Aen Elle. The Hunt is their Dearg Ruadhri, their Red Riders, led by their general, the King of the Wild Hunt."

"So, they capture people in raids and make them their slaves," Aemma repeats, "is that what happened to my mother? Was she captured by the Wild Hunt after what happened to her in Rivia?" "In a manner of speaking," Cedric nods. "Will you please stop talking in riddles and just answer me outright?!" Aemma exasperates. "I cannot see the whole picture," Cedric tells her, and speaks before she could say anything, "and this would still be the case if I were stone cold sober. I foresaw the Rivian pogrom many years ago. I saw the many who died, who lived, and those who died only to return from the dead...your mother fits somewhere in the latter...as does the White Wolf. How this was accomplished, I cannot say. All I know is, they both live, and now they presumably run with the Red Riders."

"...is it because of my mother that one of the riders found me?" Aemma asks. "No, I do not believe so," Cedric answers, tilting his head slightly as he examined Aemma, "I believe it to be something else, something about you, princess." He approaches Aemma and takes his hand in hers, the bandaged one, "I see a strange aura about you; it feels strange, yet at the same time it is very familiar to me. I have felt something similar once before in a vision. Of a girl with ashen hair, one whose to determine the fate of this world. One whose...to a certain extent to determine if the vision once had by your forebear is to be fulfilled or not." 

Aemma clenched her hands, slowly pulling away, "can you see that far into the future?" "I can see different outcomes, the future is not always set in stone," Cedric tells her, "sometimes it depends on destiny, other times it depends on the choices we make." "What choice must I make then?" "I cannot say for certain," Cedric shakes his head, "but I can offer a starting place for you, young princess. It is clear to me you possess a special gift, one that was given to you by accident, but one that had inadvertently saved your life not more then a day ago. You must learn to understand this power of yours, it may well help to understand your past as well as determine the course of your future, as well as the future of your family, especially if any of them are to survive the Dance that is to come."

"The...Dance?" Aemma frowns again. "A Dance of Dragons," Cedric simply elaborates, sighing some as if he knew the outcome already, "a house divided cannot stand, something your uncle the king seems to understand greatly, and something he seemed to attempt to instill into you."

Aemma looked down to the floor, knowing Cedric was right about that. She remembered how adamant her uncle had been to her about keeping the family together, and it was the reason why she had put with Aegon for as long as she did when she was still betrothed to him.

Cedric then went over to grab a tunic and toss it over to Aemma along with her leathers, at least the leathers that were ruined, which was mostly her leggins, boots, and gloves, "I'm afraid this is all I have to offer," the elf tells her, "if you do wish to understand what you possess, I would suggest starting by going to the place of your birth."

Aemma was confused by this, "I...how am to understand this so called gift of mine at Dragonstone?" Cedric swayed some before he answered, "go to the place of your birth, Aemma, you will begin to understand when you reach that place. Now," he opens the door, "I believe you are well enough to resume your journey. I would suggest heading West, you may find someone in that direction you would not expect. Follow your destiny, Aemma, and I wish you the best of luck."

Aemma nods, and once she got her clothes back on, Cedric handed her a pack of goods and showed her out. Once on solid ground, Aemma headed west as Cedric told her.

Once alone, the elf snorted some before he took a couple swigs of vodka, "Dragonstone," he mutters to himself, "why on earth would she go to Dragonstone? She was not born there..."  

Chapter 31

[bireggiemantle]

📸 this should be fun

ty for the ask!

Jughead fiddles with the band around his middle finger, twisting it in circles absentmindedly. The silver coating's worn thin around the areas he touches more often, giving way to the warm copper color underneath, and the ring itself has seen better days.

Only one of his rings so far is real silver. It's one he wears on his index finger, a thin gray loop tightly clinging to the skin just below his knuckle. His mom gave it to him in middle school, back when the only finger it could fit on was his thumb. She didn't explain much about the history of it, but Jughead vaguely remembers her mentioning her own mother while she handed it off to him.

The rest of his rings are fake. He's collected them from garage sales and odd shops over the years, coughing over no more than five bucks for each one. His current favorite ring is a broken mood ring Archie bought him in freshman year. It's never shown a color other than blue, and Archie lost the pamphlet before they could figure out what blue means.

Jughead doesn't mind though. The jewelry isn't for looks, so the deep scratches and red splotches don't bother him. He just likes the grounding feeling of wearing them. It's the same safety his hat once provided, only condensed into much small pieces. And they're nice to mess around with, like he's doing now.

The sound of glass hitting the table redirects his attention, and soon he's face to face with a smiling Tabitha beside him.

"Thought you might be hungry. You've been sitting here for a while." She slides into the seat opposite him, placing a plate of fries next to his milkshake. She grabs the first one, dipping it into the shake before taking a bite.

"I'm always hungry. Thanks, Tabs."

"I figured." Tabitha winks and steals another fry. "Any luck on your novel?" She gestures to his open laptop, and the empty word doc on its screen.

Jughead shakes his head. "Nothing. It's like I'm all out of ideas."

"Maybe you're just missing the right inspiration." Tabitha pauses to reach into the pocket of her apron, revealing a small black box. "I actually have this whole stargazing date planned for tonight to try and inspire you, and I was going to give this to you then, but there's something telling me I shouldn't wait." She opens the box and slides it towards Jughead.

There, nestled between two velvet cushions, sits a silver ring. A real silver ring. It's made of two thick bands that meet in the middle to form a star. And it looks like it'd fit Jughead's ring finger perfectly.

"I know we agreed on no gifts for our anniversary, but since you've been so frustrated lately, I thought this might cheer you up. Betty told me you went through an astrology phase in high school."

Jughead picks up the ring, spinning it between his fingers for a moment before finally slipping it on the same hand as Gladys's ring.

"Betty told you about that?" he says, trying to focus on the conversation on anything other than the glossiness coating his eyes.

"She told me a lot of things, but I guess you'll just have to wait to find out what they are." She leans forward and takes a long sip of the chocolate shake.

Jughead lets his gaze fall back down to the ring, which practically glistens under the bright lights of the diner.

"Seriously though, thank you, Tabitha. This is really thoughtful."

"Don't thank me yet. We haven't even gotten to the fun part of the night." She stands back up, smoothing out her apron as she exits the booth. "My shift's over at four today, so that gives you two hours to pack up your shit and get ready."

"Oh, and enjoy your fries." Tabitha tacks on, bending over and grabbing one last fry before finally leaving.

Jughead gives the star ring another spin, watching as it slowly loops around his finger. R.I.P. to Archie's mood ring, but it's lost its spot as his favorite piece of jewelry.

[queerdeerskates]

Skating journal: days 46 & 47 - skate parks again!

I can't believe I forgot to write about my first time back at a skate park, lol. In my defense it was late and I was tired.

I'm in a discord group for roller skaters in my area. They're mostly park skaters and they're usually at one park or another in the evening. I don't usually go because I'm afraid of skate parks and especially busy skate parks, but about a week ago I decided to join them. I had had a pretty bad & stressful day because of one of my other hobbies (I'm planning a ttrpg campaign and it's only going okay) and I was thinking that going skating might help me feel better. I went to the rink I usually go to and it was empty. Normally I would have been excited that there wasn't a practice going on, but I didn't want to be all by myself. I prefer skating around other people, even if they're not actually there to hang out with me. So I went to the park where the discord group was hanging out, even though it was half an hour away. I actually had to call my friend on the drive over because I was so nervous.

The park was pretty crowded. I actually couldn't figure out where the discord skaters were. It was so cool though! It was a really nice evening and the park was well lit. There were a ton of inline skaters doing all kinds of crazy tricks. I was... mostly scared. There wasn't a lot of flat ground and there especially wasn't any flat ground that wasn't in the middle of somebody's run. The whole park was on a hill too, so you couldn't get from one end to the other without going up or down something. I had watched the new Dirty Deb video on what to do your first time at the skate park, and she recommended finding a non-transition ramp to go down and practice getting the flow of the skatepark. There were plenty of those around, but they all were so high or steep that they made me really nervous. I finally found the tiniest, babiest incline to go down (seriously, I think it was about as steep as the natural slant of the ground at the rink). It was near another flat ramp going up, so I could go down my little baby ramp and then up the next one as far as momentum carried me, then go back down that ramp fakie (that's just park terminology for backwards). I'd made a little improvement at going down a ramp fakie the first time I went to a park before I hurt my knee, but I had to basically re-learn it all over again. Also, the spot where my baby ramp was was right in the middle of a run that a bunch of the inliners were working on. It's definitely okay to be in the same general area as somebody else, but I don't have a good sense yet of what counts as being in the way or not in the way at a skate park. On top of that I was so nervous I could barely skate on flat ground. So I did my little baby run a few times, but mostly I sat and watched the inliners. They were SO cool. One of them ran across my path once and was really apologetic and also super encouraging. And the tricks they all did were amazing!! I really hope I can be that cool someday. I did run into one person from the discord and they were super nice too.

I didn't end up skating very much, but I was still so stoked when I went home. My goal had been to go to a skate park and skate and not injure myself, and I had done all of those, so I was pretty happy with my success.

Then I promptly got my period and didn't skate for a whole week, which was VERY annoying. But I kept busy with lots of other hobbies. I completed two sewing projects in the last few days, which is as many as I usually do in a year. Today I finally felt energized enough to skate again, and I even got off work a little early, so I decided to face my fear and go to the nearby park where I had hurt myself.

I figured the park was likely to be pretty empty mid-afternoon on a weekday, which was good, because I'm still not really used to it to the point where I'm comfortable when it's very busy. There were only a couple of teens there on scooters, and they left not long after I arrived. I was so nervous (and out of practice) I could barely skate. But I took some time to let myself warm up, and things got much better. This park is pretty small, it's basically a square with some ramps around the sides and platforms in the middle. I could skate around the square on flat ground. My main object though was improving my fakie skating. I can skate backwards okay if I transition from going forwards or start from standing still, but going up a ramp and coming back down is different. There's a nice low transition ramp near one corner of the square that I was practicing on, the same as my first time there before I hurt myself. I could skate up to the ramp, let momentum carry me partway up, then come down fakie. It's super baby stuff, but it's difficult! I only fell on the ramp once today, and I didn't get hurt. I did manage to fall skating on flat ground too, but I was alright. I'm gonna need to get better pads though. Mine are starting to get really scraped up and frayed.

I did improve my fakie stance a lot today. By the end I could get about halfway up the ramp (which was maybe four or five feet tall), come down fakie, and keep skating backwards as long as I wanted. I'm not actually sure how long I was there. Half an hour to an hour I think. Eventually some skateboarders showed up, and that made me nervous, but I was able to keep going for a while. Then a parent and kid on bikes came in and I decided it was busy enough for me to go home. The poor kid had a fall while I was putting my gear away and got the wind knocked out of them, so they and their parent went home too. They were really little, maybe seven? And they were way braver than me. It's fun to see little kids learning to skate or bike or other stuff like that.

I had an audiobook in today instead of music. Most of the time I prefer music for skating, but since I was so focused on drills instead of rhythm or flow, this was alright. I've been on a Jane Austen kick the last few days. Since there's been so much discourse about the new Persuasion movie I decided to listen to the audiobook during my weekend sewing project. And I really liked it, so I listened to Emma while I did my next sewing project and made some storytime crafts for work. I just finished Emma this morning, so I started Northanger Abbey while I was skating this afternoon. Out of the books I've read so far (which includes Pride and Prejudice way back in high school), I think Mr. Knightley is my favorite love interest - though, no offense to Emma, but I actually think Jane got a better deal marrying Mr. Churchill. I really like that guy's sense of humor. But so far Catherine Morland is my favorite protagonist. We love an ADHD kid who only reads novels.

I've been so bad about not doing the drills I said I was gonna do. I should really go to the rink and work on stuff in an environment that doesn't freak me out. But I also don't want to make skating a chore, so if I was in the mood to try a skate park today then I figure that's what I should do. And I definitely had a good time! I'm proud of my improvement and I'm looking forward to skating at parks more. I'm going to have to figure out a skill progression, though. Skating at the park really scares me, as much as I enjoy it and want to get better at it, so I want to figure out how to progress in a way that feels controlled and safe.

[lores-lacey]

Hiiii!!! 💕💕

This is the beginning of a story I wrote for my 💖 Daddy 💖!

He wanted me to share it with all y'all! There will be a number of other parts when it's done! Here you go!

Part 1

When I was in high school, I became very into anal stimulation. I had first seen it in porn, a girl reached around while giving a guy a blow job and fingered his ass. The guy was big and cut, but the orgasm seemed to make him weak. I'd been jerking it for years and never seemed to have an o like that, even after I lost my v card. I had used fingers and some choice objects to play in that area, and while it started to feel good, nothing like what was described in the research I did. 

I had had sex a couple times in high school, but it seemed more like right place right time than any skill on my part to talk to girls. And even then, I couldn't even begin to imagine asking a girl to do anything like that. And the Internet certainly didn't help with that. No girl was interested in my area and I didn't have the money to travel to the one or two that I did find to be interested. I certainly got plenty of unwanted male attention, telling me they had the magic dick game to unlock that kind of cumming. 

Fast forward to college. Girls were always on my mind, but so was class. And even then, the obsession lingered. I couldn't even jerk off without something up there anymore; close, but no cigar. Finally, I started to relent. I started looking at responses from men, just a peak. A few seemed interesting, perhaps. The ones that were local and mostly not creepy, of course.  They were nice enough, but easy to weed through. Way too big, either their cock or their gut, boring enough I thought they'd cum before getting it in, etc. 

I figured it was a stupid idea and was going to delete the throwaway, but one response caught my eye.

"Same school. If you want a sissygasm, message me."

Obviously local, but the term "sissygasm" is what got me more than anything. I had read it before, but it didn't really resonate with me, not really who I was. But, that was so different from all the other guys. They didn't use any of those terms, they seemed to play it off that they were very straight and other than superficial similarities, there was nothing gay about our discussions. I thought originally that that was what I was looking for, but the matter-of-fact nature intrigued me. 

"Hi. I saw your reply."

"when can you come over?"

"Oh! I was umm wanting to get to know you first???"

"U can call me Buck. That good enough?"

"Hi, I'm [I said a variation of my middle name]. So, what do you study?"

"I'm probably just going to call you Sissy. I don't get to know holes like you, I just fuck them. You said you wanted a sissygasm, and I know how to give them. Done it plenty. You can come over or not, but I don't need to play 20 Questions."

"I'm not a sissy."

"Whatever u call yourself."

"Okay."

Well, it could have gone better. Two weeks or so went by, but I couldn't stop thinking about how close I was. I'd been practicing for so long, I was sure I could take it, and what was the worst that was going to happen? I wasn't gay or a sissy, I just was looking for someone to find the right spot. 

"When are you available?"

"Now."

"What about 2 hours from now?"

"Ok"

I didn't cum for a week so I'd be desperate enough to reach out. Two hours of almost having a panic attack later I texted and got the address. Turns out he was in my dorm, just a couple floors above. I nervously went up stairs and knocked on his door. Long enough to know he wasn't waiting by the door he answered. He was in good shape, taller than me, and just in his boxers. He looked unimpressed, but athletic. He opened the door and walked back into his room, not inviting me in, but expecting me to join him. I followed. Inside was a room identical to mine except the decor. 

On the ground was a large cushion of some kind with a blanket over it. He sat down and was looking on his computer. 

"So uhhh…roommate isn't a problem???"

"He basically lives at his girl's place. Almost never here."

"Oh… okay. So…"

"Just get on the floor, I'll be there in a sec." 

I got down and just sat there, awkwardly. 

"Strip. And get in position." He said, without looking up. 

I slowly did, still feeling awkward but not minding he wasn't looking. Eventually I did get fully naked and got on all fours. He got up finally and got behind me. It took me everything I had not to shake. He slowly but firmly pushed my head down. I heard him lube up and he started to push into me. I had trained, but even then he was pretty big. I whined until he was in all the way, he stopped for a moment.

"Shhh…. it's okay sissy."

I ignored him, but started to moan when he began humping. It hurt at first but it changed to pleasure much faster than I had read about, or maybe it's just because I wanted it to. 

"That's a good sissy! Daddy is going to fuck you real good."

Again I ignored him. He picked up speed and it was at this point I became aware of his hands, they had been on my hips the whole time since he had pushed in, but he was gripping tighter now. Not in a bad way, I just noticed. Something about them felt really nice, I was not expecting that.

As soon as that thought left my mind, I started grunting a bit…a sensation I had only felt a little of before started growing in me.

"No, sissy. Keep moaning. I know you feel it, but moan like a girl."

I tried to ignore that too, but he slowed down when I kept grunting, so I made sure to moan. 

"Atta girl." 

Soon enough I finally felt it. I shook and almost choked on my own breath, and I came all over the blanket… I felt… amazing but thoughts didn't make sense at that point. When I fully regained consciousness he had pulled out and was cleaning himself off.

"That…wow that better than I had expected…oh my god…"

"I know. I have a magic touch I'm told."

I was still reeling, but I noticed a new sensation at my ass.

"Did you…finish?"

"Uhm, yeah. That's kinda the fuckin point?"

"Oh, you didn't wear…right…"

I was so preoccupied with what I was getting out of it I didn't fully consider what I signed up for.

"Well, that wasn't bad. When you want it again, let me know. Just need you to clean the blanket."

"Huh? What?"

I was still foggy.

"I said, let me know when you want this dick again, but you need to wash the blanket."

"Wait, you're serious?"

"Do I look like I'm joking? That's the price to keep getting this dick. You clean up." 

I am getting dressed by now.

"I provided…didn't agree…I mean you set it out…"

"As I said, let me know when you are coming back."

"Okay, jerk. Not gonna happen. Whatever."

I leave. What an asshole I think to myself.

[thatsgay-writes]

Day 12

PREVIOUS

The days after finding water we're pretty chill, minus finding out that Jeanette's body was gone. There was still some obvious tension between you and Toni and Toni and Martha and Shelby. You hadn't really interacted with either Toni or Shelby in the past few days either, opting to hang around Fatin. You hadn't talked to Toni because you didn't know what to say after the argument the two of you had and you had revealed your feelings for her in front of everyone. Shelby on the other head, had seemed to be the one ignoring you... Well maybe not ignoring she was just very short with you which was totally against her personality. You all had also made a schedule, seeing as you were going to be here for a while. Everyone got one chore a day and every once and a while a day off. Today happened to be your day off and you were glad, your chest pains had been happening more often and that concerned you.

It also concerned you that you didn't know when you would be rescued. The hospital, who was against the retreat but couldn't exactly do anything about it, had given you medication to help with your problem. It was enough pills for three weeks, just in case, but they had been lost like the rest of your stuff. You had checked the pilot bag that held all the medical stuff you guys had but it didn't have what you were looking for either. You've managed to hide coughing up blood by coughing into the elbow of you red shirt or spitting it out while in the woods. You had also been losing your appetite, which has been harder to hide. You'd force down some food and pretend like it was a lot so the other wouldn't worry. But today, luckily, you were starving and prepared to fully eat whatever Rachel brought for food.

---

"Let's feast!" You hear a Rachel suddenly yell as she stand on top of a little hill, carrying what looks to be a big amount of food. You stood up and attached your leg before joining everyone around the fire. You watch, mouth watering, as Dot cooks all the mussels over the fire. When they're done cooking, the mussels are laid out in a big pile in the middle. Everyone stared at the pile wondering who will go first, since they all understood how little food they had been finding the past couple days. "Eat as much as you want guys, there was enough of them to fill 3 more bags. I just ran out of room." At Rachel's words you all dive in and eat the mussels, except for Shelby. "Why aren't you eating any?" Leah asks as she looks suspiciously at Shelby. Not this again. You think as you eat your tenth mussel, what could you say you were hungry.

"I'm actually allergic to shellfish. Ate one at a birthday party and my throat swelled up like a balloon." Shelby responded as she watched everyone else eat. "That's rough." You say as you grab 3 more mussels. "Damn y/n. Is it good?" Fatin asks jokingly as she grabs another mussels for herself. You roll your eyes and let out a chuckle as you flip her off before grabbing more food. "You know what this looks like..." Toni says, grabbing everyone's attention with a smirk. You mentally facepalm because you know exactly where this is going. "A pussy!" Nora yells out causing everyone to laugh, the girl had definitely come out of her shell more the past few days. Toni nods her head before licking the mussels shell provocatively. "I bet y/n knows what that feels like!" Dot yells out causing everyone to make an "ooo" sound like kids when their peer got in trouble. You and Toni's face both heated up at Dots words and you made sure to give her a hardy punch in the shoulder.

"Can you all stop!?" Shelby suddenly yells out causing everyone to freeze and look at her questioningly. "Shelby, chill out we are just having some fun." Dot says, not really understanding what all the fuss was about. "I am chill, I just don't find that very amusing." Shelby responded, her voice getting a little harsher when she says the word that. "What do you mean by that?" Toni asks as she send you a quick look and you almost immediately understood where this was going. The look was one you or Toni would give the other when known homophobes where in the area or if the two knew you were being judge for doing pda. Was this why Shelley had been short with you the past few days? You did not like where this was going and neither did Toni. "Just... pornographic gestures. I'm from a very Christian home and no one ever does things like that."

You wanted to believe Shelby, you really did, but it explained why you always felt this weird vibe from her. "Don't lie Shelby, I always knew I felt some sort of vibe from you, it's clear now what it was. Toni and I have felt that vibe enough times to know what you really mean." You say, glaring at Shelby. "What... What are you guys trying to say?" Martha asks getting worried now. She knew what you meant when you said vibe, you and Toni had both told her about it. "She's a fucking homophobe." Toni spits out glaring at Shelby. You nod you head in agreement, putting back the mussels you had picked up before all this started. Martha's eyes go wide and she sends a Shelby a pleasing look, hoping she'll deny what Toni had just said.

"Look..." Shelby says as she lets out a big sigh. "I have no hate in my heart for y'all. It was just that I was taught that that way of life is a sin." Toni immediately jumps up and point her finger angrily at Shelby, "Why you little..." Toni was too mad to even finish her sentence. Martha had dropped her head in disappointment and let Fatin wrap and arm around her in comfort. The rest of the girls were just watching as everything unfolded. "I feel sorry—" Shelby starts to say, digging her into an even deep hole. "Fuck you." Toni interrupts her before storming off, you nod your head repeatedly in agreement, not looking at anyone as you finish putting your leg on and following after Toni.

---

"Toni. Toni. Toni!" You yell as you follow the girl. "Goddamn leg... Goddamn sand..." You mumble as you follow Toni down the beach. Luckily, she does finally stop after she deemed that she was far away enough to breathe. Toni kicks the sand angrily, as she stares out into the water. "I can't fucking believe this, no I can I just hoped..." Toni trails off as she wraps her arm around herself. You walk up to her and wrap your arms around her in a comforting hug, "I know, I know..." "We just get so much shit at home..." Toni trails off as she lets herself relax into your hug. "I know." You say again because that's all you can say. You relax for a few minutes before you get hit with a sudden nausea.

"Oh fuck." You mumble out as you unwrap from around Toni and throw up near the two of you. "Y/n?" Toni reacts in shock as she watches you kneel over as you try and spit out the taste of vomit and blood. Toni ends up turning around to throw up as well. "I didn't know you were a sympathetic puker..." You try and joke as you take deep breathes and slowly lay in the sand, feelin exhausted from throwing up. Toni wiped her mouth before turning back around, "C'mon, we can't stay here the heat wont help at all." Toni says as she pulls you to your feet, trying to ignore how she slowly started feeling worse. Toni has to practically drag your body back towards camp. "Help!" She yelled out as soon as she saw people and Fatin came running over. She took your other arm and most of the weight so Toni could relax some.

Luckily, the other girls seemed to be doing better than you and Toni. Both you and Toni were splayed out on the ground with Martha sitting near by as the other girls moved around the camp doing whatever.  "Come on, lay on your side y/n." Martha mumbles worriedly as she listens to your labored breathing. Toni was at least a little more responsive and had tried to swallow water, while you didn't even react to someone moving your body. "Fuck, she's getting worse..." Dot said as she walked up to check on the three of you. "Where the hell is Leah with that medicine!?" Fatin almost yelled as she looked between you and Toni. Right as she said that, Leah broke through the tree line and ran towards Dot. "Why are they all dirty?" Dot yells out as she roots through the bag. "Only 2? I thought we had 3, I know we had 3!" Dot pulls out two tablets of halophen. "It's obvious who needs them the most." Shelby stated as she sat a little ways away from the group unfold. Dot bites her lip and looks at Martha, "Martha, you good?" "Yeah, I'll take a Pepto."

Dot nods her head and turns towards Fatin and hands her one of the tablets, "Figure out a way for her to take it." Fatin nods her head as she looks down at you. "Toni, I'm going to need you to take this." Shelby said as she took the other halophen tab from Dot. "I'm not taking shit from you." Toni says as angrily as she can. "It'll save your life Toni. Take the damn pill." "Should Shelby really be the one doing this." Rachel questions. "Am I not allowed to help her!?" Shelby says exasperatedly. She climbed on top of Toni and held her nose closed until she opened her mouth. As soon as she did, she stuff the pill in her mouth and covered it, forcing her to swallow. Shelby got off of Toni and turned her attention to you, ignoring how the other girls were looking at her.

"Have you gotten her to take it yet?" Fatin shakes her head no, "She's barely reacting to anything. I'm surprised she's still conscious." The girls sat silent for moment contemplating what to do. They start to panic when you cough up more blood. "Here, give it to me." Dot says as she snatches the tab and a nearby rock. She starts to crush the tab up as much as possible. "Just pour some in front of her nose and breath deep." The other girls don't really question Dot's idea and just follow what she says. "C'mon y/n, just one big breath and then you'll start to feel better."

---

You were leaning heavily against Toni as you and all the girls sat around the fire. You were still exhausted from today's earlier event. Luckily, they associated you coughing up blood to throwing up to much and you didn't have the heart to tell them otherwise. No one knew about what was wrong with you except for the people at the hospital and yourself. You were finally clear to sleep by Dot because she wanted to make sure the meds had actually worked and that you wouldn't fall asleep just to never wake up again. You were almost asleep when Toni suddenly stands up yelling Martha's name and running over to her. You shake yourself awake and shakily stand up to see what was happening. Your heart stopped when you noticed that Martha had fallen and made no attempts at getting back up.

"Toni you were dying!" "Who cares? I don't matter! fuck, I don't matter. I don't fucking matter."

NEXT

[one-boring-person]

Just A Babysitter. (Part Five)

The Lost Boys x reader

Warnings: mentions of drug and alcohol use, some vague mentions of gore.

Context: (Y/n) entertains herself at the cave whilst the boys show Michael their true selves, before they rejoin her for some quality time spent together.

A/N: I apologise that this took longer to get out, but km quite happy with it, even if some parts don't necessarily work "realistically" 😅

Part One , Part Two , Part Three , Part Four , Part Six , Part Seven , Part Eight

"Wanna take a drag?" Paul offers me, leaning over from his perch directly beside me on the railing of the Boardwalk, a lit joint pinched between his fingers.

"Nah, I'm good, thanks. Not really my thing." I decline, gently pushing his hand away from my face, wrinkling my nose at the pungent smell of weed.

"I forget that you're an alcoholic, not a junky. Sorry." The vampire responds, teasing me with smirk as I elbow him in the ribs, a grin on my own face.

"I wouldn't tease her for that, if I were you, Paul. We all know she holds her alcohol better than you do." David points out, giving us a pointed look as he inhales a breath of smoke from the cigarette in his hand. Marko and Dwayne snicker at this, the former yelping when Paul gives him a light slap on the back of the head.

"Not true! I'm not a lightweight!" He protests, though he knows full well that what David says is true.

"You're a lightweight compared to (Y/n)." Dwayne chips in, grinning at us from under his dark hair as he flicks it out of his eyes, the wind having blown it there in the first place.

Paul opens and closes his mouth a few times before giving in, shrugging and taking a drag of his joint in defeat.

"Not as lightweight as Marko." He mutters, a smirk on his face as he says this, intending to get a rise out of the mentioned vampire.

"More so, in fact." Marko retorts, pushing against his friend's back jokingly, laughing when Paul yelps in mock surprise.

He is cut off suddenly when he is pushed aside by a rather distressed Michael, the half-vampire angrily shoving Marko into me, nearly throwing me over the edge and onto the sand below, only just caught by Paul, who sacrifices his joint to save me. Steadying me, the vampire makes sure I'm alright before turning his blue-eyed gaze onto the brunette, staring at him as the rest of us do.

"Where is she?!" Michael growls into the leader's face, grabbing hold of his collar.

In response, David breathes out a lungful of smoke and chuckles, taking Michael's hands off of him.

"Take it easy, Michael." He says calmly, looking the half-vampire in the eye.

"Where is Star, David?" Michael spits out, putting heavy emphasis on the blonde's name.

"Michael, you ever wanna see Star again, you better come with us now." He threatens, face turning serious as the brunette lets him go, breathing erratic.

At his words, I immediately understand what is going to happen, and make a quick decision. As David moves to go back to the motorcycles, I tap at his arm, getting his attention as I walk beside him, voice quiet as I speak to him.

"Can I go home? I don't really want to watch you guys eat a bunch of people tonight..." My voice trails off as I start to think about how stupid and pathetic I must sound, surprised when the vampire places his arm around my shoulders and pulls me closer to his icy body, smiling down at me.

"Of course. Go make sure the other two aren't up to anything bad." David says, rubbing my arm gently before releasing me as we approach the bikes, climbing onto his with a practiced ease. Following suit, I get up onto mine and kick start the engine, waiting for the others to do the same, watching as Michael hesitantly joins us, eyes flicking to mine with confusion and trepidation. In response, I give him a sympathetic look, knowing full well that he will be horrified by what will become his fate.

As a group, we pull out onto the road, taking the route through town to get out, David surprisingly allowing me to ride closer to him than usual, the blonde smirking at me across the gap as I get level with him. Behind us, Paul, Dwayne and Marko all cry out in excitement, their energy levels shooting up at the prospect of a feed, whilst Michael just becomes even more worried. As we leave civilisation, we approach a junction, where we'd normally turn right towards the Bluff, but this time it's only me who takes this route, my hand lifting into a wave as I veer away from the others, bringing up the speed as much as I can as I turn onto the mostly empty road.

For once, I mostly stick to the rules of the road, staying on the correct side and keeping to the speed limits, my pace not quite as wild as it usually is, though I do skip through a few traffic lights I come across, grimacing when I hear the protests of others behind me. The ride up the dusty track leading to the Bluff is no different however, I take it as fast as I usually do, skidding on the dust a little as the bike struggles to grip the ground. A giddy whoop of thrill rips from my throat as it does so, a grin forming on my face in response to this, just proving how much of an adrenaline junky I really am.

Finally, I reach the Bluff, stopping the bike and getting off before hiding it where we normally do, going down the rickety walkway into the cave, navigating it by instinct, seeing as it is nearly pitch black when the lighthouse isn't pointing at it. The interior is lit up by the braziers, the cheerful yet somehow tense sounds of Star and Laddie playing around floating up to me as I get closer, slowing my descent. It's not often these days that Star actually plays with the boy, mostly passing it off onto me or Paul, or Dwayne, who Laddie sees almost as a father figure of sorts. It's not that she doesn't care, it's just that she's preoccupied with other things, like the prospect of becoming a fully fledged vampire, which I can understand.

Entering the sunken hotel, I try to be as quiet as possible, making sure I don't step on any of the debris littering the floor, aiming not to interrupt the two of them at all. Somehow I manage to succeed in doing so, stepping silently over to the corner where my armchair is situated, taking a seat and picking up a book to read, which just so happens to be Anne Rice's "Interview With The Vampire", a favourite of mine ever since the boys bought it for me a couple of years ago, as a joke. Even as I read it through now, I find myself drawing parallels between the characters and my friends, specifically Laddie and Claudia, who are both turned at a young age, and will never fully experience what adulthood is like thanks to this. At the thought of this, a sense of pity wells up in me, thinking back to the boy who I've come to care for as a younger brother, knowing that, eventually, he will become bitter and resentful at his fate, no matter what the rest of us do to help him. If only the boys had read the book, then it might have occurred to them how unfair Laddie's life will soon become.

For a little while, I read the book, soon tiring of the pages as I finish the storyline in my head knowing it all too well, standing from my seat and stretching out my stiff muscles with a sigh. Placing the book down, I survey the area, quickly making up my decision when I notice the familiar beams of wood resting against the far wall, their ends not too far from the secure iron frameworks latticing the ceiling, their rusty bars appearing mostly safe. With a small smile, I go over to them, testing their stability before taking a firm hold of them, bracing my feet against the rock wall and shuffling upwards. A groan escapes me at the exertion, but I push on, determined to reach the top, ignoring the steadily growing burn in my muscles, halting briefly when the beam to my left suddenly makes a cracking noise, a burst of panic making me tense up. When nothing further happens, I continue on my way, going a little more cautiously so as to avoid putting too much pressure on the old pieces of wood, a proud grin splitting my face as I reach the top, my head turning around to gauge the distance between me and the first iron bar. Judging it well, I reach out one arm and push off the wall, feeling suddenly vulnerable somewhere in the middle as I stop on my trajectory, before I feel the reassuring roughness of the iron beneath my fingers.

Taking hold of it with both hands, I allow myself to swing for a moment, enjoying the new perspective of the room briefly, grimacing when I finally heave myself onto the bar, precariously managing to stand up, my feet somehow finding safe purchase on the frame. Using the other bars around me as a railing, I walk along the bar until I reach the middle of the room, where I then sit down, swinging my legs over the edge, watching the room intently, waiting for the two half-vampires to emerge from the curtained area by their beds. I sit there for ten minutes before I see anything, my eyebrow lifting when I notice Star step out into the light, alone wearing a black jacket, looking around as if to check if the rest of us are back yet. I decide to put her out of her misery.

"Going somewhere?" I call down to her plastering a pleasant smile onto my face.

Surprised, Star looks around with wide eyes, trying to find me in the shadows, not once looking upwards towards the ceiling, where I'm residing, amused by her oblivion.

"Up here." I quickly inform her, trying not to laugh when she finally finds me, shock lining her face.

"(Y/n)?! How the hell did you...?" She starts, voice trailing off when she casts her eyes around the room, trying to find out how I got to my perch.

"I climbed. Now answer my question." I respond, smiling at her to show I'm not trying to be controlling, even if that's how it sounds.

"I'm going out." She confirms, clenching her jaw a little.

"Out?" I question, looking at my watch to check the time.

"Yeah, I'm going to the Boardwalk." I can tell she's lying, but I don't say anything, instead telling her to have fun, assuming that she's put Laddie to bed already, seeing as she is willing to leave him alone.

As she leaves, I decide that I'm bored with my current position and decide to change it up, knowing that any slip of the hand could be deadly. Carefully, I manoeuvre myself so that I'm hanging upside down with my legs hooked over the bar, my feet linked under another one a foot or two away to provide stability, my clothes all hitching up around my shoulders as the gravity pulls them downwards. Instantly, I can feel the blood rush to my head, my vision briefly clouding over as I try my best to ignore it, biting my lip when the nausea starts to kick in. Despite all this, the thrill of hanging by a thread seems to excite me, my adrenaline pumping through me, my heartbeat racing in anticipation.

Vaguely, I hear as the boys finally return, their voices loud in the confined space, energy clearly high after feeding; knowing them, they probably came in wearing their victims on their clothes, too. I spot them quickly as they enter the room, their brows furrowing as they notice I'm not in my usual spot, clearly picking up my scent and the sound of my pulse, but unable to place my whereabouts.

"Where is she?" Marko wonders aloud, looking around in concern.

"She's not with Laddie." Paul states, having just gone to check, confusion lacing his voice as the other two stay quiet.

David and Dwayne seem to come to the same conclusion, their gazes landing on the beams I used to climb up, before following them up to the ceiling, worry etched into their faces. They don't spot me immediately, but I give them a grin and a quick wave, and they realise where I am, David letting out a chuckle as he spots me, Dwayne only sighing in exasperation, followed by a broad grin when Marko and Paul continue to figure it out. The former notices David and Dwayne looking up, and follows their line of sight, eyes widening when he sees me, a giggle escaping him, along with a gasp of surprise, Paul figuring it out seconds later.

"How'd you get up there?!" He calls up to me, grinning maniacally at the sight.

"I climbed." I inform them, struggling to talk now, what with the oxygen rushing to my brain, deciding to get back into a comfortable position.

"You climbed? Damn, you have some serious muscle." Marko compliments, making me blush at the comment.

"How do you plan to get back down?" David inquires, smirking at me as I look at the beams against the wall, finally noticing that the climb down wouldn't work as easily as the journey up did, what with the pieces of wood having cracked through the middle.

"Yeah, I didn't think of that." I reply, frowning a bit at the predicament I'm in, embarrassment making me blush.

The sudden sight of Dwayne standing in front of me makes me jump, the brunette grinning widely at me, the vampire clearly having flown up her using his vampiric abilities.

"Jesus, Dwayne, you scared the hell out of me!" I curse, placing a hand over my heart as if to calm it.

"Oops." He responds, before leaning forwards and picking me up, ignoring my protests as he cradles me against his chest, stepping off of the beam again once he's got me. Slowly, he descends back to the cave floor, setting me back on my feet as the rest of the boys crowd around me.

"What made you think I was ready to come down?" I grumble in mock irritation, trying not to smile as Paul mimics me, instinctually giving him a light slap on the chest as he does so. At our antics, the others chuckle, watching as Paul gives me a gentle shove in response, which ultimately breaks out into a playful wrestling match between us as we refuse to let the other win.

For a few minutes, we roll around on the floor, trying our best to get the upper hand, which he eventually manages to do, pinning my body to the floor by grabbing my wrists and holding them above my heads, grinning when he notices my chest heaving in exhaustion, a pout making it's way onto my face at the fact I lost. Again.

"No fair, you used your vampire strength!" I complain, waiting for him to let me up again.

"Nope, I didn't. You'd know if I did, girly." The vampire smirks, not budging as I start to wriggle under his lanky frame, only just noticing the blood still staining the white fabric of his trousers.

"Still." I continue, gritting my teeth as I try my best to get out from under him, looking around to the other boys for help. David smirks and shrugs, letting me know it's my own predicament and I need to get out of it alone, Dwayne smiles at me, clearly enjoying the show, whilst Marko is nowhere to be seen.

"Get off me, you're heavy as hell!" I protest, going limp in his arms as I give up wriggling out from his grip.

"I'm not!' Paul exclaims, acting offended though his blue eyes are glittering with mischief. However, just as he's about to continue, the air is suddenly knocked out of him and he goes flying over my head, his body crashing to the floor a couple of metres away with another, smaller one situated on top of him, Marko's devious giggling echoing around the cave as he and the other vampire get into a scrap again, both of them laughing together. Watching them from my spot lying on the floor, I allow a smile to plaster itself across my face, enjoying watching the two of them playfight, not noticing when Dwayne comes over to help me up, the tall brunette grinning at me as he offers me his hand.

Taking it, I allow him to pull me to my feet, groaning when I feel the blood rush to my head, my balance faltering momentarily before the tall vampire manages to catch me, chuckling lowly as he steadies me against his body. Leading me over to the random sofa they have lying around, he sits me down on it and joins me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders as I let my head drop onto his chest, still watching the two younger vampires scuffle around with each other. A quick glance across the room tells me that David is just as invested in the show as we are, the platinum blonde's lips slightly upturned into a smirk.

"Where'd Star go?" Dwayne asks me after a moment, shooting a worried look at the bed in the corner, having finally noticed that it is empty.

"She said she was going to the Boardwalk, but I don't believe her. I think she went to see Michael." I reply, admitting my thoughts to the group because they'll figure it out sooner or later anyway.

"You're probably right. He's gonna need the support anyway." Dwayne comments, brow furrowed a little, even if his tone is light.

"How do you mean?" I question him, confused until the pieces click into place, "I guess he didn't take too well to the whole killing people thing, then?"

"He was terrified." David confirms from across the room, rolling his eyes at the memory.

"Yeah, well, that's a given, surely? I didn't exactly have the best reaction myself, did I?" I point out, embarrassed at the reminder of my childish reaction, back when they first showed me who they really were.

"True, but you didn't stick your face in the sand to avoid looking at us." David replies, smirking briefly before turning back to the other two, "Are you quite finished? The sun's coming up soon."

Almost sheepishly, Paul and Marko pry themselves apart, straightening themselves up as they quickly apologise, though it is obvious that they don't really care. Seeing Dwayne and I together on the sofa, they both exchange a glance, swiftly throwing themselves at the two of us with all the force they can muster, eager to join us. Instantly, Paul sits himself with his head in my lap, moving my hands to his hair, allowing me to touch it for once, Marko draping himself over the back of the sofa, his head resting on my shoulder. Smiling, I carefully brush my fingers through Paul's mess of hair, leaning my head against Marko's as Dwayne pulls me closer into him, rubbing my arm gently, watching as the other vampires soak up the affection, clearly happy to be in such proximity.

Across the room, David watches us, his blue eyes giving away no emotion even if there is a small smile gracing his lips, his head cocked to the side in interest. Eventually, he stands and comes closer to us, sitting himself on the side of the fountain so as not to impose, unsure of what else to do. From my position under the rest of them, I shoot him a quick smile before  Paul lets out a complaint, the lanky vampire insisting I stay focused on him, which draws an exasperated eyeroll out of both David and Dwayne,  the latter reaching down briefly to flick him in the side of the head. Almost instantly, Paul has retaliated, poking the brunette's leg with a cheeky pout on his lips. Marko giggles as we watch the two of them start a little war of poking and prodding each other, neither vampire willing to give in until one of them accidentally catches me, at which point a surprised yelp escapes me, alerting them both to this fact. Both are quick to apologise, Dwayne pressing a swift kiss to my temple as Paul does the same to the palm of my hand, slender fingers tracing a pattern on the tender skin as he pulls away, smiling up at me apologetically.

For a little while, we remain as we are, comfortably sitting in each other's presence, though I can tell David wishes he were more involved, before all four of them realise what time it is, looks of worry and irritation creeping into place onto their faces.

"What's wrong?" I question them, confused as to their sudden change of mood.

"The sun is coming up." David supplies simply, blue eyes narrowed with frustration.

"Oh." My voice is laced with disappointment, even though I know it isn't their fault.

"Sorry, girly. We gotta go." Paul says to me, reluctantly rolling himself off my lap and onto the floor catching himself on his hands and knees as he behaves himself upright. With a sigh, Dwayne and Marko release me, too, the former giving me one last squeeze as he stands up, stretching his tall body put with a satisfying cracking sound, growling when Paul pokes his stomach in the process, a chase swiftly ensuing as the blonde vampire runs, giggling, towards their sleeping area. Marko gives me one last hug before pursuing them, eager to see Paul get his ass kicked by Dwayne, eyes glittering in amusement.

David is the last to leave, coming over to me on the sofa for a moment and sitting himself beside me, slinging an arm around my shoulders and pulling me into him. It's rare that he gives me this much affection, so I eagerly wrap my arms around his waist and bury my face into the material of his jacket, inhaling the familiar scent of old cigarette smoke, motor oil and blood which has always, surprisingly, comforted me. His low chuckle resonates through his chest, his other arm coming up to hold me tightly, pressing me into his cold body, thumbs rubbing circles into my back as he always has done, ever since they first took me in.

Too soon, he pulls away, pressing a careful kiss to my forehead as he does so, blue eyes softening for a second as they make contact with mine, the proximity causing my pulse to pick up considerably. Knowing he can hear it, I stand up from his grip, pulling him with me as I cast my gaze to the entrance to the cave, where the first rays of sunlight are just becoming visible.

"Sleep well, David." I say to him quietly, hanging my head a bit, as if ashamed at my body's reaction to him and the others.

Lightly, he takes my chin in his hand, tilting my head back up to him as he meets my guilty eyes.

"You, too, (Y/n)." He responds, voice just as soft as mine, a smile gracing his lips before he turns away from me, walking into the tunnel leading to their sleeping area, giving me one last glance as he disappears into the darkness.

Sighing, I take myself to my bed, taking off my jacket and shoes as I prepare to climb into the warm confines, not quite tired just yet, even though I should be. A footstep behind me snaps my attention to the entrance of the room, irrational fear briefly exploding in my mind until I turn to find Star standing there, an odd look on her face.

"Star? What's up?"

"Nothing, I just, err..." She begins, trying to find the right words, "Well, I wanted to say sorry for being a bit of an ass to you these past few days, especially with how good you've been to Laddie. He really loves being with you."

At first, I'm a bit surprised, but I swiftly push it down, motioning for her to come closer. She takes a seat beside me on the bed, her body tense and uncomfortable.

"You don't have to be sorry, life hasn't exactly been easy for you recently. I doubt being a half-vampire is simple at the best of times, so you've been dealing with it quite well, on the scale of things." I reassure her, the words genuine.

"Doesn't give me an excuse to be rude."

"Of course it does. It's not a light choice to make, so I don't blame you for being a bit tense. Don't be so hard on yourself, it's not your fault the whole transition thing is so taxing."

At my words, she gives me a small smile, glad that I'm not flipping out on her at all, even though I have been irritated with her at times in the past few days. I do understand why, though, so I don't really blame her for anything.

"Thanks, (Y/n). I'm glad I've got another girl to talk to." She admits, leaning over to hug me gently, as if afraid to touch me. Carefully, I return the gesture, patting her on the back comfortingly.

"Yeah, me too. There's just a little bit too much testosterone flying around without you." I grin as she chuckles, pulling back a little to look me in the eye.

"Same goes for the other way round." Star chuckles, getting up and going to the doorway, looking back at me, "Thank you again."

"Of course." I reply, smiling at her, happy that she came to talk to me.

"Goodnight, or good day, I guess." She says, allowing me to reply before leaving the room.

I take a few moments to think things through, eventually slipping beneath the covers and into the comfortable interior of the been sighing as I allow myself to relax. It takes me a while to fall asleep, and it is fitful when I finally manage to, the slightest noise waking me up.

Much to my advantage, it turns out.

Part Six

[simplybakugou]

lemme get uhhhhh literally anything fucking villain bakugou please; it can be smutty, fluffy, depressing, I don't even care just give me some villain bakugou juice p l e a s e

⋆ PAIRING: villain!bakugou x female!reader ⋆ WARNINGS/TAGS: swearing ⋆ WORD COUNT: 2355

A/N: This is for you, my villain!bakugou loving boo. :) Also I decided to make this a song fic because I can’t think of any content on my own lol. It’s a Korean song by BLACKPINK called Kill This Love and here’s the link to the song. SONG (if you want the English translation to the lyrics, they’re available on the video). I wrote this in August but had a brain fart and I finally got back to it in my drafts I’m so sorry this took so long.

✐posted 01.28.2020✐

❝After a sweet “hi”, there’s always a bitter “bye”

After every crazy high, there’s a price you have to pay

There’s no answer to this test, I’ll always fall for it yes

I’m a slave to my emotions, screw this heartless love❞

Why did it have to be him? Out of all the men out there, you had to fall for the one man that was off limits, the one that caused the most trouble. May be it’s because he was forbidden that it made you draw towards him even more.

However, had you had known what you were getting yourself into, you would have gotten as far away from the destruction he brought as fast as you could.

It started with one mission, that faithful mission that brought so much more turmoil than anything else could ever bring in your life. You pleaded to your superior to let you go, wanting to prove to her how strong you really were.

“We have to be on guard, alright, Y/N?” your superior instructed, looking around her surroundings. “Ground Zero is supposed to be here, and if we get him behind bars, imagine how much credit snd recognition we’ll get for our unit!”

With the thought of wanting more recognition, your unit moved forward through the city in the middle of the night, keeping an eye out for any villainy. You could feel your hands shaking as the anxiety kept creeping up on you. The eeriness in the air did not help the situation either.

A gust of wind sent a few strands of your hair flying and you jumped at the feeling. You tapped on one of your partners’ shoulders, “Did you feel that?”

Before he could respond, an explosion erupted right in front of your group, sending everyone flying in different directions. You groaned at the impact of your back hitting the many brick walls in the area, struggling to get on your feet.

“Well, well, what do we have here?” A crisp voice whispered to you. You flinched, gasping loudly at the sight before you. A warm hand clamped over your mouth to stop you from screaming.

“One word out of that pretty little mouth and you’re fucking dead. Understand?” Bakugou threatened. He smirked as he looked down at your quivering figure. “You’re coming with me.”

❝What should I do? I can’t stand myself being so weak

While I force myself to cover my eyes, I need to bring an end to this love

Let’s kill this love!❞

Looking back at everything, you wished you could just smack yourself for ever believing you could get in a healthy relationship with a villain. You were an aspiring hero, although one that wasn’t the best, you wanted to help people. Bakugou was the exact opposite. He didn’t mind hurting people if it meant getting what he wanted.

You had fallen so deeply in love with him that day he kidnapped you. Maybe it was Stockholm syndrome or maybe it was plain insanity.

“You can’t keep doing this Katsuki!” You had pulled him to the side in the midst of his joining in with the other villains to attack Hosu City. The only reason why he wanted to attack the city was because Midoriya had put a stop to his previous plans and the only way Bakugou knew how to get back at him was through violence.

Bakugou rolled his eyes. “I didn’t bring you here to fucking nag me all day. I want you to get used to this shit so it gets easier when we plan attacks in the future.”

“I never agreed to hurting innocent people just so you can prove a point!” You sighed as you could see Bakugou blatantly ignore you. “Do you really find enjoyment in hurting people?”

“Yes.” You sucked in a breath sharply at his bluntness. “What did you fucking expect? I’m not a hero, Y/N, I’m a villain. I don’t work for the side that wastes their lives for people they don’t even know.”

You wanted to say something, but you bit your lip to hold your tongue.

Bakugou let out a humorless chuckle. “Just look at All Might. He’s the textbook definition of wasted potential. That dumbass threw his own life on the line for some pieces of shits he doesn’t even know and now he can’t even use his quirk because of it.”

“You’re wrong, Katsuki. Heroes help those who can’t help themselves. They empathize with those in pain and want to help alleviate that pain.”

Bakugou smirked. “Then why are you with me? Why’re you on the side that hurts those ‘poor’ people?”

“Because I don’t think you have to do this! I know you’re a good person deep down and I don’t want you hurting other people!” You clasped your hands together, pleading for your cruel boyfriend to understand.

Bakugou closed the gap between the two of you, taking a few steps forward. He raised his hand, lifting your chin up to meet his eyes. “Watch. Me.”

And with a blink of an eye you watched in horror, your hands covering your mouth as the man you thought you loved, the man you believed had at least a sliver of goodness in him, attacked innocent bystanders. And the worst part? He was doing all of this to show how cruel he can truly be.

You shuddered as a thought came to mind, one that you have been contemplating but had never processed it.

Maybe… it was time to put an end to all of this.

It was time to turn Bakugou Katsuki in.

❝Feelin’ like a sinner, it’s so fire with him.

I go boo, hoo

He said “you look crazy,” thank you baby, I owe it all to you

Got me all messed up, his love is my favorite

But you plus me, sadly can be dangerous❞

The bar was more loud and raucous than most nights after a bunch of villains attack people for absolutely no reason but for pure pleasure. Your head was buried in your hands, two empty glasses in front of you as you attempted to drown your sorrows and turmoil in drunkenness as a way of sorting through your thoughts.

You knew turning Bakugou in was the only thing that could put a stop to all of this. But you couldn’t ignore how much you cared for him as a person.

“Katsuki?” You called out, walking down the stairs as you looked for your boyfriend. You heard the door close earlier, signaling that he had to be inside your house somewhere. As you entered your living room, he was sitting on your sofa, his legs propped up on the coffee table as he seemed to be in deep thought. You walked over and sat beside him. “Everything okay?”

Bakugou snapped out of his trance, his crimson eyes staring deeply into your own. “I think I’m dying.”

Your eyes widened in confusion. “What?”

Before you could question Bakugou even more, he took your hand in his and brought it to his chest. You felt his heart beating fast under your touch.

“It only happens when I’m with you,” Bakugou muttered. He looked back up at you. “What does this mean?”

You couldn’t help but break out into a wide smile. “You’re not dying, Katsuki.”

“Then what is this I feel like my heart’s gonna jump out of my fucking chest.” His brows were knit together as he was genuinely concerned.

You chuckled, wrapping your arms around his torso and placing your head against his chest. His heart continued to beat rapidly under your touch.

❝Lucky me, lucky you after all, in the end we lie

So what? So what?

If I end up forgetting you

So sorry, I’m not sorry

What should I do? I can’t stand myself being so weak

While I force myself to hide my tears, I need to bring an end to this love

Let’s kill this love!❞

Your legs started shaking rapidly as the anxiety and the severity of your actions set in. Your fingernails were already practically nubs due to you biting at them in order calm down but to no avail.

Your doorbell finally rang and you sprung up, practically jumping at the door. Gamma, one of the only true friends that you made out of the rest of the villains in Bakugou’s friend group, seemed flabbergasted by your bewildered expression.

“Are you okay? I got your text,” she asked as you closed the door behind her.

You led Gamma to your sofa, holding her hands in yours as you took a deep breath in. “You know that out of everyone here, I trust you with my life, right?”

“Yeah.” Gamma was confused.

“And I need you to promise me that whatever I tell you stays between us. You can’t tell anyone. Not even Katsuki, even if he’s your boss.”

Gamma held your hands tighter, giving you a small smile. “You’re the first friend I made here, regardless of the fact that I’ve been here far longer than you have. You’re my best friend. And I’d do anything for you.”

You smiled back hesitantly and sighed once more. “I’m going to turn Katsuki and myself in.”

Gamma’s eyes widened, parting her lips to say something before closing them. “Are you sure about this, Y/N? Like one-hundred percent sure.”

You nodded. “In the beginning I thought I could look past all the things he’s done, but I don’t think I can handle it anymore. Gamma, hundreds of people have been hurt and lost their lives just because Katsuki was bored sitting at home or wanted to teach his enemies a lesson. I’ve tried to reason with him because I’ve always believed that deep down he didn’t want to actually hurt anyone, but nothing’s working. I can’t keep living like this.”

Your eyes were filled to the brim with tears at this point. Gamma brought her thumb up and wiped away your tears, embracing you in an effort to comfort you. “I know how much you care and love Ground Zero. Even if he’s my boss, out of everyone here, you come before anything and if this is what you feel is right, then I think you should do it.”

“Thanks, Gamma.”

“Of course.” Gamma pulled away. “Did you think about how you’re going to turn yourselves in? He’s not really just going to waltz into the police station and let you do it.”

You sighed for what felt like the hundredth time. “I’m not really sure. I was initially going to go myself but that really won’t do much. Do you have any ideas?”

Gamma pursed her lips as she thought about it for a second before snapping her fingers. “Why not send a letter?”

“A letter?”

“Yeah, it’s more risky if you send anything digitally but letters are practically outdated so it would be less likely for you to get caught before executing this plan.”

You nodded, a small smiling breaking to your lips. “Thank you for everything, Gamma.”

“I’d do anything for you, Y/N.”

❝We must kill this love

Yeah, it’s sad but true

Gotta kill this love…

You looked around the secluded location, a gust of wind sending your hair back. You looked down at the response letter that was sent back to a week after you sent your own letter, confirming the location. Oddly enough it was the same location that you and your team had gone to in order to catch Bakugou only for you to be sucked into this mess. The police had written back for you to meet here to ultimately work with them to get Bakugou before turning yourself in.

You were shivering in the cold, having waited at least fifteen minutes for anyone to show up.

Before you could even think of anything else, a figure stood before you at the end of the secluded alleyway. There was only one streetlight and the person was barely visible to you and you were probably barely visible to them as well.

“Excuse me, I’m Y/N. I sent you the letter about Katsu– I mean Ground Zero,” you called out to the end of alleyway. “As I said in the letter, I want to turn the two of us in.”

The figure walked towards you, proceeding slowly until their face could be visible under the light. You gasped inwardly at the sight.

“You know, out of all the fucking people who could have betrayed me in this damn world, you were the last on that list, Y/N.” Bakugou stood under the light, his angry expression as clear as day.

“Katsuki…” You were speechless. You didn’t know what to say.

“I’ll give you a chance to explain yourself.”

You felt a bead of sweat form on your forehead and the back of your neck. Your lips quivered in fear before you could speak. “I’ve told you so many times that the way you hurt and kill innocent people hurts me to just watch. I can’t continue to be a bystander to all of this.”

Bakugou continued to proceed towards you until your back hit the wall and there was barely five inches of space in between the two of you.

“Katsuki.” You looked at him straight in the eyes. He held so much anger in his expression but you could also see how your actions hurt him. “I know you. I know that villainy isn’t what you wanted in the beginning. I know that deep down, you don’t want to hurt all those people. This is our way of making it right so please come with me.”

Bakugou sighed, raising his arms. You winced, expecting him to lash out at you. Instead you were surprised as he leaned down and wrapped his arms around you. “I love you, Y/N. More than anything in this world. You’re the only one who stood by me in everything and you’ve always wanted the best for me. Those other fuckers were and have been using me to their own advantage but you did everything in your power to make sure I was okay and my needs were met.”

You wrapped your own arms around his torso, pressing your cheek against his chest. “I’ve always wanted the best for you.”

“That’s why it hurts me to do this.”

“To do wha–”

You felt the air get knocked straight out of your chest. You looked down, nearly falling over at the sight of the dagger jabbed straight into your abdomen.

Bakugou pulled away, watching as you fell to the floor, grabbing at your stomach as the pain continue to intensify. He caressed your hair as you looked up at him in absolute horror. “But, you’re not the first person to try and do this. So many of you naive little girls think you can just change a person through your feelings and your stupid fucking emotions. I’m a villain, Y/N. There’s nothing that you can change about that.”

He got up and started to walk away. You got on your forearms, slowly trying to crawl your way towards him. He stopped walking, looking back at you once more. “I really did love you, Y/N. And I wanted you to be different. But you’ve disappointed me.”

… Before it kills you too.❞

[nothingbutfangirlsmut]

The Trials of Emi

Pairing: A little Minho. A sprinkle of Frypan. Gally x Emi(OC)

Summary: Emi, her twin brother Thomas, and a small group of gladers had been rescued and taken to a safe haven. Or so it seemed. It doesn't take long for Thomas to realize something is wrong. What happens next is a true trial for all of them but Emi's trials began the moment she was ripped away from a dying Gally. Watching someone you love die right before your eyes truly takes a toll.

Finally meeting the right arm could have been the end but betrayal leads to even more chaos and loss. A new mission to rescue those taken from them leads them to a city. The last city. After Emi finally comes to terms with everything that's happened something unfolds that changes everything again. She will have to not only deal with helping her brother take down WCKD and save their friend but also deal with all the new problems in her head and her heart.

Rating: As of right now it’s at most PG13. Some strong language that’s about it but it could change.

(This is the 2nd part/book to my other story "The Maze trials: A Gally Fanfiction". This will cover the events of the scorch trails and the death cure.)

Chapter Eleven

As the sun started to set I met Fry at his makeshift cooking area. We didn't want to actually build anything cause we were constantly on the move. So we set a small area up so Fry could work his magic every morning and night. It was nice to have his cooking again. Oddly enough his cooking made where ever we were at the time feel a little more like home.

"Where's Thomas and Newt?" I asked him as I came to stand next to him.

He handed me a few discolored and chipped plates. I sat them down in front of me.

"Back there" he nodded with his head as a smile spread across his face.

I looked back to see my brother and best friend sitting practically on top of each other. Their heads were close together as they had a whispered conversation. I smiled when I noticed their intertwined fingers resting on Thomas' lap.

"About damn time" I whispered turning back to Fry.

The boy next to me laughed.

"How long have you suspected that?" Fry asked me.

"Since the beginning" I chuckled.

I helped Fry finish up what he was doing. Once everything was done he told me to give the call.

"Grub is up everyone!" I shouted.

Everyone dropped what they were doing then made their way over to me and Fry. I helped him fill the plates with food then pass them out to everyone. Fry and I were the last to grab our plates then join the group around the fire. I sat next to Thomas with Fry on my other side.

"You two look very friendly." I whispered to Thomas.

He chuckled then shook his head.

"Very friendly" he said with a grin.

It had been only a few short weeks since we lost Minho, Aris, Sonja, and countless others. The atmosphere around what was left of us had slowly loosened. There was still some tension especially when we were in the middle of following a lead. I had spent most of the time staying busy. Whatever needed to be done I was doing it. From sorting supplies to helping Fry cook and serve the food. Fry had been the one person I'd spent most my time talking to. It was mostly just random conversations like what was happening in and around the camp. It was a nice way to spend the time. As long as I wasn't thinking about everything that had happened.

After everyone was finished eating we all pitched in to finish loading everything up. We were heading out at first light. Our goal was to get to some dock Vince had told us about. We'd been at it for weeks now. We were trying to move forward but track WCKD's movements at the same time. It was a struggle to keep up with them. There had been times we'd lost them completely only to find them again a few weeks later. Now was one of those moments. We'd lost track of them about a week ago. The four of us gladers that were left were the ones that tried to track all of WCKD's moves. Vince and the others worked on getting us closer to the safe haven.

"Let's hit our beds. First thing in the morning we'll get moving again." Vince ordered as everyone finished loading the trucks.

I met up with Harriet so we could go to our beds together. They were right next to each other. When I say "beds" I really mean sleeping bags or blankets either on the ground or in the trucks themselves.

"Any more leads?" Harriet asked as we got to our beds.

"Not yet but we are working on it. We'll find them." I told her softly.

She nodded then crawled under her blankets. I did the same hoping sleep would come quickly.

The next morning Harriet woke me up. We immediately rolled up our blankets then climbed into our assigned vehicles. I was obviously with my fellow gladers. Thomas was driving while Newt happily sat in the passenger seat. Fry and I had our guns loaded and ready in the back seat just in case they were needed.

We drove for hours from sun up to sundown. We rarely stopped only if it was absolutely needed. When we did, it was late into the night. Vince had as stop in an area we could easily hide the vehicles. We all ate quickly then got back in the trucks to sleep for a few hours.

When we did start moving again Newt had taken the driver seat while Thomas took the passenger seat next to him. Not long into the drive, I saw Newt reach over and grab Thomas' hand. They intertwined their fingers together then rested them on top of Thomas' thigh. It was so good to see those two actually moving forward with their relationship. As I watched Thomas rub his thumb against Newt's hand a sudden sadness came over me. It was one I hadn't felt in some time. I had been so busy with everything going on I hadn't let myself have the time to think. To think about Gally and how he could have been apart of all this.

I turned to stare out the window. I had to clear my head. I couldn't let myself get distracted by the past or what could have been. Gally was gone and I had to make my peace with that no matter how hard it might be. I had to keep moving.

"You alright?" Fry asked quietly.

"I'm fine," I told him in a sharp tone.

I didn't mean to say it like that. I glanced at Fry who had a knowing look on his face. These three boys had come to know me way too well. They could read me like an open book.

"I know you still miss him. I do too. He was my friend as well. You know you can talk to us about it. Maybe talking about it will help you move on." Fry said softly.

Thomas had turned in his seat to look at me. Newt glanced back in the mirror.

"I don't want to talk about it. I'm fine you guys." I said softly with a small smile.

Thomas chuckled.

"We know you're not fine Em. It's okay to not be fine. He meant a lot to you. I don't fully understand it but I didn't know him like you did." Thomas said with a smile.

"I don't think any of us knew him like she did." Newt joked.

Fry laughed.

"That's for sure. Did I ever tell you about the time I caught the two of them in the wash pool?" Fry asked leaning forward to talk to Newt.

I felt my face instantly heat up. I had totally forgotten about that! Newt laughed and shook his head.

"No you didn't." Newt said.

Fry laughed again.

"Fry!" I shouted as I slapped his shoulder.

"Remember the day Emi was all muddy?" Fry asked.

Newt laughed again.

"Oh yea I remember that day." Newt nodded.

My cheeks heated even more.

"Can we not please?" I begged them.

"That night I went to wash up and I caught the sight of her and him in the water. Things looked like they were getting pretty heated too till I said something." Fry laughed.

Newt and Thomas both laughed.

"I hate you guys." I grumbled.

"Did you ever figure out why she was covered in mud?" Newt asked Fry.

"Newt!" I shouted in disbelief.

"What? It's not like any of it needs to be a secret anymore." Newt laughed as he glanced back at me in the mirror.

"While the two of them were supposed to be getting mud they ended up making out for the first time. He had mud all over his hands which ended up all over Emi." Newt laughed at the memory.

I couldn't help but smile. I realized at that moment that every memory I had with Gally was so precious. Even the bad moments at the end. Every second I spent with him should be cherished and not buried in my memory.

"I never knew you two were so handsy!" Fry shouted with a fake look of disgust on his face.

I laughed at him as I slapped his arm playfully.

"Let's just say it was a good thing I had my private room in the homestead." I chuckled.

"Ew" Newt said making the other two boys laugh.

The laughter died but I continued to smile. I think reminiscing was exactly what I needed. It reminded me of all the happy moments. The moments I'd almost let myself forget.

"Thank you guys" I said softly.

Gally might be gone but I'll always remember him. I'll always have those moments that no one else knows about. The quiet words shared only between me and him. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

—

[hearteyes-for-killmonger]

Part 18: Visitor

In the early hours, Erik walked casually through the next hotel's parking lot dressed in comfortable all black with his bag of equipment, following silently and subtly a few feet behind a clueless older white man, mid-50s in loafers. The guy was making his way to a small silver Ford c-max with key in hand. He hit the unlock moving to the passenger side and luckily, he was parked next to a truck. Erik hopped in the cut behind him and between the two cars, wrapping his right arm around the guys neck, catching his chin in his elbow. The guy grabbed Erik's arm trying to resist and protect his throat, but Erik gripped his shoulder before locking his left arm behind the man's head, thumb to his own right ear. The throat was caught between his arm and bicep as he squeezed for ten seconds feeling the man go slack. He released him gently to the ground and took the keys, sliding into the driver's seat. Pulling out of the hotel lot, he turned on the radio grimacing when country music flared from the speakers. He switched the radio to the hip hop station. After thinking over the dinner incident, he knew exactly how he'd been located. He knew the risks earlier when he'd taken that damn picture despite being in the middle of a game of assassins. He needed to get to the computer at the Reunion Tower to access employee files. That was his start.

Parking a block away, Erik created his own route to side entrance, carrying his bag over his shoulder. It would've been so much easier if he could've strongarmed an employee to get in, but they were all long gone as were the police so fuck all that. He didn't need anyone to get the job done, he'd do it himself. Checking out the lock, he wondered about the security system. If he weren't on a time crunch, he'd have waited to scope the place out for cameras and to check the security system. All he had to go on was what he'd picked up earlier in the day. His knowledge was something, but not thorough. He knew they probably had a security alert system in place but it likely wasn't sophisticated and officers were not 24/7. He'd probably trigger a silent alarm so time was of the essence as well as a mask for whatever CCTV they had. He had an unassuming black ski mask that he put on, tucking his gold necklace. He also wore gloves so his race wouldn't be known.

Picking the side lock instead of the front or back was the better decision. Typically it was the least congested when it came to security, in his experience and now that he was into the tower, he had to be efficient and brief. He had two goals. 1) Hack into the employee records for staff schedules and staff personal information. He could get this from payroll. 2) Delete all photos they have on file that way he could delete his own image without singling himself out.

---

The harsh bounce of the plane as its wheels drop loudly and beat the runway shakes you awake and throws you around in your seat, the mechanical whirring of the machinery rushing forward like a giant car. Judging by the hush that had been as a blanket over every passenger, it seems that you're not the only one who was knocked out. As the lights shine on in the plane you can see and hear people waking up, shifting to life in their seats. The sky is still black, but the plane is guided by by amber artificial lighting. When it finally rolls to a stop, you have to wait along with everyone else to get off. Fighting the urge to close your eyes, you check the time. It's close to 2:45, which means it's almost 5 in Texas.

Erik is probably stretched out right now on his face, buried under pillows and enjoying having that hotel bed to himself. Maybe he'll let the maids into the room this time... or not. Knowing him, it's still not likely.

Finally the first few rows stand up starting the exit wave. You jump up with sleep still in your eyes to tug your bag down from the overhead bin, following the quick moving line of passengers through the suspended hall into the airport gate. They all move like they have somewhere to be in a hurry the way they speed speedwalk from the plane like they weren't just knocked. Meanwhile, you're ready to take a nap in one of these many empty seats you keep passing up.

"We ain't that reckless," you mumble. If you fell asleep in a public area with your luck you'd wake up with half your  luggage or items missing. "..Sleepy sleepy sleepy," you mumble.

The good thing about flights at this time is that the airport is practically empty which means there's no one in your way, no one to compare your pace to, and no one to dodge or speed walk against. You can take things at your own pace without the social pressure to keep up without looking fatigued. Collecting your checked luggage from the baggage claim, you go your own pace to the parking lot hitting the unlock on the key fob. The familiar lights flash on and you head on over settling in.

It feels so strange driving Erik's car without him in it. You feel yourself blinking a little too much and too long, yawning into the side of your wrist with watery eyes. The same energy from the airport is on the road, borderline deserted. There aren't a lot of cars out riding around past 3 especially where you're headed. You flip on the radio turning it to a pop station and High Hopes by PATD has just started. Cranking it up, you sing along as loudly as you can muster to wake yourself up. You can feel yourself swerve a bit. The music carries you all the way to that exit where you turn off into some stretch of rural nothing. It's where you take an unmarked and nearly unnoticeable road that looks like it leads to nowhere. Following it, you find that familiar long and dark backroad, riding through under a canopy of tall grass and weed-like plants that shoot up from the dirt like walls. You drive slowly fearful of a frantic deer or some large animal jumping out in front of the vehicle. Finally, you're met with the large isolated modern house with glass panels. It's very dark. Strong shadows are cast all over the surrounding area, the greenery... the only light comes from the stars up above, twinkling mildly off of the glass.

How does Erik see anything when he comes home at night with the lights off? The place isn't even lit properly, he ought to leave the lights on! How does he feel safe like this?

Come to think of it, he does pack guns. You'd counted three. One he gave to you for emergencies, one you'd seen in his hand when he came to your rescue in your apartment, and one you'd seen at dinner when the restaurant got shot up. You cringe at the memory of the blood and the shots. It looked like someone had died yet Erik had been so ready to rush out to play hero, confronting the situation head-on as if he were still active duty and on the front lines. That part of him while honorable is still very scary because his overconfidence and meddling nature could potentially be the death of him. Then what? He's only human and not immune to attacks but he just won't back down. It seems to be embedded into his makeup.

Three guns. That's only what you've seen! The thought makes you shake your head. Maybe that's it right there. Maybe Erik doesn't feel safe either. Maybe that's why he has so many guns.. to protect himself.. because of the life he's lived. He's seen some awful things, you're sure. Things you can't imagine and the way he hardly blinked watching those attackers... You shiver. He wouldn't call it fear, he'd call it being prepared. Either way, he feels a strong need to watch his back, that much you can gather.

The first thing you do when inside the house is go through and flip on all the lights downstairs and then upstairs. Well, not all of them, but enough to start to feel like you aren't the main character in a horror movie with some homicidal maniac hunting you from the woods. The influx of light enough to ease your mind for the time being and you use the excess jittery energy to unpack and put your brand new belongings away. You hadn't gotten a chance to wear everything you'd bought in Texas, but something told you that you would. Erik was entirely too extra to not find an occasion. He'd probably create one.

Stripping down, you locate his hamper tossing in your belongings. You'll wash them all tomorrow. As for now, you head naked down the hall and into the bathroom more excited than ever to use his spa room of a shower. Looking over the contents arranged on the long and exposed shelf under his double sink, you pull from the neatly folded white washcloths and towels stacked next to the wicker basket of Erik's grooming items. To the left are a gang of small white candles in simple glass jars with black labels and white print. He's got at least two of each scent.. Vanilla, Sandalwood, Egyptian Musk, Coconut Mango, and Leather. Heading back into the hall, you snatch the lighter from Erik's bedroom drawer, lighting the Coconut Mango before carrying your body wash into the shower.

Once out, you wrap a towel around yourself carrying the candle and head to your own assigned room to lotion down and put on a tank with some small shorts to sleep in. Only suddenly, after showering you're not ready to sleep just yet.. so you head back downstairs with the spare blanket you found in the guest room's closet and help yourself to a yellow gatorade and some popcorn figuring you probably ought to cook something tomorrow so his groceries don't go to waste. There're some good ingredients in his fridge. You aren't doing any of it tonight though.

Sitting on the couch and flipping on the TV, you get cozy under the blanket as the current commercial break ends. There's a lady with a blunt blonde bob popping corn over the stove like she's in the stone age. You eat a handful of your own popcorn as she picks up the phone and the voice sounds creepy.

Who the hell is she speaking to and why is she entertaining him? Wait, is that Drew Barrymore?

"Wait.. Oh hell no," you change the channel not wanting to watch a horror movie right before bed, especially Scream.

"Nope," you repeat suddenly a tad paranoid. Not while you're in a bigass house in the middle of nowhere alone, like a cabin in the woods and your phone is upstairs. No ma'am, no sir. You keep flipping, sipping your gatorade.

After flipping through nonsense, however, curiosity gets the best of you and against your better judgement, you go back to Scream. You'd never actually watched it before though it was hailed as a classic.

"No he doesn't have her doing trivia," you snicker.

"...And he kills her boyfriend. This is crazy... He done stabbed her in the chest and choked her? That's a little personal, he must have known her. This killer is someone she knows."

"Dang, he must have stabbed her in the lung because she couldn't even yell to her parents. Will he kill them too or are they not on his hit list? Her only targets teens who cook their popcorn weird."

Shovelling more popcorn into your mouth you ignore that you're basically her right now, choosing instead to watch the mom as she looks outside.

"Don't tell me... Oh NO.. NO NO NO."

When you see the body hanging, you almost turn it off but then these homicidal 90s suburban teens come on screen and each of them seem not just capable of murder, but intrigued by it. You can see this creepy film is gonna be a whodunnit. Suddenly, you're more aware of the chill on your arms and the sounds in the house.

It's just the house settling, you remind yourself. There's no one out here. Erik lives away from society and that includes psychotic knife-weilding murderers.

Flu pops into your mind threatening to make you frantic, but you cast his face down immediately.

Nope... no one is out here. It's just me and I'm okay. I'll be okay.

The doorbell rings your heart hops into your throat. There's an accompanying aggressive knocking on the door causing your head to snap right to face it as you sit still as possible.

Who the french toast is all the way out here at 4:40 a.m. and why? Keep it together. Find a weapon.  Don't freak out. Get up... quietly.

Again, someone knocks and you continue to stare at the door like a deer in headlights. The doorbell rings twice and your eyes widen when a feminine voice yells.

"ANSWER THE DAMN PHONE." You listen closely. "I WILL BURN ALL THIS SHIT DOWN, KILL," she threatens as if she's looking for somebody.

Who?

Against your better judgment again, you pad to the door and peep through the peephole spotting a slim brown girl with long dark curly hair in a big sloppy top bun. She's looking you dead in the eye and you have to remember that she can't actually see you.

Looks about his type though. Exactly his type actually.

"Stop looking at me and open the door, Kill. This is business."

With your hand on the knob, you unlock the door and pull it open to a crack. Staring at the woman in front of you, she's about an inch taller but it's close. She opens her mouth but her eyes widen briefly in surprise and she closes her mouth, squinting in pure bewilderment.

"Who.. are you," she tilts her head with an pained expression that says you are way out of place and far from home. You know that already and she doesn't need to look like that. Afterall, she's the one banging on the door at close to 5 in the morning while you're inside. So who's really out of place? "Hello?"

"..That's none of your business. Who are you and do you know what time it is?"

Her eyes are unwavering, staring you down. "It's none of your business," she remarks. You start to shut the door in her face, but she pushes it back open.

"His car is here. Tell him to come out."

"He's not here. Check back in a few days." Rolling your eyes, you try to shut the door again and she pushes her way in going straight to the staircase.

"KILL," she yells from the bottom. You fold your arms and glare at her until she looks your way.

"Are you done? I don't know what you two are on, but like I said he's not here."

"Look, I'm not the one you wanna toy with," she retorts, her finger twirling dismissively at you. She takes off upstairs and you follow to keep a keen eye on her, but you need to grab your phone from your room to call Erik. He answers on the second ring.

"What's up, baby," he mumbles.

"Why.. what you doing?"

"Taking a shit."

You frown looking at the woman who's standing in the doorway watching you. Her eyes narrow and her lips pout.

"There's a woman here looking for you. She just scared the living daylights out of m-"

"You opened the door?"

"Yeah because she-"

"You don't know who's on the other side or what they want so why would you open the fuckin door?"

"Pause. How did this become an attack on me?"

"I'm not attacking you but if she was someone dangerous you'd be dead right now."

"Erik, anyone out here is out here on purpose as far out into the cut as this damn house is. That means they either know you or they're extremely lost and looking for civilization. So you tell me who dangerous is lurking around the middle of nowhere? You got evil exes to destroy?"

"KILL. ANSWER YOUR PHONE," the woman yells from the doorway.

"You never heard of serial killers," Erik asks. "People who be FUCKIN people up for no reason?! You don't answer the door at 4 AM, stupid!"

"Don't call me stupid, asshole! What do I do about this girl here staring at me. Did you not hear her screaming like an idiot-"

"I heard that shit! Tell her ass to chill the fuck out! I'll get with her tomorrow," Erik snaps. "Don't be answering the door so late at night. All them damn movies you watch, you'd think you'd-"

"You'd think you'd control your damn subs! Y'all are both irking the hell out of my nerves."

"Don't be doing stupid shit when I'm not there to protect you. What if it were someone dangerous?"

"You so damn paranoid! I'm a ask you one last time then I'm leaving because this is some bullshit and I don't have to take it."

---

"Oh you real bold when I'm not there. Keep that energy in life and you'll be good." He'd just left the home of a man on staff who'd gone home early in the day before shit went down.

It seemed a bit suspect when Erik saw it on the schedule and when he was the man's face on his scanned ID, the man looked like he could be a relative of one of the shooters, maybe a younger brother.

Erik's hunch turned out to be right and with a gun to the guy's nose in his sleep, he rushed out an address while begging for his life. Apparently big bro was into some shit he ain't know about. At least that's what he'd claimed. It could've been the truth. It could've been a lie. Erik pulled the trigger and left him there as a stain and a warning to anyone involved that they would be located and exterminated in the same manner.

"She a friend. We collab on projects," Erik muttered closing the car door as he hopped out and started walking.

Swift wasn't playing if she showed up on his doorstep. She never did that. She'd never had to, he was typically efficient and even quick. But this time he was fuckin up and trying to fix it. She wanted this job wrapped up.

Of course she had other shit to do and places to be that would make her money, but she was hanging around and standing by for him solely because she had a crush on him. He was very aware although she'd never admit it and he was grateful for her help and support. She was an invaluable partner, much like Rell. He hoped he'd never have to end her the same way.

"Give her the phone," Erik softened, ignoring Y/N's grumbling as he walked on a dirt path into a wooded region surrounded by pitch black.

"Hey," Swift said simply. She knew not to talk in front of his subs. She'd already met Shay once and Jaliyah twice.

"You're scaring my sub, stop that shit she's skittish and very sensitive."

She sighed.

"I was compromised and targeted," he divulged knowing the expression she'd wear. In his mind he could see her jaw drop, the thinly veiled panic in her brown eyes. "Relax, they took out the wrong guy. I know exactly how they found me and I'm on them as we speak."

The line went quiet and he waited for her response, standing still.

"Fine. Have fun," she enthused finally. He knew what that coded response truly meant. Be careful.

"I'll be fine." She was probably thinking of coming to Texas just to back him up. She was powerful. However, he was confident in himself and finally in a space where he was thinking clearly. "I got this," he assured her. "Go ahead to Mazatlan. I'll hit you up when this is done. No one gets the drop on Killmonger."

Hanging up, Erik walked carefully and quietly until he heard voices, then he moved stealthily around the clearing that was set up with a camper, fire, and lights to check out the surrounding area. From far back where he stood, there was a narrow road and a few other trailers. The main road was near, but he'd come a back way through the trees on foot. He counted four voices and they were discussing ways to get their hands on more military grade weapons. One of them had a collection of assault rifles for trade and another was looking to invest in a tank. Erik stood positioned in the woods unnoticed with his bag on the ground and 27 lb AS50 assembled and aimed once he got the visual. The AS50 had a lower recoil than his AW50 so it would be easier to hit four targets quickly. He waited a moment making sure he could actually fatally hit each target, determining that he easily could. Before anything could go wrong, he braced himself and quickly hit the trigger four times. The bodies fell and his sharp ears no longer picked up conversation.

Moving quickly to a different position with a visual, he got low. The next person to come into view got popped and fell. Going in closer to the trailers, he waited, but no one else came out.

"Fuck it," he said after fifteen minutes. He stepped into the clearing and nudged the bodies with his foot checking for reactions and movements. Two responded. He shot them both again. The third body brought him great glee.

"Been chasing yo ass," Erik frowned staring down. It was undoubtedly his target.. in the flesh. He was late, but he'd gotten him and now Swift could get up off his back and he could go- "Shit.."He felt a bullet go through his leg.

He fired instantly in the direction from which the bullet came and his shot went through the trailer in front of him under the cracked window. He only hoped he hit whoever it was.

Limping, he forced his hit leg to carry him into the trailer where he saw a small blonde boy on the ground bleeding out with a .40 caliber pistol in his still hand. A touch of guilt touched Erik's heart. It was just a little kid, a kid who likely knew nothing of what was going on and had been raised in the bullshit, taught early on to shoot.. This was probably his first real gun. The little guy was probably the son of one of the five men he shot. He felt even more guilty knowing he'd taken someone's father away like that. It probably didn't really matter since the boy was dead now, but still... The world was a fucked up place.

Even more fucked up was the fact that he now had to go into each of the trailers and shoot whoever was holed up in each one. They were probably innocents, but he had to be thorough. No more fuck ups. He ripped a peice of material from a shirt hanging over a chair and quickly tied it around his leg under his pants. He controlled his limp moving to the next trailer finding a haggard older woman holding a little girl to keep her calm. The woman shook her head but before she could speak, Erik spoke first.

"I'm sorry," he whispered pulling the trigger twice.

[leonenolee]

Ryuka Clan. The Ryuka Clan is a legendary and noble clan who crafted several forbidden techniques which are exclusively for the use of the family. Their clan is feared among the men and women in Seireitei. Due to the destructive nature of their spells, they entered an agreement with Central 46 and Gotei 13 that they will only be summoned for battles during times of emergencies. With this, they built their barracks underground to prevent any casualties during spell practices.

"A wide range spell was casted here," she said as she entered the area where the massacre scene happened. The place is now surrounded by woods erected from the ground casted with a seal to prevent anyone from entering it.

Kneeling with one knee, she analyzed the ashes scattered around the area as a byproduct of the spell. She brushed her fingers against the floor to carefully feel its texture.

"It is still fresh. I can still feel the reiatsu in it. If I have to accurately calculate, this spell was only casted today."

To begin her investigation, she brought out the round wooden tablet from her shihakushou and placed it on the ground. 

"Kuchiki-taichou, please leave the area for a while. My detection spell might absorb your reiatsu and might mess up my readings," she requested from the man who was standing beside her. 

With his suspicion, Byakuya reluctantly left the place. He stands by outside the area where he can observe her from afar.

Assuring that the area is cleared with any foreign reiatsu from above and beneath the ground, she began to slightly unsheath her zanpakuto with her left hand to cut her index finger. With her blood, she drew a crossed-shaped pattern on the tablet. 

"Oh vast great skies, gather the reishi around me. Light of the world that grants power, call the ancestors who are in peace. Ryuka Bakudou 14: Kenshutsu."

With this chant, the cross pattern emitted a light that extends to each side of the perimeter of the area. The reishi around the place were absorbed by the light and were sealed inside the tablet turning it violet.  The hazardous reiatsu was now wiped out in the site.  

As she stood up, she placed the tablet in between her palms and closed her eyes. She now started sensing each spirit ribbon in Soul Society to know who the reiatsu belongs to. However, after a wide range search, the caster of the spell was nowhere to be found. 

With frustrations penting up inside her, she temporarily concluded that the culprit may have already gone to another world. Ending her analysis, she stopped her spell and placed the tablet inside her shihakushou. With flash steps, she went to Byakuya to report her findings. 

"Kuchiki-taichou, we need to call for a captains' meeting," she said while gently landing beside him. 

Wanting to know what happened, he inquired for the results. 

"Did you find out the culprit?"

She looked at him with a pensive expression.

"It is not here in Soul Society."

"..."

Brushing the dirt off from her haori, she felt the weight of his piercing glare. 

With confidence, she assuringly replied, "Relax! Together, we will find out who caused this."

Looking at the obliterated area, she thought of a way to ease the captain's worries. 

"Do you want me to rebuild this?"

"You don't have to concern yourself with that."

"Nah, I know this is your turf, but I'll save you the hassle of rebuilding this."

"Don't make me repeat my---," his response was cut off as he saw her lift her hand pointing at the direction of the area. 

Light came flowing from the female captain's hand going to the ground. Each barracks, establishment, and even trees began to be erected. 

Gazing with amazement, Byakuya was glad to see the place completely reconstructed. 

"See? You don't have to worry about it. This place now has a quarter of my reiatsu mixed with the reishi I collected from the air."

Turning his gaze back at her, he has observed a strike of exhaustion from the captain's eyes. 

"I am out of practice. That's what I get from doing solely paperworks and documenting spells crafted by my squad." 

Disturbing her thoughts, she noticed Byakuya's intense fixed stare at her. 

"Brush off your suspicion. I am not an enemy of Sereitei. Our squad is your ally in protecting Soul Society."

"..."

"I will personally take care of anyone misusing the Ryuka clan spells even if he or she is my subordinate," she said with a bit of uneasiness in her heart. 

___

At the Captains' Assembly Hall, the noise of chitchats can be heard. All of the captains were already present except the Captain Commander, Kuchiki-taichou, and two other captains. 

"Why did the Captain Commander called for an emergency meeting?" inquired a tall man with short white haired wearing a sleeveless shihakushou and a captain's haori with the kanji of nine imprinted on its back. 

"I am not quite sure, Muguruma-taichou. I am guessing it will be about the attack near the Kuchiki manor," replied by another captain who looks like a male teenager. He has a white spiky hair and mint green eyes. He wears a captain haori with the kanji of ten written on its back. 

"If it comes to this, then it is something serious. The nobles don't usually contact us unless they need more military power. What do you think, Hitsugaya-taichou."

Their conversation was interrupted when the council room's doors were opened. Outside it stands two figures one belonging to a male and the other belongs to a female. 

"It's the 14th squad captain! What is Kuchiki-taichou doing with her?" Hitsugaya thought to himself. 

As they entered the hall, another two figures were walking behind them. 

"My, my, Riyon-chan. What made you finally get out of the dark?" a tall man with long wavy hair tied into a pony said while gently tilting his kasa as if covering his eyes. On top of his captain's haori hangs a pink kimono with floral patterns.

Knowing who that familiar voice belongs to, Riyon suddenly stopped walking and greeted the man. 

"Easy going as always, Kyouraku-kun," she said in a meek tone. 

"After you have been inaugurated as a captain, we never saw you anymore. We miss you," said another familiar voice who belonged to a tall man with long white hair. He wears a captain haori with long sleeves and the kanji of thirteen imprinted on its back. 

"Ukitake-kun, glad to see you strong. I hope you get well soon."

The other captain replied with a smile while placing his hand on his head. 

Disrupting their lovely reunion, the sound of a loud thump was heard silencing the room. It came from a cane owned by Yamamoto Genryuusai. With the presence of the Captain Commander, the captains went to their designated post and lined up with the exemption of Byakuya and Riyon. They were instead, called to the front along with the old man. 

"Why would you call an urgent captains' meeting, Ryuka-taichou?" the Captain Commander asked to get the business done while he sat on his chair.  

Removing the hood enveloping her head, she then replied, "before I answer that, permission to use our clan's technique first?"

Raising  one of his eyebrows, the captain commander said in response to her question, "for what purpose will you use it for?"

"I'll have to show you what I have gathered in this," she said as she brings out the round wooden tablet from her shihakushou. 

"As long as it is not a destructive one, you may do so."

Facing the captains who are eager to hear what she has to say, she knelt down and put the tablet on the floor. 

"My fellow captains, please take at least two to three steps back."

Knowing that everyone has already cleared the center aisle, she closes her eyes and whispers some words. Violet smoke came out from the tablet and crawled on the floor. It began forming each barracks, establishments, and trees that were destroyed in the area.

Everyone felt a menacing chill when the reiatsu was released from the tablet. 

"What is this feeling? It's like a blade is placed on my neck," Hitsugaya thought to himself showing a rather disturbed expression. 

"The fear that you are feeling right now, shake it off with your own spiritual pressure. Don't let it consume you. This is the very nature of a Ryuka clan spell," Riyon instructed them as she stood up and proceeded to one side of the now established ruined area formed by the violet smoke. 

Facing Yamamoto, she began her explanation, "Yamamoto-taichou, based on my readings, I can confidently predict where the spell was casted. If we will take the exposure to the flames into consideration, we can say that they casted it here…"

Producing two small balls of light with her reiatsu, she marked two places above the area. Then she placed another one in front of the ruins. 

"There were three casters in total according to my calculations. As you can see, the ruined area consisted of five barracks and a training ground in the middle of it."

She paused for a while and gave Byakuya a worried look. 

"With a Class S level of destruction, I accurately presume that it was Hado Number 248 Death Inferno Flame spell."

"That is absurd! We only have until number 99 for our spells," reacted by a short haired woman with two long strands of hair wrapped in a bandage with gold circles on its end. She was wearing a captain's haori with the kanji of two imprinted on its back. 

Turning to the lady, Riyon gave her a sharp look. 

"Soi Fon taichou, our clan spells go way higher than 300 as what have stated in our history books."

Slowly returning her eyes to Byakuya, she continued explaining her findings. 

"I hate to say this, but Kuchiki-taichou, you've lost some elite men, women, and some children. To my calculations, around 71."

Knitting his eyebrows with this fresh devastating news, Byakuya clenched his fists. 

Uproars can be also heard from the lips of the other captains. 

"Silence!" 

The noise died down with a word from the Captain Commander.

Looking at her with a stern expression, he firmly asked, "Did you find the caster?"

"I went through a wide range sensing of spirit ribbons combing through every corner of Seireitei and Rukongai. However," she paused for a while while placing her hands on her chest. 

"It seems that it doesn't belong here."

"You know you will have to find them as soon as possible, am I right, Ryuka-taichou?" 

"I will see to it that I will find them. I will clear the name of my clan and," she paused again midway her sentence and gave Byakuya a glance, "I will help Kuchiki-taichou in finding justice for his people. That's why…"

With conviction, she looked at each captain one by one before finally fixing her eyes on the Captain Commander. 

"I will be needing your strength as the Gotei 13 to help me in finding the culprit."

There was a brief dead air before the Captain Commander gave his reply, "Gotei 13 will aid you, but you will be the one solely responsible resolving this issue."

"I take full responsibility. To begin with," she walked towards the captain wearing black and white stripes face paint and gold headdress,  "I will be needing your help, Kurotsuchi-taichou."

[raendown]

With how some of you stories have Tobirama not understanding some aspects of social interaction (the bloodbending and the stalker fic), how would the Uchiha react to learning that about him? Low-key freakouts? Wondering how the hell Butsuma raised him? Wonder exactly what sort of things he might of come up with since he lack the normal idea of what you do/don't do?

(Set in the Bloodbender AUPart 1Part 2)

-

There was a certain amount of whispering, of course. Asproud as the Uchiha were of their clan Head and as normal as it was for theirkin to be attracted to a certain dangerous sort of person, the man Madara hadchosen was just a little bit of an outlier ever by their standards.

It wasn’t even really the danger itself which raised a feweyebrows. Sure, Senju Tobirama was probably the third most frightening mancurrently alive, but it was his seeming inability to understand the effects ofhis own dangers that gave some people pause. Being terrifying was one thing.Not understanding that what you were doing was terrifying to others was quiteanother.

Obviously the best example of this that came to mind wasusually the episode which had started it all, the day Tobirama oh so casually relieveda fully grown man of his own blood during battle. However, there were otherepisodes which began to stack up with startling frequency as Madara began hiscautious campaign to woo the oblivious man. It was likely that he’d been doingthe same sort of things all along but considering his past interactions withtheir clan most of the Uchiha had always preferred to ignore him and thus beenunaware of them until now.

The experiments that Madara sometimes walked in on wouldhave been enough to cause concern even if it had only been one questionableinstance but what made them truly alarming was the fact that they seemed tohappen all the time. Apparently the Senju clan as a whole had learned to ignorethe occasional muted explosion from within the man’s labs and wave away anystrange smells that trailed out when someone was brave enough to open the door.Tobirama himself never seemed to understand why the sight of him with his hairsmoking slightly and his clothes still covered in live sparks should be of anyparticular note. In fact, he looked rather confused when Madara asked him if hewas alright the one day, looking back at him with a tilted head that said hehad no idea why the man was even asking.

None of that, however, was to say that it wasn’t incredibly amusingto watch the most fearsome Uchiha to have ever lived flail his way through bad flirtingwhich didn’t even seem to work. Tobirama might have been a genius of war but itquickly became obvious that his interpersonal skills were lacking in severalareas.

After the fourth dinner date which accidentally turned in toanother business meeting, Madara made an attempt to step things up. He showedup at Tobirama’s lab with a generous bouquet of flowers and an embarrassedscowl – only for Tobirama to thank him for locating the ingredient his current experimenthad been missing, praising him for realizing it. When Madara made a pass atcomplimenting the Senju it somehow turned in to a conversation about all thepossible ways to disembowel an adult human opponent. He came away from thatconversation reeling with confusion, unsure if he was horrified or aroused.

Just over six months went by in a never ending parade ofoblivious misunderstandings and terrifying new inventions, broken up by theoccasional moment in which Tobirama had to be stopped from  attempting something which would surely gethim or someone else killed, before Madara finally got fed up enough to castaside his efforts to woo gently. Gentle had never really been his style anywayso it was something of a miracle he’d lasted this long without exploding in afit of temper. Likely what had held him back was a cross between not wanting toalienate the one he had accidentally fallen in love with and the knowledgethat, if displeased, Tobirama was fully capable of removing the contents of hisarteries. Consequences like that did tend to put a damper on any healthyarguments he tried to engage in.

There was a point where even death seemed more pleasant thanconstantly being misinterpreted, however. Madara reached that point when hisbold invitation for Tobirama to join him for the evening resulted in waking upto find the man removing singular strands of his hair in the dark of night. DNAsamples, he explained innocently. Apparently he was attempting something newand dangerous with his clones.

“Hold still,” Tobirama chided him when he frantically satup, legs kicking where they were tangled in the blankets. “It’ll only hurt ifyou fight it.”

“You can’t just break in to a man’s house and take his hair!”

“Nonsense. You told me yourself just this afternoon that Iwas welcome here day or night.”

“That isn’t what I meant,” Madara growled. When Tobiramareached for his head again he snatched the pale wrist hovering in front of hisface and held it fast. For his efforts he received an impatient look but hecouldn’t have cared less. The skin under his fingers was warm and the pulsesteady, an immediate distraction in his sleep-befuddled state.

As unaware as ever of the effect he had on anyone else,Tobirama huffed. “Well then what did you mean?”

Madara blinked at him sleepily. He could have hedged hiswords and said something open to interpretation as he usually did. Or he could havesaid something that was at least polite and would have broached the subject kindly.Instead, he found he was just a little too tired to coddle a man he’d been allbut beating over the head with his affections for months now.

“I meant that youare welcome in my bed because I was tryingto fucking seduce you. Or would youprefer a practical demonstration!?”

Before his surprise guest had a chance to answer Madarapulled him down by the grip he still had around a pale wrist. Tobirama came tohim more easily than he would have expected – although that might have had agreat deal to do with being startled – but Madara felt no shame in using thisadvantage to tug him in to a fierce kiss that wrung a groan out of himimmediately. Tobirama tasted even better than he’d imagined, like the endlesscups of tea he consumed and something bitter.

Nearly a full minute went by before his brain caught up tohim and he realized that maybe forcing someone to make out with you when theyobviously hadn’t even realized you wanted them in any way might not beconsidered the most polite thing. While he was far past caring for manners,Madara did acknowledge that his own feelings meant very little if he couldn’tconvince Tobirama to return them. After six months it only just occurred to himnow to wonder if his chosen had failed to see how he felt because he simplydidn’t consider Madara as a romantic option. The thought was chilling enough tomake him release his grip on Tobirama and allow the man to straighten, both oftheir eyes as wide as saucers.

“My apologies,” he bit out. “That was…perhaps forward of me.”

“Ah. Sometimes you have to be a bit forward to get myattention.” Tobirama smiled at him when his head snapped up. His grin wascrooked and sloppy and Madara was torn between wanting to memorize that faceforever and telling him it looked stupid.

“Do I have your attention now?” he asked cautiously.

Instead of a verbal answer Tobirama pressed him back in tothe sheets for more kisses, rolling over his body and pressing them togetheruntil there wasn’t an inch of that long delicious body that he could not feelagainst his own.

“And here I thought you were just a little bit afraid of me,”Tobirama murmured against his lips. Madara huffed and tugged on white hair.

“You’re terrifying,” he admitted. “I like it.”

He smiled in to their kiss as Tobirama made a happy liketrilling sound. As scary as this man had the capability of being, he could alsobe incredibly cute without meaning to. However, no matter how much he wasenjoying finally getting what he’d been working so hard for, sleep was startingto pull at him again like an angry mistress, irritated at being interrupted. Tobiramachuckled when he had to turn his head to yawn.

“Someone’s tired.”

“Well someone was just woken up out of a dead sleep to findsome creep harvesting their hair for nefarious purposes.” His grumbled had lessof an effect when his hands continued to stroke over whatever pale skin hecould reach.

Tobirama simply hummed and rolled off to the side, curlinghis body around Madara’s and laying his head down on Madara’s shoulder. “Rest.I’ll stay until you fall asleep.”

Already closing his eyes and starting to drift, Madaramerely smiled and didn’t comment. He knew very well that Tobirama had likelynot slept himself in more than a full day. The chances that he would wake upthe next morning to find his favorite Senju still peacefully snoozing away onhis shoulder were fairly high and, if he were bring honest, he kind of hopedthat would be the case. Kissing had been nice and all but he figured hedeserved a much nicer reward after all that waiting he’d done.

-

Over the next few days the Uchiha clan slowly came to a horrifyingrealization. As inhuman as Tobirama had been before, he was several times worseonce he and Madara had entered a relationship. While they were indeed happy fortheir clan Head, truthfully they were, many of them wished he wasn’t quite sosmitten as to ignore many of the things he should have been helping to put astop to.

When Tobirama came to him to demonstrate the new jutsu hewas working on Madara simply smiled at him in an insufferably sappy mannerrather than pay attention to the way the ground shifted dangerously several dozenfeet away from where the jutsu was meant to take effect. Each time one of the clanmembers attempted to approach him with concerns about the sounds coming out ofthe laboratory which had seemed to spring up out of nowhere right in the middleof the Uchiha complex, somehow their conversations always took a turn in toextolling upon Tobirama’s more positive virtues. It was as though the man hadstrapped on a pair of blinders from the very first kiss and Tobirama withoutbarriers to rein him in was more worrisome than he truly should have been.

Of course, that didn’t stop the two of them from bickering –and that was using the term generously. Their fights were epic and dangerousfor anyone within half a kilometer.

And yet, at the end of every day, no matter what the membersof the Uchiha clan had to put up with, somehow it was all worth it every timethey spotted their clan Head trotted after his beloved with nothing butabsolute devotion on his face. He’d been miserable for so many years that noneof them had the heart to say anything too strongly against whatever happinesshe had found.

Still, that didn’t stop them from giving Tobirama as wide aberth as possible. Madara might be in love with the danger but they had theirown safety to look out for.

[lunaraen]

I know this isn't from the prompt post, & if you don't wanna write this for any reason, you can totally ignore me! But what about: Lukas & (male?) Jesse trying to go ocelot spotting and being only somewhat prepared (bc they’re not expecting action but jungles can still be dangerous) when they stumble upon a jungle temple? A lil' Jesskas would be awesome but is optional.

So technically, it’s not a date.They never outright said it was one, anyway.

All the same, there’s somethingJesse finds very endearing and very Lukasabout the way Lukas is ignoring him in favor of writing everything down, nothurt by how Jesse’s fairly sure Lukas is doing it on purpose in the first placejust to annoy him, if the grin’s anything to go by.

It’s a thicker journal than theone they have sitting in their treasure hall, the cover smooth and neater.Still, even if it’s less nicked and burned, Lukas, back leaning against one ofthe trees that sits at the jungle’s edge, almost looks like he did wheneverthey entered another world. He looks a lot healthier than he did then, withless cuts and bruises, and his armor isn’t perpetually grime streaked anddirty, but it’s enough to half make Jesse expect the sickly feeling that alwayscomes with landing in the wrong world.

It’s more than a relief when thatfeeling doesn’t come.

“So now I’m playing secondfiddle to a journal?” Jesse’s fake pout hardly lasts for a second beforehis mouth twists into a toothy grin. “Gee Lukas, you sure know how to makea guy feel special.”

Lukas rolls his eyes as he liftshis head, tapping the journal with the quill in his other hand as hestraightens up.

“Hey, this could come inhandy. Hopefully I’ll be able to write some stuff down if we see any ocelots.”

“If? Isn’t that why we’re here?” The breeze picks up slightlyas Jesse speaks, the sound of leaves rustling slowly fading as the wind sweepsthrough the sea of vines and trees. “I thought you wanted to go and findsome ocelots to watch?”

Lukas meets his light tone with aflat look before turning, moving past the tree he was leaning on and deeperinto the jungle.

“Jesse, I know you used tolive in a forest, but it’s not going to be that easy.” Jesse shrugs,moving faster for a moment so he can walk beside Lukas.

“Forests, jungles, they’rebasically the same thing. Jungles might have more monsters all the time, butwe’re ready if we run into any of them.” The nice, nearly constant windhelps keep them from baking in their heavy armor on what’s otherwise a muggyday. Lukas’s armor may be more lightweight, but wool and leather heat up almostas quickly as metal. “And you’re one to talk, mister ‘I live in acity’.”

“Jesse, you do know how hardit is to see an ocelot when it isn’t in a cage or anything, right? They boltthe second they think they hear youcoming.”

“Alright, ocelotexpert.” Jesse grins as Lukas rolls his eyes again. “What do youthink we’ll see if it’s not gonna be ocelots? Besides trees.”

“People have been talking alot lately about the weird new birds they keep hearing.” Jesse gets thefeeling Lukas heard about them the same way he did: one part written complaintsand three parts local gossip. “You think we’ll see one?”

“I think people are justhearing spiders. They can make some pretty weird sounds.”

“You mean creepy ones.”Lukas shudders, glancing around them in a way that makes Jesse’s grin growuntil it feels like his face is going to split.

“You sound like Petra.”

He’s pretty sure Lukas is usingup all his eye rolls and flat looks, but he’s also pretty sure that Lukas istrying and failing to hide a smile, and the huff comes out more as a chuckle.

“Neither of us likemonsters. Go figure.”

The problem with the jungle, orany jungle, is that there’s a murky area between safety and danger that canmake it very hard to tell when they’ve stepped into the danger zone untildanger’s staring them right in the face. Monsters of all sorts thrive under thecover of the jungle, with it being said that the deepest areas were so dark andcluttered that monsters spawned there at all times of day. Not that a fewmonsters would be all that hard to deal with; it just isn’t the sort of dateeither of them have in mind, so they try not to go too far once they actuallyenter the jungle. That makes the whole thing a search for a nice area wherethere are enough trees for cover without it being dense enough for there to bea spider colony right above their heads.

On the bright side, the junglehas a lot of misleadingly beautiful and calm areas to see.

The waterfall, constantly flowingwater crashing and roaring down what looks more like a sheer drop then a steephill, is a bit too loud to expect any ocelots, but Jesse manages to splashLukas with some water on their way by, and he even almost dodges the waterLukas splashes back at him.

The odd gap in the trees thatleads to a clearing of mycelium and podzol is pretty in its own right, if notoddly eerie with how quiet it is compared to the rest of the jungle. At onepoint Jesse thinks he hears a mooshroom, but the clearing isn’t that large andhe doesn’t hear it again. The stop they make so Lukas can sketch some of themushrooms is a short one, and neither of them walks slowly when they leave.

The next area they hit isrelatively open, but it feels far more alive.

It’s what looks like a naturalclearing with a jungle twist, trees of all sizes still filling in or coveringmost of it. Unlike the waterfall, there’s only a small watering hole in themiddle, and the trees are tall enough to let them get a good view of anypassing animals without being close enough for the animals to know they’rewatching. The trees are also tall enough for Jesse to have some fun helpingLukas try to climb up one, and the resulting pout is easily dealt with by somenuzzling that ends with Jesse getting poked in the nose several times with aquill tip.

The two of them spend roughlytwenty minutes just lying side by side, and it might not be the mostcomfortable cuddling they’ve ever had, but the branch they’re lying on issturdy and large enough that it works, and watching the still and relatively clean water is relaxing.

By the time Jesse really feelscomfortable, of course, Lukas stiffens and opens his journal as quietly as hecan, attention on the several ocelots slowly creeping into the clearing, coatsneat and looking impossibly soft as they head towards the water.

Their paw steps are nearlysilent, and Jesse smiles as Lukas’s fingers twitch, hesitating before startingto write.

The scratching of the quill isslow and steady, nearly silent as Lukas tilts his head slightly to look down atthe ocelots. While Jesse doesn’t loosen his grip, the hand he has on Lukas’sarm moves to his neck, Lukas stiffening for a second but not moving to lookback at him as Jesse’s fingers trace invisible circles on his skin.

After a few minutes, as well asafter getting a slightly cold nose pressed against his neck and a few mumblesthat don’t actually mean anything muttered into his ear, Lukas gives in,pushing the journal the slightest bit away as he sets the quill down inside itbefore leaning a bit more in to Jesse, wrapping one of his arms around Jesse’swaist, something easier said than done thanks to the armor, after a few moments.

And now it’s utterly perfect.

It stays perfect for little lessthan a minute, because after little less than a minute, Lukas’s journal shifts.

And maybe that doesn’t likesomething that should mean much, but as the little book shifts, the quillinside it shifts, and the pages shift, and as the journal tips to the side, thebook starts to close on itself. As it does, it’s also slipping off the branch,which means it slips through the leaves, and by the time Lukas notices, thebook’s nearly already falling and the ocelots below are all stiff andcrouching. Jesse only knows that Lukas notices because the only way he noticesany of this is by Lukas’s startled yelp as he stiffens before lunging for thejournal.

The problem here is that he’slunging off the tree and onto the ground, and the moment where the fall beginsseems to go by far too fast while taking far too long.

Not that Jesse just sits by andwatches Lukas tumble to the ground, but as Jesse lunges to try to grab Lukas,one hand holding onto the branch, his fingers curl around empty air and afistful of leaves, barely missing Lukas’s ankle, and the book loudly snaps shutand tumbles to the ground, slipping out of Lukas’s grip.

Jesse jumps off the branch,landing right after Lukas does and right as the ocelots all bolt.

Lukas lands with a sloppy roll,but he doesn’t seem hurt as he gets to his feet the next second, somethingJesse can’t quite claim with the way his ankle is yelling at him.

“Hey!”

For a moment Jesse thinks Lukasis too, but he’s not looking at him. He’s looking at the thick mix of leavesand vines, and that’s when Jesse notices that the journal isn’t anywhere to beseen. That doesn’t mean he’s expecting it when Lukas starts sprinting away fromhim.

“Lukas!”

Lukas doesn’t even pause, alreadydisappearing into the brush, and Jesse follows right behind him, brow furrowingas he does.

At least he knows Lukas isn’thurt too badly, if he’s ready to go running off after an ocelot.

The way his ankle is starting tothrob, Jesse gets the feeling he’s not as ready to do the same, but that doesn’tmatter. He’s only chasing Lukas.

It doesn’t keep plants fromsnagging on his armor, trying to hold him back, or things managing to jab himin the head as he tries to run through all of it anyway. He’s been meaning toget a helmet, really he has, he just never actually goes and does it. He getsthe feeling, as another plant snaps back and slaps him in the eyes, that he’spaying for it now.

It’s all slowing him down, fromthe vines that his feet get caught on to the bushes that are practically tryingto crawl into his armor, and all he can hope is that Lukas is running in afairly straight line because it’s much darker here and the sudden change inlighting makes seeing anything more than a foot in front of his face almostimpossible. His ankle makes him even slower and Jesse has to stop one time, onetoo many, to catch his breath and actually toss away some of the plantsdragging him down.

Jesse’s almost ready to admitthat he’s lost Lukas when it starts to get a bit brighter and he can hear Lukaspanting up ahead, and his shoulders relax as he starts running faster, hisankle protesting and Jesse not caring in the slightest about it.

“Lukas! Are you–” Hisboots dig into the soft dirt as he stops, body freezing as he pushes aside athick bush, its leaves curling around his fingers. “Whoa.”

While the trees aren’t anysparser, close together and towering as they block out the sky, the grass comesto a stop, a crude gravel and stone path leading down the hill and towards whatlooks entirely foreign and extremely familiar.

Jesse tilts his head back as hiseyes trail up the cracked and chipped stone, lips twitching up as he stares upat the mossy and pointed top. The trees are huge, but the mass of mossy bricksand pillars isn’t small by any means, the almost entirely plant covered topnearly reaching what looks like a thick and endless canopy that Jesse thinksmakes up the top of the jungle.

Well, they wanted to seesomething interesting.

They just hadn’t been thinking ofa giant temple.

His grin weakens a little as helooks back at Lukas, whose breathing’s still a little quick.

“Are you okay?”

“Huh? O-oh, yeah,yeah.” Lukas turns his head to look at the temple as he briefly lifts thejournal, quill hanging limply from his other hand. “Sorry about that. Theyjust dropped it and ran in there. Guess they realized they didn’t want it. Ithought you guys found the only temple in this jungle?”

“We never actually checked;we were too busy with the city for a while.” Jesse shrugs, crossing hisarms as his mouth slowly twitches into a grin. “We only found that onebecause of Ivor, and after that we didn’t have time to poke around forothers.”

“What are the odds there’sanother portal in there?”

There really hasn’t been muchabout the Old Builders that Harper’s been willing to tell them. Maybe the templethey found was the only one, or maybe there are a dozen temples scatteredaround their world, each leading to some other crazy world instead of straightto the portal network.

“Even if there is, it can’tsuck us in. If we find a portal, we just… won’t go in until we talk to theothers about it.” Jesse scratches the back of his head as he glances up at the top of the temple again. “I’dbe more worried about p– dispensers. Remember the first time we were at theOrder’s old temple? If we’re lucky, this one won’t have as many arrows. I don’tthink a portal can be a trap, though.”

“That’s what it wants you tothink.” Lukas is grinning, but he’s giving Jesse the same looks Jesse’sgiving him. They weren’t exactly expecting a temple, after all.

On one hand, while Jesse has hisarmor, the sword he has on him is a regular iron sword, because he thought allthey’d have to worry about would be spiders and his usual adventuring oneseemed like overkill for some ocelot watching, and his ankle is throbbing in away that probably doesn’t mean anything but will somehow throw him off if theydo get into a fight.

On the other, temples like thistend to be abandoned, Jesse knows Lukas has a full stack of arrows and his bowon him, and there’s a journal that gives Jesse another excuse to cuddle upbeside Lukas at stake.

“Whether it wants us tothink that or not, we have a journal to get.” Whatever reply Lukas isabout to give becomes a yelp as Jesse grabs his arm, the yelp devolving intolaughter as he’s tugged across the clearing.

[hearteyes-for-killmonger]

Part 18: Visitor

In the early hours, Erik walked casually through the next hotel's parking lot dressed in comfortable all black with his bag of equipment, following silently and subtly a few feet behind a clueless older white man, mid-50s in loafers. The guy was making his way to a small silver Ford c-max with key in hand. He hit the unlock moving to the passenger side and luckily, he was parked next to a truck. Erik hopped in the cut behind him and between the two cars, wrapping his right arm around the guys neck, catching his chin in his elbow. The guy grabbed Erik's arm trying to resist and protect his throat, but Erik gripped his shoulder before locking his left arm behind the man's head, thumb to his own right ear. The throat was caught between his arm and bicep as he squeezed for ten seconds feeling the man go slack. He released him gently to the ground and took the keys, sliding into the driver's seat. Pulling out of the hotel lot, he turned on the radio grimacing when country music flared from the speakers. He switched the radio to the hip hop station. After thinking over the dinner incident, he knew exactly how he'd been located. He knew the risks earlier when he'd taken that damn picture despite being in the middle of a game of assassins. He needed to get to the computer at the Reunion Tower to access employee files. That was his start.

Parking a block away, Erik created his own route to side entrance, carrying his bag over his shoulder. It would've been so much easier if he could've strongarmed an employee to get in, but they were all long gone as were the police so fuck all that. He didn't need anyone to get the job done, he'd do it himself. Checking out the lock, he wondered about the security system. If he weren't on a time crunch, he'd have waited to scope the place out for cameras and to check the security system. All he had to go on was what he'd picked up earlier in the day. His knowledge was something, but not thorough. He knew they probably had a security alert system in place but it likely wasn't sophisticated and officers were not 24/7. He'd probably trigger a silent alarm so time was of the essence as well as a mask for whatever CCTV they had. He had an unassuming black ski mask that he put on, tucking his gold necklace. He also wore gloves so his race wouldn't be known.

Picking the side lock instead of the front or back was the better decision. Typically it was the least congested when it came to security, in his experience and now that he was into the tower, he had to be efficient and brief. He had two goals. 1) Hack into the employee records for staff schedules and staff personal information. He could get this from payroll. 2) Delete all photos they have on file that way he could delete his own image without singling himself out.

---

The harsh bounce of the plane as its wheels drop loudly and beat the runway shakes you awake and throws you around in your seat, the mechanical whirring of the machinery rushing forward like a giant car. Judging by the hush that had been as a blanket over every passenger, it seems that you're not the only one who was knocked out. As the lights shine on in the plane you can see and hear people waking up, shifting to life in their seats. The sky is still black, but the plane is guided by by amber artificial lighting. When it finally rolls to a stop, you have to wait along with everyone else to get off. Fighting the urge to close your eyes, you check the time. It's close to 2:45, which means it's almost 5 in Texas.

Erik is probably stretched out right now on his face, buried under pillows and enjoying having that hotel bed to himself. Maybe he'll let the maids into the room this time... or not. Knowing him, it's still not likely.

Finally the first few rows stand up starting the exit wave. You jump up with sleep still in your eyes to tug your bag down from the overhead bin, following the quick moving line of passengers through the suspended hall into the airport gate. They all move like they have somewhere to be in a hurry the way they speed speedwalk from the plane like they weren't just knocked. Meanwhile, you're ready to take a nap in one of these many empty seats you keep passing up.

"We ain't that reckless," you mumble. If you fell asleep in a public area with your luck you'd wake up with half your  luggage or items missing. "..Sleepy sleepy sleepy," you mumble.

The good thing about flights at this time is that the airport is practically empty which means there's no one in your way, no one to compare your pace to, and no one to dodge or speed walk against. You can take things at your own pace without the social pressure to keep up without looking fatigued. Collecting your checked luggage from the baggage claim, you go your own pace to the parking lot hitting the unlock on the key fob. The familiar lights flash on and you head on over settling in.

It feels so strange driving Erik's car without him in it. You feel yourself blinking a little too much and too long, yawning into the side of your wrist with watery eyes. The same energy from the airport is on the road, borderline deserted. There aren't a lot of cars out riding around past 3 especially where you're headed. You flip on the radio turning it to a pop station and High Hopes by PATD has just started. Cranking it up, you sing along as loudly as you can muster to wake yourself up. You can feel yourself swerve a bit. The music carries you all the way to that exit where you turn off into some stretch of rural nothing. It's where you take an unmarked and nearly unnoticeable road that looks like it leads to nowhere. Following it, you find that familiar long and dark backroad, riding through under a canopy of tall grass and weed-like plants that shoot up from the dirt like walls. You drive slowly fearful of a frantic deer or some large animal jumping out in front of the vehicle. Finally, you're met with the large isolated modern house with glass panels. It's very dark. Strong shadows are cast all over the surrounding area, the greenery... the only light comes from the stars up above, twinkling mildly off of the glass.

How does Erik see anything when he comes home at night with the lights off? The place isn't even lit properly, he ought to leave the lights on! How does he feel safe like this?

Come to think of it, he does pack guns. You'd counted three. One he gave to you for emergencies, one you'd seen in his hand when he came to your rescue in your apartment, and one you'd seen at dinner when the restaurant got shot up. You cringe at the memory of the blood and the shots. It looked like someone had died yet Erik had been so ready to rush out to play hero, confronting the situation head-on as if he were still active duty and on the front lines. That part of him while honorable is still very scary because his overconfidence and meddling nature could potentially be the death of him. Then what? He's only human and not immune to attacks but he just won't back down. It seems to be embedded into his makeup.

Three guns. That's only what you've seen! The thought makes you shake your head. Maybe that's it right there. Maybe Erik doesn't feel safe either. Maybe that's why he has so many guns.. to protect himself.. because of the life he's lived. He's seen some awful things, you're sure. Things you can't imagine and the way he hardly blinked watching those attackers... You shiver. He wouldn't call it fear, he'd call it being prepared. Either way, he feels a strong need to watch his back, that much you can gather.

The first thing you do when inside the house is go through and flip on all the lights downstairs and then upstairs. Well, not all of them, but enough to start to feel like you aren't the main character in a horror movie with some homicidal maniac hunting you from the woods. The influx of light enough to ease your mind for the time being and you use the excess jittery energy to unpack and put your brand new belongings away. You hadn't gotten a chance to wear everything you'd bought in Texas, but something told you that you would. Erik was entirely too extra to not find an occasion. He'd probably create one.

Stripping down, you locate his hamper tossing in your belongings. You'll wash them all tomorrow. As for now, you head naked down the hall and into the bathroom more excited than ever to use his spa room of a shower. Looking over the contents arranged on the long and exposed shelf under his double sink, you pull from the neatly folded white washcloths and towels stacked next to the wicker basket of Erik's grooming items. To the left are a gang of small white candles in simple glass jars with black labels and white print. He's got at least two of each scent.. Vanilla, Sandalwood, Egyptian Musk, Coconut Mango, and Leather. Heading back into the hall, you snatch the lighter from Erik's bedroom drawer, lighting the Coconut Mango before carrying your body wash into the shower.

Once out, you wrap a towel around yourself carrying the candle and head to your own assigned room to lotion down and put on a tank with some small shorts to sleep in. Only suddenly, after showering you're not ready to sleep just yet.. so you head back downstairs with the spare blanket you found in the guest room's closet and help yourself to a yellow gatorade and some popcorn figuring you probably ought to cook something tomorrow so his groceries don't go to waste. There're some good ingredients in his fridge. You aren't doing any of it tonight though.

Sitting on the couch and flipping on the TV, you get cozy under the blanket as the current commercial break ends. There's a lady with a blunt blonde bob popping corn over the stove like she's in the stone age. You eat a handful of your own popcorn as she picks up the phone and the voice sounds creepy.

Who the hell is she speaking to and why is she entertaining him? Wait, is that Drew Barrymore?

"Wait.. Oh hell no," you change the channel not wanting to watch a horror movie right before bed, especially Scream.

"Nope," you repeat suddenly a tad paranoid. Not while you're in a bigass house in the middle of nowhere alone, like a cabin in the woods and your phone is upstairs. No ma'am, no sir. You keep flipping, sipping your gatorade.

After flipping through nonsense, however, curiosity gets the best of you and against your better judgement, you go back to Scream. You'd never actually watched it before though it was hailed as a classic.

"No he doesn't have her doing trivia," you snicker.

"...And he kills her boyfriend. This is crazy... He done stabbed her in the chest and choked her? That's a little personal, he must have known her. This killer is someone she knows."

"Dang, he must have stabbed her in the lung because she couldn't even yell to her parents. Will he kill them too or are they not on his hit list? Her only targets teens who cook their popcorn weird."

Shovelling more popcorn into your mouth you ignore that you're basically her right now, choosing instead to watch the mom as she looks outside.

"Don't tell me... Oh NO.. NO NO NO."

When you see the body hanging, you almost turn it off but then these homicidal 90s suburban teens come on screen and each of them seem not just capable of murder, but intrigued by it. You can see this creepy film is gonna be a whodunnit. Suddenly, you're more aware of the chill on your arms and the sounds in the house.

It's just the house settling, you remind yourself. There's no one out here. Erik lives away from society and that includes psychotic knife-weilding murderers.

Flu pops into your mind threatening to make you frantic, but you cast his face down immediately.

Nope... no one is out here. It's just me and I'm okay. I'll be okay.

The doorbell rings your heart hops into your throat. There's an accompanying aggressive knocking on the door causing your head to snap right to face it as you sit still as possible.

Who the french toast is all the way out here at 4:40 a.m. and why? Keep it together. Find a weapon.  Don't freak out. Get up... quietly.

Again, someone knocks and you continue to stare at the door like a deer in headlights. The doorbell rings twice and your eyes widen when a feminine voice yells.

"ANSWER THE DAMN PHONE." You listen closely. "I WILL BURN ALL THIS SHIT DOWN, KILL," she threatens as if she's looking for somebody.

Who?

Against your better judgment again, you pad to the door and peep through the peephole spotting a slim brown girl with long dark curly hair in a big sloppy top bun. She's looking you dead in the eye and you have to remember that she can't actually see you.

Looks about his type though. Exactly his type actually.

"Stop looking at me and open the door, Kill. This is business."

With your hand on the knob, you unlock the door and pull it open to a crack. Staring at the woman in front of you, she's about an inch taller but it's close. She opens her mouth but her eyes widen briefly in surprise and she closes her mouth, squinting in pure bewilderment.

"Who.. are you," she tilts her head with an pained expression that says you are way out of place and far from home. You know that already and she doesn't need to look like that. Afterall, she's the one banging on the door at close to 5 in the morning while you're inside. So who's really out of place? "Hello?"

"..That's none of your business. Who are you and do you know what time it is?"

Her eyes are unwavering, staring you down. "It's none of your business," she remarks. You start to shut the door in her face, but she pushes it back open.

"His car is here. Tell him to come out."

"He's not here. Check back in a few days." Rolling your eyes, you try to shut the door again and she pushes her way in going straight to the staircase.

"KILL," she yells from the bottom. You fold your arms and glare at her until she looks your way.

"Are you done? I don't know what you two are on, but like I said he's not here."

"Look, I'm not the one you wanna toy with," she retorts, her finger twirling dismissively at you. She takes off upstairs and you follow to keep a keen eye on her, but you need to grab your phone from your room to call Erik. He answers on the second ring.

"What's up, baby," he mumbles.

"Why.. what you doing?"

"Taking a shit."

You frown looking at the woman who's standing in the doorway watching you. Her eyes narrow and her lips pout.

"There's a woman here looking for you. She just scared the living daylights out of m-"

"You opened the door?"

"Yeah because she-"

"You don't know who's on the other side or what they want so why would you open the fuckin door?"

"Pause. How did this become an attack on me?"

"I'm not attacking you but if she was someone dangerous you'd be dead right now."

"Erik, anyone out here is out here on purpose as far out into the cut as this damn house is. That means they either know you or they're extremely lost and looking for civilization. So you tell me who dangerous is lurking around the middle of nowhere? You got evil exes to destroy?"

"KILL. ANSWER YOUR PHONE," the woman yells from the doorway.

"You never heard of serial killers," Erik asks. "People who be FUCKIN people up for no reason?! You don't answer the door at 4 AM, stupid!"

"Don't call me stupid, asshole! What do I do about this girl here staring at me. Did you not hear her screaming like an idiot-"

"I heard that shit! Tell her ass to chill the fuck out! I'll get with her tomorrow," Erik snaps. "Don't be answering the door so late at night. All them damn movies you watch, you'd think you'd-"

"You'd think you'd control your damn subs! Y'all are both irking the hell out of my nerves."

"Don't be doing stupid shit when I'm not there to protect you. What if it were someone dangerous?"

"You so damn paranoid! I'm a ask you one last time then I'm leaving because this is some bullshit and I don't have to take it."

---

"Oh you real bold when I'm not there. Keep that energy in life and you'll be good." He'd just left the home of a man on staff who'd gone home early in the day before shit went down.

It seemed a bit suspect when Erik saw it on the schedule and when he was the man's face on his scanned ID, the man looked like he could be a relative of one of the shooters, maybe a younger brother.

Erik's hunch turned out to be right and with a gun to the guy's nose in his sleep, he rushed out an address while begging for his life. Apparently big bro was into some shit he ain't know about. At least that's what he'd claimed. It could've been the truth. It could've been a lie. Erik pulled the trigger and left him there as a stain and a warning to anyone involved that they would be located and exterminated in the same manner.

"She a friend. We collab on projects," Erik muttered closing the car door as he hopped out and started walking.

Swift wasn't playing if she showed up on his doorstep. She never did that. She'd never had to, he was typically efficient and even quick. But this time he was fuckin up and trying to fix it. She wanted this job wrapped up.

Of course she had other shit to do and places to be that would make her money, but she was hanging around and standing by for him solely because she had a crush on him. He was very aware although she'd never admit it and he was grateful for her help and support. She was an invaluable partner, much like Rell. He hoped he'd never have to end her the same way.

"Give her the phone," Erik softened, ignoring Y/N's grumbling as he walked on a dirt path into a wooded region surrounded by pitch black.

"Hey," Swift said simply. She knew not to talk in front of his subs. She'd already met Shay once and Jaliyah twice.

"You're scaring my sub, stop that shit she's skittish and very sensitive."

She sighed.

"I was compromised and targeted," he divulged knowing the expression she'd wear. In his mind he could see her jaw drop, the thinly veiled panic in her brown eyes. "Relax, they took out the wrong guy. I know exactly how they found me and I'm on them as we speak."

The line went quiet and he waited for her response, standing still.

"Fine. Have fun," she enthused finally. He knew what that coded response truly meant. Be careful.

"I'll be fine." She was probably thinking of coming to Texas just to back him up. She was powerful. However, he was confident in himself and finally in a space where he was thinking clearly. "I got this," he assured her. "Go ahead to Mazatlan. I'll hit you up when this is done. No one gets the drop on Killmonger."

Hanging up, Erik walked carefully and quietly until he heard voices, then he moved stealthily around the clearing that was set up with a camper, fire, and lights to check out the surrounding area. From far back where he stood, there was a narrow road and a few other trailers. The main road was near, but he'd come a back way through the trees on foot. He counted four voices and they were discussing ways to get their hands on more military grade weapons. One of them had a collection of assault rifles for trade and another was looking to invest in a tank. Erik stood positioned in the woods unnoticed with his bag on the ground and 27 lb AS50 assembled and aimed once he got the visual. The AS50 had a lower recoil than his AW50 so it would be easier to hit four targets quickly. He waited a moment making sure he could actually fatally hit each target, determining that he easily could. Before anything could go wrong, he braced himself and quickly hit the trigger four times. The bodies fell and his sharp ears no longer picked up conversation.

Moving quickly to a different position with a visual, he got low. The next person to come into view got popped and fell. Going in closer to the trailers, he waited, but no one else came out.

"Fuck it," he said after fifteen minutes. He stepped into the clearing and nudged the bodies with his foot checking for reactions and movements. Two responded. He shot them both again. The third body brought him great glee.

"Been chasing yo ass," Erik frowned staring down. It was undoubtedly his target.. in the flesh. He was late, but he'd gotten him and now Swift could get up off his back and he could go- "Shit.."He felt a bullet go through his leg.

He fired instantly in the direction from which the bullet came and his shot went through the trailer in front of him under the cracked window. He only hoped he hit whoever it was.

Limping, he forced his hit leg to carry him into the trailer where he saw a small blonde boy on the ground bleeding out with a .40 caliber pistol in his still hand. A touch of guilt touched Erik's heart. It was just a little kid, a kid who likely knew nothing of what was going on and had been raised in the bullshit, taught early on to shoot.. This was probably his first real gun. The little guy was probably the son of one of the five men he shot. He felt even more guilty knowing he'd taken someone's father away like that. It probably didn't really matter since the boy was dead now, but still... The world was a fucked up place.

Even more fucked up was the fact that he now had to go into each of the trailers and shoot whoever was holed up in each one. They were probably innocents, but he had to be thorough. No more fuck ups. He ripped a peice of material from a shirt hanging over a chair and quickly tied it around his leg under his pants. He controlled his limp moving to the next trailer finding a haggard older woman holding a little girl to keep her calm. The woman shook her head but before she could speak, Erik spoke first.

"I'm sorry," he whispered pulling the trigger twice.

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