#ANYWAY sorry I’m offline now I swear

[gcslingss]

heart to heart. colt seavers.

summary: the last two days were being especially shitty. your close friend colt invites you over to a scene shoot, and suddenly everything becomes a little bit better.

pairing: colt seavers x gn!reader

warnings: heavy fluff, slight angst, kissing, mild swearing.

word count: 1.8k

notes: firstly, yes, the fic's name is mac demarco's song. i recommend listening to it while reading this. secondly, i had a terrible day today, thus the birth of this fic. hope you guys enjoy :)

p.s: colt is the sweetest guy ever. i wish he was real.

Today had been the worst day of the week.

You’d been told off, looked down at, or backhandedly insulted by nearly everyone you spoke to, and that didn’t leave the best feeling in you by the time it was nearly midnight and you were still awake, staring at the ceiling of your room.

Even your mum had called you clingy and ignored you, and your neighbour had started to pretend you didn’t exist, ignoring your attempts to talk to him, to give him the cake you’d made that afternoon, and he made sure to make you see how much of a good time he was having with his girlfriend.

And to top it all off, your best friend hadn’t contacted you in a week. You knew he was a stuntman and therefore was often busy, but that didn’t mean he could completely ignore you.

You really didn’t know what you’d done wrong to be having such a shitty day.

that’s when your phone pinged beside your pillow. You wouldn’t have checked it, but it pinged with the special sound you’d set for Colt Seavers.

What the fuck? There was no way Colt was texting after an entire fucking week.

You were bitter about it, but not enough to ignore it. So you picked up the phone, and saw two new texts from him in the lock screen preview.

Hi :)

You’re probably sleeping right now, but I’m way too excited not to tell you right now

You waited to see where he was going with this. A minute later, the third text came.

We’re shooting a really special scene for the movie I’m part of tomorrow - I have a big role

And then another one.

D’you wanna come? It would be so cool if you did

You would’ve been lying if you said you didn’t feel your heart warm up when you read that, a smile tugging at your lips. Any irritation you felt for him melted away.

You didn’t hesitate to properly open the text and send him a quick reply.

I’m up, shockingly

Yeah, I’d love to come :]]

There was an enthusiastic response, and then he went offline. 

Well. 

At least there was something to look forward to now.

You placed the phone aside and shuffled into the covers of your bed. You needed sleep if you were going to support him right tomorrow.

… … …

“-and apparently it’s some sort of sci-fi movie, and he’s got a whole lot of-“

“Sorry, I kinda need to go.”

And just like that, your so-called childhood friend walked away, eyes still glued to her phone’s screen, still giggling, not bothering to ever give you a wave or second look.

You stared at her leaving figure rather desolately, feeling numb, yet highly irritated. It only took a few seconds for the irritation to simmer down into severe self-doubt.

Were you annoying? Is that why nobody wanted to talk to you? 

Did you say too much? Or were you not interesting enough? 

What the hell was everyone’s problem?

The only who’d shown any signs of tolerating you recently was Colt, but there was this heavy feeling in your heart that even he was being fake. 

Maybe you shouldn’t go to the shoot. He probably only invited you as a courtesy. he probably didn’t even want you there.

Like a fucking sign from the sky, your phone pinged, and a new message from him read-

Hope you didn’t forget you’ve got an appointment with me today doofus

You didn’t want to laugh, but it bubbled through your throat anyway, and something akin to the feeling of holding a warm candle on a winter day spread through your fingers.

He was so annoying.

… … …

You hadn’t moved a single muscle out of your little square for the past 2 hours, your arms stiff by your sides, your hands anxiously fiddling with each other, your bottom barely touching the chair you were given, and your eyes downcast, staring emptily at the sand.

There had been 3 takes of Colt’s super-actiony ‘falling from the sky’ stunt to be approved by the director. 

It was break time now, and all the present actors and the director had retreated to their trailers. the only people outside were some of the snacking stuntmen, two extras fanning themselves, and you, too absorbed in your self-deprecating thoughts to have even realized the shoot was on break.

“You alright?”

Your neck could’ve snapped with the speed you looked up at, and you physically felt your face muscles cramp when you shifted expressions from despairing to absolutely peachy in less than a second.

“Hey! Yeah, I’m good,” you said, forcing a smile, “Just peachy.”

No. That word should’ve stayed in your head. Fuck.

Colt frowned, smiling almost suspiciously, “When have you ever used that word out loud?”

“…Just now,” you unconvincingly said. You were far too tired to come up with a good response.

“Was I good?” he asked, brushing past it, and you nodded, the smile becoming a little bit more genuine than before. 

“You were great.”

He smiled too, and then observed you for a moment, his eyes searching, searching for any sign that you weren’t okay.

That was the plain truth, but you couldn’t let him know - not on his big day. 

“I’m okay, Colty,” you said, patting him on his shoulder. You could see the extras watching your interaction, and your skin prickled.

“I’m gonna get going now, okay?” you said, standing up as stiff as ever, and turned, only to feel Colt’s hand pull on your wrist, stopping you.

“What?” you whined. Colt turned you by the shoulders to face you and watched your face, and you tried to ignore the way his lips formed the softest, fondest smile as he said, “Don’t go yet, c’mon.”

“You…you’re going to be busy, and I probably have something waiting for me at home, and I don’t want to imp-“

“D’you wanna talk for a bit? Maybe in Tom’s trailer?”

It became clear to you that he was not planning on letting you leave yet. 

You thought about how tired you were, mentally and physically. Your brain hurt from all the buzzing, and your muscles hurt from the constant rigidity.

But then you thought about Colt, and his pretty smile, and his big blue eyes, and his husky laughter, and your mouth mumbled a soft “Okay.”

Colt nodded, and slung an arm over your shoulder as the two of you walked across the set towards the trailers.

… … …

“So Tom doesn’t mind if you use his trailer?”

“I mean, it’s not like he knows about it, so…”

You laughed and punched Colt in the arm, causing him to make a face that made you laugh harder.

But then the laughter died down, and your brain started buzzing again. You went silent, a dormant smile still on your face.

Colt noticed.

“I can tell when you’re feeling shitty,” he murmured, and as his hand slid into yours, you wondered how he even managed to use the exact word you used to describe your day.

You shook your head and shrugged, muttering a “I’m fine,” but then he scooted closed to you and began to rub gentle circles on your palm, uttering your name so softly, and something in you snapped.

Tears came to your eyes as your head drooped and you softly sobbed, throat feeling awfully tight.

“I’m sorry,” you whispered, voice muddled, “I didn’t mean to cry, I’m sorry…”

“Hey, no, c’mon,” you heard him say softly, and his two arms wrapped around you, engulfing you in a hug you wished you’d gotten ages ago.

His fingers carded through your hair, his left hand held you close, and you could feel his lips by your temple, silent but reassuring.

You cried for an entire six minutes, because every time you told yourself to stop, the nonchalant gaze of your neighbour or the sharp words of your mum flashed in your mind and the tears came back twice as heavy.

Colt let you cry, and didn’t say a word about how you were drenching his jacket in tears, his little movements being the only thing keeping you from collapsing in your head.

When the weight you’d been feeling the entire day seemed to finally disappear, you pulled away, but only partly, still seeking Colt’s warmth.

“You alright?” he asked, voice softer than a whisper, and you felt so relieved when you smiled so naturally, and nodded.

“Yeah.” You wiped away the tear streaks on your cheeks. “I just… had a really bad few days. Everyone sounds a little extra rude.”

“I hope I’m not on the list,” he said, and you chuckled, shaking your head.

“Of course not,” you said. “You made everything better, if anything.”

“Well, I’m glad.”

You looked up at him. His gaze was keen, concerned, and so warm. His fingers were still caressing your palm. 

What a wonderful creature he was.

You found yourself leaning in and kissing him, something he most certainly did not expect, but the  faint sigh he elicited told you he didn’t mind it whatsoever. 

He kissed you back, harder.

Shit.

The heat of his mouth, the feeling of his chapped lips against yours, his large hands cupping your face, and the little sounds he made when you brought his head close seemed to complete the healing of your tired heart, and after what seemed like an eternity, the two of you broke away.

His eyes were fixed on you, flustered, but appreciative now. His face was flushed. 

After a moment’s silence, he looked down at his watch.

“Tom’s gonna be here any minute,” he muttered, his voice hoarse and hesitating. “We should leave this little hellhole.”

“Yeah. Okay.” It was an automatic response, because your brain really wasn’t functioning.

You got down the trailer, and thankfully no one spotted either of you, because of how Tom liked his privacy. 

“There’s a little bit of the scene left,” Colt explained. “They probably don’t need me, but I should go check it out.”

“Of course. Yeah. I-I should probably head home too. I really enjoyed watching you stunt, by the way. It was great.” You gave him a a pat on his back. 

“Good. That’s good.”

Colt nodded, giving you one final grin, and then turned to leave.

No, wait.

“...Colt?” you called out. 

He stopped in his tracks and spun around. He looked expectant.

“Yeah?”

You didn’t know if you were crossing any lines with what you were going to say, but at that moment, you didn’t exactly care. 

“I love you,” you said, and the words came so easily. “And thank you.”

You could see Colt’s breathing hitch, his chest raised mid-breath. Then, slowly breathing out, he murmured the words “I love you too” back, before he asked-

“Could I, um, come over tonight, maybe? I’m gonna be free,so....”

You’d forgotten anything and everything that had annoyed you at this point. All you could hear in your head was Colt now.

“Yeah, of course. Please.”

He grinned at your response, and he gave you a little goodbye wave, before walking away.

Two little hearts became whole that moment.

[joshuawithers]

Travelling with children advice

I was asked recently about advice for travelling with young children.

My family including our now 4.5 and 2 year olds, left home almost a year ago and I have this advice: after about 37 accomodations and eight countries.

Travel light. Lighter than you think. Being as little stuff as possible.

Lots of snacks. More than you think you need.

Make iPad/TV shows a special treat. Fish out the special treat when necessary for sanity or social goodwill like in a line, stuck in a train or plane cabin, or a restaurant.

Discipline your kids lovingly and well in private so they are awesome humans when in public.

Teach your kids to be bored and look at everything out the window.

Figure out what kind of daily sleep/wake/activity routine or schedule works best for your kids and run with it so that all of you have a good day and you’re not dragging your kids through a hike they were never going to enjoy.

Expect to see and do far less things than you imagined. If we do one travel or touristy thing a day that’s a win. Two is a big day. Three is a mistake.

When in lines at immigration or other important things, and they’re really unhappy, just grin and bare it. It’s a few minutes of everyone’s life, we’ll all be fine, and all the other assholes around you have been expecting the tantrum anyway. If people look at us or comment on a tantrum, I just joke about it like “sorry, she just learned about taxes” or “sorry, this is my first abduction and it’s not really going well.”

Teach your kids their names, ages, and your names so that when police come after you make a joke about abductions you can price they’re yours. Make sure they know not to joke about who their parents are and what their names are.

Bring extra dummies/soothers.

We swear by the Phil & Ted’s Travel Cot version 5. Not sponsored. We’ve tried the rest, the Bugaboo is awesome, Phil & Ted’s is better.

We also swear by the BabyZen YoYo and/or the Baby Jogger City Tour travel prams. The rest are not as good.

When boarding flights ask the staff where to “put the kids” as if you’re expecting them to not sit with you. So if with a straight face, and kind of hold the child out toward the staff, gesturing that they can take them now.

Book accomodation that is walkable to public transport and parks. Nothing else in your life matters more than a good playground. Also look for accomodation with cooking facilities, you’re going to want to cook at home.

Whatever you order for them at a restaurant will not be good enough so share meals. Encourage them to try new foods. Our mantra is that you can’t say you don’t like something if you haven’t tried it yet.

Almost all long queues can be skipped if you are a family, or if you accidentally go down the not-foreign-passport line, or if your kids has a tantrum. Turn that lemon into line-skipping lemonade.

I’ve got VLC installed on my phone with a series of old school TV shows offline like Franklin the Turtle. Old school slow TV shows are better than the visual cocaine that modern kids shows are. Damn you, Paw Patrol.

Take a million photos. Sync them with iCloud Photo Library so when you drop your phone in the Mediterranean Sea you’re not devastated. Buy disposable film cameras for the kids to make them feel involved.

Each of our girls has a snuggle toy that has come with them the whole journey. When you’re changing accomodation every few days a common smell and feel is a godsend.

I’m lucky to have travelled so much with Qantas that I have a Qantas Platinum status which gets us more luggage and airport lounges, this is so good with kids. Everyone in the Oneworld First Class Lounge thinks they’re having a fancy moment but then in runs my two year old ready to bring hell. It’s my favourite part of every flight.

Snacks. Water. Lots of snacks.

My kids like to play with tape so we have random coloured sticky tape for them to play with on flights.

Sleep. So much sleep.

These experiences and memories will be priceless. Be in the moment for them all.

[enderspawn]

GOD I’m. Thinking abt Mark. He never hated Ashe, he loved Ashe to the point of suffocation. He wanted to keep him safe and alive so he locked him away. Even if he was miserable, he was here. After losing his wife, he couldn’t take another death and projected all that fear onto Ashe. It didn’t matter if he was a shit dad, he was keeping Ashe alive and safe and clothed and fed and everything else was the cost to pay to achieve it.

But god, after Ashe’s mom died, he didn’t blame Ashe— he blamed the book. He hated the book, hated what it could do. It would’ve been so easy to hate Ashe for it too, but he didn’t. Despite all that, he trusted Ashe to still be able to control it. He let Ashe help the PD initially with the spirit world bc he trusted Ashe to keep himself safe too, he told him that! It was after Ashe got shot that he realized it didn’t matter what Ashe did, he wasn’t going to safe at all bc of the situation they’re in and tried he to make Ashe stop and leave, but Ashe told him he wanted to be a hero.

Do you think anyone ever told him what happened to his son? That he was a hero? Or did he go to prison forever unsure. Do you think him trusting Ashe that first time and letting Ashe help haunts him?

[sergiovinazzi]

Stolen - Lando Norris x Reader (Chapter Two)

2.9k words, rated E for everyone :)

Lando’s voice, amplified by the TV speakers, echoes around the humming Red Bull garage. “I’m fine but I’ve been better. I can say that I’m not in perfect condition, I’m not gonna lie. Some work to do mentally of course. I talk about that a lot, and mental health and mental strength is very important. I’ve not been sleeping that great and so on… not ideal and I’m feeling a bit sore, but I’m not the guy in the worst position after Wembley. I’ll work on it, I’ll make sure I’m in the best shape possible, and I feel like I can still go out and focus on what I need to do, and that’s the main thing.”

Your mind races as you listen to the boy plastered across the many screens revisit his experience at Wembley. He sounds awful; something about his cadence making it even more obvious that he is really, truly shaken up. The wavering pitch, awkward pausing, fumbling for words; everything about the way he presents himself is serving as a brutal reminder that being physically unscathed is no indicator that harm was not dealt. Even as the interview moves past the topic of last week’s Euro Final, you notice the shift in demeanor and your heart aches. You worry that bringing the watch to him is a bad idea, that it could prompt unbidden memories and disquieting feelings. You understand how big of an event Silverstone is from your dad’s tangents alone, especially for an English team with an English driver, so you reevaluate whether your decision to come was selfish, one made solely to alleviate your own sentiments of guilt rather than to verily right your believed wrongdoings.

On the journey to Silverstone, your dad had made multiple attempts at lessening your stress, even opting for variations of the if he steps out of line I will put him right back in his place father speech. Unfortunately fruitless, your father’s attempts mean you remain just as anxious as when you had first discovered that you managed to obtain a stolen wristwatch.

You’re not sure whether it’s the crisp morning air or your nerves that sends chills across your flesh, but your attempt to ground yourself subtly doesn’t go unnoticed by your dad as he passes you in the garage.

“Time is ticking,” he informs you, a smirk playing on his lips. “No pun intended.”

You roll your eyes in an attempt to downplay your apprehension, but your voice gives away any and all signs of the false confidence you hope to portray. “Can you do it for me?” you plead.

“I can’t just stroll on over to the McLaren garage without an invitation or proper reason, especially not a couple hours before free practice starts. It doesn’t look good.”

“It’s not like me walking in there instead would look any better,” you retort, gesturing to the Red Bull logo plastered across the chest of your black polo. “Your branding isn’t what I would call subtle.”

“Look, the McLaren team are a good sort. They’ll help you out if you just explain the issue and show them the watch. I’m sure Lando will understand too, he seems like a pretty nice bloke,” your dad reassures you.

Sighing, your eyes meet the floor, fingers intertwined with each other as you fidget incessantly. Before you can speak up in further defiance, however, an additional set of footsteps grow nearer and you freeze at the voice which speaks up.

“Christian, how much longer until our media slot?”

You lose your breath momentarily, locking your gaze onto your shoes as you wait for the person to pass by.

“About five minutes, Max,” your dad replies. “We were just about to head over.”

When you hear the footsteps grow fainter, you risk looking up, thankfully being met with only the observance of your father. You don’t even realize that you’ve tensed your body until your dad points it out.

“Relax,” he says. “He’s not going to say anything here, especially not on a race weekend.”

Nodding, you feel your shoulders ease up but you remain quiet.

“Anyways, like I said, our media briefing and interviews start soon and we’re after McLaren this weekend so they should already be back in their garage,” he says, realizing that you still appear troubled by the task ahead of you. “I promise you, everything will be fine. Just go over there and I’ll meet you back here when we’re done. The quicker you head over, the quicker you’re done with it and we can all move on." With that, your dad walks away and you reluctantly leave the Red Bull garage, adjusting your shirt as you straighten up.

You take a brief glance at your phone, turning it off after you try one last time to keep the picture of the boy imprinted in your mind. Eyes darting rapidly, you attempt to scan the paddock for anyone looking remotely like him while you make your way towards the bright orange and blue indicators of the McLaren garage.

The frequency of orange-clad individuals grows the further you stray from the safety of Red Bull’s garage, and you feel your heartbeat begin to increase. Worried that someone would stop you before you could approach the one person you had traveled all the way to Silverstone for in the first place, you quicken your pace.

You’re mere meters away when you spot him. Pushing past a few people while trying to keep your eyes trained on him, you watch as he turns around to talk briefly with the woman next to him.

Huffing, you muster up the little confidence you have and tap him on the shoulder.

His confusion is evident and the blonde woman next to him does not look pleased to have been interrupted. The silence is palpable as they stare at you, expecting an explanation for the abrupt ending of their conversation.

“Hi,” is all you can deliver. You’re at a loss for words while the woman next to him seems to lose what little patience she has with you. Everything you had rehearsed beforehand, gone. Your mind is foggy and your mouth feels dry as you try to compose yourself. “Um, can I talk to you for a second? It won’t be long, I promise.” Your voice breaks at the end and you wish you had never agreed to get on that stupid red-eye to Silverstone in the first place.

Lando offers a look of sympathy and then turns to the woman next to him. “Charlotte, could you just give us a second?”

Pursing her lips and turning on her heel, the woman walks away, heading towards the mouth of the McLaren garage. She’s far enough away that you’re out of earshot, but close enough that you feel her gaze linger as Lando turns back to face you.

“Hey, don’t worry,” he tells you with a smile. “We can take a picture if you want or I can sign some stuff for you.”

“What? No.” You shake your head, mentally slapping your palm against your forehead and forcing yourself to get a grip. Idiot. “Fuck, sorry, that sounded so rude! It’s just-” you rush to explain.

“Oh no, it’s okay!” he stammers. “I should’ve guessed from the Red Bull shirt anway.”

You both share an awkward laugh before you compose yourself and reach a shaky hand into your bag.

“This is going to sound so weird, but I was online shopping for a new watch the other day because I lost mine, and I’m pretty sure I bought the one that was stolen from you. I didn’t know anything about it, I swear. I just...well, here,” you say, offering the watch and its temporary box to Lando.

He looks at you, taking the box only to go wide-eyed at the contents inside.

“I have all the information that I was able to get, but the ad was taken off of eBay and I really wanted to do the right thing and give it back to you. Please don’t be mad.”

“What the hell?!” he exclaims, earning a few looks from people passing by and catching Charlotte’s attention once more. “Sorry, sorry. How did you get this?”

Amused, you laugh quietly while he studies the watch intently. “That was my dad’s reaction too. Basically there was a listing for it on eBay and it was sort of an impulse buy,” you explain. “I didn’t see the news coverage of what happened until afterwards and I felt awful. I’m really sorry you had to go through that, I genuinely had no idea.”

Shrugging, he plays it off. “Nothing I can’t handle.” It’s hard to miss his sudden change in attitude from the interview you watched moments ago and you can’t help but wonder whether he has your or the watch’s presence to thank.

There is a brief moment of silence between you both before he continues. “How much did you pay for it?”

“It was so cheap, honestly,” you say. “Nothing compared to the original price, I’m sure.”

Charlotte, alerted by Lando’s attention-grabbing reaction to being reunited by his watch, returns to where the two of you are standing. “Oh wow, did you find a replacement watch for him?” she asks you, clearly impressed by the apparent likeness.

“No, Charlotte”, he corrects her. “It’s my one. Look.” He hands the watch to his PR manager, who receives it so gently you think she’s afraid it might shatter in her hands. Flipping the watch between her fingers, she studies the small engraving on the underside of the face.

“Oh my god,” she whispers.

Lando nods. “It’s the exact date it was given to me, there’s no way anyone else could know that and make a copy of it.”

You feel the need to justify yourself to her. “It was listed online and I bought it before I knew anything about the situation. I didn’t even really know who Lando was until I saw what happened on the news, I swear.” You anticipate her anger or disapproval, preparing yourself to withstand the lecture you’re about to receive and mentally promising that, as soon as it’s over, you can run back to your dad and tell him you just want to go home.

But it doesn’t come.

“I can’t believe it!” she exclaims. “We all thought we’d never see it again and you found it on accident.” The smile she gives you sets your mind at ease. “Technically, this is a police matter now, so I’ll have to hand it over to the right people, but this helps us tremendously. Did you get any information about the seller?”

You explain the situation to her, about how the listing was taken offline but you have a printout of the messages and address the seller gave you, which you hand her from your bag. She lets you know that someone may get in touch soon to ask questions but not to worry, that it’s only a formality. Eventually, she asks if you’d like to watch free practice from a spot in the mobile hospitality unit, but you politely decline, explaining that you needed to get back to your dad in the Red Bull garage instead.

Charlotte smiles fondly at Lando and presses the brim of his cap down over his eyes. “Come on, you, we have to go and get ready now anyway.”

He takes off his hat, cheeks flushing as he makes an effort to quickly brush the curls lining his forehead, placing it back on and dismissing Charlotte with a wave of his hand. “Okay, just give me a minute.”

Once the two of you are alone, he pulls out his phone. “Do you have Venmo? I’ll pay you back, it’s not fair that you had to waste your money.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it.”

Lando seems unconvinced. “It’s really not a problem.”

“Seriously, it’s all good.”

“Well,” he continues awkwardly. “I have to go, but are you here for the whole weekend or...?”

You shake your head. “Just today. I’m not into Formula 1, I find it a little bit boring.”

“Seriously?! The fastest cars in the world and you’re calling it boring? Why even come to something like Silverstone if it’s so boring?” he feigns offense, doing air quotes as he imitates your apparent disdain for the sport.

Laughing quietly, you shrug. “I have family at Red Bull, so it was basically just luck and convenience that you were in the U.K. this weekend,” you clarify. “I don’t really understand Formula 1, that’s all.”

“Fair enough, it’s not for everyone I suppose,” Lando replies. “So who in your family works at Red–” The end of his question is drowned out by the sound of his name called by an evidently disgruntled, impatient engineer.

He sighs. “I’m sorry, I’ve really gotta go, but, um,” he exhales with a nervous laugh. “I still feel like I need to repay you in some way. Do you want to go get a drink after the race on Sunday? I’m busy for the next few days but Sunday night I’ll be free. Only if you want to, of course, I don’t want to, like, pressure you or anything.”

You laugh, appreciative that the nervousness was shared. “That– Yeah, that sounds fine. I’ll give you my number.”

He types your details into his phone before apologizing once more, thanking you again, and rushing off into the garage.

——

On Sunday, you let your dad believe he’s the one who convinced you to stay for the entire race weekend, but it’s the promise of Lando’s company later that night and the endearing text messages on your phone that prompts the desire to see this weekend through. You had spent the previous nights on your phone, going through driver and team Instagram accounts, as well as the F1 website, to get an idea of what to expect. Typically, it would pain you to look through motorsport news pages, especially with so many of the reports centering around Max and his vie for the championship as of late, but you manage.

You notice almost immediately while settling into your spot at the back of the garage that the energy does not match your own. You are enthusiastic and eager, while the rest of the team is stressed and rushes around you. Presumably, it’s because race day impacts their livelihoods and paycheks whereas it only dictates your family’s dinner topics, but, nevertheless, your excitement refuses to simmer.

Unfortunately, if it was weird for you to be seen at the McLaren garage before the first free practice, it would be infinitely more suspicious for you to be lingering around on race day, so you were not able to catch Lando at all since your initial meeting on Friday. However, you made sure to message him good luck beforehand, to which he thanked you and expressed excitement for your upcoming night.

“If you need anything, just ask. I’ll be on the pitwall,” your dad says, snapping you out of your whirring mind. He notices your obscure behavior, quick to comment on it. “Is it weird? Being here after so long?”

You nod, shrugging. “Unusual, for sure. So much has changed since the last time I came and watched, but I’m excited, though.”

“Well, it’s always good to have you here.”

Reciprocating your dad’s grin, you silently send him on his way. He exits quickly and leaves you to your own devices. Though, your own devices look to consist of impatiently waiting for the race to start and scrolling absentmindedly through your phone. Ironically, your boredom with pre-race antics appears to create quite the dichotomy against the chaos exuding from the garage you find yourself encompassed in.

Regardless, your attention is regained when frequent cuts are made to the drivers in their cars, and you recognise that the race will be starting soon. You are temporarily startled when the cars begin moving without hearing an official announcement, but quickly realisee that it is merely a formation lap and no one else around you seems to be paying all too much mind to it.

When the cars return to their positions on the grid, you watch eagerly as the lights flash and the announcers begin yelling. You keep your eyes trained on the orange car towards the front of the grid, watching Lando so intently that you almost miss what happens to the cars in front of him.

Your eyes go wide as you watch the events unfold: the Red Bull car out front collides with what you identify as a Mercedes, spinning and slamming into the barrier. Gasps chorus across the garage as the screens replay slowed clips of the crash as an announcement states that the safety car has been deployed. They replay it from every conceivable angle, your astonishment at the severity is present upon your first viewing, but it’s only after the sixth clip that it clicks in your head that the person in the car is Max.

“For the second time this season, Hamilton and Verstappen clash and tangle on the opening lap, but, this time, it is ending in dramatic consequences for the championship leader.”

If you had perceived the pre-race behavior in the garage as chaotic, this was a whole new level of absurdity.

People rush around you while orders are shouted and frustrations are verbalised.

Your dad is angry.

The last time you recall him behaving like this was when your younger sister had broken the wine glasses he had bought for your mother on their honeymoon. You, however, ignore his yelling and remain encapsulated by the TV, releasing a breath you didn’t know you were holding as the events unfolding finally, finally register in your brain.

Car number 33 is in the wall and out of the race, and your ex-boyfriend is inside, silent and unmoving.

____________

tag list @lovebynorth @its-astrotea-love

[fiction-is-not-reality3]

Glad to have you back!!!

Thank you!

+ Anon: Did you put the 2nd blog on the wayback machine?

There are a bunch of posts/pages that have been saved there, but a past attempt at putting the entirety of my first blog there pretty much failed.

As of now, it's best to follow the same course of action that we were using for my first blog too: if you happen to remember a specific post you want to read (or wonder about one), just describe it to me and I'll put it up on DW if I find it.

[My first blog had also been uploaded as its own site by a very kind old mutual, but then it went offline. I don't know if it will go up again in the near future.]

+ Anon: i was worried for a second, nice to see you again

+ Anon: Seeing your new blog reminds me of the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet. See, when it was founded in 1830 it was pretty critical of the then-current king, so he banned it from publishing. However this didn’t mean the owner was forbidden from making a new one! So he made The Second Aftonbladet. Then, when that also got banned, The Third Aftonbladet. It got up to The 26th Aftonbladet before the king gave up. Anyway, glad to have you back.

+ Anon: Hey! Glad I was able to find you again, I was worried for a second there. 😅 Good to see you’re back! Sad to see that folks/Tumblr nuked you for no good reason, but happy you’re darn resilient. 😁

I swear we're still going to be here for finr26 lmao

+ Anon: Ha, this anon sent their own share of validation seeking asks to FinR 2 in the dead of night after reading 10 too many Hot Takes and having a crisis of morals and identity. You gave me good advice on a few so thank you for that I’m glad they live on in archive form Lol

Everyone's rants (except the ones still in my inbox, RIP) have been saved for posterity.

+ Anon: So it’s been around three years now I’ve been following you and you get forced to go on FinR 3. Sorry if I cursed you?

Use your powers for good, nonnie, jeez.

+ Anon: welcome back, finr! love your finrzesty crisp profile pic >:3c

Today was actually the day I was supposed to change it to the finrcest version, but we're celebrating finr3 so it's going to stay up for a bit longer.

+ Anon: Updates on finr 2?

Absolutely nothing on their side.

+ Anon: I guess it's only a matter of time before people try to get this one nuked too. I find it incredibly galling and I hope everything is backed up in a place I can find it. You're a light in the wilderness.

Unfortunately for them, there's no shutting me up.

[thefanficmonster]

Begone

Streamer Gang & Asexual Reader (Gender Neutral)

Warnings: Acephobia, Swearing

Genre: Platonic Fluff, Comfort, RPF (Real Person Fic)

Summary: Having recently come out as asexual, Y/N faces some less than pleasant or appropriate responses in their chat during their stream with the gang. Luckily, they’re not alone in battling the haters this time.

Requested by the lovely Anon who told acephobes to begone, yeah you know who you are hehe. Thank you so much for the request darling! Let’s show these acehobes who they’re messing with! Love, Vy ❤

Boy is this nerve-wrecking or what? Sure, I maybe woke up with a ton of confidence, I listened to motivational and uplifting talks and listened to mood boosting music. I had a healthy breakfast and a cup of coffee. Damn it, I went on a run, all in an attempt to convince myself that dealing with the online world again is but a piece of cake for a badass like me. Well, low and behold, that feeling didn’t last very long. Here I am, chewing my nails off at the though of hopping in the Discord call and Among Us lobby with my friends and starting my stream. It’s not like I’m not expecting my friends and fans to support me - of course I am! I know they’re gonna give me a ton of love and appreciation and support and uplift me no matter what. But then again, there’s still those people who believe me and other people like me to be invalid and broken and whatnot.

Those are the ones I wanna avoid. 

It’s not like their words mean much to me but I simply don’t wanna see em, you know? It’s not only about me - it’s least about me actually - it’s more about all those wonderful people they are insulting when they say shit like that about asexuals and all the people on the ace spectrum. I can’t help but flare up and get angry on the behalf of all my ace friends and even people I’ve never met.

It’s also my first time being directly thrown into the fire instead of getting caught in the crossfire seeing as how I came out to my fandom via a tweet and an Instagram post a week ago, telling my identity’s truth: finally bringing my asexuality to the surface to shine its brightest so I can be be my best and reach for my full potential.

But damn am I afraid to see how everyone took it. 

My friends were quick to jump in and take me offline before I start refreshing my own posts to see the comments under them. Lord knows that without them I would’ve driven myself insane, I’ll forever be grateful for what they did and the lengths they went to to keep me offline and whatnot. One word to give you an idea of how invested they were in this: origami. All of us might as well have been born with two left hands and yet we still tried doing origami. Freaking origami.

Damn do I love my friends.

But now I don’t have sheets of paper and my friends to distract me. I have a fanbase to entertain and another friend group I haven’t talked to in a while. I don’t wanna get any predictions in already so I don’t jinx myself, so I’m just gonna say it’s gonna be...interesting regardless of what happens.

Then again, when is it not interesting when the streamer gang’s involved.

Deep breaths, Y/N. You got this

Listening to that encouraging little voice inside my head, I finally equip my headphones and in one fluid motion turn my camera on, officially starting my stream and unmuting my mic as I hop in the call with everyone.

“Hi guys! Guess who’s returned!“ I exclaim cheerfully, desperate to hide the nervousness of my voice.

“You really missed your opportunity to say ‘guess who’s back...back again’ didn’t you?“ Charlie is the one who greets me first, sounding rather disappointed in me in his usual jokester manner. It’s nice to hear, it makes me feel like nothing’s changed in the week I’ve been gone. Like I’m still the same person to these people. I really am the same, I just now am a lot better version of myself. Almost as though I’ve reached my final form. It feels empowering really. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding.” Charlie laughs again, “Congrats, by the way. You keep proving you can get cooler and cooler.“

“Careful there Charlie, I can only handle so large of an ego.“ I joke back, rolling my eyes playfully as a wide grin spreads across my face, “No, but seriously, thank you so much, man. It means the world to me that you support me.“

“Um, how could we NOT?“ That’s very clearly Rae, “Hun, you are so brave and amazing and wonderful, how could we ever NOT support you?“

“Yeah, we’ll always support you no matter what, Y/N. We’ll always be your friends, through thick, thin and beyond.“ Poki too interferes, her words only making my smile wider.

“Alright, alright, y’all are gonna make me cry and I haven’t even read my chat yet, hold on.“ I say, fanning my face to dry the tears I hope the webcam isn’t spotting, “Darn, you guys are the best. Sorry, give me a sec to gather my composure, I’ll be right back.“

I quickly mute my in-game mic as I turn to my chat where I see the same amount of love and support in the form of comments and emojis flooding in from my viewers. A warm feeling spreads throughout my chest, making me feel the most comfortable with myself I’ve ever felt. The most loved I’ve ever felt. The most seen and understood. To finally be you feels like you are finally really living in this world, not like you’ve been already living in it for God knows how long. It makes me so freaking happy and fulfilled to finally be living as me, as the real me.

Unfortunately, in life, nothing can be 100% pure and good. There’s always at least 1% there threatening to ruin all your happiness you worked so hard to build or obtain. It may be one in a hundred, but fuck it’s powerful and effective.

And in my case it comes in the form of two comments that stick out to my eyes. Acephobic comments saying my identity’s fake, claiming I’m faking it, saying us acephobes are immature creatures who refuse to grow up, or attention whores. Or just saying we’re delusional and in denial, confused about who we are.

I hadn’t even realized I was clenching my jaw and fists but when I do, I slowly relax my muscles and crack my knuckles before addressing the two people who spat out that nonsense.

“Ok, listen here, shooterpro69 and yourmom_lol. For starters, I want to apologize for your ignorance and lack of education on the matter of asexuality. In fact, for you especially, I plan on making an educational video, explaining asexuality to people who need or want to learn more. You, my friends, are in desperate need to be fed some knowledge cause damn, God knows how many people secretly think you’re hella stupid. Not that they’re wrong to think so but anyway. Unless you have anything nice or positive to say, begone from my chat. Actually, when I think about it, begone from every chat. No one needs you polluting their communities with acephobia and hate.“ I say, all spoken in a calm tone despite the boiling anger within me. People who know me well would probably be able to tell I’m fuming underneath the calm façade, but at least I got my message across loud and clear.

“WOO HOO, You tell em Y/N!“ Toast cheers, clapping his hands and whistling as more cheering arises from each my friends, leaving me in a state of mild shock and confusion.

Wait, what?!

“Um, wait, you guys heard that?“ I ask, my eyes darting to thein-game mic symbol that shows an not crossed-off mic, meaning it was enabled during the entirety of my speech.

“Hell yeah we did! You slayed them, Y/N! Damn goddamn!“ Rae whistles too, her enthusiasm wafting over me like a breath of fresh air.

“I second that!“ Corpse joins in, “And remember what we said - we’ll support you through anything. Need to bury an acephobe’s body, we’re the people you should call.” He says, confident as heck.

And I just can’t hold it in anymore - I burst out laughing, doubling over from the intensity.

If I thought I was happy and fulfilled before, this has to be the closest to paradise I’m gonna get on Earth.  All thanks to these wonderful people. Friends are really something else aren’t they: they come into your life - often unexpectedly - and change it completely. Suddenly you’re not alone, you’re not forced to deal with everything and face everything on your own. Someone’s got your back and you’ve got theirs.

Through thick, thin and beyond.

And it’s so fucking amazing.

@maat-the-prescriptive  @simonsbluee  @save-the-sky  @itsminniekat  @hacker-ghost  @bi-andready-tocry  @imtiredaffff  @jazzkaurtheglorious  @hereforbeebo  @fandomgirl17  @chrysanthykios  @maehemscorpyus  @loraleiix  @letsloveimagines  @annshit  @i-cant-choose-a-username-help  @enigmaticmaze  @divine-artemis  @waterlilypat  @idontknowwhatthisisfam  @evi-ka  @classyandfabulous00  @redperson58  @lilysdaydreams @solowheein  @mythicalamphitrite  @axen-gers  @luckygirl144  @nj01  @buddyemily   @the-albino-lioness  @stardream14  @gdhdkfnn  @nomadicgypsyy  @preciousskye  @fluffysuicideunicornsworld  @o-kaelin  @manacharlotte  @awkward-youtube-trash  @lolalee24  @bonky-beerns  @meme-lord-and-savior-sebastian  @strawbrinkofdeath  @teenloves  @tams0527  @browneyespinkhair  @starstruckllamapuppy  @daisychains012  @y0ulooked  @tinytacosuitcaseflap @supernatural-is-my-only-life  @jula-pauline  @melodykitty  @just-that-bi-girl  @crazybutconfidentaf  @lowellshade @alphakees  @bellero  @weallneednamjesus  @starryhanji  @boiled-onionrings  @husherstan  @fockingwhore  @melaningoddessthings  @prettypastelpetals  @haleypearce  @godwhyamiawkward  @y-napotat  @daisychainyoonmin  @little-miss-rebel3  @free-wheelin-bi-sexual  @redmoon261 @darkacademic2  @wiseflamingoqueen  @into-the-end  @namikhai-i  @nastiablr  @thelittleplantlover  @mirktuan  @dont-hyuck @jjk-bunny  @vintagegothlover  @easygoingtheatre  @itsrandombooklover  @miiaivi  @emmybaybee  @befourgolden  @jjk-is-my-shit  @eternalteaaars  @spacebadgerx  @princesslunalight  @acequinn14  @samm48  @misselsbells06 @simp-lykawa  @fo-love  @marishimomura-blog  @therealglenncoco  @cinnamonbun332  @killtherandomness  @sanshinexxxsan  @fee-btheweeb  @press-lay  @cathleenpotgieter16  @jazzydoesstuff  @moonlxghtbay  @forestrain2000  @hyunjinhugs  @blood-of-fandoms  @lovellylies  @ukiyolixx  @simpforhpcharacters  @chrisdylan17  @parkerjisung  @pedernille  @theodonyous  @wineandionysus  @malfoystilinskii05  @morbid-x  @coryisagee  @jessewa26  @scoobydooluver97 @mindintheskies365  @raeanneinwonderland  @indecisive-empanada  @gluttonypalace  @loriane2503  @btsiguess-kpop  @khaoticbunny  @lucidlycactus  @smiithys  @rottenroyalebooks  @kpopgirlbtssvt  @fangirl-tc27  @fr0z3n-1  @notmesimpingfortechno  @shotarosleftpinky  @kunoi-chan  @idk-whats-wrong-with-me  @yikeroonie  @goldenstarofthunderclan  @poetry-and-tea  @ama-do-writing-stuff  @wishbonewolf  @emeraldxhope  @t0xick1tty  @kusuinko  @speakyourselfloveyourself  @sophia902103  @lo-manburg  @classsykittykat  @dmgama  @depressedpuppythatneedscoffee  @btsiguess-kpop  @akaashi-baby  @gun-jong-simp  @geschichtenfee  @yerapotato-wp  @browneyedgirl365  @thysagclub  @sparklycloudnight  @helloatomicshadow  @queentorresstuff @vtte @val-gal  @lucy-bunny17  @aaliyahh0  @katluckybear  @boyleanti  @straybids  @franchesca-791  @cosmicstorm19  @averyisbackinthetrashcan  @aomi-nabi  @xlanawriter  @allensimpsforcorpse  @sunnyrae-cessh  @ladykxxx08  @meowiemari

[softzhongli]

summary: a closer look at the most exclusive group chat in all teyvat. we have two oblivious idiots in love, two horny bastards afraid of their feelings, a grumpy cat and his sunshine boyfriend and one very single and tired girl... among many many others warnings: swearing, probably some angst info: crack fic, multi-chaptered, social media au, not much difference they just have phones lmao pairings: childe x kaeya // xiao x venti // zhongli x diluc + lumine and other characters requests: open posted: 23/02/2022 a/n: listen, idk who hurt me for me to be this excited about the angst i'm about to unleash on kaeya and childe but... let me just say... it's gonna get so much worse for chaeya before it gets better 😇 i thriVE ON ANGST hehehe 😈

PREV II MASTERLIST II NEXT

CHAT: 🤡 clown town 🤡 ⮡  members: lumine / diluc / xiao / venti / childe / kaeya / zhongli / thoma

venti: can't believe how dead this chat was these past few days

venti: where y'all at?

xiao: always next to you

venti: i love you so much you have no idea 😭🖤

xiao: you'd be surprised

venti: stop being so cute my heart's melting

xiao: 🖤

venti: i really had to do something right to deserve you

xiao: i feel the same way

venti: 😭🖤

venti: can't believe y'all are missing this top tier xiaoven moment

diluc: i was missing it on purpose

kaeya: lol

venti: rude?

venti: ehh...

venti: anyway

venti: so @lumine how's inazuma?

lumine: can't talk right now, ayaka’s giving me a ground tour

venti: this is a safe space, you can just say you're on a date

lumine: 🙄

thoma: she can't talk, they’re on a date

thoma: there 💁🏼‍♀️

kaeya: nice lmao

venti: what are you laughing at?

venti: you're part of the reason why this chat is being dead

venti: go stand in the corner and think about your actions, young man

lumine: can't argue with that 🤷🏼‍♀️

kaeya: don't you just love how xiao always disappears from the chat whenever we're all here?

venti: don't change the subject

venti: and leave my future husband out of this

xiao: husband...

xiao: i like the sound of that

lumine: my poor single heart

lumine: you're too freaking cute 😭

venti: @xiao and i like YOU 😜

lumine: we should all remember this day bc it's the most active xiao has ever been since the day i created this group chat

lumine: i'm so proud 🤭

lumine: but i do have to ask tho

lumine: @kaeya any updates???

venti: 👀

thoma: 👀

venti: can i just say...

venti: i absolutely love how thoma became one of us

lumine: ikr? that's very hot of him

thoma: 🔥🥵💦

thoma: but also

thoma: @lumine you can’t just flirt like that with me

thoma: i’m spoken for, now

lumine: -_-

kaeya: @lumine no idea what you're talking about 🤷🏻‍♀️

lumine: kaeya c'mon

lumine: childe's offline you can just say what's up

kaeya: nothing's up

venti: kaeya 🙄

kaeya: no, seriously...

kaeya: nothing's up...

lumine: wait what?

venti: what do you mean?

kaeya: 🥲

venti: kaeya, are you okay?

kaeya: hah, i honestly don't know

lumine: babe what's going on?

venti: talk to us

kaeya: guess everyone already know what happened

diluc: we do

thoma: and we're all worried

zhongli: about both of you, to be clear

kaeya: haaaa

kaeya: is childe okay?

venti: what?

zhongli: i suppose you could say that

kaeya: good, that's good

lumine: you're freaking me out, what's going on?

diluc: kaeya did something happen?

kaeya: nope

diluc: then what's going on?

kaeya: sigh

diluc: hey, take your time, it's okay

lumine: fuck i know now's not the right time but I have to say, overprotective diluc? hotter than his vision

diluc removed lumine from the group.

venti: big dick move

zhongli: it's definitely not the right moment but if I am being honest I do have to agree with @lumine on this, i’m sorry

diluc: i-

diluc: wait-

diluc: i-

venti: @zhongli you broke diluc again T^T

diluc: fuck-

diluc: not the time

diluc: i-

diluc: fuuuck

venti added lumine to the group.

lumine: @diluc sorry daddy I've been naughty

venti: asdfhhjkl

venti: sorry daddy I've been naughty >>> forgive me father for I have sinned

zhongli: @diluc are you okay?

diluc: i... don't know

diluc: @kaeya you've had a few moments to think can you talk now?

lumine: changing the subject, huh? smooth

kaeya: I haven't heard form childe since lumine's birthday

lumine:

venti:

thoma:

diluc: what?

venti: as in you didn't have time... to meet?

kaeya: as in i haven't seen him, as in i haven't talk to him, as in complete radio silence

lumine: no...

lumine: but you were both talking in the chat the other day!

kaeya: yeah to you, not to each other :)))

venti: how's that possible???

kaeya: you haven't told him, right?

kaeya: about what happened at lumine’s party?

lumine: omg, babes of course we didn't

venti: it's not our place to tell him

kaeya: then i don't know why

diluc: @zhongli did childe say anything to you?

zhongli: sigh

zhongli: he did but i hope you understand it's also not my place to say

diluc: mmm

kaeya: i get it

kaeya: and i wouldn't want to put you in a difficult situation

kaeya: i know how much childe trusts you

zhongli: thank you, kaeya

zhongli: what i can tell you - it's probably not as complicated as you make it out to be

zhongli: and a piece of advice if i may?

kaeya: yeah, go ahead

zhongli: you two should definitely talk

zhongli: it'd do both of you some good

kaeya: wait but you said childe's okay?

zhongli: i said you could say so. i believe he wants me to think so but i don't think he really is

kaeya: fuck, it's my fault

zhongli: it's as much your fault as it is childe's

kaeya: damn @diluc you really did pick the right person to fall for

diluc: so did you, just talk to him, like zhongli said

lumine: *whispers* did diluc just confirmed he's in love with zhongli?

venti: *whispers back* i believe so, but honestly, knowing diluc he didn't even notice

thoma: *whispers* hey! i wanna be in the inner circle too!

diluc: I'll remove the three of you

thoma: 😳

venti: 😳

lumine: sorry daddy

diluc removed lumine from the group.

venti: #riplumine

thoma: "worth it" -lumine

venti: she's gonna get you removed too thoma, don't trust her with your phone ☠️

thoma added lumine to the group.

venti: you added yourself, huh?

lumine: no regrets

lumine: @kaeya do you want me to text childe? idk... ask when he's free or something?

kaeya: thanks but i think this is something i have to do myself

kaeya: i was the one who got myself in this mess

zhongli: that's very mature of you

diluc: it'll be good for you both

lumine: proud of you, babe!

venti: you got this! (xiao says the same!)

thoma: 💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻

kaeya: yeah, thanks...

[beelsnack]

XBSBSBSJDJX hewwo can I uhh request the brothers reactions/them dealing w an MC who's just. Vv affectionate? They just like to shower all of the brothers in praise nd compliments nd physical affection. They're just like. A classic deredere.

I’ll be honest with you friend, I had no idea what a deredere was, I had to look it up. I feel like I have to turn in my weeb card now.

-----

Lucifer: "You're so beautiful."

For a moment, the compliment stunned him. Sure, people had been entranced by his appearance since before the Celestial War. But to hear it said so randomly, so sincerely...

"What do you want?" They were probably digging for brownie points, his brothers did it all the time. He regarded them coolly out of the corner of his eye as he continued scribbling away at the report he was working on.

They pushed themselves off of the door frame where they had been leaning and made their way over to his desk. "Nothing. I just wanted to tell you." 

Then, the brazen little imp that they were, they approached from behind his chair and draped their arms around his shoulder in a hug.

The sudden warmth and weight of them caused his brain to go offline. Most people, demons, witches or otherwise, were terrified to be in his presence, and here was this fragile little human embracing him like he was a stuffed toy.

He...didn’t hate it.

Mammon: “Why do you look so excited?”

They hadn’t even left the grounds of the House of Lamentation yet and already the human was practically skipping down the street. Satan had asked Mammon to go pick up some ingredients for dinner, and then had asked the human to go with him to “keep him in line.” Cheeky little brats, both of them.

“Because,” the human grinned up at him, the picture of pure joy as they latched on to both of his hands. “I don’t get to spend much time with you one-on-one. So any time spent with my First Demon makes me happy.”

Somewhere in the back of his brain there was the sound of glass shattering. Mammon felt heat creep up his neck and ears as his heartbeat kicked into high gear as he tried to process just how damn cute that was.

“You - I - what - g’ah, cut the sappy shit and let’s just go already!”

He started walking again, still holding on to one of their hands.

Leviathan: “Come on, come on, come on ,come on...yes!!”

With an unearthly shriek, the final boss fell to the ground in a mass of oily black smoke and writhing tentacles.After hours of grinding, Levi and the human watching their score tally up on the results screen.

“Whoa!! New world record!” Levi cried out as the graphic flashed on the screen. “We just destroyed the top score by a good ten thousand points!”

“We did it, Levi!” 

They apparently had gotten caught up in the moment and forgot about Levi’s aversion to physical contact. In their excitement, they flung their arms around his neck and gave him a victory hug.

Levi’s arms and lap were suddenly full of very warm and very 3D human, and he could practically feel the sparks shooting out of his ears as Levi.exe tried to process the sensory imput.

“Oh, sorry!” just as quickly as they had tackled him, they drew back, and, surprisingly, Levi found himself missing the warmth. “I forgot about the no touchy rule!”

The heat from his face was probably enough to boil the water in Henry’s tank. “I-I...um...s-since this is a special occasion, I suppose I c-can forgive you...”

Satan: “...and make sure to step out of the circle before finishing it, or else you could get caught in the middle of an inferno.”

The human stared at the notebook in front of them intently. Magical circles were complex, and after a while all of them started to look the same, so of course they went to Satan when they needed help studying.

With an elegant flick of his wrist, Satan finished his example drawing. “And there you go. Does that help at all?”

“Yes, absolutely!” they smiled gratefully, leaning their head against his shoulder. “You’re so smart, Satan, I knew you were the one to go to.”

The compliment made him blush slightly, but he liked to think that he had good control of his facial expressions. “You flatter me.”

“Is it flattery if it’s true?”

“Accurate flattery is still flattery.” he laughed. wrapping an arm around their shoulder and pulling them closer against him. “But you’re welcome. Anytime you need help, come to me.”

Asmodeus: “See, I told you that color would look great on you!”

The human studied themself in the mirror, turning this way and that to get all of the angles. “Wow, I definitely never would have picked this for myself. You really are a fashion genius, Asmo!”

“Aw, thank you, darling!” he hopped up from his seat on his bed. “Not that I don’t get that a lot, but it means more coming from you.”

“You just have to get that brag in there, don’t you?” they teased, latching onto his arm.

“I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t,” Asmo let them hang on his arm like he was their escort. “It’s part of my charm!”

Beelzebub: “Do you like it?”

The human gulped down the mouthful of soup and grinned up at him. “Beel, this is amazing! You’re the best cook ever, I swear.”

Beel smiled back. “I’m glad, I tried really hard not to eat it all before you got to have some.”

“Mm,” they took another bite. “Who needs Hell’s Kitchen, you’re cooking is way better!”

“Well,” Beel blushed. That was a pretty big compliment. “The chef’s there do share a lot of their recipes with me, so...”

“Yeah, but it’s better when you make it!”

“I don’t really do much different though.”

“Food always tastes better when it’s made by someone you love.”

...Well then. Now Beel was definitely blushing.

Belphegor: He’d fallen asleep.

Not that this was a rare occurrence, but he hadn’t planned on passing out in the human’s bed while they were studying. Something about their voice, their scent, their warmth was just really soothing, he couldn’t help it.

Speaking of warmth...

“Are you awake now, Belphie?”

Slowly but surely, he became aware of his surroundings. While he was asleep, the human had placed his head in their lap, continuing to read over the study guide while they played with his hair.

“Nope.” he snuggled closer to them. “Not for long, anyway. Feels too nice...”

“Sorry,” they laughed sheepishly. “I couldn’t help it, you looked too cute.”

“Only you would call a demon cute.”

[p1nkwitch]

The beggining. or Part 1 to keep it in order

@nonbinaryeye

Several chats to one Peter Lukas who has gone missing after Jon killed him to "save" Martin, very season 4. Still.

ARSONPOET started pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

AP: Are you still alive?

AP: Peter?

AP: I know Jon killed you, but you still had your extra body in derse, i saw it last time i slept.

AP: Cmon I have questions!!!

AP:... You aren't dead for real.. right?

ARSONPOET ceased pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

WATCHERSCROWN started pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

WC: Peter I'm seriously starting to be ticked off! How many messages do I need to send? Its been days!!

WC: Stop hiding out of embarrassment. So what if Jon got your statement? Look, it's not my fault you were the one being insistent about getting Martin to reach god tier and Jonathan misunderstood. I mean ok, fine i did send him your way! Happy!? But you could have left, instead you decided to be difficult and got killed. Jon won't even tell me what he asked you that you refused to answer.

WC: Look just answer me back soon alright? i need your help with something, we are trying to come up with a plan to beat the black king, the entities have completely morphed him and now its looking almost impossible to beat.

WC: ….

WC: If this is about that, you are just being difficult, i'm telling you that it's not like that!! If you want to fight again fine. So be it.

WC: Also what is wrong with the consorts in your land they are acting off, i think-

WC: SHIT

WATCHERSCROWN ceased pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

FALLINGTITAN started pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

FT: Peter! Hey once you are free i would like some assistance with something if you don't mind? Also Martin and Elias asked about you, so you should drop them a message once you are able to, seriously your husband ranted to me for quite a while!! Also sorry you died, shame it wasn't in the quest bed at least you would just go god tier instead.

FT: Anyways! Text me back once you can, I'm going to be a little bit busy with Oliver trying to catch some frogs to start a universe. You know how it is. Byeee

FALLINGTITAN ceased pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

BEATINGHEART started pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

BH: Peter? Hey it's been a while where exactly have you gone to? I'm looking everywhere but it's as if you disappeared out of existence!! I checked Derse and you already left so where are you?? >:(

BH: Look, things are going rather bad, if we dont pull up some effurt we are really not going to get that planet started! I know teamwork is not ideal for the lonely, but we seriously need all hands on deck.

BH: The imps and carapaced are getting more mutated and the board has gotten messed up beyond recognition, it seems the entities are not mixing well with the game code or the horrorterrors, and after what happened with Martin’s failed attempt at killing him after going grimdark things went sideways even faster.

BH: I'm not even sure we can beat the black king, he is too paw-erful.

BH: …

BH: Cmon how long will you hide??

BH: Honestly I'm starting to be a little concerned, Elias can't see you with beholding and neither can Jonathan with his light powers. What's wrong??

BH: Look… just please answer me back ok? >:3

BH: And If this is about the fight i swear to god-

BH: Its not what you think!!! Stop being difficult. So please answer me back and I will go to pick you up.

BEATINGHEART ceased pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

SPOOKYARCHIVIST started pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

SA: I'm doing this because Martin asked and after the whole affair with him going…

SA: Nevermind I owe it to him.

SA: It was your fault too, the lonely got him in the end and that was enough of a push, but it's not about that. He wants to talk to you as the only other lonely avatar here.

SA: I won't apologize, but at the very least answer him.

SPOOKYARCHIVIST ceased pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

SPOOKYARCHIVIST started pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

SA: Actually no, how come i can't see you? Elias asked me to find you, but its like you are in a blind spot, how is that possible? My abilities have grown stronger with my aspect and beholding concentrating its powers here.

SA: ….

SA: .. Ugh by like that.

SA: Whatever, just answer Martin but dont get close to him ever again. Or I will make sure your death is permanent.

SPOOKYARCHIVIST ceased pestering FORSAKENTUNDRA

…

…

…

FORSAKENTUNDRA is offline.

FORSAKENTUNDRA is online.

WEBDESIGNER is online.

[wizardofrozz]

The Perfect Pair

Warnings: swearing, I think that’s it

Pairing: Loki x OFC

A/N: This chapter is on the short side but after this chapter things start to pick up. This is more of a filler chapter so please bare with me 😬❤

______________________________________________________________

Chapter 12: Surprise

I leaned against Bea’s apartment building, picking at my nails, and decided to check on Loki. I reached out, finding him easier than I expect; he must be close. I was wondering where you ran off to, darling. Loki’s thoughts were light, happy. I’ve been dealing with your brother. I rolled my eyes, knowing Loki couldn’t see it, but I could feel him laugh anyway. Don’t roll your eyes at me. Loki paused for a few seconds. I think I know how we can get out of here. Thank god. I glanced up, seeing Bea, Thor, and Bruce pushing out of the crowd. I’ll see you soon, dear. Sooner than you think. I was taken back by Loki’s last thought, but Bea was approaching fast.             “Sorry, rounding up these two is worse than herding cats,” Bea complains, rolling her eyes.             “Hi Bruce,” I offered a soft smile.             “Thor,” Bruce panicked, his eyes bugging out as he repeatedly hit Thor’s arm.             “She’s on our side,” Thor sighed, clapping Bruce on the shoulder.             “Don’t worry, Hulk seemed to like me,” I smiled, winking at Bruce. Bruce swallowed loudly, his eyes still wide open; I raised an eyebrow when he reached down, adjusting the crotch of his pants.             “Would you stop doing that!” Thor scolded, smacking at Bruce’s arm.             “Tony wears his pants so tight!” Bruce whispers harshly. Bea dramatically rolled her eyes, pushing me towards the door. She stopped in the hallway before her apartment, turning to face Thor and Bruce, who are still going back and forth.             “Look, I spent most of my time here in a haze, trying to forget my past. Sakaar seemed like a good place to drink, forget, and one day die,” Bea took a deep breath, obviously struggling with her confession.             “I was thinking you drink too much, and it would probably kill you,” Thor cut in; Bea and I shot him death glares, shutting him up instantly.             “I don’t want to stop drinking, but I don’t want to forget anymore. I can’t turn away anymore. So if I’m going to die, might as well be driving a sword into that murderous hag,” Bea smiled, knocking shoulders with me.             “We appreciate it, Bea,” I beamed, gripping her shoulder before heading towards her door.             “So I’m saying I wanna be part of this team. Has it got a name?” she asked, eyeing Thor.             “Yeah, it’s called the...Revengers,” Thor stutters, trying to cover it with a smile.             “Revengers?” Bea and I say together. Real original.             “Because we’re getting revenge.” -Thor turns to Bruce- “Do you want revenge?”             “I’m undecided,” Bruce mumbles, his eyes fixated on Bea.             “I do have a peace offering,” Bea smirks, gesturing to her door. I shot her a confused look, but all she did was smile, gesturing Thor and Bruce inside.             “Surprise,” a familiar, monotone voice traveled from the apartment. I watched Thor pick up a discarded bottle, throwing it at his brother. “Ow.”             “Had to be sure,” Thor grunted, glaring at his brother.             “Hello Bruce,” I heard Loki chirp; Bruce tensed as he stepped into the room.             “So, last time I saw you, you were trying to kill everybody. Where are you these days?” Bruce managed to squeak.             “It varies from moment to moment,” Loki offers, a sly smile on his face.             “Who is this guy?” Bea asks, eyeing Bruce cautiously.             “I’ll explain later,” I sighed. “Loki,” I called, finally making it into the apartment. I watched Loki’s body language shift; he relaxed into the chain holding him still.             “Hello, my love,” Loki greeted.             “Really, Bea!” I shouted, shooting her a dirty look over my shoulder.             “He attacked me. Better to be safe than sorry,” she stated, shrugging as she drank from a random bottle.             “Assholes, both of you,” I mumbled, kneeling in front of Loki. “That’s what you meant when you said, ‘sooner than you think.’”             “I knew she’d bring you here,” Loki said with a soft smile. I shook my head, reaching out to cup his cheek, angling his face up to connect our lips. “I’ve missed you,” Loki hummed against my lips.             “This is weird,” I heard Bruce whisper.             “What?” Thor asked. I glanced over my shoulder, watching Bruce lean closer to Thor.             “Loki,” Bruce whispered, visibly shivering.             “Married life has changed him some,” Thor chuckled, turning away from us.             “Married?” Bruce squeaked. Bruce turned his gaze towards us again, only to find Loki and I watching him with bored looks. “S-sorry,” he mumbled. I glanced at Thor and Bea, catching Thor admiring her Dragonfang; Loki rolled his eyes but smiled softly.             “Behave,” I warned, patting Loki’s leg before making my way towards Bea, Thor, and Bruce.             “Sakaar and Asgard are about as far apart as any two known systems. Our best bet is a wormhole just outside the city limits,” Bea took another pull from the bottle in her hand. “Refuel on Xandar and be back in Asgard in 18 months.”             “Nope, we’re going through that one,” Thor pointed to the giant, violent wormhole over the ocean.             “The Devil’s Anus?” Bea said, trying to keep a straight face.             “Wait, who’s anus are we going through?” Bruce chimes in.             “For the record, I didn’t know it was called that when I picked it,” Thor stammered.             “That looks like a collapsing neutron star inside of an Einstein-Rosen Bridge,” Bruce babbled.             “We need another ship that’ll tear yours apart, Bea,” I huffed, rubbing the bridge of my nose.             “She's right. We need one that can withstand the geodetic strain from the singularity,” Thor added.             “Who the fuck are you, and what have you done with the God of Thunder?” I gaped, staring at Thor like he had three heads. Thor glared at me before turning back to Bruce, waiting for his input; Bruce was staring dumbfounded at Thor too but quickly shook it off.             “And has an offline power steering system that could also function without the onboard computer,” Bruce added.             “And cup holders because we’re gonna die. So, drinks!” Bea cheered. I glanced over at Loki, quickly sending my magic towards him.             Can you kill me now? I rolled my eyes.             Sorry, not today, darling. Loki smiled at me, looking back at the floor. I caught the tail end of Thor and Bruce’s awkward fist bump/ high five.             “We need a ship,” Thor and Bruce said together.       ��     “I don’t mean to impose, but the Grandmaster has a great many ships. I may even have stolen the access codes to his security system,” Loki interjects. I didn’t see her throw it, but the bottle Bea was holding exploded behind Loki, causing him to flinch.             “Bea, what the hell!” I shouted.             “He tried to kill me; he’s only alive because of you,” she snapped. “So what, you have the sudden urge to do the right thing?”             “Heavens no. I’ve run out of favors” -Loki’s gaze fell on me- “and we need off this planet.”             “You're telling us you can get us access into the garage without setting off any alarms?” Thor asked, raising an eyebrow at Loki.             “Yes, brother, I can.”             “If we're boosting a ship, we're gonna need to draw some guards away from the palace,” Bea points out.             “Why not set the beast loose?” Loki proposed with a devilish grin.             “Shut up,” Thor snapped.             “You guys have a beast?” Bea asked, her eyes darting around the room for an answer.             “No, there’s no beast. He’s just being stupid. We’re going to start a revolution,” Thor smiled.             “Revolution?” Bruce mumbled.             “I’ll explain later,” Thor reassured him.             “Who is this guy?” Bea asked again.             “I’ll explain later,” I reassured her.             “Violet, darling. Can you let me out now?” Loki called from across the room. I made my way over to Loki, unlocking the chains, letting them fall to the floor with a loud clatter. “Thank you, my queen,” Loki purred, pulling me into a hug.             “Be careful,” I mumbled into his shoulder, squeezing him.             “Of course. I’ll meet you in the hanger,” Loki confirmed against my hair. Loki pulled away slightly, gently gripping my chin to turn my face up towards him. “I love you,” he whispered, his breath puffing against my lips as he spoke.             “And I you,” I whispered, closing the space.             “Yeah, this is super weird,” Bruce blurted; I laughed against Loki’s lips.             “Come on, let’s go,” Thor grumbled, pulling Loki away from me.

____________________________________________________________

Series Masterlist | Chapter 13

Taglist:

@criminalyetminimal​ @marvelfansworld​ 

[euphoria-vmin7]

Gnossienne Pt.3 | myg

pairing: min yoongi x reader

genre/warnings: angst, violence (though it’s not too too graphic), mentions of blood, swearing, non idol! au, mentions of weapons (guns, etc.), some fluff but it’s mostly angst, mafia! au

words: 6,366

rating: pg-15 (violence and swearing)

–summary: how could you have been so blind? didn’t you know everything about him? 

a/n: okay YES i know that i haven’t updated this series in forever but i kinda got stuck on it. but now i’ve figured myself out SO here’s part 3!! i hope you guys like it :) 

Gnossienne

gno·ssi·enne

n. a moment of awareness that someone you’ve known for years still has a private and mysterious inner life

****

| part 1 | part 2 | part 3

Yoongi quickly looked down at the shirt in his hand. Reddish, iron colored blotches and streaks littered the front of the white t-shirt. 

“Woah, hey!” he said, trying to catch your appalled gaze. “Yes, it’s blood. I sliced my finger while cutting vegetables for my grandma. See?” 

He held up his left hand where the pointer and middle fingers were wrapped with gauze. 

“It’s not a big deal,” he shrugged. You sighed in relief. 

“Jeez, that scared me. That’s a lot of blood, I thought something worse happened,” 

“Nah, I didn’t realize I hurt myself at first so I ended up getting the blood everywhere,” 

You nodded in understanding before taking his hand. 

“Still, I don’t like that you got hurt like this,” you said quietly, smoothing your thumb over his palm. He shook his hand out of your grasp and instead raised it to your cheek. 

“Hey, I’m fine. I promise. Don’t worry so much. You trust me right?” he asked, a soft smile on his face as he looked down at you. You nuzzled your cheek into his palm and nodded immediately. 

“Always,” 

Min Seo ran up to you on Monday morning, an eager smile gracing her face. 

“Well?” 

You raised a brow, your coffee mug pausing halfway to your lips. 

“Well what?” 

She clicked her tongue in irritation and she rolled her eyes. 

“What do you mean ‘well what’? What did he say?” she pressed. You blinked, feeling stupid. 

“What did who say?” 

She stared at you. 

“(Name), sometimes I wonder just how stupid you are,” 

“Excuse me?” 

“Yoongi, (Name). Yoongi!” 

“What about Yoongi?!” 

She groaned with unhidden exaggeration. 

“What did he say? About your promotion?” 

You gasped. 

“He’s back, right? You mentioned that he was back on Saturday. So what did he say?” she asked with a grin. You weakly smacked her, realizing your fault. 

“I forgot to tell him,” you sighed, putting your hand on your forehead. She blinked owlishly 

“What?! How do you forget something like that?? You telling me that you didn’t talk to him at all since last week? Not even on the phone?!” 

“No! I did, I just thought I’d surprise him,” you groaned. She rolled her eyes at you and shook her head. 

“Wow (Last Name) (Name) you really amaze me with your stupidity sometimes,” 

You glared at her and pulled out your phone. 

[4:03 p.m.] (Name): you wanna go out for dinner tonight? 

“What better way to surprise him than over dinner?” you smiled as you tucked your phone away. Min Seo flashed you a thumbs up. You grinned and sat back down at your desk, resuming research. Since your story had done well, your supervisors were looking for a continuation and more stories about these gangs. So the story was now assigned to you and you were in charge of finding more things about them.

“Looks like we’re stuck together huh, buddy?” you muttered, placing a palm under your cheek as you zoomed into a blurry screenshot of one of the members - the bulky one with a lot of piercings. 

[4:14 p.m.] Grumpy: sure. what’s the occasion? 

[4:15 p.m.] (Name): to celebrate the end of my peace and quiet 

[4:15 p.m.] Grumpy: and for that reason you’ll be paying 

You smoothed down the folds of your dress and smiled at your reflection. Sure, it wasn’t too fancy of a dinner, but it was still more posh than the two of you regularly indulged in, so why not dress up? 

“You’re really not gonna tell me why we’re doing this?” Yoongi asked, walking into the bathroom while buttoning up his collared shirt. 

“I told you it was to celebrate the end of peace for me,” you smiled teasingly, letting your eyes rest on his frowning reflection. 

“Okay okay,” you sighed catching his expression. “Truth is, I missed you and I just wanted to spend time with you,” you confessed, turning away from the mirror to look at him. Yoongi smiled, his gums emerging from behind his pink lips. He didn’t say anything else, simply opting for a chaste kiss to your forehead before exiting the bathroom. 

You bit your lip in excitement as Yoongi’s car pulled up to the restaurant and quickly stepped out. Yoongi followed behind you while loosening his tie in irritation. You laughed softly as you told the hostess your name. 

“Why did you wear a tie if you weren’t gonna be comfortable?” 

“Well you dressed up nice so I didn’t wanna come looking like I was homeless,” he grumbled, his hand dropping his tie and instead slipping around your waist. You snorted. 

“Don’t you wear a tie to work everyday?” you asked and Yoongi licked his lips. 

“Irrelevant,” 

You chuckled as the hostess led you both to your table and you took a seat. After some measly small chat and once your orders were placed, you cleared your throat and placed your hands on the table. Yoongi looked up from his bread with a raised brow. 

“I have something to tell you,” you tried to say seriously though your leg was bouncing in excitement. 

“Yes?” Yoongi asked, putting his knife down. You were about to tell him, but Yoongi’s phone went off, vibrating against the table. Your eyes darted to the screen and took in the caller ID. 

NJ 

“Shit,” Yoongi muttered, before declining the call. His dark eyes settled back on you and he smiled lightly. “What were you saying?” 

“Oh,” you grinned, pushing the two letters out of your head. “Well, while you were in Dae-” you stopped abruptly as his phone began to buzz again. NJ again appeared on his screen. He cursed once more and you frowned. 

“Maybe you should get that, Yoongi? It might be important,” 

Yoongi looked away from his phone to study your face and once he realized that you were okay, he smiled gratefully. 

“Thanks baby. I’ll be right back,” he stood up and placed his napkin on the table before grabbing his phone and heading out. 

“What is it...?” you heard his voice trail off into the phone as he stepped outside to take the call. You sighed and dragged your finger over the rim of your glass. You couldn’t even have it in you to be annoyed that he was bringing work into your time. After all, Yoongi worked so hard everyday and the amount of effort he put into helping his coworkers was so admirable. After a few minutes, Yoongi walked back inside, a deep frown on his face. 

“All okay?” you asked as he sat down in front of you. His expression eased immediately and he nodded. 

“Yeah just some idiot messing shit up at work. It’s fine,” he dismissed with a wave of his hand. “Anyway, what were you trying to tell me, babe?” 

“Right,” you cleared your throat and grinned. “So while you were in Daegu….I submitted my article!” 

“No way!” Yoongi smiled. “How did it go?” 

“Really well!” 

“Yeah?” he asked but then he frowned. “But I thought you needed evidence,” 

“Well…” you trailed off and his eyes narrowed. 

“What?” 

“I did some more research,” you admitted and he shut his eyes. 

“(Name), I thought we agreed that would be dangerous and that you wouldn’t try to get closer!” he asked, a crease between his brows. 

“I know,” you said immediately. “I know. I promise that I didn’t put myself into any danger, Yoongi!” 

“How do you know that?!” he fired at you and you pursed your lips. At your expression, he sighed. “What did you end up submitting as evidence?” 

“Oh I….” you hesitated and then spilled only a part of the truth. “A video. Some kind of footage of a gang talking,” 

“Footage?” his eyes narrowed. “What kind of footage? Where did you get it?” 

“O-Online,” you said, and you immediately regretted the lie. But, it’s fine. You were only doing it to stop his worrying. It didn’t really matter where you got that footage. Besides, it was surely taken offline anyway. Right? 

Yoongi sighed. “Online. Alright,” 

He didn’t say anything else, instead resuming with buttering his bread. You looked down dejectedly. Why was it so hard to tell him? You just wanted to say you got a promotion. But instead the conversation had pissed him off. The rest of the dinner felt off. Though you both did talk to each other, you couldn’t bring yourself to tell him about your accomplishment. Even he, you could tell, was still irritated and you couldn’t help but feel like you disappointed him. After all, he was worrying about your own safety. He stood by while you were first discovering the gang but he had warned you that interfering with them could be dangerous. And he was right? Who’s to say that the gang isn’t aware of your nosiness at this very moment. Suddenly your food didn’t seem so tasty. Even the ride home had a tense air and you didn’t like it. 

“I…” you started weakly and you could feel Yoongi open his eyes from behind you. You turned around in his embrace and tried to make out his facial features in the dark. “I submitted the article and everyone was super happy with it. I got a promotion. That’s what I wanted to tell you. That’s why I asked you to dinner today…” 

It felt good telling him, even though you wanted it to happen in a better setting. Not when you had ticked him off and made him worry. Yoongi’s gaze softened considerably, or at least, you hoped it did. 

“I know I still told you that I wouldn’t dig deeper,” you gulped, finding a string on his black t-shirt more interesting than his face. “B-But I really wanted to find out more. I really wanted that promotion. I thought about my parents. Maybe they would actually talk to me now that I have a better paying job. A-And I figured that it would help us too. I mean you always did say that you wanted to move out of this crappy apartment and-” you took a breath. “I’m really sorry Yoongi. I thought you’d be happier,” 

Yoongi sighed. “(Name)...I’m not mad okay? I just get really worried. I mean this isn’t just a common story, right? These are gangs. They’re dangerous,” 

You nodded miserably. “I know,” 

“And I’m not saying this to scare you but I’m sure that they wouldn’t like people digging into their crimes and stuff. What would I do if they came after you, huh?” 

Once again, you nodded mutely. 

“But,” he said. “That doesn’t mean I’m not proud of you,” 

You looked up and he smiled. “You managed to put together a story that basically had no evidence to support it and proved a lot of people wrong. And you got a promotion. That’s amazing (Nickname),” 

You grinned. “Thanks, Yoongs. I’m really sorry for not listening to you,” 

“It’s okay,” he sighed and pulled you closer to him, his hand rubbing your back gently. “Just no more okay?” 

“But I’m the only one in charge of this story,” you said. “It’s part of my promotion,” 

He groaned but relented. “Fine, just promise me no more digging. You can use evidence that shows up from the police and shit. But I don’t want you trying to follow them around for pictures and an autograph, got it?” 

Hearing the sarcastic irritation in his voice made you giggle and you nuzzled in his chest with a smile. “Okay okay. You’re so bossy,” 

He chuckled and kissed your forehead. “Someone’s got to keep your ass out of trouble,”

A few weeks later you woke up with a horrible back ache and an ugly wetness between your legs. Rolling onto your back slowly, you frowned with displeasure as you realized what time of the month it was. After cleaning yourself up, you trudged into the kitchen where Yoongi stood leaning against the counter. His reading glasses were perched low on his nose as he scanned the paper, a steaming cup of black coffee in his other hand. You slid your arms around him and sighed, pressing your cheek into his shoulder blade. 

“Morning, sweetheart,” he mumbled, his eyes remaining on the paper. 

“Morning,” you answered nuzzling into his warmth. 

“What?” he chuckled. 

“What?” you repeated, confused. 

“Why so clingy this fine morning?” 

You pouted and pulled away. “I love you?” 

“Ah,” he hummed in thought. “Period?” 

You blinked slowly. “How did you know?” 

He scoffed before setting the paper down. “Stupid question. I’m stuck with you everyday. I can tell these things by now,” 

You rolled your eyes as you dropped a slice of toast into the toaster. “Don’t act cool,” 

“I don’t need to act for that,” he shrugged and you snorted before pouring yourself a glass of water. 

“What’s the plan for today?” 

“Nothing,” Yoongi responded. “It’s been a long fucking week. I’m just going to relax today,” 

You grinned as he plopped down on the couch in exhaustion. Leaning down to kiss his cheek, you patted his shoulder. 

“Good. I can’t remember the last time I saw you relax. Has to be...maybe a decade?” 

He rolled his eyes. “Well you’re disturbing me now,” he pointed out. 

You laughed and sat down next to him as he turned on some morning show. With the pain in your lower abdomen, a day of relaxation sounded like heaven. 

“Hey Yoongi?” you asked a couple hours later after rummaging around in the bathroom. 

“Yeah?” he called from his spot on the couch, laptop balanced on his legs. 

“Can you do me a favor?” you asked, standing up and dusting your hands on your pants. 

“Sure, what’s up?” 

“Can you run out and buy me some supplies? I’m almost out,” you asked and Yoongi sighed before grinning. 

“This is why you restock before it starts, (Nickname). Everyone at the store knows me as the boyfriend who’s always buying pads. All the old ladies keep giggling at me,” he laughed while standing up. 

“Well I would go,” you started indignantly. “But I look like a mess and I’m too lazy to get ready. You look fabulous all the time,” 

He rolled his eyes. “No need to flatter me. I’ll go get some,” 

You beamed at him. “Thanks Yoongi,” you kissed his cheek gently as he moved to tug his shoes on. You plopped on the couch before lazily scrolling through the channels as you heard your boyfriend shut the door behind him. After watching some movie for a few minutes, you shivered at how cold the room was, goosebumps prickling along your skin. You thought of going to find a blanket, but then you remembered that you had Yoongi. One of his big warm sweaters would do nicely. You stood up ignoring the chill that ran up your spine and made your way into your bedroom before pulling open Yoongi’s closet. Flicking on the light switch, you tapped your chin as your eyes raked over the clothing. Finally deciding on his black pullover, you turned to go back to your movie when something caught your eye. Under a pile of dark clothes in the corner of the closet, something shiny glinted in the light. You reached down and pulled up the clothes, briefly realizing that you had never seen these clothes on Yoongi before. You grabbed the object, feeling the cool metal on your warm fingertips and pulled it up. The brass knuckles in your hand made you gasp out loud. 

“What the hell?!” you whispered to the emptiness of your apartment, the cold object feeling foreign in your hand. You flipped it over to examine it. They were slightly worn out and dirty, as though they had been used for a long time. The thought made you shiver. These couldn’t be Yoongi’s. What would he need brass knuckles for? Yoongi had never fought anybody. You glanced at the pile of clothes you had found the brass knuckles with. 

“Probably one of his friend’s stuff?” you muttered to yourself, though your own voice sounded unsure. “Yeah that’s gotta be it,” 

You quickly dropped the metal in between the clothes and rummaged them around to make them look as you had found them. You tugged Yoongi’s sweater on and shut the closet quickly, an uneasy feeling in your gut. You didn’t want to see or think about that ever again. 

You lazily scrolled through websites on your laptop, eyes searching for updates about the gang you had been hunting. The TV was quietly droning with the news in your empty apartment. Yoongi was still at work and you craved his words of comfort because honestly, you felt like you had hit a dead end. You had come back home much earlier than you had expected, and your apartment wasn’t helping your lack of inspiration either. 

“-and gangsters causing problems in the neighborhood. This symbol has been officially marked as dangerous and any civilian who sees it should report it to the authorities. These gangs are getting more suspicious and dangerous as time goes on and are currently under heavy investigation. They’re suspected to be major players in the underground drug cartel and the major robberies occurring around the city. Though there haven’t been any cases of muggings reported, civilians are advised to be cautious at night and to report any illicit activity…”

“Damn, they’ve been busy,” you mumbled to yourself, tugging your laptop closer to begin taking notes on what you were hearing. Maybe that’s what the old woman you interviewed had overheard. Shipment issues related to drugs. You shook your head in disgust. 

You heard the lock of the front door click and perked up. You tossed your laptop to the side and peeked over the back of the couch as Yoongi pushed his way inside wearily. 

“Hey you’re home-” you paused. “What are you wearing?” 

It seemed that Yoongi wasn’t expecting you home because he flinched and whipped his head up so fast you thought he might break something. His eyes were narrowed threateningly but then softened when they focused on you. But you were more focused on the black skin tight jeans and heavy black jacket he was wearing, which was certainly not his daily work attire.

“O-Oh I-,” he cleared his throat. “I had to change since some idiot at work spilled coffee all over my clothes. These are some spares I had for emergencies,” 

He chuckled to himself as he shook his head, walking into the living room to bend down and kiss you. 

“Oh,” you said lamely. “You changed your shoes too?” 

You raised a brow at the black combat boots that he most definitely didn’t wear to work that morning. He looked at you with a slightly nervous grin and shrugged. “It matched the outfit,” 

You snorted and sat down properly, now focusing on the TV and droning out Yoongi’s movements. You didn’t notice how Yoongi paused to listen to the news, a quiet curse leaving his lips before he started to the bedroom. 

“I’m gonna be on some office phone calls, baby. Just don’t disturb for a little while, ‘kay?” Yoongi asked you with a sweet smile and you tore your attention from the screen. 

“Okay,” you grinned and nodded at him. He flashed you another small smile and shut the door to your shared bedroom. 

“So you’ll get something on your way back?” you asked as you rummaged around your purse for your bus ticket. 

“Yeah,” Yoongi sighed on the other end of the receiver. “Ever since this stupid project started we’ve had so much more work to do. Sorry I can’t be home earlier to eat with you, baby,”

You smiled sweetly through the phone regardless of the fact that he couldn't see you. 

“It’s okay. You know I admire how hard-working you are,” you shook your head with a grin as you sat down. That earned you a tired chuckle from your boyfriend. 

“Thanks for always being so understanding, (Name),” Yoongi said, and you laughed. 

“Don’t need to thank me. Just take care of yourself and come home soon. I miss you,” 

Yoongi chuckled fondly and voiced an affirmative. After a farewell and a quick “I love you” you ended the call and got comfortable in your seat before tugging on your earbuds and shutting your eyes. You would probably catch a quick nap before you reached the apartment. At least, that’s what you wanted to do. 

Only a few minutes had passed when you suddenly felt a chill run up your spine. The hairs on your arms stood up and a wave of uneasiness passed over you. You peeled your eyes open to look around. The bus was mostly empty, given one or two passengers. They all seemed normal however, except for one. 

He was looking straight at you when you made eye contact with him. He sat straight, dressed in all black with a heavy leather jacket making his frame look even larger. His big arms were crossed menacingly and you wished you could put a face to his description but the mask he was wearing covered everything but his eyes. 

Dragon eyes.   

He tore his eyes away from yours as soon as you looked and you shivered a bit. You were probably overthinking it. 

That didn’t mean you wanted to spend more time having a staring contest with this man, however. You quickly shut your eyes again and pretended to fall asleep, because even though you knew he was looking at you, it felt a lot safer to not be looking straight into those eyes. 

You must’ve been on that bus for hours, or at least it felt like hours. When the bus pulled up by the stop just near your apartment, you quickly stood up and hurried down the aisle, not sparing anyone a passing glance. You stepped out into the nighttime and breathed out in relief before starting the walk to your building. When you glanced back to the window of the bus, the man was pulling out his phone and placing it near his ear as the bus started rolling away. Your racing heartbeat began calming down as you reached the door to your building. You weren’t sure who that man was, but you knew he was intimidating as hell. If he was actually staring at you, and hopefully he wasn’t, you wished you would never cross paths with him again. 

You sighed and brushed a few strands of hair out of your face as you climbed up the front steps and went to open the main door. You wished that Yoongi was waiting for you at home so that you could cuddle up with him, share a bowl of ramen, and tell him about your day and this man and how nervous he made you. But Yoongi had work. You could never be angry at him though. Yoongi was so hard-working and he was doing his best to pitch in and help you both lead comfortable lives. Just the thought of your sweet boyfriend made you smile as you moved to tug the door open. 

Pressure on your face made your eyes widen in confusion and before you could realize anything it was already too late. The cloth being pressed against your nose and lips was doused in chloroform and though you had never even had the chance to see it, you knew. You tried to shout but the hand pressed harder, making the sounds more muffled. Your heart rate spiked once again as a big arm wrapped around your body and began dragging you down the stairs. You were crying and you didn’t even realize it. Instead you were trying your hardest to get a hit on the person behind you. You rammed your elbow back and hit a body, which released a low masculine grunt. His grip loosened a bit and you managed to take two steps before he grabbed you once again. Though now, your vision was blurring and your head was spinning and everything was going out of focus. You tried hard not to breathe in, but eventually your lungs burned and you took one more breath and everything went black. 

The first thing you could smell was dampness. The smell of wet concrete and mold filled your burning nostrils before you could even open your eyes. When you had fully gained consciousness, you chose to keep your eyes closed, opting to strain your ears and listen to your surroundings. You could faintly hear the sound of clanging metal and the rush of a few cars but other than that it was silent. You peeled your eyes open and your heart dropped. 

You were on an old couch, brown with stains of things you didn’t want to know. A dirty rug decorated the concrete floor and you looked around with tears pooling in your eyes at the metal walls. Was this some kind of warehouse? Cigarette butts and bottles were haphazardly strewn across the floor and you suddenly felt sick to your stomach. You had to find a way out. You stood up shakily and tried to find your bag, but of course it was nowhere to be seen, which meant that your phone and house keys were gone too. 

Oh god, Yoongi would be so worried. 

You wondered whether he had called the police or if he was searching for you or if he was going crazy with worry before a thought struck. How long had you been here? If it had only been a few hours and Yoongi was still working then there was a chance that he didn’t even know you were taken at all. You gulped as nausea rolled over your gut once again. You began quickly and shakily stumbling towards the only door you could see, freedom tasting bitter on your tongue. 

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” 

Your heart leapt into your throat as you quickly turned around. Plump pink lips were stretching into a menacing smirk as narrow brown eyes shone with mischief. You knew him. You knew this man. 

He was graceful and he was familiar. Faded orange hair, a toned body, it was him. 

No.

You stumbled back and the man clicked his tongue. “Careful sweetness, you’ll fall,” he sighed. “And don’t try anything. I’m prepared,” 

His fingers tapped his side where you could see his gun and you shakily gulped. 

“You’re lucky we didn't decide to handcuff you or something,” he said nonchalantly. 

“What do you want with me?” you asked, sounding much braver than you felt.

“I don’t really know. I’m just following leader’s orders. He said you were a threat and that’s why you’re here. And no, we’re not gonna kill you. As long as you don’t give us a reason to,” the man sighed as you opened your mouth. 

“U-Um,” you started and the man raised a brow at your stutter. Fuck, he was intimidating. “How am I a threat?” 

Please don’t be what I’m thinking.

He chuckled. “You tell me (Last Name) (Name),” 

You didn't even bother asking the cliche “how do you know my name?” question. It was clear to you now. The gang knew you and they were angry with you for digging up on them. Yoongi was right. You had never felt such a horrible sense of regret and you feared you weren’t getting out of this alive. 

“The research I’ve been doing?” you asked nervously. The man smiled sweetly, a contrast to his intimidating aura. 

“Mhmmm~” he sang, sitting down on the couch as you stood anxiously. “But anyways, contrary to what those stupid fuckers in the news make us sound like, we aren’t demons. We don’t kill innocent people,” 

You raised a brow but allowed a bit of hope to settle in your chest. 

“You didn't really know what you were doing and from the research Hoseok hyung has done on you, it was only to make your company happy, right?” 

You nodded slowly, briefly wondering who the hell Hoseok was. But the fact that this man was apparently understanding your situation was much more important. He wasn’t going to kill you. 

“But I still think that she knows too much,” someone said, and you turned to the door to see a taller man walk in, a scowl on his face. In his hands was a bowl of plain rice and a water bottle and you eyed him from head to toe, instantly recognizing him from his piercings and bigger build. Knife boy. 

“C’mon Jungkookie~” the man on the couch purred teasingly. “Don’t scare her,” 

The bigger man looked to the other in shock and disgust. “Hyung don’t say our fucking names what if she-” 

“She’s not going anywhere and she’s not gonna tell anyone,” he sighed. “Isn’t that right, darling?” 

As a barely hidden threat, the orange-haired man tapped his gun and you nodded meekly. He suddenly smiled brightly as though he didn’t just threaten your life. Knife boy rolled his eyes and handed you the food, which you began scarfing down without a second thought. He raised a brow but didn’t say anything else. 

“Jin hyung told me to bring her some food,” he muttered. “Because we’re not supposed to starve hostages,” he added sarcastically. The orange-haired male simpered. 

“See?” he asked you teasingly. “We’re taking care of you,” 

“Oh shut up Jimin,” another voice chuckled. “Quit acting like that. It isn’t you,” 

Another man walked in, around the same height as “Jungkookie” with silver hair. His voice was deep and you recognized it from the footage. But it still sounded more familiar, like that wasn’t the only time you’d heard it. You racked your brain trying to find it, but could come up with nothing. On a completely different note, he was so extremely pretty. He had a sculpted face and unique eyes and his pink lips curved into a weak smile. 

“I came to check if she was awake. Namjoon hyung wants to talk to her,” the deep voice of the man washed over you. “Jungkook, I thought you were on interrogation duty,” 

“Yeah but then Jin hyung called,” Jungkook grumbled. “He told me to get her something to eat,” 

“I’m sorry, can I please leave?” you interjected pleadingly, tears forming in your eyes because you were so scared and tired and you missed home. “I swear I won’t do anything more. I’ll keep my mouth shut just please let me go home. I didn't know, I’m sorry,” 

The silver-haired male's eyes softened a bit but Jungkook spoke up in exhaustion. 

“Look, we’d like to get you out of here and forget that you exist, too. But Namjoon hyung still has to decide what to do with you,”

Your blood ran cold. Decide what to do with you. Why did that sound like there was still a possibility that you could be killed? You hoped that this Namjoon was understanding but another part of you was convinced he wasn’t going to be. You were about to find out. 

Namjoon was the man on the bus. You were absolutely sure of it. Though the man on the bus had his entire face covered, you would never forget those cold eyes. Dragon eyes. 

The same eyes that were looking down at you with a steely, calculating gaze. You wanted to cry so badly but you bit your lip and forced the tears back. Yoongi would tell you to be strong. 

“(Last Name) (Name). 21. Aspiring journalist. Did I get the basics?” Namjoon asked in a rough yet cold voice. You nodded slowly and he glanced down at you. “You’ve been getting yourself into places you shouldn't be Miss (Last Name),” 

“I know I’m so sorry. Please don’t kill me,” the shaky words were out before you could stop them and your stomach dropped in fear. 

Namjoon only sighed and asked you a question. “(Name), what do you think of us?” 

“I-what?” you stuttered dumbly, feeling chills run up your spine. 

“What do you think about us?” Namjoon repeated coolly and you balked. 

“I….” you started. “..That you’re a dangerous gang,” 

“And what makes us dangerous?” 

“The fact that you’re involved in underground drug trading and burglaries and deaths-” 

“How many deaths have you heard about?” 

“A-A few,” you responded dumbly, eyes flitting over to Taehyung whose lips twitched upwards a bit at your glance, as though trying to comfort you. Nothing about this situation was comforting.  

“And how many of those were innocent civilians, (Name)?” Namjoon asked, turning away from you. 

“I-I don’t-” you struggled but Namjoon answered for you. 

“None. Because we never allow innocents to get hurt in our business. The deaths you saw were all related to people involved in this life. I promise you that we don’t hurt innocent people. We may not be good but we aren’t evil,” 

Jimin blinked slowly with a calm smirk and your shoulders dropped a bit. “S-So you...aren’t gonna kill me?” 

“No,” Namjoon’s eyes flitted to you and you saw the fatigue behind them. “But you have to make us a promise,” 

“And keep it,” another man, Hoseok, added from his spot behind Namjoon. 

“You cannot get involved with us anymore. It’s very dangerous for you and your loved ones. No more digging and outing us to the news. You’re forbidden. Is that clear?” 

“Yes,”  you agreed easily, anything to get away from the dangers these boys were pulling you into. 

“Be serious,” the handsome broad shouldered man piped up. “Otherwise things won’t end well for you,” 

“I’ll send Jungkook to kill you,” Namjoon commented offhandedly.  You glanced at the bulky male and gulped. You didn't like him very much and with what you’ve seen him do with a knife, you weren’t taking any chances. 

“Yes sir,” you bowed quickly. “I promise,” 

In the back of your mind, you wondered how they could be letting you go like this. For all they knew, you could go rat them out to the police as soon as you left. That’s when you realized that they were serious. They really didn't hurt innocent people. Even the threat of sending Jungkook after you was to scare you. They’d never act on it. They didn’t hurt innocents. That’s why they were giving you a second chance. 

“Good,” Namjoon’s lips turned up and you were surprised at the dimples that appeared. When he smiled he looked much less intimidating and more like an overgrown bear. “You’ll have to be blindfolded before you step outside but once you get into the van, Taehyung will take you straight back to your apartment. 

“Thank you,” you smiled weakly before pausing. “Wait-Taehyung?” 

“Oh, I didn’t get to introduce myself,” the silver-haired man grinned. “Sorry we had to do all that to you. I’m Taehyung,” 

Wasn’t that the name of…?

You pushed the thought aside and nodded softly. You wanted to get out of here as soon as possible. Just because they were letting you go didn’t mean you were suddenly going to trust them. You were sure each of them had identical guns to the ones tucked in Jimin’s black jeans. In Jungkook’s case, maybe more than one. 

“Take her back Taehyung. And (Name),” Namjoon called out. “Remember your promise,” 

You nodded mutely and followed Taehyung out. He walked you down a corridor in relative silence. Well, what exactly do you say to a kidnapper anyways? 

“Um, I know you’re probably scared and upset. I’m really sorry you had to go through that. We don’t normally do these kind of things. But we had to make sure that you weren’t a threat,” 

You only nodded again and Taehyung sighed. “We were protecting the people we care about. I think you’d understand if you were in the situation,” 

“I...understand,” you mumbled and Taehyung hummed a bit. As you continued down the hallway, you heard a faint grunt of pain. Then some talking and then another shout. Taehyung didn't say anything and continued walking but as you got closer to the room, the sounds became louder. 

“-better tell me who the fuck it is, buddy,” 

“GO TO HELL, ASSHOLE!!” 

The sound of metal colliding with flesh and the howl of pain that followed made your skin crawl. 

“Mm try again. Who the fuck sent you after us, huh?”

“I…I can’t tell you, man,” 

Another loud blow, this time earning a scream. Your skin crawled as bile rose in your throat. The room was only a few steps away now, the door slightly open. 

“I have all night, bitch. I’ll be here until you’re in so much pain you’ll be begging to die,” 

There was only a whimper to be heard as you reached the door. Taehyung’s back was getting further away but you still decided to glance inside. You wish you didn’t . 

You wish you didn't catch the familiar black hair and pink lips bent over another man’s bloodied body. His hair was messy and wet and his lips were pulled back into a bored snarl. His pretty hands were splattered with blood and his fingers were sporting a familiar piece of metal. 

“Tell me,” he sighed condescendingly. “Who sent you?”

“Go….fuck…...yourself,” the other man wheezed. His gums appeared, but not in the smile you knew, but rather in a malicious smirk. A dark chuckle escaped his lips and you watched with tears in your eyes as he reeled his knuckled fist back before shooting it straight into the man’s head. You stumbled back with a shaky cry of disbelief, tears spilling over as you saw his face completely. Taehyung turned around in confusion but your eyes weren’t on him. Dark eyes narrowed at the body, the dark eyes that sparkled with love for you, now empty and cold and cruel. Though they didn’t see yours, you saw everything clearly, and every last bit of trust in you shattered into millions of tiny pieces. 

.

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Tag list: @ireadfanficsonthisleavemealone​, @sunshine-ruins

(comment or message me if you want to be added!)

[kittae]

Under The Missiletoe [1]

Pairing: Min Yoongi x female reader

Genre: Sci-fi, fantasy, Fluff, a lil bit of comedy,... we’ll see what else!

words: 5k

summary: Yoongi is an extraterrestrial scout, sent by his superiors from his home planet BT21, to gauge the chances of successfully usurping planet Earth. When his ship lands, it’s December 24th. Yoongi is tasked with observing the strange behavior of Earth’s inhabitants to get a good idea of whether or not they would pose a threat. Satisfied with what he finds, he prepares to go back home. His ship seems to have become defect in the meantime, leaving him stranded on Earth. He strolls into a convenience store (he needed to gather some evidence to present to his superiors anyway) and finds a lonely girl, one who’s not smiling. His curiosity gets the best of him.

Author’s note: The first part of this fic, because I got too many ideas while writing and it escalated (as expected)! This will have a second installment soon! I really enjoy writing this, so I hope you’ll have fun reading it! (please excuse errors, I used up all my juice to finish this so editing is for another day!)

Warning: only a liiiittle bit of violence and some swearing for now!

→ Part of the stranded for christmas Collab!

“This is ISV Aeron, reporting to home base, do you copy?”

“This is BT21 home base, Avalon station, I copy.”

“Requesting permission to disclose travel log.”

“Permission granted.”

“Approaching destination Earth, ready to enter atmosphere. Vehicle deficiency tests all negative. Landing coordinates approximately 41° 52' 54.5952'' N and 87° 37' 23.4372'' W.”

“Any abnormal observations so far?”

“Negative.”

“Proceed with landing process and notify us after arrival. Keep defensive appliances close for your own safety. In case of hostile activity, proceed as seen in training and return to home base immediately. Good luck, captain Min.”

“Copy that, sir.”

A single tap on the earpiece ends the conversation immediately. This is, hopefully, the last time he’d hear a familiar voice for a while. Aside from notifying them of a successful landing, he’s only supposed to initiate contact with his home base in case of emergency or at take-off. So far, though, everything has gone surprisingly smooth.

The cosmic ball of life, encircled by a radiant, blue light, grows rapidly in size as he approaches its atmosphere. Years of training and simulations prepared him for the intense turbulence and other kinds of impact he puts his small but agile ship through, once he breaks through the barrier and gravity takes over. The vehicle soars through the mesosphere like a rocket, small droplets of sweat dampening the hair underneath his helmet when the ship externally catches fire. He doesn’t panic, knowing the material has been designed for this mission –and all that comes with it– specifically. This is Yoongi’s cue to start braking, drastically decreasing the velocity with which he’s rocketing towards the surface.

Despite having gone through countless simulations, the real thing proves to be more challenging than anticipated. He holds his breath as he keeps a tight grip on the steering element, controlling the ship to the best of his abilities. He already knows it’s going to be a rough landing, but nothing he can’t handle. It requires incredible amounts of focus and precision, considering he’ll be landing near a densely populated area and wants to remain unnoticed. For now.

There’s an open field behind the woods, large enough for him to land safely and secluded enough to hide his ship from curious humans. This is his target. With the speed he’s still going, though, it’ll be tough to land precisely where he wants. Good thing there’s no better pilot than him.

Only a few more seconds before he’ll reach the ground, when Yoongi stays calm and collected as he swiftly creates the necessary combinations from the impressive control panel. He easily knows his way around the countless buttons and gears, lights and wheels. The high technology of the ship is like a second home to him. One he’ll leave for something entirely unknown, soon.

As expected, the ship lands neatly in the field, with space to spare. However, as Yoongi predicted, it’s a rather rough landing. The ship was still going slightly too fast for a smooth one, but he needed the speed as not to land in the trees instead. The vehicle shocks and shakes when it hits the ground, grating off the grass and several layers of earth as it digs itself into the soil for a couple more meters until it comes to a full stop. The body of the ship, made from extremely valuable metals from his home planet, still smoulders when the door automatically opens.

The night has already fallen, it seems. There aren’t many stars visible in the sky, their light compromised by the artificial illumination coming from the city. Yoongi feels the icy breeze fan over his cheeks when he steps outside. He remembers learning about a phenomenon on Earth, called ‘seasons’. Because of the planet’s tilted axis, throughout the year, different parts of Earth receive the Sun’s most direct rays. Having studied this planet until he knew its mannerisms and workings inside and out, Yoongi came prepared.

His team has arranged a collection of garments for him to wear, to blend in with the humans and stay protected against this planet’s unpredictable atmospheric conditions. Something to place on his head, and around his hands. It still feels odd and unnatural, but he doesn’t feel like returning home with some strange human disease, caused by his own carelessness. He can’t risk putting his own kind in danger by causing an epidemic. If there’s one thing he’s learned about humans, it’s that they’re walking disease mills. The best thing he can do for himself is to keep himself at a safe distance, and not let his own immune system dwindle under any circumstances.

With that thought in mind, he wraps a long and thick piece of fabric around his neck and throat. It instantly adds warmth and comfort. Better safe than sorry. Adjusting to this planet might not be such a challenge after all. He’s sure he’s got quite the hang of it already.

Another tap on the earpiece reconnects him with the station. “This is ISV Avalon, here to notify BT21 homebase of safe landing with exact coordinates 41° 52' 54.5952'' N and 87° 37' 23.4372'' W. No threats so far, presumably because of the wild vegetative environment. Will now explore the field closer to the subjects, after ensuring the vehicle’s preservation. This was captain Min, ISV Avalon, going offline until further notice.” His hot breath creates a cloud of steam, evaporating in the cold air, when he heaves a slightly tense sigh. Getting the ship to land safely was the easy part. Now comes the hard part: observing the subjects.

Fishing a tiny remote the size of a fingernail out of the pocket of his jacket, it only takes one click to hide the ship entirely by activating the invisibility shield. This way, no snooping humans will find it. His snooping, however, has yet to begin.

Fairly confident in his knowledge and training, he starts walking towards the forest. It’s not long until he finds the city, bare before him underneath a tall hill. Despite his usually unwavering professionalism, he can’t keep his heart from beating faster the closer he gets to the streets. After all, he’s worked towards this moment his entire life. The moment he gets to see planet Earth and its inhabitants with his own two eyes. He’s always been fascinated by this project and finally, after hundreds of years, he’s the one who gets to play the most important role of all.

Only one other has stood where he stands. Well, not precisely in this spot, but he came to Earth with the same objective. Unfortunately, he never made it back to BT21. As it so appeared, he got caught in the middle of a warfare waged amongst the humans, at the time. As such, the first attempt of accomplishing this mission had failed. Now, over seventy years later –although time means little to his kind, since it’s a human construct– the honour has fallen upon him. Bringing this mission to a successful end would mean great progress for his people. The beginning of a new era. The failed attempt of his predecessor was not in vain, however, as it provided them with loads of valuable information. Information he could now use, to be better prepared.

Turning his wrist to face the sky, the minuscule chip underneath his skin starts glowing. It creates a holographic screen, showing his reflection and ready to record.

“Captain’s log, day one, shortly after arrival on planet Earth. It is night time as I approach the city, and I can hear strange sounds coming from the streets. Despite it being dark, it doesn’t seem to stop the humans from going outside. We believed they tend to rest when night falls, yet there seem to be a significant amount of people, conscious and busy. This is my first observation, and already they prove to be rather interesting. I’m going to take a closer look, yet keep my weapons close to me, should they make an attempt to attack.”

The screen is gone as quickly as it came and his wrist stops glowing, making him appear completely normal again. Another big benefit, is that his kind and humans have no apparent physical differences, at first glance. He looks just like one, which makes it so much easier to explore their planet. Scientists back home believe their kind must have evolved from humans, a long, long time ago. Although it’s clear that the ones on Earth are much more primitive, still, he doesn’t classify himself as human. There are too many differences if one looks past outer appearance.

Even though he feels excitement, walking into the busy streets filled with music and vibrating with lively energy, he remains cautious. Some people are already looking at him in a strange way, but he feels it’s innocent curiosity seeing as they smile and laugh. A positive indicator.

“Why is he dressed like that?” He hears a male utter to his female companion as they walk by.

“Shhh, not so loud! Some people are just really into vintage fashion, Connor. I think it’s cool.” She replies.

Yoongi instantly catches their short exchange of words, despite their lousy attempt to keep it quiet. It makes him think. He has no clue what ‘vintage’ or ‘cool’ means, but he figures it’s the clothes, drawing too much attention to him. Now he’s really looking around, he realises no one is wearing garments even remotely resembling his. He needs to find a way to fix this. He’s not blending in as well as he’d expected.

His first challenge here on Earth comes sooner than he would’ve liked, but he knew it was inevitable. Still, he keeps his calm and reminds himself of the extensive lessons in Humanology. Walking into one of the large buildings, showcasing garments behind tall windows, he acts indifferent, mimicking the behaviour of the people around him. He observes some racks, faintly recognizing the clothes as those for female humans. Women, he believes they’re called here. He shouldn’t dwell here for much longer, or people will notice something’s off about him. On to the male garment section!

These look more like the ones the males on the street are wearing, and he knows he’s in the right place.

“Hello, sir. Can I be of any help?” A voice sounds from behind him, startling him so badly he instinctively reaches for his laser gun. He stops himself just in time when he realises the human most likely means no harm in this context. He appears to be submissive, and asks to assist. This might be easy after all!

Yoongi clears his throat before he speaks to a human for the first time. “Indeed. I need garments, young male.”

The young man blinks a few times, confusion showing on his face for a split second, before he collects himself again, putting his thoroughly practiced customer service smile back on. “Of course, sir. What are you looking for, exactly?”

Yoongi thinks about that question for a second. “Not...vintage. Or cool. None of those concepts.”

The store clerk enthusiastically claps his hands, making Yoongi flinch. “Ah! A man with taste, I see! You’ve come to the perfect place, sir. We pride ourselves in our eye for highly stylish and qualitative fashion without following short-lived hype. You know how it is with kids these days, one moment they’re all crazy about the newest designs and the next it’s something totally different. Apparently, now, it’s vintage. Those second-hand stores are even getting popular because of it. The older the better, can you believe it?”

The clerk eyes Yoongi up and down and visibly regrets his words after realising what he’s wearing, oblivious to the fact Yoongi didn’t understand a single thing of his rambling, anyway. Still, he nods as if he did and lets the young man lead the way.

“This is part of our new collection.” The man adds when he stops in front of a rich

black, cashmere turtleneck sweater. “Now, I admit, it is a bit pricier but you’ll find the material to be divine. It’s also perfect to wear with the holidays–”

“I will purchase this item.” Yoongi nods curtly, approving of this simple garment. The colour is attractive and it looks warm.

“Wonderful!” The clerk’s face lights up with joy and Yoongi wonders what he did to make this human so happy. “This turtleneck is also great in combination with these trousers, shoes and coat.”

Yoongi carefully examines the other items, which the assistant mistakes as doubt.

“I’ll bring these to the fitting room so you can try them on, sir. You will see how well they’ll fit you once you wear them.”

Not sure what a fitting room is, Yoongi follows the man nevertheless. The garments are being neatly hung on hooks on the wall, as the clerk gestures for Yoongi to go inside the cabin. He decides to trust this friendly human, but remains suspicious when the curtain closes behind him. He guesses that he’s supposed to switch his old garments for the new ones in here.

Fortunately, he’s had some experience with these types of clothing and manages to put them on correctly. It looks completely different, but in a good way. He’s sure he won’t draw any unwanted attention like this.

Making use of the privacy he’d obtained inside this cabin, he takes the chance to record another short log.

“Captain’s log, day one, shortly after the first one. I have come to the conclusion that the garments prepared for me by my team are not sufficient. Apparently, time is very important here on Earth. A lot of things change in short periods. My garments caused me to draw too much attention, so I went into a Garment Building to purchase modern ones. I am currently inside something they call a ‘fitting room’, which is a cabin they close with a piece of cloth to ensure physical privacy. Remember, humans detest public nudity. This is why I manage to create this log, undisturbed.”

He lowers his wrist to showcase his new outfit. “These are the garments I will be purchasing. I think they are far more visually pleasing than the ones prepared for me. It is possible that these humans have evolved in this short period of time, which amazes me. I am most inquisitive about what other changes I will discover. These humans seem tame in comparison to the ones my predecessor, Minho, has described. This would mean great success in regards to this mission. I will now continue my exploration.”

When he comes out of the fitting room, fully changed into his new attire, the store clerk stands there, waiting for him dutifully. Even if he heard Yoongi talk to himself in there, he doesn’t make a comment on it. He just assumes he’s some kind of popular, new influencer doing vlogs, especially with the weird way he speaks. When he sees Yoongi, a dramatic gasp tears from his lips.

“You look stunning, sir! Absolutely ravishing!” He places a hand on his chest to steady himself. “I have never seen a more perfect picture than you, standing here before me!”

Yoongi assumes the young male is complimenting him, although it makes him feel a little bit uneasy. It’s human custom to return the kindness, however. “...Thank you. You look very...stunning...too.”

This makes the young man blush. “Why, sir, you’re quite the charmer, aren’t you? I’m sure you have people lining up to date you.”

“Date?” Yoongi murmurs, confused. Isn’t that some kind of combat technique? “Ah, yes! Many people would like to… date me, but they have never succeeded!” He announces proudly.

“As expected.” The clerk winks and Yoongi flinches again. What an odd gesture. Still, Yoongi feels reassured now that this complete stranger recognizes his exceptional combat skills.

“Are you taking all of these, sir? Or are there some things you aren’t completely sure of?” He asks Yoongi, gesturing at the clothes he’s wearing.

“I approve of all of these items. I would like to purchase the set.” Yoongi lets him know as he takes out the pocket with currency, also provided for him by his team.

“Excellent decision! Would you like to change back into your other clothes or would you prefer to keep this outfit on?”

“I have no use for the garments I came here with. These fresh ones will remain on my body.”

“Perfect! Then, please follow me to the cash desk, sir.”

Yoongi complies, emptying the pocket on the desk in front of the cheerful shopping assistant. He doesn’t even get fazed at Yoongi’s strange behaviour anymore. Remarkable adaptation abilities, these humans!

“Is this enough currency to purchase?” Yoongi asks.

The young man behind the desk throws a brief, hesitant look at the pile of cash money, but quickly answers with a syrupy sweet smile. “Let me count that for you, sir.”

To Yoongi’s relief, the assistant manages to collect the correct amount of money after counting for a few minutes.

“You may want to invest in a credit card, sir. It would certainly make a lot of things much easier...for you, of course.”

“Ah, yes. Certainly.” Yoongi smiles while putting the surplus of cash back in his pocket. He has no idea what a ‘credit card’ could be.

When he exits the building, it is with a newfound confidence and era-appropriate outfit. The human who assisted him didn’t suspect a thing! Yoongi always knew he’d be quite competent for the job, but if he had known it would only take this much effort for him to blend in? He wouldn’t have had all those sleepless nights back home, perfecting his imitations. Well, maybe it’s because he stayed up late, studying human behaviour, that got him so far. Yet it seems like all it really took was a change of garments.

He roams the streets with a calmer heart now, feeling safe enough to observe more details. The more he learns, the better they can prepare themselves for the next installment of the plan. Everywhere, music plays. Different melodies are flowing into each other as they come out of the stores. There’s one in particular Yoongi keeps hearing until he starts to recognize the words.

“...Make my wish come true. All I want for christmas, is you.” He quietly sings along under his breath, cheeks flushed either from the cold or the embarrassment, wondering what his peers back home would think of such behaviour. Still, he comforts himself with the thought that no one can hear him unless he contacts them himself. Enjoying human music will be his little secret to keep from his time on Earth.

Christmas. The word keeps popping up, everywhere he looks and in everything he hears. It must be something very important.

As he continues to ponder over what this ‘Christmas’ could be, he follows the brightly illuminated decorations, hanging at the top of the buildings and over the streets. He’s so deep in thought, he doesn’t even notice how he’s walking away from the city centre and into a dark neighborhood. There are no festive lights, no music or vibrant crowds. When Yoongi notices the sudden silence, he also perceives the sound of footsteps, matching his own.

Upon turning around, he finds a strange man wielding a blade of some sort. Yoongi understands he’s finally being threatened, and slowly reaches for his laser gun.

“You look like some posh fucker. Walking around this part of town in those nice clothes, huh? Bet you got money to spare.” The assailant hisses, moving closer as he speaks.

Yoongi stays quiet and doesn’t move an inch as he lets the thug come closer. He just needs to be patient.

“What, cat got your tongue? Those fancy clothes didn’t come with a witty answer? You rich fucks are usually good at that, no?” The foul man is now within arm’s length, the blade dangerously close to Yoongi’s abdomen. This is his time to strike.

Faster than the blink of an eye, Yoongi overpowers the unsuspecting male with few but extremely precise moves. The man is now subjected to his mercy, his shoulder in a painful angle and with a strange weapon in his face.

“What is your objective?” Yoongi calmly asks.

“My...my what?!” The thug squeaks in between pain-induced hisses.

“Your objective. What is the reason for your attack?”

The man stares at him in disbelief. “Wh- isn’t that obvious?! Your money, man! I wanted your money!”

“Money?” Yoongi muses. “You would harm one of your own, for currency?”

“A man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do.” Is the criminal’s response. “Please, let me go… I’ll leave you alone, I promise!”

“Hm, not much persistence, I see.” Yoongi tuts, a tad bit disappointed. “I expected your kind to be more violent.”

The other says nothing, opting to go cross-eyed looking at Yoongi’s weapon instead.

“Tell me something.” Yoongi demands.

“Anything. Anything if you let me live. Please…”

“What is this...Christmas? What does it mean?”

Confusion is written all over the thug’s face. “Ch-christmas? Y-you don’t know what Christmas is?”

Yoongi rolls his eyes, briefly losing his composure. He doesn’t appreciate his intelligence being questioned by a lowly human like this.  “Since I am asking something like you to enlighten me, you may assume that I am not yet informed about this concept.”

The man nods fervently. “Ch-christmas is… You know, it’s… It’s a popular holiday. People buy each other gifts. There’s Santa Claus–”

“Santa Claus?” Yoongi frowns.

“Yeah, he’s like, uh, a fat Finnish dude with a white beard and red clothes and he gives presents to children.”

“Why is that?”

“I- I don’t know, he… Just does? It’s not real, anyway, people just dress up like him at the mall to earn a few extra bucks.”

Yoongi has a really hard time understanding the language this male is speaking, but his curiosity has not yet been satisfied.

“So, this… Santa Claus. He gives human offspring gifts? That’s what christmas is?”

“Well, no… Not really–”

“You dare lie to me, human?” Yoongi growls, pushing the tip of his weapon into the man’s cheek.

“No! Of course not!” He squeaks, “I just meant that it’s not the most important thing about Christmas! Christmas is about… It’s about family. Spending time with your family, exchanging gifts with each other. The Santa Claus thing is all marketing but people come together on Christmas.”

“Why?” He asks again.

“Because they love each other.” The man’s tone of voice suddenly changes. He sounds...saddened. “They spend time with each other, eat food, play games… It’s a time for families and friends to come together and enjoy each other’s company.”

That confuses Yoongi. “But you’re alone. If it is Christmas, why are you roaming the streets, attacking people for currency? Why are you not with your family to do Christmas?”

The thug lets his head hang, no longer even afraid of Yoongi’s weapon. “Because I have no one to spend it with.”

A strange feeling stirs inside Yoongi’s chest. He can’t really place it, and it makes him uncomfortable. Time to end this interrogation.

“I much appreciate your cooperation. I will spare your life.” He decides, reaching for another device, stored in his pocket, and aiming it at the strange man.

“Wait– you said you’d spare me!” The other panics, but it’s too late.

One simple flick of Yoongi’s thumb activates the device, sending sonic waves into the direction of his target. The man loses consciousness almost instantly, only to fall asleep on the cold concrete of the street.

“You are a pitiful being.” Yoongi murmurs before he drags the limp, unconscious body of the thug into a more secluded alley. He leaves him there, but not before zipping up his garments to its full capacity and putting some currency in his pockets. He’s not quite sure why he did that.

He needs to confirm this male’s theory. If what he said is true, then Yoongi’s job here is done.

On his way back, he shamelessly peers through the windows and into people’s houses to observe their activities. And just as the thug explained, he sees humans from varying ages gathered in their houses. Smiling, eating, laughing. Giving each other wrapped objects, which he assumes are the ‘presents’. They seem completely harmless. Defenseless, even. He could wipe out this entire city on his own, and with ease.

Not once, aside from the incident with the pitiful male earlier, has he encountered armed humans like his predecessor had described. The time for warfare on Earth appears to have passed, and with it, people have become comfortable in their little bubble of safety. They let their guard down, making it all too easy for a foreign civilisation to usurp their whole planet. Home after home, he finds the same scene of happy, carefree humans, enjoying sustenance and each other’s presence. This is not even the challenge he’d secretly hoped for. It almost feels...wrong.

He can’t let himself dwell on useless emotions like this, however. His kind has evolved too far to attach any importance to things like feelings. This is good news. He needs to return to BT21 immediately. His stay has been far shorter than he’d expected and, granted, he’d like to extend his knowledge about humans further, yet he feels relieved to go home.

Yoongi turns his back on the streets that fascinated him only shortly before, to make his way through the forest once again. As he reaches the open field, harbouring his hidden ship, he presses the tiny remote to lift the shield. Nothing happens.

Frowning, he tries again. Still no luck. When the tiny remote starts to glow a pulsing red, he knows what the problem is. His ship is still in time-out, needing at least twenty-four hours to repair itself and recuperate from the rough landing. This to ensure a safe trip back home. For at least twenty-four hours, the ship will be in sleep mode, and there is nothing Yoongi can do to activate it sooner. Meaning, the radio connection is also down at the moment. He can’t even notify the home base of his discovery.

This might not be so bad after all. At least now, he has an excuse to keep exploring just a little bit more. The curiosity tickles and the city beckons him to return.

Of all days, you hadn’t thought your boss would make you work on freaking Christmas Eve. So what, your family lived abroad and neither of you could afford plane tickets so you’d be alone anyways, but is that a reason to make anyone work the night shift during the holidays?! Ridiculous.

It’s almost midnight and only a handful of people have passed through the convenience store this evening. Which isn’t surprising, considering most people are cozying up at home with their families, drinking good wine and eating good food. Giving each other presents. You know your mom sent you a gift, but it hasn’t been delivered yet. You expect it to arrive somewhere this week, though.

It’s stupid. It’s stupid you have to work on what’s supposed to be a magical night, to keep a store open for only a couple of customers. He could’ve easily decided to just close for tonight.

You sigh, defeated, before you stretch your arms above your head and leave your counter to get some fresh air. If you’d smoke, you would have something to do. You’re bored and miserable and you want to go home and make yourself a carb fest while binging your favorite Netflix series. But you need the money. College tuitions don’t pay themselves.

Only a minute after you’d sat back down behind your counter, sneakily watching some episodes on your phones, a new customer walks in. You pause Netflix to greet them, albeit a bit half-heartedly. Most people coming in at this our need cigarettes or booze. When you look up, though, you don’t see your typical after-midnight customer. You’re facing one of the prettiest men you’ve ever seen in your life. And he’s holding a black cat?

“Ah… greetings. I found this creature,” he holds the cat up in a rather clumsy manner, “It vibrates.”

What in the…?

[nyxi-styx]

Unexpected

Fandom: Sanders Sides Ship: None  Words: 1097 Rating: E for everyone Warnings: light angst, swearing Characters: c!Thomas Sanders, Remus Sanders, Logan Sanders, mentions of Joan and the other sides Additional Tags: hurt/comfort, could be seen as Intrumas if you want but it’s intended platonic A/N: I was having feelings about Joan and Talyn moving and so I came up with this idea and hurt my own feelings in the process. Also, this is not my best writing because I haven’t been in the best mental space the past couple of days for unrelated reasons and I wrote to try to make myself feel better.

Thomas‌ ‌had‌ ‌known‌ ‌it‌ ‌was‌ ‌coming.‌ ‌He‌ ‌had‌ ‌time‌ ‌to‌ ‌come‌ ‌to‌ ‌terms‌ ‌with‌ ‌it.‌ ‌Of‌ ‌course‌ ‌it‌ ‌was‌ ‌their‌ ‌decision.‌ ‌They’re‌ ‌adults‌ ‌and‌ ‌he‌ ‌only‌ ‌wished‌ ‌the‌ ‌best‌ ‌for‌ ‌them‌ ‌and‌ ‌their‌ ‌health‌ ‌and‌ ‌happiness.‌ ‌That‌ ‌didn’t‌ ‌mean‌ ‌he‌ ‌was‌ ‌excited‌ ‌about‌ ‌it.‌ ‌And‌ ‌it‌ ‌didn’t‌ ‌mean‌ ‌it‌ ‌wasn’t‌ ‌difficult,‌ ‌bittersweet‌ ‌in‌ ‌a‌ ‌way.‌

Patton‌ ‌and‌ ‌Virgil‌ ‌were‌ ‌taking‌ ‌it‌ ‌especially‌ ‌hard.‌ ‌He‌ ‌expected‌ ‌that.‌ ‌He‌ ‌was‌ ‌prepared.‌ ‌Virgil‌ ‌worried‌ ‌over‌ ‌losing‌ ‌the‌ ‌comfort‌ ‌of‌ ‌two‌ ‌of‌ ‌Thomas’‌ ‌closest‌ ‌friends.‌ ‌He‌ ‌wondered‌ ‌what‌ ‌it‌ ‌meant‌ ‌for‌ ‌the‌ ‌future‌ ‌of‌ ‌Thomas’‌ ‌career‌ ‌given‌ ‌how‌ ‌much‌ ‌they‌ ‌helped‌ ‌create‌ ‌and‌ ‌produce‌ ‌everything.‌ ‌He‌ ‌wondered‌ ‌if‌ ‌they’d‌ ‌stop‌ ‌being‌ ‌Thomas’‌ ‌friend‌ ‌overall.‌ ‌After‌ ‌all,‌ ‌distance‌ ‌could‌ ‌be‌ ‌hard‌ ‌to‌ ‌maintain.‌

Logan‌ ‌was‌ ‌dutiful‌ ‌in‌ ‌mollifying‌ ‌both‌ ‌Virgil‌ ‌and‌ ‌Thomas,‌ ‌reminding‌ ‌them‌ ‌that‌ ‌with‌ ‌technology,‌ ‌distance‌ ‌hardly‌ ‌mattered‌ ‌anymore‌ ‌and‌ ‌with‌ ‌the‌ ‌pandemic,‌ ‌much‌ ‌of‌ ‌their‌ ‌friendship‌ ‌was‌ ‌taking‌ ‌place‌ ‌on‌ ‌screens‌ ‌and‌ ‌over‌ ‌the‌ ‌phone‌ ‌anyway,‌ ‌so‌ ‌this‌ ‌wouldn’t‌ ‌be‌ ‌terribly‌ ‌different.‌ ‌Patton‌ ‌alternated‌ ‌between‌ ‌reminiscing‌ ‌and‌ ‌crying.‌ ‌There‌ ‌wasn’t‌ ‌much‌ ‌anyone‌ ‌could‌ ‌do‌ ‌to‌ ‌pacify‌ ‌him‌ ‌but‌ ‌partake‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌reminiscing‌ ‌and‌ ‌offering‌ ‌hugs‌ ‌and‌ ‌tissues‌ ‌when‌ ‌he‌ ‌would‌ ‌dissolve‌ ‌to‌ ‌tears.‌

‌Roman‌ ‌had‌ ‌feelings‌ ‌about‌ ‌it‌ ‌of‌ ‌course,‌ ‌but‌ ‌not‌ ‌quite‌ ‌as‌ ‌much‌ ‌as‌ ‌the‌ ‌others.‌ ‌And‌ ‌Janus…‌ ‌was‌ ‌Janus.‌ ‌There‌ ‌was‌ ‌no‌ ‌telling‌ ‌how‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌felt‌ ‌about‌ ‌it‌ ‌as‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌didn’t‌ ‌see‌ ‌much‌ ‌of‌ ‌him‌ ‌anyway.‌ ‌Sometimes‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌forgot‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌even‌ ‌had‌ ‌a‌ ‌physical‌ ‌presence‌ ‌due‌ ‌to‌ ‌how‌ ‌infrequently‌ ‌he‌ ‌saw‌ ‌him.‌ 

‌“Ah,‌ ‌fork.”‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌looked‌ ‌down‌ ‌at‌ ‌the‌ ‌spilled‌ ‌coffee‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌kitchen‌ ‌floor.‌ ‌That‌ ‌was‌ ‌weird.‌ ‌He‌ ‌definitely‌ ‌meant‌ ‌to‌ ‌say‌ ‌‘fuck’‌ ‌so‌ ‌why‌ ‌didn’t‌ ‌it‌ ‌come‌ ‌out?‌ ‌He‌ ‌blinked‌ ‌and‌ ‌wiped‌ ‌up‌ ‌the‌ ‌coffee‌ ‌with‌ ‌some‌ ‌paper‌ ‌towels.‌ ‌

‌Joan‌ ‌texted‌ ‌him‌ ‌a‌ ‌dirty‌ ‌joke‌ ‌once‌ ‌they‌ ‌got‌ ‌settled‌ ‌for‌ ‌the‌ ‌night‌ ‌in‌ ‌their‌ ‌new‌ ‌place‌ ‌with‌ ‌Talyn.‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌wrinkled‌ ‌his‌ ‌nose‌ ‌at‌ ‌it‌ ‌instead‌ ‌of‌ ‌laughing‌ ‌and‌ ‌riffing‌ ‌off‌ ‌of‌ ‌it‌ ‌as‌ ‌usual.‌ ‌‘You‌ ‌okay,’‌ ‌Joan‌ ‌asked.‌ ‌‘Yeah‌ ‌of‌ ‌course.‌ ‌Why,’‌ ‌was‌ ‌Thomas’‌ ‌simple‌ ‌response.‌ ‌

More‌ ‌news‌ ‌regarding‌ ‌the‌ ‌state‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌world‌ ‌on‌ ‌his‌ ‌Twitter‌ ‌feed.‌ ‌Great.‌ ‌“Oh,‌ ‌shirt.”‌ ‌He‌ ‌made‌ ‌a‌ ‌face.‌ ‌That‌ ‌was‌ ‌definitely‌ ‌weird.‌ ‌“Shirt.‌ ‌What‌ ‌the‌ ‌heck?‌ ‌I‌ ‌couldn’t‌ ‌say‌ ‌fork‌ ‌and‌ ‌now‌ ‌I‌ ‌can’t‌ ‌say‌ ‌shirt?”‌ ‌It‌ ‌was‌ ‌like‌ ‌an‌ ‌episode‌ ‌of‌ ‌The‌ ‌Good‌ ‌Place,‌ ‌except‌ ‌he‌ ‌was‌ ‌pretty‌ ‌sure‌ ‌he‌ ‌was‌ ‌still‌ ‌alive.‌ ‌What‌ ‌was‌ ‌going‌ ‌on?‌ ‌He’d‌ ‌never‌ ‌experience‌ ‌anything‌ ‌like‌ ‌this‌ ‌before.‌ ‌Was‌ ‌Patton‌ ‌censoring‌ ‌him‌ ‌from‌ ‌himself‌ ‌for‌ ‌some‌ ‌reason?‌ ‌He‌ ‌summoned‌ ‌his‌ ‌Moral‌ ‌side‌ ‌and‌ ‌was‌ ‌told‌ ‌that‌ ‌Patton‌ ‌wasn’t‌ ‌censoring‌ ‌him.‌ ‌Janus‌ ‌appeared‌ ‌to‌ ‌confirm‌ ‌that‌ ‌Patton‌ ‌was‌ ‌in‌ ‌fact‌ ‌telling‌ ‌the‌ ‌truth-‌ ‌this‌ ‌was‌ ‌getting‌ ‌complicated-‌ ‌and‌ ‌so‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌summoned‌ ‌Logan,‌ ‌hoping‌ ‌for‌ ‌answers‌ ‌from‌ ‌the‌ ‌logical‌ ‌side.‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

“Well,‌ ‌I’m‌ ‌fairly‌ ‌certain‌ ‌that‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌is‌ ‌in‌ ‌charge‌ ‌of‌ ‌vulgarities‌ ‌and‌ ‌the‌ ‌like,‌ ‌meaning‌ ‌something‌ ‌is‌ ‌wrong‌ ‌with‌ ‌Remus.‌ ‌Have‌ ‌you‌ ‌checked‌ ‌with‌ ‌him?”‌ ‌

‌“No,‌ ‌I‌ ‌didn’t‌ ‌think--‌ ‌you‌ ‌don’t‌ ‌think‌ ‌he‌ ‌could‌ ‌be‌ ‌offline,‌ ‌do‌ ‌you?”‌

‌Logan‌ ‌shrugged.‌ ‌“It’s‌ ‌hard‌ ‌to‌ ‌say.‌ ‌You’re‌ ‌not‌ ‌as‌ ‌affected‌ ‌as‌ ‌you‌ ‌were‌ ‌when‌ ‌Virgil‌ ‌disconnected.‌ ‌It’s‌ ‌less‌ ‌obvious.”‌ ‌ ‌

Thomas‌ ‌nodded.‌ ‌All‌ ‌he‌ ‌could‌ ‌do‌ ‌was‌ ‌try.‌ ‌So‌ ‌he‌ ‌attempted‌ ‌to‌ ‌summon‌ ‌the‌ ‌duke.‌ ‌No‌ ‌results.‌ ‌He‌ ‌tried‌ ‌again.‌ ‌Still‌ ‌nothing.‌ ‌Patton‌ ‌made‌ ‌an‌ ‌attempt.‌ ‌Nothing.‌ ‌Logan‌ ‌sighed‌ ‌and‌ ‌made‌ ‌an‌ ‌attempt‌ ‌himself,‌ ‌finally‌ ‌yielding‌ ‌results‌ ‌as‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌appeared‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌living‌ ‌room‌ ‌with‌ ‌them.‌ ‌

It‌ ‌was‌ ‌immediately‌ ‌clear‌ ‌to‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌that‌ ‌something‌ ‌was‌ ‌wrong.‌ ‌The‌ ‌duke‌ ‌lacked‌ ‌his‌ ‌sparkly‌ ‌regalia‌ ‌and‌ ‌in‌ ‌fact‌ ‌wasn’t‌ ‌even‌ ‌in‌ ‌his‌ ‌birthday‌ ‌suit,‌ ‌instead‌ ‌wearing‌ ‌an‌ ‌oversized‌ ‌black‌ ‌sweatshirt‌ ‌over‌ ‌an‌ ‌extra‌ ‌short‌ ‌pair‌ ‌of‌ ‌green‌ ‌shorts.‌ ‌The‌ ‌light,‌ ‌glee,‌ ‌and‌ ‌mischief‌ ‌were‌ ‌gone‌ ‌from‌ ‌his‌ ‌normally‌ ‌bright‌ ‌brown‌ ‌eyes.‌ ‌Everything‌ ‌about‌ ‌him‌ ‌seemed‌ ‌dull,‌ ‌lifeless…‌ ‌sad.‌ ‌It‌ ‌broke‌ ‌Thomas’‌ ‌heart.‌ ‌

‌“Remus?‌ ‌What’s‌ ‌wrong?”‌ ‌ ‌ ‌Folding‌ ‌his‌ ‌arms‌ ‌defensively,‌ ‌the‌ ‌duke‌ ‌shook‌ ‌his‌ ‌head,‌ ‌not‌ ‌responding‌ ‌right‌ ‌away‌ ‌and‌ ‌not‌ ‌even‌ ‌looking‌ ‌at‌ ‌Thomas.‌ ‌

“Remus,‌ ‌please.‌ ‌I‌ ‌can‌ ‌see‌ ‌you’re‌ ‌not‌ ‌yourself.”‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌was‌ ‌genuinely‌ ‌worried‌ ‌for‌ ‌the‌ ‌Side;‌ ‌as‌ ‌unpleasant‌ ‌as‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌could‌ ‌be,‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌still‌ ‌cared‌ ‌about‌ ‌him,‌ ‌just‌ ‌as‌ ‌much‌ ‌as‌ ‌the‌ ‌rest.‌ ‌

‌Remus‌ ‌sighed‌ ‌and‌ ‌licked‌ ‌his‌ ‌lips,‌ ‌hesitant‌ ‌to‌ ‌answer.‌ ‌He‌ ‌shrugged.‌ ‌“I…‌ ‌just‌ ‌haven’t‌ ‌felt‌ ‌like‌ ‌working.”‌ ‌

“But--”‌ ‌

“You‌ ‌don’t‌ ‌like‌ ‌me.”‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌finally‌ ‌met‌ ‌Thomas’‌ ‌eyes,‌ ‌appearing‌ ‌smaller‌ ‌and‌ ‌more‌ ‌vulnerable‌ ‌than‌ ‌usual.‌ ‌“But‌ ‌Joan‌ ‌did.”‌ ‌

‌Thomas’‌ ‌heart‌ ‌crumbled‌ ‌at‌ ‌those‌ ‌words,‌ ‌not‌ ‌even‌ ‌noticing‌ ‌when‌ ‌Logan‌ ‌and‌ ‌Patton‌ ‌sank‌ ‌out‌ ‌to‌ ‌give‌ ‌them‌ ‌privacy.‌ ‌“Oh,‌ ‌Remus--”‌ ‌And‌ ‌it‌ ‌finally‌ ‌dawns‌ ‌on‌ ‌him.‌ ‌It‌ ‌makes‌ ‌sense.‌ ‌The‌ ‌swearing.‌ ‌The‌ ‌inappropriate‌ ‌or‌ ‌childish‌ ‌jokes.‌ ‌The‌ ‌majority‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌antics‌ ‌that‌ ‌ended‌ ‌up‌ ‌in‌ ‌blooper‌ ‌reels.‌ ‌Those‌ ‌were‌ ‌part‌ ‌of‌ ‌Remus’‌ ‌job.‌ ‌The‌ ‌feeling‌ ‌of‌ ‌warmth‌ ‌he‌ ‌would‌ ‌get‌ ‌when‌ ‌Joan‌ ‌would‌ ‌laugh‌ ‌at‌ ‌a‌ ‌particularly‌ ‌ridiculous‌ ‌joke…‌ ‌that‌ ‌was‌ ‌Remus’‌ ‌reaction‌ ‌to‌ ‌being‌ ‌rewarded‌ ‌for‌ ‌doing‌ ‌his‌ ‌job‌ ‌and‌ ‌doing‌ ‌it‌ ‌well.‌ ‌Of‌ ‌course‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌would‌ ‌be‌ ‌having‌ ‌a‌ ‌hard‌ ‌time‌ ‌with‌ ‌Joan’s‌ ‌move.‌ ‌ 

‌Though‌ ‌he was unsure ‌what‌ ‌would‌ ‌happen,‌ ‌the‌ ‌instinct‌ ‌to‌ ‌hug‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌and‌ ‌comfort‌ ‌him‌ ‌was‌ ‌too‌ ‌strong‌ ‌and‌ ‌so‌ ‌he‌ ‌crossed ‌the‌ ‌distance‌ ‌between‌ ‌them‌ ‌and‌ ‌wrapped‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌in‌ ‌his‌ ‌arms,‌ ‌hugging‌ ‌him‌ ‌tightly,‌ ‌surprised‌ ‌when‌ ‌he’s‌ ‌solid.‌ ‌It‌ ‌takes‌ ‌the‌ ‌duke‌ ‌a‌ ‌moment,‌ ‌but‌ ‌he‌ ‌soon‌ ‌wrapped‌ ‌his‌ ‌arms‌ ‌around‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌in‌ ‌turn,‌ ‌clinging‌ ‌to‌ ‌him,‌ ‌hugging‌ ‌him‌ ‌extraordinarily‌ ‌tightly.‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌almost‌ ‌felt‌ ‌suffocated,‌ ‌but‌ ‌if‌ ‌this‌ ‌is‌ ‌what‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌needed,‌ ‌he’s‌ ‌willing‌ ‌to‌ ‌give‌ ‌it.‌ ‌ ‌ ‌“Remus,‌ ‌I‌ ‌don’t…‌ ‌I‌ ‌don’t‌ ‌dislike‌ ‌you.‌ ‌It‌ ‌was‌ ‌scary‌ ‌at‌ ‌first,‌ ‌but‌ ‌now‌ ‌I‌ ‌know‌ ‌you‌ ‌a‌ ‌little‌ ‌better.‌ ‌You’re‌ ‌part‌ ‌of‌ ‌me‌ ‌like‌ ‌everyone‌ ‌else‌ ‌and‌ ‌you’re‌ ‌important.‌ ‌I‌ ‌love‌ ‌you‌ ‌just‌ ‌as‌ ‌much‌ ‌as‌ ‌I‌ ‌love‌ ‌the‌ ‌others.‌ ‌And‌ ‌I‌ ‌care‌ ‌about‌ ‌you.‌ ‌And‌ ‌I’m‌ ‌sorry‌ ‌I‌ ‌made‌ ‌you‌ ‌believe‌ ‌otherwise.‌ ‌I’m‌ ‌sorry‌ ‌I‌ ‌didn’t‌ ‌think‌ ‌you’d‌ ‌be‌ ‌affected‌ ‌like‌ ‌the‌ ‌others.‌ ‌But‌ ‌I‌ ‌need‌ ‌you.‌ ‌And‌ ‌I‌ ‌know‌ ‌it’s‌ ‌hard,‌ ‌but‌ ‌we’ll‌ ‌get‌ ‌through‌ ‌this.‌ ‌Together.‌ ‌All‌ ‌of‌ ‌us.‌ ‌It’ll‌ ‌be‌ ‌okay.”‌ ‌A‌ ‌sniffle‌ ‌came‌ ‌from‌ ‌the‌ ‌eccentric‌ ‌side‌ ‌and‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌felt‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌nod‌ ‌against‌ ‌his‌ ‌shoulder.‌ ‌He‌ ‌released‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌and‌ ‌looked‌ ‌at‌ ‌him.‌ ‌“Do‌ ‌you‌ ‌want‌ ‌to‌ ‌call‌ ‌them?‌ ‌Would‌ ‌that‌ ‌make‌ ‌you‌ ‌feel‌ ‌better?‌ ‌They‌ ‌told‌ ‌me‌ ‌a‌ ‌joke‌ ‌earlier‌ ‌that‌ ‌you‌ ‌would‌ ‌have‌ ‌liked,‌ ‌but‌ ‌I‌ ‌didn’t‌ ‌really‌ ‌react‌ ‌to‌ ‌it‌ ‌because…‌ ‌well,‌ ‌I‌ ‌need‌ ‌you.”

Remus‌ ‌smiled‌ ‌just‌ ‌a‌ ‌little‌ ‌and‌ ‌nodded.‌ ‌“Please?”‌ ‌ ‌

Thomas‌ ‌smiled‌ ‌back.‌ ‌“Okay.”‌ ‌He‌ ‌moved‌ ‌over‌ ‌and‌ ‌sat‌ ‌down‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌couch‌ ‌and‌ ‌picked‌ ‌up‌ ‌his‌ ‌phone,‌ ‌dialing‌ ‌Joan’s‌ ‌number.‌ ‌They‌ ‌answered‌ ‌and‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌smiled‌ ‌talking‌ ‌to‌ ‌them‌ ‌as‌ ‌normal.‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌whispered‌ ‌a‌ ‌dirty‌ ‌joke‌ ‌in‌ ‌Thomas’‌ ‌ear‌ ‌which‌ ‌he‌ ‌then‌ ‌repeated‌ ‌out‌ ‌loud‌ ‌making‌ ‌Joan‌ ‌laugh.‌ ‌And‌ ‌Thomas‌ ‌felt‌ ‌that‌ ‌familiar‌ ‌warmth.‌ ‌He‌ ‌smiled‌ ‌at‌ ‌Remus‌ ‌and‌ ‌could‌ ‌already‌ ‌see‌ ‌the‌ ‌light‌ ‌returning‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌duke’s‌ ‌eyes.‌

[browneyedhimbo]

Like Father Like Daughter (2/?)

Paring: Tony x Daughter!Reader

Summary: Tony and Stephen bud heads as the need to come up with a plan ensues, causing some unpleasant memories to arise as well your sarcastic humor.

Warning: Slight angst, fluff, swearing, mentions of blood, mentions of cacw

Word Count: 1.3k

A/N: I finally got the inspiration and motivation to write chapter 2! I'm so so sorry it's taken long loves. I'm looking to write chapter 3 as well so hopefully that'll be out there soon. As always, I hope you enjoy!

▪︎LFLD Masterlist▪︎《MASTERLIST》

You looked between the three men, your thoughts racing away in your head. You bit your bottom lip, casting your gaze to the floor. You steadied your breathing and made eye contact with your father. 

“This is it.” You got up and stood between Tony and Bruce. Arms crossed loosely over your torso, you looked over at Bruce and took in his appearance again. His eyes were so haunted, fear and logic battling within. Hulk fought Thanos, you concluded. But Hulk lost big time.

“What’s our timeline?” Tony voiced, already trying to come up with a plan.

“No telling.” He made his way closer to Tony. “He has the Power and Space Stones, that already makes him the strongest creature in the whole universe. If he gets his hands, on all six Stones, Tony…” 

“He can destroy life on a scale hitherto undreamt of.” Stephen finished, squaring his shoulders. You and your father shared a look as he leaned against a cauldron, stretching.

“Did you seriously just say "hitherto undreamt of"?” Tony scoffed, looking at you and then then Strange.

“Are you seriously leaning on the Cauldron of the Cosmos?” Stephen fired back. You quirked an eyebrow at the exchange. 

“Is that what this is?” Tony smirked slightly, looking at the thing. The cape thing Stephen was wearing slapped Tony’s arm, causing him to stand straight. You cleared your throat trying to suppress your laughter. “I’m going to allow that.” He tried to waver his offended look with a glare only making you want to laugh more.

“Laugh it up Y/N/N, laugh it up.” You shook your head, a big grin plastered on your face. You coughed and tried to get serious, but the laughter inside kept trying to bubble to the surface. 

“Whenever you two are finished. It’s not like the fate of the universe is at stake or anything.” Stephen glared at the both of you, clearly not having any of it. 

“Look, if Thanos needs all six, why don't we just stick this one down the garbage disposal?” You proposed, pointing at the necklace around Stephen’s neck. 

“No can do.” He shook his head. 

“We swore an oath to protect the Time Stone. With our lives.” Wong said, stepping next to Stephen. You groaned and rolled your eyes.

“And I swore off dairy, but then, Ben & Jerry's named a flavor after me, so…” Tony trailed and you smirked. 

“Stark Raving Hazelnuts.” Stephen sighed looking at Tony.

“It’s not bad.” 

“A bit chalky.” You stared at the two men shaking your head. 

“Junior Stark Strawberry Blast is my favorite. Personally it’s the best one,” you mumbled earning a few side glares.

“A Hunka-Hulka Burning Fudge is our favorite.” Wong stated, nodding his head. You playfully rolled your eyes, small smile playing on your lips. 

“That's a thing?” Bruce asked incredulously. You turned to him and nodded happily. 

“Sure is. When we get out of this we’ll head over and grab some cones.” You pat his shoulder.

“Only if you're buying.” Tony turned to the both of you, causing you to laugh.

“Does fate of the universe mean nothing to you?” Stephen glanced between you and Tony.

“Listen,” you started making your way to stand in front of the doctor. “You’re talking about saving the universe right? You’re talking about fighting this mad titan right?” Stephen nodded. “Then maybe humor is my way of coping with the idea of possible untimely death. Got it doc?” You spat. He sputtered as he looked to Tony who only shook his head.

“Well you know what they say, mess with the bull you get the horns.” He smirked, hands shoving into his pant pockets. 

“Anyways…” You trailed. 

“Right. Point is: things change.” Tony stated, glancing at the necklace briefly before making eye contact with Stephen.

“Our oath to protect the Time Stone cannot change. This Stone may be the best chance we have against Thanos.” Stephen said, taking a step closer to Tony. 

“And still conversely, it may also be his best chance against us.” Tony took a step to Stephen, squaring his shoulders, trying to appear taller. 

“Well, if we don't do our jobs.” 

“What is your job exactly, besides making balloon animals?” Tony asked condescendingly. 

“Protecting your reality, douchebag.” Stephen smirked slightly, as he calmly fired back. You rolled your eyes for the millionth time that day and crossed your arms. 

“Oh god there’s two of them.” You groaned, leaning against Bruce’s shoulder dramatically.

“Okay, guys, could we table this discussion right now?” Bruce sighed, getting their attention.

“Thank you.” You whispered standing up straight and putting your hand in your pockets. 

“The fact is that we have this Stone. We know where it is. Vision is out there somewhere with the Mind Stone, and we have to find him now.” You visibly cringed at his words and ran a hand through your hair.

“What? Y/N what’s wrong?” Bruce questioned, extending a comforting hand on your shoulder. 

“Yeah, uh, that’s the…” you chuckled dryly. “That’s the thing.” You scratched your forehead, not knowing how to phrase the words.

“Two weeks ago, Vision turned off his transponder. He's offline.” Your dad stated. Bruce’s hand fell from your shoulder and slapped against his hip.

“What?” His jaw dropped “You two, you lost another super bot?”

“Okay technically Ultron wasn’t my fault.” You pointed at Bruce and he deadpanned. 

“We didn't lose him. He's more than that. He's evolving.” Tony said, breaking up the soon to be argument. 

“Who could find Vision, then?” Stephen asked, looking between the three of you. You and Tony shared a look.

“Probably Steve Rogers.” You clench your jaw and close your eyes, looking up at the ceiling as your hands landed on your hips. 

“Oh, great.” Stephen sighs exasperatedly. 

“Maybe, but…” Tony runs a hand through his hair. You look to the ground before your gaze locks on your father. For a split second you saw his face bruised, cut, and bloody; just the way it was back in Siberia. You blinked and it was gone.

“Call him.” Bruce encouraged. You scoffed causing a look of confusion to take place on Bruce’s face. 

“It's not that easy. God, we haven't caught up in a spell, have we?” Tony shook his head. Bruce stepped closer to Tony. 

“No.” He looked between you two, patiently waiting for some sort of answer.

“The Avengers broke up.” You stated, a sad tone to your voice. “We're toast.”

“Broke up? Like a band? Like The Beatles?” Bruce’s voice slightly went up an octave due to the tremendous confusion. 

“That’s one way of putting it.” You bit the inside of your cheek, hands stuffed in your pockets, nervously playing with the fabric.

“Cap and I fell out hard. We're not on speaking terms.” Tony looked at Bruce, pain evident in his eyes. 

“Tony, listen to me.” Bruce outstretched a hand to him. “Thor's gone. Thanos is coming. It doesn't matter who you're talking to or not.” He pleaded. You and Tony locked eyes. You sighed and he shook his head. You both didn’t want to do this, but if it meant saving everyone…

With a heavy sigh, Tony fished his pockets for the black flip phone Steve mailed him. You walk closer and put a hand on his shoulder. He looks at you again and you nod, a silent encouragement. There was a rumble and you felt the ground shake.

“Say, Doc, you wouldn't happen to be moving your hair, would you?” You looked up and noticed Stephen's hair gently moving against a breeze. 

"Not at the moment, no." He responded looking up at his hair.

You looked up at the hole in the roof and saw pieces of debris flying over it. You turned your attention to the doors and saw they were rumbling a bit. You sighed as you rolled your shoulders back, getting ready for a fight.

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

LFLD Tags: [OPEN]: @ilovetomatoes3000​ @nerdy-bookworm-1998 @dianadov @rinthehufflepuff @seasaurusrrex @sebbbystaaan @wwwwyamd​ @blaizeannyt​ @honeyvbarnes​  @fading-mentality-bouquet  @miss-liliths-madness​  @lizlil​

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[cy-fi-theansweris42]

Auto Berserk Rambling Pt.1

Alright what I’m rambling about today is the Transformers G1 episode Auto Berserk, aka the episode that introduced me to Red Alert and got me absolutely hooked on his character! This rambling will include me talking about little details, my thoughts on the episode and what happens during it, and, as always, pictures!!! Fair warning, this is a very long post so I’m putting a Read More line on it so you guys don’t have to scroll through this all (also a 2 parter because it’s too long for a single post, lol). Now let’s begin!

First off…Soundwave. My dude. My cassetticon-carrying man.The Decepticon logo on the front gives away your disguise.

.

Like I have no idea how this fooled anyone but go off, I guess.

Dude looks so shook after going to grab a tape recorder that wasn’t even his and it turned into a giant robot in front of his eyes, like this is what you get for trying to claim some random tape recorder as your own, no mixtapes for you.

Moving on.

Red Alert that is one serious light show you’ve got going on. Now we know those are sensors for him (he mentions it in Blaster Blues before getting shot at by the Decepticons I’m pretty sure) and I remember reading somewhere that he has enhanced sensors (I know for sure in MTMTE he has enhanced hearing, I don’t entirely know about his other senses though), and I like the idea that the little sensory horns he’s got spark when either an alarm is being tripped or he’s detecting danger of some kind, or when he’s dealing with sensory overload. Here it would be the first for sure since Soundwave’s just hanging out.

Alright, oh boy, we’re about to get into part of what causes the main conflict of the episode.

Inferno leaving Red Alert when he was supposed to be his backup.

Now, I’ve got mixed feelings on this. On the one hand, Inferno saves Optimus and gets Rumble out of the Negavator, which helps them win the fight. He also didn’t want to stay in the bunker, he wanted to go out and fight, but Red had him stay. On the other hand, he literally left Red alone in there, to guard a bunker and the controls for the Negavator by himself, and him leaving Red is what leads to Red thinking Inferno betrayed him once his logic chips aren’t working anymore, which lead to the idea that the other Autobots were out to get him. Inferno couldn’t have known that would happen though, so we can’t really blame him for that part. Personally I think Inferno should have stayed, but it’s a complicated situation.

They argue about it for a bit but eventually Inferno just leaves. Maybe he should have yelled out that he was leaving as he was leaving, or did something so Red knew for sure that he was leaving, but instead Red was just left confused as to where Inferno was after getting injured by the missile, which sucks.

Press F to pay respects.

Ok theory time: So Red’s sensors are sparking like mad here, probably since he was just caught in an explosion it’s a combination of malfunctioning and being in a dangerous situation. They’re sparking like mad and he was just caught in a literal explosion, which no doubt caused damage, so I think it’s a combination of his sensory horns sparking too much and the damage from the explosion that fried his logic chips. Plus there’s the red effect underneath his eyes that starts up just after the screenshot above.

(I’m sorry if you can’t see it too well, it’s the episode quality but I swear it’s there.) I think that might have been a visual representation that at that point, his logic chips were toast, so it wasn’t the initial blast that took them offline, it was something afterwards, so the idea of it being a combination of the blast and his sensory horns sparking too much could work.

And then everything goes downhill from there.

Ok there is just….so much I have to say about this bit. First off, it’s when Red’s delusions start. He feels like Inferno betrayed him, ok, that’s valid considering Inferno just left, but then he says “why can’t anyone see it, Inferno wants my job!” which…doesn’t make a lot of sense, but his logic chips are toast at this point, there’s going to be leaps in logic and delusions don’t make sense a lot of the time (I could be wrong, my own knowledge of delusions is limited to what I’ve learned on my own over the years). Then when Optimus says that “it’s too dangerous to remain here”, Red’s convinced that “Optimus wants me out of the way too, it’s a plot!”, so now instead of just thinking Inferno’s out to get him, so does Optimus, and there’s an entire plot to get rid of him, which we know isn’t true, but it’s what Red believes.

This is when things start to get worse for Red.

Now let’s talk about why the heckity-heck Optimus doesn’t push for Red to see Hoist or any other medical bot we’ve seen on the show (Hoist is the only one in the episode though). Like Red was just caught in a literal explosion, Optimus saw Red Alert’s sensory horns spark just because he was getting worked up (cue my headcanon that when Red has panic attacks his can cause his sensory horns to spark), and heard Red say “it’s just an electro-glitch that comes and goes, comes and goes”, the last part of which was said in the exact same tone and cadence as the first time he said that! Like there’s multiple signs that something could be wrong, and at the very least since he was caught in an explosion, Red should be getting checked over.

But no. Instead things get worse. I’m just saying, if Red had gotten checked over, maybe they could have discovered that his logic chips were damaged before they nearly exploded.

Ok. Moving on.

:( This is also the only time where we see that his sensory horns sparking can actually cause him pain, like it might be a combination of them sparking on how his logic chips are damaged, but I think that sometimes when he’s overwhelmed or convinced there’s danger, they can spark to the point of causing him pain. Either way, it’s still a :( moment.

Ok. Here’s another bit that bugs me.

Optimus: Red Alert, analyze that noise. Red Alert: Noise? What noise? All clear.

Like. COME ON YOU GUYS, YOU JUST SAW THE ROCKS HIT THE GROUND IN FRONT OF YOU AND IT’S WHY YOU STOPPED, YOU HEARD THE NOISE, WHY AREN’T YOU QUESTIONING WHY RED’S JUST LIKE “Noise? There was a noise? Idk what you’re talking about, I didn’t hear anything.” WHEN RED ALERT POSSIBLY HAS THE BEST HEARING OUT OF ALL OF YOU. COME ON, WHY AREN’T YOU QUESTIONING THIS????? (Also, for context if you haven’t seen the episode, while Red’s saying his bit, there’s more of those sparks and we hear electrical noises, so I think it’s implied that the damage made it so he either didn’t hear the noise or just made him forget about it immediately.)

F to Optimus and Ironhide, RIP in pieces my dudes.

Anyways, Decepticons attack, there’s confusion, and Red gets hit, which damages him even further, and he’s basically stuck halfway transformed with smoke coming from him for part of the battle and then I guess stunned during the rest since we just see him sitting on the ground at one point.

This is just the Red Alert Suffers Episode, huh.

The battle itself is hilarious though, like you’ve got Decepticons saying nonsense (Smokescreen lands some shots at them so they’re saying stuff like “hey, my circuits electric blew just out” “too mine, I’m blind flying” “away move, before collide we—” (….I have that memorized. Why do I have that memorized?), Smokescreen living up to his name, and Megatron realizing that “I’ve got morons on my team!” (we’re in season 2 of the show my dude, it’s about time you realized that. Also I remember the episode where you got drunk with the rest of them and proceeded to pass the heck out, you ain’t special. Edit: Ok that’s literally in the next episode, lol, I guess Megatron realized “hey, we’re all morons here, yolo”)

And now…oh man do I have a lot to say about this bit. I’m going to include dialogue too.

Optimus (talking about the Decepticon attack): Red Alert, why didn’t you warn us? Red, backing away: You want to get rid of me, just like the others do. Optimus: Hmmm, you’re more damaged than I thought. Red, still backing away: There’s nothing wrong with me. Optimus: Red Alert needs a complete overhaul. [Hoist and Inferno begin to approach Red, Red’s still backing away and now his horns are sparking] Hoist: Your logic and reason circuits are fried. Inferno: You need immediate repairs! Red: Don’t give me any of that, you just want to disassemble me for spare parts! [backs up into the wall] Never! I won’t let you! [runs at them, knocking Hoist and Inferno to the ground, and runs off] Inferno: Wait! Hoist: We’re your friends! Optimus: Quickly, we must rescue him before he makes his condition worse! [Autobots chase after Red, calling after him]

So it’s just like…man, they just…really didn’t handle this situation well. The entire time, throughout this entire exchange, Red is scared. He’s backing away from the others the entire time, trying to put some distance between them because he doesn’t feel safe. When Inferno and Hoist start approaching him, his horns start sparking because he’s detecting danger and that danger is Hoist and Inferno. He’s absolutely terrified that they’re going to hurt him, to get rid of him, to “disassemble him for spare parts”, and what do they do? They keep approaching, talk about how “he needs to be fixed”, and don’t listen to him or see how scared he is at all.

Now, if you don’t get why Red’s so scared, don’t get why he’s running from his friends and should “just realize he’s not thinking straight” or something like that, let me put it this way: Say you’re playing a video game, you’ve got allies, you’ve got bad guys, and you’ve made a lot of progress in this game and trust your allies to help you out. But then! Surprise plot twist! Your allies are actually planning on betraying you, so now you have to escape before they catch you! You’d feel betrayed, right? While playing this level you’d feel scared, or at least nervous, whenever any of them started to get close to catching you, right? You’d want to get away as quickly as possible, right? Well that’s kinda what it’s like for Red right now. Only it’s not a game, for him it’s real, and that makes it absolutely terrifying. (It’s not a perfect metaphor or whatever but it’s the best I’ve got, hopefully you get the point). Anyways, just the way they handled this situation wasn’t very good. They didn’t listen to Red at all, they continuously mentioned how “he needed to be fixed”, continued to approach him, and when he ran off they chased after him, still yelling about “how he needs help”. There’s multiple things they did wrong here, and all of it led to Red running off. Also, I just want to note that Red was trying to keep his distance from them the entire time, and the only reason why he ran at Hoist and Inferno before running off was because he had literally backed into a wall and they still kept approaching. At that point he felt trapped and that’s when he felt he had to run. Now, I’m not entirely sure if the situation could have been de-escalated enough that Red wouldn’t have run off, but I can make suggestions for what they could have done better. 1) Gave Red his space. Literally he was backing away the entire time so he wanted space, and potentially this could have stopped him from running off since if they did this then maybe he wouldn’t have backed into the wall and felt cornered. 2) Had some of the other Autobots drive back to the bunker, or just somewhere else. Red Alert was seriously outnumbered and he thought they were all against him, if I was outnumbered about 7-to-1, I’d be scared too, especially with one of those bots being Optimus-freaking-Prime. Honestly having like, just Hoist, or just one single bot (not Optimus or Inferno though, they were the first few he thought were against him so that might not have worked well) try to talk calmly to Red might have made a huge difference. 3) Stop talking about fixing him. While they were right about him needing help, all that was doing was making him more and more upset, so they needed to stop talking about that and listen to what he was saying more. There’s honestly probably more stuff but I can’t think of it.

Oh my god that was a ramble and a half MOVING ON.

I feel like this could be a meme format. I don’t know what kind, but it has meme vibes. Feel free to meme, lol, just make it memeingful.

Ok we’re about halfway through so I’m cutting it off here and putting the rest in another post, it should be up shortly!

[supersxn]

GROUP CHAT || SUPERFAM + CASSIE

WHO: Jon Kent, Cassie Sandsmark ( @demiwxnder​ ), Conner Kent ( @kxnel​ ), Clark Kent ( @lastsxn​ ), Kara Danvers ( @maidenxfmight​ ). Mentions: Erik Lehnsherr, Bruce Wayne, Lois Lane. 

WARNINGS: Mentions events of Red!K/drugging of Kara with the red kryptonite. Kon and Cassie both love to swear! plus Clark being a Bad Dad. Vague mention of sex, oops. 

SUMMARY: What started out as teasing Jon turned to Clark revealing something about Kon that had the entire group chat questioning his intentions. 

Cassie: how long until the baby finally decides to stop hiding behind mom and dad and comes home do we think?? just curious

Conner: not for another week at least 🙄

Jon: 😐 thanks.

Conner: tell me i'm wrong 

Cassie: you know he's not!

Jon: maybe i want to avoid you two being GROSS

Conner: avoiding grossness by going to the farm? yeah, okay.

Jon: didn't ask for your opinion, especially from you two.

Cassie: yikes.

Kara: let him have kansas

Conner: I don't want Kansas anyway so there

Cassie: we're having a great time in nyc so we'll pass.

Jon: 'we'

Conner: the best time. in every room 🙂

Jon: EW.

Conner: lol

Kara: oh gross

Cassie: 😉 don't get snarky and we won't overshare!

Conner: he never learns :pensive:

Jon: i hate this.

Clark: Jonathan stop adding me to chats.

Jon: i'm innocent!

Cassie: oh ew.

Conner: whyyyyyy

Clark: If having Jon at your apartment is such an inconvenience I'm sure something else could be arranged, Conner.

Cassie: so you do know how to acknowledge him? fascinating.

Conner: Jesus, that's not what I even meant [UNSENT] whatever.

Jon: he didn't mean it like that, dad.

Clark: We'll be speaking about this later.

Jon: great. [UNSENT]

Kara: they're brothers, this is pretty par for the course for them. i promise they’re fine, kal

Conner: You know I'm pretty sure even Batman can go two sentences without ruining a conversation, Supes.

Clark: sure, brothers.

Cassie: they are brothers, but whatever makes you feel better about never acknowledging your other kid.

Clark: I have a name, Conner.

Conner: Cass, it's fine.

Cassie: it's not, but i'll back down if that's what you want.

Clark: Conner, now that I have you would you mind telling me why Magneto seems to be so fond of you?

Cassie: ...what is he talking about, kon?

Conner: oh fuck off, Clark.

Jon: uh oh

Clark: Language!

Conner: fuck you. Don't tell me what to do.

Cassie: kon-el, what is he talking about?

Clark: I cannot believe you continue to live with this... disrespectful hooligan!

Jon: dad. breathe. he's my brother, this is pretty par the course.

Conner is OFFLINE

Kara: he's family you would do well to remember what family is kal-el

Cassie: fuck you, clark. i hope you realize how shitty of a dad you are. if you can even be called that for your blatant favoritism of your only 'actual' kid. actually. do you even pay attention to anyone outside him and your wife? probably not, huh.

Clark: That boy has been speaking with the man who just caused you to take part in a terrorist plot.

Cassie is OFFLINE

Kara: and i'll be talking with /him/ about that maybe this is a good time for everyone to step back and take a breath

Jon: yeah.

Clark: He's more Luthor than Kent, Kara, there's no changing that.

Jon: how? how is he? what proof is there of that?

Kara: do you know him? really know him?

Jon: do you think batman would even let him get near one of his robins if he was? i mean, seriously.

Clark: Other than the fact that Magneto seems to think they've forged some sort of kinship? You just saw how flighty he got, don't be naïve, son. I know enough.

Jon: you accused him of colluding with a terrorist. i think i'd be flighty too if you accused me of that. i'm not naive.

Clark: He knows he's a Kent. Now where else could he find that out, Jon?

Kara: sometimes it's good to /ask/ first. if you'd spend some time getting to know [us–DELETED] him, maybe you'd know when something is off. why don't you try talking to him? without attacking him.

Clark: I handled Lex with kid gloves and it nearly cost me everything. I'm not letting that happen again.

Clark is OFFLINE

Jon: he's not lex!

Kara: kon isn't lex

Jon: great.

Kara: okay then

Conner is ONLINE

Conner: is he gone?

Jon: yes.

Conner: dude, he sucks

Cassie is ONLINE

Cassie: are you going to explain then?

Kara: he's gone, but can we still talk about this magneto thing?

Conner: it's not like what he made it seem like.

Kara: i'm asking, not accusing, i promise

Cassie: excuse me for being worried when you've been disappearing constantly lately. [UNSENT] we just want you to explain we're not accusing like kara said.

Conner: just like, during the siege I went to Stark tower and told him to fuck off and then we might've like met for coffee or whatever. it was nothing

Cassie: why the fuck are you meeting him for coffee?

Conner: Look, what he did was wrong but he has shed light on a ton of stuff. He asked to meet, I said fine and we had coffee. That was it.

Jon: on /what/, conner?

Kara: 'wrong' is an understatement–[DELETED] he /drugged/ me–[DELETED] can we talk? in person?

Cassie: why didn't you tell me?

Conner: Depends, will you lie? I didn't want you to worry over nothing

Cassie: this seems more than nothing. since when do you keep things from me?

Jon: are you being careful at least?

Kara: no, i promise honesty

Conner: I'm not keeping things from you! You just never asked. yeah, I mean obviously, or I'd be dead, right?

Cassie: how am i supposed to know to ask about you getting coffee with magneto, kon-el?!

Conner: I don't know how you want me to answer that

Cassie: because you know any answers you have are shitty. whatever, kon.

Conner: Kara, I'll just... come to you I guess.

Cassie is OFFLINE

Conner: Goddammit. Tell your dad to stay the fuck out of my life, Jon.

Jon: sorry, conner. i'm sure she'll...be less angry in the morning? maybe. she's angry all the time, so i don't know

Conner: heh, yeah. Well it's not your fault. You obviously got more of your mom's genes. 🙄

Jon: i'll tell her you say hi?

Conner: says a lot about me, huh? [UNSENT] yeah. Thanks, Jon.

Jon: good luck, dude. on both fronts.

Conner is OFFLINE