#He’s got sand all up everywhere RIP buddy

[rubeau-art]

@herebegiants gave me terminal brain-rot with their fic (which you can read here!!! [x])

Could not shake this image from my head.

[astaroth1357]

Demigod MC Series: Poseidon

Fishy fishy fishy… I honestly could write 100 more things for Poseidon MC and Levi. I just love the dynamic between an insecure, otaku shut-in and a chill California surfer dead set on becoming his friend.

Demigod MC Series: Intro, Aphrodite, Hermes, Hades, Dionysus, Demeter, Athena, Hades Pt. 2, Poseidon 

For anyone unaware, Poseidon is also the god of horses. I know it's a weird combo, but I didn't write the mythos.

Lucifer

…..

They came out of the portal….

On a horse….

They brought the mortal down to the Devildom…

On a goddamn horse….

There's a demigod on a live horse brandishing a weapon and doing laps around the Student Council Room…

Congratulations, he already wants to pull his hair out!!

Honestly, it would have been preferable to pluck them out of the sea. At least then they'd just need a towel! What the hell were they going to do with an entire horse!?

And his nightmare didn't stop there. Poseidon is a notoriously mercurial god, prone to bouts of anger and spitefulness for reasons far less grievous than kidnapping his children… 

Their apology was swift and (seemingly) effective, though the tide waters around the Devildom did rise by several feet for some time…

As for the MC… uh… Well, they're an energetic one to say the least…

Lucifer hasn't met a more active individual since Mammon. They horseback ride, swim, surf, skateboard, and probably do ten other things - the point is, they Hardly. Keep. Still! 

They're also annoyingly easygoing… He can't count the number of times they've told him to, "Just chill out," or, "Hang loose…" What does that even mean??

Between having to order a stable made for their horse and just trying to keep up with them, Lucifer already thinks this mortal has caused him more trouble than they're worth… At least they keep Mammon busy...

Mammon

Upon first meeting them atop their horse, Sunset, his first thought was of course:

"I wonder if I sell that...?"

After that, they nearly fed him to sharks for trying to take their beloved steed on same night. Safe to say, he never touched a hair on its head again…

These two had a rocky start, but their relationship mended fairly quickly. As it turns out, the MC is literally one of those "go with the flow" types. You can say it was water under the bridge soon enough.

Mammon actually thinks the MC is a hell of a lot of fun, even if they're super laid-back. Most of the time, they won’t take his drive for money (or fear of his bills) all that seriously and tell him that he’s worrying too much, but they’ll still lend a hand if its on their way.

He finds their ability to control water pretty cool as well. Levi has it to some extent, but the MC can make a whole-ass whirlpool or use water like a whip! 

He once begged them to call up some rare fish for him to sell, but they got all pseudo-philosophical on him about how “trading life for material wealth” is “not cool, dude...”

He also made the mistake of challenging them to a splash fight only once…. They managed to drench the whole family with a single wave….

The only thing that bothers him is their weird insistence on being Levi's "Best Buddy…" Why would someone like them even bother with a shut in??

Is it the water? … Probably water. Levi, that lucky bastard…

Leviathan 

Thinks they're a big normie, no scratch that, a HUGE normie! The biggest normie he's ever met!! They skateboard and horseback ride for Devil's sake!!

...But they’re also, undoubtedly, the best friend he could've ever asked for.

To be fair to Levi, their friendship was sort of forced upon him. The MC took one look at him, his aquatic-themed room, and his pet goldfish then declared their new friendship status at that moment. 

Unfortunately for him, though, they're energetic, extroverted, and generally have little understanding of personal space… aka, an introvert's worst nightmare…

The next month could accurately be described as the MC doing everything in their power to make their stubborn "senpai" like them.

They would drag him out to the aquarium, beach, or pool; they befriended Henry so he could put in a good word for them; and they'd even bring him little gifts or trinkets they'd find on the ocean floor. Pretty shells and stuff like a cat bringing its master a dead mouse.

After he finally began to accept them as a persistent fixture in his life, he introduced them to gaming and anime and started accepting them little by little...

By the end of their stay, these two were practically inseparable. Not just because they like spending time together, but because they figured out they could have a telepathic link due to Levi being part sea serpent. 

No matter how far they are, they can always have a chat! (That no one else can hear so people think they’re just crazy...)

Satan

Satan honestly isn't the MC's biggest fan, he generally finds them too loud and gregarious for his liking. But their horse…?

He never really thought that he'd be a horse man... Yet it didn’t really take long for Satan to adore Sunset, their beautiful golden-maned mare. Apparently she's not their only horse, but by far their favorite traveling companion.

Sunset is a wonderful horse - brave, strong, and well-trained. It only took a few weeks before he was regularly sneaking out to the stables to brush her fur or feed her apples...

After the MC taught him how to ride, that was it. All other forms of transportation were inferior to him now.

Satan would ride Sunset everywhere and he looked damn good doing it! It takes all that fairytale Prince Charming thing he has going on and puts it through the roof.

It's a good thing too, because when I say everywhere, I do mean everywhere. Lucifer had to put seals on the House doors to keep Satan from riding Sunset through the hallways...

Of course, he’ll always let the MC have Sunset back when they need her!... with a little complaining but nothing terrible.

The MC doesn't mind much because Sunset likes him and they know he takes good care of her, but the rest of the House is slightly unnerved at how quickly he went horse crazy… What if they brought a giant crab instead?? No one wants to deal with crab-Satan...

Asmodeus 

Their body is just scrumptious. Oh, how he could look at their swimsuit-clad figure all day!! 😩

Between the swimming and the fighting, their form is toned to all hell and he can't get enough of it! Yes baby, yes!! Take those clothes off again!!! He'll help~! 😘

When he's not staring at them “totally respectfully,” then he's inviting them out to pool parties or begging them to take him riding...

There are parts of horseback riding he doesn’t like, the smell and the jostling specifically, but there is a kind of… romance to it, no?

He loves having the chance to snuggle up to the MC as they trot around the Devildom! It's so romantic, like they’re his knight in shining armor! (Or his demigod in a damp swimsuit, either works. 😏)

His Devilgram is just full of selfies of him and MC riding on the back of Sunset or sitting by the edge of the pool or them in the middle of a swim meet…

Yeah his Devilgram is now a one part him and one part MC-Appreciation account.

After the pact he'll eventually cool down some and stop staring at them like a sex-object, but even then he'll be at every swim meet. Don't you worry~

Beelzebub 

He actually really likes them! It's great to finally have another athlete in the House. 😊

The MC joined the RAD swim team just as soon the coach was able to convince Diavolo that having the child of a water god wasn't completely cheating... 

Since swim and fangol practice ends at about the same time, they walk home together a lot and complain about... sports things... (Forgive me, I don’t know sports. Uhm... Rival teams? Coaches? That one drill everyone hates? Stuff like that.)

Beel also can surf, skate, and snowboard so the two have a healthy competition going. They're about on equal footing so they tie often (except in surfing but Beel doesn't think that should count cause they’re probably cheating).

The only thing that he has to watch out for is Sunset… As in, he has to watch himself around Sunset because he absolutely could eat her on accident… 

Look, he doesn't want to and he doesn't even like horse meat that much, but even he has to admit there are times he gets hungry enough to consider it…

Of course, he knows that if he ever did Satan would rip him limb from limb then the MC would drown the rest so he really, really tries to control himself… but still… She’s a very healthy horse...

At least he didn’t try to sell her like Mammon. The MC hung him over a shark tank for that stunt… He’d feel bad, but Mammon kind of had it coming.

Belphegor 

The first time they met, the MC smelled like beach water and called him "dude-bro…" He didn't like his prospects.

For a while, he genuinely thought that they had a lump of sand where their brain was. They were just too chill!! Here he was saying that he's being held captive and they were like, "Well that sucks, man… I'll help ya, but I've got practice tomorrow. You can wait, right?"

It's not like he expected them to jump on top of it, but some urgency would have been nice…

When they eventually got around to helping him, he was actually looking forward to choking the life out of them for the extra wait. Unfortunately, they apparently had a horse…

Yeah, Belphie found out just a bit too late that the MC could summon their steed to them whenever they wanted and ended up with Sunset's hooves firmly bucking into his back for his trouble…

What followed was Belphegor running circles around the attic from the weapon-totting MC riding their terrifying murder horse until Lucifer finally intervened....

Thank the gods he wasn’t near any water….

As it would turn out later, as long as he's not being held captive in an attic Belphie kind of vibes with their laid-backness… They say they approach life "one wave at a time" or something.

He could care less about what that actually means, but what it translates to is "Stop stressing out and just keep chill" which he's all about.

Everybody should just chill out!... dude…. Nah, he'll let them stick to the “dude”-thing, it feels weird...

[avtrkyoshis]

You Burn First (zuko x f!reader) pt. 4

hii guys we really enjoyed writing this chapter there will be another ember island chapter so stay tuned for that :))

ao3 link 

masterlist // chapter 1 // chapter 2 // chapter 3 //

Rays of sunlight fanned out behind her. If Y/n thought the capital city was boiling, Ember Island was even worse. The midday sun made her itch her to rip off her heavy combat robes.

“So you’ve packed the entire palace armoury. But you forgot a swimsuit?” Ty Lee said brushing her hand against Y/n’s long sleeve.

“This isn’t exactly supposed to be a vacation for me,” she responded, looking at the bag she held packed to the brim with stuff. Y/n knew she had a habit of being overly prepared. Suki and the others always joked that maybe she was a little bit too paranoid. But after everything that’s happened in her life, she couldn’t help it. If there was anything she could do to keep those around her safe, she would do it. Even if it meant looking crazy.

Her beach bag, also known as the Fire Lord Zuko emergency kit, swayed on her arm. It was filled with anything you could possibly think of. Y/n grew more concerned for the Fire Lord every day. It was her job after all. And nothing more than that. She was simply a bodyguard who cared about the person she protected. Maybe she stayed up countless nights worrying about him too. Wasn’t that normal? She thought to herself.

“Ok, so the pink swimsuit or the white one?” Ty Lee said holding up the swimsuits to her face. Y/n hadn’t taken the time to notice Ty Lee digging through her countless swimsuits on the bedroom floor of the house they were staying in. Ty Lee always had the most impeccable fashion taste. Y/n pointed at the pink swimsuit with little frills on the ends. This was sort of exciting for her. She never really had the opportunity to wear something so cute on a regular basis.

Y/n quickly changed into it and it met with the others in the living room. She walked over to where Zuko stood.

“Oh. You look…different,” he said, his face started to get flushed. It was strange they had barely been outside and he was burning already.

“Thanks?” Y/n was not sure how to respond to him. She was technically on official duty. Was she allowed to accept a compliment from the Fire Lord? She wasn’t sure if that even counted as a compliment.

“Wow, Y/n you look so cute!” Suki said. The colour of Y/n’s cheeks was beginning to match her swimsuit.

“Says you! You always look really nice Suki,” Y/n said, fumbling her words and desperately hoping that Suki did not notice how awkward she was.

“You’re darn right Y/n,” Sokka wrapped his arm around Suki and grinned.

“Wait, can someone tell me why Sokka is here again?”

“There’s a very simple reason---”

While he was explaining the purpose of his trip here, a loud boat blared it’s horn in the distance blocking out anything Sokka was saying.

“And that’s why I’m on Ember Island,” Sokka said, acting like everyone had heard him talk for the last 30 seconds. Y/n simply nodded and everyone followed.

--

“What’s in the giant bag Y/n? Little apple slices and extra towels for Zuzu?” Azula said while laying down a beach towel for Ty Lee.

“Actually yes. I brought snacks, sunscreen and swords. Just in case,” Y/n stated now slightly embarrassed. Was it too much? she thought to herself.

Next to Azula sat Zuko attempting to put sunscreen on his back. Azula really was right. Maybe she was more his babysitter than a bodyguard.

“I sorta need help applying it on my back,” Zuko said.

“Sure--,” she responded. But before she could fully answer him Sokka interrupted.

“Why didn’t you say so earlier, buddy! Sokka’s got you covered.” Y/n exhaled in relief that Sokka had volunteered. Would everyone get the wrong idea by her volunteering? She was just doing her job in protecting the Fire Lord.

While Sokka sat down behind Zuko, Azula said, “Why, isn’t that a forward way of asking Y/n to rub your back.”

“Azula, stop teasing them. You promised me we would sightsee!” Ty Lee grabbed Azula and took her away. Y/n was incredibly grateful for that.

“Later losers,” she winked and with that, they were gone.

Her attention was drawn back to Zuko, who had just shouted in shock as Sokka slapped the sunscreen onto his back.

“You don’t need to slap it! You’re getting it everywhere!”

“We’re in the sand! And this way it spreads faster! I put lotion on this way, don’t worry about it,” Sokka shouted back at him, aggressively rubbing the sunscreen onto Zuko’s back.

Suki appeared next to Y/n, laughing, “Yeah, and Katara keeps telling you to stop doing it that way. You got it in her eye last time.”

“She doesn’t understand efficiency,” Sokka said, standing up. He nodded proudly at Zuko’s now protected skin, satisfied that his friend wouldn’t burn.

“Wanna check him out Y/n? Bodyguard’s seal of approval!”

Y/n blushed a little at Sokka’s phrasing. She glanced quickly at Zuko, whose face was also slightly red.

“Um, he looks fine to me,” she muttered. “If he does burn though, I’m holding you responsible.”

Sokka gasped in mock offence, “I’d never allow that! I know how sensitive our precious Fire Lord’s skin is. Plus, I know not to mess with a Kyoshi Warrior.”

Y/n smiled at his comment. She could see Suki rolling her eyes at him out of the corner of her eye, but she was smiling as well.  

Getting up from his spot on the beach, Zuko said, “Alright, are you done making fun of me? You know I can have you all banished. Who knows when I’ll snap.”

Sokka slapped his shoulder again, “I will never be done making fun of you. You owe me for all that time you spent trying to kill me!”

“That was years ago!”

“And it still hurt!”

Y/n leaned over to whisper to Suki, “Are they always like this?”

“Always,” Suki sighed. She let them bicker for a few moments longer before cutting Sokka off. “Okay! What do you both want to do on the beach? Sitting alone in the shade is off the table, so don’t even think about that.”

Zuko frowned, “That felt directed at me.”

Ignoring Zuko, Sokka flung his arms up in glee, “We should play chicken!”

“Chicken?” Y/n questioned.

“Yeah! That game where you sit on someone’s shoulders and try to push another person off of someone else’s shoulders! Trust me, it’ll be fun!” Sokka replied.

Y/n glanced at Zuko, who looked just as hesitant as she felt. He shifted nervously in the sand. Zuko being anxious about the game flipped a switch in Y/n, and she looked back to Sokka.

“Okay I'm in,” she said.

“Really?” Suki questioned. “I’m surprised you’re willingly relaxing. I thought you didn’t know how to.”

Y/n rolled her eyes at Suki, “Please, I know how to relax. Going along with Sokka just seems to be the most painless option.”

Zuko chuckled at her comment. Y/n started to smile at him, before realizing what had exactly happened. He had laughed. That was the first time she’d ever heard him do that and it had been at something she’d said. Up until this moment, he’d only ever lightly smiled at her. Y/n wasn’t sure how to feel about this development.

Oblivious to her crisis, Sokka was trying to decide the teams.

“Obviously it should be you with me, Suki! We’re a great team! Romantically and tactically!”

“I understand that! But isn’t it a little unfair for Y/n and Zuko then?”

Sokka made a face like he was thinking deeply and stroked his chin, “Fair enough, fair enough. Zuko and I do make a killer team too! Or should I pair with Y/n and challenge myself with an unknown teammate?”

Sensing the danger of Sokka trying to decide his teammate, Suki grabbed Y/n’s arm, “I’ll pair with Y/n. Kyoshi Warriors vs…”

“The Boys! No wait, The Swordsmen! Wait, Fire and Water!” Sokka shouted.

“I like the second one,” Zuko said.

“Is a team name that important?” Y/n asked.

“Just let him have this,” Suki whispered to her.

Y/n shrugged and the group walked towards the crashing waves. She’d never played this game before and was a little worried. She was also hesitant to go too deep into the water. Despite living on Kyoshi Island for most of her life, she wasn’t exactly an experienced swimmer. Before her panic could settle in, water was splashing just above her elbows.

“This seems deep enough! Alright Zuko, let’s go!” Sokka said, already starting to climb onto Zuko’s shoulders.

“Sokka, wait! Give me a warning next time!”

Y/n turned to Suki, “Would you do me the honour of climbing on my shoulders and knocking your boyfriend into the ocean?”

Suki dramatically put her hand over her heart, “I would love nothing more.”

Suki climbed onto Y/n shoulders much more gracefully than Sokka. Making sure she was balanced, Y/n got ready for the game to begin. She watched Sokka balancing himself on Zuko’s shoulders, allowing herself a smile as Zuko tried to blink out the water that kept dripping into his eyes. Their eyes suddenly connected and her smile turned into a challenging grin. Zuko smiled back at her, silently accepting her challenge.

“Alright, get ready… Go!” Sokka said.

He and Suki began pushing at each other’s shoulders. Y/n quickly realized how hard it was to keep her balance in the water and her feet slipping in the sand. She could see Zuko coming to a similar realization, his own inexperience showing. Despite that, Zuko held her challenging gaze. Y/n felt her competitiveness flare and she tightened her grip on Suki. No way was she about to lose to the Fire Lord.

Their game only lasted a few moments longer, ending with Suki landing a particularly hard shove against Sokka’s collarbone. He toppled back off of Zuko, causing water to soak the back of Zuko’s head. Suki let herself slip off of Y/n’s shoulders while laughing in victory. They exchanged a high five and Y/n looked back at the stunned Fire Lord in front of her. Caught up in her victory, she offered her hand to him.

“Good game, Fire Lord,” she smirked at him.

Zuko stared at her offered hand for a few seconds, before grasping it with his own and smirking back. His hand was warm despite the cool water and his grip firm. Before Y/n could release his hand, a wave hit her back, pushing her into Zuko. The water went up to her neck and a sharp panic shot through her. She’d forgotten her inability to swim amidst the excitement. Her panic clouded her mind and she reached out blindly in an attempt to ground herself. She only realized what was happening when she felt a warm hand on her back.

Y/n blinked, her eyes focusing. In her panic, she’d grabbed for the closest solid object. That had just so happened to be Zuko. They were standing in a poor imitation of a hug, her hands gripping his shoulders and his hands on her shoulder and back. He looked down at her, concern evident on his face.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

His voice quickly cleared Y/n’s mind. She pulled her hands back from him as if she had been burned. Her reaction caused Zuko to drop his hands from her as well.

Floating back and face burning, Y/n hugged herself, “I’m fine. I’m just not used to waves and swimming.”

Zuko furrowed his brow, “You can’t swim?”

“No. I’ve never needed to learn. It’s not like there’s deep water at the palace. You don’t need to worry about me not being able to save you like this.” she replied curtly.

“I didn’t mean-”

Y/n turned away, cutting him off. She knew that was incredibly rude but she couldn’t handle talking to Zuko anymore. Her face was still flushed with embarrassment and anger now. She’d never been that close to him before. She didn’t know why it bothered her so much, she was his bodyguard. It was expected that she’d get that close to him. Y/n ignored the fact that it was supposed to be to save his life, not to hug him out of fear.

“Suki!” she shouted. Suki’s head popped out from underwater, followed by Sokka’s. “I’m going back to the beach. You keep swimming.”

Suki looked mildly concerned but gave her a thumbs up. Y/n began trudging through the water towards the beach, but Zuko caught her by the elbow. She whipped her head around, anger in her eyes.

“Wait,” he said. “I’ll come with you.”

“You don’t need to-”

“Yes, I do.” he paused, thinking. “I want to keep you company after that. You seem pretty shaken up.”

She frowned at him. He gave her a shaky smile.

“Besides, you’re supposed to be protecting me, right? It’d be irresponsible to leave me alone out here.”

“You’re with the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors and a close friend of the Avatar. Not to mention you’re literally the Fire Lord,” Y/n deadpanned.

“You think that you’re not capable of protecting me then?”

Y/n narrowed her eyes at him. She recognized his challenge as an attempt to apologize without embarrassing her further. She sighed.

“Fine, come sit with me. I’ve heard how much you like to sit in the shade and brood.”

“That was one trip!”

Together, they walked back towards the beach.

masterlist // chapter 1 // chapter 2 // chapter 3 //

taglist

@duh-dobrik @inthebisonsmouth @thaliawhitex @brbtryagainlater @paenitetmi @firelordtea @awkwardnesshabitat @eridanuswave @inmyowncorner @aangsupremacy @eridanuswave @royahllty @dancerslovelife @lammello @biblemami @coruscant-n

[dopedoodes]

Baywatch // LIFEGUARD! E.D

Summary: Ethan can get use to the lifeguard style of living specially with a fellow lifeguard like Y/n.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Summer was meant to be spent out by the beach with friends. A time where the days were spent carving lines into the waves with surfboards and setting fire to marshmallows at night on the sand. 

At least that’s what Ethan thought until all of his friends decided to get stupid summer jobs at the local mall.

 He couldn’t understand why anyone would want to spend the three months of freedom they were allotted tending to preteen girls in a stuffy store. Ethan’s mom had been bothering him about gaining some responsibilities this summer though and with all his friends busy it only seemed fit for him to get himself a job. 

But Ethan wasn’t going to take any ordinary mall job like his friends, no. There was no way he was going to miss out on his favorite time of the year. Instead, Ethan found himself in a three week lifeguard training course before being handed his red shorts and assignment, Tower 11.

Ethan loved his new job. He was being payed to do what he had done countless of summers before, laying out on the beach and checking out all the beach bums (the bikini clad bums to be exact). 

Lucky for him, Tower 11 was the perfect spot for it.  Located right in the middle of the mile stretch of beach, everyone migrated towards the sand in front of him. It wasn’t like Ethan liked to gloat or anything but he was pretty sure the rush of girls around his tower had nothing to do with the location. In fact, whenever he was on duty the positions of towels laid closer to the tower than the ocean.

It was only a short time before he became the it lifeguard of the summer. 

The beach always crawling with girls during his shifts, which they had somehow committed to memory. Ethan wasn’t complaining though. With his red shorts hanging loosely on his hips and hiking up his tatted thighs all with a toothy smirk plaster on his face, he reminded the ladies in front of him to reapply their lotion. Being the kind person he was, he even offered to help. Resulting with his finger tips massaging the bare backs of the girls, never forgetting to slip them underneath the straps on their backs. 

“Wouldn’t want you to get sunburned now would we,” he winked at the blushing girls. To which they’d giggle and smile before rushing back to their towels to gossip about him.

There was only one downside to Ethan’s job and that was the lifeguard at Tower 12, Y/N. 

See, most of the lifeguards were much like Ethan, using their new found power to attract the attention of the beach goers and flirt a little. Y/N on the other hand, well she was very serious about her job and making sure no one drowned. Tower 12 was always the first tower to report of an issue and wave the corresponding flag, a task she was very proud of. Had it not been for her careful eye, a three year old would have ventured to far into the waves and been scared for life.

Despite her seriousness about her job, Ethan found Y/N quite cute. She was even kinda hot in the red one piece she was required to wear. In fact, he always caught himself staring off towards her tower when he should be watching the waters in front of him. But Ethan wasn’t about to admit that out loud, especially not in front of the swell of girls lined up to have their sun tan lotion reapplied. And he definitely wasn’t going to admit it in front of his regular beach goers.

“Hey E,” a perky blonde greeted.

 Ethan quickly racked his brain to pin point the girls name before greeting her. 

“Can you help me again. I’d have my friends do it but they’re all in the water.” She handed the bottle of lotion to Ethan before moving her hair to the side.

“Are you still trying to get tanner?” Ethan questioned, taking notice to the drop of protection number on the bottle of lotion.

“Yeah! I’m hardly tan at all. I mean look how pale I am compared to you,” she said, stepping a way for a moment to place her hand on Ethan’s bare stomach. Slowly moving down to glide on his abs.

“You just have to spend more time in the sun,” he winked.

While Ethan continued to flirt with the girl, Y/N was surveying the waters like her job entailed. Most days were pretty uneventful, leaving her hot and yearning for someone to fall so she could run to the ocean to cool off. From the looks of the families here today, she wasn’t going to get to touch the water until her shift was over.

Y/N swore she only closed to her eyes for a moment but when she opened them chaos had ensued in front of her. The stretch of water in front of her tower seemed to be quite still in comparison to the waves breaking everywhere else. Y/N  knew, from her lifeguard training and prior experience, that this meant a rip current was forming, and quickly. She quickly put the corresponding flag color up and alerted the beach goers in front of her. Everything seemed fine until she noticed the young girl floating away from the shore. She quickly grabbed her float before running out towards the water.

“Hi sweetheart,” Y/N said, as she approached the frightful child.

“Hi,” the girl said, her voice shaking as her arms continued to flail around.

“I”m going to help you, okay? You have to do me a favor though and stay calm.”

“I-I don’t think I can do that.”

“Sure you can, just pretend you’re floating.”

The girl obeyed, calming her arms and allowing the current to carry her body. With Y/N’s help, the girl was able to break free of the rip current and relax on the red floatation device. The young girl floated back to shore where she was greeted by her extremely nervous parents. With the girl back on land, Y/N decided to stay in the water a minute longer.

“Dolan!” the lifeguard of Tower 10 shouted. He was running straight for Ethan who was still preoccupied with the girl from earlier.

“What?”

“Y/N went in the water to save this girl who was caught in a rip current. She stayed but I think she got herself in some trouble as well. I’ll go but I hurt my shoulder man.” He explained.

Ethan didn’t understand what he was hearing. Y/N helped a girl escape the ripe current and now she was stuck in one and couldn’t get out? Wasn’t she trained in the ways of getting out of one? 

Without thinking Ethan ran straight for the water.

“What are you doing?” Y/N gasped, trying desperately to break out of the current.

“You have to swim parallel to the beach,” Ethan shouted.

“I”m a lifeguard I think I know what I’m supposed to do!”

“Obviously not!”

Y/N continued swimming parallel with the shore but without success. It was in that moment that Ethan realized he had left his float back on shore. Cursing to himself, he swam closer to where she was.

“You’re going to get caught too!”

“No, I won’t. Roll on your back, I’m going to try and pull you out.”

“That’s not going to work! The current is too strong.”

“Just do it!” Ethan shouted.

Y/N quickly rolled over onto her back. Still parallel to the beach, she relaxed her arms and legs and allowed herself to float. The current continued to carry her farther out into the waters until she felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her torso. With a few calculated tugs, Y/N was free from the current. Ethan followed her back towards the beach where the both of them emerged out of breath and exhausted. The beach cheered when both of them assured everyone that they were okay.

“I guess I should thank you for saving me,” Y/N said, as the two of them walked back towards their towers.

“Why didn’t you swim back to shore with the girl you saved? I thought you followed all lifeguard rules.”

“I just needed to cool down.”

“In the middle of a rip current?”

“Yeah, like I purposely swam into a rip current,” she said, sarcasm dripping from every word.

“I’m glad you’re okay. But next time you want to cool down maybe take a buddy with you.”

“Is that your way of flirting with me?” Y/N asked, raising her eyebrows at Ethan.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he smirked. “I better get back to my tower though before something else happens.”

And with that Ethan sauntered back to his tower where he tried to ignore Y/N and Tower 12 but often found his eyes glancing over to where she sat. Maybe this job really didn’t have any down sides after all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hoped you enjoyed. Ask me stuff.

[captainderyn]

An Unlikely Meeting

Title: An Unlikely Meeting

Summary: Rielay Taqq has known and consorting with many types of people all the way across the galaxy...in her work that is. It isn’t often that in her semi-retirement off hours on Corellia that she meets a Jedi, and even now the Jedi by the name of Idan Lumielle doesn’t exactly fit textbook definitions. 

A/N: This is a meeting literally months in the making because wow life got busy and then I got fixated on Ashes. Thank you thank you, thank you to @lumielles for your patience in me writing this at a snail’s pace annnd for letting my idiot smuggler meet precious Idan! 

---

 It wasn’t often that Rielay was stood up for get-togethers. Especially not now that she had a husband--if he stood her up then there would be more problems to her than the simple act of standing up. It also wasn’t something that Rielay missed, especially now that she had this nifty thing called a functioning life that required scheduling of time. She was quite proud of her functional life and structure and didn’t appreciate it being squandered. 

  In fact tonight she had taken up some of her friends--her pals, her buddies, the ones who said they were going to be here--on an offer to meet them at the Valuable Barrel, a bar in the center of Coronet City that she had been to all of once and was more out of her way than not, after her shift at the shipyard. She had got off her shift, washed the oil and grime from herself as best she could using wet wipes, paper towels, and a grimy workplace bathroom mirror in an attempt to look presentable, and come here. And yet, twenty minutes past their meetup time, her friends were shockingly scarce.   

 Shockingly, as if she expected anything less from flighty sorts of people who wouldn’t bother to give her a call to reschedule. Emeldir would never stand her up, but he was on Coruscant, probably saving the galaxy again if his record was anything to go by. Unfortunately she didn’t have the twenty-four hours to wait for Emeldir to travel from point A to point B; or to wait for him to either save the galaxy or become a pseudo king-consort of a planet. Her best friend had a busy schedule nowadays. 

  But she did have a few free hours tonight, granted to her by Esrin’s enthusiasm in all but kicking her out of the house so he could have a daddy-daughter evening with Rina and Sirixa, and she was hardly going to waste them. 

 Cocking her hip against the wood siding of the bar’s half wall, still tucked in the waiting area as if she wasn’t totally being stood up--she frowned as she looked at her chrono once again. She doubted they were going to show up now, all she was doing was ticking away precious minutes. She let her eyes wander across the patrons in the bar, fingers tapping against the wood, pausing when she saw a lone individual among groups of chattering and laughing people. 

 Nodding to the hostess with a smile she said, “Actually, I think I’ve found one of my party, thanks.” 

 The hostess just nodded to her and Rielay slipped by, plunging into the crowd of people, dodging elbows and waving arms along the way.

 “You,” she said sliding onto the barstool next to the forlorn looking man, hunched in his seat reading something idly off of a datapad. “Look like you could use company and a drink. What can I get you?” 

  “I...uh…” the man jerked in surprise as she spoke, as if she had given him quite a fright and Rielay smiled, giving a little ‘hey welcome back to reality’ wave before signalling to the bartender. “I don’t…” 

 “Uh-huh,” she hummed, gesturing over to the man’s mostly empty glass she said, “He’ll have another of whatever that was, and can you just surprise me with something that won’t knock me on my ass? On me. Thank you!” 

 When she glanced over at the man again he was staring at her like she had three heads and she gave a little sigh. “Oh don’t look at me like that I swear I’m completely sober.” she mentally whacked herself upside the head as another thought crossed her mind. “However I am incredibly rude for not introducing myself. Captain Rielay Taqq, pleased to sit on this barstool near you.” 

 She waited patiently for a moment of recognition--though Idan did chuckle lightly at her scattered rambling-- and when she didn’t get one after several beats her lower lip popped out, another exasperated sigh tearing from her. “Stars I retire after a decades spanning career and all it takes is a few years for me to fade into anonymity.” she sulked for another moment, silently lamenting the death of her career. “I bet you’d know who Emeldir Deryn is. Everyone knows who Emeldir Deryn is. Damn kid, getting all the glory.” 

   If she were perhaps a bit less observant she would have missed the brief look of...maybe not panic but something akin to nerves flash across the man’s face before it was schooled back into a neutrally confused look. Curiosity spiked in her--clearly she wasn’t wrong--but nonetheless she artfully chose not to push it. It wasn’t uncommon for people to come across her fellow captain, not with his galaxy spanning jobs and adventures that got him into trouble anywhere and everywhere.  

  “Don’t worry ‘bout it if you do, we’re friends, he and I, and I don’t get too pissy when he doesn’t mention me.” her deadpanned joke seemed to stumble again, her attempted friend staring at her like he wasn’t exactly sure what to make of her--which was fair enough she supposed, and not an uncommon reaction--and she scaled it back a notch. “Right, never mind, I don’t think I caught your name…?” 

  The man started slightly when the bartender thunked their refilled glasses by their arms before cutting his eyes back over to Rielay. They were dark and still shadowed with the whispers of suspicion, even in the glow of the lights. “Idan Lumielle…” 

  “Alright, Idan,” Rielay stuck her hand out. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. If you’re looking for company…” 

  He smiled tentatively at her, taking her proffered hand in a little shake. “I wouldn’t mind at all.” 

  Rielay beamed and Idan too seemed to relax, if just a little bit. 

  Conversation was fairly easy in a bar such as this--the music was loud enough that a few words every few minutes was passable and head nodding and laughing without any understanding was perfectly acceptable. Wrapping her hands around her glass, she hooked her feet behind the rungs of her stool and hummed as she listened to the music thrumming around them in one such temporary lack of conversation between them. It was a thumping beat, the words high and near indecipherable in the din--hardly the live music that her old haunt, The Rusty Freighter, on Nar Shaddaa had boasted. “You know, I used to sing in a bar like this for a living. Saved up for my ship that way.” 

“Oh? You sing?” Idan cut his eyes over to her first, curious, then back to the speakers hidden somewhere in the corner between the ceiling and the walls. “I imagine that was a much different atmosphere. Unless you too sounded like a pack of crazed akk dogs.” 

 It was a comment dry at the Tatooine sand that Rielay had not expected from a man such as Idan, enough to give her pause for a beat before laughter bubbled in her chest and she threw her head back, laughing aloud with a fisted hand pressed over her mouth. 

---

Rielay sighed as her holocomm chimed for the second time, looking apologetically at Idan. Esrin’s frequency didn’t chime often on the rare night when she was away from home but when it did...well, she wasn’t going to risk driving home to find her house burned to the ground. 

 “I’m sorry, I need to take this.” instead of fighting her way through the crowds where she was undoubtedly going to either get knocked into a table or a drink spilled down her front--she had worked bars on Nar Shaddaa, she had learned, never again--she turned her back to the wall, hunching over her holocomm so she could hear it as she answered. 

 Immediately her four year old’s face filled the frame, all big grin, freckles galore, and stubby lekku. In the background she could hear Sirixa trying to get her sister to put down the device and from the way the visual was rocking like a ship hitting turbulence she was physically trying to pull it away as well. “Mama!” Rina greeted over Sirixa’s increasingly irritated voice, chubby hands ripping away the device and setting it very deliberately on some surface Rielay couldn’t see. “Hi mama!” 

 “Hey Rina-baby,” Rielay couldn’t suppress the amusement in her voice, even if she was suspicious of the apparent lack of their father. Anytime her girls were on their own there was bound to be trouble. 

 “Moomm,” Sirixa popped into frame, the fourteen year old frazzled and grumpy. “Rina grabbed dad’s holo and now she won’t give it back--” 

  “As I can see.” she interjected patiently, not even thinking of letting a bickering match start. “I’m a little afraid to ask...but where is your dad?” 

  “Getting us a snack.” Rina answered very prim and proper--far too innocent and far too enunciated to be anything but fully aware that she was being mischievous beyond measure. Stars help her but she was pretty sure too much of her had ended up in her daughter. 

 "And dad,” Sirixa said pointedly. “Told us to not bother mom tonight remember?” 

  Rina’s round face strained up to glare at her older sister. “I had something’ta share!” 

  If the young cathar rolled her eyes any more they were going to get stuck that way and while Rielay usually wouldn’t let it slide, she wasn’t going to start up an argument in the middle of a bar; she wasn’t that mother. With an exaggerated wave of her hand, Sirixa made it exuberantly clear that she wasn’t impressed. “Oh yeah, and that is?” 

  “I…” Rina’s face scrunched up. “Now I don’t remember!” 

   “That’s alright, darling--” Rielay started before Sirxa’s sigh crackled across the holo speakers. She swore her daughter even pinched the bridge of her nose. 

  “Of course you don’t.” 

  “Girls…” she warned, though before a bickering match could break out both their heads jerked to look at something out of frame. A something that Rielay could only assume was their father, as Sirixa yanked the holocomm from Rina’s momentarily slack fingers with a hissed, 

  “‘Kay thanks, bye, sorry mom.” 

 She  buried her face in a hand, suppressing laughter when the call finally disconnected. “I’m sorry about that, they’re just--” she paused as she looked up. Idan was looking at where the image had flickered out, something forlorn and wistful coming across his expression. 

 “Are they your girls?” 

  “They are,” Rielay couldn’t keep the beam of pride away that always accompanied talking about the two little gremlins she called her daughters. “Even the grumpy kitten--you’d think she was the household police officer from all the dictating she does.” 

 She turned back around to face Idan again, bracing one arm against the counter and narrowing her good eye at him; he seemed to have fallen into some sort of distraction and she had a sinking suspicion she had somehow unintentionally tread out onto thin ice. “Do you have kids of your own? Kicking up chaos somewhere off Corellia?” 

 Idan hummed noncommittally, wavering between shaking his head and nodding before finally bobbing his head in something exactly in the middle. “I do...she’s with her mother.” 

 Oh, a brief moment of regret flashed through her as she realized she hadn’t just touched a nerve, but full out stomped on it. Perhaps she would have been better off shouldering her way outside to take the call. “I’m...sorry? I’m sorry if I’ve stuck my nose where it doesn’t belong--I do that more often than you’d probably expect.” 

 The best way Rielay could describe his reaction was that it was if she had reached out and tasted him with an electrostaff; he startled, jolting back into himself, and glanced sideways at her with another odd expression. She couldn’t get a good handled read on him, if she were herself from a few years ago she would’ve been suspicious--now she was just honestly a little concerned. 

  “No, it’s quite alright...I just…” Idan scrunched up his nose, indecision flashing like pain across his face. “It’s...difficult? Being apart from them.” 

  Making a noise caught somewhere between uncertain agreement and apology, she drummed her fingers on the table and nodded. “I can agree with that. But I’ve got a feeling you’re situation runs a bit deeper than simply leaving your little girl for a few days on a job.” 

  After a beat of bated breath she realized that oh no, she’d not just stomped on a nerve, she’d jammed her heel in deep and ground it in deeper. She really needed to stop doing that. She made an unhappy noise in the back of her throat, eyes jumping around to avoid any of the awkward tension she’d definitely created. 

   It did nothing to breath the tension when from the corner of her good eye she caught a glint of metal to the side of Idan’s belt--a lightsaber if she knew anything about lightsabers, which she didn’t, except that they were usually cylindrical and had shiny bits and this had both--and blurted; “Well fuck, you’re a Jedi?!” 

  If Idan was offended at all by her lack of eloquence he didn’t show it, dipping his head with a soft laugh and a hand jumping up to rub the nape of his neck. “Sort of...I guess you could say that.” 

  Never claiming to be wonderful at dealing with gray areas, Rielay’s brows drew together, her head tilting to the side not unlike a befuddled kath hound. “You’re...sort of a Jedi?” 

  “Well no…” another half laugh, another hum stalling in nature. “I am a Jedi, it’s just...complicated.” 

  “Complicated,” Rielay parroted back before giving a little nod along. Complicated she was well acquainted with. Complicated was Ien Ossus not being to untangle the Ascendancy from his life as a smuggler, complicated was being the wife of a Republic soldier while she herself worked outside the lines of the Republic. It was the force that knotted strings of paths, crossed them over and created a muddled mess. “So you’re a Jedi...got it.” 

  At the very least he relaxed when she didn’t pry more, tracing his finger around his nearing empty glass. “Technically you could say I’m the Barsen’thor, if that’s important to you in the slightest.” 

  If it was meant to get a reaction out of her, it didn’t. The title sounded familiar in the back of her head, as if she’d heard it in some Republic report or another, or perhaps heard Esrin mention it offhandedly once, but if the hope was for it to instill the reverence or fear of the gods in her then it didn’t work. Not wanting to offend, she widened her eye and bobbed her head a bit with an, “Ooh, Barsen’thor...didn’t realize I was in the presence of some Jedi greatness.” 

  Whether that earning her an inelegant snort was a good or bad thing she still wasn’t sure. “Jedi greatness is a bit of a stretch.” Idan looked at her from the corner of his eye, mouth quirking up. “What about you--are you some secret crime syndicate leader I should be swearing reverence to, Captain?” 

  She knew a change of subject when she saw one and the dry humor blindsided her enough that she paused, brow arching before she clapped her palm down on the bar top with a giggle. “Not at all, just a little ol starship captain in that regard. My partner in crime--well, not actual crime, we’re good smugglers mind you--partner in business is the one with the fancy title, the Voidhound and everything. I’m just a captain.” 

  Even that wasn’t true anymore and she held up a finger to amend, “I used to just be a captain. My reputation remains, but I retired from the business.” 

 “That’s a course of action I can understand,” Idan mused. “Getting out of the spotlight, out of the chaos.” 

 She knocked her knuckles against the wood in agreement. “Cheers to that; I’ll leave that to the likes of Deryn and Ossus now...I’ve got my hands full enough with my kids to be playing that game anymore.” 

 In the brief pause, as if they’d cosmically dared the universe to interrupt them, Idan’s commlink chimed, noise overpowered by the crowd, but a greenlight blinking on the surface. For a moment they both stared at it, letting it blink woefully unacknowledged. 

 “Speaking of,” Idan smiled ruefully, tapping the band of his commlink knowingly. “That would be the chaos summoning. Thank you for the drink and the conversation, Captain.” 

 “Rielay,” she said on a whim, sliding down from her barstool as he stood up. She barely came up to his chin without standing on her tiptoes and she tilted her chin up to meeting his eyes, sticking her hand out. “You can call me Rielay. And let me at least walk with you out...I should be getting home anyway.” 

 With a small lift if his brows, she was graced with an earnest smile as they started their dance through the crowds of people, tables, and errant chairs, Rielay following in the path Idan cleared. Breaking out into the cool night air, backed with the sounds of late night traffic and the sounds of the bar muffled behind the door the whoosed closed behind them, he paused to add,  “It was lovely to meet you Rielay. Thank you, honestly, for the hospitality.” 

 With a humbled lift of her shoulders, she brushed the thanks away, though she offered a smile of her own. A mischievous grin, more like. “You know what they say...drink with a Corellian and they’ll be your friend forever. If you ever find yourself in a spot of trouble...I’ll take a short jaunt out of retirement.” 

 She doubted any manner of force wielding Jedi would ever need a semi-retired smuggler’s help and yet Idan still looked oddly taken aback, touched almost. Ducking his head for a moment, hesitating, he finally settled on saying, “I hope I never get in enough trouble to drag you out of your well earned retirement, but maybe our paths will cross in other, more positive ways?” 

 Practically beaming Rielay didn’t pause before agreeing. “If you ever find yourself around…” cocking her hip and offering a jaunty salute, she finished, “Take care, Idan Lumielle.” 

[marvelousbirthdays]

Happy Birthday, sarratorrens

April 13-Sam & Bucky after CW AU: "What did you say?" Platonic soulmates for @sarratorrens

Written by @iamartemisday

When it was all over, from the fighting to the politics to the alien invasions, they finally sat down and talked about it.

“You’re an asshole.” Sam had no interest in dancing around the issue. Good. Neither did Bucky.

“I’m not the one who wouldn’t move his seat.” Bucky eyed Sam’s shoulder, where those fateful words from that fateful car trip had been inked by the universe in silver writing.

Sam adjusted his shirt, even though the words were already covered. “I’m not the one who rips steering wheels out of cars.”

“I said I was sorry.”

“I loved that car.”

“You can buy another one.”

“Would you say that to a mother who lost a child?”

Bucky massaged his forehead. This was worse than trying to stop Steve from jumping out of planes without a parachute. “You know what? Fine. Have it your way.”

He stalked out of the room, not caring in the slightest if Sam watched him go. He definitely didn’t look back.

He didn’t want some dumb platonic soulmate anyway.

**

Two days later, his brand new box of Rice Krispies went missing.

It was Sam. He had no evidence, no witnesses, and no clear motive, but it was absolutely Sam.

When Steve didn’t believe him because Sam was such a stand-up guy who’d never steal, Bucky took matters into his own hands. He picked the lock to Sam’s apartment and walked in to find him at the kitchen table, the offending box of cereal right there in plain view as he enjoyed a crackling bowl.

“That’s mine,” Bucky said, making use of his ��soldat’ voice as Natasha liked to call it.

Unlike a trainee or Peter Parker, Sam was entirely unmoved. “We’re soulmates. Soulmates share.”

“We’re also human beings. Human beings ask before they take things. Otherwise, their spines get broken.”

“Nobody’s stopping you from having somel.” Sam gestured with his head at the empty seat pulled out as if in wait of him. “Go ahead. I dare you.”

Bucky snatched up his cereal box and knocked the milk carton to the floor for good measure. White liquid spilled everywhere. It would take Sam all morning to clean it up.

For the moment, Bucky was satisfied.

**

He woke up from a nap with a photo stuck to his metal arm. Attached with a kitchen magnet. It was one of those New York skyline magnets they sold at souvenir shops in Times Square. Bucky hated those things.

The photo was of Sam’s hand flipping him off. How childish.

Bucky dropped his pants and Sam’s phone was soon graced with the image of his perfect ass. That’ll show him.

**

Sam’s redwings malfunctioned in a battle against a terrorist cell holding an investment bank hostage. Instead of attacking the bad guys, they staged a mutiny. While Sam batted them away, Bucky dispatched all seven terrorists with ruthless efficiency. Every single one of them was an amateur. They couldn’t even aim right. Why the Avengers had been called when a rookie with a donut in his hand could’ve handled it was beyond him.

The headlines the next day were awesome.

WHITE WOLF DEFEATS TERRORISTS. RESCUES TEAMMATE.

“You still haven’t thanked me for saving your ass,” Bucky grinned at Sam as he dropped another copy of the paper onto his lap (there were seven hundred more stashed away in his closet to wallpaper Sam’s bedroom with later).

Sam had the eyes of a hungry leopard. “What did you do to my babies?”

Bucky gasped. “Are you accusing me of sabotaging your equipment to embarrass you on a mission? I can’t believe you think so little of me.”

“I can’t believe suck my dick,” Sam snapped, crumpling up the paper and throwing it at Bucky’s head. To his credit, he made the shot.

“No can do. After that horrible offense, I don’t even want to be in the same room as you. Goodbye, dear platonic soulmate of mine.”

Bucky departed to a cacophony of bad language.

**

“Hey there! Any superheroes around? I need some new photos for my album.”

It was a curly haired young woman with glasses and a hat. Bucky had never seen her before, so he figured she was one of those new ‘consultants’ Steve was telling him about. They were getting two: a physicist and an administrative assistant. This girl didn’t look like either of those things, but as this was a private lounge no visitors should have access to, he wouldn’t call security just yet.

“Hi,” he said, waving her over. “I’m Bucky, I-”

“I know you!” She skipped over and shook his hand. That was the idea anyway. If she hadn’t grabbed the metal one he’d worry about his shoulder dislocating. “Bucky Barnes, Winter Soldier, White Wolf. So many names, dude. You need to consolidate. I’m Darcy Lewis, intern and assistant extraordinaire. You may have heard of me.”

“Vaguely,” Bucky took his arm back as quickly and politely as he could. “I knew you were coming, but-”

“Yeah, this is way more exciting than when I went to New Mexico to be Jane’s assistant.” She flopped down on the couch like this was her own apartment. “Not that New Mexico can’t be fun if you’re in a place like Albuquerque, but we were in a real dust bowl. Actually, a dust bowl would’ve been good. This was like a dust bowl within a dust bowl. I remember this one time I had to charge my phone, and-”

Thirty minutes later

“I say to the guy, ‘I don’t care about your grandmother’s bowel movements, just pay me five bucks so I can go. And then he gave me the money and I bought a new charger, and I could finally charge my phone.” Darcy took the first breath Bucky had seen her take. “And then there was the time I had to get Jane a new battery for her laptop.”

“You know what? I just remembered I have to be somewhere right now.” Bucky shot off the couch like it was on fire. “Somewhere important… but you know, that was a really great story you were telling. I have this buddy, Sam Wilson, and I bet he’d love to hear it.”

“You mean the Falcon?” Darcy’s eyes lit up. “He’s my favorite! No offense.”

“None taken.” He entered Sam’s number into her phone, along with his apartment number and other relevant information.

“I’ll just pop on over and say hi.” She raced out the door, only to poke her head back in seconds later. “Almost forgot. Say cheese!”

Bucky did not say cheese and he didn’t smile. Darcy took the picture anyway.

“Nice,” she said, tapping a few buttons. “Friend me on Facebook. I’ll tag you.”

When she was gone and beautiful silence was restored, Bucky fell on the couch in a dead faint.

‘Have a good time, Sammy,’ he thought evilly.

Bucky went back to his apartment and ate dinner while waiting for the obligatory threatening text message he was sure to receive at any moment. By noon the next day, it still hadn’t come.

A full twenty-four hours after Bucky unleashed the Chatty Cathy horror that was Darcy upon an unsuspecting Sam, his phone finally went off. Sam had sent him a photo. It was of him with Darcy in his lap, kissing his cheek. There was writing on her neck he hadn’t seen before. It looked like the singular ‘no’ on his bicep.

‘Thanks for finding her for me.’

Bucky crushed the phone.

**

‘Just great,’ he thought later on after failing to fix his ruined phone. ‘Now I need to buy a new one and Sam is one up on me. I can’t believe that guy. Here I was trying to make peace with him, and all he wants to do is be a two-year-old kicking sand in my face. Un-fucking-real. Of all the people I have to be destined for. I don’t even want to think about what my romantic soulmate will be like.’

He stepped outside and ran straight into a petite figure, stopping his train of thought. The woman, soft where he was solid, bounced off him like a ping pong ball. She was no bigger than Steve before the serum, and some long-buried protective instincts rose to the surface as he bent over her.

“Jesus, I am so sorry. Let me help you.”

“I’m fine,” she said, pushing the hair out of her eyes. “Should’ve looked where I was going. I always do that.”

She got up using his arm as leverage. Bucky would’ve helped properly, but her words were burning in his brain and on his back. He stared at her like an idiot, like he hadn’t been lectured by his father every day on what to do when this day came. Something about being a gentleman and inviting her to dinner which he had to pay for. Maybe that last part was different with the modern day’s more egalitarian attitude towards dating, but at the very least, he shouldn’t be staring so much. Or at all.

“Sorry,” she said nervously, hands stuffed in her pockets. “I’m Jane Foster, I think you know my friend, Darcy.”

Bucky nodded. “Uh huh…”

Jane bit her lip. “She told me I should come and talk to you. I’m not sure why... actually, did I just say your-”

“Soulmate words,” he said with her. “Yeah, I… I think you did.”

He took Jane’s hand and squeezed it. Not too tight, just enough to feel her warmth. She squeezed right back and suddenly, the day was a little brighter.

**

It became easy to avoid Sam. He just had to spend all his free time with Jane. Getting to know her, learning about her research, taking her on long walks through the park, kissing her in the moonlight, making her cry out his name in ecstasy under the sheets.

He barely thought of Sam for a whole month. If they worked together, they didn’t speak unless it was mission critical. Nobody knew about their secret bond as of yet. Steve chalked the animosity up to stress and never tried playing mediator. For Christmas, Tony gifted them a ‘get-along’ shirt, which was promptly stolen by Jane and used as a sweat rag while she performed maintenance on her weather machines.

It was, shockingly enough, she who breached the topic two days after he and Sam took down a suicide bomber and only got the bomb dismantled with four seconds to go.

“Look, it’s not that simple,” Bucky said, pressing an ice pack to his head. He wasn’t in pain anymore, but with the cold came numbness. He needed some of that right now. “I’ve been trained in a lot of things, but diffusing bombs is not one of them. We got it in the end.”

“Yeah, barely,” Jane said, turning a wrench way harder than she needed to. “If you’d been one second late, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now. Because you’d be dead. You understand that, right?”

Bucky did realize it, and it really sucked. He never wanted to be one of those guys who complained about ‘nagging girlfriends’, especially when Jane had every reason to be mad at him. He just… really didn’t want to have this conversation.

“What do you want me to do?”

Jane dropped the wrench and took a seat on the table. She was so light, it barely squeaked under her weight.

“Darcy told me you and Sam were arguing the whole time,” she puts a hand on his face, making him meet her gaze. “That’s why you were having problems.”

“He’s an idiot.”

“He’s your partner. And your soulmate.”

“You’re my soulmate.”

“Look, I know romantic and platonic soulmates aren’t the same thing, but they’re not so different either.” Jane wrapped her arms around him, moving from the table to his lap. “Most people don’t even have one soulmate, let alone two. People like us… we’re basically born with an emotional support system already laid out for us, and that’s not something to run away from.”

Bucky furrowed his brow. “Us? You have a platonic mark, too?”

The non-sequitur bugged her. He could tell without her saying anything. She pulled back her hair to show him the words behind her ear. It was such a small space, no wonder he’d never noticed before.

“Man this place is hot as balls. How do you even stand it?” he read, a grin forming. “Darcy, huh?”

Jane giggled. “The first few weeks were the worst. We couldn’t agree on anything. She drove me so nuts I had to sleep on the roof by the firepit.”

That didn’t sound right. Bucky had seen them together a bunch of times (without Sam of course) and those girls couldn’t be closer if they were sisters.

She seemed to read his mind. “We needed time to get where we are now, and I think you can have the same thing with Sam if you try.”

“He won’t try,” Bucky said. “He’s hated me from the start. Not that I blame him. We didn’t meet under the best circumstances.”

“None of that was your fault, Bucky. Sam knows that.”

“Does he?”

“Yes.” Jane touched her forehead to his. “I know I can’t force you to talk to him, but at least think about it. Because deep down, I think you guys do care about each other, or this wouldn’t be hurting you so much.”

“It’s not,” he said, even though lying to her felt worse than a punch to the chest.

“Just promise me you’ll be civil with him. You know, so you don’t get blown up.”

“I promise,” Bucky mumbled. Then he buried his face in the crook of her neck where he could forget all his troubles.

**

Sam was in the lounge, which sucked because it should’ve been empty this time of day.

Bucky was only there because he had no bad guys to fight and Jane wouldn’t be back from her meeting for another half hour. With nothing else to do, he’d hoped to get a nap in and maybe watch some TV. Instead, he found the bane of his existence resting in a recliner (the one Bucky usually sat in of course) reading a book and pretending to be dead to the world.

Which he wasn’t. Bucky knew that because his hands tensed and his breathing sped up as Bucky made a spot for himself on the couch.

The TV was in the corner and the remote within reach. He should’ve turned it on, but he didn’t. He grabbed a magazine off the coffee table. Nobody knew why Tony kept them when nobody ever read them. When asked, he’d only say it was for aesthetic purposes. Whatever that meant.

“So…” he licked his lips. “Nice weather we’re having.”

“Yeah,” said Sam.

“Pretty warm for March. Must be that climate change thing I keep hearing about.”

“Right.”

Bucky rolled his shoulders. Sam scratched his nose. They continued their reading as Bucky found himself on the same sentence six times. Every few seconds, his eyes flicked to Sam, searching for the slightest shift in expression. He soon gave up on the illusion of reading and set the magazine down.

He was ready to just leave, but if he didn’t say his peace, Jane would never let him hear the end of it. Best to get it over with and then go back to their mutual denial of each other’s existence.

Bucky took a breath-

“I’m sorry, okay?”

-and released it. Hard. His chest hurt now. “What did you say?”

Sam groaned like repeating himself was worse than the labors of Hercules. “You heard me. I’m sorry. I’ve been acting like a jerk and being unfair, so I’m sorry. I promise not to do it again.”

Bucky appraised him, his pursed lips and tight posture, like he was reciting lines for a play. “Did Darcy put you up to this?”

“You bet she did.” Sam returned to his book. He appeared to be on the wrong page. “Jane put you up to it?”

“She wants us to make up and get along because that’s what soulmates do. Did you know she and Darcy are platonic?”

“Yeah, I saw the mark.”

Bucky sighed and rubbed his face. “They’re not going to let it go until we make up for real.”

“Eh, they’ll get bored.”

“No we won’t!” Darcy and Jane stuck their heads out from behind the kitchen counter. Jane’s cursed as she realized they were caught and forced Darcy down. “Uh… I mean, pay no attention to the women next to the fridge. Carry on as you were”

Sam rolled his eyes but couldn’t hold back a grin. Neither could Bucky.

“I guess we could try,” he said. “Make a fresh start or some shit.”

“We could also do nothing,” said Sam.

“You could also sleep on that couch for a month,” Darcy snapped. “You, too, Bucky.”

“That’s not up to you, Lewis.”

“Bucky,” Jane said in her rarely used but deadly ‘I’m pissed’ voice. “Couch.”

Sam and Bucky looked at each other. They both knew how this was going to end, no point in delaying it. Bucky curled his fingers, then relaxed them. He held his hand out to Sam. “Hi, I’m Bucky. I’m your platonic soulmate. Nice to meet you.”

Sam looked at his hand like it was covered in mud, then took it anyway. “Sam Wilson. Nice to meet you, too.”

They shook and, somewhere in the back of Bucky’s mind where he never ventured, he was actually kind of glad for the semi-truce. Maybe one day, they really could have a nice friendship the way fate intended. Darcy and Jane certainly thought so. They came out of hiding, Darcy already with her phone out.

“This is gonna be my new Facebook header.” She motioned at Sam. “Come on, Sammy, let’s do this.”

He stood reluctantly and let Bucky put an arm around him.

“Sammy, huh?”

“Shut the hell up.”

They smiled for the camera. The photo proudly adorned Darcy’s page for the next few months. And of course, they’d given each other bunny ears.

[homicidaldorito]

Darkfell/Fightfell AU

Papyrus “Vicious”

Selectively kind, protective and gentle. This is who he truly is, not the persona known as Vicious he dawns on when he’s out in the City or in the Temple. He wears this mask to keep suspicion away from his family and to keep people from getting close to him.

Vicious is a ruthless, unfeeling and feared monster who has won many fights in the Temple and even before the barrier was shattered. No one dares look at him wrong on the streets, even though he himself doesn’t even look in the direction of others, finding them all the same and rather dull. He has very good hearing though and can sense when people are staring at him, even if you try to hide it, he will know.

He values his family's safety over everything else, doing whatever it takes to keep them safe from harm, though it’s difficult to do when it comes to their half human half monster ‘sibling’ since her kind aren’t actually respected and looked at like freaks of nature. He still defends her, since she is their ‘property’.

He is the middle child, though he acts much older than he looks, taking on the responsibilities his brother and father cannot always do. This means that he: cooks, cleans, does laundry and grocery shopping. He spends most of his time with Arcadia, so she helps him with whatever needs to be done, learning how to do everyday life things from his teachings.

Papyrus has always had a very strange dedication to the Forsaken Child Gaster brought in one night, finding it in her best interest to be raised by a great skeleton like himself. The same night he gained a sister, he lost his father. After that night, Papyrus dedicated himself to help raise the small sickly baby girl. He loves he like she is his bone and blood, since he’s been the one to take care of her for several years now. Once his father started showing up less and less, he was all she had. He taught her how to read and write, even forces her to read aloud so he knows she’s got a voice in there somewhere.

The only things that stays about Vicious is the fact that Papyrus gets irritated over certain things, never truly angry though. This happens whenever Sans calls Arcadia a nuisance, when his brother and father fight and when his spaghetti doesn’t turn out perfectly.

He’s painfully aware that Sans doesn’t care for Arcadia, nor does he show any signs of changing his attitude towards him. He knows his older brother better than anyone, so he understands that it’s more than a jealousy phase. He just wants his family to be the way it was before, there was a time when Sans actually liked Arcadia but it was many years ago...though he has no idea what happened. Papyrus suspects that this is Sans’ way of rebelling against their father and that he’s fighting himself on the inside.

Papyrus has a good relationship with his father, or so he thinks. Since his father doesn't leave his room or lab very often, so they don’t interact very much but he always follows the orders Gaster gives him without question. He doesn’t have any ill will towards his father even though he forced the boys to do unspeakable things in the Underground for him but once they were freed, he began to change for the better.

Papyrus’ only other friend is Undyne, the fish girl whose eye he stole, who still protects Asgore even though he is a God-like ruler over the surface. After he took her eye and she carved up his face, they became friends and battle buddies in the Underground and even on the surface. They meet every so often when Asgore comes to the house to chat with Gaster.

Sans “Sour”

Sans is a very cautious, reserved and judgemental skeleton who reserves his kindness for very few people. Sans doesn’t have much patients for most people, though he tries his best to be respectful when he has too but that’s on rare occasions. He’s especially cruel to the Forsaken Child living with him, calling the families nuisance.

Sans’ normally isn’t home, being employed by Grillby to transport cargo from one place to another whenever he has the chance or even hanging out with Undyne’s partner Alphys. If he is home though, he’s normally in his room or on the couch sleeping, waiting for Papyrus to finish supper so that he can eat and retreat back to his hiding place. He only eats dinner at the table to spend time with his brother and to make sure he knows that his cooking is appreciated. He leaves before his father comes up (most of the time), so they don’t start a screaming match in front of Pap.

Sans thinks the only reason why Gaster took Arcadia in was to make up for all the things he did to the humans, having experimented on them, ripped the determination out of them and then killed them in cold blood. Sans hates his father because he believes that he is a hypocrite, trying to make up for something he would most likely do again if he was asked too. Forcing Arcadia to fight her own kind in order to keep suspicion away from the family, making her kill people like he had with the boys.

Sans has killed many humans, be it on the surface or in the Temple, making him believe that he could never be friends or love humans since his hands were stained with their blood/ He doesn’t want to be like his father, pretending his sins hadn’t been committed when they were all he ever thought about. Sans cannot repent for his sins, or so he thinks, so he acts the same way towards humans that he always has...cold and cruel. He used to believe that he could, that’s why he was able to be around Arcadia when she was younger but once he started thinking more...he realizes that it was nothing more than a waste of time. If she knew the truth, she wouldn’t look at him the same. So he cut her off before she could.

In truth, Sans feels awful for Arcadia since she is forced to fight and forget every death that is by her hands. Seeing her fight without being able to consciously stop herself, makes his soul ache and his hatred for his father grow..because he sees himself in her. He never wanted to hurt anyone, he never wanted to take a single life but his father’s orders were absolute.

There were nights where he would find her crying in the dark all by herself so he would happily take her into his room. He would make her a warm glass of milk, help her drink and then lay her down so that she could cry into his chest and fall asleep with him next to her, so she didn’t have to be alone anymore. He loves her deep down but can’t bare to lie to her about his past or pretend that it never happened so he simply stays as far away as he can from her to protect them both.

Sans got the nickname Sour because the mood he is always in, he doesn’t mind it since he knows that it fits so well. He is the lesser feared brother, not having as much wiggle room to get beat up like his brother does but he’s never lost a fight against another monster or human. He’s got many ‘scars’ from his time in the Underground but the worse one he’s gotten was from a monster (Arcadia’s sperm donor) that left his eye blurred and hard to see out of.

Gaster

Gaster is a slightly mentally unstable mad scientist/doctor who has the worst guilty conscience in the history of any living being. He did some things in his past that could never be forgiven but he tries to make up for them in ways that are unorthodox and strange.

He has severe depression and anxiety, being unable to leave his bed or lab for days at a time because it gets to the point he has to sleep to escape his living nightmare. He never tells anyone about the thoughts running through his head, he simply shoulders the burden all by himself. He barely answers his bedroom or lab door but if he knows its Arcadia he opens right away in fear that she’d gotten sick again. She uses this to her advantage sometimes just to make sure he hasn’t perished in that god forsaken lab of his.

He truly loves his children, even if he doesn’t seem like the perfect father, wanting only the best for his children now that he isn’t hell bent on trying to free everyone from the Underground. He had done terrible things to his boys and humans that fell into the Underground before the barrier shattered...and all he wants to do is make up for everything he’s done for his work. He knows that not every scar will heal, not everything he does will be enough but he tries never-the-less.

He has an explosive temper, though he tends to forget what he’s ranting about a couple seconds into it and then goes back to normal. Anything and everything can set him off but he never becomes violent, well, he never can remember that far to get violent.

He was following in Asgore’s footsteps, wanting nothing more than to destroy humans and get revenge. He used to force Sans and Papyrus to fight in both the Underground and the Temple, wanting nothing more than to experiment on souls and the concepts of determination but once a human woman came into his life and changed him...he just wanted to save everyone that he could.

Gaster and Arcadia’s mother first met each other when a monster offered up his ‘untrained harlot’ to be of any service to the widely known scientist but Gaster had wanted nothing to do with her...until she mouthed off in front of him. Gaster decided that she would come and clean his lab twice a week...and from there she became someone he never wanted to lose. She opened his eyes to all the things he’d done, everything he thought was true about humans. Sure, they were heartless and cruel to their own kind but there were gems hidden within the sand. She was one of them, teaching him all the things he never knew. One day she showed up telling him that she was pregnant, hysterical that her monster would kill the child if he found out but hopeful that the child wouldn’t be another miscarriage so Gaster helped her hide it...even though she never truly gained all that much weight or had physical signs.

The day Arcadia was born, was the day her mother was slaughtered in the street. She came barging into Gaster’s home, broken and bleeding everywhere...just to shove a sickly baby girl into his arms and give him a kiss goodbye. She ran away from him and was found the next morning dead in the streets, giving up her own life to save her precious child. Gaster was heartbroken and truly lost himself that day but vowed to care for the girl as if she were his own, for the woman he loved and to keep a part of her alive. He’s never been the same since.

Gaster cannot stand Toriel or Asgore, finding Asgore to be violent and Toriel greedy. He doesn’t like that Asgore still has the humans enslaved to monsters, now that he knows that not all humans are the same. He knows that Toriel sells her Forsaken Children off to the highest bidder as weapons, even though she pretends to not know a damn thing. Whenever Asgore comes to Gaster’’s home, Gaster pretends to be friendly with him but really wants to kick him out the moment he steps foot inside..

Gaster has to force the girl to act as a slave whenever Asgore or anyone else comes around, being short and cruel to her whenever she messes up something. He’s trained Arcadia to make mistakes in order for her to be sent to her room, preventing any unwanted exposure to anyone who isn’t in the family. No one will lay a finger on her, not even in the presence of company, other than maybe scooping her up or grabbing her wrist.

Asgore Dremurr

After shattering the barrier trapping the monsters under Mount Ebott, Asgore became a God-like monster who rules over the surface. He enslaved humans about 20 years ago, never letting up the rules, not even after he changed his mind about humans. He keeps the law in place to keep his subjects happy and so they get their fill of revenge. He also doesn’t want his people to become opressed again and he fears that he will have to kill the humans if they rise up against them.

He has noticed a change in Gaster, especially towards him. He also didn’t find out about the child until she was almost 13 years old...but decided not to question where he’d gotten her from in fear of angering the mad doctor. He was never allowed close enough to ask the girl himself but again, didn’t want to push his luck.

Asgore had once been a merciless warrior, a stone cold ruler and a human’s worst nightmare but he resides in his castle most days now...reflecting on his actions and keeping his head about him. He didn’t want to end up like Gaster. He’s very calm, collected and reachable, wanting nothing more than to do whats best for his people.

Toriel Dremurr

She doesn’t speak to anyone unless they are in the orphanage or a supplier, being too caught up in her sales to be bothered. She is truly picky about who she sells her children, making sure they aren’t going to be roughed up to much and properly taken care of. She’s too caught up in all the details to understand that people fake their applications so that she picks them...once she signs over the child they’ll be used as tools in the Temple for entertainment.

She’s somewhat greedy as well, wanting a high price for her children thinking that no one will want them if she wants an outrageous amount for them but most times people will sell their souls for a Forsaken Child, just to get entertainment out of them. She doesn’t refuse them if they can pay.

She hired Dogressa, Dogress, Doggo, 01 and 02 to protect the compound from anyone who decides to break in and steal a child.

BP and BB are also hired their but only part time, BP to cook and BB to give out nice cream.

Grillby

Grillby owns a bar and runs an armory shop in the basement, though it sells more than just guns and weapons. He also sells armor and weapons that help amplify a monster’s magic power. Grillby is a huge flirt with the women around his shop, very aggressive but smooth when it comes to his slick way of speaking. He’s mostly a giant dickhead to men and tries to be much sweeter with women, showing his true colors whenever some smart mouth talks shit to the wrong person. He’s the best sharp shooter in the business, known by everyone is “One Shot Grillb”.

The only person he gets along with is Sans, being his friend and best customer, letting him stay in the bar to drink as much spiked mustard as he wants. Whenever Sans gets drunk, he opens up to Grillby more and more, though the arms dealer never brings it up after he’s sobered up.

Grillby ends up buying a Forsaken Child who has the magic of molten metal. He specifically wanted him in order for the boy to make custom weapons for those who wanted them, which isn’t a scarce request. Grillby calls him Tempest, mostly to mess around with him and joke about the fact he is nothing like a tempest. He gives him room, board and money for working for him, treating him like an actual living being even in front of his customers. Grillby doesn’t care that he’s Forsaken, he believes that the boy has talent and wants him to use it anyway possible. He also won’t allow him to fight in the Temple, warning Asgore if he makes him fight that he will pay if he breaks his workers hands.

Joshua “Tempest”

A mysterious Forsaken Child who is brought to Grillby’s by one of Toriel’s guards. He doesn’t speak at all and has a black mask that covers from his nose to his chin. It hides whatever damage or defect he has from before the orphanage. The only thing he does to communicate is sign language or drawing out what he’s trying to say, which is enough for most people to understand. He doesn’t know how to read or write.

When first meeting, Arcadia and Joshua have an instant connection with each other, sitting in front of the other without saying a word. They do this for the first couple of meetings and then Arcadia finds out that he cannot speak and she can’t understand his signing...this makes her want to learn it. Having never seen another Forsaken Child, Arcadia wants to learn everything there is to learn so she’s desperate to ask him about his life and where he’s been. They both teach each other something: Arcadia teaching Joshua how to read and write and Joshua teaching Arcadia how to sign.

Joshua is always keeping Grillby in line, making sure he doesn’t flirt too much with the customers when they’re looking for something, He always thumps him on the head if he tries to get hansy, and Grillby always grumbles about his annoying ‘little brother’. Whenever someone thinks they can go after Joshua for being Forsaken, Grillby alwaus steps in and warns them to watch what they say before he ‘shoots them full of holes’, they shut up real quick after that.

Whenever Arcadia comes over, Grillby tries to flirt with the little miss but Joshua makes sure to stop him before he gets too touchy. Joshua listens to Arcadia while it works, listening to her vent about Sans and the fact she knows she doesn’t belong there...that she doesn’t fit in anywhere. He always tells her the same thing, “they love you”.

He’s a very calm, rational and cool boy who would rather work than sit around. He has a passion for making things with his magic, creating beautiful pieces with the tools Grillby gives him to work with. It’s hard to upset him, even if you do he will never show it, he’ll merely brush it off as though it never happened.

Unlike most Forsaken Children, Joshua has more monster features than he does human. His skin is a dark grey, his hair is a mixture of orange, red and yellow as if it were molten metal and his eyes have red irises and black sclera. Most people mistake him for a real monster until they take a closer look at his form.

Arcadia “Wretched”

The main protagonist of the story, known for being sickly and Forsaken, she was taken in by W.D Gaster and his two boys when she was just born. She’s a very soft spoken, timid and well behaved child who only has a tendency to be aggressive when she has to take her ‘battery acid medicine’ and when forced to fight in the Temple.

Since she is half human and half monster, her magic is much stronger than a normal monsters since the human part of her soul is powering her magic and the monster part is keeping the magic stable. Her magic is creating red crystals that are fairly hard to break, so whenever she makes them she saved them to use them as weapons during her fights.

She isn’t conscious when she’s fighting, having had Gaster implant a device into her brain that shuts her mind off but keeps her body moving. At first, it was only her fight or flight sensory system keeping her fighting but something else has awoken in her that helps her now. This device is so that she doesn’t have to witness the fights or deal with the memories of killing other humans but she can’t ignore the marks left behind from the fights. She always takes in the wounds that the loser left on her, seeing how hard they fought and wanted to live but ended up dying at her hands. This always makes her puke.

She didn’t even realize she wasn’t a skeleton until she was twelve, when Sans told her she would never be one of them due to the fact she as part human. She never forgot that, never looked at herself the same way anymore. She loves all of them like they were her true family, even Sans who said such a terrible thing to her, remembering him for who he was before he became bitter.

She has always clung onto Papyrus, since he was the only one around for her from the time of twelve until present time, taking care of her and being the brother she needed him to be. He taught her everything she knows and in doing so, she drove out his loneliness and his feeling of inferiority. They always helped the other in some way, shape or form.

She and Sans had been close at one point, coming to the point where she was sure she was in love with him...but it all ended in tragedy when he suddenly rejected her and never spoke kindly to her again. Now they have a very tense relationship, Arcadia always trying not to get screamed at by him for breathing the same air. She only speaks about their relationship to Joshua who can never really give her any advice on how to fix the relationship, only to keep trying.

Arcadia and Gaster are the closest of the four, having a very strong father daughter relationship from the very beginning. He absolutely adores her, finding that she looks so much like her mother and nothing like her father other than the marks on her face. He has a tendency of ignoring the boys calls for him but when his sweet girl calls for him he has to make sure nothing has happened to her. She spends time with him whenever she can, even sneaking into the lab to force her presence onto him whenever she thinks he needs it most. She knows that he’s struggling with something but he never tells her, not wanting to upset her with his woes.

She knows nothing about her parents, just knowing that she looks like her mother. She likes to stare at herself in the mirror and imagine her mother...what she looked like when she was around. She also doesn’t know her mother is dead or that Gaster slaughtered her father after finding out that he’d been the one to kill her. She was told that her mother had given her to Gaster because she knew it would be safer for her there than anywhere else, which wasn’t a lie. She only brings her up around Gaster, hoping he will tell her more about her.

She wants to make the world a place where monsters and humans no longer fight, just be at peace. She is one of the Seven Lights.

Mettaton and Nabstablook

Mettaton is the live entertainment at the Temple, doing acts while they take the bodies of the dead out of the ring. He doesn’t leave his room often, not wanting to be touched by any unclean hands or to breathe the air of commoners

Nabstablook is the DJ of the Temple, living with Mettaton in the Temple. He very rude and rotten whenever he’s around others, so most people don’t invite him to after parties.

Undyne and Alphys:

Undyne is still a loyal follower of Asgore, keeping guard of him whenever he isn’t in his castle. She’s still one of the best fighters the Temple has seen and being teamed up with Papyrus, they are almost unstoppable. She and Papyrus are close, though he isn’t close to her partner Alphys but doesn’t truly mind her in the end. Undyne is a very funny, headstrong, stubborn girl who will do anything to protect the people she holds dear.

She doesn’t seem to like Sans much, but neither does he.

She finds Arcadia interesting, watching the way she fights and even makes comments to Pap about how her style is similar to his. Whenever she sees Arcadia, she has a habit of ruffling her hair and congratulating her for not dying.

She is truly in love with Alphys, always shouting her name after every victory to make sure she knows that it was all for her. She’s very open about her love and makes sure no one makes googly eyes at her girl.

Alphys is a little more reserved than Undyne and doesn’t fight like she does, she merely makes new equipment for her love. She has a habit of making too many gadgets but Undyne uses them all to test them out and their effectiveness...even though most of them do the opposite of what they’re supposed too.

Flowey/Asriel

Wants Arcadia to take Asgore down by finding the other Six Lights.

Temmie

Da true villain in the end.

[sakura-cheesecake]

Extra Scene ( Mermaid AU )

How our little Sarada was conceive and how they got married Sasuke’s style !

[ Warning: lemon ]

Sasuke broke the kiss and started to trail his love bites down her neck. She moaned as his cold lips caress her warm skin, it was an odd feeling to feel that made her giggle slightly. His naughty hand went to massage her breast while the other naughty one went down her hips, caressing her skin slowly to tease her.

When his lips reached her hill. He looked to her with his eyes full of lust, the innocent black eyes she was used to see was gone. He was no longer the merboy she found at the Miyazaki shore. He was a man, a merman. Sasuke smirked and eloped her pink peak with his cool month. Licking it, tasting it and kissing it as he intentionally leave a trail of saliva on her.

He went to suck on the other peak as well, he switched his hands and the other one went to message her wet breast, playing with her pinkie point and pulling it. It made her more and more went down below. She had never felt so turned on in her life. 

He gave a ‘pop’ noise as he finished his cherry lollipop. He move on with his wet saliva kiss down her big valley to her little girl. He kissed her belly button before he positioned himself lower to her body. He trail his love kisses along her thighs and kiss the ring of her womanhood before covering it fully, eating it whole. 

“ Oh ” She moaned loudly. Her green eyes were fogged with the sensation the merman was giving her. His cold ice-like tongue was licking her private jewel gently with a notice-able pattern. He was greedily sucking her dry of her sweet juice out, making her wanting to faint on the cave’s floor instantly. 

She felt a tingle feeling in her lower body, she didn’t know what it was as she felt so much pleasure and torture at the same time. It was then she realized what the feeling was as she release her sweet liquor to her lover. He immediately did his duty as he clean her dry. He look up to her seductively, her juice still on his face as he tease her by licking her cum on his nose with his long tongue.

He positioned himself on to her again, this time, kissing her mouth deeply as he let her taste herself. He attacked her when he bit her bottom lip, demanding for entry. She moaned and let him as she couldn’t even think straight. His long tongue snaked inside her, dancing with her tinier tongue, sometimes even tease her by tapping her throat with his oral sword.

When they broke apart, saliva covered their mouths, they patted for air. Sakura was sweating from the heat, her chest huffed up and down from her lover’s kisses. She felt so dazed, so tired already. She wanted to rest but it seems that the marine man had other plans as his long fins brushed against her feet. The same feeling she felt years ago when she first ran after him down into the sea. She jumped slightly, her eyes still close from her resting.

Her eyes are heavy. But she felt his fins brushing against her sensitive feet more and more before moving higher and higher. She felt as if he had his tail wrapped his legs, stroking her bare skin with his scales to revenge her on unknowingly turning him on all those times before. Ever since that day when they had reunited, she would come visit him on the shore with a summer dress, the same way she was dress ten years ago. She would jump into the sea to play with him as if they were still children, riding on his back and stroking his scales for her fun, unknowingly making him hard all the time. ‘ Finally, pay back ’  He smirked. 

It made her felt so hot as she felt the stroking stopped. But the brushing came to her womanhood !

“ Ah ! ” She gasped. Her eyes shoot open to see Sasuke smirking at her closely, his tail was bent to touch her with his large fin. He brushed more and more, faster and harder each time, making her belly twist again before she came for the second time.

“ S-Sasu.. ” Her eyes went to plead him to stop. It was already too much for her. She would die from all this pleasure if he doesn’t stop ! Who knew a fish tail could make a woman cum ?

“ No ”

And that was her answer before she felt him shifted and kiss her lightly yet gentle. He position himself before setting his marine ‘sword’ at her entrance and enter her slowly.

Oh dear lord.

He’s going to kill her !

Before they agreed to this, he told her that mermen’s ‘swords’ are far larger and longer than humans’. She thought that it was just a joke since men she knew like Sai and Naruto would always joke about their little ‘buddy’ being so big as a whale. Even her co-working jokes about it that he made ladies beg for him before, even men ! ( He proudly states that his was the biggest in the hospital. What a pervert and shameful doctor he is. She wanted to roll her eyes)

She thought that Sasuke had the same humor. But no, her fish man was telling the dead truth. He told her that his was slightly below average, and that his brother’s ,Itachi’s , was way larger than his. ‘ Is this something mermaids look for in mermen?! ’ She wanted to cry out that it was too much !

He was so big. Only half of his oh-so-proud-sword was inside her yet she already felt so full. It was ripping her virgin shield apart, it hurt like hell. He started to push in deeper making her moaned louder and felt tears on her eyes. It was so painful, her jewel felt so stretched, tearing apart. When he got all the way inside her, she thought that she would faint. She felt her blood running down her butt cheeks, slowly making the stone floor of cave cave crimson. Some of her virgin blood made it into the sand and dyed it pinkish red before getting caught on her lover’s long scale a bit. 

All she could see was white. White was everywhere. She couldn’t even see Sasuke’s face which is now hovering her with his eyes full of lust and concern.

“ A little more ” He whispered with a gentle smile on his face before kissing her lips softly. His lips were no longer cold, it was warm now with love for her in it. She eagerly kiss him back with her arms locking his neck before going to mess his hair. She didn’t want to claw his back red. 

When the pain all went away, she stopped kissing him. She nodded slightly with her eyes still vice with pain, before exhaling her moans. “ S-Sasuke-Kun ” She moaned. It made him even more hard for her.

He started to rock his sword, swinging back and forth with perfect marks as he had hit all of her good spots. “ Oh dear lord ” She moaned, her legs went to push him even deeper inside of her before resting them on his tail. His scales scratch against her sensitive leg skin, leaving faint scratch marks on her fair legs.

Sasuke thrust in and out, quickening his pace as his climax is near. They were close, they both knew it. Her inner walls were chocking his big fish, it was killing him so much. The fact that the cave echos did not help at all, it made him hear her cry his name more clearly, the sound of their skin hitting each other didn’t help too. ‘ Why must she be so gorgeous ?! ‘

A few more hard push and she came first, he soon followed. Hot seeds shoot into her warm stomach as she came with him, mixing their fluids together as if it was a love vow. 

He was still shooting out his semen when she collapsed. He stayed inside her for a while before pulling out and hugging her on the floor. Both were breathing hard under the hotness of their first time together. His usual cool skin was now warm, a little bit too warm for his usual temperature but he assured her that it was fine but his breathing was hard.

“ That was my first ” Sasuke confessed. Sakura shoot him a ‘wtf’ look as her breathing became more stable. 

“ Really? ” She asked. But he was so professional ! “ Is it a merman thing or a Sasuke thing? ” 

“ A merman thing. ” He said with a proud smirk. His skin got cooler now that the hotness in his body had fade away. Slowly, he push himself off the hard cave’s floor and into the sea water to cool himself. “ Come ” 

“ What? ” Sakura gave him a blank look. Did he ask her to go naked into the sea? She’s not very sure if that’s a smart idea, knowing that her virgin shield was just broken and getting into the water would not be a bright idea for her. She shook her head. Sasuke pouted. 

“ Please ” He pleaded, holding his hand out to her from the water. She slowly gave in with a sigh and limp to him slowly not to trip on the cave’s bumpy floor. When she put her foot in the water, it was freezing ! 

But Sasuke gave her a look that she can’t ever deny. She gulped and sank both her legs in the water first, sitting on the cave’s floor, before jumping into his arms as she got into the sea. 

He set his long large tail out, making her sit on his scales that were brushing against her naked butt. Sasuke held her tight and chuckled when he noticed that she was shivering and blushing red from his fins. It made her very adorable in his eyes.

“ Hey. Let’s get bonded ” He whispered in her ear. 

“ Bonded? You mean, married? ” She turn to look at him.

“ It means being mates forever ” He answered. She gave him an ‘ o ’ before explaining to him about the human marriage. He nodding as he absorb the new information before asking her again if she wanted to get married with him, merpeople style. ( Sakura rolled her eyes with his humor ) 

“ My clan would mate here first and then tangle themselves in front of the seashells in this cave ” He held her, shifting her small body in his strong arms. His dark bangs covering an eye. “ And we vow ” He finished as he close his eyes and told her to close hers and held her breath. 

They drop into the sea quickly. He left her go and held her hands. She couldn’t see his face right now as she close her eyes. He was singing some tunes she couldn’t make out. It was soothing and urge her to open her eyes to meet with his but cannot as he had asked her not to. 

Sasuke pulled her small body closer until he could see all of her details clearly. Her pink pastel lashes and a shade dark eye brows, her faint freckles and her slightly large forehead. He had fallen for her the moment he had seen her again after she broke her promise. 

At first he was angry but when she told him her reasons, he understood her and loved her again without a single caring if she might have been married to another or not. He missed her. 

And now she was his.

His alone and forever as the kiss they now share bonds them forever as mates or what in Sakura culture would call, ‘ husband and wife ’. 

‘ Thank you for coming back to me ’

[op-jessie]

Oh ma gosh ur open im so sorry for messaging you for an annoying amount of times may i have a scenario of katakuri,luffy,law and crocdile for the scenario with the s/os family dies on an island im sorry if this is to much or if i annoyed you you must be tired after reading what i sent you i'm sorry for wasting your time. Im also sorry for my bad english

(Y/N)- Your name(E/C)- Eye color(Y/D/N)- Your daughter’s name(Y/S/N)- Your son’s name(Y/1/T/N)- Your 1st twin’s name(Y/2/T/N)- Your 2nd twin’s name

Link to the original request here

(Angst warning, TW: death/gore/blood. A/N: I’m like super proud and emotional over this post actually)

Charlotte Katakuri: He still remembered the day he held his daughter. She barely fit the size of his forearm yet he couldn’t take his eyes away from the crimson eyes staring back at him. He knew that she probably couldn’t see him but he could see her and he never thought that he would understand why his mother wanted kids; here she laid though, his daughter, his everything now. The memories are what keeps him going. When his daughter was 3, he had to send her and his partner away. His partner wasn’t a pirate so he could see how they stiffened and held (Y/D/N) a bit tighter during tea parties and other events in which all of them would converge. They finally expressed their concern and, although he hated the idea, his crimson eyes landed on the small girl running across the room, long crimson hair flying behind her. He found them an island where they would stay and be safe the next day.

He set them up with someone to accompany them. He didn’t want to leave them unattended. It had been a year since he had seen the two of them and he wanted to see his little girl and his love. It was (Y/D/N)’s birthday and a lot of his siblings convinced him that they should throw a party to gain Mama’s favor, which he would use as an excuse to go get the two of you. He stood at the front of the ship, filled with underlings manning the ships. He could see the island in the distance and once he got closer to the ship, he closed his eyes. He wasn’t able to stop himself from using his haki to check a couple seconds into the future. His eyes snapped open when his vision saw a corpse. He didn’t care about the person that was dead but that was not a good sign. He got off the ship and ordered for the underlings to stay; it’s not like he needed them.

When he got to town, it was too quiet. He immediately hurried to the home he had set up for his partner and immediately saw a body. It was the guard he had given them. He kicked the body over to see any kind of injuries but found none, except for oddly colored skin and some foam in the corner of his mouth. Katakuri gritted his teeth and went up the steps.

“Daddy! It’s such a pretty house!” At his daughter’s exclamation, he nodded and smiled slightly behind the scarf. Of course it was. He made sure it would be perfect for the two of them.

He bent down to walk through the doorway just like that day and stepped down to the hallway where the door was wide open. The door to (Y/D/N)’s room.

At her small gasp, he put her down and let her twirl around the room, admiring how she giggled and explored her bed and closet. He took a step back into the hallway where his partner stood, watching him. He moved his scarf to reveal his mouth and gently gripped their shoulders. When they looked at him, he leaned down and pressed a kiss to their forehead, making them smile slightly.

(Y/D/N) was nowhere in sight in the room but he could see her favorite outfits in the laundry basket and her toys scattered all over the floor. He bent down and picked up a small teddy bear; the one she was never seen without. The soft toy was slightly crushed in his hand as he stepped out into the same hallway where he said his goodbyes.

They couldn’t help it anymore and stepped forward to hug him. His arms came up around them too and the two of them held onto each other for a while until a light weight attached itself to his leg. He pulled back to look at his daughter and picked her up, hugging her close as she hugged his head.

“I’m gonna miss you, daddy…” She sniffled, making him rub her back.

“I’ll miss you too.” He looked at his partner and a small smile lifted his lips. “You too.” They smiled softly and nodded, leaning up to peck his lips

“We love you, Katakuri. Right, (Y/D/N)?”

“Yeah, daddy! I love you!”

He could still hear those last words as he stepped towards the master bedroom, his free hand landing on the door and pushing the slightly ajar surface open. An unfamiliar feeling immediately affected his eyes as he stepped forward. He fell to his knees next to the bed with his hands hovering over the bed, the bear in his hand landing on the sheets. His partner laid in bed with a coughing mask over their mouth and they were holding (Y/D/N) close to their side. (Y/D/N)… She looked so much paler and thinner. They both did. His hovering hands finally landed on his partner’s leg, head ducked down. A year ago, when he saw a couple people walking around with those masks, he should have known. Tears fell from his eyes and a sob ripped from his throat, a foreign sound that he hadn’t heard in years. He didn’t know how long he stayed there, just caressing their cold faces and hugging their lifeless forms; he just wanted them to hug him back but he knew that they wouldn’t.

He slid to the floor and sat there for who knows how long until his den den mushi rang inside his jacket. He pulled it out and silently clicked it on. The snail took shape of his brother, Perospero.

“What’s taking so long?! Should I tell Mama about the party or what?!” He exclaimed. Katakuri stared at the snail and right as the snail was about to open its mouth, he interrupted.

“There won’t be a party. They’re dead.” He stated, voice cracking yet cold. He clicked the snail off and put it away. He stood up and leaned over them again, hand gently stroking the cold cheeks of his loved ones. He could still hear their voices in his head. As he picked both of them up and held them close, he could hear the faint call of his name and ‘daddy’ but it was all in his head now.

A coldness washed over him as he got to the ship and heard the gasps of underlings. The cause of death was what he had suspected. He could kill any pirate that dared to touch his family, maybe even torture them for however long he felt it was appropriate to. But, this, this was a sickness. Not a physical thing. He couldn’t kill this illness but it killed his family. He mourned silently for his family and he knew that he would mourn forever, there was no other person that understood him like his partner did and no child would match up to (Y/D/N).

Monkey D. Luffy: He was so psyched to get back to (Y/N)! His body still ached from the battle before but even his muscles knew that they were getting to see (Y/N) again so they numbed down for the rubber man. He had bothered Nami all day on how long they would get there and he finally had to settle down when she hit him on the head. He continued to pout and sit on the railing, keeping an eye out for the island that he left (Y/N).

Luffy could only protect them so much on the open sea but since they were his lover and his child, they would be in danger;  he had to say “see ya later” to them on the advice of his crew. It was a tearful goodbye and even he could hear the sobs and tears of his little buddy. (Y/S/N) was an exact duplicate of the rubber man and, despite only being a couple of months old, he loved the rubber man with all his little heart. A year had passed and Luffy wanted to hold his little buddy again! He also missed (Y/N) a lot! The way of contacting became hectic the last month or so and he wasn’t able to talk with them. This would be a great surprise, he thought to himself.

As they got into the magnetic field of the island, he suddenly felt himself tense up and a cold feeling filled his veins. He stood up just as Zoro opened his eye, probably feeling the same energy. The coldness in his veins made his hands shake but he gripped his upper arm and pulled back, his forearm stretching as he swung it forward and reached for the closest tree branch. He didn’t acknowledge his crew’s confused calling of his name as he shot himself forward to the island. When his feet hit the sand, he started sprinting, his hat swinging behind him from the string. His eyes barely processing the burned Big Mom’s flag on the sand.

His lungs, that were once as cold as his veins, were now on fire as he sprinted past the forest that surrounded the town that he left (Y/N) and (Y/S/N). He could remember how (Y/S/N) even sneezed when a butterfly landed on him and he could hear their laugh echo in his ears. When their laugh faded, he felt like cold water landed on him when the forest didn’t even have a simple sound of an animal. Just… The breeze. His feet skidded to a stop in front of the entrance and his pupils even shook from seeing the destruction. Everything was mostly torn down, buildings that were once filled with nice townspeople empty and burned to the ground, bodies laying all over the place with most of them having bullet wounds in the back of their heads.

He almost said the word “dad,” Luffy couldn’t help but think as he sprinted through the town, stopping to shake someone and yell to ask what happened. His hands started to tremble as he called for (Y/N), looking everywhere. His son’s voice stuck in his head, despite it only have been garbles of sounds.

“Da!”

“Ha! See (Y/N)! He’s going to say ‘dad’!” He grinned as they pouted at him.

“We’ll see. He’s only two months old. Babies make noises.” Luffy stuck his tongue at them.

“Don’t be jealous!” He laughed and his son squealed. “He’s on my side!”

Luffy gasped for air as he got to the edge of town, his eyes wide and shaking at the line of people lying on the ground. He almost choked on (Y/N)’s name as he ran down to the front of the town hall where he saw two bodies lying there. He crumbled to his knees, hands shaking as he scooped up (Y/S/N) into his arms and tears rolled down his cheeks. He clutched the small boy to his chest, bigger than when he left but still so small, and his body leaned against the building of the town hall, looking down at his love as well. His partner was covered in bruises that still tinted their body and they were pale. The bullet wound in their head matched the others in town. His son, oh his son, the small boy before him had scratches on his arms and face but he also had the same wound in the back of his head. The blood that coated Luffy’s hands only made it real that this had just happened. Oh god, it had just happened…

The crew had just gotten out of the forest as the loudest and most heartbreaking yell filled the air, making the leaves of the trees shake. The yell was Luffy’s. As if a switch was flipped, they all sprinted toward where they could hear their captain’s sobs and yells. Chopper and Zoro being in the front of the crew and they could all hear thumping among the sobs when they got closer. When they got there, the scene itself made them sick to the stomach yet their captain made their hearts ache and tears spring in many of their eyes. Zoro stepped toward his captain, the first one to actually snap out of the shock.

Luffy’s eyes had rolled back into his head, his arms tight around (Y/S/N)’s lifeless form, and he was banging his head against the wall he was leaning on, causing his own blood to smear on the wall. The yells and his tears never ceased, even as Zoro stepped forward and placed his hand between the wall and Luffy’s head, successfully stopping it from thumping even more against the wall and causing more injury. Chopper had carefully taken the small boy from him, his arms falling to his sides without (Y/S/N) there. Zoro hoisted his captain up and over his shoulder after attempts of getting him up. The rubber man choked on his own sobs, the names of his lover and son on his tongue when he gasped for air.

Suddenly, the sobs stopped and Chopper noticed that the man had passed out. He sniffled as he looked at (Y/S/N) in his arms before looking at (Y/N), their body laying there, eyes half lidded. Chopper placed the child carefully next to their parent and carefully closed their eyes with his hoof. Chopper took his hat off and placed it over his chest, eyes closed and ducking his head with tears falling and sobs leaving his own mouth. The rest of the crew stayed in silence, mourning the loss of two of their own. In a simple movement, all of them were huddled together, except for Zoro who stayed to the side, holding his captain’s unconscious body. In hushed mumbles, they agreed to wait for Luffy to get up and prepare a proper funeral for the two. Sanji and a couple others went off to start the graves of the other town members as well.

When Luffy woke up, he broke down again but his crew was there this time. His crew would mourn with him, comfort him, and do whatever they could. When Ace had died, they could only imagine the pain he went through but now… they didn’t have to. It hurt them to see him like that but they knew that he was feeling much worse than they’d ever know.

Sir Crocodile: First thing to get out of the way, he’s never seen himself as a husband. Second, the thought of children had never even appeared in his mind. Third, he had a number of enemies that would hurt his family if he ever had one. So, this was his life. He was a husband, a father, and a pirate. The day he met his partner was one he would never forget and knew that he couldn’t let them go; which led to marriage. He had two kids. A 4 year old boy and a 2 month old girl. It could have been the perfect family unit if he weren’t arrested. When activities in Alabasta didn’t go as he planned, he needed a back-up for his family. He would send them off to an island with subordinates to keep them safe and away from Navy eyes. 

He got down on one knee in front of his son who had small tears in his eyes as his partner held their daughter in their arms behind the young boy.

“Why can’t we stay, daddy?”

“I’ve got work to do here, (Y/S/N).”

“T-Then I can stay with you! I can help you, daddy!” Crocodile stared at his son, messy black hair and (E/C) eyes staring back at him with a pout.

“You can’t help me here but you can help me there.” At the twinkling in his son’s eyes, he knew that he was getting kind of used to this whole dad thing.

“How can I do that?!” Crocodile gestured to his partner and the baby girl sleeping in the crook of their arm.

“You’ve got to protect your sister, right?” The little boy nodded furiously and stood tall.

“Y-You can count on me, daddy! I’ll take good care of (Y/D/N)!” Crocodile grunted but raised his hand to ruffle his hair.

“I know I can count on you.”

Using his devil fruit, he flew on a sand cloud towards the island, his hook smoking and his heart clenching painfully. He got a report once he escaped Impel Down, months after not seeing his family. This report had an ambush on the town where his beloved family stayed. He landed in the middle of the town, buildings still burning and people running around trying to put out the licking flames. He watched as people ran around, mayhem had hit the town. Fists clenching tightly and teeth gritting against each other, he sprinted. He sprinted so fast that his jacket had flown off, yet he didn’t care.

Crocodile held his daughter as he looked at his partner.

“Our second kid, huh?” His partner rolled their eyes and gently fixed the small tuft of black hair on her head.

“You love her. Don’t pretend like it’s a hassle.” Crocodile grunted and gave his partner (Y/D/N) back, careful to not hurt her with his hook.

“She’s my kid so she’ll obviously be great.”

He slammed the front door opened and looked around for his family. He saw a blood trail leading from the front door to the back room and he felt like the air was sucked out of him. He charged to the room but fell against the doorway of the room as he saw his partner’s bloody and bruised body slumped across their closet. He went over and dropped to his knees, lifting them by the shoulders and shaking them, blood still pouring from the corner of their mouth. His hands shook slightly but he laid them back down carefully on the ground. Where were his kids? He forced himself up to his feet and rushed back down the hallway, following the light blood trail that headed to the nursery he had his subordinates build. He shoved the door open and stumbled slightly at the sight before him.

(Y/S/N) stood on the tips of his toes by the bassinet in the nursery, trying to catch a glimpse of his newborn little sister. Crocodile noticed and put his hands on the small boy to pick him up and help him look over. The younger boy smiled and reached out to gently touch the baby girl’s cheek. The 4 year old looked back at his father and grinned.

“That’s my little sister!” A small smile lifted the usually stoic man and nodded.

“Yeah. That’s her. You have to watch over her when you’re away, right?” The young boy nodded and saluted his dad.

“I’ll protect (Y/D/N) while we’re away, daddy! I’m a big boy!”

He remembered that day very well, his son’s voice going over in his head and the small garbles of his daughter. He could feel how his throat tightened up and he stepped towards the bassinet. His son laid face down in front of the bassinet, bruises all over his arms and a small pool of blood under him from what Crocodile could see. He stepped over and picked up the young boy, cradling in his arms like when he was a newborn. He could now properly see that his boy was covered in defense marks and his skin was much darker from the bruises. He was still just a baby. He held the boy close to his chest in his human arm and looked over the bassinet. His baby girl was dead in the bassinet, her own bruises covering her body. He ducked his head and held the boy tight in his arm, landing on his knees and resting his head against the side of the bassinet.

“Daddy!”

“Welcome home, Crocodile.” 

He had secured everything but this still happened. The ringing in his ears had finally dulled down and he could hear the panic and yells from town. He looked down at his son and pushed himself up. He carried the young boy to his own bed and laid him down. Even if he was dead, the logical side of Crocodile was thrown out the window and all he felt like he could do was at least have his son comfortable. He even tucked him in.

As he stepped out of the house, sand started to swirl around him and his hook, his human hand clenched and he sent his sand out on the hunt. He had a new goal now, he thought to himself as he walked back to his base where his subordinates would be. He would find who did this to his family and he would watch the life slip out of their eyes just as they had done to his family.

At the orders of the eerily calm man, the men that worked under him scrambled to find the culprits of this horrendous crime. Even they were affected by this loss, their boss’ partner was caring and they had often helped to care for the newborn and play with (Y/S/N). A couple of them were sent out to retrieve the bodies and prepare a service for them; many of them had tears in their eyes when they brought them back. All of them wanted to avenge the family but no one wanted more revenge than Crocodile.

Trafalgar Law: He finally found someone that cared for him and actually made him believe that he could have a future with them beyond avenging Corazon. Then his children came into his life and he knew that this is what he wanted. It had been two years since he saw them, hiding them away since the war. He didn’t want anyone in the world to know about them because then they’d be in danger, especially with the man he was after.

“Daddy!”

His three year olds ran over to him, squealing happily as he crouched down and held his arms open. Once the identical twin boys reached his arms, Law brought them close to his chest, making them squeal again. He rested his head against (Y/1/T/N)’s head while (Y/2/T/N) played with his goatee. Both looked exactly like him but had his partner’s personality, which he had hoped for. It had been hard after the Marineford war but that made the danger much more prominent. He didn’t want this conversation with his boys but he had to. He already talked to his partner and he thought that was hard, but looking at the twinkling eyes of his boys… He had no idea it would be this difficult. He pulled them back and rested his arms against his knees as his two boys smiled at him.

“Boys, I’ve got some bad news.” They gasped in unison and each took a hand of his in theirs, making a smile quirk his lips. Their unison was one of his favorite traits of theirs.

“What, daddy?!” There it is again. He sighed as he watched his two boys. He was young when he met his partner and he was a young father too. With his partner though, his two boys grew up well and, just the thought of missing milestones with his boys, brought a sick feeling to his stomach.

He told them and they cried. They cried and cried, even after Law hugged them close and tried to comfort them. It broke his heart when they clung onto his partner and went to ignore him.

The submarine emerged from the ocean to the island and, as they were about to head off, the island shook violently and Law’s ears were filled with screams. His grip tightened on his sword and he found himself sprinting down the path. The screams only got louder in his ears as the only thought in his head was the hope that his family wasn’t apart of the screaming.

He remembered landing on the island and his partner going on ahead with Bepo and the rest of the crew to put their belongings in the house. He carefully helped his twins down, even when they were still pouting and upset with him. They held each others’ hands as they followed their other parent, making Law sigh and follow. Before they entered the house, he called their names. Even though they were upset, they didn’t have the heart to disobey their father so they both turned around and walked over to his sitting position. They both looked at the ground and Law turned his head to meet their eyes.

“Mind telling me why you’re so mad at me? (Y/1/T/N)? (Y/2/T/N)?” Both pouted but one of them tilted his head up with tears in his eyes.

“I’m mad because you’re leaving us!” The other twin nodded before sniffling.

“Do you not love us anymore, daddy?!” Law sighed as he looked at the two of their teary faces.

“Of course I love the two of you. I love (Y/N) too. I’m not leaving you three here because I want to-”

“Then why?!” They both exclaimed. A moment of silence filled them and he decided to shrug off his hoodie and show them his tattoos. He pointed to the one on his chest.

“This is for Corazon. But these-” He pointed to the heart tattoos he had on each shoulder. “-these two right here are for the two of you.”

Law sprinted through town as the townspeople ran past him in the opposite direction. His veins went cold as he spotted a familiar jolly roger and the iciness in his veins turned into pure hatred. If his family was hurt- He couldn’t even fathom what he would do. When he got to town square, he searched frantically through the people, injured, dead, and alive. His vision was blurred at how frantically he searched. Through all the mayhem and screaming, he heard one sole voice scream. The voice he would recognize miles away.

“Daddy!” He turned his head and, from the shadows, (Y/2/T/N) crawled out, a line of blood flowing from the corner of his mouth and tears flowing down his cheeks. Law ran over and dropped his sword as he kneeled down next to his son and carefully lifted him. He had cuts covering his arms and his stomach had a wound that was bubbling with blood. (Y/2/T/N) let out a sob and coughed out blood. Law covered his child’s stomach with his hand to stop the bleeding but he knew he had to do something to save his son.

“Daddy’s here! Daddy’s gotcha! Where’s your brother?! Where’s-?!” He asked the child. If they were around, he could take them all to the ship and help them. If one twin looked like this, his gut twisted uncomfortably at the thought of what the other and his partner looked like. He was interrupted with a choked sound and a sob.

“D-Dea-” His own sentence was cut off by his gasp and Law could see that his pupils trembled. Law grit his teeth and heard Bepo and Penguin running close. He turned his head to look at them.

“Find them!” He held his hand out and made a room around them to transport back to the submarine’s infirmary.

His sons gently traced the hearts on his shoulders and he could see their mesmerized faced. He smirked a bit when they suddenly touched their own arms and looked in awe.

“I want one!”

“Me too! Me too!” Law shook his head, his smirk widening.

“(Y/N) would kill me. But I know that you don’t want me to leave. I don’t want to leave but I have to keep the three of you safe. You understand, right? You’re smart boys.” Both boys nodded slightly, making Law smile genuinely at them. He raised his hands to their heads and ruffled the boys’ hair. “Good boys.” He opened his arms and both of them tumbled forward and hugged him, ending up on his lap. “I love you, (Y/1/T/N). I love you, (Y/2/T/N).”

“I love you, daddy!” They both chirped, making Law chuckle.

Law cursed as he went to work on his son’s stomach wound, hands coating in blood. His son was just grasping for his life and he had closed his eyes. Law felt the sting in his eyes as he shook his son while his other hand tried to sew up the wound.

“(Y/2/T/N)! Stay awake for me, buddy! You’re gonna make it! You’re gonna make it!” He wasn’t sure if he was trying to convince his boy or himself. He let out a shaky breath as his hands never stopped working. If he was actually left without his love and his twins…. He wouldn’t be able to handle even the thought. He was a realistic man but there was hope in him that Penguin would find (Y/N) and Bepo would show up with (Y/1/T/N) on his shoulders. The logical side of him quickly squashed those hopes with one thing. The boy on the operating table in front of him was no liar.

like my work? why not buy me a coffee (ko-fi)?

[captain039]

The impossible is possible

Peter parker X reader

Summary: From his movie the impossible but instead its reader inserts and yeah and he isn’t spiderman just a normal boy

Warnings: very light swearing

Just make the holiday anywhere XD

  Peter Parker the sweetest boy you ever knew through primary school you were often a loner, but he would always sit with you. Through high school you both stuck together like glue also with Ned you were the grand trio in Neds words. Now you’ve past high school and collage together and now you are all going on a holiday. You were all best friends you loved geeky things and making things explode but it was nice to go out and relax.

Arriving at the airport you were nervous you had never been flying Peter chuckled and you slapped him playfully as you glared making him laugh even more. The flight wasn’t so bad you fell asleep three hours into it and woke up when you got there. The place was amazing palm trees a beach with golden sands and a grand hotel you looked around the whole place spinning in a circle a smile on your face.

“Someone’s happy” Ned said as you poked your tongue out at him.

“Come on” You said running into the rooms as Peter rolled his eyes laughing at your behaviour. Truth be told you had a crush on the Parker ever since primary school but never acted on it not wanting to break the friendship. The rooms where amazing with big windows over viewing the pools and the beach you quickly changed into your bathers jumping into the water. Ned joined you as did Peter as you splashed each other laughing people looked at you all when you made loud noises as you all chuckled at their response. Night time came quick enough the fireworks blasting off into the sky you sat in a line in the middle of Ned and Peter you leant back your hands on the ground as you felt a hand touch yours, your body froze up as Peter looked like nothing happened his little finger looped with yours as you smiled to yourself this was perfect. The next day was also amazing the tour showed you more forests and fruits you’ve never seen. You took lots of pictures of all of you not wanting to forget this ever. You had crab for lunch it was a unique taste as Ned cobbled it down and you laughed as Peter smiled staring at you. As you walked back to the hotel you placed your bag down when the ground began to shake you froze glancing at Peter and Ned.

“What was that?” You asked as everyone else froze. You frowned looking out into the beach and saw a large wave heading this way.

“TSUNAMI” You yelled as everyone began to run and scream the wave crashing down as you all ran but were swept up. You screamed in pain as something stabbed you in the leg you lost the other two hearing their distant voices as you went under water. Everything happened to fast as you were thrown around in the water sticks cutting you along the way you ran into a building knocking you out cold.

Waking up you coughed and coughed water stuck in your lungs as you pulled yourself on top of something groaning in pain your pants and shirt torn and blood stains on it. You hissed in pain seeing a large gash on your leg and your side near your ribs. You looked around seeing nothing but destruction as your heart fell seeing floating body’s you covered your mouth trying to hold back tears when you heard a small cry for help. You saw a child in the tree tears down his face you looked around trying to find away to him.

“HEY, HANG ON IM COMING” You yelled getting up slowly holding your side walking through the water carefully. You made it to the tree seeing his little form.

“Hey down here what’s your name?” You asked.

“Isaac” He said scared.

“Ok Isaac I’m Y/n I need you to come down to me ok I will catch you if you fall ok” You said as he shook his head gripping the tree.

“Please ill get us out of here I promise” You said not sure though if you could make it. That seemed to gain his trust though as he slowly began to climb down the tree you grabbed him letting him grab onto you hugging you tightly.

“Your ok were ok come on” You whispered limping through the water back onto the building standing up trying to see anything.

“I want my mummy” He said.

“I know we’ll find her ok” You said your leg screaming in pain you had to make it though.

Peter woke up swept on something he coughed getting up instantly checking around seeing nothing, but a flood filled with broken buildings, trees and people.

“Y/N, NED” he yelled but nothing answered him as he looked around for any survivors he prayed to god you were ok.

You walked through the water limping as the little boy gripped tightly onto your shirt looking around you when a hole suddenly appeared in the water making you trip you cried in pain as it hit your cut on your leg you held up Isaac the best you could trying to get back up as tears bridged your eyes.

“Your hurt” Isaac said.

“I’m ok were going to get to safety I promised didn’t I” He nodded his cute face scared. You lifted it back out hissing at the pain and picked Isaac back up continuing. You found another building to climb on sitting down looking at the gash you glanced at it quickly looking away ripping some of your shirt wrapping it around the wound making a small noise of pain as Isaac gave you a hug around the neck.

“I’m ok buddy” You whispered.

Peter walked around for what felt like hours he couldn’t find any survivors his heart ached when he found the back of your hair in the water he flipped you over, but it wasn’t you as he breathed out in relief.

“Y/N” You frowned hearing your name being called as you looked behind you seeing Ned.

“NED” You yelled as he scrambled over to you climbing on the building embracing you tightly as tears fell down your face. He gripped you tightly never wanting to let go when he saw your leg.

“Are you ok?” He asked very concerned.

“I’m ok” You said limping slightly as he sighed.

“Can I have a look?” He asked you nodded as he removed a piece wincing at the look of it he saw another wound on your side lifting your shirt it wasn’t as bad as the other one but still needed attention.

“We need to find you a hospital or something fast” Ned said you nodded.

“We need to find his parents first” You said lifting Isaac Neds eyes sadden as you shook your head slightly you couldn’t tell him they might be dead.

“Are you ok?” You asked he nodded he had a small gash on his head and bruises, but he was ok.

“I’m so glad your alive” You said, and he nodded.

“Have you seen Peter?” You asked, and he sadly shook his head as your heart sank he was alive you told yourself not entirely believing it. You all walked through the water carefully Isaac with Ned as you limped along when suddenly the earth began to shake again.

“Tree now” You said you all moved quickly to the closest tree climbing up you struggled crying in pain as you got up. The wave slowly came hitting the tree as you gripped onto It as did the other two. Screw this you thought you wished you were in bed maybe a holiday was a bad idea. You shook your head your vision going dizzy as you groaned you were losing to much blood.

“Uh uh nope come on stay awake” Ned said you saw a figure in the distant before your world blacked out. The next time you woke up you were lying on something rather comfortable you opened your eyes seeing a white roof as you shot up when a hand was placed on your shoulder.

“I wouldn’t get up to fast” A man said you groaned falling back onto the bed you were in a hospital a very crowded hospital. You looked around seeing Ned asleep on a chair as you sighed in relief he was ok.

“Isaac” You said when a little head popped up and you smiled.

“Hey buddy” You said your voice raspy he gave you a tight hug sitting on the bed playing with your hair. Ned stirred waking up smiling when he saw you awake.

“Any sign of Peter?” You asked he shook his head as you nodded. The earth began to move again as your heart pounded things falling everywhere it was an earthquake now you got off the bed grabbing Isaac pulling him under the bed as he cried. The building wasn’t strong enough to hold as it began to crumble you shot up running with everyone grabbing Neds hand as you made it out of the rubble. You stared in horror couldn’t you get a break.

Peter felt the shake as he gripped the tree when he heard loud grumbling seeing something in the distant. He saw he made his way over seeing the destruction he hoped you weren’t in there he looked around the group of people when he heard your voice he saw you trying to hold onto a child the police trying to take them.

“Y/N, NED” He yelled as you froze looking to your right Peter stood there, clothes torn and small cuts and bruises over his body.

“Peter” You whispered smacking the cop or what ever he was running with Isaac over to him ignoring the pain in your leg. He met you half way crashing into a hug as you cried gripping onto him tightly.

“You son of a bitch” You muttered as he chuckled tears down his face also.

“If you ever leave me again ill make sure you die” You whispered as he chuckled again burying his face into your neck he wasn’t going to let go.

“I love you so much” he muttered and you both froze as you smiled.

“I love you too” He smiled holding you tighter as Ned joined in the hug you were all ok that was all that mattered right now you were together.

“Ma’am please come this way” A security guard said, and you frowned seeing women and children being moved.

“Take him” You said handing Isaac over, but he ran out of your arms over to someone. You frowned seeing a woman on her knees crying her arms open as the little boy ran into them. You smiled as the mother hugged her boy tightly as she looked at you with thank you in her eyes.

“Miss” The man said.

“I stay I’m not leaving them again” You said firmly when your world got dizzy again Peter caught you when you swayed your leg was reopening.

“Damn thing” You muttered sitting on the ground. The man gave up walking away everyone was getting attended to as you sat around a fire a blanket over you and Peter as Ned wrapped himself up. Peter held your hand tightly as you lent your head against his shoulder watching the fire.

“Maybe a holiday wasn’t the best idea” You said as he snorted quietly shaking his head you said the weirdest things sometimes. He kissed your head as he put his arm around you holding you closely.

“We found each other that’s all that matters” He said, and you nodded as Ned also nodded. You all made it off the island never planning to go on another holiday soon and you and Peter had finally confessed your feelings it took a Tsunami and a few earthquakes but you were both together again.

[theseourbodies]

SGA/Firefly fusion au

RIP me, this is one (1) version of this fusion AU. MAYBE IT’LL BE THE ONE I COMMIT TOO, WHO KNOWS

Gen, SGA/Firefly fusion,  ~1600 words

Two women approach an isolated saloon on a poorly terraformed planet. The land is more sand and cactus than habitable earth, and the saloon is perched too near the sandy edge of a canyon. It's unclear if it was placed there, or if the cliff is simply crumbling away towards it.

The women are dressed in dusty travelers' gear, well worn but also well cared for. They are watchful in the way of fighters-- and criminals. Where one looks, the other is casually watching the other direction. They are familiar with one another, if not with the territory. The first woman, stepping just slightly in the lead, has a strong, angled face and a sharp nose. Her eyes are lighter, shaded by a heavy, stiff-brimmed felt hat. Sooty, soft lashes make ever blink look coy, but her eyes are as sharp as the rest of her. Her hair is a mess of fawn brown curls that spill from under her hat. It just brushes the shoulders of her sensible tan canvas jacket.

The second woman walks just to the left and a half step behind the other woman. She is softer-seeming at first glance than her companion, but like the first woman her sharp eyes belie the faux vulnerability of her wide soft mouth and fine features. Her skin is smooth and naturally brown- -not leathery and yellowish like a well-burned white man's. She wears her coppery hair braided, coiled, and pinned into a crown around her head. She wears nothing to cover her head, but there is a woven cotton scarf wrapped around her neck and shoulders. These are her only concessions to the heat and the sun. Unlike her companion, she is poorly dressed for the hot desert sun. Her brown leather duster hangs almost to the tops of her knee-high, battered leather boots. Both women are armed, though only a quarter of their weaponry is visible: a blaster each, carried in plain view; boot and belt knives; and, curiously, a pair of light-wood sticks strapped to the second woman's strong hip and thigh, visible only in glimpses when her open coat flutters in the breeze.

They are a captain and her lieutenant (and thieves and smugglers, when they are not just an honest captain and her first woman,) and they are in great need of a new pilot for their vessel, the Firefly-class Atlantis. They've been told by several well-meaning people in the nearby town that there is a man who is high in piloting talent that can be found at this saloon; in addition to an impressive resume, he is low on funds at the moment, which makes him a very attractive prospect to the Atlantis' captain and her lieutenant.

Normally, both women would be more cautious about following the directions of the people of a planet like this one. They are strangers in a hard land, and that can sometimes make them acceptable loses or easy pickings if they're not careful. But the people of this town on this planet mark the calendar the same way that Teyla does; Elizabeth had marked how the folks they had talked with would look at Teyla's brown leather duster with firey eyes and sad smiles, and it had motivated her to trust their information.  

He answers to Sheppard, they've been told, and they will apparently know him once they see him. Elizabeth is hoping that this means what she thinks it means. Teyla maintains that there is nothing wrong with all of the crew sharing piloting duties, but Elizabeth cannot do what needs to be done without an experienced pilot. She trusts Teyla's judgement, but she's also feeling a creeping desperation. She needs this pilot, and she needs him to be as good as the people in town say he is.

As they approach the saloon, the door slams open, and both women's hands snap to weapons. A tall, pale man stumbles violently out of the building like he's been shoved. All Elizabeth notices in the seconds after he appears are long limbs and black hair pretty much everywhere, especially his head. All of this is plainly obvious, as the man is almost naked with the exception of something that might have been a sheet wrapped around his waist.

Seemingly unconcerned about his state of undress, the man turns back to the building. "Listen, buddy, I'm no man to break up a good thing," the man drawls into the dark, gaping doorway. Elizabeth has to admit that she admires his boldness, but then she catches a glimpse of the mountain of a person stalking out after the be-sheeted man. Ah, she thinks, unable to look away, an idiot. A brave idiot, but still an idiot. Elizabeth has a sinking suspicion that this might be exactly the man they're looking for.  

"She's all I got, Sheppard, you piece of cat shit! Of all the women--" The huge man confirms her suspicions, and Elizabeth sighs. She had so hoped that Sheppard would make himself an easy sell to her fastidious lieutenant.

"Hey!" the man, Sheppard, interrupts indignantly. "Hey now, it takes," he stumbles over the sheet at his feet. He's drunk with booze or something else-- the finger he points at the huge man wavers as he sways. "It takes two to tangle, ya know, I didn't exactly trip her on to my--!"

Elizabeth shoots a look at Teyla, who raises an eyebrow at her. "Whether we hire him or not, I believe it will be necessary to intervene, Elizabeth," she says softly, and Elizabeth nods.

Diffusing the situation takes more money than charm. Even then the man refuses to back down until Teyla very casually unholsters her blaster and taps it gently against her thigh. Unlike Sheppard, the man makes the smart move. For all his size and strength, he's outnumbered and knows it; he takes the money and the offer of a free drink from the two women who mean serious business.

After it's handled, Sheppard looks at them, still swaying slightly. " 'ppreciate that," he mutters, rearranging his sheet with little dignity or success. "She spilled a drink all down me and next thing I know I'm naked in the backroom."

"You're Sheppard, then?" Elizabeth asks instead of responding. She knows from the smile she can feel curling the edges of her mouth that she's likely to laugh if she tries to engage with him about his....predicament. She likes him, God help her.

Sheppard looks are her with light eyes, suddenly sharp and wary. "Depends who wants to know." He straightens as much as he can in his sheet wrap.

"Just someone as needs a pilot like the one people keep telling me you are," Elizabeth says easily, staying cheerful and light. "Someone who can pay you for the trouble. Though now I've seen you in action, I can't say I'm impressed."

His spine snaps straight—and isn't that interesting; for all his floppy hair and the drink Elizabeth can smell from where she's standing some feet away, Sheppard comes to attention right quick. "Listen lady--"

"Captain." Teyla interrupts gently from behind Elizabeth. When she looks back, Teyla's eyes are watchful, her body deceptively relaxed. "This is Captain Weir and I am her second, Teyla Emmagan."

Sheppard blinks at them; to Elizabeth's relief, his spine relaxes. "Captain, then," he says, and his voice is softer. "What I do ground-bound's got nothin' to do with the way I can fly. All the stories you've heard, they're probably true." He manages sincerity in what should be gross boasting, and Elizabeth cocks her head.

"So what's a hot-shot like you doing in a dive bar like this," she asks softly, stepping in closer. She knows what today is to Teyla-- half the reason her friend is so tense and watchful is because that's how she always is on this particular day of the year. Elizabeth watches John flick his eyes towards Teyla, and then tenses as she watches his mouth twist down.

"Haven't you heard," he says, with curious, flat bitterness, "It’s a gorram holiday.” 

"It is," Teyla answers, before Elizabeth can. "You do not look to be celebrating, however."

Sheppard doesn’t say anything more, he just looks--tired, suddenly, from his bare feet to the top of his messy head. He hasn’t looked away from Teyla and her brown duster, but he eyes are different from the people they’d met in the town. There’s no pride their, fierce or otherwise. It’s more complicated than that. Out of the corner of her eye, Elizabeth sees Teyla's chin hike up, defiant. 

"Listen, captain" Sheppard says suddenly, "you give me two thrusters and a rudder, and I can fly 'em. I've been on this damn rock for three days too many, and you can see I've overstayed my welcome." He spreads the one arm that isn't clutching his sheet out. "Take me or leave me."

Elizabeth thinks about it, considers the misery on his face and the stories that she's heard. "We'll see how you do," she says at length. "A month long trial. If you can fly straight and survive our mechanic, I might lift your probation." Sheppard slumps a little, and she can see it's with relief. She holds up a forestalling hand before he can say anything. "But we're not a luxury cruise service and we're not likely to benefit from any of this." She waves a hand, generally encompassing the sheet, the saloon, and Sheppard himself. "You pull something like this while you're on my crew, I'll make sure the planet I dump you on makes this one look like the prettiest piece of rock in the system. Got it?"

Sheppard looks paler when he meets her eyes, but his face his set and his eyes are clear. "You got a deal... Captain."

[smilinstar]

Fic: the long road home - 2/3 (Legends of Tomorrow; Rip/Sara)

Fandom: Legends of Tomorrow

Rating: PG-13

Pairing: Rip Hunter/Sara Lance (Time Canary)

Summary: It’s a long road home, and Rip doesn’t need a map. Just needs someone to point to his heart, and he’s there.

Author’s Note: Thank you for the lovely feedback so far! Hope you enjoy this next part :-)

Read Part One here

Can also be read here on AO3

-----

Part Two:

trade your heart for bones to know

-----

 It’s been good for him.

Learning to let go.

With no vendetta left to fulfil and no allegiance to a body of liars and master manipulators hanging around his neck like an albatross, Rip finally gets to breathe. It’s an odd sensation. He doesn’t think he’s ever stopped to think about how it feels to expand his lungs without the tight binds of grief, guilt and shame squeezing around his chest, pressing heavy against his heart.

It still catches him off-guard now and again, but it doesn’t knock him off his feet anymore. And he thinks he can live with that, because he’s never going to stop missing his dead wife and son, and he’s made his peace with that.

There’s a freedom in knowing he can’t change fate, and the acceptance has been long time coming and long overdue.

It’s the others that surprise him.

The others that seem to flicker across his mind at the most random of moments. Simplest things remind him of his old team mates, and if he were to recognise the churning in his gut, he’d label it homesickness.

Except he doesn’t recognise it.

Not yet.

It’s been four months since he took his leave of the Waverider.

He’d been better with his goodbyes this time around and he thinks that earned him enough good karma to stop him getting sucked into a Time Chasm within minutes of leaving.

With the Legends having healed most of those rifts in time, he’s found it remarkably easy moving from place to place, time to time. For the first time ever he’s finally been able to take a step back and appreciate the wonder of time travel. He realises he’s had a pretty skewered view of it all up till now – nothing but horror and bloodshed in the hellish depths of humanity. It’s good for his soul to see a little beauty, see a little kindness and hope in the world after so much time in the dark.

Of course, part of him argues he’s seen it before.

In fact, he’s seeing it now and his breath catches in his chest. And he thinks, of all the wonders in the world, this must surely be one. Because what are the chances?

A run-down inn in the middle of Yorkshire, 1894, and he’s just minding his own business and enjoying a quiet drink when he hears her first through the surrounding din.

He recognises that voice instantly.

“Come on Jax,” she says, “I think you’ve had more than enough.”

“Think you should listen to the pretty lady,” the barkeep says, tone both smarmy and condescending, and he can just imagine the expression on her face at the ‘pretty’. Oh no, she won’t take kindly to that.

“I’ve got this buddy, thanks,” she snaps.

“Ooh we got ourselves a livewire here, gentlemen.”

There’s some tittering and whistling that follows, a few lecherous stares and he imagines it’s been a while since any of these vagrants have seen a beautiful woman, least of all one that isn’t a wallflower, or afraid to talk back.

Rip swallows down the last of his drink before muttering so quietly no one hears, “You have no idea.”

He stands up just in time to see her throw the first punch.

There’s a series of angry curses and shouts, and in the middle of it all Jax whooping and yelling, “Come on Sara, let’s kick their asses.” In his inebriated state he only needs one flimsy punch to the face to be knocked out cold. So much for kicking ass.

But he knows Sara’s got this handled. Pub brawls seem to be a little speciality of hers, so he takes a moment just to revel in it. Revel in her. The fluidity, the grace, the fierceness and determination.

She sees a monster, he’s only ever seen beauty.

He decides he’s had enough of sitting on the side-lines though when one of the patrons decides to play dirty and pulls out a knife while she has her back turned. He sees red, leaps forward without any thought and packs a punch that leaves his knuckles smarting.

Sara swings around, knocking out one of the men with a bar stool, before she finally notices him, her mouth falling open with the shock.

“Rip?”

“Is this you staying out of trouble, then?” he says.

The smile on her face blossoms and he’s rendered motionless for the barest of seconds by it. But, of course, it’s long enough for him to get sucker-punched.

He hits the floor, and dazedly looks up to find Sara standing over him, hand outstretched, “Nice to see some things never change.”

He groans, “No they don’t.”

 ][

 The only reason she ends up in that bar is because Jax storms off after having yet another spectacular argument with Martin. She hadn’t been privy to all the details, but from what Amaya had told her the fight had got pretty heated, and had ended with Jax marching off muttering something along the lines of, “Belligerent, I’ll show you belligerent!” How that equated to him ending up in a nineteenth century tavern, she doesn’t know. She has no idea what goes on in his head, and it’s at times like these that she’s frankly grateful that she doesn’t share a psychic link with another human being. She can barely cope with her own thoughts in her head.

Of course, no visit to a bar would be complete without it devolving into a brawl and some fisticuffs. What is a surprise though, is him.

He’s the last person she expects to see. Here of all places.

Expects? No. Hopes? Yes. Always.

She’d be lying if she admits to anything other than always hoping to catch a glimpse of a familiar brown coat, or hearing that instantly recognisable accent, with that same dry, unamused tone, everywhere they go.

Time slows and speeds up in strange ways.

Everything comes to a halt as she spins around to find him standing there shaking his fist as if he still hasn’t learnt how to throw a proper punch. Though it seems he hasn’t learnt to fare any better with ducking them either, and it all becomes a little bit of a blur after Rip hits the floor. She manages to haul him to his feet, before they each take one cursory look around the room, weigh their odds and decide to cut their losses. They exchange no words, and it feels just like old times as Rip cocks his head as if to wordlessly say, “After you, Captain Lance.”

She grins and they make a run for it, dragging a half-conscious Jax with them.

When they get back to the Waverider, they make it a priority to get him settled in the med bay first. Gideon takes over almost immediately, assures them he’ll make a full recovery and that there’ll be no lasting damage, except for maybe a bruised ego in the morning.

“Ah I’ve missed you Gideon,” Rip says to that.

“And I you, Captain Hunter. It’s good to have you back.”

He nods, but his face twists into an expression that doesn’t do much to hide his guilt and whatever fleeting thought she may have had that this time, this time, he’ll stay, vanishes just like that.

Sara makes a motion to leave the room, and for him to follow.

He falls easily into step beside her as they walk the corridor of the Waverider, and she can’t help but sneak glances up at him.

He looks better. His neatly trimmed beard is back in place, hair just the right length. His eyes are no longer sunken, but bright, and full of life in a way that they hadn’t been before. It’s enough to detract from the bruise on his face.

She blurts it out before she can think about it too hard; “You look well, Rip. Good. You look good.”

He blushes, “You mean aside from my rapidly swelling cheekbone and the various purplish hues my skin is currently turning?”

“Yes, aside from that.”

His lips twitch.

“You look very well too, Captain Lance.”

She snorts, “I do try.”

They turn a corner, and it’s strange how she doesn’t really know which way they’re going even though she now knows this ship so well, she could walk it blindfolded.

“So, what were you doing in bonny England in 1894 then?” she asks, putting on a poor British accent by the look of horror on Rip’s face. “Sorry,” she winces.

“Yes, maybe best never to try that ever again.”

“Hey!” she says, swatting his arm, “It wasn’t that bad!”

“My ears are still bleeding.”

“No, I think you’ll find that’s from getting your ass handed to you by a group of old, drunken Englishmen who can’t hold their liquor!”

He huffs out a breath of what passes for laughter in the case of Rip Hunter, and shakes his head, “Anyway, back to your original question. I think you’ll find the better question is, what were you doing there, and what on earth happened between Mr Jackson and Professor Stein to get him into such a state?”

The smile leaves her lips as she sighs, “You should probably ask them, I couldn’t get a word out of either.”

She appreciates it now. Just how hard it is to be Captain. How difficult it is to marry the roles of leader and decision-maker, with team mate and friend. The lines get blurry and sometimes it feels so much easier to draw the lines in the sand and stay on the one side. Easier, but lonely. And she has a whole new level of respect for the man beside her, who she thinks never gave himself enough credit for the job he did do. Too quick to wave it away in her direction.

“And what makes you think I’ll have any luck?”

She doesn’t answer him as they come to a stop.

It takes a moment before he notices, pointing to the door on the right, brow furrowed.

Seems she can’t run from her subconscious, though she doesn’t let it show. She waves it away as if this had always been the plan; “Forgotten where your quarters are already, Rip? It’s only been four months.”

Not that she’s been counting.

“I appreciate the thought, Captain, but these are no longer my quarters. I no longer have a room I can rightfully call my own on this ship.”

“It’ll always be your room.”

He opens his mouth to argue, but she doesn’t let him, steps back away from him and says, “Stay as long as you need to, or you know, don’t, if that’s what you want.”

“I’d like that,” he says, and then quick to clarify, “Stay. At least for a few days. The jump ship could do with updating its system and the time drive. It also needs a few repairs . . .” He trails off and all Sara can hear are the excuses, and she can’t help but smile.

“Take all the time you need.”

 ][

 Reuniting with the team is wonderfully lacking in fanfare.

He finds Ray tinkering away with his A.T.O.M. suit in one of the empty, unused compartments. He gets a beaming smile for a hello when he looks up from his work;

“Rip! Good to see! What do you think?” he asks gesturing to his pride and joy, “I’ve made a few alterations to the design, was going for a more sleek and subtle look.”

Truthfully, it doesn’t look any different from the last time he saw it.

“Looks wonderful Dr Palmer.”

He nods and looks down at it lovingly, “Yeah, it does.”

Rip thinks he needs to give the man a moment, “I’ll uh leave you to it then.”

“Oh yeah, sure. Oh before you go,” Ray calls out, “could you pass me that screwdriver there, yep that one. Thanks.”

“Not a problem. Glad I could be of service.”

Ray gets back to tending to his suit and Rip silently slips away.

Next, he finds Mick in the galley, feet up on the table, half-eaten cupcake in his hand. He looks up at him with his mouth around pink icing and doesn’t so much as show a flicker of acknowledgement when he enters. And so Rip just carries on, pulls out his old mug and pours himself a cup of tea.

He settles into the seat across from him and the silence is a whole lot more comfortable than any stilted conversation.

Mick doesn’t say a word as he finishes off his cupcake and stands up.

Rip reproachfully eyes the empty plate full of crumbs on the table and bites down his words.

But of course, Mick pays it no mind as he walks past him on his way out. He finds himself holding his breath when he stops at his side, and his large hand drops down heavy on his shoulder.

“Don’t even think about touching my cupcakes.”

He breathes out.

“Nice to see you too, Mr Rory.”

Mick grunts out his response and leaves him to enjoy his tea.

He bumps into Nate and Amaya shortly after. It’s just as he’s leaving the galley that he hears the giggling, and is more than a little surprised at its source.

Rip is naturally the least familiar with them, but he knows them to be excellent fits for the team and he has a great deal of respect for Ms Jiwe. He thinks it’s only natural the two newest members of the team (although they were hardly new anymore) had grown the closest, so he doesn’t think too much about their proximity to one another as they walk towards him.

Mr Heywood is the first to notice him, and his reaction is exuberant in a way he isn’t used to.

The man leaps forward and grabs him in a brief hug, “Rip! It’s good to see you man!” He then pulls away and claps onto his shoulders and asks, “How are you doing?”

Rip does his best to school the look of bewilderment off his face, and manages to nod, “Very well, thank you Mr Heywood.”

“Ms Jiwe,” he greets with a nod.

Amaya nods back, “Mr Hunter, it’s good to see you well.”

“Likewise.”

“What brings you back around?” Nate asks, stepping back.

“Oh just need to do some repairs on the jump ship. Speaking of which, I should really get back to it.”

Amaya nods, “Yes of course.”

He’s nearly at the end of the corridor, before Nate calls back to him, “Oh we’re having a games night, tonight, you should join us.”

Games night.

He’s not sure he likes the sound of that, but somehow knows he’ll end up there anyway, and so doesn’t bother fighting it;

“Sounds . . . fun,” he says. “I’ll see you there.”

 ][

 Sara doesn’t mean to eavesdrop.

Actually, that’s entirely untrue. She can’t help but seek him out. She knows he’ll be off again soon, and the thought of it still hurts, even though it shouldn’t.

Part of her thinks it would be easier to stay away. Getting used to his presence again will only push her right back to step one, but the darker part of her mind argues that four months away hasn’t made the slightest difference, she’s always been there stuck on that same rung of the ladder, so why should she deny herself now?

She doesn’t hear the beginnings of the conversation as she walks past the med bay to know how they got to this point, but it’s Martin’s question which stops her in her tracks.

“Do you still miss them? No, I’m sorry,” he’s quick to correct, “That’s a stupid question really, isn’t it?”

“No,” Rip answers softly, “Not a stupid question. I do. Of course, I do. But in the beginning, it was this all-consuming, gnawing ache and I felt like I was constantly drowning in it, struggling for air. But now . . . now, I find myself thinking of them less and less, and all I feel is-”

“Guilt?” Martin offers.

Rip doesn’t answer but she thinks his silence does it for him.

“It’s a good thing, Rip. You’re allowed to move on.”

“Yes, but what kind of a husband, father does that make me?”

“One that’s loved and lost, grieved too long, and is now doing what they would have wanted for you in the first place.”

Sara edges closer to the door, gets a glimpse of the two men as they stand beside a still sleeping Jax. Rip purses his lips together as he nods, taking Martin’s words to heart.

“You give sound advice, Professor.”

“Yes, I have been known to from time to time.”

Rip shakes his head with a smile, before taking a breath and asking, “Well if I may offer some of my own?”

Martin looks away and towards Jax as if he knew this was coming. Something tells her that this is where Rip had always intended for the conversation to end, and the Professor had walked straight into an artfully set trap.

“Mr Jackson is not your daughter.”

“I am well aware of the fact.”

Rip takes a step forward, “You can’t blame yourself for something you have no control over. I know you regret not being able to be a father to Lily, but Jax is not Lily. You don’t need a son, Martin, you need a partner.”

Martin sighs, deep and heavy, and there’s a twist of his mouth as he smiles wryly, “Yes. Mr Rory may have said something similar once before.”

Rip looks surprised. She’s sure her expression isn’t that far off either, but Martin doesn’t notice as he continues to speak. “And it’s something that I tell myself daily, but it’s just sometimes, I see him do something so monumentally reckless and I can’t help but get angry, scold him like he’s just a boy, because I can’t afford to lose . . .” He trails off and Sara thinks now would be the time to leave.

But she can’t.

“You should tell him.”

Martin huffs out a laugh.

Rip reaches out, rests his hand on the older man’s shoulder and squeezes, “True, he probably already knows, but it’s the words we don’t say that haunt us later. You should learn from my mistakes. Someone should.”

His words appear to sink in as Martin takes a step closer to Jax, and Rip’s hand falls away back to his side.

“Thank you.”

Rip nods, and he takes a step back towards the door.

“It’s good to have you back.”

“It is good to be back,” he says, and Sara thinks he really does mean it and it takes a lot for her to keep the ties that hold hope down in place.

She knows she’s going to get caught, because she can hear his footsteps as he leaves and heads towards the door, but she doesn’t really care. And so she presses back against the wall, folds her arm across her chest and bends her knee to press the sole of her left boot against the Waverider and waits.

He turns the corner but doesn’t even startle.

With mild irritation, she realises he’d known she was there all along.

He stops and leans up against the opposite wall, folds his own arms against his chest, bends his knee and mirrors her entirely.

She drops her leg and he quirks a brow.

The smile rises on her lips as she shakes her head to the side, and his eyes are a bright twinkling green that brings an unexpected blush to her cheeks.

“How did you know?”

“I heard you. Seems you’re losing your edge.”

And maybe gaining something else entirely in the process, she thinks.

The little uptick of the corner of his mouth makes her think he’s remembering their same conversation from long ago.

She clears her throat, “That was good of you. What you said to Martin.”

He nods, a hand curling up to the back of his neck as he looks away, “Yes. Right, well we are . . .” He drifts off and something clenches in her chest.

“Friends?”

Because surely, he must believe at least that by now.

He looks back at her, gaze colliding with hers and holding it there. “Friends,” he repeats, without flinching.

She breathes out, “So in the spirit of friendship, what unspoken words haunt you, then?”

His eyes widen in surprise, clearly having not expected that.

She smirks, shrugs as she says, “What? Thought now might be a good time for you to start learning from your mistakes?”

“Ah,” he nods, “I appreciate the thought, but not today, Captain Lance. All in good time though.”

“Better be worth the wait.”

“I suppose only time will tell.”

She snorts.

He smiles.

And she can’t help but think, and not for the first time, that he really should do that more often. It looks good on him.

 ][

 His final reunion of the day comes a little later.

Jax looks a little worse for wear when he enters the jump ship.

Rip glances up from the console to see him hovering by the door, an expression of shame and embarrassment on his face, which only makes his heart twist. Especially when he has nothing to be ashamed of.

He stretches out his arm. “Ah Mr Jackson,” he says, “Perfect timing, could you pass me the-”

He feels the cold, heavy weight on his hand as he finishes his sentence, “Wrench.” He looks down at his hand and back up again, “Thank you.”

Jax shrugs, wordlessly gets down beside him and picks up the tablet from the ground, brow furrowing as he focusses on the readings and the current status of the jump ship.

“Good thing you came back when you did,” he says.

“Quite.”

They get to work in silence, and Rip has to stamp down on the ridiculous pride he feels as he quietly watches his friend from the corner of his eye.

“You’re staring, it’s creeping me out.”

Rip jerks his head back to the control board. “Sorry,” he mumbles.

“No, it’s okay. You don’t have to worry. I’m okay.”

“That’s not. I wasn’t worried, no, I mean I was, but that isn’t . . .” he stops, takes a breath. “You’ve done a wonderful job with the Waverider, Mr Jackson. I don’t think I could have entrusted her to anyone else’s capable hands but your own.”

Jax doesn’t say anything, continues on with the wiring for a moment longer before finally speaking up, “I’m sorry you found me like that.”

“There is nothing to apologise for.”

“Still. Thanks for hauling my drunk ass back. And,” he stops, clearly struggling with his next words, “I spoke to Grey. Thanks, man.”

He purses his lips and gives him a curt nod of acknowledgement, before reaching out and patting him on the shoulder. He pulls himself up to a standing position, hands resting on his hips as he surveys the ship.

Jax looks up at him, “You in a rush to get this fixed, or something?”

He takes a moment, but in the end his reply needs little thought, “No, Mr Jackson, I’m in no rush.”

From the grin he gets in return, he knows that was the right answer.

 ][

 Games Night.

Of course it had been the brainchild of Nate and Ray. Who else could have insisted that the team needed down time to recharge their batteries and this was the best way to do it? Amaya had been just as sceptical as her, but Jax had barely needed any persuading. All Mick needed was the promise of a six pack of beer and he was in. Martin was easily swayed, and even started spewing the company line that a little bit of relaxation was good for their health and team morale. To which she’d retorted, “How would you know? You’re not a doctor.” His response? “Only when it suits you.” And she couldn’t argue with that and was easily overruled. And so, Games Night was born.

To be fair, the team have so far been reasonably well behaved. The stakes in the poker rounds have never been too high, and she’s always managed to draw the line at strip poker, because god love her team, but she has no burning desire to seem them naked. Well, most of them.

The most they’d ever done was a little graffiti when their drunken Pictionary got a little out of hand and they had literally started drawing on the walls and the glass of Rip’s old office.

The mess in the morning from the bottle beers and empty bowls of popcorn and chips is always a little bit of a nightmare, especially when Gideon refuses to help. At all. Something about it not being in her manual, which pfft.

It’s only natural then that she always goes into the night a little wary of what’s to come, but tonight, she notes, is different.

Tonight, Rip’s back in the fold.

The fact that he’s even here, joining in, is the first surprise. The second is the complete lack of any apprehension on his face and the third is, he actually seems be enjoying himself.

She can’t help but watch on in disbelief, hiding the expression on her face as best she can behind her drink.

They’ve broken into teams for charades, and Ray and Rip have partnered up. They are doing abysmally. For one, Ray keeps choosing the most obscure ways to act out his words, and two, Rip’s knowledge of pop culture is woefully lacking. Despite, the fact they’re losing quite badly, this is the most relaxed she thinks she’s ever seen him.

He’s in a t-shirt and a pair of remarkably well-fitting jeans, and she remembers almost spitting out her drink the first time she saw him in them, because who knew?

But it’s not just the clothes. It’s him. It’s the lack of tension in his shoulders, how he doesn’t seem to be straining every muscle of his to keep himself together, and she just can’t stop staring.

“Sara? Sara!”

She swings around to Nate calling her, “Hmm, sorry?”

He shoots her an odd look she doesn’t want to decipher, before saying, “It’s your turn.”

She rolls her eyes, “I already told you, I’m not playing. If Mick can sit this one out, then I’m sitting it out too.”

She can feel Rip’s eyes on her as he watches her from across the bridge. She shifts slightly on her side, leaning up against the open doorway of the office as she sits there on the steps.

“Well, how about we play something else?” Rip offers. “We already know Martin and Jax have won with their . . .” he stops, tilts his head up as if he’s doing the mental calculations, “unassailable lead.”

“Yeah, whose bright idea was it to pair the two with the telepathic link together?” Ray grouses.

“Hey, I offered to partner up with you man, but you turned me down for the time traveller, who you said, quote unquote, would know more than me!”

“To be fair,” Rip shrugs, “I do know . . .” At Jax’s glare, his words peter out to a mumble, “nothing about movies made in the 1990’s.”

“I know guys,” Nate pipes up, “Twister!”

He looks over at Amaya, and Sara reads the grin on his face easy enough.

“No,” Amaya refuses flatly.

“Aw, come on, it’ll be fun!”

“What’s Twister?” Rip asks.

The smirk on Nate’s face should have been his first clue, “Just you wait and see.”

 ][

 Rip quickly decides that Twister is the real aberration.

His body is made to contort into positions he didn’t even know was possible, but the worst of it is he ends up getting intimately familiar with body parts of his former team mates he had no wish to ever get that close to. Most of them drop like flies pretty quickly, but it still surprises him when the first to fall is Sara, as if she hadn’t been trying at all.

Amaya ends up winning, and Nate is far too happy with that result for him to comprehend. He thinks he’s missing something there, but doesn’t think on it too long because there’s something more pressing he needs to get to the bottom of.

When the game ends, he gets up and walks over to where Sara has perched herself back on the steps.

“You threw that game on purpose,” he accuses, not even phrasing it as a question, so sure is he of his deduction.

He expects a little offense or indignation on her part, but what he doesn’t expect is the slow crawl of her eyes as it travels up the length of his body, “I had more fun watching.”

Her meaning is abundantly clear, and he really doesn’t know what to do with that as he blushes pink. Naturally, he decides, the best course of action is to ignore it altogether.

“Right, well,” he clears his throat, “it’s the first and last time I ever play that flimsy excuse of a party game again.” He rubs at his sore back in demonstration of why it’s such an abomination.

“That’s a shame,” she says.

And he looks back at her, questioning. Not really sure he wants to know how that thought of hers ends.

“What?” she shrugs, “You were actually pretty good at it.”

“Now you’re just making fun.”

Sara laughs.

And his stomach most certainly does not flip at the sound.

Most definitely not.

 ][

 He ends up staying a week longer than he said he would.

She doesn’t ask him why he’s leaving this time, because she thinks she’s beginning to understand.

She thinks it has to do with his eyes on her when he thinks she isn’t looking. Thinks it has something to do with the fact she’s just as bad, but she’s not even trying to hide it anymore and all it does is make the tips of his ears turn bright pink.

She thinks it has something to do with the guilt he talked to Martin about the very first day he returned. And that maybe, just maybe, it has everything to do with her.

She doesn’t push, because time.

He still needs time.

But one thing she knows for sure is that it has nothing to do with him thinking he doesn’t have a place on this team any longer, or thinking he has nothing left to teach them all. If this time with him has shown them anything, it’s at least that.

So once again she finds herself with her hand outstretched, but it’s not a farewell that falls from her lips.

“Until next time,” she says instead with the softest of smiles on her face.

Rip stands there staring at her, like he has been all this time but never quite so openly. And the look on his face? If she suspected before? She thinks she’s certain now.

She senses when he makes a decision, and for the briefest of moments she thinks he may just kiss her. But instead, he takes her hand in his, steps into her and presses his lips to her forehead as his hand cups her cheek.

“Take care, Sara,” he says into her skin, before stepping back and walking away.

He doesn’t look back.

And she doesn’t turn around to watch him go.

Later when the team are sitting around in the galley, it’s Ray that brings him up first, “It was good having Rip back. I’m gonna miss him.”

Murmurs of agreement flicker around the room, even Mick raises his beer bottle in salute.

It’s Amaya that asks her, “You okay, Sara?”

“Yeah,” she smiles.

And she really is, because if there’s one thing she knows, it’s this:

“He’ll be back.”

  TBC.

[itsdisneymydudes]

I’m Gonna Wreck It

Another movie I haven’t seen, another live blog! This week I’ll be checking out Wreck-It Ralph. Truth be told, idk why I haven’t seen this before: video game and arcade jokes? What’s not to love omg.

Oh my god, 8-bit Disney Animation logo with complimentary 8-bit music. It’s perfect.

Wait a minute...is Ralph really the bad guy if the bulldozer moved his stump first? I can kinda understand his aggression seeing as they hit first. He’s only responding...with fists...

Fastest way to get exposition is to have John C. Riley narrate over a video game lemme tell ya. And the premise makes a lot of sense. Ralph does his job. It just so happens that that job is to wreck everything. And get thrown off a roof. Into mud. Medal-less.

Lol @the-kid​-who-says-“This animation is so real.” I see you, Disney. I see you.

Whoa. Just whoa. The arcade time lapse is so full of old video game references, there is no way you could catch them all in one viewing. Damn, Disney really went all out with the royalties for this movie. Pac-man, Asteroids, Frogger, TMNT, this is beautiful.

And we’re still less than 3 minutes into this movie. Oh, this is gonna be good.

Aw, Ralph wants to love his job but hates it at the same time. Is this gonna be a mid-life crisis told through video games? Please say yes.

Lolololol this is like a modern version of Toy Story. All the video games come to life once the people leave. Oh and Street Fighter II? That could not have been easy to get in this movie (and they only use it for a quick joke about grabbing a drink after work, too. Now that’s dedication to making your world believable).

I’m loving this translation of choppy 8-bit video game motions into a 3D animated world. It’s a subtle touch, but one that makes everything more realistic imo.

Also, loving the meta-humor where Ralph literally wrecks everything he touches. Even the bushes fall over after he brushes them.

Aw, Ralph’s true motivations are coming through... :(

Lol a Bad-Anon meeting? Idk what’s better: the fact that it’s a play on Alcohol Anonymous or the fact that they used Anon from Internet slang.

Nope, I change my mind. The best part about this is how many video game baddies they have here. Bowser, Kano, Dr. Robotnik, Blinky the Ghost, I just can’t believe it.

Aw, the bad guys are really trying to explain to Ralph why being bad isn’t necessarily a bad thing. That’s nice.

Oh my god, Kano just ripped Zombie’s heart out. That’s hilarious. Fatality (except Zombie is already dead...).

Lol. Thanks, Satan.

I like how everyone freaks out when Ralph says he doesn’t want to be the bad guy anymore. Society has rules, and if Ralph is trying to break them in the slightest (”go Turbo”), then everyone loses their minds. Even for bad guys, you still gotta follow the rules.

Whoa. Blinky is right. Don’t try and change who you are to be better, accept who you are to be a better you. Damn, deep stuff.

AHHH THE BAD-ANON MEETING WAS IN BLINKY’S RESPAWN BOX FOR PAC-MAN. THAT’S ABSOLUTE GOLD.

Oh my god Game Central Station is magnificent. The gates are outlet faces, and there are so many video game characters there. This is amazing.

Lol “All aboard the Soul Train, outlet 12.” Nice throwback.

Oooo a “random security check” always pulling aside Ralph. Not-so-subtle discrimination allegory. I like it. Also, Lara Croft name-dropping is always a good touch.

Sonic is in this movie too??? Marvelous. Simply marvelous.

Holy crap, Q*bert is homeless because their game got unplugged??? Snake too??? Oh my god that’s right in the feels. Aw and Ralph gives them his cherry. That’s so sweet. Gah this is gonna be an emotional roller coaster of a movie.

Lolololol is that supposed to be Skrillex?

Ralph and Felix’s conversation is so awkward. That makes me sad :(

Ah, Ralph is already breaking stuff. Ah and Felix’s respawn animation. Too cute.

Two things: 1) why are the apartment people so effing rude. Were they raised in a bar? Jfc. 2) I’m loving how anti-social Ralph is. Yea, you tell em buddy. Stick it to the man.

As sad as Ralph wrecking the cake is, you gotta appreciate the pixelated cake-splatter everywhere.

Oh my gosh how did I not see this before?! Tapper is an old video game too! Golly gee, references are everywhere!!!

Super mushrooms and Metal Gear exclamation points in the lost-and-found! Brilliant!

Oh, I get it. Hero’s Duty is supposed to be a cross between Halo and Call of Duty. Modern games are in this movie too. Smashing.

Is that Jane Lynch???? Oh heck yes!

“First Person Shooter coming through.” Niceeeeeeee.

This dubstep-space-robot-bug-thingy-shooter sequence is FUCKING AWESOME. HOLY NUTS WHY CAN’T ALL DISNEY MOVIES BE LIKE THIS.

Even in this chaotic shooting game, “formation” and social constructs are paramount. Damn, society. You scary.

Ralph and the “old video games” calling out the “new video games” for being scary. Got em.

Ha. A giant blue beam to zap all the bugs with. Cute.

Subway product placement? Huh. Interesting.

Also, the jerk guys who are clearly way older than the marketed arcade demographic are total jerks. Realistic arcade representation though. Every arcade has em.

Oh snap. Now I know why “sticking to the program” is so important. If games don’t, then they can be shut down for good. That’s so dark, Disney.

Ah now I wanna learn Q*bert-ese. That sounds really fun.

Also, it’s funny to see how much the village people (pun intended) need Ralph now after they berated him for “wrecking everything.” Yea, karma bitch.

I like how smitten Felix is for high-definition characters. Lol innuendo.

Are the cybug eggs supposed to be a reference to the eggs from Aliens? If so, I approve.

Aw, Ralph just wants everyone’s approval. That’s so sad :( Poor Ralph.

The little cybug just jumped on Ralph’s face. Totally a reference to Aliens.

Hahahahaha. Sonic lost his rings!

Sugar Rush is a mix between Mario Kart and Candyland right? That’s sweet (yes, pun intended again).

Also, that’s a theme catchy song.

I can’t believe that’s Sarah Silverman!

Whoa was that a glitch...? Do they have those in this movie?

If cybugs are viruses, does that mean Hero’s Duty is like the Norton Antivirus of the arcade then? Lol that’d be a riveting game.

Pay-to-play for this racing competition seems like it guarantees the richest racers will always race…it’s almost like the top 1% of racers will always stay at the top…hey wait a minute, Disney…

I like how the coins dissolve in to 0’s and 1’s. It’s the little details that make this movie awesome.

Oh no, Ralph’s medal got dissolved…

So Vanellope is a glitch. Whoa.

Haha. The cops are donuts. Got em.

Is that Ralph or Shrek?

AH IS THIS SUPPOSED TO BE A REPRESENTATION OF POLICE BRUTALITY??? AH DISNEY I SEE YOU

Whoa, glitch discrimination. That’s some deep stuff yo.

THE OREOS ARE FROM THE WIZARD OF OZ I’M GONNA McFREAKIN’ LOSE IT

Children of the Candy Corn? There are so many references in this movie that I highly doubt younger audiences will recognize.

Lol. Fun-geon. Pun-geon. Aha, ok. I’m done-geon. Oh my god. It went full circle.

A Darth Vader breathing reference? What doesn’t this movie have???

Pixlexia? Is that a play on dyslexia?

Holy fuck, these racers are awful. They’re destroying Vanellope’s car just cuz she’s different? WTF.

Yay! Ralph to the rescue!

Haha. Ralph can break everything except a jawbreaker. Just like I remember them.

Oh snap. Nvm, he did.

Why would a creepy character like Turbo be the hero of a racing game? He sure doesn’t look like a hero…

Also, good exposition for the word “Turbo.”

Ahaha. Nesquik-sand. I love Nesquik. But I hate sand. It’s rough. And course. And it gets everywhere (lol, ok I’m done).

Aha Laffy Taffy that laugh. This movie is full of puns too? Oh I am in love.

Aaaaand insert obligatory Disney romance subplot here.

Lol. Gunshots are the fastest way to silence unwanted singing.

Oh my gosh. Candy-cybugs???

Is Vanellope calling Ralph “Knuckles” supposed to be a Sonic the Hedgehog reference? If so, I love it.

Lolololol did she just call him GLaDOS too??? Gold!!!

A game within a game. Game-ception? Nope, a mini-game!

Aw Vanellope and Ralph are bonding.

AW VANELLOPE LOVES THE CAR RALPH MADE FOR HER. THAT’S SO FUCKING PRECIOUS.

I get the vibe I’m not supposed to like King Candy, but his puns save me. Spiritually, ethically, psychologically. Everything.

Ahhhhh the ol’ Mentos and Diet Coke trick. Good one.

Whoa. The parallels between Vanellope and Ralph are striking, sure. But the fact that she can’t even leave her game because she’s a glitch? That’s hard stuff. At least Ralph can go where he pleases. Damn, Disney.

Lol, Vanellope learning to drive is exactly how I was in driver’s ed. “What do these pedals on the floor do?”

Vanellope has a chance to win if she can “get that glitch under control?” That totally undermines the entire message of the movie thus far! What the heck!

AAAAAAAHHHHH THE UP-UP-DOWN-DOWN-LEFT-RIGHT-LEFT-RIGHT-B-A-START CHEAT CODE!!!!!! YES!!!!!!!!

Aw, even Vanellope’s code is alienated from the rest of the game…

Lol, come on Felix. Put a trigger warning on before you say “Dynamite gal.”

HOLY FUCK VANELLOPE WILL DIE IF SHE WINS THE RACE. OH MY GOD KING CANDY’S LOGIC MAKES SENSE BUT HOLY FUCK THAT’S AWFUL. JESUS DISNEY WHY DO YOU HAVE TO DO THIS TO ME.

AAAAHHH VANELLOPE MADE RALPH A MEDAL OH MY GOD THIS IS TOO MUCH

AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH RALPH NO NOT THE CAR OH MY FUCKING GOD NO NO NO NO NO

This movie is really sending mixed signals about being bad. Is it good to be bad? Is it bad to be bad? Are bad guys just alone no matter which way they try to be?

Waaaaaiiiit a minute. Why is Vanellope on the side of the arcade game if she’s a glitch? Game makers wouldn’t do that…what’s going on…

Lol, I literally just thought of that Ralph. No fair.

Haha. Candy-coated Heart of Darkness. The horror. The horror.

Jesus, eating Sour Bill is like dunking him in acid. Ralph is twisted, wow oh wow.

Whoa. Jeez how omnipotent is King Candy? He forcibly made Vanellope a glitch, then locked up everyone’s memories of her? Whoa.

The game will reset if Vanellope crosses the finish line? Hm….

Also, nice “stick around” pun, Ralph.

Lol. Felix making the bars stronger is great.

So is Ralph returning to being bad…by doing something good? Again, what is this movie trying to say! Be good or be bad??? Be bad with good intentions??? Jeez, I’ve never had such an identity crisis over a movie before!

Haha. The assorted fans with nuts are the Cameron Crazies. Nice touch.

Ooooooo I love the camera pan-around for the racecars! Just like in Mario Kart!

Ah someone even spun out before the start! Didn’t get the timing right, eh?

Now that’s what I call pod-racing!

Ayyy nice. Vanellope’s glitch moved her ahead of those Mean-Girl-esque candy racers!

Damn, Vanellope is 2 fast 2 furious for King Candy (with a little Tokyo Drift thrown in there for good measure).

Oh my god. It all makes sense now. King Candy is Turbo. He passed his glitch on to Vanellope so she’d be the outcast and not him. But Vanellope inadvertently passed it back to him and exposed him. Whoa.

Oh nice, another literary reference. On the “Come back soon” sign, it says “Parting is such sweet sorrow…” from Romeo and Juliet. Nice one (and a good pun too).

Oh god, Vanellope still can’t leave the game.

No no no she can’t die. No no no don’t do it, Disney.

Oh I see. Ralph is using his bad wrecking powers for good. Ohhhhhh.

Ohhhh snap. Now Turbo is game-hopping virus. Shit.

OH NO. NO NO NO. IS RALPH GONNA DIE???

Oh. He didn’t. Good.

Wait, is Vanellope getting a dress? Aw come on, Disney. I thought we were done with gender stereotyping.

Whoa, what??? Princess Vanellope??? Yo way to go!!!

Yea, Vanellope, yea! Execute those suckers! Fuck em up!!!

Aw, she was just kidding. Darn it.

Lol, constitutional democracy? President Vanellope? Yea, I’d vote for her.

Jesus, even with a happy ending, Disney has to play with my heart. Why does Ralph have to say goodbye. Why why why.

Aw a nice sweet happy ending where everybody wins. Good ol’ Disney.

HOLY CRAP RALPH CAN SEE VANELLOPE RACING WHEN HE GETS THROWN OFF THE BUILDING THAT IS SO FREAKING CUTE OH MY GOSH

AHHHHH WHAT A PERFECT ENDING. WHAT A PERFECT LAST LINE. AHHHHH THIS MOVIE IS SO PERFECT. I CAN’T HANDLE THIS RIGHT NOW GAAAAAHHHHHH

OH MY GOODNESS JUST WHEN I THOUGHT THIS MOVIE COULDN’T GET ANY BETTER. THE PAC-MAN ENDGAME GLITCH IS AT THE END OF THE CREDITS DURING THE DISNEY LOGO. HOW PERFECT IS THAT!?!?!? AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

This movie is beautiful. Just simply beautiful.

[sending-the-message]

Withdrawal by Ilunibi

It wasn’t always just me and Dead Coyote. When not practicing magic, we were usually in the presence of his regulars who, sadly, were the only people aside from me who ever seemed to visit. There was Brian Wilcox, who dressed like a lumberjack and was more interested in what new DVDs Dead Coyote had pirated as opposed to what new drugs had come in. John Boy was the scariest, a wiry and effeminate tweaker with a hidden kill-switch that seemed to go off if you looked at him the wrong way. Turtle was a strange and quiet guy who would sit and talk to me in pill-induced hazes about the secrets of the world, government conspiracies, and how Dead Coyote earned his name by killing the man who smuggled him over the border.

Which is funny because Dead Coyote was born in Maryland.

The most important of these regulars, however, was Cheryl James, a short, kinda pudgy brunette with a pack-a-day habit and a mismatched wardrobe collected from Goodwill donation bins. She never had a lot of money but figured out pretty early on that she could make trades with Dead Coyote, usually in the form of food and pills, to get her weekly fix. At least twice a week, she’d pop on by with pizza and a Marlboro hanging out of her mouth, her and Dead Coyote would sort out their business in the kitchen while I inhaled a couple of slices, and then they’d both come out high as kites, flank me on either side, and we’d just sit and watch trashy television and talk about our lives.

To Cheryl’s credit, she was always very invested in what I had to say. It was kind of empowering to listen to her scream “Bullshit!” every time I told her how unfairly teachers treated me and how Jessica Schneider bullied me. Her tirades about how much people sucked were inspiring.

I wasn’t the only one who liked her. Her and Dead Coyote eventually stopped trading pizza for drugs, opting instead to settle their payments with sex. And dates. And cuddling on the couch. I won’t lie and say a part of me wasn’t jealous--Dead Coyote was my only friend for a long time and, as much as I liked Cheryl, I really disliked the idea of sharing him--but it was good for Dead Coyote. As nonchalant as he came off, he was an extremely lonely person, ditched by his family and all of his worthwhile friends because of the way he lived.

Even occultists want to feel loved, I guess.

Cheryl was also good for him in another way, though what was good for him was the end of her. On October 14, 2012, a “concerned neighbor” reported to the housing project’s office that they hadn’t seen her so much as open her blinds for two days and that her television had been blaring for forty-eight hours straight. The supervisor did a wellness check, and lo and behold, Cheryl was found stiff as a board on her bed with a halo of vomit. The gossip that followed was absolutely brutal, from hypocritical drug-buddies talking about how trashy she was to high-and-mighty single moms sticking up their nose and saying she deserved it. A few people blamed Dead Coyote for it, and the aftermath of that day was the first time I saw the man cry.

He blamed himself. He also decided that enough was enough and was seeking help the next morning.

I was sixteen at this time, and had moved out of my mom’s apartment because I hadn’t really seen any point in staying, not out of a lack of love more than not wanting to use anymore of her resources. I’d also lost my apartment after losing my job once I stupidly admitted to a secret shopper at the corner store that I was too young to be selling cigarettes, let alone alcohol, but was too bullheaded and embarrassed to go crawling back to my mother. Without her knowledge, I spent the remainder of my high school years on Dead Coyote’s couch and had a front row seat to watching a guy who’d become my anchor lose his goddamn mind.

Withdrawal isn’t pretty. I was probably too young to be holding his hair while he puked into his kitchen sink and trying to find ways to calm him down when he was shaking in a corner, trying to pull said hair out. His memory was shit, his temperament was scattershot. I couldn’t really be mad at him for snapping at me, but it seemed like his moods swung from nearly kicking me out one minute to crying in his kitchen floor out of a mixture of pain and guilt the next. He was a puddle of a man, and I had nightmares for months after he locked himself in his bathroom threatening to kill himself because “the methadone ain’t shit” and his belief that he was a murderer. Still, no matter how young I was, I couldn’t even count how many times he’d been there for me through all of my petty bullshit and I was resolute in my decision that giving up on him wasn’t an option.

Unfortunately, withdrawal is also absolutely terrifying when the person withdrawing is a fucking warlock.

It was, suitably enough, Halloween. I had thought of ditching school that morning because I couldn’t get Dead Coyote out of bed even after trying to drag him off of his mattress by his legs, but he’d woken up enough to tell me that he was fine, just queasy, and that his upset stomach wasn’t worth my grades. I was really struggling at the time so I decided to listen for once, lest I ended up redoing my Junior year and having to camp in his living room for an extra twelve months that I probably wasn’t welcome.

But, I spent the whole day worrying anyway, and when the school day ended I bolted for the bus like a bat out of hell. It was all I could do to keep from screaming at the driver to floor it. I sat, nervously trying to drown out my thoughts by thinking every Disney song I could remember as loud as I possibly could, but there was a sinking feeling in my gut the closer I got to home. This burning, aching, empty feeling like my stomach acid was trying to eat its way out.

Dead Coyote was, and is, one of the most important people in my life, and I won’t shy away from saying that I got so fucking attached to him that I damn near had a sixth sense specifically for him. And feeling empty? I had my fears, because none of the reasons I could think of to explain that hollow pain were comforting. The only thing to explain a feeling of absence would be that he was gone in some way, or at least that’s what I told myself over and over again atop my brain’s incorrect rendition of “Be Prepared.”

The bus finally pulled up to my stop. I shoved my way to the front and jumped from the top step dead to the sidewalk, hitting the ground in a sprint that I would have otherwise been unable to keep up. But adrenaline propelled me, like rocket fuel, straight to Dead Coyote’s door. Every muscle in my body shook with nerves as I nearly tore down his stoop light to get the spare key hidden behind the glass, and it was all I could do to get the key in the lock and remember the way the lock was supposed to turn and push the door open because there was something blocking it.

It was the couch, as it turns out, thrown haphazardly in front of it and flipped on its back, but not because he was trying to barricade me out. No, illuminated by candles in the middle of the floor was a shakily drawn Pentacle of Solomon. Beside that, drawn even more haphazardly, were a barrage of Goetic crests and a splash of blood.

The drawings were everywhere, written in everything: blood, sharpie, dry-erase marker, chalk, salt, sand, and (as ashamed as I am to admit it) Roseart crayons. They called upon Marchosias, Buer, Orobas, Eligor, and everyone in between. There were marks for the planets, the stars, and things he’d never taught me. They ran from the walls to the floor to the ceiling, from the kitchen to the downstairs bathroom and through the living room all the way up the stairs. Bloody handprints curled around the edge of every step, the walls thrumming and groaning as I grew closer and closer, creeping up the staircase like a stalking cat.

The floor shook like somebody dropped a weight. I heard glass shatter and, glancing up at the cracked bathroom door at the top of the steps, I saw a glint of light from the scattered remains of the mirror. After that, it took every ounce of my courage to turn the corner to Dead Coyote’s room. The door was pulled closed, a gigantic “X” keyed into the paint, interspersed with vandalistic rambling carved by a shaking hand.

I DON’T WANT TO BE DEAD COYOTE I AM NOT DEAD COYOTE DEAD COYOTE DEAD COYOTE DEAD DEAD DEAD DEAD DEAD DEAD DEAD DOG DEAD DOG DEAD DOG DEAD DOG NO NO NO NO NO

Seriously, adrenaline gives you superpowers. I was shaking and terrified and could feel my stomach churning, but even though every single ounce of me wanted to run back to my mom’s and call a priest, I found myself grabbing the hot-cold doorknob and throwing his bedroom door open so hard that it punched a hole in the wall. Heat, like hellfire, spilled out of the room and there, sitting in the middle of his mattress on the floor, cross legged and scowling, was Dead Coyote.

His room was pitch black, except for those goddamn candles. Everything the light from the hallway touched was a mess, from shards of the mirror that had been on the back of his door to posters ripped straight from the wall and black-out curtains shredded to ribbons. Still-functional ribbons, I realized, because despite the fact I could see slivers of sunlight behind them, nothing was coming through. My feet crunched against the glass as I took a step in, and a loud pop behind me launched us into further blackness as the lightbulb in the upstairs hall exploded inside the fixture.

“DC?” I called in. He didn’t even twitch.

“DC, it’s me. It’s Seymour. I--”

“Get. Out.”

His voice was low, sinister, and almost growling. Dead Coyote sounded, quite literally, like a coyote. I tried to puff myself up thinking that if I showed that I was unwilling to back down that there was a slight chance he’d lower his guard. Instead, he shifted positions on his bed, twisting his head, climbing up on his toes, and arching his back like a predator ready to pounce. My shaky confidence shattered, but I struggled through the trembling hands and wobbly knees to fake an expression of determination.

“Get out! GET OUT!”

I shook my head and told him that, no, I wasn’t leaving and if he wanted me gone, he’d have to make me leave. It took a lot of nerve to say, and a lot more nerve to stand by it when I heard glass shatter downstairs.

“This is my house, this is my space, and I want you out!”

I dared him to move me. I berated him for acting like a child when he was twelve years older than me. I guess I didn’t fully understand just how deep the drugs had sank their claws into him and I was plain ignorant as to just how fucked up withdrawal made you feel. I just knew that everything in the apartment was broken right down to the paint beginning to peel off the walls, and I was scared. I was terrified. I honestly thought Dead Coyote was on his last legs.

I mean, even if he was physically okay, I couldn’t account for how he was mentally. Or, hell, spiritually. I thought back to all the broken, haphazard sigils scrawled on every inch of the walls and floors and back to his lessons about how precision was key and overdoing it would end badly. He could have ended up possessed or haunted or god only knew what and, of the two of us, he was the refined master of this artform. I didn’t know how to reverse massive fuck-ups. I would have been powerless to help him.

He cursed at me, mostly in Spanish, though he switched to English whenever he wanted me to be perfectly aware of what he was calling me. I told him, again, that I wasn’t leaving. He feinted a lunge at me and I, being a genius, told him to get over himself. That I wasn’t afraid of him, which was a blatant lie.

The air went cold and Dead Coyote stood, perfectly straight and statue-still. His expression became neutral. I twitched, he tilted his head, and then my confidence slipped. He wasn’t calming down. No, there was a maliciousness in his eyes that told me that he was planning something.

So, I ran. I turned and ran down the stairs, with one thought on my mind: Dead Coyote had to have been possessed and I had to get to the kitchen. He kept the holy water under the sink with the Mr. Clean and Fabuloso (because, honestly, what is holy water aside from another cleaning product?), and I knew that was the only way this was going to end in my favor. If it could sear the shit out of Glasyalabolas, then maybe it could burn the crazy out of Dead Coyote.

It took me about three jumps to get down the stairs and I slid on a fallen curtain and knocked the wind out of myself on the couch. Behind me, I heard him galloping down and yelling, so I pulled together all of my strength and clambered over the top. I hopscotched over candles, left shoe prints on sigils, and kicked salt everywhere as I hopped awkwardly across the kitchen.

“Don’t you fucking dare, Seymour! Don’t you--!”

Too late. In a less-than-graceful fashion, I hit the ground in a slide, less like a baseball player running for home and more like an awkward toddler on ice. I ripped open the cabinet, picked up the glass bottle Dead Coyote kept his elixir in, struggled to my feet, and turned to see him standing--seething--in the middle of the kitchen floor. His shirt was torn, though I didn’t know how he had managed that, and somehow his nose was bleeding. Was it whatever was inside of him or did he just run into a wall?

I don’t know and he still won’t tell me.

“Put it down,” he warned. I shook my head.

“Seymour, put it down!”

I shook my head again and huddled down. He stared at me, bewildered, until I ran at him screaming like a goddamned lunatic.

Believe it or not, I was not and am not a small girl. Well, I’m short, but I’m also built with the skeleton of an old Norse god. I’ve always been more than a little self-conscious about it; I’m not that delicate waif or petite cutie that men want to be with and women want to be. I am, essentially, an ox with boobs who could potentially be scary if her hobby wasn’t watching trashy talk shows. In that moment, though, I was downright thankful that I could be a linebacker, because I was more structurally stable and significantly heavier than the raging, magical tweaker who had me cornered in his kitchen.

I knocked him clear off his feet. For all the fights I saw him win, he went down like a bitch. I don’t know if it was because whatever had a grip on him was taken by surprise or if he was actually in there and just didn’t want to hit me, but at the time, I figured I was running on pure luck and had to act fast before he got the upper hand. I sat on his chest, I tilted the bottle, and I poured every last drop on his snarling face.

Silence.

He wasn’t struggling anymore, so I took that as a good sign. Still, I was a deer caught in headlights, sitting there on top of him with an empty bottle in one hand and a fistful of his shirt in the other. He stared back, blinking, soaked and confused. I felt his chest rise and fall in a heavy sigh under my butt.

“DC?” I squeaked.

“Princess, did you just pour all of that out?”

I told him I had.

“What the fuck.”

Not even a question. Just a statement of exasperation.

It took a few moments for me to agree to let him up, but when I did, we just ended up sitting in the floor in silence for a while. He needed a good, long time to gather up his thoughts so he could explain himself, but it boiled down to the fact he was miserable. He was sick. He was in pain. He got carried away. But mostly, he was grieving. I had never even stopped to consider that option.

Honestly, the whole mess started with him trying to contact Cheryl. He just wanted to feel her presence or hear her voice and just have the chance to apologize. But the spell wouldn’t work. He’d never tried to summon the spirit of a specific person before and apparently wasn’t good at it, and so he started appealing to everything he possibly could until he finally ran out of space to write. He called something, alright, judging from the amount of damage done to his apartment, but he kept trying to pass it off as a personal poltergeist born from his own suffering.

Something big, something angry, and something that would die off if he just stopped feeding it, just like I had done to mine.

But I didn’t believe him, and at his core, I don’t think he did either. I had seen Dead Coyote angry before, but the whole experience was so off-the-wall and terrifying and unlike him that I couldn’t believe that it was him. Maybe withdrawal makes you a different person and drugs are a demon in and of themselves, but--more likely in this specific case--withdrawal makes you miserable enough to invite something bigger, scarier, and more murderous because you’re an occultist who isn’t thinking straight.

“I’m still smudging the shit out of this apartment,” I warned him.

“Fair enough,” he conceded.

That night was not a fun night. Neither of us slept. Armed only with what sage he had stuck back in his cabinets, we tried to bless every corner of his home two, three, four times. When we ran out of sage, we used salt to bless it all again. When we ran out of salt and couldn’t scrape anymore off of the floor, I found an ancient cannister of rosemary in the back of a neglected closet and tried my best with that; it’s a weak alternative, but an alternative nonetheless. The sun went down, the sun came up, and we were scrubbing sigils off of the floors and walls and replacing lights and sweeping up shards of glass.

Needless to say, I didn’t go to school on November first. Instead, I spent that afternoon curled up on the couch, too exhausted to move, sweaty and nauseous and shaky and scented like a spice rack. And, as I dozed off with Dead Coyote passed out flat on his back on the floor, snoring like a lumber mill, I wondered if this was really the last of it.

It wasn’t. Heroin is an evil fucking thing and there were relapses and withdrawals and arguments and tears and Cheryl’s name--may she rest in peace--came up more than a few more times in the following years, but at the very least he never magically trashed his apartment again. Though, in the end, we both guessed that it probably wouldn’t have mattered if he had.

He definitely wasn’t going to get his deposit back anyway.