#I could not breathe and my vision was legit like blacking out at the corners of my vision

[asyipyip]

Just stopped a panic attack with an ice cube

[shivada-jade]

reply back

modern!au/idol!au

characters: aether, lumine mentions: venti, xiao, kazuha, barbara, azhdaha warning(s): swearing because lumine and aether are siblings

notes: i've been lACKING these idol au's so im gonna write more idol au's because i nEEED it

You were seven when you were introduced to the twins. Coming from a foreign land, you struggled with the language they spoke in, but they were patient with you and taught you their language and much more. The twins were multilingual and explained it was from their frequent traveling and relatives from different places.

You and the twins were close, but Lumine spent more time with you, making Aether whine a lot. He would always poke sticks at you and hide your legendary, full art Pokemon cards to catch both Lumine's and your attention. It does work, but Lumine's mad.

"Aether!" She'd scream with a lisp because of a missing tooth. "Stop doing that!"

Oh, but Aether is a sibling, meaning he'd play the 'innocent' card. "Stop doing what? What am I doing?"

In the end, you'd always have to call their parents when they fist fight at the sand pit. "Aether and Lumine's mom! They're fighting again!"

"Again?" The tall blonde sighed. "Thanks for telling me, hon."

After a good scolding, Aether and Lumine would be totally okay the next minute like nothing happened. You were used to their banter and rightfully took your Pokemon cards back. Lumine stuck a tongue out, blowing a raspberry at Aether when he turned his back, grabbing three large sticks.

"Fight me!" He cried with glee, giving one stick to his sister and one to you. "I will be the grand king of the sand pit!"

You vaguely remember the rest. Maybe you lost the 'sword duel,' or maybe you didn't, but what you did remember was this tall kid playing with his cat and eating the sand. Forget the kid, the only thing you remember is his cat's name called Azhdaha.

Your hands close your story book. You would never admit to your friends, but Lumine and Aether that you still read fantasy. The other kids in the neighbourhood would laugh saying what you were reading is a kid's story.

"So what if it's a kid's story? If you like it, read it," Lumine says aggressively while Aether opens the door for both of you.

"Lumi's right. They think they're all grown up, but they're kids too," he closes the door behind him, waving goodbye to your grandma rocking on the porch. "What's the story about anyway?"

You walk ahead, leading the two to a local mall. Every week, Aether, Lumine and yourself would spend Fridays and Saturdays together.

You and Lumine often joke how Aether doesn't do 'Saturdays are for the boys.' To which, Aether would scoff and reply with, "Boys who say that are stupid, not all but most. Saturdays are for spending time with people you care about. I don't care if they think I'm weak."

You step foot in the bus, tapping the card to pay for your admission. The twins, walk behind, doing the same and sitting next to you on the bus.

"It's called 'Songs of a Siren.' It's cool, you should check it out." You say, scooting a bit closer to the side so Lumine could have more pace to sit. The bus is packed. Teenagers littered inside, only a few adults were there including the bus driver. "Let's leave. Teenagers stink."

"...But you are one."

"Well-"

After the next stop, you push yourself through the crowd, trying to exit. Lumine pushes people, muttering a few 'excuse us' while dragging her brother. Your feet land on the concrete sidewalk and you finally breathe freely.

You see the twins finally get off the bus and tilt your head, "Let's go, the mall isn't gonna wait for us."

Entering the mall, the first thing you pass by is a clothes shop. You and Aether share a look, quietly doing rock-paper-scissors behind Lumine who's beaming to go inside.

Rock.

Aether chooses paper.

You droop to the floor because you're dramatic, knowing that once you go in the shop, you'll be the one carrying Lumine's purchases.

"Alright, Lumine," you say sighing. "Let's go shop."

You see Aether in your peripheral vision, pumping his fist laughing a quiet, "Yes!" when Lumine takes out her wallet.

"I know you did rock-paper-scissors." She counts the bills from her wallet, "But I'm buying for Aether which means even if you carry the things I buy, Aether's gonna have it much worse because he will be trying on everything I tell him to wear." She grins, settling with a black debit card.

After hearing this, Aether tries to walk in another shop to avoid dressing up for Lumine, but his sister quickly catches on and pulls him by the ear and walks in the clothes shop.

"Let's go!" She says to you, "These clothes won't shop themselves!"

...

"This one?"

"No, you look like grandpa in that outfit."

"Well what if I like looking like grandpa, huh? What are you gonna do about it?"

"Some people can pull off the sexy grandpa look. You're not 'some people.'" Lumine pulls out another outfit from the rack. "Try this one," she laughs, seeing Aether's horrified face and pushes him in the dressing area.

This is the ninth clothes shop you three go to, and you were starting to feel bad for Aether who had to wear every outfit Lumine wanted him to wear.

"Lumi," you say calmly, having trouble holding five shopping bags on each arm. She's on a shopping spree and you wonder how she gets all the money to buy these things. "That should be enough shopping for the day. I'm hungry."

The blonde lifts a hand. "Hold on a second," she smiles before banging on the changeroom door, "AETHER LET ME SEE THE FIT."

You can hear the loud sigh from the other side of the door as it slowly opens. He only peeks his head out, shyly mumbling, "This is embarrassing. I don't want to walk out like this."

Lumine rolls her eyes and pulls the door open, revealing Aether in a white dress shirt and dark pants.

Aether lifts an arm, inspecting the design. "It's a bit..." he pauses, thinking of a way to not offend his sister. "It's not my style." His eyes seek for your help to back him up, but you couldn't. The style on him looks so ethereal to him, and Lumine has the same idea.

His twin ran up to an aisle and picked out two accessories: a silk cloth and a floral pin. Lumine shushes Aether who tried to punch her.

"Shut up Aether, you'll look great." She pins the black rose onto the front of his shirt and ties the silk cloth around his neck. She steps a few steps back, making a rectangle shape to symbolize a picture frame and elbows you lightly. "He looks okay for once."

Okay is underwhelming, but to describe Aether better, he looks celestial. The warm studio lights hug every angle of Aether from head to toe. His golden eyes seem to brighten more and the outfit only accentuates his physical traits more.

From the corner of your eye you spot a tall-ish man who has been wandering past the same aisle but never picking anything up. He wears ordinary clothes- a T-shirt and jeans (rather stylishly), but you know from his incoming aura he's more than just an ordinary person.

You tap Lumine discreetly while still holding onto her shopping bags and tilt your head towards the man.

Aether, who keeps picking on the cloth around his neck goes frigid when the strange man walks up to him.

"Hey kid," he says cooly. He looks Aether up and down, lifting his shades to see clearer, and pulls out a small business card from his pocket. "You look like idol material. Ever thought about being a part of a boyband?"

Out of politeness, Aether takes the card and laughs nervously, "Not really" He looks at Lumine and you for help, but you two pretend to not know him when he turns to you.

The man shoves his hands in his pocket, blowing a bubblegum and popping it. His hair slightly tousles when he turns, waving a hand.

"If you ever do decide if you wanna be an idol, auditions are held next week at 10AM," he saunters off. "If they ask who recruited you, tell them a man by the name of Valentin did."

His lavender irises looks back once more before leaving the store, "The people from Teyvat Entertainment are introduced by my very hands. Don't disappoint me."

The automatic sliding doors open for him and he waves the store greeter a goodbye.

You see Aether's eyes scanning over he card Valentin gave. His lashes flutter quickly, signaling you and Lumine he was either shocked, or confused.

Lumine grabbed the paper, a habit she picked up due to being a twin and having to share everything with Aether who won't share. Her lips part, showing the card to you.

Teyvat Entertainment.

A company who created the world's famous DCKZ and the idol, Barbara. Teyvat Ent. has one of the youngest, top rookies of the year because of a group called TVT Dream. A company with many celebrities' and the business card is legit.

A store worker no older than your age meekly walks up to the three of you and asks, "Hey, uh. Are you ready to purchase your clothes?"

...

Aether shoves Lumine (don't worry she shoves him 10x harder) on the stairs while you watch from a safe distance.

You wave hello to their mom before waltzing into their home like you did many other times. You were their third child in their mom's eyes.

You slam the twins' room open and lay yourself on the bottom bunk of their bunkbed. "So do you wanna check Teyvat Entertainment?"

You fish out your phone from your pocket and hand signal for Aether and Lumine to come close to see. Your phone turns on, showing the lock screen of the twins in their embarrassing toddler moments then unlock it. Quietly laughing at the twins who have their faces beet red from the photograph.

"Why do you have that pic? DELETE IT."

"Did mom give that to you..."

You ignore them, opening up Google and typing in the Teyvat Ent. website and search their contacts. You ask Aether for the business card, comparing the two numbers side by side, and Valentin is indeed one of the scouts for the company.

You shut your phone off, hugging the two siblings together tightly. "Whether Aether decides he wants to be an idol or not, we'll still be the best of friends."

Lumine grins, squishing your cheeks, taking a closer look at you. "Well, duh. Are you scared we'll fall apart? No, if anything you should be scared we're never going to leave you alone even if you're 60 and married."

You pinch her cheeks and start to say something until you hear sniffles and coughing. You turn to Aether who was hiding his tears.

"Shut up, I'm not crying." He harshly wipes away the water falling from his eyes, "When I go famous, I'm going to give you my autograph so you can sell it and eventually get 20 cars and houses."

...

You were a teen when the dark-haired Valentin scouted Aether to be a trainee in Teyvat Ent.

You note that without Aether, their home is extremely quiet. It's odd not seeing Lumine scream at Aether for taking her hair clips. It's odd not seeing Lumine aggressively pull on the colourful flower hairclips on Aether's hair, just to get the clips back. It's so odd not seeing Aether is general.

Lumine scrolls through her phone, looking for furniture to add to her new apartment she shares with you. The only thing in the newly bought apartment is three mattresses, three plates, and three cups, just in case Aether visits. Though, Aether visiting is rare. His visits only happen during December for Christmas, but even then he had not visited. It's been two years since you and Lumine last saw him.

You stare at your last sent messages to the blonde boy.

▶ hEY. (threatening)

YO

▶ take care okay? lumine's worrying all the time for ur health bc she keeps watching yt vids on how idols over-do themselves from training

haha thanks for telling me

are you sure it's not you who's worrying 🧐🤧

the last thing lumi sent to me was "FUCK YOU"

▶ well the last thing you sent to her was "U BUTT"

▶ and she took that seriously

are you siding with her?

▶ yes

oh okay, frick you too seen three months ago

Your feet pad against the wooden tiles, grabbing a glass of water while scrolling through twitter. You lift the glass to your lips and almost choke from the water you drink.

You click the link on the phone with the title "Debuting boy band already claiming the hearts of many! Please welcome 4nemo!" Four boys stand in the picture, one being Aether.

You place your glass to the sink and run to Lumine, sitting next to her and who her your phone. She reads it over and visibly shakes. You swear she was about to cry until she takes the phone from your hand and starts throwing it, "AETHER THAT BITCH. HE DEBUTES AND SAYS NOTHING."

You're mortified and pull your friend away from your phone, "THAT'S A NEW PHONE, STOP." You push her away and run to your device, clicking on the link.

"One, two, three! Hello we are," Aether, the familiar blonde says.

His group members follow after him. "4nemo!" They say in chorus. One by one they start introducing themselves.

"Hi I'm Aether!"

"Kazuha," one says with a raise of a hand.

An energetic member steps up with a grin, "And I'm Barbisabeto!"

"He's Barbatos, forgive him." Teal undertones make it's way to the camera, "Hello, I'm Xiao.

The one with twin braids step up, mischievously grinning. "Please take care of us and support us during our journey through the music industry."

His teal eyes squint behind the camera, whispering to the member behind him. "Psst, Xiao. I can't read I'm blind."

Xiao rolls his eyes and steps up, slightly bowing, "Please support our debuting group, we will see you in our music videos."

But Lumine and you never paid attention to what they were saying. Both of you just started crying insults of endearment to Aether because he looks so... different. His face had mature and he's a real idol now.

Reality sinks in.

Now that Aether had a growing fanbase, it's going to be harder to contact him.

"Lumine, how are we going to talk to him now?"

Lumine ponders a bit, resting her chin on her hand before smirking. "Let's create an Aether hate page."

"Yes, let's do it."

After a quick recording of Lumine and yourself, you posted the video online, and soon enough, it goes viral.

Lumine laughs, replaying the video.

"This one's for the boys with the booming system," You say monotonously in front of the camera like what you said was a speech instead of a song. "Top down, AC with the cooler system."

Lumine comes on screen, flipping her middle finger at the camera. "When he come up in the club, he be blazin' up. This one is actually not for the boys with the booming system. This is for the BITCH, AETHER WITH THE BLONDE BRAID. Look at you with your ugly ass smile," She speaks in one breath and it amazes you. "Make sure you get millions of hits or it's all for nothing. Oh Aether's an ass."

The screen shows your hand scooping the phone up and waving good bye with Lumine still dissing Aether.

You nudge Lumine, showing a comment written at the bottom of the video, covering a laugh.

"who's aether?"

"huh??! aether?"

"lOL Why Does The Person On The Left Look Like Aether?"

"OH 4NEMO DABUTE. SHUTUP YOU ANTI. THEY'RE GORGEOUS. YOU'RE THE ONE UFLY" ➡ "ahisfdh you obvi didnt watch the whole video. she said "make sure get millions of hits"

Lumine grins, commenting at the people calling her ugly and Aether way better looking. "Lol, IKR. the one on the left is trying too hard to look like Aether. it's like shes tryna be a twin or smthn"

Though, because of your viral "hate" video, 4nemo's popularity sky rockets because of the unknown 'Aether' of the group.

...

Aether watches the video on the news channel, because that's how popular the video got. He looks at his manager, "Can I send a hate video back?"

"Aether, no."

But the winds are troublesome as the ocean, because a boy with teal tips on his hair snatched the managers phone, running and giving it to Aether. "AETHER. DO IT RIGHT NOW."

...

It was a shock to you seeing people follow your twitter account.

"LUMI, [NAME], IM SRRY I LOST MY PHONE AND DIDNT WANNA TELL ANY1 OR THEYLL GROUND ME," said the tweet, tagging you in comments.

Lumine doesn't have twitter, so when she looks over your shoulder seeing the tweet with her name on, she grabs the phone and locks herself in the bathroom, "R U FR AETHER?U DIDNT REPLY TO MY HAPPY BDAY. WE SHARE A BDAY DUMBASS"

She calmly unlocks the door, giving your phone back casually while you whine, "Lumine! This is twitter! They're gonna cancel me!"

"I'll cancel them back."

Ding! You receive a post with you name under the comments again.

hello, i have to apologize for our member stealing the manager's phone to tweet that. i swear that kid's the most responsible, but he's been triggered. #kazuha

You quickly type back, under the hashtag 'kazuha.'

"@/4nemo sorry uh thats one of ur members twin & shes mad that aether never gave her a bday present when she gave 1 to him #kazuha"

notes: psst here's where i got aether's outfit inspo when they were outfit changing at the mall

[funtimebunnyblog]

Pillarmen with a s/o who’s terrified of the dark 🥺? She always clings to them if they’re near if the lights suddenly go out. She only feels safe in the dark of her pillarman is there to protect her 🥺

I really like the irony of this request! 🤔😆 4 ancient Aztec Vampire Gods (who have dwelled in darkness their entire existence) with a Mate who doesn't like the dark! 😂😂😂

In other words, please remember my dear Anon that no fear or phobia is too silly 🙂❤ Thank you very much for this submission and please enjoy!

The Pillarmen with an s/o who's afraid of the dark! 😱

(Under the cut for length!)

Nyctophobia: The extreme or irrational fear of the night or darkness...

Kars:

• To him, fears of any and all kinds are meaningless.

• This was because Kars was powerful, of course; every inch of him brimmed with strength unmeasured.

• Why should he hold very basic and useless fears for anything when he was above any threat?

• You had mentioned off handedly one or two times that you didn't like the dark, it didn't go unnoticed by him that there usually wasn't a room in the house without a light of some sort on, but he never really paid any mind to it.

• He didn't realize just how serious your "dislike" ran until one night during a nasty storm when the power went off.

• When the lights suddenly went out and the house was encased in pitch black it didn't so much as bother him as he could see just fine in the darkness.

• This was just a minor inconvenience in his eyes. As for you on the other hand...

• Your scream pierced the air like a siren, puncturing his heart like a nail to a balloon even from all the way downstairs.

• The very sound made his hair stand on end and every primal instinct he had to protect you activated at once.

• "KARS!" You shrieked. "KARS HELP!!!"

• The Pillarman was out of his seat in a fraction of a second, kicking down the door of his study and flying down the stairs two at a time to reach you.

• You must've fallen. You must've hurt yourself. You must be bleeding. Dying. Thousands of logical things were running through his mind as to why you were screaming like that.

• He found you backed into the far corner of the livingroom, still screaming, your arms entangled around yourself as if to try and protect yourself from some unknown danger.

• "Y/N!" He cried, reaching you at last. The very second you felt him near you, your arms flew around him in a desperate and clinging embrace, your screams dying down to sobs.

• Kars held you in his arms, eyes frantically scanning your quivering body. "What is it? Where are you hurt? Did you--"

• He was cut off suddenly. "DARK!"

• The massive man stopped, blinking stupidly. "What?" "It's dark! It's too DARK! IT'S TOO DARK!!!" You cried, shaking your head frantically as you hugged him even tighter.

• You were desperately trying to worm your way deeper into his arms; as if trying to hide and disappear from the dark world around you completely.

• The Pillarman stared owl eyed down at you; you were screaming... just because it was dark?

• Kars opened his mouth, ready to scold you for startling him so terribly and making him think that you were in some sort of real danger when suddenly... it all truly dawned on him.

• You were scared of the dark. This was legit and real, tangible fear to you... and you turned to him because you were afraid enough to think you needed protection.

• Frowning, he carried you to the couch and sat down, cradling you in his arms and allowing you to cling to him as tightly as you wanted. The storm continued to crash and rumble in the distance; it was likely the power would not be back on until morning.

• He wasn't going to let you sit in the dark all by yourself; struck with terror and crying inconsolably like so until dawn.

• "Shhhh, it's alright, my little light." He whispered, smoothing his big palm over your back as you continued to cry. "Close your eyes and it won't be so dark and listen to my voice..."

• As you did so, he encouraged you to take deep breaths, waiting for you to calm down just a little before carrying out his next action.

• "Just listen to me, breathe... that's it. And again... don't focus on anything else, just the sound of my voice." His breath tickled your ear as he spoke softly, buried in the crook of his neck.

• You could feel him smile softly against your skin, "Now, I want you to imagine that you're outside, standing in the loveliest field you've ever seen. Rows upon rows of colourful flowers greet you under the warm, golden sun..."

• Kars talked quietly to you for a good long while, calming you down and taking you on a trip via your mind as he rubbed your back; distracting you completely from your fear.

• The darkness shrouded both of you until morning but you had long forgotten about it, Kars' soft voice had lulled you into a deep sleep.

• He made sure from then on to take extra precautions for your fears and you could always count on him to console you and help you if the dark ever came around.

• Even though he was above phobias, he wasn't above your needs.

Esidisi:

• Esidisi laughed in the face of fears; spiders, heights, closed spaces, you name it! Anything of the like were nothing in his eyes.

• He had gotten so used to not fearing anything standing in his path, he forgot the fact that other people did indeed have legit fears.

• That didn't help the fact that he liked to tease people for being afraid of something (mostly when they were afraid of him).

• Because of that, you never told him that you were afraid of the dark; you were afraid he'd laugh at you or worse, tell you to grow up.

• Esidisi ended up finding out about your fear first hand one night when the power unexpectedly went out due to a powerline being hit somewhere on your grid.

• You had been sitting on the couch next to Esidisi, watching T.V when all of a sudden the T.V clicked off, the fan stopped spinning, the low hum of the fridge fell silent; everything quickly went dark.

• Immediately, you froze up, hands flying to your mouth to stiffle the shriek that wanted to rip through you as nothing but an infinite wall of black hit your vision.

• You tried to hold your composure, inevitably crumbling in the face of your worst fear. Terror squeezed your heart and lungs painfully, your head spun, the only thing keeping you grounded was a little voice in your head screaming "Don't panic!"

• Esidisi frowned, looking around the dark room. "Hmm, and I was enjoying that show too..." he groaned quietly, turning his gaze to you.

• He could see you clear as day where you sat, paralyzed, and a chuckle passed his lips; he thought you were just in shock from the sudden outage.

• "Oh, what's the matter, dear? Don't tell me you're scared now!" He laughed, prodding you in the side with a finger.

• His laughter fell silent when you didn't respond and he suddenly took notice of the fact that you were shaking, your hands gripping the couch like a vice, your breaths were starting to come quickly and audibly.

• That look on your face hit him square in the gut, he could now see the tears trickling down your cheeks... Oh... OH!

• The moment it dawned on him, he felt absolutely terrible. Why didn't he see this sooner?!

• Your could hear him rustling around in the dark (at least you prayed that it was Esidisi fumbling around) but couldn't see him of course.

• You let out a yelp in surprise when two hands suddenly grabbed you by the hips and you were picked up, dropped into a familiar and warm lap.

• Light. A single golden and red flame of a candle licking at the air hit your eyes blindingly from where it stood on the coffee table, captivating you in mere seconds with its brightness. Another lit. Then another. And another!

• Before you was an entire table of lit candles, casting the once endlessly dark livingroom in a soft warm glow. Surprised, you turned your eyes back to meet the loving smile of Esidisi, his olive skin ruddy in the candlelight.

• "There. Not so dark now, is it?" He asked, only hugging you closer. The warmth of his embrace was soothing, the light and the safety of his arms ebbing your fears just a little.

• He chuckled as you breathed out an audible sigh of relief, he could feel the tension drain from your body as you sank deeper into his hold.

• "You know, it's actually a very good meditative practice to sit and focus on the light of a candle." He murmured, a massive and heated hand wrapping around yours. "It stimulates the mind and helps soothe too. Perhaps we can try it for a bit, since there's nothing on Television..."

• Rest assured; Esidisi would never laugh at your fears. No matter what they were or how childish they seemed.

• As long as you had him around, he would act as your beacon in the darkness.

Wamuu:

• Like many people, Wamuu outgrew his fears.

• As a Pillarchild he was afraid of a few things but as he grew under his Masters tutelage and weaned to be a Fighter, he learned to face those fears and use them to harden himself into a Warrior.

• Now as a fully grown Pillarman, Wammu didn't hold fear for anything; fears would only give an opponent an advantage and any he had only drove him to cast them aside when they happened to arouse.

• He once told you about the many fears he overcame (you had asked him what he was like when he was small) and he questioned if you had done the same.

• You were quite the opposite. Hesitantly, you told him you still held quite a fear for the dark. You never conquered it.

• This surprised Wamuu but he didn't look down on you for it and he surprised you in turn when he asked if you wanted some help in learning to try and overcome your phobia.

• You accepted his offer and he began to "train" you gradually.

• He'd start by turning off "unnecessary" lights; like simple nightlights you'd keep on in hallways or lights not being used in another room. Then He'd move into having the room partially dark or having the hall dark with the bedroom door open while you slept.

• He never once pushed you and never went too far by putting you in complete dark.

• However, one night, an unexpected power outage hit the town. Immediately, you found yourself practically jumping into your Mates arms as the entire house was encased in darkness.

• "Breathe, my beloved." The Pillarman told you, a hand rubbing over your head. He let you grab onto him all you wanted watching over you in the dark. "Remember all our training together, the dark cannot hurt you. The dark is nothing, it does not wield weapons and it cannot strike..."

• You'd try. You'd try with all your might. Breathing so hard your lungs burned, trying to focus but failing and feeling yourself slowly becoming more consumed by your fear.

• However, this was an improvement. Had Wamuu not spent so much time "training" you, you would be absolutely screaming your head off right now.

• Tears prickled in your eyes. Your ears hypersensitive to every sound around you, almost jumping in your seat every time a floor creaked or the wind outside brushed against the house.

• It was slowly becoming too much to handle with every passing second. It was just too much! It was just too dark!

• Wamuu smiled softly, only holding you closer to him and allowing you to bury yourself in his neck; if it meant you felt safe, he would let you do so all you wanted.

• The Warrior put himself back to when he was a Child, remembering how he had clung to his Masters when struck with fear...

• He felt terrible you were still living and feeling such real fear to this day.

• Quietly, Wamuu began to hum an old lullaby. The vibrations of his wide and hard chest sent shivers through your whole body, like you were sitting in a massage chair at the Mall.

• His voice was deep and rich, the tune and the power of its tone distracting you of the fact you were sitting in complete darkness and keeping you grounded.

• Music had always helped him when he was scared and his Masters had always been excellent singers. It would seem he had the power to bestow the same effect on you.

• He sat there, holding you close and humming until you stopped shivering; he helped you only focus on him and not the darkness shrowding you.

• "Even though you cannot see, I can." He murmured, watching as you struggled to keep awake any longer; eyes falling open and closed helplessly.

• "I will keep watch and protect you in the dark." Those words were what sent you off to sleep in his arms. "I will always keep you safe, my little Warrior, until you feel ready to fight for youself."

• Wamuu could only hope he'll be a good enough teacher to help you until one day, you weren't afraid anymore.

Santana:

• Very similar to Wamuu, Santana had fears of his own as a small child.

• He wasn't as brave as Wamuu when it came down to facing them, more often he would learn to find ways to distract himself from his fears rather than find ways to overcome them.

• To this day, Santana feared very little but he never really showed that fear in him to onlookers.

• After getting a strange letter in the mail, Santana wouldcome to learn that you didn't hide your fears as well as he.

• He didn't know what a "planned outage" was but he simply deemed the notice "junk mail" (as you called it) and disposed of it.

• One day later, at around 8:30pm, the power shut off.

• "S-Santana!" You cried, eyes darting around helplessly in the darkness where you stood in the middle of the livingroom, knees quaking and too afraid to move a muscle. "Santana, wh-where are you?!"

• His head poked into the room, eyes falling on you with immediate confusion.

• "Help!" You were practically choking on your words now, the Pillarman stared in shock as you started to bawl. "Please, please help! It's dark! It's too dark!"

• His nostrils flared, he could practically smell the fear off you now as he watched you cower before him in the darkness. It was all too familiar to him.

• Without another thought he dashed back into the kitchen, the sounds of him fumbling around in the drawers hit your ears and only added to your ongoing anxiety.

• "San-Santana?!" You whimpered, thoughts of an intruder or unseen danger running rapidly through your head as the footsteps came back.

• Click! You were blinded by a bright blast of light, squinting and holding a hand against the powerful beam directed onto you. Santana stood before you with a flashlight in hand; the biggest and brightest one in the house.

• You breathed a sigh of utter relief, your throat stinging painfully from the gut wrenching and primal shot of fear you had just undergone, as you reached to take the flashlight.

• Santana, however, had other plans.

• In a split second, you were pushed down into the armchair and the flashlight dropped into your lap; its beam shinning onto the wall across the room.

• "What-- What are--?" The words died on your tongue as a shadow suddenly appeared in the beam. The shape of a dog.

• "Woof." Santana's voice was as deep and deadpan as always as he moved his fingers, making the dog "bark" for you. The antics only stunned and confused you for a solid moment before his hands shifted to cast the shape of a duck. "Quack."

• Shadow puppets? A little giggle rose up inside of you as you kept watching, suddenly utterly captivated and very entertained.

• Santana wasn't the best at putting sounds to the shapes he cast but he was most excellent at using his hands to make very convincing silhouettes.

• In fact; he made you laugh so hard at one point by trying to convincingly "Meow" you were rocking in the chair!

• When the lights came back on suddenly, you blinked in absolute shock. A whole hour had passed and you had completely forgotten about the fact that you had been sitting in the dark the whole time!

• Santana smiled softly as you looked at him, gobsmacked. "How-- Why did--" You couldn't even form the words. "I am afraid of heights." His voice cut you off, the words spoken only stunning you further into silence.

• His eyes cast to the floor, "I am afraid of falling." He continued. "When I am somewhere up high, I try to focus on the sky or the birds or the stars rather than down below. When I am distracted, I am not afraid."

• You could only blink at this revelation. Santana just confided that he had fears of his own and he had spent the past hour making sure to distract you from yours.

• Next time, when the power went out or when you were sitting somewhere way up high, the both of you were well prepared to distract one another and laugh the time away until it was over...

[caws5749]

CH 13: Experimentations

A/N: I hope you enjoy, I’m very excited about where the series is going! 

Your Red-Headed Mentor Masterlist

Tony watched from the window as you descended the plane stairs, making your way towards the crowd of agents. He felt troubled and on edge, as if something was out of place, just slightly amiss.

A twinge of guilt ran through him as he took in your expression. You were frightened, though you tried to mask it. But mostly, you just looked like you’d tried to rectify something. You looked as though you were turning yourself  for your sins because it was the right thing to do, when you really hadn’t done anything besides fight your teammates and not add a signature to a piece of paper. He felt responsible.

When Tony saw you fall as a gunshot rang out, he was already halfway out the door, the Iron Man suit encasing his body. He should have known something wasn’t right.

Unfortunately, no matter how fast he flew, he wasn’t fast enough. You were taken away on one of the jets, and he hadn’t seen which one. He couldn’t get to you, so he did the next best thing, and got to one of the agents.

“Where the hell did you take her? What did you do?” he interrogated, pointing his hand at one of the leftover men.

“She will serve a greater purpose now,” the man smiled, before crushing something between his teeth and falling to the ground.

++++++++

“Hey, Tony,” Clint answered the phone.

“Hey, Clint. Listen, something bad happened.”

Tony explained what he’d seen while Clint silently panicked. After clearing his head, he promised Tony he’d start researching and reaching out to some old contacts about new groups that were in the business of kidnapping Avengers.

Within five hours, he’d found something, prompting him to give Tony a call back.

“Hey. I’ve got a location, and a purpose, but you’re not going to like it.”

+++++++

Your head was pounding, to put it lightly. A more accurate statement would be that it felt like someone was fiddling with a needle in your brain.

Were those voices? Was a mouse running all over your body or was someone jamming needles into your extremities?

You’d thought that your next session with the “Physical Specialist,” as the Red Room called him, was tomorrow, not today.

Forcing your eyes open, you immediately called out in fear. This man wasn’t familiar and neither was the room. You had no idea where you were, but you had a feeling it wasn’t good.

“Hello, pet,” the man snarled, his lips curling upwards in a way that sent horror through you.

You tried to gather your bearings as your eyes searched the room for anything that might give you a clue as to why you were here and where exactly ‘here’ was.

“You’ll find nothing,” the man pointed out airily. “You will not know where you are, nor will you know who we are. You will simply exist here, as my pet, until you are fit for duty.”

“And what might that be?” you asked.

“That is for me to know, and you to find out.”

You tried not to scream when he plunged a needle into your neck.

“That’s it, pet, that’s it,” he whispered, coming closer so that his lips were ghosting over your ear. You were starting to see black at the edges of your vision, and you knew it wouldn’t be long before unconsciousness reclaimed you.

“You may call me… Dr. Romanoff. That name means something to you, doesn’t it, pet. Does it make you feel alone? Sad that you cannot call upon her? It’s a shame, really. You’ll never see her again, until I make you kill her. Until I make you cut her open, slowly, and painfully, so that you have to watch and feel every cut of the knife as you tear your mentor apart.”

You couldn’t help it when tears flowed as the blackness consumed you.

++++++

“Wake up, my pet.”

You jolted awake, tugging at the shackles that bound you.

“I am afraid you are still trapped, sweetheart. But don’t worry, soon you will be able to exist in a special type of containment.” The man smiled sickeningly, and you felt nauseous.

Something else felt….wrong too, but you couldn’t quite place what it was. It felt like something was coursing through your veins and threatening to explode out of you at any moment.

“Do you feel it yet?” he asked. He didn’t wait for a response. “That power, flowing through your veins. The experiment has worked.”

Your heart stopped.

“What did you do to me?” you growled.

“You will soon see,” he grinned wickedly. “For now, I think it’s time for another nap. You may familiarize yourself with your newfound abilities when you wake.”

+++++++

“Come on, Nat,” Clint begged quietly as the phone rang for the fifth time.

“The subscriber you have dialed is no longer in service,” the automated voice finally said. He ran his fingers through his hair. She didn’t want to be found, and so she wouldn’t be. And normally that was fine, except for the fact that Clint needed her.

Natasha had no idea what was going on with you right now. She’d assumed the government had put you up in a cell in some high security prison, and that you’d either be broken out by Steve or released when - or if - things resolved. And she certainly couldn’t do anything about it, so she’d left.

Which would have been fine, if the government had actually been the one to take you. Unfortunately for everyone, you’d been taken by a unique side branch of HYDRA, formally known as EXIA. They were highly invested in human experimentation and artificial intelligence, and they weren’t going to let their major experiment be done on just anyone. Once they knew they could successfully perform an implantation of abilities on someone, they set their eyes on you. You were young, resilient, strong, and above all, a public figure. There was no better way to get EXIA on the map than by kidnapping an Avenger and performing a successful experiment on her.

On the other side of the world, Tony was preparing for your rescue mission. With intel from Clint that seemed legit, he’d asked Vision to accompany him to check out whether or not you were being hidden away in an underground base in Siberia.

“What if her mind’s been fiddled with?” Tony wondered aloud, tinkering with his suit.

“I would not be surprised if it had, Tony,” Vision answered, looking more somber than usual.

“We don’t know what we’re walking into.” It was Tony’s way of saying ‘be careful.’

“No, we do not. We will get her back, though.”

Tony nodded. He only hoped the modified robot was right.

++++++++

“Up!” a loud voice commanded as an alarm rang out loudly. You startled awake, your head fuzzy.

“Up, my pet!”

You were much too out of it to fight, so you opened your eyes, shakily standing. It was then that you took in your surroundings. The closest way to describe the room you were in was that it appeared to be similar to a giant shower.

The more you woke up, the more another feeling, a new one, took over.

“Do you feel that, sweetheart? It is your power. Let it out.”

You looked for where the voice was coming from, but apart from the speaker up in the corner, you couldn’t see him.

But the feeling was becoming overwhelming, and letting it out sounded like it would bring relief. The only issue was that you weren’t exactly sure what would happen if you did.

“If you do not, pet, I will force you.”

You took a second to consider your options, realizing you had none. You took a deep breath, before letting go. The second you stopped holding back, you couldn’t stop. You didn’t even have a minute to be surprised when water was the thing that came out of you. All you knew was that you needed to let it out, that it felt so good to relinquish control.

You even caught yourself with the barest hint of a smile, though suddenly a wave of dizziness came over you, and you collapsed onto the floor.

+++++++

“Got you,” Tony muttered to himself, swooping into the room and blasting all of the guards. He picked up your unconscious body, panicking slightly at the pale color of your skin. Shaking his head to clear all traces of anger towards the man who did this to you, he made sure you were secure before taking off.

Back on the jet, Vision tried to assess you while Tony piloted.

“She appears to be dehydrated. She will need an IV.”

“What the hell did they do to her?” Tony muttered, growing angrier by the second.

“I got a look into their laboratories, as well as a very unique room. I am inclined to believe she has hydrokinesis.”

“Water powers.”

“Yes, I believe so.”

“I’m guessing she’s not very good at controlling them yet,” Tony sighed. “What type of unique room?”

“It’s purpose was most likely a training space for her.”

“Did you get a good look at it? We’re going to need one of those.”

+++++++

“I know you’re out there.”

“I know you know I’m out here. So, are we going to talk like grownups?”

“Is that what we are?”

“Yelena,” Natasha breathed as she finally laid eyes on the woman she hadn’t seen in years.

“Natasha. What brings you home?”

[hyperesthesias]

warnings: nsft 18+ ; allusions to past sexual assault. ; really fucking tragic. legit made myself cry. ; no proofreading.

words: 2.9k

summary(?): the one time crosshair finds happiness, it goes horribly awry. something of a study about how the clones are treated like droids, and how neither of them have any rights or autonomy.

notes: this isn’t really formatted necessarily, but i had to get this out so i could focus on another piece of writing im working on. feedback is always appreciated! 

fic idea where the bad batch are sent on a prolonged stealth training mission before the official start of the clone wars and they wind up staying at this shady inn. crosshair breaks his arm and shoulder and stays there alone while the others move ahead with the mission. he meets the inn’s VERY shady owner and his blind server droid, ADA-565, a female looking droid of a type he’s never seen before. she’s very skittish and soft spoken, especially around the inn’s owner. later that evening the inn’s owner offers ADA to crosshair as a pleasure droid. it both confuses and insults crosshair deeply, but he allows ADA into his room.

He takes her into his room and she seems to know her way around it very well, he remarks how he’s never seen a droid like her before, and she says her line has been discontinued for many years. She doesn’t know what happened to her sisters, but she heard that any remaining ADA’s that had been found by the manufacturer were recalled and ‘decommissioned’. When he asks why, she says they were neurally defective -- she goes onto explain that the ADA’s neural networks began to grow and expand beyond that which they’d been calibrated for. Crosshair doesn’t immediately understand the extent of what she means, but he understand she’s very different than any droid he has met before, and he says as much. She assumes he is attempting to flirt with her and she says there’s no need to flirt, that she will have sex with him regardless -- it’s what she was programmed for. He is immediately taken aback and disgusted when he begins to put together she is sad, even scared. She is not a droid at all, he comes to the conclusion, she’s more of a person locked in a metal and plastoid body. He tells her he doesn’t want to have sex with her, he wanted to separate her from the owner so he could speak to her, he wants to free her. “There isn’t much of a point,” she says, “Even if I am free, if I am found, I will die.” She sounds like a clone, he thinks. Or clones sound like droids -- and he’s not sure which is worse.

He offers for her to stay with him in his room as a reprieve from the owner. She thinks, and considers, and agrees. She searches her way around the room and finds the chair in the corner, he offers to take it instead and she can have the bed, if she wanted to sleep -- does she sleep? She laughs, and it takes him off guard, he doesn’t hear much laughter, especially from a woman. She can sleep, she says, but she never gets much of it. He understands. More than he should.

Two months go by and as his arm heals, he finds he’s gotten close to Ada, she’s become more of a confidant than he’s ever had before, a friend, rather than a brother like he’s used to. She has begun to trust him almost instinctively, and she’s fascinated with the concept of his heightened eyesight. He often describes the sunsets to her. He’s horribly uncomfortable at first when she asks him to describe himself to her, but the way her hands feel his features -- she’s cold, but her fingers begin to warm the longer she lingers against his skin -- he states he looks much different than the rest of the clones, that he’s...defective, too. 

He continues to let her ‘sleep’ in his room, and at one point she remarks that she’s cold. He asks if she’d like him to sleep next to her, and she agrees. She is terribly cold, and when he asks if she can feel she tells him she can, but not like he can -- but she can still feel, hear, sing. She likes singing, and he’s noticed she’s very good at it, though it sounds different than any human voice he’s heard.

They begin to have conversations about what they want in life -- if they even can want things in life. “What is it that you want? Not what you’re...programmed to do?” he asks, almost as if he’s asking himself. It takes her a long time to answer. But the way his hand is stroking her shoulder, the feel of his warm breath against her face, it soothes her and it reminds her of a recurring dream she holds onto. “I want to see the lake.” “Lake?” “I’ve heard many patrons talk about a lake near here. They say it’s beautiful -- especially in spring. I wish I could see it, the rocks, the trees, the flowers. I wish I could live there. I wonder what flowers smell like.” “You’ve never smelled a flower?” he grins, and remembers the first time he got a waft of the open air -- only six months ago. It surprised him, it felt dry at the back of his throat, but it made his brain alight. “I can’t smell,” she says, almost embarrassed, ashamed. This surprises him, too. “What do you smell like?” she giggles. He laughs -- he find he can laugh with her. It’s strange, odd, but a welcome uncertainty. “Ozone. A lot of it. Blasterfire, grime, dust.” She laughs. “Maybe it’s better i can’t smell after all.” He rolls his eyes and strokes her face. When did she become so beautiful? Had she always been?

Two weeks later he gets word the mission was a begrudging success -- it was a difficult mission, but they’d be returning to the inn within two days time. He’s...disappointed, and he’s not sure why. Until he gets it all at once -- and he hates himself for it: pretending he could have a life, pretending he could be something he’s not. Pretending he could actually be...a person. It sets him in a foul mood, and it troubles Ada, especially when he’s curt with her. She’s offended, and leaves him alone for a while, until he seeks her out. She’s sitting outside at the back of the inn, she’s sitting in the sunlight, feeling the warmth of it on her skin. He sits next to her and explains his brothers are coming back -- which means he’s leaving, too. She doesn’t respond for a while, but after a few minutes she puts her head on his shoulder and holds his hand -- as though if she held him tight enough, he wouldn’t leave, that he’d stay, that they’d disappear together somewhere wonderful, somewhere by the lake. 

He takes her chin with his finger, and presses his head to hers -- to his surprise, she knows what a Keldabe Kiss is, “I do still have a database,” she grins and chuckles. She leans a little further into him, until he presses his lips to hers. He holds her close to him. “I know what I want,” she says. “Are you sure?” he asks. “I’ve never been sure about anything in my life, but I have no question -- no question when it comes to you.” He’s never been chosen before, by anyone or anything, he’s never been loved. 

“I’ve never had sex before,” she says, “I’ve been used for sex, but I’ve never...been a participant.” There is terrible shame in her voice, and she can’t bring her face anywhere towards him, it’s hidden into her shoulder. It angers him, to hear her speak of what she was put through, what she was created for. It’s different, it’s...not the same as his own creation, but the parallel is undeniable. That angers him, too. He caresses one finger against the crown of her head, pushing her hair back -- he wants to see her, he wants her to know he sees her. That he wants to. No matter what. She finally leans into his hand and he cradles her face. “If it makes you feel any better, I haven’t, either.” She smiles. 

He’s so gentle with her, he takes her pace, her cue. He asks her to show him where, he wants to learn. No one had ever thought to bring her pleasure, no one had ever considered it. His mouth doesn’t want to leave her -- any part of her, the metal of her skin, the warmth of where her heart would be, of her middle. The way he touches her, where he touches her -- “It’s right here, the center of me,” she puts his hand to just above her navel, where she is the most sensitive, where the bundle of wires lay just beneath -- it’s all intentional, it’s all full of passion, intensity. She’s never experienced anything like it -- she feels like she’s full of stars, full of light and brightness, energy that cannot be contained, and she wonders if not for a moment, if this is what it felt to be human. Ada lies there, once her world stops spinning, once the two of them are spent and exhausted and elated, and can think of nothing but humanity, what it means to feel -- what it means to be. To be with someone she loved. To love and to live therein.

He tends to her carefully, softly, sweetly, and together they fall asleep; she, safe in his arms.

The day his brothers arrive, Crosshair pulls Tech aside and demands a favour -- and despite Tech’s tiredness, he agrees when Crosshair offers to clean and settle his gear. “What exactly is this favour?” “I need you to put Ada’s eyesight back together.” “ADA? You mean the droid? I’ve never seen anything quite like it,” he thinks aloud, “but I can do it.” “Her name...is Ada.” Tech has never seen his brother quite so attached to anyone or anything, besides his wordless devotion to rest of his batchmates. It takes him back, but he agrees, despite.

Ada will only allow Crosshair to switch off her power, and makes him promise to stay by her side, to make sure nothing happens. She’s never been so willingly vulnerable -- especially allowing someone to poke around in her head. Crosshair swears both protection and fealty to her, and lets her get comfortable in a soft chair before he gently switches off her power on the back of her neck. “Goodnight, cyrae,” he whispers. Tech now sees there is something...disturbingly different about ADA. He sees his brother’s attachment and cautions him against attachment, they will be leaving in two days time. “Just get it done,” he tells him.

The moment Ada opens her eyes again, her vision is a white and color blotched blur -- with a tan and black and silver blur right in front of her. It’s talking to her, and she recognizes his voice instantly. As she begins to focus, she sees Crosshair with his hands on either side of her face. He’s searching her -- making sure she can see. Her eyes are no longer dark, but illuminated with a solid yellow-white color. “Cyrae? Can you hear me? Can you see me?” The image in front of her becomes clearer and she smiles -- it’s reactive, instinctual, to smile at the sight of her lover. Her hands go to his face and she holds him carefully, like small bird egg, that he would break if she touched him too harshly. “I see you -- I can see you!” She throws her arms around him and falls to her knees, they embrace, holding each other while knelt on the floor. “Is this what it feels like? To cry with joy? It’s such a strange feeling.” Crosshair kisses the side of her head and holds her arms as she stands. Tech performs some visual tests and clears his work as good, before he leaves his brother alone with the droid. With Ada. He figures the happiness -- however brief it might be -- would be beneficial to his morale. He leaves quietly and says not a word to his other brothers. 

“Come with me,” he says, his head pressed against hers, “Come with me.” “Where would i go? How would I hide? I can’t.” “I’m not leaving you here, i’m not leaving without you free.” Ada agrees, knowing his fealty will ensure her safety, even if they were parted in the end.

The morning the batch are shipping out, Crosshair is disturbed from his duties with a shrill scream that comes from the back of the inn -- Ada’s scream. With a blaster in hand, he runs to find the inn owner with Ada by the neck. The owner swings her around and uses her as a shield. Crosshair can make the shot, he knows he can -- but the owner drags Ada out the back and throws her in a speeder and takes off. Crosshair commandeers the one beside it and takes off after him. The pursuit leads them through the marketplace, through stalls and alleyways, all the way to the outside of town. He can’t take a shot at the vehicle at the risk of injuring Ada, he creeps up next to it, and tries nudging the speeder to get him to slow down, to get him off course. But the owner shoves back, and pushes Crosshair’s speeder away. The owner pushes again and again -- focused on getting Crosshair to tailspin. He doesn’t see the pole before its too late -- Crosshair desperately tried pushing the speeder out of its way, but the speeder wraps itself around the metal.

“Ada!” he screams over the horrific screeching crunches as metal twists with metal twists with Ada. He jumps off the speeder and runs to her. She’s trapped in the wreckage. He pulls metal and carcass apart until he gets to her. She’s impaled with a piece of the chassis, she cries out when he removes it from her torso. He pulls her out and leans her against the wreckage. He’ll get his brother, he says, he’ll help. “There’s nothing he can do.” Her entire right side is crushed. She’ll need spare parts, there aren’t any in existence. She’s clutching his shoulder, the shell of him is breaking. They both know, there isn’t much time. “I know what I want,” she says. “What is it that you want?” his voice has never sounded so desperate, it hasn’t since.

Shes’ barely hanging onto any life that’s still circulating within her, but she’s clinging to it -- the minutes and seconds she has left with her lover. She’s in his arms, staring at his face, staring at the blue sky above him, the white clouds -- she’d almost forgotten what they looked like, their beauty. She knew them only from memories that’d turned into dreams. But this was no dream.

Crosshair leans her against the biggest, most beautiful tree he can find that overlooks the lake. There are birds that circle the water, that dive for fish, for a moment she smiles. If she had tears, they would have been stinging her eyes, staining the plastoid of her face. Crosshair sits next to her, watching the life transpiring around them, the irony biting him in the jugular. He’s bleeding without spilling a drop -- of blood or tears. She holds his hand, their palms resting in the green grass, the white clover buds. “I’m glad I was happy. I’m glad I had you.” He looks at her, the shell’s cracks widening. “I want you to do it,” she says. He hates that he knows what she means, his eyes close and his head falls. “I don’t want to wither,” she says. He can’t refuse her, “Just tell me when.” She leans against him, watching the clouds go by. If all her life she’d had nothing but fear, but brokenness, if all her life she longed for the sweet feeling of lake air brushed against her skin, if all her life she’d wanted to love and be loved, she felt her life had culminated. If all her life she’d been a conduit, it was fitting the end of her life would be with her innards exposed. She nestles her face into him and holds his arm. The pain grew -- unbearable, seething and seeping, like a scream -- and her vision began to blur. “I’m ready.” 

Fragments barely keeping themselves together, Crosshair nods and kneels beside her. She takes the one hand she has left and caresses his face -- he’s warm, warmer than he’s ever been; hot with the holding of grief. “I love you,” she says and kisses him. He kisses her, and he feels if he kissed her hard enough, deeply enough -- long enough -- he could save her life essence, he could retain a part of her, keep her with him, safe and painless -- here, forever. “I love you,” he whispers as he pulls away, cradling her head in his hand; he’d never uttered such words before, and he’s never spoken them since. His thumb caresses her head as he presses his head to hers one more time; he can feel her nod beneath him. 

His finger squeezes and her power switch is flicked off. The light fades from her eyes, and she goes limp in his arms.

He leans her against the tree and rests her there, hand in her lap, leg outstretched in front of her.

He sits beside her with one arm leaned against his knee. His face buried in his hand, he breaks apart completely.

Crosshair leaves Ada in a place he believed would comfort her for eternity -- he leaves her beneath the tree, overlooking the lake, flowers in her lap, blossoms behind her ear.

When he returns to his brothers, he does not speak. They ask him nothing.

Crosshair has never returned, but for dreams.

[pinkykitten]

oncoming traffic

synopsis: you wander in the middle of the street and almost get hit by a car. but ben pushes you out of the way. did a ghost just save your life?

pairing: Ben Hargreeves x female! reader words: 1,013 genre: comedy, fluff, not requested 

a/n:  Afjakckskfknf I love Ben sm he is so cute and like such a prince and so adorable. I love umbrella academy season 1 more than the second one for obv reasons but it’s whatever 🤷🏻‍♀️ I saw a prompt with something similar like this and I knew I had to write this esp for Ben cuz I’m on a Ben obsession atm cuz he is just too cute I can’ttttt 😊😊😊

You checked your phone for the millionth time that night. Why couldn’t time pass faster? It seemed so slow. 

It was 1:00 in the morning. Your back, neck and definitely head were hurting as if someone punched those areas. Exhaustion was setting in as your head drooped down. Sleep was right around the corner and you were ready to greet it. 

You closed your Biology books for college and rubbed your tired eyes. At that moment it didn’t matter if you were fully, 100% ready for that exam, you needed rest. You needed to go back to your apartment. 

You downed the rest of the caffeine as it nestled snuggly in your stomach. You threw your books in your bag as you slugged it over your shoulder. 

You raced to the sidewalk and waited for your time to cross the traffic. Arms stretched up high, you heaved a big yawn. Your vision was a bit blurry so you didn’t realize it wasn’t time to cross yet. 

One foot in front of the other, you went forward to get to the other side. But oncoming your path was a big pickup truck. It’s light became brighter and brighter as it closened up on you. You stood there frozen. It seemed as if you were watching yourself at that moment. Your brain was telling you to move but all you did was stood there in fear. 

The horn of the truck blared loudly to get you to move because it couldn’t slow down. Almost about to hit you, somebody pushed you out of the way, rolling you on the green patch of grass near the woods. 

Your head pounded and your ears rung. Eyes closed you heard what your savior was saying. 

“Oh my God, it worked! How in the world was I able to touch her?” He laughed, proudly. 

“Ugh,” you moaned, “my head.” You opened your eyes to see a cute boy hovering above you. You punched his right eye as he fell back. 

“What the heck?” He touched his eye. “You can see me? You can touch me?”

“Yeah dude I can! What the heck is wrong with you?” You scooted back as you believed he was trying to steal your wallet. “You thief!”

“Thief? I just saved your life!”

You scoffed, “Was this your little plan? Save me and then rob me?!”

“No, of course not. I saw you from a few blocks away and you were not moving. You were about to get run over. I’m just trying to see if you’re okay or if you need the ambulance.”

“Oh,” was all you could say. You felt terribly bad for hurting this stranger even when he was trying to be kind and save you. “I’m sorry about your eye. Does it hurt?”

He chuckled, “a little. You got a good right hook.”

You moved his arm down and looked to see he was starting to get a black eye. “Not looking too good. How about we go to the restaurant right by here. Let me get you a coke.”

“Can I have a coke as a can please? It’s for my friend...” You looked back at him and raised your brows, for his name. 

“Ben, Ben Hargreeves.”

“For my friend Ben please.”

The waiter looked at you with an odd look as if you were psycho. “Crazy woman.” He muttered under his breath. 

“What’s wrong with this guy?” You rolled your eyes. 

The waiter gave you the cold coke can, you payed and thanked. 

“Here Ben.” You placed the freezing can on his black eye to help with swelling. 

“Thanks...”

“Y/N L/N.”

Ben smiled cutely as he walked beside you as you two talked. 

“So Y/N, why are you out here so late?”

“To be honest I am so close to being a college drop out. It’s getting crazy.”

“I wish I could of gone to college.”

You pushed your hands into your pockets as you gazed at Ben like you knew him. “I feel like I know you somewhere. Where have I heard of Hargreeves?”

Ben paused walking and he looked scared. “I can explain.”

That’s when the pieces came together. You gasped, “no way! No way! I’m crazy, I must be dreaming. You were part of the Umbrella Academy!”

“I wanted to tell you but I didn’t want you to run away weirded out. That’s why it was crazy that I can touch you and save you! I can’t ever touch no one and the fact you can see me is crazy! You don’t know how much this means to me.”

“No, no, no, you’re dead mister. Like dead dead. Like dead as in not supposed to be here.”

Ben held your hand and stopped your jabbering, “I am never going to get used to this. Let me talk, please. I am a ghost.”

Minutes passed by and you laughed, clutching your stomach. “No way! Who are you really? There is no such things as ghosts.”

“You don’t believe me?” He placed his hand on his hip, annoyed. 

“Nope.” You tried to stifle your giggles as you held onto Ben’s shoulder so you wouldn’t topple over from laughter. 

“Can a human do this?” Ben suddenly went through a bus station and came through to the other side. 

You were shocked. His little stunt left you with your mouth open. Ben smirked as he crossed his arms like he blew you away. 

“Wow, I’m now friends with a ghost. This is crazy. Wait I have one question!”

Ben cornered you against the wall and caged you between his arms. “Ask away.” He smirked as if he had so much experience with women. He just knew what not to do because of Klaus. 

“Can ghosts poop?”

Ben dropped his arms, sighed and tried walking away from you. 

“It’s a legit question Ben! Ben!” You raced after him. 

Who knew this new start to your life would entail you being close to a ghost? This just proved to you that anything could happen.

Especially a cute ghost boy saving your life. 

a/n:  Omg can I have a cute ghost bf,,, this is too cute I can’t like u lucky y/n y/n is supppper lucky. Bens little scene in the dirt was too cute like he is just a cinnamon roll 👉🏼👈🏼

[hitsuackerman]

Why Did It Have to be Him? pt. 4 (Aizawa x Reader)

a/n: sorry this got delayed :( this was supposed to be uploaded a lot earlier but then my laptop is basically dead at this point huhuhu legit waited for 30mins just for the chrome to stop lagging T.T welp... thank quirks for company laptops XD

that being said... here is part 4 for our Daddyzawa! <3

ps. i had to put an age for this fic :3 so you are 17 as the rest are 16 xD

Warnings: Student-Teacher relationship, Age-gap, Cursing, Not so subtle flirting

Link: Part 1, Part 2, part 3, part 5

Materlist for my other fics :) here

All aboard the Aizawa-train!: @yukiimanic​ @leeeah-loooser​

A few days have passed and you were now fully settled in your dorm. There wasn’t much to it but Aizawa managed to persuade you to buy new sheets and curtains to match. You weren’t exactly sure why but you complied nonetheless.

Monochromatic that’s how you liked things. Since he gave you full control as to what colors you could choose, you simply went for black.Of course, you made sure that a pop of color would add life to your room. A few trinkets here and there, your room looked good to go. Simplicity is key, that’s what you kept reminding yourself.

But it was rather ironic how your “love life” wasn’t as simple. It was much easier to see him back in your house. Now that you were living only a mere block away from the teacher’s dorm, it only made things much harder. Though, you understood, it was still frustrating not being able to see him as much as you wanted.

While doing your assignments, your phone rang. Not bothering to see who the caller was, you picked it up. Slowly, the corners of your mouth turned upwards. Right on schedule.

“Not disturbing anything, am I?” He asked. In the background, you could hear the keyboard’s soft tapping.

“Nope. I’m just about finished here.” Gathering your books and papers, you neatly stacked and put them away. Looking at the time, there was still 45 minutes before curfew starts. “I am hungry though, so I might have to run to the nearest convenient store~”

“Isn’t the fridge stacked with snacks, though?” The typing sounds had stopped and you heard a soft grunt.

“It is but they don’t have those juice packs I like.” There was some risk to this but you wanted to see him. It was hard enough that all you could do inside the classroom was to sit and stare at him. “Of course, I’m not implying anything. I do plan on leaving in about 5 minutes or so.”

“Do as you please, (Y/N).” He let out a soft chuckle before hanging up the call.

Grabbing your sweatshirt and wallet, you silently exited your room. Thankfully, the majority of rooms had their lights on. And, technically, it wasn’t curfew so you could still manage to buy a few snacks the dorm’s fridge had to offer. Shaking your head, you knew you couldn’t fool yourself.

Ever since the kiss, he became even more intoxicating. His musky scent and how you felt his arms wrapping around your small stature (compared to his at least) was addicting. It was a picture hard to forget, him straddling you in the comforts of your bed. The strands of his soft hair caging you from the outside world. Or maybe it was how his hot breath brushed your cheeks that made things even more irresistible? Closing the doors to the building, you were met with the row of streetlights. Each of them casting enough light to ensure safety to those who would walk the streets at this time of night. Of course, everyone knew this area was safe, afterall, only an idiot villain would dare attack near UA.

A little further and you could see the neon sign of the convenience store. Near the entrance, a man caught your eye. He was wearing an all black ensemble and his grayish pale skin made him look unreal. Yet, the all too familiar bun caused your heart to race.

Upon seeing your figure approaching his, he could feel the smirk forming on his mouth. It had only been a few hours since he last saw you but it was inside classroom settings. The secret glances you two would give each other was fun but he somehow wanted more. When you passed by him, he could make out the faint smell of your lingering body lotion. Very stimulating to the senses.

Trailing behind you, his eyes began to linger all over your back. Sure, you had a sweatshirt on but in his eyes you looked too good not to hug. When you turned towards the small aisle for chips, he glanced at the ceiling. The cameras were on the other side of the store. As you were choosing what junk to munch on, he leaned forward and rested his head on your shoulder.

Jumping at the sudden sensation of his warmth radiating on your cheek, all the heat travelled upwards as your eyes met his. The dullness to them now replaced with a hint of playfulness. His calloused hand began to brush yours. Slowly making their way up before he let go to grab a bag for himself.

Once again, your stomach felt all the butterflies going crazy with his touch. Chewing on your lower lip, you let out a shaky sigh as he lifted his head. Slowly walking away without looking back.

Such a tease.

Two can play that little game, you thought.

Aizawa made his way towards the refreshments. Searching for the perfect drink to pair with his chips, he settled for a can of beer. It wasn’t allowed but he could easily sneak it in knowing it was almost curfew. In his peripheral version, he could see you choosing as well. Following your hands, he saw how you had just chosen a can of soda.

“Got everything you need?” He asked.

“Not yet. I need some chocolate.” Pulling him towards the aisle with chocolates, you saw your target. The one you had been craving for a week now. Scanning the area, you saw how the coast was clear and it was your turn to make your move. “Hey, can you hold these for a sec?”

Handing him your stuff, you turned around and began to tug on the hems of your sweatshirt. His eyebrows jumped at your small actions. When you began to strip off your sweatshirt. The heavy material lifted your undershirt quite a bit. A bit of your skin got exposed to the coldness the store had to offer.

The coldness had no effect on Aizawa. Instead, he felt heat growing in his system. His mouth suddenly felt dry. His finger twitched and his jaw clenched. The hold he had on the goods tightened. Upon seeing you bend down to grab a bar of chocolate, the neckline of your shirt was big enough to expose the black strap of your bra.

‘Behave, Shota.’ His mind scolded him. ‘This is the only line you should NOT cross. At least not yet.’

Through your peripheral vision, you could see just how much your plan had worked. His squinted eyes only gave away his deposition. Flicking your hair just as you faced him, you caught a hold of his stare and blinked innocently.

“What’s wrong,” You took a step forward as you got a hold of your things. “Shota?”

His eyebrow jerked and his mouth was now a desert. Not wanting for things to get out of hand, he walked past you and made his way to the counter. Every ounce of his concentration focused on not pinning you against the wall and giving the cashier a show. Biting the corner of his tongue he paid for his purchase and waited outside as you paid for yours.

“You okay, sensei?” The last word was rather breathy, just as you intended it to be. Seeing him controlling himself was rather fun. He was struggling and the signs were very subtle. The only thing giving him away were his twitching eyes and furrowed brows.

Grabbing the bag of food from you, he led the way back to campus grounds. His eyes scanning the area and taking note of the small cameras set up on the street lights. The both of you were now approaching a blind spot. Letting out a rather long sigh, he held on to your wrist and pulled you into the dimly lit area.

“Be quiet.” Aizawa instructed.

Your eyes widened as you began to realize what he was planning on doing. The cameras would surely pick all of that up but then again, if he knew the area well then it should be fine. Heart now racing, you chewed on your inner cheek as the both of you were now approaching the blind spot. The small alcove one of the buildings had.

Things were now a blur.

The small squeak that escaped your mouth as your back hit the wall was immediately muted when his lips crashed into yours. Literally taking your breath away, you eased into the kiss. Wrapping your arms around his neck, you pulled the elastic band from his hair. On your tiptoes, you leaned on to his torso for support. Your knees were now barely functioning.

Knowing what was running through your thoughts, he bent down a little. His hands held tracing whatever curves your body had to offer. When you began to nibble on his lip, his hand grabbed your knee pit and lifted you. More than happy that you instantly clung your legs around his waist.

Tugging on his hair, he accidentally let out a small groan. Feeling your soft lips making their way towards his neck sent was enough for him to tighten his hold on you. The sucking sensation that followed made his member twitch and his pants tighten. A chill ran down his spine when your tongue trailed its way up to his jaw.

“Fuck...” He growled once your noses were touching once more. Running his tongue across your lip, you parted your mouth to give him entry. Tugging on your lower lip, he went back in with a much more long and thorough kiss. When he parted his lips from yours, his hot citrusy breath brushed your face. “Don’t tease me unless you know what you want, kitten.”

“Oops.” You brushed your nose against his. Your heavy lidded eyes hazy with need. The way he gave you a pet name hit differently. “My bad~”

The tips of his lips began to travel down your neck. Using his nose to move the neckline of your shirt, he licked a patch of your skin before biting on to it. The small moan echoing in his ears made curious. What other sounds could he make you do if he were given the chance?

‘This isn’t the right place, Shota.’ Once again his thoughts managed to save him from moving any further.

Pecking your lips once more, he put you down and patted your head. Despite the dimness, he could still see how flushed you were. Fixing himself, he looked at his watch and gestured that it was time to head back.

“Just in time for curfew~” You teased. “I won’t get in trouble now, right?”

“(Y/N).” He brushed his fingers with yours. The short contact the both of you shared was something his body still yearned for. “You are aware that you're still 17 right?”

“Yes.” Your step still had a certain hop to them. “And I’m aware that my birthday is coming up.”

“I’m not implying anything.” He handed your bag of food. Now giving a safe distance between you two. “I just want us to be careful. You’re still young.”

“Are you doubting?” The slight sadness in your voice was something you couldn’t hold back. “If it clears things up, I really am serious about you. I was shocked but elated that you were more than willing to try if things would work out. But, if you really don’t want to do this then I’ll back out. At least it’s still early and won’t hurt as much.”

“I never said I didn’t want to do it.” He stated. “What happened back there, I almost got carried away. I wouldn’t want you to regret this or… us.”

“Us?” The smile on your face was rather adorable for him. You felt your cheeks heating up at the confirmation that there really is something between you two and that it wasn’t just you carrying the feelings.

Lifting the corners of his mouth, he patted your head once more before picking his pace up. Ready to head back to the teacher’s dorms.

“Wait for my call later,” He glanced at you over his shoulder. A smirk on his face. “Kitten.”

“That I will, Aizawa-sensei.” You replied with a huge smile on your face.

Running back to the dorms, you carefully opened the doors. Making sure that no one was around, you snuck across the hall and took the stairs. The dimly lit hallway towards your room made things easier.

Moments later, you were now munching on chips. Your phone rang and for the rest of the night, till one of you finally caved in to slumber, Aizawa and you spent it on talking about whatever topics came to your mind.

At the end of call, both of you agreed that convenience stores would now be a recurring thing.

- - - - -

if you want to be tagged in part 5 :) feel free to leave a comment :)

[unreachablevoice]

Oneshot? Daminette Oneshot!

OKay, you see, I’ve been reeaaallly wanting to write about people crying for a while now for some reason (don’t ask me why I legit don’t even know). So I thought, why not make a oneshot? So BOOM! here it is! (even though I should've been writing my other Daminette and/or Maribat fics)

Anyway, I just learned that writing about people crying SUCKS! Like, why is it so effing hard???? Why did no one warn me about this??? (I mean I should’ve seen it coming either way because EVeRYTHING ABOUT WRITING is hard). So I am very sorry in advance if this isn’t as good as it... whatever it is??? hahahaha because I gotta tell you, I just did this on a whim because WRITER’S BLOCK! THAT DUDE IS SO ANNOYING!!!

Oh and you know, I’m not sure if this is considered angst? Angst with Happy Ending?... So I just researched about it and asked ma chérie belle and she said yes? But I’m still not sure so I’m just going to tag it as one.

Anywho, umm the first part of my Daminette Age Gap AU just received 400 loves (that’s what I want to call it cuz I think it’s cute leave me be!) so let’s just say that the sole purpose of this oneshot is to satisfy my craving for crying stuff and to celebrate those 400 loves (thank god for convenient coincidences) that I received from you wonderful peeps!!!!

Enjoy~!

Warning: Swearing and cuss words are present. Please read with caution, thank you!

I’m Not Scared Of Anything, But Losing You Would Be Terrifying

Cruising down the alleyway with his Father right beside him in his Batmobile, the sirens of police cars rang in his ears.  

They had received a call from Commissioner Gordon not too long ago, saying how Scarecrow had escaped from Arkham and is causing havoc in a café somewhere. It would’ve been fine to just leave it with the GCPD and a few from their team but some reported that he was making a new concoction of his Fear Gas. Something much more intense.

Skidding to a stop, he takes off his helmet and walks to where his Father and the police were conversing.  

“Robin.” the Dark Knight nods to him as he places himself next to his looming figure.

Crossing the police tape and getting inside the café, Robin comes face to face with Scarecrow. A gun in his hand, pointing at the hostages as he laughs maniacally.  

“Scarecrow!” Batman calls from beside him, “Enough is enough! Let them go!”  

The villain throws his head back and laughs loudly, earning a snarl from both of the vigilantes.

“You see, dear Batman,” —Scarecrow raises his gun— “I’ve been wanting to try my new experiment.” he smirks at them and cocks his gun with his other hand.  

“And you’re just the right person for the job.”

Not a second after, his goons began ambushing them.  

Three goons began to circle him with their guns in hand and a demented smile on their face. If he hadn’t seen Scarecrow command them himself, he might’ve thought that the Joker was the one leading the attack.

With quick work with his Batarangs, he swiftly flings their guns out of their grasps.  

Seeing as how they’re disarmed; one goon throws a punch to his face. Robin’s hand immediately shots out and blocks his punch and twists it in a direction he was sure was not possible an arm could handle.

The goon screams in anguish, which gives Robin a momentum to punch him square in the face with his free hand and watches as the goon's nose drip with blood.  

Dropping the now passed out goon, he turns to the other two goons and kneels down and pulls out a Bo Staff.  

Letting out a battle cry, he lunges at them and whacks them to their side, which throws them to a few tables. The sound of cracks bringing satisfaction to his ears.

Finishing the goons, he turns to Scarecrow and sees him still sporting that smug smirk on his face. What’s his motive? Why is he still smiling even though they’re practically beating up his henchmen?

They briefly catch each other’s eyes and the villain’s smile grows even wider.

Robin scowls at the villain and readies himself in a battle stance.

Without even having the chance to take a step forward, Scarecrow raises his gun and shoots at his direction.  

Quickly sidestepping the bullet, he looks back at the villain, “You should really work on your aim.”

Scarecrow smirks at him mockingly, “Was I really aiming for you?”

What?

He looks behind him and sees a tank of Scarecrow’s Fear Gas punctured by his bullet.

Holy shit.

His eyes widen and he reaches to his utility belt to pull out a gas mask, but before he was able to put it on his face, a goon tackles him to the ground. Causing him to loosen his grip on the said mask.

“Fuck!” he mutters as he tries to wrestle free from the goon’s hold. “Get off me!”  

As he struggles to be free, he feels the mist cloud his vision. Blurring his surroundings and making everything indistinguishable.

“Get up!” he hears someone yell at his ears and the goon that was holding onto him disappears.  

He abruptly stands and closes his eyes shut. Clenching his jaw, he reminds himself that none of what he’ll see is real. To dismiss everything and pay it no mind because they are not real.

His breath becomes ragged and his heart thunders against his chest as he hears voices around him.  

‘None of this is real!’ he chants to himself and covers his ears.

The sounds slowly began dissipating and everything went quiet. Too quiet.  

“Damian!” an angelic voice suddenly cuts through the silence and calls out to him.

‘Habibti?’

He slowly and warily opens his eyes and is immediately met with a different environment.

Gone was the café he was previously in; he was now in a park surrounded by trees and some benches on the side. The sun was also shining brightly and the birds were chirping. Everything seemed perfect. Too perfect.

He looks down at himself and sees that he’s no longer wearing his Robin uniform but regular civilian clothing.  

‘What am I doing here?’

“Listen to me!” the sweet voice calls out to him again.

“Wha—?”  

“Look at me!” the voice shouts again and he feels his every being shake. Making him lose his balance and fall on the floor.  

“Marinette?” he calls out and looks around. Where was she?

Whipping his head around, he is immediately met with a mop of blue-black hair.

Relief floods his whole being as he stands up and goes over to her, “Hey, I’m here,” he smiles and reaches for her hand.

“No!” Marinette shouts and slaps his hand away. Only then did he notice that her comforting gaze had turned into a sharp glare. Her beautiful blue bell orbs gone as a dark sapphire blue filled with anger replaced it. Why was she looking at him like that? Had he done something wrong?

“H-Habibti—?”

“Stop calling me that!” he winces at her tone and Marinette’s scowl deepens. Her hands ball into fists that he was afraid she’d cut her skin with her nails.  

“W-What are you—?” he hastily reaches out to her once more.

“SHUT UP!” she shouts and everything shook again. Her face, still sporting that scowl, looks at him with disgust.

“I can’t believe I ever dated you,” she spat and steps back.

Damian recoils as though he’s been slapped in the face. He feels a twinge in his chest as though his heart has been pinched and punctured. No, please. She's the only thing that stayed in his life, don’t let her go now. Please.

“Marinette,” he calls as his hands reach out to her again, in to which Marinette avoided in distaste.  

Seeing how angry and disgusted she looked at him made something inside of him shatter. Was he that horrible to make her not want him touch to her? Was he that disgusting?

“Mari—”

“I can’t even stand to look at you right now.” he flinches as though he just received a punch to his gut. He wanted nothing more than to scoop her in his arms and cry and ask what he’d done wrong, but he can’t do that when she’s sneering at him with abhorrence.  

“I hate you, Damian,” she glowers in that tone that he hated so much. The one that he never wanted to be directed at him. But now it was.

He drops down to his knees and crawls to her feet, “I’m sorry,” he cries out.

Tears began to pool at the corner of his eyes. “I’m sorry,” he repeats in a strangled voice. But Marinette won’t even look at him anymore.  

“W-Whatever it was, I’m sorry,” he choked out as he pleaded at her feet.  

Marinette kicked at his hand away and seethed, “Don’t touch me,” she hissed as though his touch was dirty. He was dirty.

“I don’t ever want to see you again,” he blanches at her statement. His hands shook as big blobs of tears drip down his face. His heart beating sporadically as his ears rang with how everything seems to sound louder.

“Plea—”

“We’re through.”  

Everything felt numb. He couldn’t feel anything, couldn’t hear anything. Just that phrase repeating itself over and over again in his head. More tears began flowing down his face and he felt like he could drown, like he couldn’t breathe.

He couldn’t believe that he’d one day hear those words. That those pink lips, those very same lips that he would kiss senselessly, would say that to him.

Marinette glares at him one last time and walks away, leaving him with his despair and depression eating him up.

He had always wished that this day would never come. But not all wishes come true. And now, he’s watching as the girl of his dreams, the love of his life, his girlfriend for four years leaves him. Leaves him and never comes back.

“P-Please,” he sobs as he reaches out to her disappearing form. “I promise, I’ll do better. Please, just don’t leave me.”  

He stands up and attempts to run after her. But he couldn’t. Hands were holding onto him and stopping him from running after the bluenette. Feeling like the whole world was against it. Like they wanted to see him suffer.

“No!” he shouts and thrashes around, trying to get the hands, that bound him to where he stood, off. Why were they so against it? So against him? Did the world really not want him to be happy?

“Please,” he wails and just stands there, letting his tears fall as the world takes away the only thing that made him feel free.  

He stood there and broke down as he watched his love disappear from his world; from his life. He cries out and screams shamelessly as he mourns for her dying love for him. As he hears and feels his own heart break from her rejection.

And he feels it. Feels their stares. Feels the whole world taunting him on how he just lost the only person who’d stayed by his side and accepted him. Making fun of how they knew he couldn’t do anything about it. How he was powerless.

He shuts his eyes tight and slides to the ground, wishing that this was all just a dream...

No.

This is not a dream. Because dreams are beautiful.  

This is a nightmare.

As he sits there and cries for Marinette, he feels a small prick on the back of his neck. And another. And a third. Then the slight cloudiness of his mind disappears as everything went black.  

————————

Fluttering his eyes open, Damian is met with a white ceiling and warmness on his face as the sunlight crept through the window.  

He lets out a groan and rubs the side of his head.  

‘Where am I?’

Roaming his eyes to check where he was, a flash of recognition comes across his green orbs. He was in his room. How?  

A soft click resounded from the door and captures his attention as a blue-black blur emerges, seeming to be whispering with something at the door.

‘What’s going on?’

He rubs at his eyes and groans again. Everything was bleary and his mouth felt rough and dry. What was he doing here? Back in his room? Wasn’t he at a café before?

“Dami?” he flinches at the voice and feels a warm sensation on his forehead.  

‘What is this?’

Damian reaches up to the warm... thing on his forehead and grasps it, trying to feel what it was. Was it... a hand? Why was there a hand touching his forehead? Wasn't he alone in his room?

Furrowing his eyebrows, he looks up to see a black—kind of blue—blob?... What the fuck?! Wha—What is this? What exactly is he seeing right now?

He raises his arm and tries to grab at the blueish black blob. And by grab, he meant fight. He was fighting to get the hand on his forehead off. Fighting to reach for the blue-black blob.

“Dove, calm down,” the blob speaks as it holds on to both of his hands to steady them. “It’s just me.”

Suddenly, his eyesight began clearing. The blurry things that he was seeing were no more, everything began getting clearer.  

The blue-black blob that he was trying to fight (and he was definitely not losing) was finally turning comprehensible.

His eyes widen at the thing—correction, person in front of him. His breath hitching and his heart beating against his chest as he stares at those familiar blue bell eyes.

“Habibti?”  

Marinette smiles softly at him. That same smile she always used to tell him that everything is all right. That smile that always seemed to make him feel calm, no matter the situation.  

“Yes, it’s me.”

Damian chokes out a sob and feels his tears pour down his cheeks again. He reaches out to her and buries his face on her chest, trying to relish the feeling as he was afraid that everything—that this might just be a dream.  

“Oh, dear.” he hears her mutter and feels her hand pat his head and smoothen his dark locks of hair. And it eased him a little. Made him feel that he was not hallucinating and that he was safe.  

“I heard what happened,” she says in that tone, that voice that sounds so soft and caring that it made him cry harder. “Your brothers said that you inhaled Scarecrow’s new concoction of Fear Toxin and that it was so strong, they had to triple the dosage of the antidote.”

Marinette continues to rub circles on his back and cradle him back and forth as he continues to cry. Making him feel like he was a child, safe in his beloved's arms.  

“I wish I could have been there,” she whispers and holds him tighter. Something that made him feel safe and away from the world, even if her arms were dainty and delicate. “Could have helped you.”

Damian feels his emotions and cries come back tenfold as he remembers what he saw when he was still influenced by the Fear Toxin. How hurt and devastated he was. How his whole world fell apart.  

“I-I thought—” he hiccups, “—you were going to leave me.” he sobs harder and feels the spot on her shirt where he was crying go wet.

“No.” she pulls away from him just a bit and looks at his face, “I will never leave you.” her voice so raw with emotion, so sincere that it made him cry and thank whoever was up there that they are together.

She reaches up to his face and caresses his cheek, “I love you.” she smiles and kisses his forehead. Her lips so soft against his skin that he sometimes wondered if he just so much as to touch it the wrong way, would it tear open and bleed a pretty red color?

“I love you too.” he croaks out as he feels his voice go hoarse with all the crying. God, if his brothers could see him now, they’d for sure tease him for the rest of his life.

————————

OMAKE: 

Marinette – *is lying down with Damian tucked in her arms* Wanna tell me about it?

Damian – ...It was terrifying.

Marinette – I thought you said you were fearless?

Damian – *pouting* I am! But that was seriously horrifying!

Marinette – Don’t you mean SCAREy?

Damian – UGH

Marinette – HAHAHAHA XD

Damian – You have got to stop hanging out with Grayson

————————

Edit: Okay, I forgot that I was suppose to tag people.. sorry ^^; and uh I’m still not sure on how to do this whole tagging thing so I’m sorry if I missed some people 

Tags:

@thornalchemist23

@abrx2002

@k-poplunardreams

@joejoejodee

[charonaraccoon]

Maverick Viñales, Luca Marini (if possible others VR46 riders) + mafia!au + meet messy + "suck on that.”

Okay, so this just happened, don’t ask me, why. It’s a bit bloody and certainly messy, but also a little more than a drabble, so I hope, you like it, anon, thank you very much for this difficult and still so amazing prompt, it’s been a pleasure! <3 

Luca Marini has been one of the PD’s brightest hopes of the century. He’s young, has acquired his forensic degree at 20, been part of more than one nationwide and famous investigations and specialised in the mafia to an extent, which outshined his colleagues’ by a mile. But what impresses Valentino Rossi, leader and the mainly responsible person for the IAMTF – the Italian Anti-Mafia task force – the most, is how Luca has deserved this spot in his team like no one else. Despite he’s his brother – or maybe even because. Because they are related, Luca has always tried his best to never have people talk behind his back. So when they arrive in Spain to follow a lead from Sicily over Naples all the way to Figueres, it’s no surprise Luca is Valentino’s second man in the field, shadowing him around the van and closer to the huge abandoned building in the outskirts of the Catalonian city. They followed all kinds of hints here, bogus money, weapons and drugs and they all seem to lead to Maverick Vinales, a young thug taking over more and more of the Spanish-Italian mafia. Valentino counts his men, Marco and Luca to his left and right, further back Franco with his fedora pulled into his face as far as possible. Stefano exhales cigarette smoke through his nostrils and he’s never seen the young detective this nervous. Vale nods at Luca. “Are you okay?” “Yeah, we’re just taking down the most dangerous Mafioso in the world. What makes you think, I wouldn’t be okay?” The way he says it and the way his eyes twinkle in the darkness of the unlit street make Valentino smirk. Luca has hunted down Maverick for years now, following his every step on European soil and his attempts to get a foothold in North America, New York to Las Vegas. They’ve placed spies and cons, listened to conversations and got their hands on documents. Once they’ve got him, he’ll spend the rest of his days in prison. Luca is more than ready to lead this charge, and still- “Alright, Bambino. Be careful. After me.” Valentino checks his old colt, completely tranquil now and back into the mode of a seasoned and experienced cop, and with a wave of his hand leads half of his task force to the back entrance. Luca takes a deep intake of breath, stubs out his cigarette and nods, before following his brother and boss into the building. They get a good look at Vinales behind the ceiling-high racks, checking on some documents with furrowed brows. Luca feels his legs shake beneath him, as he sees the Spaniard nonchalantly letting cigarette smoke escape from the corner of his mouth, fedora sitting lazily and crooked on his black hair. Damn, I never realised he was that hot. But Vinales isn’t just hot, he is endearing in his perfectly fitting dark-green suit, the loosened tie, the brown-green eyes behind black glasses. Luca has his difficulties looking away, until Marco stops him in his tracks. Before he can scoop closer to his colleague and look for Valentino to wait for his signal, he realises Franco hissing. The door behind them opens with a loud creak and Pol Espargaro, Vinales second man, catches them red-handed. “What the fuck?!” he yells, before someone (Migno, given the quick fuse) pulls the trigger and the projectile hitting Pol’s chest makes him stumble backwards through the door. That’s it, their cover is blown.

“NOW!” Valentino yells and the members of the IAMTF jump out of their hiding spots and into action. Luca doesn’t know what happens next. Shots are being fired, wounded policemen and gangsters alike drop to the floor, blood pouring from lighter or more severe bullet holes. All Luca focuses on is the man he hunted like an animal over the past five years, the man he holds a personal grudge against for throwing his hometown into a turmoil of violence and corruption. He shoots one of his foot soldiers, one of the Marquez-boys, as it seems – Taller, Alex, shit. He jumps at Vinales and wrests him to the ground. He loses his gun, as Vinales kicks his arm, but he manages to place a hard punch against his stomach. He grips his brass knuckles and hauls them at his face. The loud groan and drippling of blood, as Vinales’s lips immediately start bleeding makes utter euphoria rush through him. “Suck on that, fucker!” But the Spaniard doesn’t give in, he stumbles to his feet and knocks all air out of Luca’s lungs with a blow to his solar plexus. He catches a glance at him and hesitates. A loud gunshot makes them both startle. “No!” Luca yells, as Vinales wrestles himself free from his grip and storms out of the door. “Go, go, go!” Valentino screams, voice pained and Luca comes to a halt with squeaking dress shoes, as he realises, his brother got shot. Valentino has a hand firmly pressed against his stomach, blood dripping from his fingers. Next to him Jorge Lorenzo sinks to his knees, holding onto his bloody hand with a pained groan – Valentino had managed to shoot him while they fought for the gun. “Go, Luca, damn it, GET HIM!” Luca swallows, taking a long look at his brother, before he picks up his colt and storms past the gangster. The night is icy cold and ripples of ice cover the brick wall, when Luca jumps down the staircase and onto the nightly black tarmac. A few feet in front of him stands Vinales – unmoving and with his back tuned to him. Luca swallows a mixture of panic and blood, when he lifts his gun and points it at the Mafioso’s head.

“IAMTF, show me your hands!” Luca has expected a lot from this night, but certainly not to see Vinales’s shoulders drop and him to turn around after the very first order. What surprises him even more is the deep hurt in the gangster’s eyes, the tiredness looming there in the green-brown. “I’m sorry.” “W-what?!” “I don’t want to hurt you.” “Why not? I’m cop, you like killing cops, don’t you? You hadn’t had an issue with it before.” And Maverick takes his gun, pulls the slide back and clear silver bullets ripple to the ground, all eight of them, the whole magazine. Luca stares at the bullets in utter shock, rain drops reflecting on the metal shells like diamonds. “You haven’t shot once…” “No.” “W-why?!” “I’m not meant for this kind of life. I want out.” “You’re just saying that so I let you go.” But Luca’s hand around his colt trembles, his heart is in his mouth. Maverick sighs. “Then shoot me.” But Luca can’t. He sees this man in front of him, the suit rumbled, hands shaking and eyes still so inexplicably sad. “I deserve it, come on.” And Luca, whose whole life has revolved around this moment, lowers his weapon and spreads his arms. “No. I’m arresting you.” “They’ll kill me in prison. If you arrest me, I’m a dead man, you could as well just shoot me now.” It’s not the hunt, which fascinates him any longer, it’s these eyes staring at him in the darkness of the alley. It’s the simplicity of that, the truth so blatantly being spread out in front of him, which makes Luca’s breathing hitch. At the same time, Maverick doesn’t plead, he doesn’t sink to his knees and beg for his life, he’s kept his pride and backbone. Luca can’t look away, until he does, facing the building and fading shots reverberating through the night. Luca functions on autopilot, when he throws his gun at Maverick. “Shoot me. The shoulder or the leg. They’ll believe me, when I tell them, you overpowered me. Take the gun. The roadblock is South from here, head Eastward.” Maverick catches the gun, but stares at him with wide eyes. “W-why..?” He asks this time around, equally astonished as Luca has been mere seconds earlier. “Because I think, you’ll make it up to me.” And he does. All of it. The bullet pierces through Luca’s skin and goes right through his left upper-arm. Maverick merges with the shadows of the night, as he flees through the dark alleyway. Luca does return to find his brother pissed, but alive. They do believe his story. The team is ordered back to Italy – empty-handed apart from both Marquezs and Espargaros. Luca resigns from the task force and returns to his second passion. He repairs and sells motorbikes. They never hear a word of Vinales again, he’s gone like the wind. Two years later Luca finds a hand-written letter in his mail box. He bows down to pick it up and feels the old familiar sting of the bullet wound. He tears open the envelope, cigarette smoke clouding his vision for a second. It’s a one-way flight ticket to Buenos Aires. One thousand dollar cash. And a note. “Come and find me, detective.” And Luca does. He finds Maverick on a deserted beach outside of Palermo. He looks different in the loose white shirt and longer hair, but way better. When he takes off his sunglasses, Luca realises his eyes are lively and warm. “I hope the money for the flight ticket was clean.” “You found me.” “You knew, I would.” Maverick nods and points at their surroundings with a wide gesture. “It took me a while, but I’m legit now. I kept my promise. Will you?” And Luca sees his own reflection in Maverick’s eyes, before he dives into his arms and the kiss so full of pent up emotions it makes them stumble over the sand. When they part Maverick has a hand buried in Luca’s unruly mob of blond hair and Luca clings to his loose shirt. So the kiss wasn’t enough then. “I think the only crime you can commit now is run away.” “Never.” Maverick whispers into his hair, before pressing a kiss to Luca’s forehead. “Be it from violence, my family or who I am at heart. I’m done running.” We both are.

[jenanigans1207]

Til the Universe Do Us Part [2] |Klance|

Summary: Allura was always saying it was important to learn the cultures of the planets they were visiting. Lance never really cared. That is, until his actions were seen as an unintentional marriage proposal to Keith. And Keith’s actions were seen as an acceptance. Suddenly they were married by the King and their marriage was, well… legit.

On that planet anyways.

Lance tried to reassure himself with the fact that the marriage couldn’t be upheld anywhere else in the universe. But word travels fast and suddenly the fact that the Leader of Voltron and his right-hand man were married had been whispered in every corner of the universe. And everyone else seemed happy about it. Thrilled, actually.

As more people were willing to join the coalition because of this, Lance realized it wouldn’t be as easy to get out of as he expected. And that he would actually have to treat Keith like his… husband.

Oh, quiznak.

Find it on Ao3

Chapter 1

---.---.---.---.---.---.---.---.---.---.---.

  At some point, Keith had fallen back asleep. It was a reprieve from the pounding in his head and he had nothing else to do. When he woke up again, Lance was awake and looking at him. There were no lights on in the room, so it was only illuminated by the rays of the sunrise streaming through the blinds that covered the window. It made the world seem soft and hazy, as if Keith were viewing it through some sort of veil.

 Lance's mouth was twisted down into a frown as he surveyed Keith. Keith felt strangely vulnerable as he sat there silently, waiting for Lance to say something.

 Finally, he spoke. “What happened?”

 Keith wasn't sure what he had been expecting. That was the first thing he wondered when he woke up. Still, he felt a little deflated. “You saved my life.”

 The frown found its way back to Lance's mouth and Keith found himself mirroring it. “I obviously didn't do a great job, you're all bandaged up in the hospital.”

 He raised a hand up to touch the bandage that was around his head. The pressure of it was slightly comforting against the pounding in his temples. He smiled wryly. “Have you seen yourself? You're definitely in worse shape.”

 Lance looked down at himself and the bandages that were circling his torso. “The others?”

 “I don't know,” Keith admitted. “But Shiro was in here earlier and didn't say anything, so I'm sure they're fine.”

 “Shiro was here?”

 “Yeah, along with one of the Ansognians. He looked important and Shiro kept calling him ‘your highness’.”

 A smile spread quickly across Lance's face and he ran a hand through his hair. “Oh yeah, look at us being visited by royalty. I expect no less!”

 Keith scoffed at Lance's ego and pressed on. “He said something about a union ceremony that's happening tomorrow.”

 “Union ceremony?” Lance echoed. “Union of what?”

 The shrug Keith gave in response sent a spike of pain coursing through his body. He reached a hand up to brace it against his shoulder, surprised. “I don’t know,” he said around ground teeth. “I assume it’s them joining the coalition.”

 “You don’t seem to know much today, do you?” Lance replied, but it wasn’t unkind. A ghost of the smile that had been there before was still on his lips. It was soft and Keith felt that haze covering the world again. It felt too good, he knew, sitting here with Lance in this hospital room. He should be stressed, he should be demanding to be released so he can check on the others, on the Lions--so he could go back to saving the universe like he was supposed to.

 And yet, he was content to lean his head back into his pillow, letting his eyes fall half closed and just look at Lance in this soft, dreamy light. He was content to just be the two of them, for now, recovering together. He was more than content to pretend, for the time he could, that there was no war--nothing waiting for him. It was just him and Lance and a room that felt like it was filled with a little bit of magic.

 “Why do they need to have a ceremony to join the coalition, though?” Lance had leaned his own head back into his pillow, seeming to feel the same sort of peace Keith did. “Nobody else had a big fuss when they joined.”

 “I don’t--” Keith started to say, letting the word ‘know’ die on his lips, lest Lance would make fun of him again. Still, Lance shot him a grin, knowing how that sentence was going to end.

 Carefully, Keith turned on his side so he was facing Lance. He bunched the pillows under his head in a way that put as little pressure on it as possible but still supported his neck. His painful shoulder was off the bed and after a moment, he was relatively comfortable. The blankets were draped over him lightly, but he felt snug and warm and at peace with the world. He could feel his eyes sliding shut, but he wasn’t ready to fall back asleep yet.

 “Hey,” He said, and he could faintly make out the way Lance turned his head to look at him. “Why’d you do it? Why’d you save me?”

 “Why did you save me?” Lance retorted, his voice a soft whisper.

 Opening his eyes all the way, Keith tried his best to really focus on Lance. “How did you know?”

 Lance narrowed his eyes, the expression covering his face insisting that he always knew when it came to Keith and honestly, he did. “Same reason.”

 Keith doubted very strongly that it was the same reason, but he didn’t contradict. Lance probably saved him because he was the leader. Because Lance was a good person. But Keith? He saved Lance because he couldn’t imagine his world without Lance in it. He couldn’t imagine anyone else at his right hand.

 Still, he liked thinking that maybe, just maybe Lance saved him for the same reason. He let that thought fill him as he fell back asleep.

-------

 The Ansognian comes back near the end of the day, his formal attire gone. Instead he is dressed in something that resembles Earth clothes and Keith has to keep himself from commenting on how strange it looks. The Ansognians looked relatively like humans, similar to the way Alteans did, but their skin was more of a rosy pink--much like the color of Lance’s cheeks when he blushed.

 Startled by his own thoughts, Keith shakes his head, regretting it instantly. He hunches over in bed, hands gripping at his temples, desperate for the pain to go away.

 “Black Paladin, are you alright?”

 “Keith,” Lance says, his voice almost indignant. “His name is Keith.”

 “Keith,” the Ansognian repeats gently, “are you alright?”

 He takes a few deep breaths in through his nose slowly. The others remain quiet, waiting for him to respond. After a few moments, he feels the pain in his head dull to more of a thrum at the back of everything and less of a sharp pain taking over his senses. “I’m fine.”

 “Are you both up to coming somewhere with me? I have something I would like to show you.” The Ansognian looks from Keith to Lance who is sitting upright in bed, the sheets already thrown off his lap, one leg dangling off the edge. “I’m sorry,” he says as he surveys Lance. I have never properly introduced myself or learned your names. I am Antione, King of Ansognia. He is Keith, I have gathered. And you are?”

 “Lance.”

 “I would like to thank you, Lance, Keith, for saving our planet. The story of our planet is one I would like to tell you, if you would come with me, of course.” Antione, although looking out of place in his casual clothes, seemed very friendly. Plus, who were they to deny the request of a King?

 Keith pushed his own covers off, moving slowly until he was standing at the side of the bed. He had to place a hand on the bed for a moment until the room stopped spinning around him. He took a tentative step forward and, upon feeling okay, continued to walk until he was at Lance’s bedside. Lance moved slower, the cuts along his torso making movements hard and painful for him. Keith struggled to watch.

 Antione waited patiently for them to right themselves before leading their way out of the hospital. Ansognia was an absolutely gorgeous planet, Keith realized, outside of the areas that had been destroyed by the battle. In the distance, everything looked like lush rainforests and he could hear water rushing from all sides. The air was slightly damp, but the cool, wet feeling was a relief against his skin.

 The sun was setting and the light was becoming hazy and soft again, giving Keith that feeling of tranquility he desired. The sunset, unlike on earth, was purples and greens, but it was still stunning. He looked around as they walked, noticing the way the colors here seemed richer and more saturated than anywhere else he had ever been.

 “Ansognia is beautiful,” He commented and noticed Antione smile. “I’ve never seen somewhere so beautiful.”

 “That is very kind of you to say,” Antione says. “I have, unfortunately, not been to any other planets, so I have nothing to compare it to. But I’m partial to Ansognia as well.”

 Lance was falling out of step with the rest of them, lagging a few steps behind. Keith paused and turned to look at him, but Lance averted his gaze.

 “Our planet has existed peacefully for millennia,” Antione began as they approached a narrow path leading into the trees. Keith wondered if this was the story he had wanted to tell them. “But it took two very powerful beings to set that peace into motion.”

 They started down the narrow trail, their path becoming more difficult to navigate. On a normal day, Keith would be able to maneuver it with ease. However, his concussion was messing with his senses--especially his vision--and he found it harder to navigate than he wanted to admit. Lance, behind him, seemed to be having similar issues.

 After a few steps, Lance tripped, stumbling forward. Keith jumped into action immediately, capturing Lance’s shoulder and stopping him from smashing face-first into the ground. Once they regained their balance, Keith grabbed Lance’s wrist and went to sling his arm over his own shoulders.

 Lance started to pull back, halting the motion. “What are you doing?”

 “If I don’t do this,” Keith hissed back, tugging on Lance’s arm again, “You’re going to fall on your ass and embarrass us in front of royalty.”

 “You just need to use me as support and don’t want to admit it,” Lance accused, but he relaxed his arm and allowed Keith to bear some of his weight.

 “You can say whatever you want, but I’m not the one who almost just wiped out.”

 Antione had stopped and was waiting for them with a fond smile on his lips. As he watched the way they interacted with each other his smile seemed to grow wider. He didn’t comment on it, but Keith noticed the way his gazed lingered on Lance’s arm around his neck and the way their hands were gripping each other.

 “These two beings gave up everything they had for our planet,” Antione picked his story up where he had left off with no further ado. He turned and continued down the path, his voice carrying so they were still able to hear him as they clumsily tried to make their way behind him. “They fought side-by-side, each willing to die for the other. Life, as I have said, is the most precious gift. And yet, they were willing to throw it aside for each other. To us, our people, there is no bigger honor than to have someone value you like that.”

 Keith could clearly see the parallel Antione was trying to draw between these greater beings and the two Paladins, he just wasn’t sure why it mattered. He tried to think of a polite way to ask, but opted to stay quiet instead.

 Lance, on the other hand, gave it his best shot. “So they remind you of us?”

 “Did you not just each lay your lives on the lines for each other?”

 “Well, yeah, we did,” Keith replied, sounding reluctant.

 “Heck yeah, we did.” Lance sounded much more sure of himself. “And we would do it again, right, Keith?”

 A temple seemed to rise up out of nowhere in front of them and it’s sudden appearance saved Keith from having to respond. The temple was not what Keith would have expected if he had been told where they were going. In his mind, temples were old, covered in moss and crumbling at best. At worst, they weren't even upright anymore. But this wasn't anything like that. It was gloriously maintained, and as magnificent as a palace.

 Antione was stopped near the entrance, his eyes trained on Keith. He was acutely aware of the fact that Keith had not answered, but instead of asking for confirmation, he took a different route. He was entirely unmoved by the appearance of the temple, continuing conversation as normal. "And would you say you two have bonded?"

 "We had a moment," Keith said. He didn't look to his right, but he felt Lance freeze and avert his gaze at the mention of their bonding moment. "At least, I remember us having a moment," he amended and Lance gave him a little shove, drawing a smile out of Keith.

 “You can see, then, why you two remind me of our saviors, Aaron and Artemis.” Antione turned to look at the temple then.

 Lance and Keith, following his gaze and really looking at the temple for the first time, were stunned into silence. They leaned into each other as they came to a stop, taking in the sight. The temple was made of white marble and decorated with carvings and statues. It was a powerful sight, and yet it seemed to exude the same tranquility of the rest of the planet.

 “Aaron and Artemis,” Antione said, gesturing to the two statues that flanked the doorway. “They were powerful in their own right, but it was the bond they had with each other that allowed them to conquer anything.”

 They started moving again, their steps still clumsy but now in sync with each other. They continued to lean onto each other, each helping keep the other upright and moving. The inside of the temple was just as spectacular, filled with different depictions of Aaron and Artemis. The pictures seemed to tell a story of the two of them arriving on Ansognia, fighting with and for each other and eventually turning the planet into a place of peace and prosperity. Keith wondered if that was how the universe saw Voltron.

 Lance pushed off of Keith to get closer to the murals on the wall. Keith let go of him fully but followed him closely out of instinct alone. “Can you imagine if someone painted depictions of us?” Lance murmured, more to Keith than anyone else. Keith hummed quietly in response. “I mean, the impact they must have had…”

 “Is the same impact you two have had on us.”

 “You mean Voltron,” Lance corrected, almost automatically.

 “Well, yes,” Antione said, “and, no. All of Voltron helped save us, but you were the two most responsible for saving my people. You were the ones on the ground fighting with them.”

 The look on Lance’s face was easy for Keith to read. Neither of them would have been on the ground if Red hadn’t failed. But they didn’t have to choose to stay on the ground, they could have gone back up in Black, but they didn’t. Lance glanced over his shoulder at Keith, their eyes meeting. A moment passed and Keith could feel Lance reading his train of thought. When he looked away, he looked a little more at ease.

 “Our entire society is founded upon the bond Aaron and Artemis shared for each other, do you understand that? We try to treat each other with respect and lead peaceful lives. We show our affection by giving our most precious possession to them. Life on Ansognia is good only because we believe in a strong connection to each other, like our saviors did. And now, here you two are, appearing from nowhere, sacrificing yourselves for the other. Your life, your most precious gift--you give it away so freely for each other. You came to us when we were in crisis and reminded us of that on which our society was born: love for each other.”

 Keith can feel the warmth in his cheeks. He knows Antione means the kind of love and bond shared between teammates, which he and Lance did have, but it was still awkward to hear. He and Lance had started off as rivals and progressed to begrudging friends, yes, but still they never verbalized anything about that friendship. Even if they both knew they were friends, they never officially addressed the fact that they had progressed to that and he was sure they never would. They had a relationship that was give and take, push and pull, opposites attract and it worked for them.

 Lance’s own cheeks were tinged a slight pink and Keith was immediately struck by the way the color matched Antione’s skin. He turned his attention elsewhere, looking around the inside of the temple. It was just one large open room with nowhere else to explore, but there were enough paintings on the walls that he could spend hours looking at them all. Carefully he ventured away from Lance, secretly desperate to put some distance between the two of them.

 He could feel the weight of Antione’s eyes on his back and it made him uncomfortable.Antione seemed very observant and Keith was afraid of what, exactly he was noticing now. If it were anything, though, he didn’t say. “That’s why we’re honored to host the ceremony for you tomorrow. We will drop the suits off in your hospital room either this evening or tomorrow morning.”

 “Suits?” Keith asked.

 “Of course,” Antione sounded confused, “Do you not wear suits for the ceremony back on Earth?”

 The mention of Earth sent a twang through Keith’s heart and he refused to look at Lance because he could already picture the expression on his face and knew it would break his heart. He wanted to explain that they didn’t do ceremonies like this on Earth. That, before their recent escapades in Voltron, he had never heard of a coalition at all. But he didn’t want to offend Antione or to downplay what was clearly an important event for them. “We do,” he said instead, “i just didn’t realize you had suits out here.”

 Antione smiled before glancing through the open doorway. “Oh!” He said suddenly, “I’m late for a meeting! I’m so sorry to dash like this. Can you two find your way back on your own? I don’t want to rush you out of here!”

 “It’s basically just a straight line,” Lance said, his tone a little too casual.

 Keith jumped in, covering his tracks, “We’ll be fine, thank you.”

 “I’m so honored you two are sharing this next step with us,” Antione said before parting, his voice full of an emotion Keith couldn’t quite place. “Tomorrow, two becomes one.”

 Antione disappeared just as quickly as the temple appeared before them. Keith was left with his words echoing in his head, a weird feeling twisting in his stomach.

 “Why does he talk like that?” Lance was leaning against the mural now, most of his weight on one of his shoulders. “That whole ‘two becomes one’ thing? I mean, I’m glad they’re joining the coalition and all, but they’re making this a really big deal.”

 “Yeah,” Keith agreed, that feeling in his stomach making him uneasy. “It is kind of weird.”

 “And we have to dress up for it?”

 “It will be quick and painless,” He crossed the room to stand next to Lance, a hand outstretched. “And we want to stay on their good side, so don’t say anything like that to them. Now c’mon, give me your arm so we can head back.”

 Lance glowered but gave his arm to Keith anyways, glancing away as Keith draped it over his shoulder and took off back along the path.

[aegyotrashcan]

Crowded Places | Hyuna Scenario

Anon: Hyuna scenario where she goes to America for her tour but she's by herself and she legit bumps into a stranger (the reader) at an airport and asks them for help

a/n: I’d like to clear up any confusion & remind ye that requests are closed! but I hope you still enjoy this long overdue request ;; and I accidentally made the country vague and not just the US so hope that’s okay, anon! ^^”

Character: kim hyuna x gn!reader Word count: 1473

The midday heat bounced off the tarmac, reflecting back onto the over tired Hyuna. At this point in her tour, she ran purely on adrenaline and coffee. The air was heavy and smelled like a cacophony of sweat, food and petrol. She struggled to breathe. A trickle of sweat ran down her neck as Hyuna made her way from the heat to the air conditioning inside.

Somewhere after the process of passport and visa checks, she realized she was alone.

“Manager?” she mutters.

People were lined up at the conveyor belt, one that was very delayed. The impatient crowd waited for their bags to be spat out, so they could finally leave the hectic humdrum of airport life.

You’re a part of that crowd, tapping your foot impatiently to the rhythm of a made up song. You can’t help but notice the doe eyed woman, looking lost and confused. That’s what you would like to say, however, the real reason she caught your eye was because of her striking beauty. In a way, it was unnatural. She had dyed hair, piercings and tattoos - yet a natural beauty shone through that you couldn’t look away from.

You made awkward eye contact.

Shit, you think to yourself. Caught red handed.

“Um,” you hear a meek voice say. “Excuse me?” The woman was now by your side, clutching at her documents and passport. There was a strong accent and hesitation to talk that made it clear she was not a native English speaker.

“Yes?” you reply.

“I’m looking for ..” she frowns, wracking her brain for vocabulary.

English was always so much easier in a classroom, where you didn’t need to speak it to be understood. In this country, Hyuna knew that she couldn’t simply leave the room and be in the comfort of her mother tongue. She suddenly felt as if she was drowning, gasping for air.

She fought the tears gathering in her eyes. “I’m looking for my friend,” she explains.

“Okay,” you say. “What does your friend look like?”

Hyuna holds her hand above her head. “This tall, glasses, Korean man.” A quick glance at the crowd reveals that this description matches any number of men.

The belt suddenly starts up, earning a relieved sigh from the gathered crowd.

“Are you waiting for a suitcase?” you ask, trying to speak as clearly as possible without sounding condescending. She nods. “Do you want to wait together? Then I can help you find your friend.”

Hyuna nods quickly, some sense of relief washing over her. At least she wasn’t completely alone anymore.

“What is your name?” she asks you.

“I’m (Y/N).” You hold your hand out and she grasps it, for a firm but gentle handshake. “My name’s Hyuna. Nice to meet you!”

You wait together until suddenly - “Oh!”

Hyuna darts from your side, weaving through the people to get to the conveyor belt. She struggles to pull off a bright orange case first, then a black case, then a black and white case. You decide to help her bring the suitcases to the edge of the crowd, gawking in awe.

“Whoa, that’s a lot of suitcases,” you note. Not only were there three but they were huge, twice the size each of the measly suitcase you were waiting on. Hyuna laughs bashfully. “I have a lot of clothes,” is all she tells you.

Minutes trickle by, the crowd lessens just a little, and you’re starting to wonder if your suitcase had gotten lost.

“ - here?”

You realize that Hyuna was speaking and you turn, feeling guilty for not listening. “Sorry, could you repeat that?”

“Um, I asked .. Why are you here?” Her hands gesture in a way that you understand what she means.

“I’m coming home from visiting family in (Neighbouring country),” you explain. “What about you?”

She hesitates. “My passion is music. I came here to perform for my fans.”

“Oh? Really?” It feels weird, meeting someone who’s apparently famous enough to warrent travel. She was just the lost girl to you, the unnaturally natural beauty who asked you for help. Imagining her performing on stage was weird. “Are you in a band or .. ?”

“No, no! Only me. I sing and rap and dance ...” she trails off, feeling embarrassed. Hyuna loved her job, she really did. But she was only human at the end of the day. Since landing in the airport, she became just another person. She assumed paparazzi awaited her outside but in here, at the conveyor belt, she was just another person.

You had spoken and looked at her like a human being - not a celebrity to be fetishized or hated or obsessed over.

She was simply Hyuna.

“I’ll definitely look you up,” you tell her. “It’s kinda cool to meet a - Oh, my bag!” You run, worried the conveyor would swallow your bag and never spit it out again. You lifted it easily, the task feeling minuscule next to Hyuna’s three enormous suitcases.

“Okay, so, let’s look for your friend now,” you say. “So he’s tall and has glasses, right? Maybe we could ask -” A blur was visible in your periphery vision and before you can blink, a man is on top of Hyuna.

You can’t speak Korean but can make an educated guess that he’s frantically asking her where she went.

He seems to notice you after she answers him, inclining his head politely at you. “Ah, hello. Thank you for helping Hyuna. I’m truly grateful but we don’t have much time, we have to leave quickly.”

“It’s no problem!” you say, turning to Hyuna as a final farewell. “I hope your concert goes well. It was really nice to meet you.” Figuring that a hug was too personal, you settle for sticking your hand out.

She shakes it, firmly this time. “Thank you! Maybe I’ll see you there.” There’s a mysterious smile on her face as she disappears into the crowd, surrounded by what seem to be her staff. As she exits into the waiting area, through the automatic doors, you see flashing lights and hear screams.

It seems she was truly famous after all.

A mere two days pass and you find yourself in yet another crowd. It’s a hot, sticky night. Or maybe that’s because of the people around you, dancing and cheering and singing. The lyrics swim through you, like a tidal wave. Unless she sings in English, you don’t understand a word that leaves Hyuna’s lips. But that didn’t matter.

Music was a universal language.

You could understand the message of her songs, feel the beat, appreciate the rhythm. It seemed as if music was invited just for her, just for Hyuna to rap and sing to. The doe eyed girl you once knew seemed like a distant dream. It’s almost crazy how that girl could transform into this enthralling, sexy, confident, powerful woman.

All too soon, the concert ends and you head backstage, courtesy of the tickets that Hyuna sent you. It seemed too much, now that you’ve seen her perform. She sent you free tickets and a backstage pass, for nothing. You tried helping her find her friend but the friend ended up finding her. You didn’t really do anything. Yet here you were.

“Hyuna!” you cheer.

She was surrounded by her backup dancers, all sweating and glowing and conversing in Korean. The chatter stops when you speak and Hyuna turns. Once more, she’s the sweet girl from the airport.

“(Y/N)!” she beams, so juxtaposed to the performer you seen on stage. “Did you enjoy the music?” You’re lost for words, unable to truly convey your thoughts. How do you explain to someone that you think they’re otherworldly and amazing?

It seems that Hyuna had the same trail of thought.

“Maybe we could talk properly some day?” Hyuna wonders. You’ve only met twice, both in crowded places. It feels like she’s starting to know you but not properly. “My tour finishes tomorrow. After that, I am free. Maybe we could go for dinner?”

Hyuna was apparently making a habit of leaving you speechless.

You struggle to speak: “Yes! Oh my - uh, gosh. Yes, of course!”

She shoots you one final smile before following after one of the dancers that was waiting for her. They immediately fell into conversation, that you couldn’t help feel like involved you. The dancer playfully shoved Hyuna and the two disappeared around a corner, still laughing and joking.

Now, more than ever, you feel like music is the only worldwide language. It transcends language and cultural barriers, to make each day a new journey of sounds and experiences. It saves lives, it gives strength. It brings people together, even you and Hyuna.

That could possibly be destiny.

Or maybe it was just the power of music.

[alisonembers]

Cogs and Queens (Eberron Fan Fic) - Week 9

Content Warning: Course Language, Depression, Assault.

—————————————————–

Google Drive Link for correctly formatted version with NSFW content: https://drive.google.com/file/d/18CWsnlyu_a3ZKcDc-oD6fWQyxn-L0nrt/view?usp=sharing

The glass fell around Mercury, a trail of blood following from behind, the bullet resting in their lower left hip. I knew something wasn’t right. No certificate to pardon me when the job was done. No way to confirm what Tal was doing was legit. I trusted him. They hit the deck of the airship with a loud thud, the planks of wood rattling Mercury to the bone.

“Get someone onto them!” one of the Veterans shout.

Mercury rolls over onto their stomach and begins crawling towards the stairs leading down below deck.

Multiple crewmates of the ship back away from Mercury, keeping a close eye on them, whispers from their lips directed at one another.

Mercury crawls down the stairs slowly, eventually hoisting themselves on the railing. They walk carefully, their legs wobbly, their back in intense pain. How am I going to get this fixed? They look around the deck as many men and women watch cautiously. Mercury hobbles towards some large crates marked with the Jorasco symbol, a family known for healing supplies operating in the upper city. They grip around the edges of the lid with their mechanical hand, ripping it off with a crunch. A single potion? It’s small, but it will help. They grip the small potion, and apply the liquid to the area of the wound. It sizzles as the skin slowly grows into place, and Mercury lets out a pained moan. They close their eyes as footsteps come towards them from behind.

“Mercury, you got out,” Tal says, shocked.

Mercury swings around, their canines showing with intimidation. “What the fuck was that, Tal!? You snitched on me!?”

Tal raises his hands. “It’s not what it looks like.”

Mercury steps towards them, their eyes narrow, their limp suppressed from adrenaline. “It very well fucking is what it looks like! Money too good, huh? Fuck me one night, fuck me over in the morning? Burn in hell!”

“Mercury, what did you expect me to do? Put my life on the line to try and save yours?”

“Yes, actually!” Mercury cries, tears forming at the corners of their eyes.

“Fuck! That ain’t the type of man I am.” Tal says, stepping back.

“Fucking clearly. Get a taste of sweet nostalgia, get paid for it, and dip,” Mercury says.

“Look. I’m sorry. You got away, right? I knew you would! When we get to the lower city, you can go back into hiding.”

Mercury grunts in pain as they feel their hip. They look at their mechanical hand, blood staining the silver. “Got away?” Mercury says, shaking the blood from their hand onto the floor.

Tal moves closer. “Let me get a look at that.”

Mercury whips their revolver from their holster, aiming it at Tal. “I think you’ve had enough time to look at me.”

“Mercury, please, don’t be like that,” Tal says, his hand slowly moving for his rifle slung around his back.

Mercury aims at Tal’s hand, and as they pull the trigger, Tal dodges to the side, the shot echoing through the deck.

He rotates his rifle around his torso into his hands, taking a shot at Mercury.

Mercury slides behinds a steel table, kicking it sideways, the bullet inside the wound throbbing. Fuck!

“Mercury, please! It doesn’t have to be like this!” Tal shouts, loading another bullet into his lever-action rifle.

“You’re a corporate shill! A fucking rat!” Mercury calls from behind the table. “You know what I think about men like you?”

“Mercury, if you were in my position, you would have given me up too. The money was too good,” Tal says.

“I’m starting to wonder if you ever really knew me!” Mercury slides out of cover on their right, fanning the hammer of their revolver three times.

Tal ducks behind a steel post, the clang of bullets ricocheting into the wood walls, floors, and roof around him. He ducks back out, taking two shots at Mercury as they run for another steel post.

Mercury cracks the revolver forward, loading new bullets to replace the expended ones. They slow their breathing, listening out for Tal. A creak comes from around the post, and Mercury ducks out, firing twice with both hands on the grip.

Tal dodges out of the way and grabs Mercury’s right wrist. With his more immense strength, he throws Mercury down, their revolver flying out of their hands.

As Mercury meets the ground, their wrist makes a loud snap, and the bullet lodged in their hip disturbs and opens the wound. Mercury lets out a sharp yelp, squirming on the floor pinned, their tail thrashing like an animal caught in a bear trap.

“Mercury. Stop. Please. I just broke your right wrist. If you plan on knowing what the sensation of touch is like for a while longer, I beg you to stop.” Tal rests his knee on Mercury’s stomach, pinning them down further.

Mercury launches their mechanical fist into Tal’s temple, knocking him sideways.

Tal rolls over, holding his forehead. “Mercury! Stop!”

Mercury looks at him, tears streaming down their cheek, blood soaking their coat. “I can’t believe you…” Mercury says, broken. “Kill me here. Now. Get it over with.”

“No,” Tal says.

“Coward,” Mercury says, sniffling.

Tal stands up and walks to a storage crate. “When the ship lands, I’m taking you to my sister. She’ll know how to fix your fleshy wrist.”

“I’d also appreciate this bullet getting out of my fucking hip,” Mercury says, their voice cracking.

“Glad I gave you that Whisky, Mousey,” he says, pulling out a brown cloak from the crate.

Mercury rolls their head to face the ceiling, water streaming to the floorboards beneath them, mixing with red. “I can’t fucking believe you ratted me out.”

“I’ll give you half the gold,” Tal says, wrapping the cloak around Mercury. He unloads the revolver and pockets the ammo. “Believe me, I’m sorry this happened.”

I don’t believe you for a second.

      V

 Tal carries Mercury through the house’s front door, the cloak hiding their identity. “Kal!” he calls out.

“What!?” a woman calls from another room.

“I have Mousey! They’re hurt!”

“Mousey!?” Kal calls out.

“Mercury is here!” Tal says.

A half-orc woman comes rushing from the room over, the same height as Tal. She pulls the hood of Mercury’s temporary cloak back, revealing their sad eyes and pale face. “What happened?” she asks, looking up at Tal.

“We got into a bit of a fight. I went a little far. They also got shot in the back from a guard.”

Kal takes Mercury into their arms, holding them like a child. “C’mere, honey.”

Mercury closes their eyes. I can’t fucking believe him. Kal begins to walk while carrying them, entering a room with a nicely made bed, expensive cabinets, and dragon-themed tapestry.

Kal takes them over to the bed, laying them down gently. They move across the room and begin sifting through a cabinet.

“Kal… He rat me out to the guard,” Mercury says, their voice shaky.

“He fucking what?” Kal asks, placing a beaker onto a metal tray.

“I trusted him like…”

“Like what?” Kal asks with frustration building in their voice, placing a syringe onto the metal tray with other alchemical liquids.

“I don’t know. He’s not like a brother… Fucked too many times as a teen for that. Last night too.”

“My asshole brother fucked you last night and then snitched?” Kal asks with a face of rage.

“Yeah,” Mercury says, closing their eyes.

“Tal! You asshole!” Kal yells. She mixes a blue liquid with a red one inside a beaker, creating purple bubbles that float to the top, yet the two mix like strands refusing to bond.

Tal walks in with a look of shame coated across his face. “Yeah, look, I know.”

Kal pulls out some fine thread and a needle. “You don’t do that to somebody, Tal! That’s fucking abusive and evil!”

“The guard offered me five hundred gold,” Tal says.

“Honestly, I’d akin it to assault!” Kal yells, pouring a yellow liquid into the beaker mix, making all the liquids bond together.

“When you put it like that…” Tal says, looking away.

“You look at me when you speak!” Kal says. “You don’t do that. If you had just sold them out without the sex the previous night to gain their compliance, I would have been disappointed. But I am beyond disappointed with you. How the fuck do you think Mercury feels knowing their life is worth five hundred gold to you?” Kal looks down at Mercury, their eyes streaming with water again.

Mercury clears their throat. “Can you tell Tal to leave the room?” they say in a low broken voice to Kal.

Kal nods. “Get out.”

Tal nods, leaving the room. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m going to roll you over so I can get a look at the wound, okay? Your wrist is going to hurt more while moving,” Kal says, threading the needle.

Mercury nods and rolls over with the assistance of Kal, their right wrist throbbing in pain.

“Well, it could be worse,” Kal says. “Stay still.”

Mercury feels something cold press into the wound. They shriek, feeling the bullet rip through the burnt flesh from the potion.

“Good…” Kal says. They begin threading the needle through Mercury’s wound, hearing them whimper, and she starts tightening the opening, sealing it shut. “Okay, I need you to roll over again, sweety.”

Mercury rolls onto their back again, their right wrist throbbing once more, feeling it in their elbow.

Kal places the end of the syringe into the beaker, drawing out a large amount of liquid. “I am going to inject this into your wrist. It will make it heal quickly,” they grab a large cylinder of cork. “Bite down on this. It’s going to hurt more than it did breaking.”

Mercury bites down on the cork, and as Kal slides the syringe into Mercury’s wrist, they scream loudly as tears continue to drop down their face. They grip the sheets tightly with their metal fingers, the motors whirring in each joint—their tail curls in the blanket, tighter and tighter. The world around them grows darker as their vision narrows onto a reflection above them on the roof. Their eyes shift color from a gray human iris to a deep void black. Whispers from an unknown origin begin to fill the room, and the lanterns nearby begin to flicker from an orange glow to a dim silver light.

 Everything was black.

“You’re not supposed to be here. Not yet, at least.”

 To be continued…

[bevelle]

Where the Sun Shines: Part 4 (END)

i can't believe it's over...! i was surprised at how emotional this part made me, to be honest. their final conversation made me legit cry. also, for those of you who were curious as to how hiraga and roberto met, that's included here! mushy commentary at the end.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

That day came very suddenly.

Roberto heard a conversation that caught his attention. During their break, Roberto’s classmate Carlo came up to him and asked him a question.

“Hey, you’re close enough with Saint Josef that you have lunch with him every day, right?"

Carlo had always been one of Josef’s admirers.

Thinking that he was jealous again, Roberto answered with a noncommittal “yeah, I guess.” Carlo leaned in closer.

“Then do you know why Saint Josef has been sitting out for gym lately? Is he sick?”

“What? He has?”

Being the first time he had heard of that, Roberto was surprised.

“What, you didn’t know? You must not be as close to Saint Josef as you say you are. Whatever, I’ll go ask the upperclassmen.” Carlo frowned and walked away.

While Roberto was worried, he was also shocked that he knew nothing about this. And so, on that day, Roberto visited Josef at the library as usual. When he reached the reception desk, a different upperclassman was standing there, and Josef was nowhere to be found.

“Excuse me, do you know where Josef is?”

“He should be organizing the shelves over there.”

Roberto headed to where the upperclassman pointed. In the gloomy space between the bookshelves, Josef was on a ladder arranging books.

“Josef!”

Hearing Roberto call for him, Josef turned his head and came down from the ladder.

“Hey, Roberto.”

“Um, there’s something I want to ask you…”

“What is it?”

“Is it true you’ve been sitting out for gym?”

“Oh… That, huh…”

“No, not that. Are you feeling alright?”

“You don’t need to worry.”

“Then, you aren’t sick?”

“I’ve just been a little anemic.”

Josef casually leaned against the bookcase.

“Anemic? Josef, you don’t look too good.”

“No, I’m… fine…”

Josef’s body seemed to go limp, and he fell to the floor. Roberto rushed over and saw that his face was pale and his forehead was sweating slightly.

“Someone! Please help!” Roberto shouted without thinking.

Several students rushed over and the library was thrown into a frenzy as Josef was taken to the infirmary. An ambulance then arrived, and it seemed that Josef had been taken to the hospital.

Not knowing how Josef was, Roberto spent the next few days filled with unease. It rained relentlessly, as if it were indicative of a dark prophecy. He felt as if he would drown just hearing the sound of the rain. The school buildings started to smell musty, and the air became stagnant.

He had a nightmare.

A massive wall towered in front of Roberto. He could hear the scream of a terrified woman. He felt as if his heart was going to burst open. He wanted to run to the other side of the wall, but there was nothing resembling an exit. A light illuminated the wall and ominously expanded and contracted. The figure of a person was reflected in that light.

Roberto was horrified.

The figure jumped up and down as if dancing and grew larger. Roberto’s entire body shook in fear and he was covered in goosebumps.

What the figure was soon became clear.

A demon…

“Help me!” Roberto yelled as he awoke in his dorm, the other boys breathing quietly in their beds as they slept.

5:00 A.M. It was raining as usual.

Unable to fall back asleep, Roberto headed to the library in search of relief.

When he entered the library, he saw no one.

Of course…

Roberto sighed and sat in a chair in the same place he always sat. He rested his chin in his hands in a daze, and heard the faint sound of something rattling.

What was that? Is someone here?

Feeling a bit timid, Roberto quietly walked to where he heard the noise come from. There, in the corner where the difficult books the upperclassmen read were, Roberto saw the slender form of a boy from behind, slipping something in between the pages of a book.

“Josef…?”

The face that turned around at Roberto’s voice was undoubtedly Josef’s.

“You came back?” Roberto ran up to Josef like a puppy that had been waiting for its owner.

“Yeah. Last night. But I’m surprised. I didn’t expect you to be here at a time like this. I was actually writing you a letter.”

“A letter?”

“That’s right. I can’t be with you anymore. I’ll be leaving here before classes start.”

“W-Why? Do you hate me?”

“Of course not, Roberto. I love you.”

“Then why are you leaving?”

Hearing Roberto’s question, Josef’s gaze became distant. After a moment of silence Josef opened his mouth, as if he were about to say something extremely difficult.

“I’m being hospitalized.”

“Hospitalized? So you really are sick? But you’ll get better.”

Josef shook his head.

“Roberto, I probably won’t live much longer.”

“Y-You can’t be serious. You’re only sixteen. There’s no way you can die.”

“I’m serious. It’s a miracle I lived to be sixteen.”

“But… That’s…”

Roberto’s face went completely white. His lips trembled and he couldn’t speak. Josef tenderly embraced him.

“It’s alright, Roberto. I’m not scared of dying at all.”

“Why? Because the priests say you’ll go to Heaven? Heaven might not even be real.”

“That might be true. But I still believe in God’s teachings, and my faith makes me strong. Roberto. My life may be ending, but I experienced a lot of lives, so I don’t have any regrets.”

“Lots of lives?”

“Yeah. I read a lot of books here, and those books were full of so many lives. When we’re reading books, we can become pirates, or medieval aristocrats, or spies… And not just that. We can come to understand how lots of people think and how the universe works. My actual life may be short, but when I think of all of the books I’ve read, I might have lived more lives than there are people.”

“But… But… Now we won’t be able to do anything together.”

Without realizing it, Roberto had begun to sob.

“That’s not true,” Josef said, and showed Roberto the beautiful golden bookmark he had placed inside the book. “Dear Roberto” was written on the bookmark.

“I wrote things on the back of this bookmark, like what I thought of the book, so I want you to look at it once you’ve finished reading the book.” Josef said this and placed the bookmark back in the book.

“I put these bookmarks in the books in this library that I’ve read, that I want you to read, and that I wanted to read. What books they’re in is a secret. We’ll play a really long game. You have to find every book that has a bookmark in it. We’ll meet after this, and we’ll talk to each other through these books. If you want to…”

When Josef said this, the sound of the rain stopped.

After that, Josef really was hospitalized and left the school without telling anyone the name of the hospital. That meant no one could send him letters. Roberto thought that was surely him being considerate. It would have hurt him if he were to send letters back and forth and people learned of his condition and death, whether he wanted them to know or not.

That’s probably what Josef was thinking.

Of course, since the day Josef disappeared from the library, Roberto began reading all the books he could get his hands on at the library. Sometimes he would find a gold bookmark, and he could feel a part of what Josef was thinking and feeling.

The months and years continued, and before he realized it, Roberto had become a library committee member. He stood at the reception desk that Josef once stood at, and recommended books to the students who visited the library.

When it was decided he would go to the University of Rome, near the time he was to graduate, he picked up a book called The Manifestation of God’s Love.

A single bookmark sat between the pages, with words written to Roberto on it in Josef’s gentle handwriting.

Dear Roberto,

When you read this book, I won’t exist in this world anymore. You’ll be older than I was, too.

This book is really difficult for me, so I only read half of it and can’t give you my opinions on it, but it’s a good book. I recommend it.

Roberto, how many books have you read since then?

I hope you’ve read a lot.

You said you don’t have any memories from your childhood, right?

I imagine that’s extremely painful for you. Having a big, blank space in the memories in your heart and your memories.

Sometimes, I can tell that it’s hurting you.

But did reading books fill in that blank space a little?

I was able to fill up the time up until I’ll lose this life by reading books.

So I think you’ll be able to fill up the time that was lost with your past by reading books, too.

That’s why I started this ill-spirited game of you finding my bookmarks.

I’m probably meddling far too much, but, Roberto, the time I spent with you was so fun.

Roberto remembered being overcome with emotion.

Josef had written over 200 bookmarks, at least.

When did he come up with this plan, and how long did he spend putting his heart and soul into writing these words?

Tears of gratitude streaked Roberto’s cheeks.

It’s been six years since then.

Now, in Roberto’s hands is that book with the bookmark between its pages just as it was back then.

The fourth Monday of April was the day Roberto went to Josef’s house and was given his cross—a very special day. Every year on this day, Roberto visits his alma mater, picks one of the books he remembers at random, and reads it.

After reading approximately one chapter in the book and reading the bookmark, Roberto felt deeply moved, and looked up at the sky from the spaces in the tops of the trees. The clouds slowly passed by and the light filtering through the trees swayed, just like back then. He felt as if he were returning to the past.

Roberto, who had been spacing out, saw the form of someone, slim and gentle, enter his field of vision.

Their black hair was swaying in the breeze.

Their black eyes were watching Roberto intently.

“Josef!” Roberto called out in shock.

“Ah, yes. What is it?”

“It’s really you, Josef. It’s me, Roberto. You’re alive!”

Roberto hastily got on his feet, only to be perplexed the next moment. His looks were similar to Josef’s, but it wasn’t him. The person in front of him was clearly a young, Asian man.

“You’re… not Josef…”

The young man looked at the completely crestfallen Roberto and blinked.

“No, you’re correct, I am Josef… I’m Hiraga Josef Kou. Why is it that you know my name?”

“Oh, uh… I see. No, I just mistook you for someone else. I had a close friend named Josef. By the way, um… Why are you here?”

When Roberto asked this, the young man seemed troubled.

“I seem to have lost my way, actually. I was trying to get to the Vatican…”

“The Vatican? Then why are you here?”

“Ah, yes. I mistook this place for the Vatican.”

“That’s a pretty impressive mistake. But you need special permission to enter the Vatican, you know.”

“Oh, it’s fine. I’ve started working for a department of the Vatican.”

“A department? That’s a coincidence, I’m actually working for one of the departments, too.”

“Is that so?”

“If you want, I can show you to the Vatican.”

“Yes, I would be very grateful if you could do that.”

Saying that, the young man glimpsed at the book Roberto was holding.

“I read that book very often as a child. It’s a good book, isn’t it?”

“You did? Hm, do you like books?”

“Yes, very much.” The young man smiled pleasantly.

He felt that something in his smile truly did resemble Josef.

“First, let’s get out of here. Follow me.”

“Ah, yes.”

Roberto and Hiraga began walking together.

thank you all so much for bearing with me through this, and thank you for your support! i'm sorry my health really delayed this final part... i hope it was worth the wait! i'm kind of in limbo right now job-wise, because i'm going through a really long process for a potential job that i won't hear back about until march or so. i have a lot of free time on my hands, but unfortunately a lot of that time is spent resting because of how my health has been lately. still, i want to keep translating for you all...! i've met a lot of great people through my translations and i really want to keep giving back to everyone. i don't have a big translation planned soon, but i'm hoping to go back to posting excerpts and any odd facts i come across. the next excerpt i plan on translating is the end of fandango, which i'll post with a summary of the whole story! if you like julia, you'll really enjoy that excerpt. thank you again everyone! i hope you have a wonderful evening!

[ienveeus]

yoonseok drabble, 1.5k, mentioned past!sugamon, meeting at an abandoned supermarket (legit purely for aesthetic) 

I have no idea what this is but it’s been sitting in my drafts for forever and it just became my birthday eight minutes ago and this kinda hits the nail on the head with my mood, so I thought I’d share it as a thanks to everyone for reading my stuff <3 Love you all <3 <3 

It’s not quite midnight yet, but there are already fireworks going off in the distance. Yoongi can see them outside the large stretch of window, bright bursts of colour set on the inky black backdrop of the night sky.

New Years Eve. It’s cold out. The tip of his nose is bitten pink and the moment he steps outside his breath will fog the air in front of him. Yoongi’s bundled up, browsing the isles for instant coffee because there’s none at home and his roommate is fucking his latest boy toy or whatever and Yoongi just can’t be bothered subjecting himself to that.

So he’ll journey out into the cold and buy the dumb instant coffee ,then take it home and make it for himself, and then be disappointed when it tastes expectantly like shit. Then he’ll sit there and listen to Round Two of whatever fuckery Seokjin’s pulling and pass out whilst trying not to feel so stupidly lonely.

The lights of the convenience store are a harsh white-blue, the kind that staves off all remnants of sleep, but makes you feel like you’re not altogether grounded in reality. It shouldn’t feel so surreal, to be standing in a deserted convenience store that is no more special than any the dozens of it’s kind in Seoul and yet here Yoongi is, feeling like he’s cemented in a dream. 

Yoongi hums as he finds a brand he’s somewhat familiar with and settles on it, chucking the container into his basket. He goes over a list in his head, thinking of any other stuff he might need.

Yoongi winds up seeing him before he himself is seen, but two seconds is not long enough to very well do something about it. He has no time to hide as a pair of eyes flick over to him, widen a fraction as they mirror that same shock written all over Yoongi’s face before fading, warmly, into something too close to fond.

‘Hey stranger.’

Yoongi’s pinned just by his voice, makes his gut do a funny twisting sorta thing and he can’t get his mouth to work. It’s not right for a person to be so disarming, it’s not the slightest bit fair.

‘Hi,’ Yoongi says and it’s all cautious and guarded because it needs to be. He needs to keep some semblance of defences up against this one, at this point it’s as crucial as breathing.

Jung Hoseok has dark bags under his eyes, rumpled clothes that look like they’ve been with him to hell and back and a grin that somehow manages to wipe away all the indications of tiredness every other part of him is broadcasting. His face is all shiny and his eyes are bloodshot, but he looks a fucking vision as he always does.

‘What are you doing here?’

‘Shopping. Is that okay?’

‘I guess.’

Hoseok stares at him, one corner of his lip quirking up in the barest hint of amusement. It’s always infuriated Yoongi, Hoseok’s smirk, an ever-present thing that’s always been a moment away ever since he’s known Hoseok. Namjoon’s best friend, who always stared too long and looked like he knew more than he ever said out loud.

When Yoongi and Namjoon had dated, Yoongi had never gotten along with Hoseok. He was always there as was that damnable smirk and despite all the attempts Namjoon had gone to, they’d never really been friends.

(There’s a bad taste in Yoongi’s mouth even as he thinks it, but he tells himself that it is true. It wasn’t friendship, and there’s not any room to form one now, when Yoongi and Namjoon are long since over.)

He should walk away now. Take his instant coffee and bail. But he doesn’t. Jung Hoseok stares at him and Yoongi stares back and licks his lips.

Cut it off there, Yoongi tells himself. For god’s sake, cut it off there and walk away—

‘You don’t have any plans for New Year’s Eve?’ Yoongi hears himself ask.

Idiot.

‘I did, yeah. I was just at a party with the others.’ Yoongi tenses and pretends that he doesn’t. ‘Had to watch all these people suck faces and the music wasn’t all that great, just didn’t wanna start my New Year like that.’

‘So you come to a convenience store.’ He phrases it like a comment rather than a question as he quirks an eyebrow.

‘Yes.’

‘That’s fucking weird.’

Hoseok shrugs. He’s never been one to get affronted by Yoongi’s bluntness. ‘Well here you are.’

‘Here I am,’ Yoongi says. He regains control of his legs then and brushes past Hoseok without a second thought, makes sure no part of them touches as he does so.

‘What are you doing here?’ Hoseok calls after him and it takes all of Yoongi’s will power to not stop. To not turn around.

‘Same as you,’ Yoongi says. Hoseok’s started to follow him. He picks up the pace, but it’s useless when he gets to the checkout counter. Hoseok just pulls up behind him and pushes into his space like he has all the right in the world to be there.

‘You don’t have any New Year’s plans?’

‘No.’ The only time he’s ever done something for New Year’s was with Namjoon who liked watching the fireworks and thought that the stroke of midnight fucking meant something. New beginnings, new chances. Fucking bullshit.

‘I’m not doing anything right now?’

Yoongi sets his jaw, hands a couple bills over to the cashier. ‘Aside from pestering me?’

Still, Hoseok lingers, Yoongi can feel the tickle of Hoseok’s breath on his neck. ‘Do you want to do something?’

He hesitates, stilling as he holds his hand out to accept the change, something in his brain just short circuiting as his heart leaps in his chest.

Min Yoongi do not. Walk away. Walk right the fuck away, this is the last thing anyone needs—

Last time they’d crossed paths and proceeded to spend time together—it had been an accident. Just like the times before that, at the bar, or at a cafe, or in the campus library. It stops being an accident if Yoongi gives into this. It becomes a purposeful thing, a conscious decision that labels the pair of them as something. And any something in this case is without a doubt a bad kinda something.

No one in their right mind has any right to hang out with their ex’s best friend on New Year’s Eve.

He hears the fireworks bang outside, echoing across the city streets, the wail of sirens just under it. Yoongi glances at the clock hanging above the ceiling high window.

It’s midnight now. New Year’s Day.

It doesn’t fucking mean anything.

Yoongi pulls away from the counter, bag in hand as he says a cursory thanks to the cashier.

‘What about Namjoon?’ Yoongi asks as he dares to look at Hoseok, falling into step beside him.

‘What about him?’ Hoseok grins and it punches Yoongi in the gut. He decides to change the subject.

‘What could you possibly want to do right now?’

‘Go on adventures,’ Hoseok grins. ‘Get take-out and find someplace high up.’

Yoongi blows his bangs from his face, part of him wanting to linger in the store and keep wrapped up in the warmth a little longer. He walked to the convenience store, couldn’t be fucked grabbing his car for a measly twenty minute walk. Regret is gnawing at him now though for a few different reasons, one of them being the cold the second being Jung Hoseok.

He steps outside and the cold air hits him like a speeding car, steels all his breath in a gnarled fist. Hoseok comes out beside him. He’s wearing less than Yoongi, but he looks as though he’s standing in a midsummer’s night. Thin hoodie and fraying jeans, standing without the slightest affliction towards the chill though his breath fogs the air as much as Yoongi’s.

‘It’ll be fun,’ Hoseok wheedles. ‘Good start to the New Year.’

‘It’s just another day,’ Yoongi mutters. His lips feel frozen already, moving them is like throwing a rock into an ice-coated pond.

‘It is what you make of it,’ Hoseok returns. He holds a hand out, palm up, beckoning Yoongi after him. ‘Come on, you didn’t bring a car did you?’

‘No.’

‘I’ll drive you.’

There is no ‘home’ tucked onto the end of that sentence. Yoongi notices the catch as soon as the words are out of Hoseok’s mouth because he’s known Jung Hoseok long enough to know most of his tricks.

This doesn’t stop him getting in the passenger’s seat of Jung Hoseok’s roughed up truck. It’s easier for Yoongi to pretend that he thought he was being taken home, like he fell for Hoseok’s stupid ploy to coerce him into being his partner in crime or whatever stupid thing Hoseok would call the two of them.

At least it’s somewhat warm in the car and when Hoseok turns the key in the ignition, he puts the heater on full blast and there Yoongi’d begrudgingly admit that he is grateful.

[99liners]

troublemaker ― kth;

pairings: kim taehyung x female reader

genre: smut (filth), pwp

words: 2.343

reading time: 8 minutes.

warnings: dom!taehyung, sex toys (vibrator, dildo), anal sex, dirty talking, overstimulation, multiple orgasms (f)

a/n: this was to get back at a friend i swear. 

"y/n, please..,” he whined near your ears like a buzz for the nth number of time.

“i don’t understand why you want it," came your cocky reply.

“yes.” he said quickly. “i just wanna try it.”

“alright i guess.”

he cheered as you sighed, “i’ll get them tomorrow," he grinned rejoicing.

you kissed him and went across the hall to brush your teeth.

while you were brushing your teeth there, taehyung was trying to control in his excitement, feeling happy that you finally agreed to the sex toys, legit dabbing around the bathroom. you rinsed your mouth and walked out to find a taehyung dabbing. taehyung noticed you and froze embarrassed mid-dab and shook his head laughing at his own self. you just shook your head chuckling as you hopped on the bed snuggling into the pillows.

“goodnight tae,” your voice came muffled as you were talking with your face hidden in the pillow.

he placed soft kisses on your neck. “night, love.”

the clock read 2:17 am when you stirred in your sleep and immediately knew something was wrong. the room was heavily curtained and incessantly dark. you couldn’t move your hands or feet. you noticed that you also had no clothes on and were suddenly aware of the cold silk sheets fluttering against your bare body.

craning your neck to every side, you called out for taehyung but heard no sound besides your own breathing, which, at the moment had become rough and jagged.

you kept looking around yourself; part scared, part trying to get a grasp as to what was happening. you cursed under your breath promising to yourself to make taehyung pay for this. you nod your head with a, ‘oh, the game is so on.’

your head snapped suddenly as you heard the television in the room being switched on. some stupid korean teleshopping show was playing. the light coming from the television screen revealed where taehyung was sitting, at the corner with his face towards the television screen, on a chair with a leg on top of the other.

you found yourself admiring his back profile as you asked yourself why everything about him was so breathtakingly perfect? wait, back to the point y/n, you’re supposed to make him pay for this.

you noticed how taehyung was holding something in his hand, he bent down to where the video player was kept. he gently tapped at a switch and the disc tray came out on which he placed a cd carefully, pushing it in.

the screen went black redirecting to the cd. susurrate from the cd filled the room. the screen flashed up, making you twitch your eyes a few times because of all the brightness all at once. you blinked a few times adjusting to the flashing screen, and as you achieved a clear vision you noticed it was an erotic movie.

“tae, you gotta be kidding me!” you muttered under your breath.

you watched quietly as a girl and a guy started getting naughty with each other. the guy was fingering her, making her feel great about her womanhood. you listened closely to the girl's low groans and the sly smirk forming on the guy’s lips as he touched her satisfactorily. before you could fathom it all, you could feel yourself getting moist at the sight and tried to rub your legs together. however, sadly, you failed to do so, because your legs were tied to the opposite posts of the bed.

“y/n you’re a dirty, dirty girl," finally came taehyung's invincible voice which never failed to turn your blood ice cold.

"you made me wait so long to use these pretty toys on you and now you are getting turned on by this dirty film. oh my, what a dirty dirty girl indeed,” he stood up suddenly and you noted how he was only in his briefs. you could even see a very large bulge in his dark underwear as he walked over to you and your cheeks rose to a blush pink.

taehyung found the situation amusing as he let a small chuckle, “are you suddenly shy seeing me in my underwear?”

“no, i.. uh-” you seemed to have lost your voice as you bit your lip.

“well, i don’t care, you made me wait a little too long," the buzzing noise was louder and so were the moans and groans from the television,  “but look! finally, you couldn't resist it anymore.”

you felt a coarse quavering through you as a ball was placed on your core sending you into a series of shuddering. you moaned loudly throwing your head back. the vibrator was on high mode, stimulating nerves in the deeper regions of the vagina. you rolled your hips trying to get more, but you were getting nowhere. trying to think of more ways to get free but the sensation of your clit took over, it was as if you could see all your thoughts being powerfully pushed back to make room for your orgasms. you stopped resisting the feeling now and just let it go.

just when you were finally getting at your frequency to achieve your high, taehyung turned it off. the vibrator was barely moving now. your shudders stopped when taehyung’s fingers reached your heat and he inserted two digits inside of you. maybe he was finally going to touch you. but after lubricating around your clit a few times he withdrew his hands and you started to get angry, but were met with an equally unpredictable culmination; he shoved something deep inside of you.

the dildo moved and vibrated inside of you, making you realize how your clit was getting big and swollen and red.

“nah ah ah, don't you dare cum y/n, or this will all be over and you will sleep naked and unsatisfied,” he hissed.

at that point, you couldn’t give two shits about what taehyung said because your mind was concentrated elsewhere. you failed to explain what was happening to your body, it was as if your whole being was centered on your clit, but it was too powerful for your clit so your clit decided to share that sensation with the rest of your body.  

the moans from the television grew, and you knew that the girl had reached her high. you felt jealous of her, because here you were, all tied up, holding onto every ounce of your being, compelling your body anyhow to not give in.

taehyung was watching you the entire time, he took a final look, plugged in the vibrator and walked out quietly.

your face had turned red. you could feel the veins in your neck threatening to tear up at any moment as you held on for dear life. taehyung wasn't coming and that made you impatient beyond limits so you started to tug at the handcuffs to look where taehyung had gone. the handcuffs; new metal and sleek, didn't mind scratching your delicate wrists.

“tae!” you moaned loudly finally giving in.

they were in a hotel room, the members, were, in the very adjacent rooms. but nothing could stop you tonight, “hh god! oh, TAE! yes! oh god just like that!” you knew taehyung would emerge out pretty soon. he loved hearing his name while you were being pleasured. it was giving you some relief too; the way the vibrator relaxed you body and led you into an almost trance like state where you didn't have to worry about anything and where everything just felt blissful was a revelation that there could be feelings like this that lasted for a long time. you couldn't seem to understand which 'entity' of which religion was in charge anymore.

"tae, I CAN'T!! CAN'T YOU HEAR ME?! I SAID I CAN'T, PLEASE!!"

he came back into the room, his briefs were off, showing you his ever so gracious manhood.

“cum.” 

and with that one word, you just let it all go. your back, arched, as you released; all you could do was clench your eyes shut and push with your hips to lift your ass off the bed, somehow trying to be closer to the vibrator that was already shoved roughly right up against your skin. you let out a loud groan, as if letting the whole world know.

taehyung became awfully silent as he took out the 'pretty' toy, "so a toy is more pleasurable to you now more than me, huh?"

when you came down from your high, you looked at taehyung once before his mouth latched onto your wet core. you moaned over and over again as he took you closer to that point again. you had moaned or screamed, or restrained yourself from making any noise before, but this orgasm was so utterly intense that it took all the noise right out of your mouth. he cocked his head to the side, curved his tongue and licked up your entire slit. you gently started rocking your hips against his face, in a rhythmic way and he held your thighs tightly from both the sides restraining you from moving at all.

when you came this time, taehyung nibbled on your clit, biting here and there.

"punishment time," he looked at you, dead in the eye, with his low deep grunted voice. you could feel your core tightening at the thought. he retrieved his tie which he wore to the photo shoot earlier today and tightly secured it around your eyes.

he untied the ropes on your legs, you were too tired to even move but he wasn't done yet. he quickly flipped you, so now you were on your stomach and he tugged on your tummy so now she were sitting on all fours. your knees shaking badly failing to hold your weight.

he sat on his knees in front of your round ass, keeping his hand on your buttcheeks. caressing them lightly, "ten would be enough, right?"

"huh?" you asked confused.

"yeah, ten would be enough i think. here, count with me darling," before you could reply he slapped your butt.

smack

"count, come on," he placed his hand on your buttcheeks again.

"one.."

"good girl, keep counting," he slapped the same area repeatedly as he counted under his own breath.

smack smack smack smack

"t-two.. ah th-three... fou-four... oh my god fffive.... i cant.. six!" you yelled as you hung your head low, feeling your clit releasing your juice all over your inner thighs.

"oh, yes baby girl you can," he murmured as he continued with his spanking.

"seven... oh dear e-eight! okay two mor-- nine.. te--ten!" you let a sigh of relief and felt your heart vibrating inside your rib cage, vibrating with more ferocity than a nokia 3310.

before you could finish taking a few deep breaths taehyung already had inserted a digit in your other hole after gathering some wetness from your core onto that digit, which took you by utter surprise. was he out of his mind?

you were immediately filled with feels down the pits of your stomach but pain as well. taehyung used your juices from the clit, lining them towards the other hole, properly lubricating it around. his fingers eased in and out of you smoothly.  

"tae stop," you said when he entered you from behind, your ass stretching to what felt the final degree. truth be told, you didn't want him to stop at all. to your luck, taehyung paid no ear to you and kept thrusting more deep each time. you could feel his member, deep, very deep, with his balls banging against you. you could feel his hot breath against your neck as he pressed his dick more deep,  feeling the pressure of your inner walls swelling up. he was forcing his length's head up into your insides as far as it went. you were 100% sure your screams could be heard around the entire hotel lobby. he began to pound you firmly, your hair twisted in his hand - his other hand, smacking your buttcheeks again, making your inner walls tighten more and more around his hard and thick member. your breasts piercingly swinging like a pendulum as he banged you faster.

you had lost all control and joyously moaned, "fuck me harder, make use of your cuntbitch."

his body was shaking now, with all the feelings building up. you could feel his orgasm nearing through you from your lips to your toes. it was like this animalism, this pure need for the sensations. he pulled out rubbing his shaft up and down before smearing your butt with his fluid all over the place. that, orgasm after orgasm, so intense that you thought you would kick a hole through the wall, so intense that you had to alter your position and curl up on your side. you had come before, sure, but never in a way that made your thighs shake and tremble, never in a way that made you feel like you could die at that very moment and be totally content with it. you lied in the afterglow of three consecutive orgasms.

and you went through all those emotions still blindfolded.

after pacing his breaths, he unlocked the cuffs, your hands fell beside you, numb, refusing to even twitch.

he laid beside you, took your hands in his and repeatedly kissed the wrists softly, "baby, i'm so so sorry, i was too hard on you."

you kept quiet for a while before you opened your eyes and looked him straight in the eye, "i loved it."

you watched a smirk appearing on his face, "then get ready for another round," he said as he smacked your butt again.

︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶༉‧₊˚.

feedback is deeply appreciated.✨

masterlist | bts masterlist | rules | ask box

- jaimie

© 𝟫𝟫𝓁𝒾𝓃𝑒𝓇𝓈, 𝟐𝟎𝟣𝟪. 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒 𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐄𝐃.

[eustasskidweek]

Day 6- Surgery

Wow you guys, I never expected the amazing response I’ve gotten from this little series. You guys legit make me smile with the things you say. I was originally going to stop after just Eustass, not with the extended days but with the response it’s gotten I’m thinking of extending it.  What do you guys think? Should I keep going? ~Raz

Eustass sat in his new bed, huffing and puffing. He couldn’t believe that that no good heart doctor had not only upgraded his room but was on his way. He had never thought that they would have to meet this way. He would have much rather had it been at a bar or a restaurant, not in the hospital with his arm fucking useless and in a gown that he couldn’t even wear his damn underwear.

“You’ve been in a shitty mood since you got moved. What the hell gives?” his brother, Killer asked.

“Nothing,” Kid lied, pretending to watch the TV. “Don’t bullshit me. What’s up?”

Kid sighed and right before he answered, there was a knock on the door, causing the brothers heads to turn. The man who walked through the door caused Kid’s breathing to hitch and his heart monitor to speed up.

“Evening gentlemen, I am Dr. Trafalgar Law,” Law said, giving Kid a smile that caused his stomach to churn.

“Are you his new doctor?” Killer asked, shaking Law’s hand. “Not quite. I am going to assume that you are the infamous brother?” Law asked Killer. “Infamous brother?” the blond asked, clearly confused. “Remember that blind email date thing you signed me up for?” Kid asked. “This is the one on the other end of it.” “This guy?” Killer asked, giving Law an up and down. “That would be I,” Law smirked, grabbing Kid’s charts. “So you’re the reason we got the penthouse suite,” Killer smirked at Kid, crossing his arms over his chest.

“That would also be correct,” Law hummed, flipping through the pages. “You are also booked for surgery tomorrow afternoon.” “What? They said they wouldn’t hear back from my insurance about it until tomorrow though?” Kid asked, confused. “It’s been taken care of. Now did they explain what they were going to do?” Law questioned, trying to change the topic. “Something about metal rods and what not. I didn’t pay much attention. Again though how has it been taken care of?” Kid pushed.

At this point Killer slipped out of the room with a smug smile. He had never thought that online dating would be that big of a hit for his brother but he had won the jackpot with this one.

“It’s been taken care of because I say it has. Now shouldn’t you be more concerned about what is going to happen to you?”

“Metal rod in my arm to replace the bone because it is gone blah blah blah. I get it for the most part,” Kid waved his one good arm as if to wave the problem away.

“Fair enough,” Law put the chart down and sat at the foot of the bed. “So it’s nice to finally meet you.” “It could have been under better circumstances,” Kid winced as he tried to sit up some.

“You know, they have this really cool remote that moves the bed up and down,” Law teased.

Kid glared at him. “I’m aware but I can do it on my own.” “You could have been killed from what I understand.” “It wasn’t my head it was my arm. I think people live with one arm.”

“Then you would have to find a new career I fear.”

“That’s irrelevant,” Kid huffed, looking at the TV again.

“Fair enough. You seem pretty stubborn so I’m sure that you would find a way to do it with one arm,” Law laughed.

“So why didn’t you stay home?” Kid questioned.

“Well I wanted to meet you so I thought this would be a good enough time.”

“While I can’t run away and I’m stuck to an IV nearly naked?” Kid asked. “I see how you roll,” the redhead winked.

Law shook his head but had a small smile. “Yeah, now I can order my special mix to be put in your IV and you will be under my spell.” “It’s all making sense now,” Kid snapped, as if a light went off in his brain.

Before Law could form a response, there was a knock on the door and a doctor walked in. He was short and stocky and looked kind of young.

“Hello I am Dr. Chopper, Law, why are you here?” the new doctor asked.

“I came to make sure our guest here was comfortable and didn’t need anything,” Law stood up, shaking his hand.

“Well I came to introduce myself and see how he was feeling. We have a few things we need to go over before surgery.”

The next half hour was spent in doctor talk that Kid turned out in favor of checking out the super sexy doctor dressed in black slim fitting jeans and a long sleeve black turtleneck. By the time the new doctor left, Kid could feel himself growing drowsy.

“It looks like the medicine is taking effect. I will take my leave now but I will return tomorrow to oversee the surgery,” Law told him.

“You are? I thought you worked on hearts?”

“Doesn’t mean I don’t know about other surgeries,” Law explained, dimming the lights on his way out. “Good night Captain.” Kid was so tired he couldn’t form a reply, just nodded and closed his eyes.

-----

Kid slept most the night, tuning out the late night nurse visits. He slept until he head a familiar voice talking to the morning nurse. He cracked open an eye, confirming his suspicions. It was Law, standing there in a pair of white pants that made his ass look oh so yummy and a yellow long sleeve. He turned around upon hearing the heart monitor pick up.

“Oh someone wakes up just in time to be put under,” Law said, sticking his hands in his pockets.

“Is this room service? If so I would like a large steak with a side of scrambled eggs and bacon,” Kid responded.

“No frozen pizza? I guess I better take it out of the oven,” Law smirked. “How are you feeling?”

“Like my arm was crushed by a car but other than that I feel like I could bench press a tractor,” Kid told them.

“That would be ill advised,” Dr. Chopper said as he entered the room. “The anesthesiologist will be here in a minute so it is time we prep for surgery.”

Law nodded, moving out of the way to allow them to bring in all the equipment. Even as they were setting up, Kid couldn’t take his eyes off of the tall, dark, and handsome man who was watching everything from the corner.

They people around him kept telling him stuff but he had tuned it all out up until the mask went on his face and they told him to count backwards from ten, he only made it to eight and he was out.

---

Kid eventually came back, a pain in his arm, his vision foggy, and his mouth dry. He tried to reach out, to say something but his body wasn’t agreeing with him. Then he felt a cool substance being pressed to his lips and the sweet sensation of water sliding down his parched throat.

“Take it easy. The anesthetic hasn’t worn off all the way yet, just try and sit up,” Law voice coaxed. Kid felt the bed move and he tried to slid up with it.

“Can you talk?” Law asked.

“What kind of question is that?” Kid croaked.

“There we go, seems your sense of humor is still there,” Law teased, holding up the water again for him to drink.

“The day his sarcasm is gone is the day he is dead, even then he’s probably going to have me put something sarcastic on his tombstone,” Killer’s voice chimed in. “That’s insinuating that I die first,” Kid rasped.

“You and I both know that this little stunt was one of many on your ‘I am going to die before Killer’ list,” Killer laughed. “Oh there’s a list?” Law questioned the blond. “Why don’t you tell me more about it over lunch.”

The two walked out before Kid could object. He reached up with his good arm to rub his eyes before hitting the call button for more pain meds.