#I guess it gained more chill compared to what it had before in that uh they didn't invade london that's about it it's mostly unchanged

[bluesunsdusk]

--// I should have probably added a summary of what the omnic underground actually is rather than just more backstory... ))

[mypoisonedvine]

Seeing Red | bodyguard!Bucky Barnes x reader (part 7)

(part 1) (part 2) (part 3) (part 4) (part 5) (part 6)

series summary: bucky used to brag that he didn’t have a celebrity crush, or really care about famous people at all, which is what made him the perfect person to start working for a celebrity like yourself.  except, of course, it’s just his luck that he’d fall for you.  

word count: 2.5k

warnings: um just implied smut and fluff and a reference to bdsm I guess?? but it's pretty chill overall

Liked by starkcosmetics and others

y/n.y/l/n okay first of all, it takes an act of god to get a picture of this guy smiling, but it’s always worth it.  he really changed everything for me and I can’t thank him enough for that.  so happy ❤️ 

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caroldanvers 😍😍😍

flowercrowny/n oh my god this is so sweet i’m gonna cry

1 HOUR AGO

He smiled as he stared down at the post you’d made, remembering how much effort you’d put into finding the perfect picture (in your opinion; he thought he looked kinda dopey in it) as well as writing and re-writing your caption.

The speed at which your post gained likes and comments was inconceivable to him; even more impressive was the speed at which gossip rags were picking up the story.  Sure enough, his phone’s alerts to new headlines about you were not only going off like crazy, but had started to include news about himself as well.  

Y/N Y/L/N Shocks With Romantic Instagram Post, Confirms Dating Rumors

You’ll Never Guess Which Hollywood Starlet Is Dating Her Driver

Who is James Barnes?  Everything We Know About Y/N Y/L/N’s New Beau

Skimming one of the articles, he was impressed at how much information they’d managed to get without actually getting anything from you or him.  Born in Brooklyn, disabled Army veteran, worked a list of odd jobs before becoming your driver and bodyguard.  ‘No social media presence, prefers to keep a low profile’ one of them said; you can say that again, Bucky chuckled to himself when he read it.

He found another from People and didn’t particularly appreciate that it spent half the time going through all your past exes and rumored partners (turned out ‘rumored’ is a fancy word for ‘a bunch of fans deluded themselves so hard that it somehow turned into news without any proof necessary’).  But he still smiled when he got to the part that was actually about you and him.

‘The relationship is pretty new but they’re so happy together,’  a source close to the couple reported.  

Close indeed; that statement came from your publicist, who he’d never even meet.  

‘He’s a very private guy and she’s got this huge following, so they’re sort of an odd couple in that way, but she knows her fans are respectful and will let them have their own life outside of the spotlight.’ 

Bucky wasn’t sure that the respectfulness of fans was such a given here, but he hoped you were right.  To be fair, they’d been very sweet on your original post insofar. 

However, when he scrolled to the bottom of the celebrity magazine articles and realized they had their own comments section, he discovered that they were a little less forgiving than the ones on your Instagram.  

Is this the best she thinks she can do?  So sad tbh :(

a military guy…. yikes, she could get any guy she wants and she goes for a murderer. 

He looks like a hobo that found a coupon for a free haircut lol

I don’t buy it, I know she’ll always love Pietro!

Pietro being your former co-star that so many of your fans were convinced was actually your soulmate.  From what he’d heard from you, those speculations had made things so uncomfortable between the two of you that it killed your friendship.  Those were nothing, though, compared to the comments about someone you actually had dated.

she’s obviously not over sam… they were so good together

He’d better watch out for her ex, he still likes tweets about her and they have so much chemistry

Wait, she’s not still with Sam Wilson??  I could’ve sworn they’d been dating for, like, five years.

You were scrolling through your phone with a smile as you walked past where he was sitting on the couch, and he just couldn’t help himself from asking even though he knew it wasn’t the best idea.  “Do I need to worry about this Sam thing?” he blurted out, trying to play it cool and not sound too anxious.  “People are really obsessed with you two…”

“Sam and I…” you sighed, staring off into space for a second.  He made himself anxious imagining what you were thinking about in that moment.  “I haven’t talked to him in… years?  I think it’s just because our relationship was so public that people are still talking about it.  And it had a lot of gossip material— we did a movie together, people thought it was sweet that we got together during production, it was great promotion for the picture… and from the outside, we made a lot of sense for each other.  But he has his own problems.  I loved him, but… he wasn’t ever going to be a one-girl kinda guy.”

“But you’re not just any one girl.  You’re… you know, you,” he emphasized.

“You’ve been reading too many headlines,” you shook your head as you sat down beside him.  “Please don’t turn into one of those guys who thinks of me as a celebrity first.  Before that—” you pointed to your own name where it was bolded on his screen in the trending topics page of Twitter— “was popping up on movie posters and in gossip magazines, it was just my name.  And I’m not perfect.  Not even close.”

Bucky sighed and wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into him and holding you tightly.  “And before I knew you were famous, or rich, or incredibly talented, I was totally obsessed with you just for who you are.”

“You’re too fucking amazing,” you sighed as you held his face and gave him a gentle kiss— the kind of kiss that instantly melted his heart and banished his worries.  When you pulled back and looked up at him with a smile, it was like everything else just… faded away.  “Don’t read the comments, okay?  None of them matter.”

He smiled and brushed his thumb over your cheek, overwhelmed by not only the softness of your skin but of your spirit as well.  In all his life he’d never been handled so… gently, with so much care.  “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me,” he mumbled, not even really realizing he’d said it aloud until you gave him a beaming smile.

“I can’t believe you’re my boyfriend,” you giggled pridefully.

“Seriously?  I can… very easily believe it,” he scoffed.

“I just mean… you’re so…” you searched for the words.  “You’re actually good to me, that’s the thing.  I’m not used to that.”

“You deserve the world,” he assured.  “I’m just gonna keep trying to give you as much of it as I can find.”

He watched his hand trail over your face, down your neck and to your chest where he played with the hem of your t-shirt.

"It's odd to know there are millions of people who are jealous of me,” he admitted quietly, remembering some aggressive comments from some very angry dudes who had apparently also watched your nude scene a few too many times.

"Do you like it?  Do you like how it feels to know you're making them angry every time you touch me?"

"Couldn't care less," he refuted.  "Nobody else matters when I'm touchin' you."

“Do you maybe wanna… touch me a little more about it?” you smirked, opening your legs slightly in invitation.

“Always.”

//

Bucky had, thankfully, not let the newfound fame get to his head.  In fact, he had demanded that the two of you hunker down in the house, since he feared that going out would lead to being recognized.  What he apparently hadn’t anticipated was that that might not be enough.

“Will you get that?” you requested when the gate buzzed, too wrapped up in the book you were reading to answer the intercom.

He hopped up and held down the button to communicate with the gate speaker.  “Who is it?” he asked.

“I’ve got a delivery from Anjappar Chettinad on 23rd?”

Bucky didn’t even reply before hitting the green button and granting access to the driveway.  BEEP BEEP BEEP! you heard the gate signal its opening, and the car pulling around up to the door.  Bucky didn’t open it until there was a knock, greeting the delivery guy with a smile and the necessary cash.

“I’ve got a lamb korma, hyderabadi mutton dum biryani and an order of— woah,” the man suddenly stopped, staring at Bucky’s face.  “Are you—?’

“Hungry?  Yes,” he frowned.

“You’re the guy dating— holy shit, congrats man,” he beamed, smacking Bucky on the shoulder pridefully before leaning in with a mischievous smirk.  “Say, is she a freak or what?”

“She is,” you piped up from the couch, making both men turn their heads; but one was chuckling while the other looked mortified.  “You better not have forgotten my paneer pakora or I’m gonna chain you up and whip you.”

“Uh, I— no, I got it right here,” he promised weakly, handing the bag over to Bucky and starting to dash away before Bucky grabbed his arm, making the smaller man whimper fearfully.

“You forgot the money,” Bucky reminded him gruffly, stuffing the bills into the driver’s front pocket.

Finally, he let go, and the delivery man instantly pulled away, rubbing his arm and looking a bit like a kicked puppy as he went back to his car and drove away.

“You didn’t need to scare him that bad,” Bucky chuckled.

“I could say the same to you!  Grabbing somebody with the metal arm like that will put the fear of God into them pretty fast.”

“I didn’t mean to grab him that hard,” he admitted, examining the prosthetic hand as he came back to the couch with the bag of food, handing it to you while he focused on watching his motorized fingers curl and uncurl.  “I think I need to get this thing recalibrated… it’s been bugging out lately.”

“I dunno, it was working just fine last night,” you smiled, remembering how delightfully cool those fingers felt inside you.

Bucky seemed to miss it entirely, though, as he stared off into space.  “I can’t believe I got… recognized.”

“You’re a star,” you winked.  “And not just with random delivery drivers.  I’ve had a lot of press requests, everybody wants to be the first one to get nice pictures of us together— we’ve had a dozen event invites as a couple.”

“Seriously?!” he scoffed, snapping back to reality slightly enough 

“Yeah, and look what came in same-day mail this morning!”  You leaned over to shuffle through the mail on the side table before finding and handing him a letter in a gold-embossed envelope, watching him read what you knew was inside.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association extends an invitation to Y/N Y/L/N and James Barnes to the annual Grant Banquet in support of the Young Artists Fund.

“It seems like a good first event for us,” you explained.  “Relatively small and low stakes, it’s for a good cause…”

“Are you sure I’m ready to be, you know… seen?  By people?” 

You scoffed, hardly believing how insecure he could be sometimes.  “You look great, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Will I have to talk to anybody other than you?” he asked, grimacing as if that were a form of brutal torture.

“Probably,” you admitted.

His frown deepened.  “What if I say the wrong thing?”

“I’m not that worried about you,” you smirked.  “You’re a lot better at this stuff than you think you are.”

“I don’t have anything to wear…”

You smirked, a little too proud of yourself, when you remembered the email your publicist had forwarded to you just this morning.  “Hugo Boss will pay you $1500 to wear one of their suits on the carpet.”

“They’ll pay me to wear free clothes?” he repeated with wide eyes.

“Yeah, that’s one of the cooler things about fame,” you laughed.  “I make a grand every time I wear this watch outside!”

“I guess I should send them my measurements then…” he trailed off.  “Any chance I can get in on that watch deal?”

“No, but you can make $50 by getting papped at Jamba Juice.”

He paused for a moment, scratching the back of his neck as he thought.  “Is the smoothie comped?”

“I don’t know.  Do you want me to ask?”

“...kinda…” he admitted with a shy smile.  

“Well, I will, and I’ll RSVP to this invite saying we’ll be there next week,” you decided as you started to open up the food, but Bucky stopped you by reaching for your hands.

“Are we really doing this?” he asked.

“If you want to,” you mitigated.

“Of course I do.  I guess I have to accept that you’re actually willing to be seen with me,” he chuckled.  “It’s just sort of hard to believe.”

You leaned in and kissed him; it was meant to be a casual, reassuring peck but he held you closer and you melted into him, moaning softly at his touch as you started to climb into his lap.

“The food’s gonna get cold,” he reminded you with a mumble against your lips.

Unfortunately, your literal hunger was a bit too strong to ignore, even with the growing intensity of a metaphorical hunger for Bucky.  “Alright,” you relented, getting off of him and returning your attention to the meal on the table.  “Just know that I really, really want to be seen together, in public, just in case anybody missed the news about us already.  I’m not embarrassed by you or afraid you’re going to do something dumb.  I…”

One of those words that can’t be unsaid started to bubble up in your throat and you coughed, banishing the thought.

“I really like you.  I think we have something special.”

He smiled gently, giving you one more kiss on the cheek.  “I think so, too.”

//

Since this was slightly less of a big deal than a premiere or press tour, you had managed to convince your styling team to let you dress yourself, which was why he was laying on the bed and talking to you through the bathroom door while you put on your gown.

“Do you want me to hire a new driver?” you prompted him, voice muffled slightly as he imagined your head covered in the fabric, trying to navigate through the dress.  “I don’t want you to feel… I don’t know, like a servant?”

“A servant?  You’re still paying me,” he reminded you.  “You are still paying me, right?”

“Yes,” you laughed, “but still, I would hate it if you felt like staff.  You’re my boyfriend!”

(His heart still fluttered every time you said it.)

“No new driver,” he decided.  “I can drive just fine, and considering how things went between us… let’s not open the door for anybody else,” he smirked, making you laugh in that way you did when he made a stupid joke but you still liked it somehow.

“Okay, sure, but what about being my bodyguard?  Is that too weird?” you continued.

“God no,” he scoffed, “if anything I’m gonna be better at my job than ever.  As your boyfriend, keeping you safe is my job, but since keeping you safe was already my job… it’s, like, doubled-up now.”

He lost his train of thought when you opened the door.

“How do I look?” you asked as you stepped in and gave him a spin in your new dress.  Your whole body was draped in red silk, with the exception of your back which was almost entirely exposed, as if it were begging him to run his fingers down your spine.

“Like everything I ever wanted,” he blurted out before he could stop himself.

And it was so odd that you questioned his desire to drive you, because those moments where he could steer with one hand and rest the other on your thigh, when he could catch a glimpse of you looking out the window at the city rolling by, when he got to listen to you ramble about something to kill the time during a drive; those were his favorite moments, and he wouldn’t trade them for anything.

After a relatively brief trip, you arrived at the venue, and all of a sudden he was doing what he’d fantasized about more than he’d like to admit: escorting you down a red carpet.  It was almost overwhelming— yelling, chattering, reporters speaking into camera, flashes going off in every direction—

“Hey,” you whispered, bringing your hand up to his cheek and instantly taking all his attention.

“Hey,” he returned.

“Just follow my lead,” you instructed.

“That was the plan.”

[old-hyper-super-clover]

For the requests‚ what about a family trip to the beach with Purgatory Hall + the royals and MC? Like Simeon and Barbatos setting up a picnic table meanwhile MC and Luke play around in the sand searching for shiny or strange things to building a sand castle (everything also keeping Solomon and Diavolo far from the preparations for the picnic)‚ playing with water guns or swimming. And after eating maybe playing a match of volleyball sand, admiring the sunset till it's nigth time and before going back‚ playing with fireworks, do a little stargazing or something--

Feel free to ignore this and thanks in advance anyway~

FINALLY I've come to write something for this lovely request. It's packed with so many fun ideas that I kinda went overboard with it xD this means the story is so big I'll have to split it into two posts!

To Bisshitu: I wanted to thank you for your continuous support! I see you in my notifs a lot and I really appreciate it!! (ALSO I AM SO SORRY YOU'VE WAITED SO LONG I HOPE YOU WILL STILL ENJOY THIS CHAOS)

Literally just 13 idiots on a beach trip~

Part 1

MC was leaning against one of the walls in the giant entrance halls of the House of Lamentation. Standing next to them, Solomon handed MC an opened bag of spicy newt chips. "Want some?" He asked and MC gladly took a few while constantly watching the commotion that was going on in the rest of the hallway.

Who would've guessed that going on a vacation with the seven rulers of hell would involve the most panicked, loud and chaotic packing of bags to have ever existed?

Well, let's be real, MC did expect it, but maybe not to the degree that they were in amusement about now.

The oldest brother had called the others for a "luggage check" as he had been sceptical of his brothers' talents in packing reasonable items in an, likewise reasonable, amount of suitcases and bags.

And of course, the first one to show up had to present his luggage in the form of... nothing.

Yes, Beelzebub came up to Lucifer, only the remains of a sandwich in his hand (which didn't last longer than three more seconds), confused when Lucifer mustered him with an angered glance.

"Where's your luggage?" Lucifer asked, to which Beel only gave a shrug.

"We're going to the beach, right? Which means I'll only need my swimming trunks, and I wear those underneath my pants."

Now the confusion has wandered over to rest on Lucifer's face. "But... Won't you need clothes to change into, or at least pyjamas for the night?"

"Hm..." Beel scratched the back of his head while thinking about Lucifer's words. "Nah, I don't need those. I'm planning to stay at the beach all the time, so..." Then suddenly, he gasped as he remembered something. "Wait, I do have something else prepared to bring along!"

Beel reached into his pocket, and when he pulled out a hand-written list that unrolled itself, plonking onto the carpet and rolling all the way to Lucifer's feet, the avatar of Pride knew exactly what said list was going to be.

"There are a few food stands that I'd like to try out..." Beel announced, eyeing the paper. "First of all, there's one selling shaved ice, which I want to compare to the ice-cream from this other stand, but who's also selling parfaits of which I kind of want to try all twenty-five flavours... Also then there's of course-"

"Beel" Lucifer interrupted the avatar of Gluttony in a strict tone. "Go pack a proper bag."

"But-"

"Now."

Letting out a sigh, Lucifer watched as Beel left.

But little did he know, this had only been the beginning of the chaos...

Moments later, Lucifer has found himself explaining to Satan why taking 70 different books with him would be ridiculously much. Also Mammon had taken this opportunity to "lend" some of his brothers possessions, arguing that he "needed those for the beach". This had worked until his swift fingers touched Levi's limited edition Ruri-chan sunscreen.

So, as Lucifer was spam-calling Belphie to wake him up and finally have him start packing, a sudden argument could be heard from upstairs:

"... How dare you steal my precious Hana Ruri 'magical sun ray protective lotion for all blooming heroes of justice'?! This very sunscreen is an homage to the legendary beach episode where Azuki-tan got a sunburn and couldn't help Ruri-chan in the intense battle against the evil kelp-army that was threatening to overgrow the local reef-"

"OKAY OKAY, HERE'S YOUR STUPID CREAM NOW LEAVE ME ALONE"

"S-STUPID CREAM?!?! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW PRECIOUS THIS ITEM IS TO A FAN LIKE-"

That was all Lucifer could understand as an awfully annoyed scream Mammon let out was drowning Levi's gibberish. Rubbing the bridge of his nose, Lucifer knew this vacation was going to be one intense experience...

An hour later, the group found itself where this little story had started off. The Purgatory Hall crew had already arrived long ago, enjoying the chaos together with MC -- who, btw, had been the only one to pass Lucifer's vibe luggage check right away.

Slowly it felt like most of the brothers were ready to go, only Asmodeus was left in the judgemental glare of the avatar of Pride.

But Lucifer noticed they already were way behind the time they were supposed to meet Diavolo at his castle. So, to Asmo's luck, he let off of trying to see what's inside the pretty boy's suitcase and announced the group's departure.

In enthusiasm shared by almost everyone, they let out a big cheer:

"Off to the beach we go!"

Some of the demons had whined about wanting to visit the human world beach. But as those idiot boys literally couldn't be trusted to act responsibly (which is okay, we love them regardless), Diavolo offered to stay at the beach resort he created in the Devildom.

Looking over the endless ocean, surrounded by the equally large beach and glistening in an artificial sun's light, MC was wondering just how powerful the demon prince must be to have created all this. But they were left only little time to be in awe over the location, as their friends demanded their attention shortly after having arrived.

Without going into much detail -- the day was packed with lots and lots of fun. MC was running around the beach, playing and goofing around with their friends, only to take a collective rest and then go do something silly again. Only a few other demons were to be found at the resort, but those were some acquaintances of Diavolo's family, and the group seemed to have scared them off of the beach after, like, an hour or so. Hence, the whole beach served as their playground for whatever activity they wanted to do, until in the afternoon, most of them were about to collapse from exhaustion and hunger.

"That's right, we didn't really have a proper meal since coming here" Asmo noticed as several tummy grumbles undermined his statement.

"We DID bring a picnic basket..." Satan mumbled. "But some genius had to let Beel carry it."

The culprit gave an immediate pout. "I had to hurry, 'kay?!" Mammon huffed. "MC was already at the beach and I--" he stopped. "... U-uh... I mean..."

Gaining a round of sighs and shaking heads, his brothers however decided to let Mammon's... mammon-ness slide for once. Mostly because, approaching from the distance, Barbatos and Solomon were getting closer, their hands full with bags that seemed to be stuffed with food.

"Y-yoU BroUGhT S-nAcKs?!" Beelzebub was already on his feet running towards them but Barbatos' stare was actually enough to make him stop.

"Not before the dishes are prepared, Beelzebub" Barbatos explained calmly, but with this very weird hidden tone in his voice that gave everyone chills despite the scorching summer heat.

"We figured everyone must be starving by now, so Barbatos suggested we'd make a little picnic party with everyone" Solomon cheered, presenting the bags in his hands.

"That sounds lovely" Simeon could be heard among the general noise of approval. "Let me help you prepare everything, Barbatos."

The demon butler beamed him a smile, thanking the angel for his help.

Then, Solomon spoke up again, and every bit of joy vanished from all their faces: "Thank you, Simeon! With the three of us working together the food will be ready in no time!"

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

Barbatos was putting all kinds of spices into a bowl to create a delicious sauce. Right next to him, Simeon prepared mouth-watering sandwiches.

And behind their back, there was this chopping sound. Chop reaching their chop ears in an chop never- chop ending thread, over and chop over again...

Swallowing his tension, Simeon was fighting a frown. "He's only cutting the fruits..." He whispered. "You shouldn't be able to mess up a fruit salad..."

"I know" Barbatos mumbled back. "However I cannot fight this unease that urges me to check if he's really-" He was interrupted by a very unsettling "oops" coming from that certain sorcerer at the cutting board.

In honestly quicker than the blink of an eye Simeon and Barbatos were at Solomon's side, frantically scanning the table for whatever Solomon must've messed up. When all they found were slices of fruit that, well, might have been chopped a bit wonky, they gave Solomon a confused stare.

"I cut off too much of this poor Hellberry's pull" Solomon explained. "Oh well, I'll just cut around the stem and add it to the fruit salad like this."

Both Barbatos and Simeon couldn't help but stare for a moment longer, their brains not really comprehending NOT finding an abomination in Solomon's cooking.

"Can I help you two with anything?" The sorcerer then asked.

"U-uhm, no..." Simeon mumbled. "It's all fine, we just..."

"We wanted to see if there's anything we can help you with" Barbatos jumped in to continue.

"Thanks, but I'm fine. Actually I'm almost finished, so maybe I can help one of you afterw-"

"Nononononono...!" Simeon almost whined. "I-its fine! We're actually almost finished ourselves, so..."

Solomon looked back, raising an eyebrow. "Doesn't look like it to me..."

Suddenly, another voice joined the group.

"I agree! You two are likely just being humble again" Diavolo had walked up to their working station a moment ago, but neither of them seemed to have noticed in their stress. The prince continued: "That's why I decided to lend you a hand as well. This is a vacation for all of us, so I should not burden my loyal butler with all the work."

"That's a commendable attitude for royalty like yourself" Solomon cheered. "Well then, I think Simeon and Barbatos could use a hand."

Diavolo was already squeezing his quite broad body into the tiny cooking space, this certain over-excited sparkle in his eyes as he mustered the food.

Barbatos and Simeon on the other hand were exchanging glances, so immensely stressed that their thoughts were almost audible:

'Barbatos I don't think I can handle any more of this stress' Simeon stared.

'We shouldn't have let Solomon help in the first place, our kindness was foolish' Barbatos stared back.

'What do we do now Barbatos this is the only food we have left, they cannot ruin it'

Thankfully, the perfect butler was not planning to let their "help" threaten the food for any longer. "Young master, I highly appreciate that you thought of my well-being. Which is why I indeed have a request for you and Solomon."

Simeon almost barged in on a frightened impulse, but Barbatos continued before anyone could raise their voice. "There is dessert stored in our hotel's main storage. Would you be so kind and bring enough for our whole group?"

A little surprised, Diavolo agreed. He waited for Solomon to finish cutting the fruits, then they went off to the hotel.

Finally able to catch a breath, Simeon shot Barbatos a last glance. "That was easier than expected. Why didn't we let Solomon bring the desserts earlier?"

Back to mixing spices, Barbatos didn't look up at the question. "What desserts?" He simply asked.

"... Uhm..." Simeon was quite startled. "Are there... Are there no desserts in the storage room...?"

"Oh, I sure hope there are" Barbatos said. "Otherwise I will have some explaining to do..."

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

(To be continued...)

Find my summer event Masterlist and Rules for the requests here <3

[whatyouwantedmetosee]

Do you think your req! au Jack and @inkdemonapologist 's escape! au Jack would get along?

Upon seeing this ask, my first thought was like, oh, they’ll get along, it’ll be pretty chill an uneventful probably! But then I started actually properly considering things, and... 

So much of this changes a lot based on which version of Req!Jack is the one meetings Escape AU!Jack.

Most of the information I’ve shared about Requirement AU is set before or during the loops - but Escape AU is, as the name says, after everyone escapes. So their situations are a little different there!

I’ll assume we’re not planning on terrorising Escape Jack by letting him meet goopy ink Req!Jack. But that leaves either pre-ink or post-ink to choose from still. And... while pre-ink is the one I’ve actually talked most about, I’m actually more interested in getting post-ink Req!Jack to meet Escape!Jack.

So! Minor spoilers for Requirement AU incoming, I guess! Mostly things I’ve talked about before, though, I think. I lose track! Also general credit to @inkdemonapologist here too - I talked a little about the idea with her first, so some of these thoughts are things she brought up to me!

The two Jacks I feel like, would get along just pretty casually at first! Very chill. Once you get past the slight weirdness of meeting another you, neither of the Jacks are particularly rude, both are pretty friendly, etc. so they’d be able to just kinda chill and chat, enjoy some coffee! They both have a similar sense of humour, so they’d probably have fun talking.

Until the topic of what happened in the loops came up, or any of their personal history or circumstances. Because there’s just... a lot of differences there, that would probably throw them off a lot?

Escape AU’s issues, from what we know, are mostly ink based - the ink is still a problem there, even after the gang escape. But in Requirement AU, the ink isn’t a problem, and hasn’t been for a long time. The power the ink once had got pushed out by the power of the loops instead.

And then, on the other hand, Requirement AU’s issue is the loops - they’re almost the antagonist, in their own way? A force, that needs to be worked against, and solved, and defeated. While, in Escape AU, the loops are just the setting for the horror, a factor in the situation but not the main problem.

And so, different situation means different effects on the characters too! Escape AU has a lot of the characters still dealing with all of their issues outside of the studio, and it significantly changed a lot of them. But, for Requirement AU, escaping the loops required fixing things closer to how they used to be - restoring people’s memories and thoughts, and healing, to be able to actually combat things and work towards escape.

I know this ask is about the Jacks, but I can’t not consider the different AU Sammys when thinking about Jacks. Both Req and Escape Jack are very close to their respective Sammy, so how Sammy is affects how they feel too.

Requirement Sammy, as he mends and becomes more himself, returns more to how he was before the ink. He’s a little snarky, regains more of his old confidence. He’s got a little bit of a bite to him still. And then, through escaping the loops, he builds up more of his trust in his old coworkers, maybe even gains some new friendships along with restoring his old ones.

Escape Sammy is a lot more... hm, tragic is maybe too strong a word, but. It’s a lot more... complicated, for him. Escape Sammy isn’t a whole lot like how he used to be, and he’s still in the process of coping and recovering. He’s a pretty different person than who he was before.

And so, because the Jacks are so close to their Sammys, they probably have... pretty different outlooks on things? And I think, the difference between the Sammys is also sorta a trend in how different the two AUs are as a whole, even. Comparatively, the Req!AU crew are doing a lot better than the Escape crew, on the surface.

So I feel like... Req!Jack would probably, the more he talked with Escape!Jack about what happened to both of them, would feel, probably kinda bad, about this? Like, Survivor’s Guilt almost, in the sense of feeling bad for having made it out in better shape than the other group. What he went through was bad, but a lot of Req!AU recovery started during the loops. Escape AU crew still have to catch up to that.

...well, that was a long tangent, and uh, pROBABLY, DIDN’T ACTUALLY ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, IF IT MADE SENSE AT ALL, but! I hope it was interesting thoughts regardless!!

(Also adds in disclaimer that while I’ve yelled back and forth with Shazz about the Escape AU crew a bunch, I’m not the expert there, so things here might not be 100% accurate to them!)

[boltwrites]

Okay could I have please headcanons for Bolin x reader but with a clone of Bolin. The clone is Nuktuk. So it looks like Bolin but acts like the character. Ty!

kinktober 2020 | this week’s list

A/N: this prompt is FANTASTIC this is so much fun. also very long. and with plot! also i LOVE writing Nuktuk he’s like the fucking. stupid frat boy version of Bolin he’s such a dickhead. ANYWAY ENJOY! (reminder that y/p stands for your pronouns!)

by clicking read more you verify that you are at least 18 years old

so, you’re just hanging out in your apartment. Bolin went out to that nice dumpling place you both like to get you dinner, and you were just chilling with Pabu

that was, until Bolin slammed through the door

“we have a situation-!” he yelled, looking far more concerned than he did at any given time. you sprung up immediately, Pabu scampering to help Bolin

“what? what ha-oh” your expression switched from worry to amazement as a figure appeared behind Bolin. he looked exactly the same - except for his, uh, outfit. and his eyes, which were an icy blue

“nice place you got here,” he nodded at you, with a little flirtatious smile. you might pass away

“Bolin... can we talk in the other room... in private,” you added, as the weird man who looked disturbingly like your boyfriend’s on screen alter-ego raised his eyebrows

you and Bolin retreated to the other room, and you whisper-yelled at him

“what the fuck - Bo where did he come from?” “listen, i don’t know! i guess the dumpling place is pretty close to the spirit world portal - maybe he’s from there? but why does he look like me? but like, Nuktuk me! but like older Nuktuk me!”

you hadn’t even thought of that, but - now that he mentioned it, this Nuktuk did look exactly like Bolin. not like 17 year old Bolin who had shot the films, but current day, 21 year old Bolin who had gained more muscle and a little bit of stubble if he didn’t shave every day

“but why did he follow you home?” “he thought i was him, or that - he was me?” Bolin pressed his face into his hands “this is hurting my brain, Y/n!”

you patted him on the shoulder. “it’s ok, Bo. we’ll figure this out

so, you both faced weird Nuktuk man

who, was, in fact, Nuktuk. apparently, in the spirit world, if enough people retell and spread a specific story, it can become real in the spirit world. and, as such, Nuktuk was born. he had actually done all the things that Bolin had as Nuktuk’s actor, memories and all

and he had the attitude to match it. he was nice enough, you thought, but he was kind of conceited. you swore you saw him flexing at himself in the hall mirror

he apparently had come to the human world to see what all the hype was about, and he was super excited that he had found Bolin, calling him a long lost brother-in-arms

Bolin begrudgingly accepted Nuktuk’s compliments, and when Nuktuk asked if you and Bolin could offer him some hospitality and let him stay the night, Bolin couldn’t tell him no

he actually ended up staying far longer than one night. and spirits, he was always running into you or starting to strike up a conversation. and it was distracting. it felt like you were emotionally cheating on your boyfriend with a weird spirit version of himself, because when Nuktuk raked his eyes along your body it made you shiver, and he stood far too close when he complimented your cooking. everything he said to you sounded vaguely sexual and it was destroying you

eventually, you had to confront Bolin about it

“ok, Bo, i have to start this off with the fact that i love you very much,” you began, standing and pacing as Bolin pet Pabu on the bed. he raised an eyebrow, a little concerned. “but unfortunately that’s becoming a problem, because Nuktuk out there keeps making advances and he says these things that are like, not actually sexual but he makes them sexual and he looks like you and he undresses me with his eyes and we need to do something about it!”

you glanced at Bolin, concerned, and he worried his lip between his teeth. “maybe we should talk to him?” he offered. you scoffed. “talk to him? he needs to get out of here! it feels like i’m cheating on you with you!”

Bolin nodded, thoughtful “you’re right, i am very handsome in the Nuktuk outfit” (which, by the way, was the only thing that Nuktuk would wear around the house, unless it was in the wash. you kind of preferred it, because it reminded you who he was and prevented you from hugging him from behind when you got home, thinking he was Bolin)

you groaned, but Bolin insisted that you talk to Nuktuk instead of just throwing him out. despite some reservations when he first showed up, Bolin had grown to like the guy, calling him his “work out buddy” and even asking him to help out at the pro bending arena as a waterbending trainer

so, Bolin talked to him. you didn’t want to be there, because it was embarrassing, but once they were done, they both approached you together.

“so, is everything all worked out?” you asked, wary, because Nuktuk was still looking at you in a sexual way... and Bolin was too? wait, what?

“yeah, we did, actually,” Bolin replied, with a little half grin. Nuktuk’s own grin was lazy and very, very hot. “so, Y/n,” Nuktuk asked, his arms crossed, “how do you feel about being with both of us?”

you choked on your own spit

“what!?”

so, now you were in a relationship with the both of them, and Bolin was completely fine with it. in fact, he was friends with Nuktuk. friends with him!

and Nuktuk now had free reign to crowd you against the kitchen counter, and kiss you goodnight - and you thought he would kiss like Bolin, but he doesn’t, it’s so much more intense every time, and it leaves you gasping

after a few weeks, you stop focusing so much on how strange and different it is, and instead you ease into the relationship. Nuktuk takes you on a few dates (one of which is to a showing of his own mover, where he wears a stupid disguise) and you end up liking him as his own person, not just because he looks like Bolin

ok, like, his looks are definitely a part of it. he’s so pretty. but he’s also a little more confident than Bolin, and while he’s full of himself, he also still manages to be a dork. he likes puns and he’s a real gentleman, just like Bolin is - but Nuktuk takes it to a new level. literally one time you both go out while it’s raining and he bends the water around you to keep you dry. you were equal parts amazed, flattered, and a little annoyed because of how pleased with himself Nuktuk was

eventually, you and Bolin let him into your bed. not sexually, at first - just to sleep. and you have to admit that being pressed between the both of them is something you love dearly

you press your face to Bolin’s shoulder as you fall asleep, and Nuktuk is pressed to your back? and both of you talk about your days all together before you go to sleep, Bolin petting through your hair as Nuktuk just touches you - it’s very hard for you to not get turned on between the both of them. and actually, you are turned on, but you don’t want to push it

eventually, you do press that extra little bit, and one evening, you climb into bed with them, and Nuktuk is running his hands over your sides, sliding his fingers up your shirt, and you just can’t anymore

you don’t say a thing, you just grab his hand under the covers and slide it under your waistband, your breath hitching a little against Bolin’s shoulder as you will his hand lower and spread your legs for him

Bolin is just telling you about his day, petting through your hair, looking at you so sweet, when Nuktuk traces his fingers against you so light and you do your absolute best not to shake

he’s pressed completely against your back, and you can feel him harden against your ass as he touches you, explores you. eventually he slides a finger into you and your breathe hitches, pressing your face into Bolin’s chest

“Y/n? are you ok?” he asks, mistaking your labored breathing as pain rather that pleasure. Nuktuk took this as the perfect opportunity to slide his thumb along your sweet spot, and instead of replying, you just gasp. it wouldn’t usually be this good, but the fact that Bolin was there, and that it was your first time with both of them? had you dying

“Y/n’s perfect, aren’t you?” Nuktuk asked, and you just gasped, clutching at Bolin. “Bo, please-” you mumbled, with a look in your eyes that he immediately recognized. you had already discussed a threesome with him before, and you knew he was into it - you hadn’t wanted to just spring it on him like this, but you couldn’t resist

“oh, oh,” Bolin replied, peeling off the covers to reveal what was happening underneath. you rocked into Nuktuk’s touch, even though it was just a horrible tease. you could feel his smirk on your neck as he added a second finger, just to spread you wide

“i think Y/n could take both of us, don’t you?” Nuktuk asked, and you had a perfect view of Bolin’s face to see it turn beet red. the boxers he slept in weren’t leaving much to the imagination as he took everything in

“Y/n is that -” Bolin started, but Nuktuk cut him off. “c’mon sweetheart, tell him you can take it. you want it, don’t you? you’ve wanted both of us since you first saw me”

it was demeaning, but spirits, was he right. you nodded, pleading with your eyes for Bolin to believe you

he did, and it didn’t take long until both of their hands were on you, Bolin stripped off his boxers as he pulled you close, sliding his hands along you to take your clothes off. Nuktuk was still plunging his fingers into you, but now he wrapped his other hand around you as well, to feel along your thighs, to take you apart with two hands. despite him trying to tease you, it just felt so good - all of their hands on you. you had always loved Bolin’s hands - how big they were, how warm they were, how his callouses felt on your skin. it was too much, and you panted against Bolin’s mouth as he drew you in for deep kisses, kissing you so sweet and gentle compared to the teasing, dirty treatment you were receiving from Nuktuk

Bolin barely had you undressed and you were already coming, crying out from the pleasure of it, tightening around Nuktuk’s fingers and shaking apart. he chuckled in your ear, and even though it felt like he was laughing at you, that somehow made it hotter

“oh, Bo,” he grinned at Bolin, trying to shimmy out of his own underwear, grinding hard against your ass as soon as his cock was free. “oh, Y/n is such a doll, isn’t y/p?” 

you keened at the feeling of him thrusting against you, of how he tugged you so close - roughly, rougher than Bolin would usually handle you. he slid his fingers out of you and you moaned at the loss

“Bo, please,” you pleaded, grabbing at his wrist and pulling him close. Bolin was still so in awe of all of this - in awe of you, of Nuktuk, of how you looked with him. he was probably wondering if that was how you looked with him, and that made you shiver even more. 

“yeah, Bo,” Nuktuk mumbled, whispering against your ear before he nipped at it, gently, running a hand along your thigh. “can’t you see how needy your partner is? have you been neglecting poor Y/n?”

Bolin shook his head, pressing close to you immediately, wrapping an arm around to to pull you close. you were already pliant from your first orgasm, and the warmth of both of them, sandwiched on both sides of you, was almost too much. you grabbed at Bolin, squeezed his ass to will him closer, wrapping your legs around his waist so he knew exactly what you wanted

“i would never neglect y/p,” Bolin replied, pouting a little. you kissed it off of him, pulling him so close as he teased at your entrance. what Nuktuk said must have really affected him, because he pressed in with one even stroke, and you shook at the feeling of being so full, so complete with him. you kissed him deep, like you were starved, as Nuktuk’s fingers slid along your ass.

he worked you open as Bolin fucked you shallow, just enough to hear you moan. he was whispering words of love to you - telling you how good you felt, how much he loved you, and you told him yes, you knew, and you loved him too, you just wanted so much, you wanted everything, and from the both of them

Nuktuk nipped and sucked at your neck as he worked you open, sure to leave marks. you knew that he loved to claim you, but this was even more than usual, and it made you shake, thinking that underneath his tough guy exterior, Nuktuk really loved you too, even after such a short time

eventually, you were ready for him, and he wrapped his arms around you and Bolin, squishing you all so close together

“ready for me, sweetheart?” he asked, low and sultry in your ear. you moaned, feeling him press against you. you needed it - you needed to feel them both, filling you up

“please -” you moaned, and cried out as Nuktuk pressed into you. fuck, he was just as thick as Bolin, and you felt like you might split in two

Bolin moaned too, shaking against you, holding on for dear life. oh no - it must be so tight for him too, as he broke your kisses to press his face into your neck, breathing heavy. Bolin was stock still as Nuktuk pressed in, trying desperately not to come. Nuktuk himself took his time, and although he didn’t moan quite as loud, you knew he was slowly losing it too

“fuck, you’re so tight,” he whined in your ear, and Bolin nodded, making a desperate noise in confirmation. at this point, you didn’t even care if they moved. they were pressing on all the right places and they felt so good -

and then Nuktuk moved, and it was all over.

they fucked into you shallow, Nuktuk trying to contain himself while Bolin had no such composure. he gripped your hips hard, shaking as he thrust, gasping your name against your shoulder until he fell apart

and spirits, did he fall apart - he came inside you, and that only made you want more, reaching around the urge Nuktuk on, with a chorus of “please, please-” because you were so close again - 

he reached around to touch you, and that was all it took. you came around them, making Bolin scream and Nuktuk moan so loud as he fucked you harder, in turn making everything far more intense for you, and Bolin as he was now being overstimulated by you and Nuktuk. he quivered in your arms, and you kissed him and he mumbled nonsense about how good it was, about how he never knew he could feel that good.

Nuktuk came soon after, spilling inside you and collapsing against your back, squishing all of you so close together. you were panting, and Bolin was still trying to come back to himself, but wow. maybe you really did enjoy this arrangement

[emmys-grimoire]

Cosmology blurb

Mulling over ideas for a fanfic series set in the Celestial Realm and realizing I may need to make some educated guesses about how things work. I figure I’d share my observations. Spoilers ahead.

I’m thinking the realms aren’t sandwiched/stratified on top of each other but are arranged more like this...

... if Lilith didn’t have to fall through the human realm to get to the Devildom and if the heavenly gates are accessible from the Devildom (implied when MC is transported there from the Devildom). There are obviously Celestial-Human and Devildom-Human access points in the story, too.

Traditionally, Heaven is upstairs and Hell is downstairs. But, while clearly inspired by these places, the Devildom is not actually Hell and the Celestial Realm is not actually Heaven. I mean, they’re not even named that.

They each have their own seperate skies with different constellations/celestial bodies (Devildom doesn’t have a sun and the other two realms do, and they have Belphie’s/Beel’s stars). Clearly the act of falling from the Celestial Realm to the Devildom is at least a metaphorical thing, but it’s implied to be literal, too.

I don’t think it matters a whole heckuvalot, but it’s interesting to think about.

Angel versus Devil society

Looking at what small details we have, the way these two realms have evolved and currently function is also very interesting.

The Devildom is a monarchy while the Celestial Realm may be an autocracy with a caste system (I think the Devildom probably does, too, just by the nature of feudalism but it may not be officially acknowledged). Previous Demon Kings have lived and died (there’s a tomb and a line of succession) while the Celestial Realm presumably remained ruled by the same entity throughout time. 

That’s pretty interesting, too. Demon Kings are not immortal. Diavolo, however, is likely stronger than Lucifer -- it makes sense that he has to be if he’s actually meant to replace his father.

The Celestial Realm’s caste system has Luke at the lowest rank, some kind of middle or multiple ranks, and Michael at the top rank. Lucifer used to occupy the same rank alongside him.

Christian angelology has multiple very detailed and convoluted hierarchies regarding angels, and for that reason it's probably much more simplified in the game. It already deviates from the typical choir arrangement by having archangels be the top rank when they're normally near the bottom, and giving them the six wings of the seraphim (the top choir).

We're not given much insight as to whether or not angels are born into these ranks or if they ascend them through good works and valor in battle or something. Lucifer being so utterly flawless seems to suggest he was born with it, but Luke complaining about being in the lowest rank suggests that there may be some way for him to change that arrangement and it may simply be a consequence of his (lack of) age and experience. Simeon also mentioning Michael may be of higher rank but he's still "a normal angel" may also allude to that. It could be a variation, where everyone starts at the same level but Lucifer and Michael were specifically given a greater share of angelic power so they were meant to get to the top and that inevitably happened. Or maybe angels gain xp and levels in fights with the demons and they managed to become head and shoulders above the rest by being better gamers.

Also, the legion of angels. 

A legion is a military or semimilitary unit. That is an interesting term to call what may also double as your governing body outside of daddy. The game mentions Michael was in charge of Mammon’s “training” before he was handed over to Lucifer, and well...

Michael is usually depicted and referred to as a protector and the leader of the army of God against the forces of evil, and it seems he reprises that role in this universe. Lucifer once did, too.

A fundamental part of “angel training” may revolve around warfare and training for it. We know the angels and demons have had a long, bloody history, but fighting doesn’t seem to be a part of RAD’s curriculum. The Celestial Realm may have changed it’s course now that they’ve entered a period of relative peace, but I’m not entirely sure.

So far the only in-game lore detail we have related to the actual fighting is the colosseum being destroyed in a battle before the creation of RAD, but it’s proof that the angels have invaded the Devildom at some point. It might have went vice-versa, too, and we simply haven’t observed it because we haven’t been in the Celestial Realm for more than two minutes. 

In spite of all this, it doesn’t seem like angel society is wholly bad. It’s likely rigid and hierarchical, but it is also strangely communal. The brothers have all fostered close bonds with each other within the Celestial Realm -- not the Devildom -- and the angels in the story seem to maintain their positive opinion of Lucifer and his brothers in spite of him sparking a civil war and them now being demons. How the angels treat each other is also noteworthy: Simeon and Luke clearly love each other and have a healthy relationship, by all accounts Michael wholeheartedly supports Luke and gives him positive feedback, and in spite of Luke’s obvious (though changing) prejudice towards all things demon they’re comparatively even-keeled. They generally operate on the assumption that they should help each other and others and that’s a good thing.

They also seem to be onboard with the intent behind exchange program. Luke isn’t sent there to be a spy like Simeon probably was, because he’s pretty terrible at subterfuge. 

A tacit admission that Luke’s perspective is one commonly held by the denizens of the Celestial Realm. Simeon points out that it’s not entirely bad, and I’m inclined to agree.

And also an acknowledgement that the thinking is flawed and they’re willing to make an effort to expand their horizons (considered a good thing). So something has changed, and it’s probably connected to... well... Lucifer and his brothers falling. Or the Celestial Realm just isn’t a monolith and there’s competing viewpoints even with how their society is structured. It’d be interesting to hear what the brothers thought about demons before they became demons themselves, and how they adjusted to that transformation (we get insight on how Lucifer viewed them via Glory Days, but that’s it.)

The Devildom, in contrast, uh... still has problems in this area outside of Diavolo.

This is disregarding all the soul devouring, torture, and casual murder that goes on between demons -- including the brothers. Diavolo is well regarded, but he’s also been unofficially in charge for quite awhile and it doesn’t appear he thinks this is a problem, even though he himself doesn’t treat his subjects poorly (as far as I know, anyway).

Which brings me to this...

There’s a reason he doesn’t really have any close bonds beyond Barbatos and Lucifer, in spite of being universally beloved. And I’m not sure how well he knows Barbatos, honestly. He’s isolated, and it’s not entirely related to his position; Lucifer has been in a high status position in both realms and doesn’t have this problem and never really did in spite of being prickly and anal-retentive af. There’s been quite a bit of commentary in these lessons about how he’s changed and may be reverting back to his angelic tendencies, with Barbatos implying that while it may be good for him and his family, it may not be what’s best for the Devildom... and I think that’s a mindset carried over from his tenure serving under Diavolo’s dad and helping enforce the current state of the Devildom for a specific purpose. MC somehow turning Lucifer and his brothers back into good people (or better people, at least), and Diavolo being envious of their closeness, may interfere with that: the demons around them may start getting ideas, and Diavolo may make more changes.

So not all is well in the Devildom, either, and Diavolo may not be cognizant of how or why. While the Celestial Realm may be a militant society with authoritarian impulses and bigotry, the Devildom sounds like a corrupt monarchy with a dog-eat-dog world underneath that makes trust and love liabilities to survival and keeps the peasants where they are forever. It’s simply another brand of dysfunction.

Hoomans and MC

The Human Realm is probably meant to be some kind of middleground in the dark/bad - light/good spectrum, with its inhabitants having no impulses skewed one way or the other and thus possessing the ability to slide back and forth. 

Demons interact with the human world via being summoned, pacts, or simply travelling there. Manipulating them and preying on them involves magical speechcraft. The angels aren’t allowed to reveal their angel forms to humans, travel there without permission (though it seems the punishment for this wasn’t enough to deter Belphie/Beel/Lilith/Mammon), or magically extend their lifespans -- it seems they prefer to meddle in their affairs indirectly, and revolves around shepherding them towards certain (presumably good) decisions. Ironically enough, Michael himself seems to violate these tenets with Solomon, who is evidently aware of who gave him the demon-controlling ring and was invited to chill with him in the Celestial Realm. It’s do as I say but not as I do, apparently.  

The game seems to imply that it’s possible that MC inherited Lilith’s angelic tendencies/abilities/memories/whatever after the big reveal, which makes me think she may not have turned into a demon before she was reborn. There’s no reason to think she would have retained her angelic abilities as a demon when her brothers haven’t -- she presumably would have lost them before being reborn, if she was turned into a demon first. Diavolo might have just skipped that step altogether for simplicity’s sake.

But she did technically fall, so ???? Maybe it’s just literally falling from the sky.

tl;dr version: they’re all fucked up and the exchange program is a good way for them to try to get their shit together. And I like how it’s set up.

[rukia-kuchiki-divided]

Can you write about the adoption scene from Rukia's perspective? Pls??

~Sure why not? Angst hours it is then! Under readmore for length because... I have no self control~

The unused study room at the end of the hall sat completely empty when Rukia arrived. Sighing softly as the door shut behind her, grateful that it was enough to effectively muffle the remarks about her origins in the Rukongai. Wasn’t it bad enough that she was surrounded by stuck up nobles who lived life without a care in the world? Meanwhile, she was back to rationing out her meal supply until she could manage to sneak out to the outer edges of the Seireitei and replenish her stash. 

Renji was supposed to meet her here so they could take their lunch break together. It had been a few days since Rukia really had a chance to talk to him. They’d both been training late into the night, normally too exhausted to exchange much more than pleasantries in the evening before giving in to sleep in their respective dormitories. Males and females were generally kept apart though Rukia felt safer sleeping up in the branches of the nearby trees then in her small closet of a room. It wasn’t that she wasn’t grateful to have a place to keep dry in the rain. But compared to living in the Rukongai with it’s wide open spaces, she found it a touch claustrophobic for her tastes.  

Wondering just how long his exam was going to take, Rukia let out another long sigh. This was his second major exam that would allow Renji to excel into the next level. If he passed, he’d be more than just an advance class above her. She should feel happy for him. She was happy for him. But that dark shadow of doubt weighed heavily in her chest which rendered reading her open textbook impossible. 

“The gap between us just continues to grow.” Rukia muttered to no one in particular. “Eventually, that bond will snap. Am I holding Renji back?  I  wish I was able to forget the Rukongai as easily as he seems to have done.” 

Groaning, Rukia tapped her forehead against the text book. What is wrong with me? Renji’s excelling and here I am feeling sorry for myself. Snap out of it, damn it!

So when the door suddenly opened, Rukia had already resigned herself to put on a happy face and congratulate the red head despite the pang of jealousy in her heart. 

“About time, baka. I thought you were gonna stand me up for-” 

Rukia’s eyes widened as she realized she did not feel Renji’s usual warm familiar reiatsu. Quickly jumping to her feet, she recognized the signs of nobility  from the kenseikan to the servants accompanying them, even to the way they watched her low bow with a critical gaze. 

“Forgive me, I thought you were someone else.” 

Rukia apologized, keeping her head low as she was taught. The last thing she needed was to piss off a noblemen who might have a say in how their classes were graded. There appeared to be two noblemen while the others were their attendants. Wait  - not just attendants but soul reapers! 

The younger one with the kenseikan had a zanpakuto in addition to an intimidating amount of spiritual pressure. It felt cold and hard like a steel blade on a cold winter morning. They match his hard grey eyes that look over Rukia’s face critically, as if searching for something. She watched as a flicker of immeasurable sadness crosses his gaze for an instant before it is locked behind a wall of steel. Was that pity?

“Forgive us, as it is we who interrupted your studying.” The older man spoke with a deep baritone, motioning for Rukia to stand up straight once more. “You are Rukia, is that right? From Inuzuri in the Rukongai?” 

“Yes, that’s me.” But how and why would nobles like them care about her or where she was from? Her brow furrowed slightly as she ran through a list of possibilities.

The older noblemen glanced at the younger one, his facial expression asking an unspoken question. Rukia watched as the younger one inclined his head slightly, an almost imperceptible nod of approval.

“I see.” The older man looked Rukia over once more  with stern eyes behind those delicate glass lenses and she felt significantly more uncomfortable. The way his eyes lingered on her worn red uniform and the smudges of dirt on her shoes made her feel as though she was being assessed for a price.

 “Then let us get on with the purpose of our meeting. Rukia, my name is Nobutsune Seike. I am the cleric elder of the noble Kuchiki Clan. This is Byakuya Kuchiki, the head of our noble house.” The pride in his voice as he spoke was overwhelming. Even Rukia had heard of the Kuchiki clan, though only in rumor as if they were a fairy tale to be sought after. 

“We would like to make you an offer to join our family.” 

The world seemed to suddenly turn on it’s side. Rukia blinked once and then twice to regain her composure. Surely she had misheard the elder?! Perhaps he was confused and misspoke?! Her violet eyes glanced up at who she now knew was Byakuya Kuchiki himself, looking at him for any sign of disagreement. But his face was stoic and still, as if he was made of steel himself. 

“My apologies,” Rukia managed to stammer out. “But I must have misunderstood. What would a noble clan want me to joint their family for?”  

For a split second, Rukia could have sworn she saw a look of disgust cross the elder’s face though he disguised it well. “Ah a very blunt question. But we can get to the details of things after we present our offer. Rukia, we would like to extend to you an offer of adoption. Not only would you be part of the noble Kuchiki Clan, but Byakuya Kuchiki himself will adopt you as his younger sister!” 

His younger sister? But... why? It didn’t make any sense to her. Before Rukia could interrupt, Nobutsune held up his hand. 

“Please, allow me to lay out the terms of our offer. You would become Rukia Kuchiki, no longer a nameless soul of the Rukongai. Your home would be the main Kuchiki house with all its amenities. Of course, you would be subject to the laws of our clan as any other member of Kuchiki house along with the additional requirements the main family house entails.” 

He paused again, looking Rukia up and down for the third time while pushing up his glasses. “We understand that there is a ... gap in education due to your upbringing. We are prepared to tutor you in our home as well as propel your soul reaper career. As a member of our noble house, you will not need to bother completing the Academy’s training course as we will arrange for private training. You will be allowed to join an available squad of your choosing and test for a seated position if you should qualify.” 

This was unreal. She had to be dreaming. There was just no way that the Kuchiki clan, of all the noble houses in the Seireitei, had found her and asked for her to join their family. Something was wrong. In Rukia’s experience, if an offer seemed too good to be true, it most likely was. There was always a catch. 

But - family. The idea of having a family with all the bonds that went with it was certainly appealing. Renji. His face instantly surfaced in her mind as he was the only one she had any semblance of a bond with at this time. What would he think of this? What would this do to their already fraying friendship? Nobility came with chains. Rukia was well aware of that. 

“What exactly would my extra duties require of me?” Her violet eyes carefully flickered between the elder and Byakuya, trying to gain any insight they might offer. 

“As part of the main family, you are expected to attend certain functions, maintain a strict code of conduct especially outside of the walls of our home. Your comings and goings will be restricted as well as your social circle and those you interact with on a casual basis. You will be allowed to continue your soul reaper career, as mentioned before, so that will be the exception to this. When the elders of our clan deem it appropriate, you will be wed to a suitor of our choice who meets the Kuchiki clan standards. In exchange, all of your needs will be provided for and your career elevated.” 

His thick white eyebrows raised above his glasses in a way of finality. “Well, do we have your interest, Rukia of Inuzuri?” 

Rukia was processing everything he had said, not missing the subtle way her freedoms would be restricted. Her gaze fell to the ground, heart torn. Could she do this? Could she really sell her soul for this? 

Again, Renji’s face swam into her mind’s eye. Of course not! Renji was her family. If she were to join the Kuchiki’s, then she would not be permitted to speak to Renji. That alone was enough to make her doubt this offer. But was she holding Renji back in his own life? Doubt crept in, a cold chill running up her spine.

“I..I’m not-” 

As if on cue, the door burst wide open and almost caused Rukia to jump. Renji’s excitement was rolling off of him as he blurted out his news. 

“Rukia! Guess what? I passed the second exam! Can ya belie-” 

The way his face shifted from exuberance to confusion was almost comical. Rukia saw the look of recognition as Renji took in Byakuya’s kenseikan and the spiritual pressure in the room. “Uh..” 

“It seems our negotiations have been interrupted.” Nobutsune eyed Renji with only thinly veiled disgust. “This place is no longer suitable for us to continue our discussions”

 He and Byakuya already began making their way back through the entrance as Renji moved aside for them to pass. “We look forward to hearing a favorable answer, Rukia.” 

Rukia’s mind was conflicted, thoughts rolling into each other as she tried to untangle them. But Renji was here now. He was the strategist, the one who kept his feet grounded between the two of them. He was her best friend, after all. If anyone could see the flaws in this plan and understand her view on nobility, it was him. 

“Renji..” 

He seemed startled out of deep thought, not having moved from his position beside the entrance way. “Oh Rukia! What - what was that all about, eh?” 

She averted her gaze, not trusting herself to look Renji in the eyes at the moment. “They were from the Kuchiki clan. They.. want to adopt me into their family.” Rukia was already shaking her head, holding one arm with the other across her abdomen to steady herself. “I don’t know what to do. Renji-” 

The last thing Rukia expected was to hear Renji exhaling in what seemed like relief. His hand moved to her shoulder, grasping her as he started to chuckle. 

“What do ya mean ya don’t know what to do? This is great! The Kuchiki clan is a powerful family! Oh man, yer gonna be living the life of luxury just like we always dreamed about!” He shifted his hand slightly on her shoulder as Rukia watched his face intently. “I wonder what you’ll be eatin’! Ah! I’m so jealous!”  

Fake. That was the first thought that crossed Rukia’s mind as she watched him. He was lying to her about how he felt. But why would he do that? Unless... she had been a burden holding him back this whole time? And now he had a way to severe their bond without feeling guilt. That was the only explanation that made sense to her, the only reason she could think of that Renji would lie to her - to spare her feelings. 

It was an almost audible snap in her heart as she felt the bond between herself and Renji break, finally frayed to it’s last thread. She understood now that there was nothing left for her here. He was giving her away, without even an after thought. She was a reminder of where he came from, a life Renji was desperate to forget as he fit in with the others in his class. That’s all she would always be to him - a painful reminder of why he would always be different. 

I see now.. Rukia felt the pinpricks of tears threatening to spill out of the corner of her eyes. This was kindness on Renji’s part. He was letting her go in the gentlest way possible. She reached up to grasp his hand with both of hers, gently pulling it off her shoulder. He looked down at her, meeting her gaze before she tore her eyes away. 

“Thank you.” 

Before Rukia allowed herself to say anything else lest she give away how broken hearted she felt, she did the only thing she knew how to do. It saved her life time after time and would be her saving grace again.

Run. Don’t look back. Just run. 

She ran straight down the hall, not stopping until she had caught up with the Kuchiki elder and Byakuya. 

She bowed, wiping away any semblance of tears that remained on her face before meeting their gaze.

“I accept.”

The elder bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement, glasses gleaming in the sunlight. 

“Welcome to the family, Rukia Kuchiki.” 

[iwritethat]

Wally West: One

A/N: This was a detour from what I was doing. Oops.

Warnings: None

>>>>——————————>

"M'gann?"

"Yes."

"The cute alien chic?" You thought of the girl, clarifying it was indeed the correct one.

"Yes."

"And you're sure this one is the one because you said that 3 girls ago."

"Yes... I mean no, I don’t know - look can you please help me (Y/n)." Wally playfully pleaded with you like he’d done on multiple occaisions prior to this and you could only shrug in defeat.

"Sure but my conditions remain the same."

"I know, no bragging, pizza on me, you pick the film for the next 3 weeks."

"And?" You mockingly coaxed, knowing how much the next particular demand pained him which was evident in his deadpan but reluctant tone.

"And no mocking your dates."

"Good."

.

The following day you’d stategically accompanied Kid Flash on a visit to Mount Justice, the sight of you two together was no surprise to Robin, Aqualad nor Speedy though the remainder were intrigued by the mysterious stranger so Wally proudly made introductions.

"Hey M'gann, Conner, this is (Y/n)."

"Ah, this is who you love so much to talk about!" The Martian beamed grasping your hands as you shot a glare to a flustered Wally, the guy sheepishly running a hand through his strands.

"Is this your... girlfriend?" Superboy casually inquired after thinking of the correct terminology, yet again leaving you to wonder what your friend has been saying about you in your absence - also considering the implication this’d have on your scheme.

"No! Definitely not! I'm totally single, just because I've told you about (Y/n) doesn't mean we're dating. We're not dating by the way." Wally briskly recovered, blush fading as he emphasised his point specifically for the sake of M'gann.

"Nice to meet you both. Ah Kaldur!" You lit up once seeing the Atlantean, immediately embracing his form just as he did to you in hopes of catching up with him.

"It's been a while (Y/n), you look well."

"(Y/n) is here? Looking as lovely as ever, surprised you're still hanging with Wally though, you're way out of his league." Robin proudly joked as he walked toward you, genuinely happy to see you again and a girl called Artemis agreed with him despite only recently learning your name - supposedly teasing Wally was a commodity amount the Team.

"I'm here for training, Canary said she'd activated the sparring platform so I wanted to test it." With a content shrug you set your plan in motion, gesturing over to the designated area as indication.

Now you were very well trained, the team knew that so it wasn't a surprise when every single member landed with a 'FAIL' until Wally challenged your winning streak. You went two rounds, the first you played to his strengths allowing him to take you down with his speed and received the only 'PASS' of the day. M'gann cheered, flying over with questions and compliments whilst you comfortably sat up and proudly watched Wally bask in the desired attention. Meanwhile got to your feet, brushing yourself only to be met with a smirking Robin beside your figure.

"I know what you're doing and you are good at it, but I don't think it's gonna work."

"Does it ever work with Wally? He's never met a girl he's really caught deep feelings for but I'm only in it for the free food he's promised me." Came your knowing reply, softly smirking at Robin who seemed to disagree but accepted your justification nonetheless.

"There is one y'know..."

"Hey (Y/n) ready to get your ass whooped by the best there is? Fastest kid alive babe." The speedster smugly gained your deadly gaze, his boasting violating the agreement you’d struck less than 24 hours ago and thus not giving you a chance for Robin to elaborate like you’d wished.

This time you would not allow him a victory, like the others you took him out with a mischievous smile and then crouched over his waist whilst he leaned up on his elbows to meet you.

"No. Bragging." You raised a brow, tilting his chin towards you as you punctuated each word as a reminder before heading out. Although your plan had still succeeded to a degree, you walked backwards finding the Martian kneeling down to your friend inquiring about his condition as you winked at him - Wally seemingly impressed with your antics, as he usually was whenever he roped you into these scenarios.

.

You retained your attentive skills, even talking him up to M'gann but it became painfully obvious that her romantic affections were reserved for a certain clone which left you disappointed albeit pleased for her. Now, you had to break the news to Wally - you'd considered such measures while sitting against the wall in one of the Mountains many hallways bouncing a ball off of the other side as a form of contemplation.

Soon enough your felt a familiar comforting presence beside you, catching the ball and initiating a harmless game between the two of you.

"What's on your mind?" Wally knew you incredibly well, narrowing down I even the smallest quirks and he'd use that to his advantage.

"Nothing, but I'm afraid you might have to give up on M'gann."

"I know. Supes right?" He didn't seemed phased by your sympathetic disclosure, which surprised you slightly due to how long he’d spent gushing over the girl.

"Yeah, sorry West."

"It's alright. Thanks for trying, I'll still get you that pizza."

"But I didn't...?" His response was unexpected, leaving you somewhat speechless but he soon continued with conversation before you could finish, no evidence of heartbreak to be seen.

"That Dan guy you went out with? (Y/n) c'mon you're stunning, and he didn't even offer to pay the full check at the coffee shop. You deserve so much better, his flirting game was awful too." Wally reminisced on the details you’d cruelly given knowing he wouldn’t able to comment due to you deal, although such a thing was now void and you’d regretted that decision. Yet part of you enjoyed his mocking support.

"So I get the pizza but have to suffer your judgements for not getting you a date? I'm sure you have something to say about Jackson too." You threw your head back with an exaggerated sigh, Wally laughing as he replied.

"Don't get me started..."

.

How unaffected Wally seemed about the let down still puzzled you, although you believed something else must've attained his focus - not that you had any indication of what it was as you sat flicking through the channels.

"So... there's another girl." There it is.

"Dude, are you kidding me? Give yourself a month at least."

"No this one is the one, I know it." His tone was oddly confident compared to his usual dilemmas regarding that topic which automatically gained your full attention.

"Uh Huh. And when did you meet her? Love at first sight or whatever?"

"I've known her longer than a few days give me some credit here. But it wasn't at first sight, I didn't even notice it was happening or rather happened..." Wally's point was certainly more realistic in comparison and he was being truthful - again, maybe this peculiar circumstance held promise.

"You know my terms an-" You simply shrugged, assuming he wanted your assistance once more which dulled your growing investment slightly.

"No, not for this one."

"Hot damn, this woman must be special. Tell me everything!" That decision shocked you and it was evident in your tone, you excitedly encouraged him to indulge your lowkey interrogation since he never turned down your assistance.

"Yes she definitely is, but I don't know what to do for her y'know?"

"Romantic restaurant? Roses? Tell her over a romantic dinner." You listed things instantly, barely stopping for a breather.

"Would you want all that though?" Wally considered your ideas, furrowing his brows before he asked his question even if his posture radiated nervousness despite the confident facade he’d attempted to convey.

"Hah, no way! Honestly I'd love a chill night in, order a take out, put on a good series and just enjoy each other's company. I mean roses are nice too but I want to know my date likes me enough to relax and be themselves - you can't really do that in a fancy restaurant. Anyway, you should probably find out what this girl likes first." You simply smiled, giving him an honest opinion and advice for you felt he'd finally found someone more than just a crush to him.

"I guess..."

It was silent for a moment until familiar words echoed in your mind 'There is one y'know...' and instantly you stood up with your realisation.

"I know who it is!"

"What?! How?!" Wally snapped to with concern evident in his expression like a deer in headlights, unbeknownst to you why that was but he too halted in his tracks.

"Dick told me, I don't believe it Wally - it's great!" Now you had Artemis in your head, they'd hated one another at first so it certainly made sense that he'd grown to like her. They'd also kissed at New Years Eve or so you'd heard.

"Robin told you I liked you?! Are you kidding? He only knows because I thought he had a crush on you." That answer caught you off guard, practically disintegrating your ability to form a coherent sentence or even think straight due to the abruptness of it.

"Wait me? I didn't, um, I can't, since when? All the times I've been helping you with girls I... I..."

"Wait you didn't know? Okay stay there, I'm doing this again!" Wally held his hands out in defence, soon disappearing leaving you standing alone with your thoughts. A dangerous thing really.

Did you even have feelings for him? Quite possibly, that would explain why you occasionally compared dates to him and why you were always so willing to help him find his happiness but surely you wouldn't have suppressed them? It was so confusing.

Within a minute he appeared before you, a single red rose in hand and sheepish smile.

"I'm late I know that but there's no pressure for you. This is not how I expected you to find out, I aimed to flirt with you and only you before making a move so it wasn't thrown on you so suddenly but here we are. Guess I'm not great with girls without you."

With a mischievous grin, you pulled him close by his red hoodie and gently met his lips with your own and you couldn't deny how right it felt - an action you’d hope would quell the warring emotions. You pulled apart, his arms wrapped around your waist and yours on his shoulders.

"You're actually quite adequate, I'm just as surprised as you are."

"Oh you're hilarious." He matched your witty sarcasm, but still you find his happiness intoxicating.

"Can we, um could we take things slow? I know that's ironic to ask the fastest kid alive but please."

"I'd slow down for you, I want to take my time in every moment I get so it won't be a problem (Y/n). I promise." Despite the trace of concern in your voice, Wally was reassuring and sincere with his words so you both felt comfortable in whatever situation you'd crafted.

"So, I assume you won't be mocking my dates anymore."

"I think every date you'll have from now on is gonna be too great for me judge. Ah too bad, I know how much you loved me doing that." The speedster playfully responded with a knowingly satisfied smirk to which you threw him an 'are you serious?' expression.

Later, as you both sat comfortably on Wallys' bed eating pizza whilst a film played in the background, you received simultaneous texts from none other than Dick Grayson - his smugness translated even in a message.

[Dickiebird: Told you so.]

[staywhelmedbatfam]

Sticky Notes (2/4)

~Bruce Wayne/Reader~

Summary: Soulmate AU where you’re given 100 sticky notes that will appear somewhere in your soulmate’s line of sight after you write on them. To keep everyone from immediately finding out who their soulmate is, you can’t write your name until the very last note.

Part One / Part Two (You’re Here) / Part Three / Part Four

***

Maybe if he wasn’t such a great detective, he wouldn’t have noticed it. Seeing as he’s Batman, though, that’s not the case. The sliver of black paper that he saw underneath the keyboard had silver scrawled across it. She had to be his soulmate, but he couldn’t just walk up to her when he’s in the middle of a business meeting and she’s trying to work. Waiting for her to get off of work was an option, but he didn’t want to draw attention in case it was a coincidence. A lot of people share the same favorite color as him. He’d just have to wait until he goes out on patrol to verify that it’s her, but he was already so sure.

Stuffing his hands into the pockets of his pants, he felt something that wasn’t there before in his right pocket. His thumb brushed over the paper and he felt the tacky strip that indicated it was a sticky note. Thankfully, he was seated in a boardroom and no one could see him pull the paper from his pocket underneath the table.

‘I don’t have meetings all day, so I guess my day is going slightly better than yours, but I have to be careful that my boss doesn’t catch me pausing to write back to you.’

Being in the back of the room with everyone focused on the PowerPoint in front of them had its perks. Bruce was able to take out his Sharpie and sticky notes to reply without anyone being the wiser.

‘I didn’t peg you as the rule-breaking type.’

‘I’m not… but I like talking to you and it makes my day go by faster.’ A small smile made its way onto his face before he began writing again.

‘Glad to know I can be of assistance.’ There was no reply that followed immediately like the one he just received. Instead, the woman that he believed to be his soulmate had knocked on the door to the boardroom.

***

When your boss answered your knock, you opened the door and asked to speak with him. He wasn’t too happy that you interrupted his meeting but got up anyway and shut the door behind him. You explained that your daughter’s school had called to tell you she had a high fever and you had to leave work to go pick her up. After the school notified you, you had called your mom and asked her if you could drop (D/N) off so you could return to work.

In the middle of telling your boss that you could return after dropping her off, he stopped you from continuing to speak. “That won’t be necessary because you’re fired.”

“But, sir, I need this job,” you pleaded. This job was your only source of income and now you’d have to rush to find another. Unfortunately, the employment process isn’t as quick as you would like.

“And I need employees I can rely on to be here during work hours,” he shot back before opening the door in one swift motion and closing it again to resume the meeting in privacy.

Tears began welling up in your eyes, but you maintained your posture and looked straight ahead on your walk back to your desk. You never left any personal belongings at work, so all you had to do was grab your purse and leave.

***

Bruce caught a glimpse of the woman again when her boss reentered the room and noticed the upset expression on her face. As she walked past the glass wall of the boardroom, he could just barely see the tears building up. He waited a few moments before excusing himself to the restroom. The restroom, however, was not his destination. Glancing around, he found her waiting for the elevator and she’d stepped inside right as he’d reached her, so he stepped in as well.

Right after the doors closed and they began their descent, he turned his head towards her. “He fired you, didn’t he?”

She looked at him with a startled expression and then gazed off in the opposite direction when she realized that the voice came from Bruce Wayne. In a weak response, she said, “Yes.”

“Do you mind me asking why?”

Before speaking, she hesitated. It wasn’t really any of his business, but she felt compelled to tell him. Maybe that’s simply because the man was the Bruce Wayne or because she wanted at least one person to know that she wasn’t actually in the wrong. So, she gave him the same explanation she gave her boss for needing to leave early. It was quiet between them for a moment.

“Well, one man’s loss is another man’s gain,” he stated, holding out a business card to her with a charming smile on his face. Slowly, she plucked it from his fingers and stared at it with a look of surprise before glancing back at him. “Give me a call tomorrow. Let’s see if we can’t work something out within the next week.”

***

(D/N) was still asleep in her bed around noon. You didn’t try to get her up since she spent the night falling asleep and then waking up a bit later to throw up. At the moment, you were leaning forward in your spot on the couch with your elbows resting on top of your knees. Staring at the business card in your hands, you debated whether or not to call the number listed.

The offer was sudden and, coming from anyone else, you would have dismissed it completely because it seemed too good to be true. However, the fact that Bruce Wayne was the one to offer made you stop to consider. You also couldn’t go too long without some sort of income. Your rent would be due at the end of the month and you needed to get groceries.

A few seconds passed where you continued to stare at the card before grabbing your phone off the coffee table. You quickly dialed the number and bit your lip as it rang. The call was picked up and your heart rate increased.

“Bruce Wayne.”

You froze momentarily. Doesn’t he have a secretary that answers his calls? He couldn’t have possibly given you his personal number, could he? You weren’t prepared to talk to him immediately…

Fumbling for words, you finally came up with a response, “Uh hi, Mr. Wayne. This is (Y/N) (L/N). You spoke to me after I got fired from my job yesterday…”

“Ah, Miss (L/N). How’s your daughter feeling?” Wow, you couldn’t believe that he remembered.

“She’s finally getting some uninterrupted sleep, so she’s okay,” you said, retaining your nerves.

“That’s good.” He then steered the conversation back to business. “Now, I’d like to set up an interview of sorts. How soon are you available to come to Wayne Enterprises?”

***

Nearly two weeks after you’d initially met with Bruce about working for him, you were acting as his temporary secretary. His actual secretary was pregnant and had gone into labor prematurely – by about a month – on the day of your meeting. On the spot, he gave you the position until she returns from maternity leave. When that happens, he told you, he would have a permanent position for you within the company.

The job itself wasn’t all that difficult. You would answer the phone and manage Bruce’s schedule, along with fetching any kind of documents he might need from different departments and some other things. It was only when some of the younger female employees would see you that you were bothered. Most of the time, they wouldn’t say a word to you. Instead, you would receive a glare or sneer. You understood why, though. Bruce Wayne is an attractive man and here you are, a newbie who doesn’t even have a permanent position yet, working closely with him as his secretary. They could get over it because you didn’t want to give this job up. Obviously, you would when his actual secretary returned. As of right now, however, you’re content right where you are.

The best part about the job would have to be how chill Bruce is with you carrying your cell on you at all times in case something was to happen that you needed to get to (D/N) or even bringing her to the office when she didn’t have school and you couldn’t get anyone to watch her.

There had been a day when you had her with you and Bruce’s eldest son came by his office to speak with him. Upon exiting, he caught sight of (D/N) and she was quite drawn to him. He offered to sit in the lounge with her to keep her occupied. Even though you were hesitant, you couldn’t say no to her when she kept begging. They sat at the table where they colored and played a couple of games. At the end of the day, she had a new friend and another reason she wanted to come back to work with you.

Over the past month and a half that you’d been working at Wayne Enterprises, it became rare that you received any sticky notes during the day. Most of them showed up in the morning or evening while you were at home. On a Saturday afternoon, you found another note.

‘After you get this note, I’ll be left with five sticky notes. That’s four more before I can tell you my name. I don’t know whether to be nervous or anxious. To be honest, I’m relatively sure I already know who you are. If I’m correct, I’ve known for close to two months. I hope that doesn’t scare you. I’d tell you how it happened, but the words would probably end up becoming blank space. It would also be something best said in person. I can’t wait to know you as my soulmate.’

How were you supposed to respond to that? It must have been torture for him to be so sure he knew that you were his soul mate, but not be able to confirm it with you. It was painful enough to not even be able to know who it was on the other end of the notes in the beginning.

Getting out the remainder of your sticky note stack, you took your thumb and flicked the small square pages upward. The motion was quick due to the small amount that you had left. Taking a moment, you counted how many there were. Six. Such a small number compared to when you started. Undoubtedly, at the end of the stack, your life would change.

‘I have no idea what to say in reply to that… All you need to know is that I’m looking forward to putting a name and face to your handwriting.’

After you wrote that note, the two of you exchanged two more notes each. That only left you with three. As you sat on the couch, you bit your lip and started bouncing your leg. The two of you were so close to the end of your sticky notes. It took everything in you to not waste the next two just to tell him who you were, but you wanted to relish the time between now and the last note. Once you knew each other’s names, everything would be different.

Not a single note came on Sunday. That just made the suspense even worse and you were too nervous to send the first note. You didn’t receive another one until Monday, a couple of hours after you arrived at work.

‘I hope that I can make you happy after you find out who I am.’

Your eyebrows furrowed and a slight frown appeared on your face as you read the words. Why would he say that? You enjoyed your conversations and you’ve told him this on multiple occasions. Is there something that he couldn’t share with you through the notes that he’s concerned about?

‘I’m already happy just being able to talk to you. Actually, being with you would bring me that much more joy.’

Radio silence ensued from then until right before you were about to leave for the day. You were shutting down your computer and began organizing papers into folders, putting them in a neat pile on your desk, when it appeared.

‘Let’s see if I’m right about who you are. Look up.’ Your head shoots up immediately after reading the note and you notice a pair of eyes staring at you right away. Out of surprise, your own eyes widen as you stare back across the room, through the open doors of an office fit for a CEO, and straight into the eyes of Bruce Wayne.

‘No way… Write your name.’ You felt stupid the way you responded, but you just couldn’t believe it. Proof, you needed proof.

‘As you wish.’ That was all that was on the last sticky note, causing you to furrow your eyebrows.

Looking up again, you were surprised to see Bruce in front of your desk. He held a silver Sharpie in his hand and leaned over to write something on a paper laying on your desk. You watched his face the entire time and eyed the paper after he finished. He had written his name.

Still not believing your eyes, you wrote your name on your final sticky note. It appeared in his other hand. He showed you the note and gave you a believe-me-now look.

“Bruce Wayne is my soulmate,” you whispered.

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[imaginetonyandbucky]

Dead Man’s Eyes Ch. 3

Link to AO3 by @dracusfyre

Three days after Bucky’s return, he and Tony had ventured out of the compound for fresh air, taking a walk through the quaint downtown shops of the nearest town. Bucky had ducked into the secondhand bookstore and coffee shop for a moment while Tony held their place an outdoor table when Natasha sat down across from him. 

“Hey,” Tony blinked. “Fancy meeting you here.”

“Small town,” she said with a quirk of her mouth. “How’s it going?”

“Good,” Tony said honestly. “Things with Steve are, you know,” he held out a hand and gestured so-so. “But other than that…” His eyes traveled inside the glass window of the bookstore to where Bucky was browsing the new arrivals section. “I mean, Bucky’s back. What else needs to be said?”

“And everything is going well with him?”

“Yeah, of course.” Tony raised an eyebrow. “Why wouldn’t it?”

“He went through a lot in the past two weeks, I’m just making sure he seems okay to you.”

Tony stared at her for a moment, eyes narrowed, then laced his fingers together and rested them on the cheap wrought iron table. “Cut the shit, Natasha.”

“Fine.” She leaned forward and rested her elbows on the table as well. “Are you sure that the Bucky that came back is the same Bucky that left?”

Tony’s jaw dropped, stunned. That was not what he was expecting. “How - how can you even ask that?” He said finally. “You’ve seen him, you’ve talked to him. What are you trying to say?”

“The Winter Soldier wasn’t always a sniper, Tony. He was trained, just like I was, to put on a persona to get close to our target, to gain their trust. If he was ordered to  act  like Bucky Barnes to get close to you, no one would know how to do it better.”

“That is ridiculous,” Tony spat. “I would know if he was - was faking. Besides if he was-was still...” Tony gestured expressively rather than say the words the Winter Soldier. "Then why didn't he kill me when he had the chance?"

"If he wasn't, why didn't he save you when he had the chance?" Natasha countered. "Why did he walk away, and not come back for another week?"

Tony actually had an answer to that. "He left to protect me, and he was gone for so long because he was destroying all the facilities where they'd held him during those three days, especially the one with the chair," Tony said. "Come on, Natasha, it's not like I didn't ask."

"Do you have proof?"

"I don't need proof!"

Natasha stood and put her hands in the pockets of her jacket. Her eyes flickered to where Bucky was still inside buying coffee. "Believe me, I hope for all of our sakes that you are right."

“Then why would you even say anything?”

“Because we’ve both been burned before for trusting the wrong people,” she said. “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice…” She shrugged and looked away for a moment. “Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything. But if I don’t warn you, and the worst happens, then that’s on me, right? And I don’t think I could live with that.” Then she walked away, leaving Tony staring at her back in disbelief.

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

“You would not believe what Natasha said to me today,” Tony said, throwing his clothes with unnecessary force into the hamper as he undressed, still angry hours later.

“What?” Bucky set his book down on his chest and sat up straighter in bed, punching the pillows to support his back. “More stuff about Steve?”

That reminder made him even madder. “I don’t even want to talk about it,” Tony scowled. He fell face first into bed, trying to shed his bad mood. He felt Bucky stroke a hand down his back, which made him realize how gross and sweaty he still was. “I’m going to take a shower, hopefully that will help.”  He levered himself back off the bed, and saw Bucky watching him.

“Shall I join you?” Bucky said, waggling his eyebrows and smiling.

Tony leaned over and gave him a kiss. “Nah, I’ll be quick.” He had hoped that the shower would help him relax, but instead Natasha’s words just played on repeat, like a song he couldn’t get out of his head.  Same Bucky that left.  Both been burned before.  “I would know,” he muttered to himself, sticking his face under the spray like it could physically wash away his thoughts. 

Like you knew with Stane?

Tony’s hands stilled at the thought. “It’s not the same,” he argued with himself. “I see Bucky every day. No one could fake it for that long.” Natasha did, his traitorous brain pointed out. All day, for weeks. “But I wasn’t sleeping with her!”

“Tony, are you talking to me?” Bucky called out through the door.

“No,” Tony called back. He banged his head against the tile of the shower, trying to knock some sense into himself. “Sorry, just talking to myself.” 

“Alright.”

As Bucky moved away from the door, Tony said, “JARVIS, gimme some music,” and turned up the volume loud enough to drown out his thoughts. When he came out of the shower, towelling his hair dry, he saw Bucky reading one of his old science fiction novels with the garish cover and the scene looked so normal that Tony immediately felt like an idiot for his paranoia. When he climbed into bed he lay diagonally so he could put his head in Bucky’s lap. Bucky’s had immediately began carding through his wet hair, like it always did, and Tony smiled. “How are you feeling?” He asked after a few minutes, twisting so he could see Bucky’s face. 

“About as well as you would expect,” Bucky said with a humorless quirk of his mouth, meeting Tony’s eyes over the top of his book. “Being back with you is the only thing keeping me sane, but sometimes...well, you know.”

“Yeah,” Tony said with a silent exhale, turning his head again so Bucky could keep stroke his head. Memories of being trapped in the dark with the dead Hydra agents, wondering if there were others, wondering if he was going to ever see Bucky again, wondering if he was going to die there in his suit buried in the rubble of a Hydra base, rose unbidden in his thoughts.  “I know.” He reached up and squeezed Bucky's hand for a moment, then grabbed his tablet to do some work before bed.

 That night, Tony woke up in a sweat from a dream that dissipated upon waking, leaving behind just a vague feeling of disquiet. He rolled over and realized Bucky’s side of the bed was cold. “Bucky?” He called out softly, climbing out of bed and going to the bathroom before searching their suite. He expected to find him in the living room watching TV or reading his book, like he usually did when he couldn’t sleep. Instead, the rooms were dark and empty. “JARVIS, where’s Bucky?”

“He is currently in the garage, sir. He appears to be double-checking the security,” JARVIS said. “I assured him that the building was secure, but he said he needed to check for his peace of mind.”

“Oh.” Bucky hadn’t done that in years. “Thanks, J.” Tony hesitated in the living room for a moment before returning to bed. But of course, now he couldn’t sleep.  We will finally get our hands on an arc reactor,  one of the Hydra agents had said. “JARVIS, did Bucky - no, never mind.” If Bucky was Hydra and was here for Tony’s tech, he could have just killed Tony there in the rubble and taken it, no need for all of this espionage. He also had free access to Tony’s lab, so he could just steal it. Fuck Natasha for putting these thoughts in his head, anyway.

With a sigh, he gave up on sleep for the night and reached for his tablet; might as well get some work done if he wasn’t sleeping anyway. But his tablet wasn’t on his nightstand, in the drawer, or next to the bed. Which was weird, because he had been working on it before he fell asleep. “JARVIS, where’s my tablet?”

“Next to the couch, sir.”

As Tony climbed out of bed to get it, he told himself that Bucky had set it there without thinking as he got ready to go to sleep; it’s not like Bucky could access the tablet anyway, it was retina locked, he reminded himself. As he picked it up, he tapped it against one palm thoughtfully. Unless...unless he had fallen asleep with it unlocked. After all, the arc reactor was small potatoes compared to what he’d been working on for the Avengers and SHIELD, all of which were on JARVIS’s servers. “Stop it, Tony,” he said into the dark room. “You’re losing your goddamn mind.”

“Join the club,” Bucky’s voice said from the darkness, making Tony jump. He came up behind Tony, wrapping his arms around him and pressing his chest into Tony’s back. Tony exhaled and relaxed against his warmth. “Bad dream? Is that what’s making you lose your mind?”

“Pretty much,” Tony said honestly. He turned in Bucky’s arms so he could loop them around Bucky’s neck; in the dark, the arc reactor’s light cast Bucky’s eyes into deep shadow, giving Tony a chill. He pushed the feeling away and buried his fingers in the air at the nape of Bucky's neck. “You?”

“Yeah. C’mon, let’s go back to bed.” Bucky slid his hands down Tony’s back and squeezed his ass, then lifted him up and wrapped Tony’s legs around his waist like he was light as a feather. "I'm sure we can figure out something to take our minds off of it."

 The next morning, Tony was frowning in concentration at the exploded diagram of a next generation propulsion system out of Wakanda when a cup of coffee, still steaming, appeared in his field of view. “Oh, thanks.” Tony sat up straight and took it, wrapping his hands around it gratefully. 

“Whatcha working on?” Bucky asked as he came around the work table, eyeing the bright blue hologram with interest.

“Propulsion system,” Tony said dismissively, ignoring the unfair impulse to close down the plans as Bucky studied them. “What are you up to?” He asked as he took a sip of coffee, then paused, making a funny face before he swallowed.

“I’m heading to the range with Clint later. What’s wrong?” 

Tony was staring down into his coffee, eyes narrowed. “Did you put soy milk in here?”

“Maybe?” Bucky frowned. “I guess I wasn’t paying attention. You like, uh-”

“Almond milk,” Tony supplied, when Bucky hesitated.  

“Right, almond milk,” Bucky said. “I’ll go make you a fresh cup.” He reached for the mug but Tony waved him away and set the cup to the side.

“It’s fine,” Tony said with a smile. “I’ll just make another pot down here so I don’t have to go up to the kitchen for refills.”

“Are you sure?” When Tony nodded, Bucky leaned in for a kiss and stroked his jaw as he pulled away. “I’m sorry, I’ll remember next time.”

Tony held his smile until the lab door closed behind Bucky. He let out a breath and raked his fingers through his hair before covering his mouth with one hand, staring sightlessly at the propulsion plans. “It’s just fucking coffee,” he said out loud.  

                                                 ---------

He held out for four days before he broke. Nervously wiping his palms on his pants, Tony stared at the safe built into the concrete wall of his lab, pulse pounding. He couldn’t believe he was doing this; usually the thought of reading the red book make him feel like he needed a shower, but he had to  know.  If there was any information about what Bucky could and couldn’t remember from one mission to another, even between mind wipes, or what, exactly, the trigger words did, Tony had to know. Natasha’s words were a parasite invading his thoughts, destroying his focus and poisoning his time with Bucky. Last time, he had only read the parts he’d had to in order to do what Bucky asked, but this time he was going to read the damn thing cover to cover even though he would hate himself the whole time. He would find out that Bucky was fine, everything was fine, and all this shit Tony kept noticing - inconsistencies, forgetfulness, the minute hesitations - was just the product of a paranoid mind. 

 Two and a half hours later, he closed the red book and rested his head in his hands. He'd found none of the answers he'd wanted, only more questions. “JARVIS, open a surveillance file,” Tony said eventually, the words bitter as bile on his tongue.  “Target, James Buchannan Barnes.” 

[jojos-stardew-adventure]

stars and stardrops

A/N: new chapter! i think this is the best one so far OvO

this chapter reader’s nimbo-ness almost comes out full force, almost

-----

Ao3 Link

chapter 5: cows and slime ( click for chapter 1 )

<<last chapter | next chapter>>

Summary: you meet a cow and go to the mines

-----

Ever since Bruno gifted you your fishing pole you've been fishing almost anywhere, any chance you could. It required a lot of patience but you were actually getting the hang of it and had even caught a few things. You also found it very relaxing, spending most of it waiting and staring off into the distance.

Today, your main focus was fishing at a pond you had seen on the map. Who knew what you could catch there, but first you were making a stop to a place nearby.

On your map, not too far from the pond, was a spot labeled Reimi's Farm. One of the multiple buildings in town you still haven’t been to yet.

When you get there you immediately notice a cabin a distance away. That was strange. There's no marking for it on the map. Well, guess you have two places to visit now!

You head up to the ranch and a cow greets you with a ‘moo’ as you walk past the gated area attached to the ranch. It ambles towards you. You didn't know cows were the curious type or maybe this one was just an anomaly?

"Hi..." 

The cow moos again in response.

I’m a cow whisper.

"Hello!"

You whip your head to the side. Why do people keep sneaking up on you?

An older woman with wavy pink hair stood next to you. "Looks like you and Moodonna are getting along well.”

You giggle a little at the name before you can stop it. "Sorry. I think so? I didn't know cows could be curious."

"It's actually pretty common. They can also be quite friendly too! I'm Reimi by the way and you're ___ . " She smiles and holds a hand out for you to shake. "Nice to meet you."

You grab her warm, calloused hand and return a smile of your own. "I was actually coming over to introduce myself since I was walking to the pond, but I've been beaten again--first Bruno, now you!"

Reimi gives you a curious look.

"Ah, nevermind," you say.

Reimi looks as she’s considering something before she speaks again. "Have you ever wanted a chicken farmer?"

You pause from the sudden question. "What? Like to eat?"

She laughs. “No hun, for eggs!”

"Oh!” You feel your face heating up. “No, sorry, I never really thought about that?"

"Well it would be very profitable for you as a farmer if you did get some. Along with some cows... Maybe some ducks too!"

“D-Ducks?”

She did have a point but you'd never taken care of a house pet, let alone a farm animal.

"I don't really know how to though."

"No worries ___, I'll be there to help you out," she states. “Whenever you're ready just visit me.”

"Uh okay, sure!"

After saying bye to Reimi you head to your next stop--the cabin. 

You knock on the door and wait a moment but nothing happens. Maybe whoever lived there was out at the moment? You’d just have to visit another day.

-----

A few days ago you spent some time at Trattoria Trussardi with ‘The Bucci Gang’, as you fondly referred to them--of course they didn’t know that.

“I can't believe Speedwagon is allowing the removal of that boulder,” Abbacchio grumbled.

"The one closing the mines?" Fugo asked.

Narancia perked up at this, “REALLY!?”

Abba, sighed at the boy's tone. "That place is dangerous and you three know it!"

"We never actually go down though! It's fine," Mista waved him off.

"Why would you three even go into the mine cave?" Giorno asks, curious.

Fugo rests his head against his hand. "Narancia liked the echoes of his music there and we just keep him company."

"Oh man I can’t wait to go back there! It’s been too long," Narancia smiled, completely ignoring Abbachio's warning look.

You listened quietly, intrigued. 

After wandering around town, you finally find the mines. Abbacchio could not find out about this ever. 

You walk through the wooden entrance of the mine and into an opened area of dirt, scattered with rocks and boulders. The lanterns perched on the walls light the space in a dim glow. 

What you aren’t expecting to see but aren’t exactly surprised by are Narnicia, Mista, and Fugo sitting among the rocks.

“Guys you shouldn’t be here! Abbacchio is gonna get all huffy if he finds out.”

“Pshh, that's not going to happen cause he’s not going to! And even if he does he most likely won’t do anything….maybe,” Narancia says.

“You should be more worried about yourself. Why are you even here?” Fugo asks.

“Okay calm down there sassy pants.” You cross your arms, “I’m just passing by….”

Mista smirks, “You’re such a shit liar.”

You pout, “....JUST LEAVE!”

All three of them laugh but to your surprise move to leave the mines.

“Wow y’all are actually listening to me?” You hadn’t known them for that long but in the last two weeks you realized pretty quickly that they did whatever they felt like unless Bruno was involved.

“We were about to leave anyway,” Narancia says. 

“He already went through two albums of his annoying music,” Mista adds.

Narancia huffs at him in offense. “It’s not annoying!”

“Don’t do anything stupid,” Fugo warns.

And with that they exit the mines.

You sigh and walk further into the mine. There's a ladder descending into a hole near a pile of rocks. You also notice the elevator at the back.

After waiting for a while, you realize that pressing the up button does nothing.

Part of you wants to go down the ladder and see what's waiting at the end but you don't know how sturdy it is. You're already taking a risk being in a mine that's entrance apparently collapsed at one point.

Reluctantly, you decide to just head back before something bad happens and Abbacchio chews you out for it, but as you walk towards the exit the elevator behind you pings and you turn to see a tall brunette exit it.

"Hey!" You raise your brow when he points a finger at you. "What are you doing?" He squints, “...and who are you?"

You freeze under his skeptical look. "...I’m ___."

"I don't know any ___."

You rush to explain yourself. "The new farmer who moved in!" For some reason you felt nervous, like a child caught eating sugar. 

The man continues to stare you down before realization crosses his face. 

"Oh!" He adjusts his scarf, "It's great that you're here then cause I totally forgot to deliver that letter Lisa Lisa asked me to!" He scratches at the back of his neck.

"...Huh?" This had to be your strangest interaction in town so far.

"I’m Joseph by the way. Joseph Joestar."

"I’m ___."

"You already said that."

"Oh yea."

"I swear not this dense! Usually just a regular level of dense." You fiddle with your overall straps. 

"Oh man, I was worried you’d be a stick in the mud like Caesar but you seem chill! You should totally join our guild."

You blink. "What guild?"

"The adventure guild obviously! You haven't heard of us? Haven't you've been here for over a week?" He continues without waiting for answers. "Anyways, it's a guild where we go into the mines to kick the shit out of monsters and pretty much keep them from over running the mines. It’s been awhile since we’ve actually gotten to do that though..."

You gawk. "Monsters?" This man couldn't be serious. “There're monsters in these mines? T-Those exist?"

“Yep and they're super scary!”

You swallow nervously. Why would you want to be involved with something like that?

"Kidding! They're mainly cute slimes, pesky bugs and bats until you get deeper. Then they start to get really weird."

"You're making me seem super old! I'm only like 26 so just call me Joseph. The mines really aren't that bad though." The way this man switches from one topic to another would take some getting used to. 

He reaches to his side where a sword hangs, unhooks it and holds it out to you. 

You make no move to grab it.

"Why don't you try the first couple of levels? I promise you probably won't die. The elevator will bring you back up whenever you get tired."

He pushes the sword into your hand. "When you're done just visit the building next door. I’ll leave it open for ya!" 

After that he leaves.

Were you supposed to go right now? You stare at the rusty sword in your hand.

Well you wouldn't even be in Pelican Town unless you didn't take risks. (And you actually wanted to go down, you just had an excuse to do so now.)

You ignore the logical side of your brain saying that that wasn't comparable to going down into a monster filled mine and head towards the ladder.

This is really dumb.

-----

The gelatinous mass of a pissed off giant, green slime lunges at you. You barely manage to get into a defensive position and block its hit towards your body.

Your arms shake as you push your weight forward and shove the green blob backwards with the side of your sword. Blood runs from the fresh cut you just gained across your palm due to your careless grip on the sword’s blade. Ignoring the sting, you quickly raise the sword knowing the slime will lunge again.

When it rushes at you, you bring your weapon down as hard as you can. It was slightly late but fortunately, the sword’s blade easily slices through its soft, green body and manages to catch it in the center. The blob’s movement abruptly stops as it struggles to keep its consistency. 

A second passes before green slime rushes past your whole body. You accidentally get some in your mouth.

After the slime starts to settle, you cough and wipe at your face, trying to get it away from your eyes. 

‘Cute slimes’ my ass.

While you grumble about Joseph's lack of warning, you try to get the slime off your hands. This distracts you enough that a small slime manages to jump onto your leg. You swiftly shake it off then realize small slimes are forming from the goo around your boots. 

After you handle them, you high tail it to the elevator door before more crap tries to attack you.

You’ve definitely had enough for today.

-----

You enter the wooden building covered in dirt and drying goop--you were taking a long shower after this.

"OH MY GOD YOU ACTUALLY DID IT!?" Joseph's loud accented voice makes you jump. 

He's sitting near the counter. A lady behind it with long brunette hair and sunglasses looks at you. Why she was wearing sunglasses indoors, you didn’t know but they looked good on her.

"Uhhh yea… Wasn’t that the point?"

"I didn't think you’d actually go down there you mad lad!"

You open your mouth but no words come out in your confusion.

"Jesus Christ Joseph can you shut the hell up!" A voice comes from a room in the back.

A blonde man with a colorful headband comes through the door. "Why are you being so loud for anyway-" His eyes land on your slime covered form.

He immediately turns towards the brunette man. "What did you do?" He says, irritation clear in his voice.

"What! You're already blaming me!?"

"Yes because only you would cause something like this!”

You stare at the two bickering worried that they might actually get physical.

"Boys."

They both quiet down immediately. 

You brows raise in surprise.

The lady stands up from the chair looking directly at you. Her smooth, authoritative voice continues. "Looks like you've got what it takes to fight. Even though I told Joseph to keep watch--"

You see Caesar shoot said man a glare. Joseph only smiles and looks away.

"--you handled it on your own though and right away at that."

She removes her glasses from her face. "Are you ready to start your initiation?"

[hotforharrington]

Strangely Complicated (Pt. 2)

Setting: S1•E6 [The Monster]

Warnings: light swearing

Notes: Another fairly short part, but I am loving writing this so far! Hope you guys enjoy!

[Part 1]

—

“Do you need to call or leave a note for your parents or something?” Steve asked me before we left.

I just laughed and said, “No. My dad’s gone to Boston for work for like three weeks.”

“Well what about your mom?”

I had never exactly figured out how to explain to people about my mom without making it a big deal. I stayed silent while I thought about it and I think he took the hint.

“Oh shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.”

“It’s fine. Let’s just go.” I said to him before grabbing my jacket.

Steve threw open the front door and we exited my house. We silently walked down the street for awhile, before getting into Steve’s car. I sat in the passenger seat and he started the car.

Just a second after the engine turned over, he let out a soft, “Shit.”

“What?” I asked.

“I’m supposed to hang out with Tommy and Carol tonight. Would it be okay if we picked them up?”

I strongly disliked Steve, but that was nothing compared to the simple, utter loathing I felt for Tommy and Carol. But at this point, I felt as though I’d rather spend my evening with people I despised than end up alone at my forlorn homestead.

“That’s fine.” I said.

The sun began to set when Tommy and Carol piled into the back of Steve’s car.

“Who do we have here?!” Tommy exclaimed at the sight of me, “Not who I expected to see in the passenger seat of your car, Harrington!”

“Shut the hell up Tommy, we’re only hanging out because we have a common goal.” Steve said to him.

I stayed silent, not wanting to push my luck with the assholes.

“I just don’t understand why we’re coming out here, she obviously doesn’t wanna talk to you.” Carol squeaked from the backseat.

“That’s... that’s not it.” Steve replied.

“Oh really? Because no girl would ever blow off King Steve!”

“She was acting weird. I mean, something was wrong. And then I ran into (Y/N) and she said Nancy seemed weird at the funeral, too...”

I guess he’s trying to leave out Jonathan’s involvement... I thought to myself.

“So what? Like, you’re worried about her?”

“What?”

“Aw, you are!” Carol reached for him from the back, “Aw, Steve has a heart!”

“Would you just stop?”

“Oh, Stevie’s in love!” Tommy chimed in.

“Would you just shut up?” I could tell he was beginning to get annoyed, but the dumbasses persisted.

“Who knew?”

“SHUT UP!” Steve yelled at them.

“Geez.”

“Damn. Sorry.”

The whole car was silent as Steve pulled up to the Wheeler’s residence.

“So this is it huh? Princess’s castle.” Tommy said.

“I’ll just be a minute.” Steve said as he got out of the car.

I wasn’t about to be stuck in the car with Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, so I popped out and followed behind him.

“What are you doing?” He asked me.

“I need a break from those assholes. I don’t know how you deal with them on a daily basis.”

“Sometimes I don’t either.” Steve said with a chuckle before climbing up towards Nancy’s bedroom window.

I looked up at the boy on the roof and saw him peek into her window, and he immediately deflated.

“What’s going on?” I loudly whispered up to him.

“Well, he’s in there.” He responded to me.

I couldn’t believe the words he said to me, “No way.” I said in shock.

“See for yourself.” He extended his hand to me and I took it. He helped pull me up onto the roof, and I sloppily made it up next to him. Our hands were still connected, and we locked eyes for only a second, before awkwardly letting go.

I peered into the window and saw with my own eyes that what Steve had said was true. Jonathan was wrapping a blanket around Nancy’s shoulders. My mouth gaped open and I looked back at Steve. He looked extremely disheartened.

I felt extremely bad for him. I may have been upset due to the fact that my best friend was sneaking around with this girl, acting as though I didn’t exist, but at least I wasn’t dealing with betrayal from a romantic relationship.

Steve climbed down from Nancy’s window and then helped guide me down. He was very silent.

“I’m sorry, Harrington.” I said to him as we walked back for his car.

“It’s not your fault. And for the record, I’m sorry, too.”

“What are you sorry for?” I questioned.

“You can act like you’re fine all you want (Y/N), but I know this hurt you, too.”

I was shocked that he had been able to read me like a book. I was always good at hiding my true feelings from people, but he cracked my code within a few hours.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right, Harrington. Well, I think I’m gonna walk home now...”

“You sure you’re gonna be okay being alone?” He asked me.

“I’ll manage...”

“Let me take those two dipshits home and I’ll come back to check on you, okay?”

“You don’t have to do that.” I replied.

“I know I don’t. But I don’t really want to be alone right now either to be honest.”

I nodded at him before making my short walk home, in the crisp and cool night air.

It was only about an hour later when there was a knock on my door. I had a bowl of popcorn in hand and had just sat down to watch The Shining. As soon as I heard the knock, I popped up and went to answer the door.

When I saw Steve standing on the front porch of my house I couldn’t help but think, I am so pathetic that I have resulted to hanging out with King Steve. This has been the weirdest day ever. I laughed out loud from my inner thoughts.

“Surprised to see me?” He asked.

“Yeah, I kinda am.” I responded.

“I am a lot of different things, (Y/N), but a liar is not one of them.”

I smiled at him and invited him inside.

That night was interesting to say the least. I pulled out a nearly full bottle of vodka and we both took a couple shots to ease the tension we had gained throughout the day. We sat opposite of each other on my couch and had long, notable conversations. A lot of laughter was shared and a lot of popcorn was consumed. I honestly couldn’t believe that I was building a friendship with Steve Harrington, someone I considered an enemy of mine only mere hours ago.

We were throwing pieces of popcorn and trying to catch them in our mouths when I happened to glance at the clock and see what time it was.

“Geez, it’s already 2 in the morning.” I said to the boy across from me, “I should probably get some rest. You can sleep on the couch if you want.” I suggested to him.

He nodded in response and I got a pillow and some blankets for the boy. I turned around to go get ready for bed when Steve spoke up and said, “Ya know, you’re not so bad, (Y/N).”

“Back at ya, Harrington.” I smiled at the boy that was perched on my couch and told him goodnight.

After filling the vodka bottle with water so my father wouldn’t notice, I trekked to my bedroom and went to sleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

The next morning, I was pulled out of my slumber by Steve shaking me awake. I groaned before saying, “What do you want, Harrington?”

“C’mon, I forgot to tell you we’re meeting up with Tommy, Carol, and Nicole. We have plans today, to get back at Nancy and Jonathan.”

I didn’t have a good feeling about this, and even more so when I saw that Tommy’s plans including the cans of red spray paint he brought with him. But I went along with it anyways, seeing that my only friend had ditched me for someone else.

The five of us stood in the alley by the movie theater and Tommy sprayed the words ‘Byers is a perv’ on the wall. This whole thing made me uneasy and I felt very out of my element. Steve could see that and in a soft whisper he said to me, “Just chill. It’s no big deal. And they deserve it for screwing us over, right?”

Reluctantly, I nodded my head.

I peeked over Steve’s shoulder and saw Nancy darting towards us.

“Aw, hey there princess!” Carol spoke up and said.

“Uh oh, she looks upset.”

Nancy reaches up her hand and smacked Steve straight across the face.

“Oh!” The others rang out.

“What is wrong with you?” The brunette said.

“What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with you? I was worried about you. I can’t believe that I was worried about you.” A defeated Steve said.

“What are you talking about?”

“I wouldn’t lie if I were you. You don’t want to be known as the lying slut now, do you?” Carol said.

“Speak of the devil.” Tommy added when he saw Jonathan coming up close behind.

Jonathan scanned the scene and a major look of confusion and betrayal spread across his face when he saw me. I avoided eye contact with him.

“You came by last night.” Nancy realized.

“Ding! Ding! Ding!” Nicole yelped.

“Does she get a prize?” Carol asked sarcastically.

“Look, I don’t know what you think you saw, but it wasn’t like that.”

“What, you just let him into your room to... study?” Steve replied.

“Or for another pervy photo session?” Tommy added.

“We were just-“ Nancy began before Steve cut her off.

“You were just what? Finish that sentence.”

Nancy stood there in silence.

“Finish the sentence.” Steve said again with more audacity than before. When Nancy still couldn’t give him an answer he said, “Go to hell, Nancy.”

“Come on, Nancy, let’s just leave.” Jonathan said to her.

“You know what Byers? I’m actually kind of impressed. I always took you for a queer but I guess you’re just a screw up like your father.”

“Harrington, don’t.” I spoke up for the first time during the interaction with the two. I grabbed his arm to pull him back but he shook my hand off of him.

I may have been upset with Jonathan, but I wasn’t going to let Steve degrade him. However the words I said did absolutely nothing, and he continued on as if he didn’t hear me.

“Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. That house is full of screw ups. You know, I guess I shouldn’t really be surprised. A bunch of screw ups in your family.”

“Harrington, that’s enough!” I said louder. But Steve had his mind set, and no matter what I said, he continued.

“Jonathan, leave it.” Nancy said when she saw that Steve was getting to him.

“I mean your mom, I’m not even surprised what happened to your brother. I’m sorry I have to be the one to tell you, but the Byers, their family is a disgrace to the entire-“

Jonathan whipped around and socked him right in the face. The intensity of the fight steadily increased, each boy trying to get the upper hand, and all of us spectators yelled out things to try to get them to stop. None of it worked, and the cops showed up.

Nicole, Carol, and I began to sprint away from the alley, and as I looked over my shoulder, I could see Jonathan pummeling Steve’s face in.

I couldn’t help but be a bit proud of my friend in that moment. Steve crossed a line and deserved every injury Jonathan inflicted upon him.

—

[Part3]

[lovemesomesurveys]

Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder? Sad then, sad now.

Do you ever get “good morning” texts from anyone? Nope. 

Is there something that’s recently shocked you? Seeing the photos from the fires and the red skies across California and now Washington and Oregon as well. It’s devastating and terrifying. In my city the sky has been bright yellow and gray, the air quality has been dangerous levels, and it has rained ash. I can’t even imagine how it is where the fires actually are and the cities that are even closer by. It’s crazy.

What brand are the pants you’re wearing? I’m wearing Adidas leggings. 

Which is harder: walking away from somebody you love or coming back?  Walking away.

Do you listen to Lil Wayne?  I like some of his songs and features.

Have you ever made your parents cry? They’ve cried because of stuff that happened to me or I was going through, not something I did to intentionally hurt them.

Are you tan?  No. I’ve barely left the house except briefly when going to my once a month doctor appointment, so I haven’t spent enough time outside to get a tan. I would have if I was able to go to the beach.

What were you doing at midnight last night?  Watching a YouTube video and eating cheesecake.

Are you wearing a ring?  Nope.

If someone were to spell your name wrong, how would they spell it? “Stefanie.” 

Is your phone close to you?  Yeah, I’m watching a YouTube video on it.

Look at your recent calls, who was your last call from? It was an unknown number so I didn’t answer it, I assume it was some scam.

What’s bothering you right now? My back.

What do you want to be when you’re older?    I’m 31 and still have no idea.                              

Where are you right now?  In my room on my bed.

Are you listening to music right now?  No.

What will you do tomorrow? Medicate, sleep, survey, repeat. <<< That’s how much of my day goes as well.

Do you like your name? Sure.

What were you doing 20 minutes ago? Another survey.

What are you wearing? Socks, leggings, and a graphic tee.

Do you ever write notes on your hand? I used to do that sometimes when I was younger, like in middle school and high school.

Where did you sleep last night?  In my bed, like always.

What’s on your mind right now? Meh.

When is your birthday?  July 28th.

What are you looking forward to in the next next month? Colder weather and Halloween.

Do you smile often? I guess. Do you care what strangers think about you?: Yes and no. Less now than I used to, but it’s not because I’ve gained confidence in myself, I just don’t have the energy and feel kinda numb.

Are you a girl that just wants to have fun?:  Nothin’ crazy, but yeah. To me that could just consist of spending a day at the beach, traveling, going to Disneyland, playing board games... 

Do you use any acne medication?: No.

Have you picked out flower petals, saying, ‘He loves me, he loves me not?: I did it jokingly before.

Are you a small town girl, or from the big city?: Big city.

Do you ever look in the mirror and feel revolted?: That’s how I always feel, so I avoid looking in the mirror as much as possible and spend little time doing so when I do, only doing so when necessary (like to see how my hair looks if I’m going somewhere and brushing my teeth).

Is anybody in your family schizophrenic? If so, what is their life like?: We’ve suspected for a couple years now that a family member is. We haven’t been able to know for sure because they haven’t wanted to go to the doctor. They have all the symptoms, though.

Why do you hate drama, if you do?: I mean, it’s not fun to be wrapped up in drama. It’s stressful and can cause a lot of issues. 

Do you like it when you find yourself in a conflict?: Uh, no? What’s good about that?

What kinds of questions do you not like being asked?: In surveys? The same repeated, boring questions.

I recently saw an anti-Obama sticker that said ‘Sorry Yet?’ What the hell has he possibly done that would make people sorry? No president has been perfect and everyone is going to have an opinion, good and bad.

Or do you just hate him without even knowing why you do?: I didn’t say I did. Are you likely to crack under peer pressure?: There were a couple instances.

Are you emotional or very stoic?: I’m emo.

Does it annoy you when people dumb themselves down to be cool?: I never understood that logic.

Why do girls like six-packs? What’s wrong with a soft pillowy tummy? Nothing, there are people who like that as well. It’s just a preference thing. I personally care about the person themselves and how they treat me more than anything.

Are you feminine, masculine, or quite androgynous?:  Feminine.  What’s the first red object you see in the room? My red and black plaid throw pillow.

Is sex different than making love? Making love is having sex. Now if you said “fucking” or “making love” then I’d say there’s a difference. To me, the first sounds... rough. “Making love” sounds like slow and passionate sex. 

Ever been to a party that cops busted? No. The parties I went to were small and chill with a group of friends, nothing that ever got crazy or out of hand.

How many states have you lived in?  Just one.

Do you think you’re friendly?  Not overly so, I admit. I mean like, I’m nice and polite, but I’m also shy and awkward and nowadays, distant. I don’t know how to explain it. 

Have you ever had to pull over on the side of the road to puke? No, but I’ve thrown up in the car. Thankfully, the times it happened there was a bag available. 

[darkdevasofdestruction]

The Blood Moon

Summary : With great powers comes great responsibility, so why bother with them, when you can just chill back and relax? That’s what Katrina always told herself in a way to calm down whenever she felt herself lose control, but nothing will stop her from getting in trouble with literally everyone around. Her world was chaotic, like the last seconds of a fly trapped in a spider’s web, but what happens when the world literally goes Upside Down for her, has to take care of a group of nerds much bigger than herself and even worst, she feels her heart beat for the first time, but now, not because of anxiety, but due to a much warmer feeling.

Pairing : Billy Hargrove x OC (Katrina Black)

TW : Stranger Things, as a TV show, explores a lot of themes, including childhood trauma of various types, which I am going to go along with.

—

This story contains and explores a variety of trauma and darker themes, most of them relating in canon to a certain character, others that I’m more familiar with then I wish I were and so on.

I have this story written on AO3 that I wrote in like 3-4 days because GODS I am in L O V E with Billy Hargrove and someone please save me, all my feelings are in here, from sorrow to glee, from fluff to angst and so on.

But I’ve never been prouder of a story I’ve written like I am with this one.

—

Chapter 1: The Fox and the Lion

I had no idea how the hell I managed to get wound up in a group of 12 year olds’ troubles, but I can’t deny that it wasn’t fun, if not, just crazy dangerous and deadly. I met up Mike and his little group of nerdy friends whilst going to the arcade one day and them cursing my nickname for not being able to defeat my high-score in any game. Of course, since all arcade games only had a 3 letter maximum for each name, I put mine.

“FOX”

Because I have red hair and can be pretty sly and sneaky, despite how very introverted I am. Now it’s my last year at Hawkins High School, this one being the most important because if everything goes right, I may get a scholarship and be able to continue my studies further, to University, pursuing Vet Medicine, like I’ve always dreamt of.

Now, to tell a little bit about myself…

Officially, I was called “3”, just like the number tattooed on my shoulder, which is to brand me as one of the many experiments the Russians/Americans did on children. Somehow, and very thankfully, I managed to run away, thanks to my weird powers that I’m still not 100% sure, and found myself in the woods, where I stumbled upon this policeman named Hopper who was nice enough to take me in for a while, before getting me to an orphanage and making sure a real family gets to take care of me.

The date of me meeting Jim was January 3rd, a very cold and snowy winter, so from that day on, that has become my birthday. Since I didn’t have a name, he let me stay a few good weeks with him and taught me how to read and write, which was pretty easy, to say the least, and upon reading so many books, I found a name that finally suited my tastes.

“Katrina”

That was 5 years ago, when I was 13, and now I’m at my own little house close to the Byers, I recently found out, living alone with Jim visiting me often, or having the kids have sleepovers at mine from time to time, when I’m not too busy with my studies.

After the incident with the monsters, Will’s disappearance, El and everything, we’ve really bonded, and gotta say, being a Rogue in their DnD party was super fun!

Life hasn’t been easy, that much is sure, isn’t it? Many bad things happened that cannot be changed or unmade, so you have to life with them through the rest of your life.

But things never stay the same, do they…?

Life at highschool ain’t the best, especially not with all these mean girls and boys around, but how I survived 3 years, I can survive one more, right? Also, recently, Will and the gang told us about a new girl coming from California called “Max” who apparently beat all their records as well and from their description, I really wanna meet her. Now, I’m wondering if this is a coincidence or not, but my Sherlockian instincts were tingling, and she may or may not be our new colleague’s little sister. Oh, yes, new colleague… His name is Billy Hargrove and he’s the most intimidating man I’ve ever seen in my life. He is literally radiating masculinity and his eyes make everyone either kneel at his feet or stay away from him, because he won’t take anyone’s shit. In a very short amount of time, he managed to gain the reputation of “Keg King”…I think that was? Beating Steve Harrington at popularity, now being the literal best student at sports (especially basketball), having the most number of uh…Charmed ladies, as a count, and beat up a ton of boys who dared disrespect him. So, uh...FUN!

I could have said that I’ve been pretty lucky so far, seeing that I didn’t have the need to directly interact with Billy so far, but fate was never as you’d expect and the weirdest of changes always happen when you least expect them.

Wednesday morning -

I wake up, eat a bowl of milk and cereal, go to wash my fave, brush my long red hair and look through my clothes.

I choose an over-sized AC/DC Tshirt, light blue boyfriend jeans, a red plaid shirt tied to my waist, round shades, a black hat and black combat boots, take my bag and go to my motorbike that I recently managed to buy and went to high school. Maths went pretty fast by, Chemistry too, but during Biology, we had to make a project for the final grade, which will affect the overall grade by a huge percent, which completely got my attention.

But that wasn’t all.

Mrs. Green insisted on assigning us partners…And I was to do the project with none other than Billy Hargrove, which made me gulp in anxiety and start to slightly scratch at my neck, not daring to look at him…Or anyone, for the matter.

Mrs. Green: Kat, Billy, may I talk to you at the end of the class for a moment? Billy: Sure. Me: Okay…

After this, the class went on as if nothing happened, but I could basically feel the burning and poisonous glares the many girls in my class would throw at me. After all, who wouldn’t want to be partnered up with THE King Billy?

Ha.

Me.

What a fool.

All I did the whole class was to draw on my notebook, habit which I found out managed to calm down my anxieties pretty well, even if I didn’t really pay attention to the teacher…But hey, for someone like me, it’s no big deal. After all the other students left the classroom, I grabbed slowly got up and went in front of Mrs. Green, not managing to look in her eyes, my gaze fixed on the floor as I bit my lip and fiddling with my fingers. Billy, as well, stood just next to me, but he looked extremely laid back.

Mrs.Green: Billy, I am sure you are aware that, despite your pretty good grades, slightly above average, in most subjects, you are somehow failing Biology. So, I wanted to ask you, is it just disinterest, or are you not understanding something? I thought that, compared to Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics, this would be at least a bit easier. Billy: Well, uh…I dunno, I guess I don’t really get it or something. I guess I started with the wrong foot and continued even worse and…Yeah, you get it. Mrs.Green: Kat, dear, I am very sorry to ask this of you, since I know you’re extremely shy, but would it be okay with you if you were to help Billy with Biology? You told me you want to pursue Medicine at University, and so far you’ve been exceeding all expectations at my subject, which is why I paired you two up. Just a bit of tutoring, once in a while, if you both agree. Billy: If it helps with my grades, I don’t see why not. Mrs.Green: Excellent! What do you say, dear? Me: Uh, w-well, I…Uhm…I-I mean, s-sure, but…But a-are you sure I’m the right person for this? I-I mean, as you said, I’m painfully shy…A-And I’m afraid I might be more annoying than useful and I don’t want to waste anyone’s time and- Mrs.Green: Dear, Kat, calm down. I’ve seen you help and explain to some of your colleagues before at different subjects and you did an extraordinary job at it! I think you shouldn’t be afraid. Who knows, maybe Billy will be able to help you out with your shyness, since he’s so popular and sociable. Me: *hiding my face* I-I-I w-well, I don’t know what to say… Billy: You can start by saying ‘Yes’ ? Me: Uhm…I guess you’re right. S-Sure, I will tutor you, I am fine with that. J-Just tell me when you don’t understand or if I’m being annoying, I’ll try to stop. Billy: *chuckles* Don’t worry, toots, I’m sure we’ll get along just fine. Mrs.Green: *winks* Think of it as opportunity. It will look very good on your recommendation letter. Me: Y-You mean, you will…? Mrs.Green: *smiles* But of course, dear! How could I possibly not recommend my top student to the best University? It was supposed to be a surprise from me and your Physics and Chemistry teachers, but oops! Busted~. Me: I-I-I can’t thank you enough!! Really, thank you so much for everything you’ve done for me! I am forever grateful for you and your patience and kindness with me! Mrs.Green: *pats my head* Dear, your only fault is worrying too much and enjoying life too little. Take the advice of the bands you listen to so much and you might learn to live a bit. Now, off you go, your next class is about to start! Me: See you tomorrow, Mrs.Green! And thank you so much for everything again! Billy: Good bye, Mrs. G.

Outside of the classroom, I gripped my notebook close to my chest and walk to my locker, but Billy was still following me with a smirk on his face, and then leaned on the locker nearby.

Billy: So, I just got a very hot teacher as a reward for failing the class, the more you know. Me: I…I think it’s more of a punishment. Billy: Why’d you think that, Kitten? Me: Wh-Why did you j-just call me “Kitten” ? Billy: Mrs.G called you “Kat”, so, why not? Me: My name is Katrina, not Kitten, so please call me that. Billy: Fine, fine…Kitten. *winks* Me: *pouts* Guess I can’t convince you… Billy: You give up pretty easily, babe. It’s almost like you like that. Me: *cringes* I-It’s nothing of the sort. I-It’s just…Over the years…I learn that if saying “No” doesn’t work the first time…It won’t work no matter how many times you repeat or struggle…So might as well just get it over with. Billy: *raises an eyebrow* That sounded oddly specific. Me: *eyes widen* Ah, n-no, forget I just said that! S-Sorry, I, uh…I gotta go to Physics, excuse me. Billy: What a coincidence, I have Physics too. Why don’t we talk about the project and my tutoring on the way there? Me: Uhm…If you’re okay with it, I guess okay. Billy: Have any specific topic you wanna do? I kinda have no idea what we’ve studied so far. Care to enlighten me? Me: Well…We started with the Nervous system, followed by the Sensory organs, then Glands, the Locomotor system, Digestive system, Excretory system, Metabolism, some pretty basic Genetics, some plain Environmental things…And…Uhm…Well… Billy: *smirks* You missed out the Reproduction thingy between Excretory and Metabolism on purpose, didn’t you? Me: *gasps* Liar! You said you didn’t know! You tricked me! Billy: *chuckles* I might have. Say, toots, it’s almost like you missed it on purpose. Are you embarrassed? Hey, what about we do the project on tha- Me: NO!!!! Billy: *wide eyed* Whoa, slow down, there, I was only teasin’. Me: *slaps hand on mouth* I’m sorry! I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to shout at you! Please, don’t be mad. It’s just…I really don’t like it and it makes me feel very…Very bad. Billy: *shrugs* S'okay, I got it, don’t worry, I’m not mad. Jeez, Mrs.G was right, you really do worry too much. Me: Yeah…I’m really sorry, I told you it’d be more of a punishment than anything. I know I can be very annoying without even realising. Billy: Chill, babe, chill. So, when and where shall we meet? Me: Uhm…Tomorrow after class for the project? Billy: I have Basketball training, sorry. Me: Oh, right, you’re in the team. When’s your next match? Billy: In 2 weeks. Wanna come and cheer me? Me: *smiles* If you want me there, sure, I will be there. Billy: Huh, would ya look at that, Kitten has a pretty smile. Ya wanna make me swoon? Me: Ah, n-no, really, I’m not. Billy: You’re melting my heart, babe! Me: S-Sorry! Uhm…How about this Friday? About 5pm? At…Uhm…There’s this pretty cafe in town called “Ma Cherie” and they have amazing tea and sweets. Billy: Friday…Friday…Ah, yeah, sure. Had a date, but- Me: Oh, shoot! Okay, we can find another day so you won’t have to miss it! Billy: *chuckles* Nahh, don’t worry, I’ll just cancel. I’d much rather stay with you than with her. Me: *bites lip* Uhmm…I…Flattered? I think? Billy: Good then, it’s a date, see you then, sweet cheeks! Me: WAIT WHAT?!

I stopped in my tracks but he only laughed and waved at me, jogging ahead in another direction. It was only then that I realised that I was in front of the Physics classroom and he, in fact, had a complete other subject, not Physics.

Smooth bastard…

And so, Wednesday came to an end, Thursday as well, Friday went by unnoticed and then, I had to go full speed to the Animal shelter nearby to help out. They never told me how much to stay, seeing that my schedule was hectic due to College and Uni preps, so I would just come and go whenever I could. Problem is, I lost track of time and when I looked back at the watch again, it said 4:46pm.

F U C K.

I bid the workers farewell and ran to my motorbike, going as far as I could back to Hawkings and at the cafe, getting all the two bags full of books and running into the cafe, and looking at my watch at the same time.

5:13pm.

Kill me please.

Entering the cafe, I nod at the waitress, as I’m a regular here and we’re on friendly terms, and scan for Billy, who was writing something in a notebook. I rush to take the seat opposite, but before I sat down and let the books fall to the ground, I start apologising to Billy a bit too much.

Me: I’M SO SORRY!! I-I really didn’t mean to be late, but it’s entirely my fault and I feel horrible for making you wait for me! Please don’t be mad, I-I’ll make up to you! I’ll pay each time we go out to study, okay? S-So take anything you want a-and I’ll pay! I know it won’t really make a difference bu- Billy: Babe, sit down and breathe. Me: H-Huh? Billy: I’m not mad. I can clearly see you rushed to get here. Lost track or time, huh? What were you doing? Me: Yeah, I know, I’m stupid. I got a watch today so I can make sure I leave at the right time, but I forgot to check it and…I am late. So, uhm…Y'know how I mentioned I want to pursue Vet Medicine at Uni? I work at an animal shelter nearby and it takes sort of…Almost an hour to get here. Well, more like 40 minutes, but I rushed and got here in like 25. It kinda helps to get in at a top Uni…With a scholarship. I couldn’t afford to study at University otherwise, so I gotta do what it takes. Billy: Well, babe, you look pretty hot in you lab coat. I wanna see you like this more often. Me: M-My lab coat…? AH, DAMN, I FORGOT TO TAKE IT OFF! Godamn it! Billy: *chuckles* You’re pretty amusing, doll. Come on, sit down and let’s order. Me: Okay. Leila, dear, could you please come and take our order? Leila: Hey, Kat, rushed again from the shelter I see. Regular? Me: For me, yes. Billy, what would you want? Billy: Just a black coffee, thanks. Me: Are you sure? Billy: Yeah, sure. Me: O-Okay… Leila: Okay, then. A Cherry Vanilla tea with extra cinnamon, a chocolate cake and a black coffee coming right up! Me: Thank you for your time, Lei-Lei! Leila: Any time! Billy: Seems you calmed down a bit. Me: Yeah…This place always manages to sooth down my anxieties. Uhm…I literally only come here every time I want to study. Billy: I’m not surprised. It’s pretty nice, I guess. Me: *smiles* I’m happy that you liked it. Billy: Say, forgot to ask you on Wednesday, but today I see you have a Metallica Tshirt. Are they your boyfriend’s? Me: *blushes* B-Boyfriend? But I don’t have a boyfriend, what do you mean? Billy: You don’t? How come? Me: Why are you surprised, who’d want someone like me? Trust me when I say this, I know what I’m talking about. Billy: But you’re smart and pretty, what’s not to like? Me: Many things. So uhm…These are my Tshirts. 90% of my tops have band imprints. And…Well…AC/DC, Iron Maiden and Metallica are my Top 3 favourite bands. I have all their vinyls and cassettes. Billy: You just keep getting hotter and hotter the more I know you. Me: Hahaha, no, no way that could ever happen. Billy: If I were to give you one of my band Tshirts, would you wear it on our next date? Me: D-Date?! C-Come on, Billy, I’m literally the last person you’d want to date, I can assure you. Billy: What if I prove you otherwise? Me: How do you know you’re my type? Billy: *smirks* Oh~? So I’m out of your league, sweet cheeks? Me: Ah-…! Wait, no, I didn’t mean it like that! I didn’t want to insult or offend you, I’m sorry! Billy: Just teasin’, relax. Me: *pouts* Whatevs… Billy: So, wadya say, dollface? About us? Me: D-Don’t you think we should, like, get to know each other first? Become friends and trust each other and all that? Billy: Awww, toots wants one of those cutesy romance novel relationships, how adorable. Me: *blushes* W-Well…Y-Yeah…I guess…I know I’m asking for too much…And there’s no way in hell that could ever happen to me…S-So…I just…I guess…I kinda gave up on even thinking of dating long ago. Billy: *sighs* Maybe your expectations are too high of people that are too low. People suck, y'know? The world sucks. You’re expecting a happily ever after? Me: If I ever get to be in a relationship, I want it to be that kind of shelter that would be protective from all the chaos and evilness in the world. The only place where you can feel safe and be yourself. And if that Happily Ever After, as you call it, won’t happen with another person as my significant other…Then I’ll be very content with saving animals’ lives and travelling the world at my leisure. Billy: *smirks* Have I ever told you you’re pretty hot when you speak like that? Me: Uhm…Okay, so, I was thinking that maybe we could talk about the Nervous system in our project? Leila: Kat, you don’t need to talk about the Nervous system. You literally ARE a Nervous system. Me: … *laughs* Oh jesus, that was a good one. I won’t forget that…Actually, I might even use it as a joke when I do the presentation! Leila: *winks* Don’t forget the author’s right! Me: Okay, okay! As per my lovely barista friend joked, instead of presenting you the Nervous system, I will introduce myself, for I am, in fact, a Nervous system. Leila: Hey, Billy, was it? Please film her or something, I want to see that part. Billy: Consider it done. Me: I call this a conspiracy! Don’t try to overthrow my reign! Leila: Oh, shut up, nerd. Here’s your tea, honey and cake, and here’s your coffee. Good luck with your project! Me: Thanks, dear! Billy: Okay, that looks and smells pretty good. Me: *smiles* Wanna try? I can give you half of everything, if you want? Billy: Y'sure? Me: *nods* Sure! Do you like your tea sweetened? I usually put a lot of honey in it. Billy: Make it as you like and I’ll drink after. Me: Here, you can eat from my plate as much as you want. I usually drink the tea first anyways. Billy: So generous, toots, you’re melting my heart. Me: Ahem. So, the Nervous system? Billy: I have no idea what that’s all about, but just for the sake of the joke, I will say yes. Me: Cool! I kinda thought of specialising in Neurosurgery after Uni. B-But that’s really very far in the future, so it’s pretty irrelevant. Billy: Teach me your magic, babe, and let’s fuck them up big time.

Pretty excited, I got the books from the bag and handed them to him, showing him the tons of notes, scribblings, ideas, details and so on that I’ve gathered so far, and for the next 4 hours, everything we smoothly, but we had to leave because Leila had to close, and we decided to meet again on Monday at lunch time in the courtyard and study while we eat.

I have to admit, the time spent with Billy was…Well…Really nice. It seemed almost like he was a complete other person, not the scary guy who looked like he would snap at anyone if they even as much as blinked around him. Sure, he was a huge flirt, but it didn’t seem too…Ill-willed, to say the least. I just hope it won’t turn into a crush or something. I absolutely canNOT and will NOT allow myself to catch feelings…Not again…Not after everything that has happened. He is right. There is no Happily Ever After, so why bother?

The weekend passed by very fast as I prepared notes for both the project and some tutoring ideas for the Nervous System, since we had to start with the very beginning of Biology, so after the first 3 classes in the morning, I tried to rush outside, but I got pushed into a locker with a boy that I couldn’t recall the name of, but I knew was pretty popular…Like many others. I think his name was Dennis or something, and he wasn’t alone, but surrounded by 3 cheerleaders, Clarisse, Carol and Christine, or the Triple C as they were called.

Boy: Hey, freak, 'sup? Me: Uhm…Hi. Boy: Didn’t you hear me? SPEAK UP! Me: I-I Said hi! Boy: I SAID SPEAK UP!! Me: HI! Boy: Thaaat’s more like it, you ugly sow. Now, what the hell were you doing around King Billy? What you’re tryina get him to like you with that pity party of yours? Your face implores pity and sympathy, but you’re nothing more than a nerd! Me: W-We have to make a p-project together… Carol: Yeah, right, as if! You have the goo-goo eyes for him! Y'know, just 'cause he likes the bands you claim to like, doesn’t mean he likes YOU! I bet you only like that music 'cause HE likes it! Me: N-No…That’s not true…

By now, my eyes were watering, and Dennis pinned my wrists above my head and started screaming very close to my face. I could feel a panic attack beginning to form at an alarmingly fast rate.

Clarisse: Aww, look at her! What, gonna freak out again and cry? Christine: Pshh, yeah, right. What a stupid crybaby. Never got past the stage of a 10 year old? Dennis: You and your stupid red hair, better stop hanging out with Billy, or else you’re gonna get it. Me: B-But I h-have t-to- Carol: *slaps me* Billy. Is. Mine. Slut!

After she slapped me, everyone around started laughing and belittling me again, but I couldn’t get out of there because Dennis was exponentially stronger than me, so I knew there was no use in even bothering. A booming voice, however, echoed in the hallway, making me flinch at the noise. “SILENCE! What the hell is going on here?!” the deep voice rang out, a funeral silence taking over, only my soft whimpers being heard.

Dennis: STOP CRYING, YOU BITCH! Didn’t you hear our King asked for silence?! Me: S-Sorry… Dennis: And open your eyes when he’s here, stop being so disrespectful for someone clearly superior to you! Come on, now, on your knees, like the little bitch that you are!

Dennis laughed as he put his hand on my throat, squeezing a bit before throwing me to the ground, in front of Billy. I could only tremble on the ground, not daring to move. I learnt it the hard way that getting away always made it worse.

Billy is the most popular guy in the High school, making all the ex-popular guys hang out with him to gain popularity. He has always been the talk of the school, the womanizer, the rebel, the cool guy everyone loved and feared. Despite everything, I expected him to side with his friends…Even if a little part of me wished for him not to.

The silence in the halls was far more excruciatingly painful than the mockings and the laughter, but it soon vanished as a voice darker and lower than before started talking. He was clearly pissed off.

Billy: …What the fuck were you doing here…? Dennis: We were teaching this bitch a lesson, of course! Make her remember her rightful place! Clarisse: No, no, if you were doing that, you’d have thrown her in the trash bin, 'cause that’s what she is! Carol: Hey, Christine, look at her! She’s staying there like she wants to suck King Billy’s dick! What a shameless slut, on her knees in front of everyone! Billy: Did I, even once, ask ANY of you to do anything like this…? Dennis: Well, no, but she’s been rubbing her pathetic germs all over you! Following you like some lost puppy just 'cause you’re popular, and even more! Lying to us! Carol: Ha, yeah! She kept saying she’s dating you and that you already fucked! Pshh, whore! Me: I…Never… Carol: Oh, shut up, nobody cares what you’re saying, get a hint! Billy: Are you 4 fucking out of your GOD DAMN MINDS?! Dennis: Uhm…B-Billy, what’s the matter? Billy: WHO THE FUCK TOLD YOU TO DO THAT TO HER?! SHE’S MY PROJECT PARTNER AND MY TUTOR, OF COURSE SHE’S HANGING AROUND WITH ME! You fucking idiots, I’m gonna FUCKING KILL ALL OF YOU! All of you stay around me like whores on the sidewalk wanting to get some cheap money, but you’re all good for nothing! Dennis: Come on, Billy, you’re new here, but she’s a freak, okay? I mean, look at her! There are only bad rumours about her and you should hear what her EXes say about her!

Before Dennis could say another word, he was slammed on the locker behind him and choked. I cringed at the sudden noise, but when I saw the outright rage on Billy’s face as he choked Dennis, he drew back one of his arms, wanting to punch him, but I threw myself on his arm.

Me: Billy…Please don’t… Billy: Get back, dollface. This fuckass needs to be taught some discipline the hard way! Me: Billy…Please, I beg of you. Please let him go. Please. Billy: But look at you, they made you cry! I can’t let them get away with this! Me: Billy…Please, for me, please don’t do it. Please stop. Please. Let’s go work on the project. Please. I beg you with all my heart. Billy: *glaring* What the hell is wrong with everyone in this fucking town?! You’re all a bunch of submissive fucktards with no brains at all!

Billy sneered, throwing Dennis away from him and walking down the corridor. I took 3 deep breaths to calm myself, before I ran to him and hugged him tightly from behind, making him freeze in his tracks, extremely tense.

Me: I-I’m very sorry, Billy. I know I only bring you troubles. Even now, I can feel that you hate me touching you like this, but it was the only way I could think of thanking you. And…And…I really appreciate you saving me…And not fighting in my presence. Billy: I really don’t get you. You just stood there, letting them do whatever the hell they wanted with you! There was no struggle, no fight in you! Nothing!

By this point, I let my arms fall down my sides and he turned around to face me, yet my gaze was still on the floor.

Me: You really think I could have gotten out of there? That I could have managed to throw Dennis off of me? Look at me, Billy. My arms are literal noodles, I can’t even punch. Hell, sometimes I struggle to open the water bottle cap. And if I tried to scream…Who do you think would have helped me? Harrington? Wheeler? The lovely Carol and Tina? Or Tommy? The only person who was okay with me in this high school has been Jonathan Byers, but people hate him too, so I can’t possibly make him get bullied more because of me. What would you have me do? It’s been 3 years already…What’s one more? Billy: …You’re so godamn irritating. Me: I know…I’m sorry. I’m really sorry for causing you so much trouble. I…I will go tell Mrs. Green to assign you a new project partner and I will continue tutoring you, if you wish, where people won’t have to see us in the same room. Billy: Did I ask you to do that? Me: N-No, but- Billy: But nothing. Shut up and let’s go, you’re supposed to be tutoring me today. Me: I-I know, but we said outside, and if people see you with me- Billy: Then let’s skip. I don’t have Basketball practice today, so I don’t really care. Me: I-I…I never skipped before… Billy: *shrugs* There’s always a first time for everything. C'mon, if you get in trouble, you just say I kidnapped you or somethin’, chill out. Me: A-Are you sure about this…? Billy: Yeah, yeah. Hop along, I’ll drive. Me: Where are we going? Billy: My place. My parents won’t be coming home tonight so nobody to disturb us. Me: Uhm…Well… Billy: I won’t do anything to you, fuck’s sake. Me: W-Well…If you’re sure it’s no problem… Billy: Get in the car, then. Me: B-But my motorbike- Billy: You have a motorbike? Me: Y-Yeah…Couldn’t really afford a car. And it’s pretty neat. Billy: Fuck, babe, you’re so hot. Me: Ah, I-I’m really not. Billy: I’ll get ya to your house and pick you up tomorrow then. C'mon, sweet cheeks, lemme show you my love. Me: Okay, okay.

He winked at me before signaling me with his head to follow him to his car, where he patted the hood very proudly and smirked, leaning on the door. He got inside, starting the ignition, which was a cue for me to get inside too, putting on my seat belt and gripping it tightly.

Billy: How d'ya like it? Me: It’s very pretty. What car is it? Billy: '79 Camaro, Chevrolet. Complete chick magnet, ya get me? Me: It is very nice. Billy: Fancy some music! Me: Oh, yes!

Smirking at me, he put “You shook me all night long” by Scorpions at max volume, making me grin at him in glee and start singing the lyrics of the song, and he followed my lead, making both of us scream like idiots above the music. Then, the perfect Mixtape with AC/DC songs started, featuring “Highway to hell”, “Hells bells”, “You shook me all night long”, “Dirty deeds done dirt cheap” and my favourite, “T.N.T.”, but by the end of it, we already got to his house, which made me pout a bit before laughing and getting out of the car.

Me: Thanks for this, Billy! It was super fun! Nobody I know listens to the same kind of music I do, and being able to sing with someone else was sooo cool! Billy: Next time, try screaming my name, 'cause damn that was sexy as hell. Me: *laughs* Don’t be silly. Billy: *winks* I’m not.

He guided me to his room which was filled with band posters over which I started gushing about as he brought some snacks and soda for us to munch on as we study. I took off my boots before I jumped on the bed criss-crossed as I spread my noted for today’s tutoring, repeating some things myself, so I won’t stutter explaining too much, but before I realised it, he already threw the bags of crisps on the bed over my notes, making me yelp in shock.

Billy: You get scared pretty easily. Me: Y-Yeah, I mean, that was pretty unexpected. Uhm…Let’s clean up a bit, you made a mess of my notes. Oh, bring your notebook, you’ll need it. O-Oh, right, I brought coloured crayons, I wasn’t sure you had…And your sister might have needed them. Billy: How did ya know I had a sister? Me: Well, I kinda guessed. Both you and her transferred from Cali on the same day, at the same time. Billy: Why do you know about little brats? Me: *shrugs* I have a few little friends. They don’t mind that I’m a nerd…'Cause they are too. It’s pretty fun, actually! Billy: *raises eyebrow* Right. So, why’d I need crayons? Me: Drawings, of course! To understand Biology better, one must need tons of schemes and drawings. I already have mine and I will give them to you for as long as you need, but I’d appreciate it if you were to draw them by yourself too, since it will really help you understand and memorise better what you’re about the learn. Billy: Right…Okay, fine. Me: So, if it’s okay with you, should we start talking about Cells? Shapes, roles, the organelles inside it and what they do. Then, we should cover the tissues a bit, before starting to talk particularities, mainly, to explain the Neuron, how reflexes work and why, and then cover the nerves and organs. Billy: *blank look* Good luck. Me: Huh? What do you mean? Billy: It’s gonna be tough getting me to understand this shit. Me: I don’t think so. I have faith in you. Mrs.Green said that all your grades are above average, which is really good! If you manage to get a B at Biology as your final mark, then you have a very strong chance at a scholarship! Billy: How d'ya know that? Me: You are the best at sports, Billy. The teacher always praises you, despite all the…Uhmmm…L-Let’s call it problematic behaviour. I’m sorry. And, uhm…Our highschool has 1 Sports Scholarship, and 1 Studies Scholarship. Billy: And clearly, you’re the one to get the Studies one, right? Me: *blushes* Well…Y-Yes, it seems so. Billy: And how are you so sure I’m the one qualified for the Sports one? Me: Well…I…I spend a lot of time around teachers. It’s kind of a safe haven where nobody can bully me, and I get to find out a few things as well. Billy: Holy shit, you’re such a Vixen~! You, little, naughty vixen! Me: *chuckles* I…I’ve been called Fox before. Billy: And rightfully so. Me: Y-Yeah, carrot hair, I know. Billy: Oh, shush, it’s hot. And damn, looks damn good with your green eyes. Me: *clears throat* N-Nobody said that before. Uhm, s-so! As I was saying, because you’re currently the top choice…That’s actually why Mrs.Green wanted you to pair up with me. She saw potential in you and she didn’t want it wasted. Before you, there was Steve Harrington, but since you came… Billy: Oh, babe, trust me, I’m gonna come very soon if you keep praising me like that. Me: *confused* What do you mean? Billy: You…Didn’t get that? Me: *shakes head* Should I have? Billy: Never mind. So, what am I supposed to do? Me: Basically, get that B in Biology, win at least 3 of your upcoming Basketball matches until the end of the year…And I think it’s settled. Billy: I’d kiss you right now. Me: *scratches the back of my neck* You wouldn’t like it. So, uhm…Is this enough of a motivator for you? Billy: It could be…Okay, babe, work the hell outta me. Me: S-So, I was thinking, if it’s okay with you, that I should give you a test after each chapter we finish. Like a revision. I think it would be nice and it would help you not forget some things, and also, see where you didn’t understand well enough and all that stuff. Billy: What’s the passing grade, teacher? Me: *flustered* D-Don’t call me that, please, I would be a terrible teacher. I think…A 75% should suffice Billy: That’s quite a lot, babe. Me: *smiles* You can do it, Billy. Your future self is going to thank you for your struggles and hard work. Billy: How about a motivator? Me: Isn’t the Scholarship enough? Billy: It is…But Y'know, it’s gon’ be hard. Me: I suppose you’re right…Okay, what do you have in mind? Billy: *smirks* Each time I get a passing grade at your tests…Let me kiss you. Me: *eyes wide* Wh-What?! Billy: Aww, come on, babe, it’s just a kiss and it’s gon’ help motivate me to study hard. Don’t cha wanna help me get that scholarship? Me: *blushes furiously* I-I-I…Wh-Why w-would you want that?! Billy: Because you’re adorable as hell and I like you. Me: L-Like you like all girls? Billy: Who said I liked them? They’re all dumb and want the same thing. Can you guess? Me: *shrugs* Dunno. Billy: Come on, babe, think, you’re smart. Me: I guess? Billy: You’re the smartest babe I’ve ever got the pleasure to meet. All fucktards at school want just one thing, 'cause they’re all shallow brain dead suckers. They aaaaaall just wanna fuck. Me: A-And don’t you do the same? Billy: I do. Me: Th-Then why’d you want me to kiss you? To add me to your list or something? Billy: Nahh, I’d be a real shithead if I were to take advantage of you like that. Me: *mutters* Wouldn’t be the first one… Billy: *raises eyebrow* Do you trust me? Me: Don’t take it personal, I don’t really trust anyone. Billy: Huh. Not bad. Let’s make a deal, toots. I’ll do my best to raise up to your expectations and you’ll give me those little rewards. If by the time we finish everything you won’t be satisfied with how I behave, then you can hate me all your life and I won’t bother you again. Me: B-But I don’t wanna hate you. Billy: *gets closer to my face* Even better. So, wadya say, sweetling? Me: Uhmm…Well…I-I don’t know… Billy: Come on, Kitten, what’s the harm? It’s just a kiss. Me: *blushes* Uhm…Uhmmm…F-Fine…If it will help you… Billy: Thanks, babe! Now, how about I see what to expect~? Me: NO!

With each question, he just kept getting closer and closer to my face, while I leaned backwards, until the last where I got so flustered that I didn’t realise I was completely on the edge of the bed… Until I fell off with a high-pitched squeal and a thud, while he just laughed his ass off looking at me, as I pouted and looked at him done with life.

Me: You could’ve caught me, y'know? Billy: Sorry, toots, I was too shocked to realise. But, shoulda seen your face, t'was hilarious! Priceless! Me: Yes, yes, I’m hilarious, ha-ha! Just wait till you see how hilarious the tests are gonna be! And I’ll laugh in your face like you do right now! Billy: Ohhh, mrrrr, babe, you’re on fire! Fine, you’re on, then! But I’ll show ya it’s gon’ be worth it. Me: You better.

Stretching a bit I get back in bed next to him and putting on my best game-face, I grab the first pages of notes, the drawings and schemes and start explaining him in detail every little thing, telling him to repeat what I said from time to time, to make sure he stays focused, and make him explain what he understood so far, in his own words.

Despite everything, he was actually really great company to have and I’m kinda…Actually, really glad that Mrs.Green made me be his partner for this project, and more, tutor him. If only he could tone down his excessive flirting, he’s surprisingly soft and nice. Or well…That’s what I think. I could also be wrong, like I’ve been so many times before, and I wouldn’t be shocked in the least bit.

But…I really hope I’m not wrong.

Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

@klassickb

[thewhumpening]

Freedom

(It wasn’t the next thing I wanted to write, but it gives context and some world-building for some of the other whump I’ll be writing about. Fallon is a familiar and can turn into a raven at will. Samuel is his mage. Characters are shared with @marantas​/ @goliathtwink​)

~

Fallon didn’t stick around to watch Samuel’s murder. He bailed just before it happened, becoming a raven and fleeing into the night as the assailant struck. There was a tangible snap that rang out in his soul, and then an impact that made him falter in the sky. It didn’t feel right. Granted, he had nothing to compare it to; he never experienced a broken bond before. The channel of shared power closed off, the thrum of energy vanishing once the raven had stabilized.

But despite the unusual sensation, Fallon knew that Samuel was dead.

And now Fallon is alone, landing in a dark sports field dimly illuminated by the white glow of the lamp posts along the pathways, processing this information. He returns to his human shape in a fluid shift almost too quick for the eyes to catch — a pale young man of average build, dressed overly warm for the summer air to combat his constant chill. Nobody knows where a familiar’s clothing goes when they shift, but they always return as though they weren’t blatantly defying the laws of physics. Magic is funny that way.

Fallon looks up at the murky sky, fogged over by a heavy marine layer settling over the bay. There are no stars, no moon. Nothing out of the ordinary. It looks exactly as it did before. As it does most nights. The distant sound of traffic is the only sound carrying through the air. He takes a slow, deep breath, his chest puffing up.

“FUCK! YOU!” he shouts, long and hard, bending at the waist from the force of expelling every last ounce of air from his lungs. It takes another moment of him staring at his feet in his bent stance, listening for a cruel retort, before a smile begins to tug on his lips. He stands suddenly, hopping about the grass as laughter bubbles up, slapping his thighs like a prospector who’s struck gold. “Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck you!”

Fallon can’t keep his laughter down. He has no idea who it was that killed Samuel, or why, but he’s grateful, nonetheless. Now he can return to Melody, his real mage. He’d been stolen away nearly two years ago, used as a hostage to force her into doing what Samuel wanted. The late mage had wasted it, wanting her to find a way into Empa, a mythical, utterly fictional realm that magic users all agree is just mythology — old stories buried deep in old texts.

“You’re delusional!” Fallon cries into the night with glee. Being able to say what he’s been thinking this whole time is liberating. A weight lifted off his chest. “You stupid son of a bitch! I’m free!”

‘Now, who said you were free?’ 

The familiar, terror-inducing tone makes Fallon’s blood freeze. His stomach turns as a slimy feeling slithers over him, like cool fingers on his spine.

Fallon takes look around. He's alone in the park, but Samuel's voice was clear as day. “S-Samuel…?” he calls out timidly. Had he been wrong? Did he survive after all? Fallon had fled before watching the moment of death. Or the moment he thought he died.

But it’s quiet, save for distant sirens in the direction he had come from. Fallon pulls his jacket around him tight, all giddiness having been washed away in the blink of an eye. He wonders if whatever ailment that has him constantly freezing his ass off has developed new symptoms.

‘Not far from the truth, Pumpkin.’

Fallon gasps, whipping around. But he’s still alone. He clutches his jacket in tight fists, his jaw set as he strains his eyes against the dark. It feels like there’s a single finger running up the nape of his neck and into his hair, causing goosebumps to prick at his skin. A quick look behind him reveals empty space.

“Samuel?” His voice is a little louder than before, but maintains all of the uncertainty. There’s an unusual sensation of something large pressing against Fallon without him feeling it physically.

‘It’s a little, ugh, crowded in here, isn’t it?’ Samuel grumbles. ‘I guess I must have gained some weight since last time,’ he hums in amusement.

Fallon chuckles nervously, grabbing a handful of his own hair by the roots as he continues trying to find the mage. “Where, uh, where are you?” he asks, staggering back a step. This isn’t like Samuel’s usual tricks. He was never fond of illusions.

‘You’re unusually astute tonight. No, not an illusion.’ A slow, nauseating wriggle of something settles within him and he has to hold back a retch.

Fallon’s other hand joins the first in clutching his hair. How could Samuel know what he was thinking? There were no spells that could allow that, nor any potions. He shakes his head with an uneasy smile. “I’ve finally lost it, haven’t I? That’s the only explanation for this.”

‘Is it, though?’

“You’re not here! You’re dead!”

His hand reels back and slaps him across the face hard, causing him to fall and scramble away in his surprise. Eyes wide, Fallon looks to his hand and flexes it carefully.

‘Shut up. You’re being loud.’

His jaw trembles as the hand begins to move on its own again, pointing at his head. ‘I’m right here. Or —’ the hand trails down to point at his chest ‘— maybe here. Wherever the soul sits. I still don’t know. Metaphysical nonsense and all that.’ Fallon snatches his wrist and pulls it away from him.

“Wh-What the fuck?” he whispers. His deviant hand goes limp, relinquishing control back to himself. He gives it a quick shake just to be sure. “No, this can’t happen. It’s impossible. I-I’m just stressed, that’s it. None of this is happening.” Fallon nods, brows furrowing. “I’ve got that alien hand syndrome or something. Yeah.”

He stands carefully, keeping a firm eye on it. When it remains still, he releases the breath he didn’t realize he was holding. Who cares if he was hearing Samuel’s voice, and if his hand occasionally does its own thing? If he can get back to Washington — to Melody — then he can get the help he needs. She would know what to do.

His leg stops moving halfway through his first step, and Fallon falls onto his face.

‘Ha! How’s that for alien hand syndrome?’ Samuel cackles. ‘What’s the matter, Pumpkin? Can’t stand to be without your legs?’

Fallon grits his teeth, digging his fingers into the grass. “No!” he cries. “No, no, no! This can’t be happening! This can’t be real!” A sob chokes him as the mage’s laughter rings out in his head, rough and jarring. “You’re dead!”

‘Very much so!’ Samuel’s fit dies down to occasional snickering. ‘I forgive you leaving me for dead, by the way.’

“But h-how—” Fallon stammers picking himself off of the ground. “I…”

‘It’s because of how I bound you. It’s how I stole you away from her. Bonds like that can’t be severed by outsiders, but they can be severed by me.’ There’s a quivering in him that Fallon can guess means smug satisfaction based on Samuel’s tone. The mage falls silent for a moment as though he were deep in thought. ‘But look at me, rambling,’ he continues coolly. ‘We’ve got to get moving. You dropped some feathers, I’m sure. Sloppy as ever. The guy who offed me will likely be trailing you by association.’

“But—!”

‘Enough. Dying is exhausting. You’ll get your answers. They all did, eventually,’ he says. A small giggle echoing through Fallon’s head gives him chills. ‘But you won’t get them if you don’t get moving. That guy is awfully cruel and very tenacious.’

Fallon stares at his hand in disbelief. Freedom had been so close, and the taste of it too short-lived. Whatever Samuel had done to secure his survival had been thought out years in advance, and apparently to others as well.

“How many times have you… died…?” he asks hesitantly, standing. The defeat he had shrugged off minutes ago had been replaced, weighing down his posture once again.

But his question is met with silence. With no more answers, and a newfound paranoia, Fallon looks to the north. It was going to be a long trek home. He just hopes Melody would know what to do.

[prettywordsyouleft]

50 Questions Tag

Tagged by @g-exo Thank you sweetie! <3

1. What takes too much of your time?

Working and writing. 

2. What makes your day better?

Writing, k-dramas, crafting, bullet journalling, chocolate lol.

3. What’s the best thing that happened to you today?

This is going to sound odd, but we have 3 little kittens (and their mama) who we rescued from our horses’ hay shed a few weeks ago. The kittens started on solids like two days ago and one of them hadn’t pooped and was pretty full. After some assistance from me, she went and pooped. I could have cried with pure happiness. Poor thing was so uncomfortable.

4. What fictional place would you like to go to?

The world of Howl’s Moving Castle. To be able to use the door in Howl’s Castle to go to different realms and places would be truly magical.

5. Are you good at giving advice?

I believe so. Not so good at taking the same said advice though >_<

6. Do you have any mental illness?

Generalised Anxiety.

7. Have you ever experienced sleep paralysis?

Nope and I’m grateful that I haven’t :/ << same.

8. What musician inspired you the most?

SHINee as a group. I was in a hard place when I got into kpop with being unable to walk. I was entirely depressed from my accident and thought I would never get anywhere again. Their music gave me an escapism that I needed at first, and then I found the confidence in myself to get back up and try again. 

9. Have you ever fallen in love?

I don’t think I truly know what love is aside from familial love. I’ve not had the opportunity to fall in love. 

10. What’s your dream date?

I don’t think I have one. Something simple yet fulfilling with a person who is actually engaged in the date happenings and wanting to be in my company would be enough for me!

11. What do others notice about you?

I like to give. Everyone who has come across me - whether in passing or actually get to know me, all say that I have this ability to share with others and make their lives brighter by doing so. 

The ones who know me well complain that I don’t know when to stop and rest because I’m so focused on completing my tasks/ giving to others lol. 

12. What is an annoying habit you have?

I guess the above - being too stubborn to know when I need to rest. I’m pretty bad about it. I overload myself and then get too stressed out. It’s something I’m working on!

13. Do you still talk to your first love?

Not applicable to me.

14. How many ex’s do you have?

Zero.

15. How many songs are in your playlist?

6456 is the amount I have on itunes. I have various playlists that I listen to despite my mood though.

16. What instruments can you play?

None.

17. Who do you have the most pictures of?

Uhhhh on my phone it’s Mark Tuan. Followed by Kyungsoo and both Jung/Park Jinyoung’s.

18. Where would you like to go before you die?

Italian Peninsula is my top pick. Other places would be Greece, Japan, Korea and England.

19. What is your zodiac?

Gemini technically.

20. Do you relate to it?

I fall on the Gemini-Cancer cusp and relate to articles I’ve read of Gemini-Cancer cusp people than pure Gemini traits. I’m definitely not an outgoing, carefree person as Gem’s are describe to be lol.

21. What is happiness to you?

My family, friends and even our pets succeeding in life. Seeing their happiness makes me feel good.

22. Are you going through anything right now?

This whole year has been a “going through” kind of year. Every time I think things are settling, another thing is thrown my way. But I’m optimistic it means I’m getting stronger with this testing period. 

23. What’s the worst decision you’ve ever made?

Not buying VIP tickets when B.A.P came here for their L.O.E tour. I chose Gold tickets because they had seats and as a partially disabled person through my right leg, I didn’t think I could stand for the duration of the concert. It’s something I’ve regretted for years - they were so amazing to everyone, but those in VIP were so darn lucky with all the interactions they had!  

24. What’s your favourite store?

I guess Gordon Harris, the local art store, because I am always there picking up new stationery supplies for bullet journalling. 

25. What’s your opinion on abortion?

It’s a very personal choice. As a person who wants to be a mother one day, it’s an option I could never ever bring myself to do. However, it’s not my place to judge, condemn or preach at those who feel it’s their only choice at the time. 

26. Do you keep a bucket list?

Kind of? In my bullet journal for the past 2 years I’ve done the whole “19/20 things to do before 2019/2020″ but I don’t have an official bucket list or anything.

27. Do you have a favourite album?

Probably Verse 2 - JJ Project because I listen to it all the time. Otherwise, Good Timing - B1A4 is probably another long time favourite.

28. What do you want for your birthday?

Not really sure... my birthday is hard because it’s ten days before my Dad’s death anniversary. So I just try to do something to smile each year. Maybe go out for dinner to celebrate mine and Mum’s birthday (she’s a week exactly after my birthday)

29. What are most people’s first impression of you?

I’ve been told most people think I’m shy and awkward but once I talk, they are surprised with how engaging I can be in conversation. Which makes me laugh because generally on the inside I’m panicking as I have social anxiety issues. 

30. What age do you seem according to most people?

I’m 32 but people never seem to think it. When I was at university, I was older than everyone else as an adult student but they all thought I was around 20-21 when I was 24+ hahah. 

31. Where do you keep your phone while you’re sleeping?

On top of Octavia’s crate which is next to my bed. Or if I need to charge it, I leave it on my desk. I’m a very light sleeper so when my alarm goes off, it doesn’t need to be next to me to wake me up.

32. what word do you say the most?

When I’m talking - “like” (which really annoys me). When I’m writing - “but”.

33. What’s the oldest age you would date?

I try to believe I would date anyone regardless of age. But I’ve been known to have put an age limit of no more than 8 years older when I was feebly using dating websites. I don’t actively search for someone anymore, so if they came into my world and matched me well in a natural way, then I don’t think age would deter me. 

34. What’s the youngest age you would date?

I’m a bit more carefree on this one... I think it comes from being an older kpop fan and liking on younger idols because there’s hardly any idols left that are my age/older lol. Again as above, I wouldn’t let a younger age deter me in the right setting.

35. What job/career do most people say would suit you?

Author. I’ve even done those career quizzes on multiple occasions and the first choice is always Author/Writer. 

The second choice people say is teacher. Which I was training to be until my injury. 

36. What’s your favourite music genre?

K-Pop. 

37. If you could live in any country in the world, where would it be?

I’m happy where I live. I’ve never thought of being able to live elsewhere.

38. What is your current favourite song?

White or Feeling - both by Jeong Sewoon. 

39. How long have you had this blog for?

I started it on July 2nd, 2018.

40. What are you excited for?

Uh, I’m not really excited for anything? 

41. Are you a better talker or listener?

A bit of both.

42. What is the last productive thing you did?

Yesterday I made a new paddock up for our horses, cleaned out my guinea pig’s house, cleaned out the entire bathroom where Byul and her kittens are staying. And then last night I did Chelle Chats which was pretty busy! 

Today I’ve been pretty chill compared so far. 

43. What do you want for Christmas?

I’m not sure. I’m never good at knowing what I want. Better at knowing what to buy others.

44. What class do you get the best grades in?

In high school, it was English and Biology. In university, it was Classics/Ancient History.

45. On a scale of 1-10, how are you feeling right now?

6

46. What can you see yourself doing in 10 years?  

Not sure. I had an image of how I hoped to be a mother, and continuing on with my art business, but with puberty rocking our house with my sister and my finances taking a nose dive, fertility treatment is long gone sadly. I’ll just think I’ll focus on the now and improve/appreciate what I have! 

47. When did you first get your heartbreak?

I’m sure this question is related to dating but for me, when I was 14 my heart broke when my Nana died. And in 2012, when my Dad was killed was when I gained another ball in my box of grief. Last year was tough losing my dog of 15.5 years too. Got three balls in that box now :( 

As for dating, sure, I’ve hurt from limited attempts to confess and being rejected... but I’ve never had real opportunity for heartbreak like that.

48. At what age do you want to get married?

Lmfao. I’ll probably be single for my whole life. Marriage is so far from the cards for me, I can’t imagine it. 

49. What career did you want to have as a child?

I wanted to be a Veterinarian or Teacher.

50. What do you crave right now?

Food cos it’s 1.34pm and I’ve not eaten yet oops.

Tagging: @this-song-thats-only-for-you @mark-tuan-and-namjoon-lover @katdefbeom @listlessmaenads @tuanyiems @peachyparkjinyoung @jinyoungmoans @ahgase55g7 @itsallabigmess and anyone else who wants to do this!