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freddiesaysalright · 4 years

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Part of Your World - Chapter 2

Ben!Prince Eric x Mermaid!Reader

Summary: Prince Ben is trying to escape an arranged marriage. A young mermaid wants to escape the sea. Their paths cross and they may just be what the other is looking for.

Word Count: 4.6k

Tag List: @psychosupernatural, @someone-get-a-medic, @bensrhapsody, @deakyclicks, @crazylittlethingcalledobsession, @minigranger, @crazyweirdocalledfriday, @the-moving-finger-writes, @assembledherethevolunteers, @rose-writes-prose, @queenlover05, @26-7-49, @drowsebaby, @im-an-adult-ish, @queen-paladin, @rogerina-owns-me, @mirkwoodshewolf, @seven-seas-of-ham-on-rhye, @radiob-l-a-hblah If you’d like to be added, let me know!

A/N: Y’all I’m sorry this chapter took so long. See this post for everything that’s been going on in my life

Warning(s): Mild descriptions of violence

Moodboard

Chapter 1

Chapter 2 here we go!!!

“What was that?” Ben wondered, sitting up a little straighter.

“Not sure,” Ari replied, releasing Kay and getting to her feet.

Ben followed suit and they walked over to the ledge together. Neither of them noticed the mermaid pressing herself up against the side of the ship, holding her breath and praying they didn’t look down.

Behati emerged from her quarters and walked out to join the crew. She had one hand behind her back.

“Eric,” she said.

Ben turned to face her.

“If that really is your name,” she said.

The color drained from his face. “What are you talking about?”

“I found this among your things,” she replied, and brought her hand forward. She held up his ring. “The crest of the royal family is on it.”

While Ben had not worn any jewelry during his escape, he had packed his ring just in case he needed it. It was an heirloom worn by every prince in his father’s line. It was silver, with mermaids on the side, holding up the crest in the middle. There were diamond chips on the four corners of the crest, and the mermaids had tiny emeralds for eyes.

“You had no right to go through my things!” he argued.

“You are a guest on my ship!” she shot back. “I had every right. Who are you? The prince? A lord? Who?”

“There are other things to worry -”

“Whoever is on that ship can wait until morning when we can see,” she snapped. “Tell. Me. Who. You. Are. Now!”

Ben shrunk away, his back hitting the ledge.

“Okay,” he conceded. “You guessed right. I’m the prince.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “So. Benjamin is your name.”

From below, your heart gave a flutter. Prince Benjamin. What a handsome name!

“Ben’s fine,” he said nervously.

“Well, Ben, we’re taking you home,” she said firmly. “I won’t be followed and charged with kidnapping the prince.”

“No, please!” Ben cried. “I can’t go home yet!”

“Why?” she demanded.

He hesitated, looking away for a moment. He locked eyes with Ari, who placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“She can’t understand if you don’t explain,” she said. “And she can’t trust you unless you trust her.”

He looked back at Behati.

“My father is forcing me to get married,” he admitted.

You stiffened at that word. Married?! That wasn’t good news for you.

“He keeps bringing all these princesses and high born ladies to visit, hoping I’ll fall for one of them,” he went on. “But they’re all...dreadful. And he’s sort of run out of options now.”

Behati softened. She approached him slowly, took his hand, and pressed the ring into his palm. Then she curled his fingers around it.

“Was being honest really so hard?” she teased. Then she became serious. “Ben, I understand wanting to escape. Probably better than most people. I hope you’re not under the impression that I lack empathy or compassion.”

“It’s just...I don’t know you very well yet,” he chuckled.

“Know this,” she said. “I don’t turn my back on people in need. Being forced into a marriage...that’s terrible. Even princes have their share of trouble, eh?”

It was such a dramatic shift in her, it was throwing Ben off balance. Behati had become suddenly very soft. Even stranger, he liked knowing that she had it in her.

“They do,” he agreed.

“You may remain on my ship for as long as you need,” she said. “Or as long as you’re useful.”

She winked and released his hand. She stood in the center of the deck and looked up at the starry sky. Ben looked as well as he slipped his ring back on. He had never seen so many stars.

“It’s a beautiful night,” the captain said. “There should be music.”

The crew cheered. Ari went to grab her fiddle. Ben shrugged and decided to join the merriment. You pulled yourself forward again to watch.

You watched them all night, fearful that leaving now meant your last chance to see humans up close would pass. Behati, Ben, and the others played music, danced, drank, told stories, and laughed. It seemed that with honesty, came the beginnings of friendship. It almost made you sick with envy. And yet, you could not pull yourself away.

They carried on all night. The golden hush of the morning came over the water, and the sun began to peek over the horizon. Ben had fallen asleep against the mast, and much of the crew was now lazily plucking at instruments or dozing softly. Behati was still awake. She retrieved a spyglass from a strap on her hip and she looked over at the ship that was approaching from the night. It was time to find out who they were.

She knew almost all the other pirate captains. They had an agreement. Since Behati’s interest was not in riches, they left her alone. In return, she left them alone, but with one condition - they could not trade people. Any pirates she caught dealing in the slave trade would be challenged. And she had never lost a battle.

Ben stirred awake. He looked up and saw Behati checking things out. Relief came over him. He had enjoyed himself during the night, but the concern about the other ship was still eating at him. He scrambled to his feet and walked over to stand beside her.

“Who are they?” he asked. “Do you know?”

Her mouth was turned into a deep frown. She lowered the spyglass, looking ready to spit a bullet. Ben had never seen such anger.

“Slavers,” she said slowly.

“How do you know?” he wondered.

“The insignia,” she told him.

She held out her arm and pulled up her sleeve. He stepped back, horrified. The skin was deformed by a deep scar - a brand.

“Are they other pirates?” he asked.

“No,” she said. “These are the professionals.”

“That’s not right,” he said. “My father outlawed slavery years ago.”

“If you think slavery ended because your father signed a piece of parchment, you are a fool, little prince,” she retorted. “He may have signed the law, but he hasn’t enforced it. The navy is too busy fetching princesses to patrol the waters apparently.”

Ben swallowed as he watched the ship coming closer.

“You know how to use that sword you carry?” Behati asked.

“I’ve been trained,” he told her. “But I’ve never had to use it...y’know...in earnest.”

“Well, brace yourself,” she warned. “We’re commandeering their ship.”

She turned to face the crew. She put her index finger and pinky in her mouth and whistled. Ben flinched at the sharp, high pitched ring, but the rest of the crew perked up.

“Wake up, ladies!” she shouted. “It’s liberation time!”

Everyone immediately got to work. The anchor was hoisted and the sails were opened. You clung to the rope you’d used to climb the ship in the first place and held on as the ship began to move. You were scared, for sure, but mostly you were excited. You just hoped it wasn’t too dangerous.

After what felt like years, the ships were stopped astride each other. You were still firmly on Behati’s, but within a few yards of being sandwiched between them.

Ben looked between Behati’s hard expression and the smirk of the captain on the opposite ship. He was an older man - probably around the king’s age - but with a leathery complexion and an ugly sneer. His hair was gray and frayed at the ends. He had a look in his eye that struck Ben as evil.

“Captain Behati, I gather,” the man said. “I’d say your reputation precedes you, but you’re much more beautiful in person.”

“Shove it,” Behati returned harshly. “Surrender your ship, and I won’t hurt you.”

“‘Fraid I can’t do that, love,” the man replied. “I’ve got cargo to deliver.”

“People aren’t cargo, slaver,” she snapped.

“Now, we can be respectful, can’t we?” he said. “My name is Captain Reginald, and I -”

Behati interrupted him with a swift drawing of her sword. “I don’t care what your name is. Release your prisoners or I will feed you to the sharks.”

“Not before I introduce you to a friend of mine,” he replied. “Say hello to Davy Jones for me!”

Reginald went for the pistol on his hip. Ben saw that the old captain’s finger went right to the trigger. He whipped it out with surprising speed for his age and immediately squeezed it. Ben dove in front of Behati, and felt the flesh on his right shoulder explode before tumbling over the side of the ship and into the darkness of the sea.

“BEEEEEEEEEN!”

Behati’s cry was the last thing he heard before everything went black.

The sounds of a battle erupted above you. You watched in horror as Ben’s body fell right past you and hit the water with a sickening splash. Without hesitation, you dove in after him. As soon as you hit the water, you saw a small, shiny object glint above him. It was the ring.

You snatched it from out in front of you and slipped it on your finger. Then you swam hard after Ben’s sinking form. With the help of your fins, you reached him quickly, wrapping your arms around his chest, and pulling with all your might. Your muscles ached from the weight of him and the resistance of the water, but you pushed vigorously back toward the surface. You just hoped it wasn’t too late.

When you broke through, Ben began to cough, to your great relief. At least he was alive. Water sprayed from his mouth and he struggled to inhale, but he was alive. His eyes barely opened and he looked at you.

“Thank you,” he said blearily.

“Come on,” you replied. “We have to get you back on board.”

He mumbled something more that you didn’t understand. The sounds of what was going on up on the ships unnerved you. Swords clanged as they clashed. Explosions rang out - just like the ones that had sent Ben overboard. It was not a sound you were familiar with and it made your stomach flip. People cried out with anger and pain. Others hit the deck with a wound. Would putting Ben back on the ship be safe?

You looked up and saw that the commotion was coming from the other ship, not Behati’s. But if you climbed straight up, you would be seen. So, resituating Ben in your arms, you swam toward the bow to go around Behati’s hip and get him up from the other side.

You started out and Ben let out a soft groan with the movement.

“I’m sorry, Ben,” you told him desperately. “Hold on just a little longer!”

He muttered some more under his breath. His eyes fluttered as he glanced over to look at you, but he couldn’t keep them open.

Your body was screaming with the effort of pulling him along. Ben was larger than you, and muscular, not to mention all the clothes he had on were weighing him down even more. You were only halfway there and already exhausted. You pressed on. You couldn’t let him die.

Panting, you reached the other side. Thankfully, there was a net ladder hanging down. You kicked toward it and grabbed a lower rung.

The wake from the rocking of the ships made emerging from the water more difficult. Especially since your primary concern was keeping water out of Ben’s mouth. The last thing he needed was to swallow a bunch of sea water - or worse, get it trapped in his lungs.

There was another rope hanging down beside the net ladder. You used that to strap Ben securely to your body. Then you began to climb. It was the most difficult climb of your life. Your arms were on fire with how hard they were working, and it felt like there were miles between you and the top. Grunting, panting, and sweating - which you had never experienced before - you fought your way up.

After hauling him up you dragged yourself - Ben attached - over the railing. You flopped onto the deck on your side and caught your breath. You gulped in the air and released it heavily, before swiftly getting to work to untie the rope. Your skin was red from it rubbed you raw, but you couldn’t focus on the sting. Ben was lying alarmingly still.

You tossed the rope back over the side and then rolled the prince onto his back. You put your ear beside his mouth. Low, rattling breaths were just barely escaping.

“Ben,” you said gently, placing a hand on his chest. “Ben, are you in there?”

His eyes slowly opened once more. They were a beautiful shade of green. You held his gaze in that moment, and everything around you seemed to stop. It was just you and Ben, connecting, meeting for the first time.

Then he squeezed his eyes shut, turned onto his left side, and coughed up more water. When he was done, he winced and grabbed his wounded shoulder before falling onto his back once more.

“Wh...who are you?” he wondered groggily.

“Shhh, don’t talk now,” you replied. “Help is coming.”

Ben’s vision was blurry. Your face moved in and out of focus, but he was certain he had never seen you before. He had never seen anyone that beautiful in his life.

You looked around for anyone who could help, but Behati and her crew were all on the other ship. Although, things had quieted down significantly. A majestic form came flying through the air, and you recognized it as Behati. She landed with a loud thud and she looked up, meeting your eyes.

You gasped and threw yourself overboard, hoping she would chalk up what she saw to her imagination. You sailed through the air and twisted yourself into a diving position so you hit the water smoothly. It felt soothing on your hot, aching body. Before you returned to the depths, you poked your head out and listened. You heard Behati rousing Ben. Satisfied, you swam down.

Ben was waking up gradually. He hurt all over. He distinctly heard Behati above him, fretting like a mother hen, but still managing to insult him.

“You idiot, Benjamin!” she scolded. “Getting yourself shot to protect me?! For what? Some chivalrous glory?! I could -”

“Behati, please,” he groaned. “I did it because you’re my friend.”

He looked at her and saw watery eyes and almost smirked, but he was in too much pain.

“It hurts,” he winced.

“Take him to my quarters,” she said.

Ari put his injured arm around her shoulders and eased him to his feet. He looked at the captain.

“What about the captives?” he asked her.

She smiled. “All free. I never lose.”

“Where will they go?” he wondered.

“Home, I suppose,” she said. “I gave them the ship.”

“Did you let any of the slavers live?”

“All but the captain,” she replied.

“Tell the ones you freed to take the ship to the capital - to my father,” he said. “There the slavers can answer for their crimes, and we can get the people back to their homeland by royal escort.”

Behati’s smile widened and her eyes shone.

“You really are a prince,” she said.

“As proof of their authority, let them take this,” he began again, reaching for his right hand.

He blinked when he saw there was nothing on it.

“Oh no!” he cried. “My ring is gone!”

Behati frowned. “It must have come off in the water. I’m so sorry, Ben.”

“S’alright,” he returned. “I have a seal in my bag. Will you write up a document, and I can sign it for you?”

“Kay, write the necessary letters,” Behati said. “Ari, you and I will tend to that wound.”

She put his free arm over her shoulders and together, the women carried him into the captain’s quarters. They lay him upon her desk. Then Behati retrieved some rum from the shelf on the wall. She handed it to Ben.

“You might want this while we stitch you up,” she said.

He sat up and took a swig, making a sour face as it burned its way down his throat. She laughed.

“What’s the matter?” she teased. “Nothing that strong in the palace?”

“No,” he wheezed. “We usually just have wine.”

She and Ari exchanged a look and laughed.

“Keep drinking, little prince,” Behati instructed. “We’ll have you patched up in no time.”

“Bottom’s up,” he replied, and drank again.

***

You rocketed away from the scene as fast as you could swim. When you were safe within the depths, you stopped to catch your breath again. You needed to take in everything that just happened. You snuck to the surface, watched humans for an entire night, just barely saved the prince's life, and now you were on your way home after being gone for hours. Oh, no. You were definitely in trouble again.

Well, you had to face the music. You weren’t going to put it off this time. Plus, the sooner your father finished yelling at you, the sooner you could get some sleep. Your eyelids already felt heavy.

As you made your way home, you kept thinking about Ben and that moment you had locked eyes on the ship. Something electric had sparked between you. There was something there that you could barely explain, and yet you felt it. It wasn’t just that he was handsome, there was more to him than that. You wanted nothing more than to see him again, and know all there was to him.

You slowly swam to the throne room, once again peeking inside to see the kind of mood your father was in. He was swimming back and forth in front of his throne, hand on his chin, eyes on the floor. He was worried.

“Father?”

He whipped around, took in the sight of you, and flew over to gather you up in his arms.

“Y/N!” he cried. “Where in the seven seas have you been, child?! We’ve been looking everywhere for you!”

He pulled away and looked you up and down. His mouth turned down into a frown when he spotted the angry red marks on your skin from the rope of the ship. They had calmed a lot, but not enough.

“Y/N, what’s this?” he asked. “What have you gotten yourself into?”

“Before I explain, promise me you won’t get mad,” you began.

“I will make no such promise!”

You sighed. It was worth a shot.

“Father, I…” you trailed off. Now was the time to be honest or lie your fins off. “I was exploring another shipwreck.”

Better to lie for now. If he found out what you had done in its entirety, he might kill you.

“Y/N!” he shouted. “We’ve discussed this! You’ve got to let go of your silly dreams of humanity! It’s childish, it’s dangerous, and deliberate disobedience of the law! I think you’re trying to give me a heart attack at this point!”

“I just have an interest!” you shot back, throwing your hands up. “What’s so wrong with that?!”

Your father snatched your wrist out of the water and drew it closer to him. You gulped. You’d forgotten Ben’s ring was on your finger.

“What...is this?” you father demanded.

“Something I found in the shipwreck,” you told him. “Just a trinket.”

He examined your form once again. “You’re lying to me. This ring has no signs of age on it. Those rope burns were not from loose rope. Where have you been?!”

You wrenched your arm free and cradled the ring to your chest. You narrowed your eyes at him.

“I was at the surface,” you said defensively. “And I’m glad I was there. I saved a young man who might have drowned if I -”

“DON’T!” Triton bellowed. “THIS TIME YOU’VE GONE TOO FAR!”

You shrank back, frightened.

“Father, h-he might have died!” you argued.

“And GOOD RIDDANCE!” he shouted. “What need do we have for one more lousy human, huh?! Do you really think yourself a hero for saving that animal’s life?!”

“He’s not an animal, he’s a prince!” you returned.

“I’ve tried to be understanding, I’ve tried to be patient with you, Y/N, but nothing works!” he cried, exasperated. “But so help me, I am going to get through to you!”

“What are you going to do, ground me?” you challenged. “Well, I’m a grown woman!”

“Fine, if you want to be grown and independent of me, then so be it,” he snapped. “Guards!”

Two young mermen swam in from the corridor.

“Arrest the princess,” Triton said. “Take her to the outpost.”

You gasped. “Father, no!”

The outpost was an open area far away from the palace. Prisoners were chained by the fin to a solitary post hammered into the ocean floor. It was isolating and terrifying.

“You broke the law, Y/N,” your father said. “And you will face the consequences. Anyone who makes contact with humans gets twenty four hours at the outpost.”

The guards each took one of your wrists and clapped irons around them. You could see the conflict in their eyes as they did so. To arrest a member of the royal family was something unheard of. But your father’s point was to make an impression. And he did.

You shot him one last pleading look, but he turned away. The guards led you out of the throne room, out of the palace, and through the town. The other merpeople watched in shock as the princess was escorted out of her own kingdom. You saw Lorelai as you passed her place and looked away, hot tears forming in your eyes.

You didn’t fight when the guards put a chain on the end of your tail, where it met your fins, and then attached it to the post. One looked on with sympathy.

“We’re sorry about this, princess,” he said. “But if you’d just obey your father, this wouldn’t happen. He’s only trying to keep you safe.”

“Just go,” you said moodily. You had no desire to comfort him about what he was doing, or validate your father in any way.

With a sigh, they left you there. You allowed yourself to break down after that. You were tired, emotional, and just wanted to relax. And now, you were being punished for what you considered as doing the right thing. You gazed at the ring and recalled again Ben’s eyes. As you looked at the chain around your tail, you decided this was worth it. You still did not regret saving his life, and you were more resolved than ever to see him again. As soon as you could.

But for now, you had to close your eyes. Your weariness was catching up with you. So you laid down and slept off everything.

***

“Who saved me?” Ben asked as Behati finished the last stitch on his shoulder. Ari had already left to continue her regular duties.

“What do you mean?” she returned.

“Someone saved me,” he said. “A woman. I didn’t recognize her but she had to be one of yours, right?”

“Ben, every member of my crew was on Reginald’s ship,” she explained. “No one was on board or in the water.”

“That’s impossible,” he insisted. “I remember someone carrying me...sort of dragging me around...and then when we got back on deck, I saw her.”

“What did she look like?” Behati asked.

“I’m not sure, it’s all sort of fuzzy,” he said. “But I know I saw her. She spoke to me and everything.”

Behati took a moment. She saw the mermaid on the ship, caring for Ben and gazing longingly at him. She always knew that mermaids existed, but this was the first one she had ever seen up close. Behati did not want to reveal her in case it meant trouble for the rest of the merpeople.

“I don’t know what happened, Ben, but when we got back, you were already there and safe,” she said. “No one was around.”

Ben frowned. He knew what he remembered. Though he could not recall the full picture of the woman, she had to be real. He could not have survived without her.

“Why is it so important to you?” Behati asked.

“Because something...happened,” he said. “We locked eyes and for a moment, I felt like...never mind, it’s stupid.”

“Ben,” she said assuredly, taking his hand. “It’s not. Tell me.”

“I felt like I’d found the woman of my dreams,” he said.

She almost smiled, but faltered. “I hope she’s out there, then. I really do.”

***

You woke almost an hour later. As you stretched, you felt...watched. Which seemed impossible since there was nowhere for anyone to hide out here. Even so, you couldn’t shake the eeriness.

“Hello?” you called out, feeling stupidly cautious.

“Triton’s daughter,” said a raspy, spine chilling voice. “All chained up on the outpost? How cruel.”

“Who are you?” you demanded.

You sounded braver than you felt. You did not recognize this voice.

“I represent someone who can help you, princess,” the voice continued. “Someone who’s been keeping an eye on your situation.”

“Who?” you pressed.

“Sycoria,” the voice said.

From the foggy depths, it approached and came into view. It was an eel. The large, yellow eyes blinked at you as it came closer.

“The sea witch?” you questioned, though you knew the answer.

“Yes, child,” the eel replied. “She can get you what you want.”

“Why does she care what I want?” you wondered.

“Sycoria has sympathy for all creatures in need,” he explained with an over-kindness that made your skin crawl. “Come with me and see what she can do for you?”

“I can’t go anywhere,” you said. “I’m chained here.”

You pointed to the irons.

“I’ll make quick work of that,” the eel said.

He flicked his tail and the chains evaporated. The bubbles floated away and you watched them go, amazed.

“Now, are you coming?” he asked with a toothy grin.

You looked up, remembering the surface. Then you looked at the ring.

“This may be your only chance to see him again,” the eel said. “Are you willing to let that go out of a little thing like fear?”

You narrowed your eyes.

“I’ll see Sycoria.”

“That’s a girl,” the eel said. “Come with me.”

He swam off. You had to hurry to follow him. A jolt of nerves almost made you stop. But this was your shot at being human, at earning Ben’s love. You would never get another. You forced yourself onward.

You swam behind the eel for nearly an hour. Finally, you reached a cave. It was glowing an ominous violet color. You came to a halt at the mouth.

“Don’t be shy,” the eel said. “Go on in.”

You gulped. If your father knew about this, he would lose his head. But, he didn’t understand you. He would never understand that what you felt with Ben in that split second meant the world to you. You entered the cave.

It was dark at first, but you maintained your pace toward the spooky glow. When you reached the end of the entrance tunnel, it almost took your breath away. It was similar to your collection cove, only much bigger, and filled with more oddities than you could even imagine. Bits and bobs of things you had never seen before.

“Um, hello?” you said nervously.

“Ah, the princess,” said another mysterious voice. It was smokey and alluring.

From around the corner, she entered. The half woman, half octopus sea witch. She was thin and tall, with wild, white hair and vivid purple eyes. Her lips were drawn into a wide smile.

“I’ve been waiting for you.”

#ben hardy #ben hardy imagine #ben hardy x reader #ben hardy x you #roger taylor #roger taylor imagine #roger taylor x reader #roger taylor x you #BoRhap #borhap boys #borhap boys x reader #borhap boys imagine #borhap boys x you #BoRhap cast #borhap cast x reader #borhap cast imagine #borhap cast x you #part of your world series

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peachyydesires · 4 years

Note

I love this blog so much!! Can you do a Keiji x criminal reader? So basically the reader is a wanted criminal, but don’t do anything too drastic that’d hurt somebody but one day Keiji finds the reader and arrests them, but a few years later when their prison sentence is up Keiji actually confessed his feelings to them :0

Danger (Keiji x Reader)

pairing: police-officer! keiji x criminal reader (see anon request above)

word count: 4,770

genre: fluff, slight angst

warnings: gun use/mention, suggested violence (no gore or murder however)

a/n: omg anon i am SO sorry that this took so long to finish!! with my vacation, breaks, and event i never got the chance to post this but it never left my mind. i did go... a bit overboard this time with the word count but i hope you enjoy this nonetheless and once again im so sorry for the wait!! im also trying out a new style so excuse how bad quality the header is eweweww

“This is the worst idea in the world.” You sighed, drumming your fingers on your thigh anxiously as you looked out the window towards the grocery store you were about to rob. The gun in your belt felt like a 5-pound weight, even though it was merely a handgun.

“Pfft, don’t be such a wimp. Nobody’s gonna catch us; the police have been lacking lately anyways.” The leader of your little group, Lukas, scoffed, and you could see his eyes roll in the front view mirror as he shook his head.

The second one in the trio, Evelyn, turned around in the passenger’s seat to look at you with a goofy smirk on her face, “Come on, just live a little. You know what we say, right?”

You looked down at your lap, fidgeting with your hair as you mumbled, “Steal from the rich, give to the poor...Even though this is a measly grocery store.”

“You have to start somewhere.” Lukas shrugged and unbuckled himself from the driver’s seat, reaching down and pulling out three unique masks, each with their own coverage and designs. He distributed each of them, a frown tugging at your lips as you studied yours.

Really? One of those cliche kitsune masks? I didn’t know these actually existed… You thought as you absentmindedly pulled the strap back and put the mask over your face. You knew it wouldn’t be able to do much if it fell off, but some security to your identity put a little peace in your mind.

The only problem was that you were already a wanted criminal.

While you weren’t exactly well-known thieves, your group had definitely sparked some attention in the community. After years of shoplifting from major stores around the city, your earnings from previous heists were beginning to pile up as your warrant only got heavier by the day.

Luckily, you were the weaker, lesser-known chain of the group; you didn’t steal very many high-priced objects, and your warrant wasn’t as large as the other infamous, modern-day Bonnie and Clyde duo that made up the rest of the crew.

Yet you had never even attempted a robbery this intense before. All of your ‘heists’ were really just plain old shoplifting, and this would be the first time you’d be demanding to empty a cash register.

“Are we really sure we should move into armed robbery so fast?” You asked with an unsure expression on your face as your hand trailed down towards the pistol.

The pair groaned in sync, giving each other an annoyed look before Evelyn turned around with her mask on. It was rather creepy; her’s was just a simple, white mask with a wide, eerie smile printed onto it, one that seemed to stare deep into your soul as she slightly tilted her head at you, “Really? Of course, we’re sure! We’ve been planning this for months now, and we’ve been shoplifting for nearly 3 years. We have to step up our game eventually, or we’ll never be taken seriously!”

You slightly squirmed in your seat, knowing the malice that was probably hiding behind Evelyn’s mask. You had never really wanted to get into the whole crime business anyway, but it was hard to reject their offer to join them at the time when you were nearly living on the streets.

“We’re only wasting time by sitting here discussing,” Lukas cut in, impatiently turning around in his seat to look at the two of you. He had on a clown mask, one with a sinister grin that was permanently etched into the plastic of the mask, “We need to go now before the patrol officers go out.”

Evelyn nodded in agreement, quickly unbuckling herself from her seat and taking her gun out from her purse. Lukas drew his own as well, and you followed behind as you unclipped the handgun from your belt loop.

Without a second thought, the pair had gotten out of the car and were already in the trunk grabbing the empty bags along with extra magazines just in case things got messy. They had never pulled anything off like this either, and the thought of using all of the bullets Lukas had brung brought a sick, gut-wrenching feeling to your head as you got out of the car as well.

After handing you your bag, the three of you effortlessly crossed the parking lot and just as you neared the grocery store, a few civilians inside the building looked up and spotted the three of you. But they had no time to react as Lukas kicked the entrance door open and yelled, “This is a robbery! Put your hands above your heads and get flat on the ground, now!”

There were a few yells and shouts as a few people tried to scramble at first, running towards the other exit but Evelyn had made sure to go around the other way to block the doors from the civilians as she threateningly aimed her gun at whoever came close enough.

Once everyone was down on the ground, you strode over towards the cashiers. With your gun held up, you yelled in a gruff voice, “Who’s the manager? I’m going to need all the cash in this place, and fast!” One good thing about you tagging along was your ability to mimic others so easily; you could be intimidating if you really wanted too, which usually came in handy every now and then.

However, guilt began to claw at the back of your mind as the elderly manager stood up and motioned over to the nearest register. He didn’t look even remotely scared; he had more of a calm look as if this exact same situation had happened to him before.

You stayed silent as you followed him, taking a moment to grab the empty bag over your shoulder and open it as wide as you could. The man began taking large handfuls of money out of the machine, tossing them into the bag. His old, wrinkly hands were slightly shaking as you held the gun up to his head.

Evelyn soon joined you as she went to the next cashier, forcing the stationed worker to unlock the register and empty it into her own bag. You were beginning to get suspicious as the minutes seemed to drag by endlessly with no commotion.

It was all going too smoothly, which is when you knew something was wrong.

Lukas soon came running into the store, his gun carelessly spinning in his hand as he hissed, “Cops!”

Panic began to course through you as you quickly withdrew the gun from the manager’s head and pulled the strings on the bag until it was securely closed. You weren’t sure how you were supposed to hold both a ginormous money bag and a gun steady at the same time, but there was no time for questions as the rest of the group began running towards the back exit.

However, you didn’t get very far as a deep, rough voice shouted, “Stop! Put your hands up and drop your guns.”

You spun around quickly on your toes and aimed the gun without hesitation at the muscular blonde officer that was chasing the three of you, your finger already on the trigger as you prepared to shoot. Yet your mistake was very simple as you locked eyes with him, and you felt your heart stop immediately.

He was just any other human being, but that was the problem. He looked afraid- he knew you could easily destroy his life with one pull of the trigger. You had never shot anyone or anything in your lifetime and hadn’t even dreamed of doing so. You couldn’t bring yourself to take away another human life; sure, you could steal without a moment’s hesitation, but murder?

It was out of the question.

The guilt rapidly overcame you as your dominant hand began to shake. The money bag seemed heavier as if the weight of the world was on your shoulders somehow. Your mouth formed silent, unspoken words as you couldn’t get your body to even move as you kept eye contact with the man.

He seemed stunned too, confusion beginning to ebb onto his face as he had no clue why you hadn’t shot him already. Lukas and Evelyn seemed just as confused as they stood behind you, their eyebrows furrowed in frustration as you held them up.

“Just SHOOT him already!” Lukas yelled angrily, yet you just couldn’t respond. You were stuck in a sticky situation; you wanted to run, but your body refused to cooperate with your mind as you stared aimlessly at the officer. Lukas didn’t know whether or not to leave you, although Evelyn didn’t seem to hesitate with the decision.

Your bag was quickly ripped from your hands as she snatched it from you and broke out into a sprint, urging Lukas to go along with her. While they usually lived by the saying ‘leave no man behind’ they couldn’t afford to get arrested now.

As the realization hit you that you were being ditched, your body shut down as you fell to your knees. Unsuspecting tears began to form in your eyes as you began to question why you were so ready to shoot another human being. The gun fell out of your hands as you let go of your grip on it, your blood turning ice-cold as your mouth was left agape.

Your mask was soon ripped off of your face as the same blonde police officer came over, tilting your chin up so you would look at him again. Your lips formed the silent words of an apology, but no sound came out as your soul burned with shame.

The rest of the night went by in a blur as you were handcuffed and escorted out of the grocery store. Dozens of reporters were crowded around the building, cameras flashing in your face as they tried to get you to speak up. But your voice was completely lost as the world went numb and blurry around you.

You were completely unfocused as you were shoved into the back of a police car. The dull sound of sirens echoed hauntingly in your ears as you stared out the window, barely even noticing the sound of the highway as the car started cruising away towards the police station.

You hadn’t seemed to notice either that the man driving the police car was actually the one you had almost shot; his name was Keiji Shinogi, and while he wasn’t too high ranking in the force, he was definitely up there. He was used to dealing with cases such as yours, but you were…

Different.

You were the first robber he had seen to actually hesitate on their actions. Whether it was because you were young or not, your sense of good had overwhelmed you back in the store.

He knew you could’ve taken his life right then and there. Yet somehow, he was still oddly intrigued by you. He could tell just from how Lukas and Evelyn had reacted that you actually had a good heart; you were just thrown into the wrong group of people, and he managed to figure that out pretty quickly.

The image of the fear on the officer’s face seemed to be permanently ingrained in your head. You couldn’t think about anything else; not how you were about to go to jail for the first time in your life, not the driver, and not even Lukas and Evelyn could distract you from the image.

Slowly, as your vision became blurry, pure regret began to ebb onto your face as silent tears formed in your eyes, which didn’t go unnoticed by Keiji. Your throat began to swell up into a sort of strangled sob, and you were about to let out a wail when you were cut off,

“Hey. It’s okay, you know. You didn’t hurt me. I’m still alive, you did no harm.”

You blinked, startled as you looked up. You hadn’t noticed at all that the cop driving the car was the one you had pointed a pistol at. Your mouth opened and closed wordlessly, not knowing how to respond as your brain tried to process his words as he went on, “You’re a good person. I know you didn’t want to shoot me, and that’s why you dropped your gun back in the store. You’re not a bad person.”

“B-But I almost murdered you!” You suddenly blurted out, your eyebrows raised as far as they could possibly go on your head. Your tears over spilled, creating thin lines down your cheeks as you were unable to wipe them.

The officer silently pulled the car over, turning the ignition off before turning around to face you. He shook his head, “Yes, but almost is a keyword. You weren’t going to shoot me, no matter what.”

“How d-do you know t-that?” You choked on the words, a lump forming in your throat as you looked away, unable to make eye contact with the man. He merely shook his head, a small smile forming on his face as he reached over and gently tilted your chin over so you would look at him.

“I just...Know. You’re nearly an open book... Here, let’s make a bet. If I can guess your situation correctly then you have to believe me when I say you’re not a bad person, okay?”

“And i-if you guess incorrectly?”

His small smile turned into a laid-back grin as he shrugged his large shoulders back and promised, “Then you don’t have to believe a word I say.”

You sniffled, the flow of tears on your face refusing to lighten up as you nodded slightly, “O-Okay. Go ahead.”

“Okay so… You were looking to make a quick buck at first but then you got involved with the wrong group of people. You got dragged into a life of crime, and it was too dangerous for you to somehow back out plus the loss of a somewhat steady income scared you. Which, therefore, is how you got put into the messy situation you were in earlier today.” He tilted his head slightly as he studied your face, the same easygoing grin still spread out on his face.

Your lips parted as you, once again, struggled to use your words. While other people would get impatient with you at this point, Keiji stayed where he was, studying you silently the entire time until you finally managed to mumble, “Well… Y-You’re not w-wrong. At all.”

“It’s the Officier Vision, I tell ya. Well, now that you’ll believe me, you’re not a bad person, you hear me? You did nothing wrong, you were just thrown into a bad circumstance,” He smiled warmly as he reached up with his thumbs and quickly wiped the tears off of your face as he teased, “And don’t cry, sweetheart. It doesn’t fit your scary robber look that well.”

You let out a snort, a weak smile spreading out on your face as you shook your head. It was the first time that night you had actually smiled, and somehow it was all because of the cop you had nearly murdered.

The rest of the ride was filled with comforting remarks and calm conversation as the officer talked to you. He managed to even get a few smiles and laughs out of you before he informed you about what would happen next. There would be a court case in the next week or so, but other than that you would be following the prison’s schedule.

Once you were there, it took a few hours before you were secure in a jail cell. You had no roommate, and the hallway was eerily silent. Everybody must be asleep already... You thought with a slight sigh as you slumped down with your back against the bars. Never in your life had you imagined you’d be locked away in a jail cell, rotting away your days with barely anything to do.

You sat there for what seemed like an hour, staring blankly at the wall as you thought about everything that had led up to this point. It wasn’t until you started hearing faint footsteps in the hallway that you finally snapped out of your trip down memory lane.

Peering over your shoulder, your eyes widened as you recognized the patrolling officer. This has to be a coincidence. First I almost shoot him in a grocery store and then I get arrested by him? Now, this?

You didn’t know what overcame you- was it your loneliness that convinced you to suddenly call out to him, or was it the need for affection that did? Either way, as soon as you realized that it was him you suddenly called out, “Officer!”

You watched as he visibly froze in his tracks as he recognized your voice; he spun around on his heels and locked eyes with you, at first cocking an eyebrow in confusion before his natural warm smile spread out on his face.

“Well, if it isn’t none other than my little gangster,” He hummed, shoving his hands into his pockets as he walked over to your cell. You felt your face flush as you lost your words for yet the third time that day.

“What’s up?” Curiosity soon replaced his easygoing expression as he looked down at you, “I know you didn’t call me over to ask if I could try and break you out of here, sooo…”

You mirrored his expression, raising your own eyebrow as you teasingly responded, “Or did I? What would you say if I did ask you to break me out of here? Would you propose that we go run off into the sunset while this prison explodes behind us?”

A blank expression washed over his face as his lips slightly parted, one finger raised in the air as he tried to come up with some sort of witty response to your seriousness but it was nearly impossible until you finally confirmed,

“I’m just kidding, officer. I just...Need some company, I guess. It gets lonely with no roommate and nobody else to talk to besides yourself, really,” You paused for a moment, your eyes darting to the floor as you hesitated before you continued, “I know it’s dumb but do you mind...staying here? Even just for a little bit?”

You stared at the floor, cringing as you waited for your obvious rejection. Stupid, stupid… Who do you think you are? Asking a cop to what, stay wi-

“Sure.”

“H-Huh?!” You sharply snapped your head up, looking up at Keiji in bewilderment.

He easily cracked another smile, a small chuckle escaping from his lips as he began scratching at the back of his neck lightly, “Why do you look so surprised? Of course, I’d stay here any day over work. You really think I’d turn talking to you down for what, aimlessly patrolling these lackluster halls for another 3 hours?”

You let out a snort, rolling your eyes silently as you didn’t have a good enough response. You hadn’t actually known what you were really expecting from him, but it certainly wasn’t a yes. “You know, I never got your name.”

The blonde officer crouched down, gently sitting down on the cold slate ground as he looked over at you, “Really? Do you realize how dangerous it is for a policeman to give out his name instead of an alias?” He paused, taking a moment to ‘think’ before he teasingly added with a wink, “Lucky for you, I like danger. A little too much. My name is Keiji Shinogi, but I’ll also let you call me Your Friendly Neighborhood Policeman too if you’d like.”

Before he could even finish his sentence your cheeks were soon dusted with a sweet light pink as his words sunk in. You frantically shook your head, trying to brush him off but it was nearly impossible with him sitting so close to you (somebody remove those damn bars already).

“W-Whatever.”

The hours flew by as you fell into an easygoing conversation with him. It just… flowed so smoothly. You easily transitioned through topics, taking turns telling each other stories without even realizing it.

“...Aand that’s the story of how I nearly got arrested by my own coworker.” Keiji snickered, a hand over his ribs as his chest began hurting from how hard he had been laughing. He hadn’t laughed like this in a long time, and it was good for him to finally forget about his duties for once.

The large smile on your face refused to go away as you finished laughing, clutching your stomach with both hands as you momentarily forgot all of your issues. “That sounds terrible!” You giggled.

Keiji let out a light, dragged-out sigh as he rested his head against the bars, the small grin on his face never going away as he stared at you through the bars. He was silent for a moment as he studied you, but soon his grin enlarged as he softly went on, “You remind me of my younger self, you know that?”

“Hmm?” You hummed, looking up at him and slightly jumping back once you realized how close he now was. If it weren’t for the bars, you weren’t exactly sure what else you would do with him sitting right there. “How so?”

“Well…” He started, locking eyes with you as he smiled, “You have a kind heart and some good intentions in mind, even if they don’t always work out. Look, can I tell you a secret?”

You cocked an eyebrow as you mirrored his expression, “Well, considering I have no one else to talk to in this prison other than you, I’d consider myself pretty trustworthy.”

“You make a good case, sugar. Now I have to tell you, huh?” Keiji chuckled as he shifted, repositioning himself so his side was pressing up against the bars now, “I’m just like you. I can’t shoot a gun. Can barely even hold one, for that matter.”

Your eyes widened as soon as you had processed his words, your jaw dropping a little as you furrowed your brows in shock. What? An officer that can’t shoot? How does that make sense...How does he keep his job?

He studied your face silently for a moment, his small smile nearly melancholic as he went on, “I’ll tell you one day how it happened. But that’s a story for another day...Anyways, I’m glad you didn’t shoot that gun. And not just because I’d be dead by now, no, but because I wouldn’t wish my trauma upon anybody else. It’s a major burden, like a constant thundercloud over your head. It’s...Scary, and sometimes you wish you could just forget it all. It’s painful, and it invades nearly your everyday life; your dreams, your subconscious, your thoughts, hell, even your mind isn’t safe...” He trailed off.

As your expression relaxed you watched his own face carefully as he let out a shaky breath. It looked like it had taken him a lot to say even just that, yet he still tried to keep his relaxed emotions at the front to make it seem like nothing was remotely wrong.

You slowly slipped your hand in between the bars, gently resting it on top of his nearest hand. He looked over at you, a mix of confusion and woe in his face that slowly began to ebb away as you took his hand in yours, no words really needing to be exchanged at that point as you comforted him in peaceful silence.

“I think we’ll be okay.”

✰ ~ ✰

The years in your sentence had seemingly flown by.

Prison had proven itself to not have been a major challenge for you; while the overall filth of it all was a bit overwhelming at first, you easily fell into a simple routine. As the months went by, you worked harder and harder to gain ‘good conduct time’ credit, and had managed to shorten your sentence by a year or two. You ended up ratting out Lukas and Evelyn with some reassurance from Keiji that they’d never see or contact you again, considering they would be in prison for much, much longer than you.

Meanwhile, you had only grown closer to the officer you had met on the fateful night of the grocery shop robbery. Between sneakily holding each other’s hands and hugging quickly when nobody was looking, you had managed to talk to each other nearly every night whenever he was on shift. You somehow never ran out of topics to talk about, and you found each other’s presence rather...comforting, of all things.

But now you were being released, now allowed back into society seemingly cleansed of your crimes. You were beyond ready to finally forget about your lowlife as a criminal and start fresh, even though it would be considerably harder with a criminal record.

You tapped your foot impatiently in the office, clutching your belongings that were stuffed into a bag tightly as you waited for a police officer to arrive and escort you out. You felt slightly anxious; while you had managed to say your final goodbyes to Keiji the night before, some part of you just wasn’t ready to move on from him.

It wasn’t until you felt a strong, comforting arm on your shoulder that you snapped out of your thoughts. You looked up and locked eyes with none other than Keiji, and you couldn’t help but widely smile as a warm feeling flooded your chest.

“Hi there, cutie. Almost looked like you didn’t want to leave for a moment earlier, what’s that all about?” He teased lightheartedly, taking his hand off your shoulder as he began walking towards one of the side entrances.

You followed alongside him, almost like a puppy dog as you smiled expectantly up at him, “Well, I thought my Friendly Neighborhood Policeman had ditched me. You can only imagine how hurt I was while thinking about that, right?”

He snorted, a grin emerging onto his face as he reached for the keys in his pockets and began unlocking the door, “Really? You think I’d ditch you, after all these years? How low do you think of me?”

You gently elbowed him in the side as you snickered, “Very, very low.”

He merely hummed in response, shaking his head as he opened the door and began heading for the next gate. It was a rather quiet walk after that; you were unsure how you were supposed to split from him once you left the prison, considering you never really wanted to leave his side.

You snuck a glance at him, quickly looking up at his expression before looking away. He seemed to be in some sort of deep thought- his eyebrows were furrowed and his smile had shrunk into more of a quizzical pout. It was a look you had never seen on him before, and while you would never admit it out loud it was pretty adorable.

“Something on your mind, Keiji?” You asked, tilting your head slightly to the side as you looked over at him after another few steps. He blinked, his expression breaking into something softer as he returned your look, “Actually...”

He suddenly took both of your hands and stopped, forcing you to turn around and nearly bump into his chest. The feeling of warmth in your cheeks was all too familiar as your words shriveled up inside of you, giving him the perfect opportunity to speak.

“Look, I know this sort of thing is risky, but I need to confess something to you,” He locked eyes with you, holding you in place to the point you just couldn’t look away no matter how flustered you got as he went on,

“I don’t know when it happened, whether it was the night at the grocery store or one night when we were just talking. I’ve fallen for you, and pretty hard. You’re just such an amazing person, whether you believe it or not. Even at your worst in that police car, I found you beautiful, and I’m not sure how this is going to end but..”

He took in a deep breath and your mouth fell open as you realized what he was going to ask, the obvious answer to his question already bubbling up deep in your chest as you had wanted to ask him yourself the same question for years.

“Would you go out with me, [y/n]?”

credits: reblogs + notes are appreciated!! cop hat clipart is f2u under the creative commons; glitch effect from https://photomosh.com/

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bigskydreaming · 4 years

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Im asking this genuinely so pls dont yell at me; when you say that those using trigger warnings dont care about their readers’ mental health and wellbeing, what else are trigger warnings supposed to be for? To make sure people don’t enter fics that have material that would harm them. Just like tv shows that warn about nudity or violence or what have you. Its a rating system, theyre warnings. Tagging for rape or underage ARE the looking-out-for-readers thing. Past that, it is on readers to decide

I try not to yell at anyone engaging in good faith, I know it doesn’t always seem that way, but I would rather be engaged with than ignored...the latter is when my volume goes up, lol.

But in answer to your question, it comes down to the fact that trigger warnings are well established enough in fandom by now, that they exist as a kind of social contract.

In short, its EXPECTED that you provide trigger warnings, and that if you don’t have them, someone will bring that up at some point.

Problem is, this counter-productively works against what trigger warnings are actually FOR.....once we reach a point (which we’ve long since reached)....where a lot of people are only including the trigger warnings because of the social contract that expects them to have them, and not ACTUALLY because they’re prioritizing their readers’ well-being.

Something I see a LOT after trigger warnings is the phrase or sentiment “enter at your own risk”....and the phrasings are so, so key to what I’m talking about.

Take a small sampling and just look for what I’m describing and I’m fairly certain you won’t have to go far to find an example of a fic where the tone of the author is not one of concern for readers, but preemptive concern for potential backlash from readers.

And these are two very different things.

Like, we all know how to read and interpret tone and nuance. Its genuinely not that hard to tell the difference between a sincere expression of wanting readers to be aware of potentially triggering content, and a faux-expression of that when really, the only thing you’re worried about triggering is a negative reception from people, and you want to get ahead of that by making it clear from the get go that hey, you did your job, you warned readers, and thus nobody has any grounds to say anything about your content itself.

Because also too there’s the fact that trigger warnings are inherently fallible. They rely on the author’s own AWARENESS of their content and everything it might include......but a racist author isn’t going to place a trigger warning for using their characters as mouthpieces for even blatant white supremacist ideology.

A genuinely predatory author (and yes, they absolutely do exist, and its willful stubbornness that people rely on to pretend that like, for some bizarre reason, only genuinely predatory people don’t partake in this otherwise global hobby of reading and writing fiction, like what even is that, how do you arrive at that conclusion, that like, actual pedophiles are so busy preying on ‘real life’ teenagers in their zip code 24/7 that they just don’t have TIME to go online and cultivate predatory relationships with real life teenagers via social media? That doesn’t make any sense!)

But anyway, a genuinely predatory author, is absolutely NOT going to tag or place trigger warnings for pedophilia, etc....because they don’t WANT the things they write perceived that way.

People trying to normalize incest are not always going to tag for incest because they want to DISTANCE the cute, sweet dynamic between two ‘only sorta brothers’ as other than the kind of incest that destroys families...regardless of the reality that most cases of incest are the LATTER and its the FORMER that’s so rare it barely exists.

And that sort of thing is how we get terms like dub-con and pseudo-incest and ‘consensual underage sex’ when its describing a relationship between a minor and adult....because this is mitigating, distancing language. Its entire reason for existing is to make unpalatable content seem more palatable.

And especially in Batfandom, we KNOW this.

Because we all, practically universally, give Devin Grayson crap for describing the rape in Nightwing #93 as ‘nonconsensual sex’ and go.....THATS NOT A THING!

And then half of fandom turns around and....acts like that and similar stuff...IS A THING.

That doesn’t work! LOL. It just...doesn’t.

Or another example, because abuse can be just as triggering as rape.....like, for me, personally, I’m a survivor of both, and yes, both CAN be triggering. But not as much as people might think....like, just reading a depiction of these things doesn’t trigger me.

Its, like you were saying at the get go, yes, a matter of surprise.....the kind of thing that CAN be warned for, and prepared for, and its the sheer unexpectedness that’s usually the trigger.

Like.....I went off a few weeks ago about reading a story that was supposed to be about Dick’s brothers learning the truth about what led him to take the Spyral mission and what happened in Forever Evil. That’s what the summary said, that was it, that was the only thing it led me to expect about the story. So understandably, I go into the story expecting it to be sympathetic to Dick. I’m looking for catharsis from it honestly, a salve for the many fics and canon events that blamed and punished him for something I don’t consider his fault, right?

And then towards the end....I get Jason punching Dick again, before hugging him, because that’s just how he reluctantly shows love or whatever.

This genuinely triggered me, yeah. Its why I got so upset about it. Because I was blindsided, I had no way to prepare for it, because I went in expecting catharsis for a story that bothered me due to its victim blaming, and instead I got the author heaping on more of the same abuse we already saw in canon.....with zero awareness that’s what she was doing.

So....that’s absolutely something I wrestled with should I message the author and ask them to add a trigger warning or not? Because I genuinely could have used one. It would have helped. I would have avoided that story if I had any notion that might crop up in it, because frankly, that’s not something I had any interest in reading.

But problem is, there’s only really two realistic outcomes there. If she was open to hearing a genuine request for her to be aware that her content contained triggering material for a reader....chances are, she probably would have just edited it and taken that out entirely. It was just one line. Easy enough to do. It certainly didn’t add anything.

Problem is....there’s an equal and opposite likely outcome....that she’d get defensive, call this unsolicited criticism, and double down on the idea that what she had written wasn’t abuse, because obviously she doesn’t condone abuse, so she wouldn’t have written that plain and simple. It has to be acknowledged that a lot of authors ARE innately defensive about social content in their work, and not open to hearing they’ve done something offensive or triggering....because that’s like...literally the basis of the ‘no unsolicited criticism’ movement in fandom, even though being critical of toxic ideology expressed in content is NOT the same as offering criticism of someone’s writing in general.

So you see what I mean? A trigger warning COULD genuinely help in that situation....but our fandom environment simply flat out is not conducive for readers to be at all confident that they even CAN come forward and alert an author that they delved into an offensive, even harmful take with their content and be well received no matter HOW they phrase it....

For much the same reasons I mentioned in that other post. People are more likely to instinctively jump to the defense of the person WRITING the content that offended or did actual emotional harm....than the person simply trying to say, backed by their own lived experience of....being offended or experiencing emotional harm....hey, this is a problem for me and I would appreciate it being regarded as such....

Otherwise, what is even the POINT of this entire system of trigger warnings in the first place? If a problem for a reader isn’t regarded as worthy of attention in and of itself.....at least, not in comparison to whatever problem that READER’S problem creates for the WRITER.

You see what I’m saying? For this, and a lot of other reasons, trigger warnings are innately fallible. They rely on an honor code system, and the uncomfortable truth is none of us are actually naive enough to believe everyone in fandom is innately honorable enough to honor that....if they were, would we have as much cases of anon hate, spite fics, etc?

But fandom as a whole looked at the trigger warning system and decided well....its good enough. Because its not like I’m proposing a viable alternative, its not like I have a BETTER system in mind, offhand. All I do have is the point that well...no...its NOT good enough as is....because for a ton of reasons, there’s a ton of cases in which there’s a ton of people for which it flat out doesn’t work for or benefit at all.

But when this comes up to any degree, in any capacity whatsoever....and the only thing people fall back on is well, I tagged it, or I used trigger warnings what more do you want, or its good enough for me so that’s what matters, or just....

“I did what I was supposed to per the social contract about trigger warnings, so if anything goes wrong in your reading experience at this point, that’s entirely on you.”

Like, does that make sense?

Basically, there’s a world of difference between:

This is a problem that still needs solving because the solution provided now is not all-encompassing or inclusive....

And....

This is a problem that’s already been solved as far as I’m concerned, and I’m utilizing that solution so any further problems are just in the mind of the reader and have nothing to do with reality, let alone me and my work.

Again, as I said above....its the difference between genuinely engaging with other members of your fandom community with actual concern for THEIR fandom experience.....or faking engagement with other members of your fandom community when your only real concern is YOUR fandom experience, and at most, the experiences of anyone who already is of like minds to you on a subject.

Hopefully that answers your question or clarifies my stance there, anon. And thank you for actually engaging on this. It feels a bit like shouting into the void a lot of the time, lol.

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ifdragonscouldtalk · 5 years

Text

Listen, i understand how traumatic it can be to read a fic with sensitive subjects. I was a 10 year old who saw "teen" and thought i was old enough to handle it, who didnt know the word rape until 3 years later and hardly knew was sex was but knew whatever was happening in the fic was bad and made me feel gross, who had nightmares about it after. Do i blame the author for writing the fic? No. In retrospect it was a really good fic that was well implemented. The only thing i blame the author for is not warning properly. It shouldve been rated mature, if not for the vaguely explicit rape scene then for the more explicit violence. Do i want that fic removed so that it doesnt harm more children? No. In fact, id like to read it again now that im old enough to understand it.

Children read things they dont understand or that make them uncomfortable all the time. Is "The Ear, The Eye, and The Arm," or "Nothing But the Truth," my middle school summer reading, a kids book? No, not really. Did i understand it? No, not really. Did it make me uncomfortable? Wildly. I hated Monty Python and The Princess Bride until recently for the same reasons. Sure, none of these things included rape, but they were inappropriate on the same INTELLECTUAL level -- i didnt know what rape was anyway, i just knew the actions portrayed made me uncomfortable. They all included concepts i simply didnt understand and couldn't morally comprehend at the time of my consumption of them. And yes, i actually did have nightmares about the two novels above in the same way i had nightmares about the fic.

So I don't want the fic removed. But i do believe that 1) I was far too young to be policing myself at that time, and that failure of self monitoring falls on me and my parents alone. If you cannot self monitor and remove yourself from situations, in this case reading a fic, which makes you uncomfortable, you should not be reading fic. Especially if your argument is trauma or triggers; anyone who has trauma or triggers knows the best course of action is to police your own experience, not rely on others to make the world safe for you. Unfortunately, thats simply not how society works. 2) The fic should have been properly tagged, and that was a failing of the author. I might not have understood rape or sex at the time, but i understood a mature label. Thank ao3 for making tagging so much easier.

So really, the fault was on me. Because I shouldn't have been reading that fic in the first place, and i should have stopped reading as soon as i got uncomfortable.

Fandom spaces were not for me at 10. Or at 11, or 12, or 13, or 14. Fandom spaces are not for kids, especially those who are not emotionally mature enough to curate their own experiences. Fandom is highly toxic to undeveloped minds, and i have a bunch of negative fandom experiences from my younger teenage years -- but fandom wasnt for me. I knew i was trying to play with the adults, and despite however many kind adults there were to guide me i hurt myself. Because fandom wasnt for me.

You wouldnt let a toddler who cant walk yet on the monkey bars. You shouldnt be on the monkey bars if you cant catch yourself when you fall.

#shut up talon #fandom wank #long post #rape mention #tw rape

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boarix · 5 years

Text

Wraith in the Ruins: A Fallout 4 Story Part XIV

Gen 4

Trigger warnings: canon violence/language/gun, alcohol and drug use. Animal injury/distress. Death of named/game-canon characters. Suggestive/mature content.

Bloody Mess warning!

Game Spoilers!

Please enjoy!

“DOWN RANGE! DOWN RANGE!”

“I AM!”

Marcy Long and MacCready stood with their noses practically touching as they yelled into each other’s face.

“And for the last TIME, KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF OF THE TRIGGER! Are you trying to kill me?!”

“You just keep talking that way to me… I KNOW HOW TO HANDLE A GUN, YOU ASS!”

“Watch your language you… spoiled… brahmin patty!”

Cait, who was also taking part in the morning lesson, stepped back with an amused smile, “Oi, you two gonna snog or what?”

“I’d just as soon kiss Strong!”

“You should be so lucky, wench!”

Only a few yards away, Sturges, Shaun and Danse worked on Sanctuary’s large walk-in fridge/freezer. Duncan was within their view and was being entertained by both Panther and Dogmeat. As the argument’s volume was increased by Cait’s ire, Sturges had stopped and was alternating concerned looks toward the young boy and frowning deeply at the vocal combatants.

“How is it possible that I’m more annoyed by the sound of folk’s voices than gunfire?”

Danse, his face calm, holding a pipe wrench, walked with determined steps toward the three-way argument.

“Umm, Mr. Sturges… should we…”

“No way kiddo; I wanna see how this plays out.”

Large and imposing, Danse towered over the quarreling trio. Taking in an enormous amount of air, he bellowed at them with as much volume as if they were truant squires hiding in the Prydwen’s engine room, “LOUD NOISES!”

The resulting confused silence was so complete; it seemed as if time had stopped.

Wearing a smug smile, Danse stopped and tousled Duncan’s hair on his way back to work, “Okay, now what where you saying about condensation?”

Marcy holstered her pistol and quickly walked away toward the house she shared with her brother. When she passed Sturges, he could have sworn she was trying not to laugh. Cait was laughing and after a few confused blinks, MacCready joined her.

“Captain Danse, how did you know that was going to work?”

“I have some experience in dealing with difficult children.”

The day wore on and after morning lessons were over, MacCready surprised Sturges’s group by bringing them all lunch. Sitting together in the warm sun with full stomachs, it was no wonder when they all began to doze off.

Jerked awake when his head bobbed to his chest, Sturges stood and stretched, his joints popping pleasantly. Smiling at the assorted piles of napping people and animals he debated on whether or not to let them sleep: Duncan was using his father’s chest as a pillow and had a fairly sizable drool pool forming, Dogmeat had draped himself crosswise across Shaun, the two making an almost perfect “X” and Panther was in a cat-loaf on Danse’s chest and stomach, rising and falling with his breath.

“Sleepy synths and friends…” Deciding that there would be plenty of daylight hours left for repair lessons, Sturges sat back down and propped his back against the free-standing fridge. Just as he closed his eyes, Panther began to growl.

The enormous cat grew even larger with every hair on end. Panther had climbed off of Danse’s chest and was now stalking purposefully past the MacCreadys toward the settlement’s northern wall. Dogmeat was following close behind, his deep growl merging with the cat’s creating a sound that was almost harmonic.

“Danse, take my son. Get them all in the fridge. Now!” MacCready had rolled to his stomach and was low in the grass.

Duncan whimpered but allowed the large man to pick him up, “Daddy?”

“It’ll be okay, little man.” Training his eye just above Dogmeat’s head, MacCready could see a slight shimmer in the air as something moved between the houses. “Great. Just, flippin’ wonderful. And of course, I don’t have a walkie!” Unwilling to shoot without a clear target, he watched the ripple advance on the snarling animals, “Speak! Bark, Dogmeat! Call for help!”

Tilting his muzzle to the heavens, the German shepherd let loose with a long mournful howl.

Phasing into view, the young chameleon deathclaw answered with a challenging roar. Focusing a baleful eye on the sniper, the beast dropped to all fours and leaped.

Rolling out of the way, MacCready vaulted to his feet and ran toward the wall. He hoped to lead it away from the freezer and possibly back through the fence breach. A pained yelp stopped his sprint and he turned to see Dogmeat narrowly avoid a swinging hit, bright blood already flowing down the dog’s right flank.

Panther seemed to fly through the air as it came to the canine’s defense. Once atop the monster’s shoulder, the cat dug in with both fang and front paws, raking the deathclaw’s ribs with its scythe-like rear claws unmercifully.

Taking the opportunity of a stationary, visible target, MacCready fired round after round at the beast’s closest knee.

The deathclaw decided that perhaps this herd was entirely out of his league and that retreat was the best option. Contracting the chromatophores in its skin, the creature blinked out of sight. Raking a claw across its own back, it dislodged Panther and cast the feline into the side of a nearby house.

Danse emerged from the freezer just in time to see the cat hit with a sickening crunch, “NOOOOOO!” Able to see the monster by the damage on its side, he rapidly closed the distance and with every last ounce of his strength, impaled the deathclaw through its wound with the handle of his pipe wrench.

The creature came back into view even as the light left its eyes.

Cradling the still form of Panther in his arms, Danse didn’t even acknowledge his astonishing victory. “CURIE!” Anguish and fear were clear in his voice as he dashed to the clinic.

Waving the all-clear and leaving cleanup to the Minutemen, Sturges and the children watched as MacCready gave Dogmeat a stimpak. The sniper scooped the dog into his arms and they all followed Danse.

“Looks like you’ve earned yourself some stiches too, puppy dog.”

“Do you have to eat?”

“Wha...?”

“Shaun asked me if you, Bear and Billy have to eat. I told him I didn’t think so, because Billy… are you laughing at me?”

“No! Heh, I would never laugh at you, sunshine.” Hancock’s bed shook slightly, revealing his lie. “Now, strictly speakin’, I’ve never tried going without chow. I enjoy good food. Eating is… pleasurable. And we’re all aware how pleasure-centric I am!”

“Mmmhmmm!” It wasn’t just the ghoul’s own pleasure he focused on. “Ugh… I don’t wanna get up.”

Hancock pulled her closer and nuzzled her neck, “So don’t. I’ll get up in a minute and bring us breakfast. As ghoulish as you are, I know you still need to eat. Heh, we burned a lot of calories last night, you feel me?”

Wraith had spent almost two months in Sanctuary after returning with Duncan MacCready. The group had stopped on the way to pick up Shaun and Nat and the children had formed fast friendships. Shaun and Duncan were already referring to each other as “brother”. Nat had been sad when it came time for Wraith to take her home but she held her head high and said her goodbyes with grace. Hancock had tagged along and he and Wraith had continued on to Goodneighbor after. Now, almost a week later, Wraith felt her schedule creeping up on her.

“I’ll have to dine-and-dash; if I’m gonna get to Diamond city by noon.”

“I thought Davidson was on top of things over there. You feel like you gotta babysit ‘im?”

“George is dead.” Wraith sighed, “I don’t have a official replacement yet.”

“Shit…”

A few minutes later, Hancock returned with eggs to find Wraith standing next to his bed, rotating her left shoulder.

“That arm still buggin’ ya?”

“No actually, it’s felt better in the last few days than it has since my surgery. Weird…”

A strange smile appeared on Hancock’s lips, “So your ghoulishness has you heal by radiation, right?”

“A little. Not as much as you… now why are you laughing?”

Doubled over in mirth he could hardly speak, “You… we’ve been… ha ha… a lot… *wheeze*… so you’re… I’m helping…”

Wraith blushed but joined in his laughter, “Sexual healing, huh?”

“How do you like the new pad?”

Wraith had wanted nothing to do with Kellogg’s property and Piper had tried to gift the home to Valentine and Ellie right after their wedding but they had resisted. She had suggested that the home could be considered payment for years of dedication to the city and the detective’s aid in locating Wraith’s son. After much debate, they finally relented.

After working on Minutemen affairs for several days, Wraith had been invited to dinner at the Valentine’s. Now, enjoying a quiet meal with her friends, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of nostalgia; the domesticity reminded her of time before the war.

“It took a while to get the smell out from those darn cigars but it’s nice to have a separate place from the agency.”

“Ellie makes sure we keep all our work at work... keeps the clutter down.”

Wraith smiled as the pair made what could only be described as love-sick googly eyes at each other, “Speaking of work…”

“It’s been fairly steady lately. In fact, I just wrapped something up and surprisingly enough, I don’t have another case that I’ve immediately got to jump on. A little brake will be nice...” As if on cue, there was a knock at the door. When Valentine set his eye to the peephole, his smile vanished, “It’s Edward Deegan…”

“I’m sorry to bother you at home detective but this is a matter of some urgency.”

Valentine stood in the doorway, reluctant to let the ghoul in, “Don’t tell me, Jack’s got another wacko, alien abductee that I’m supposed to interview…”

“No, and I’m sorry about that, but Jack’s been shot.”

Wraith was under the detective’s arm and in Deegan’s face in the blink of an eye, “Is he alive? Who shot him?”

The bodyguard took a surprised step backward and tipped his cap awkwardly, “Oh… ma’am… I didn’t think I’d find the pair of you together… I suppose that’s lucky for me…”

“I’ll pack your kit, Nick. Now invite the man in!”

“I… I’m not getting a say in this, am I?”

After the destruction of the Institute, Wraith had introduced Dr. Virgil to Jack Cabot in the hopes that he might curb some of Jack’s more “mad scientist” tendencies. The two had apparently hit it off to the point where Virgil was invited to move in and was granted his own lab space. Satisfied that they might keep each other occupied and out of trouble, Wraith had all but forgotten them.

Now allegedly, Virgil had kidnapped Jack’s sister Emogene, shooting her brother when he attempted to intervene.

“That doesn’t sound like Brian to me; he’s really not the violent sort.” Wraith and Valentine moved quickly through the ruins on their way to Cabot House, “He left the Institute because they were hurting people after all.”

Valentine agreed, “His first love has always been his research; doesn’t strike me as the type to lose his marbles over a dame. Let alone run off with her.”

“Someone isn’t telling us the whole truth here.”

“He’s bewitched by her and mad with desire!” Jack was lying in his bed with shoulder in a sling, “I’m not sure why you came here. I told Edward everything that happened. You should be out looking for her! Them… you should be out looking… for them.”

Wraith’s voice was gentle, “Jack, we really want to help but we need a better idea of what happened.”

“She… he shot me. He took them… her! I’m very tired now, please…”

“Mr. Cabot I’ll have no more nonsense today. It’s late and I left half my dinner and my patience at home. Tell us the truth. There is not a snowball’s chance in hell we’ll find them if you’re hiding information. Facts. Now.” Valentine had folded his arms and was glaring at him.

“Jack… they came all this way…”

Wraith was surprised to see fear cross the scientist’s face and tears in his eyes. She reached out to pat his arm, “Hey, it’s okay. No one’s going to hurt you.”

“You might, once you know…” Jack made an attempt at gathered himself but when he spoke, the words tumbled out in a confusing, panicked rush, “Emogene shot me. I know I told you I was going to destroy my father’s body but I was so close to removing the artifact…. His corpse had not even begun to decompose, even after all this time! Virgil and I began research on possible medicinal applications. Emogene was in a fury after I told her the serum would no longer be available and when she found out that we still had his body… she has Virgil! She’s going to make him implant the artifact in her! She hired some… RUFFIAN THUGS! They took equipment and Brian… I tried to stop her but she… she SHOT ME! You must stop her!”

“Oh… Jack…” Deegan shook his head sadly.

“Am I right in thinking that if this ‘transplant’ is successful, we’re going to have a full-on, telekinetic psychopath running around?”

“Actually, she might be able to propel herself through the air…”

“Oh? Swell.”

Wraith had not spoken and she stood with arms crossed, face like a thunderstorm. “You. Promised. Me.”

Blubbering like an infant, the scientist pleaded for her forgiveness, “You must understand! We were going to save lives! We had you in mind…”

“Oh, no. You were not thinking of me at all.” She turned her back on him, “Ruffian thugs? Do you suppose she hired mercs from Bunker Hill?”

Although Wraith technically owned the trading hub, she left most of the day-to-day to Kessler. The Minutemen were responsible for security and Hancock managed trade routes, barter agreements and the regulation of independent mercenaries. Kessler made regular reports to the ghoul and if there were matters of concern, Hancock would usually take care of them.

“Stands to reason, options are limited now that you’ve nixed the Gunners.” Valentine gave a mirthless laugh, “She’s not going to go to the Minutemen for help.”

Deegan seemed surprised when Wraith headed for the door, “You’re going now? It’s the middle of the night!”

“I’m sorry; did you not just hear what’s going on?!” She motioned for the ghoul to follow, “You are coming with.”

“Edward! Promise me… promise me you’ll save her!”

“Jack… I promise.”

“They didn’t come back yet.” Irritated at being awoken, the usually helpful Kessler was giving clipped answers through a clenched jaw, “I don’t know where they were going either.”

“How many mercs? What group?” Wraith wasn’t about to back down.

“Everybody’s filing nice, neat records now that John’s keeping tabs on the place, right? Just point us to the company cabinet and we’ll get out of your hair.”

Kessler frowned, “I can’t let just anyone…”

“Am I ‘just anyone’?” Wraith’s tone was steel.

As if she suddenly remembered who she was speaking to, the now pale Kessler briskly led them to the correct file cabinet, “If you need anything else…” Trailing off, she retreated back to her bedroom.

“Found it; ‘equipment and resource allocation and relocation’ for E. C. Looks like they were heading to Vault Ninety-five. You familiar, partner?”

“Yes, I’ve been there. They might be planning on repurposing the vault’s medical equipment.” Wraith stifled a yawn, “That’s a helluva ways from here…”

“They have a big head start too...”

“Brahmincart!” Wraith smacked a fist into her palm.

“Bless you…”

“No, no; I mean that we’ll head back through Diamond city, grab some more heavy-duty ordnance and sleep in the wagon on our way down to Somerville Place.”

“It’s too bad the Hounds don’t have more… hounds.”

Wraith was surprised, “You would ride puppy-back, Val?”

“Sure! You only live once, right?”

Wraith set a blistering pace on the return to the ballpark. Outfitting themselves and hitching up the fastest possible brahmin team took longer than she would have liked; making the prevention of the transplant seem less likely. The delay strengthened her resolve for an upcoming conversation with Deegan that she knew neither of them would enjoy.

“I want you to take this,” The trio had just finished a perimeter sweep of the vault and Wraith wasn’t sure if she should be concerned or relieved that there wasn’t a posted guard. She handed the ghoul an anti-materiel rifle, “It’s technically Mac’s birthday present so… maybe don’t mention it to him if you get to use it first.”

“What exactly do you want me to do with this?!”

“I want you to stay here. Stay well back from the entrance. It’s the only way in or out, so if she gets past us…”

“Now wait just a damn minute! I promised Jack I was going to save his sister, not turn her into red mist!”

“I know you might think that an AMR is overkill…”

“You’re FUCKING RIGHT I DO!”

“You won’t if that gal comes floating out of that vault and comes straight at you!” Despite his scolding tone, Valentine’s face was sad, “We are talking about telekinetic powers; she might have a debris-field shield. You’ll be thankful of a gun designed to destroy military equipment.”

“And that it’s precision enough that it won’t completely annihilate everything else around… her.”

“I can’t, Wraith.” The family’s bodyguard for over two centuries, Deegan could not picture himself pulling the trigger, “I know she can be a… a handful. But she’s not some monster; she’s not her father!”

Wraith grabbed the large ghoul’s substantial biceps and gave them a squeeze, “Who knows what it’s been whispering to her. She already shot Jack. If she comes out of that vault first, then Val, Virgil and I will be dead and she won’t be Emogene Cabot anymore.”

The elevator ride down was a tense affair. When the door slid open, Wraith and Valentine stood well back, weapons drawn and ready to fight.

“Who iiiiisssssss it?”

Wraith jumped as an oddly tinny and sibilant voice seemed to come from just behind her ear, “Emogene? Is that you?”

“Of course, lovely. Don’t be coy.” She seemed amused, laughing unpleasantly, “I came to greet you. I just knew Jack would send his two favorite gumshoes.”

Feeling an intense malevolent force emanating from the next room, Wraith reluctantly holstered her revolver and stepped forward into the atrium with her hands raised, “Emogene, Jack is worried abou…”

“DON’T LIE!” Looking once again as if she was in her early twenties, Emogene stood midway down the stairs. Her face momentarily twisted in fury as she interrupted, “That selfish fool only cares about himself.”

“Well, at least she’s not floating.” Valentine had exited the elevator to stand next to Wraith.

“That’s not true; he sent us here to save you.”

“Save me? Oh, dear we are confused, aren’t we? I’m not the one who needs saving, Wraith.” Continuing her decent, the woman moved with an almost snake-like sinuousness, “Just look! I’ve been reborn!”

“Where is Virgil, Ms. Cabot? I would very much like to see how the good doctor is fairing.” Valentine kept his hands raised as well, “We aren’t here to raise a ruckus; I think your family and friends are all a little worried.”

Now only a few feet from Wraith, Emogene locked eyes with her and completely ignored the detective, “I’m immortal, Wraith and brimming with power. I can feel it move through me. It feels so good.” She ran her eyes over her from toe to crown, “I can feel you… you’re like me. I don’t know how... Join with me. Spend an eternity with me. Be mine.”

“That’s… very flattering but I’m in love...”

“Yes. The ghoul… he’ll join us as well. John Hancock is rumored to be the Commonwealth’s most proficient lover. I’ll have him.” A pensive look crossed her face, “I have no use for your common human male, however. The mercenary is worthless.”

Wraith fought hard against a building anger. “Where is Brian? Where are the mercenaries that you hired?”

“They are no longer worth my consideration. You will grow out your hair; I want something to hold on to…”

“That’s enough!” Valentine lowered his hands, his anger getting the best of him, “Leave her be!”

“Mind your tone synth! You who threw his immortality away! And for what…”

“Love. Love, Emogene.” Standing tall, he lifted his chin with pride, “Haven’t you gotten tired of watching the folks you love grow old and pass on without you? The pain of almost continuous loss? Scared to see love die so you stop looking for it; only to become blind to it?”

“Weren’t you and Brian together? Don’t you care for him?”

“This fool?” Casting her eyes upward, she fanned her fingers and Virgil descended from the ceiling to hang over their heads like a marionette, “I believe I’ve told you; he is of no consideration.”

Wraith moved under the suspended doctor and raised her hands as if to catch him, “Brian! Can you hear me?” Overcome with a sense of impending doom she sent a pleading look to Emogene, “Please set him down. It looks like he’s choking!”

“Ms. Cabot, you can’t want this…”

“You know nothing of us!”

Emogene made an almost negligent twisting motion with her hands and Wraith watched in helpless horror, as Brian Virgil’s head was slowly torn from his neck. Although he couldn’t cry out, his eyes spoke of the intense fear and pain. Blood spewed violently forth, raining down on Wraith like a macabre waterfall.

Valentine drew his revolver and fired in the space of a breath but even that was too slow. Flicking her hand as if swatting a fly, the possessed woman cast the bullet aside.

“Tch… covered in that fool’s worthless bile… Worry not, I’ll wash you clean with my love. Join me, pet.”

Fighting her berserker’s rage, Wraith stuttered over her words as she shook, “For… how long? When will you get bored, hmm? Tear… tear my… my head OFF LIKE A CAP ON A FUCKING NUKA COLA?!”

“You don’t know what love is. You’re bitter and cruel, Emogene.”

“Fucking bitch.”

“So… ‘No’, is it?”

Raising herself from the floor, Emogene tucked her body into a fetal position even as the air shimmered and distorted around her. Raising the temperature through the power of the artifact, flames gathered around her until she resembled a small star. Then, reaching her limit, she flung her limbs outward, casting a powerful shockwave that ripped through the room.

Valentine was sent flying, coming down hard amongst debris that impaled him through his lower abdomen.

Wraith left a streak of Virgil’s blood as she was thrown violently across the floor. Caroming hard off of the wall between the stairs, she gasped as the air was knocked from her lungs.

It might take a monster…

Vaulting to her feet before she could even breathe, Wraith ran straight at her enemy. Just before reaching her, she activated a stealth-boy and vanished. Positioning herself behind the unconscious detective, she checked to make sure he was still breathing. After administering a stimpak and dosing herself with Med-X, she moved closer to the vault’s entryway security office.

As soon as she lost sight of Wraith, Emogene pulled items to her, including the remains of Virgil, and sent them spinning and flying around her in a protective shield.

I guess Val called that one…

Drawing both her revolver and Kremvh’s tooth, Wraith hooked a can on her toe and kicked it at the floating psychopath. Still under the effects of the stealth-boy she changed position again trying to find any available shadow in the fire-lit atrium.

“Come now, Wraith. We expected more from you!” Cackling madly, Emogene caught the can and settled back to the floor, “Death-in-the-Shadow! Ha! We know how to draw you out.” Blood flowed freely from Valentine’s wound as soon as Emogene lifted him.

Seeing him dangle in the air with his life ebbing rapidly away, Wraith lost control. Unloading a clip from her .44, she then threw the gun and dagger before casting around for a larger projectile. Had she kept her senses she might have noticed that her enemy seemed to be having trouble with the volume of items she was mentally controlling. Instead, Wraith lifted a bed, stacked it on yet another bed, and heaved them like a spear.

The detective was dropped unceremoniously to the ground as Emogene instinctually lifted both hands to block the furniture. Her eyes widened in surprise when she was punched in the stomach.

Growling menacingly, Wraith kicked her for good measure. Picking up a bedframe she brought it down hard but the other woman was able to roll away.

Stunned, hurt and suddenly afraid, Emogene’s thoughts turned to escape. Levitating and propelling herself through the vault’s entryway she slammed the elevator call button.

Wraith saw her smirk just as the doors slid shut between them.

“Val! Wake up! Stay with me, partner.”

“Uuugghhhh?”

“Oh, thank you. Here, have some water.” Wraith held the detective in her lap as she helped him drink, “What’s your pain level; how do you feel?”

“I feel… I feel like the south end of a northbound brahmin.” He blinked groggily, “What in the world happened?”

“You were skewered on some junk and I lost my head. I think I was whipping stuff at her but… she escaped. I know that much at least.”

“She took the elevator topside?! We have to go… uggghhh…” Making as if to stand, he was overcome by weakness and sagged back into Wraith’s embrace.

“Take it easy! You’ve lost a lot of blood.” She gently squeezed him, “I did my best to fix you up but you’re going to be weak for a while. I think the wire missed anything super necessary but I’m worried about infection. Heh, when was your last tetanus shot?”

“Never would have thought I’d need one.” He smiled weakly up at her, “Thanks for patching me up for the hundredth time.”

She kissed his forehead, “Remember these gentle feelings toward me when I have to make you climb out of here.”

“Climb…”

“Emogene destroyed the elevator car.”

“Oh? Swell.”

Despite what she had said, Wraith had no intention of making Valentine climb the cable to the surface. Instead, she proposed tying him to her in some way and hauling them both up, with the aid of chems, hand over hand.

“No, Wraith.”

“Okay…”

“That‘s a terrible idea and not just because of the Buffout.”

Eyebrows pitched she shook her head and swept her hands out in front of her, “So, you have a better one?”

“Check your Pip-boy; they ought to have had some sort of parallel access shaft for maintenance and elevator repair, right?”

“Ummm…” Studying the maps on her device, a slight flush crept across her cheeks, “Now, why didn’t I think of that?”

Valentine chuckled, “Because you were gung-ho about showing off your Marine rope climbing skills?”

“I was really good at it; no legs all arms.” The screen cast a green glow on her face and she bit her lip as she concentrated. “It looks… it looks like you’re right.”

“Naturally.”

“Still, it’s a ladder. That’s going to be a lot of climbing...”

“I’m not going to let you truss me up to dangle from you like a bindle!”

The trip up was long and arduous. Valentine went first so that if he lost his grip, Wraith might catch him. And they had to make frequent stops so the weakened detective could gather what little strength he could to make it “just one more floor”.

At one point, noticing how hard he was breathing, Wraith climbed up and positioned her limbs around him, “Let go and rest, Val. I won’t let you fall; your wife would never forgive me.”

“Would… I… be… a… good father?”

Despite the lack of context, she didn’t even hesitate, “Yup. You’d make the best pop ever!”

“Don’t even… know if… we can…”

“Worth a shot, right?” Wraith felt herself start to choke up, “If not, there are a few kids without parents that would be very happy to be Valentines.”

“It’s… a little… I’m scared actually.”

“Of course! You wouldn’t be the responsible Detective Nick Valentine if you didn’t appreciate the gravity of the situation.”

“Uhhgg… don’t mention gravity!”

Once on the surface, Wraith carried the now unconscious Valentine to Somerville Place. The clinic there was small, and he would need follow-up care but the medic was proficient and the detective was soon stable and resting comfortably.

“We have a problem, General Wraith.” The settlement’s head had pulled her aside and pointed toward the river, “That Edward Deegan fella is still here. He’s drunk, scary and won’t leave.”

“Oh…”

When the ghoul saw her he couldn’t stop the smile of relief that crossed his scarred face. It was quickly replaced by anger and he staggered to his feet and rushed her while pointing a shaking finger at her face, “You! YOU ASS!” Balling up his fist, it looked as if he might strike her. Instead he started to sob and dropped to his knees, “Why… why did I have to kill her?”

“Deegan… I’m so sorry…”

“No… I… this is all my fault. I was supposed to protect them. How could I let this happen?! How will I ever tell Jack?”

“I will be there with you when you do. I’ll help you.” She set a gentle hand on his shoulder, “Physical labor and cleaning.”

“What… what?”

“Two things that help me work through grief. While I’m waiting on the transport for Val I’m going back in the vault to get Virgil’s remains.”

Deegan watched her walk away for a minute before sighing deeply and following after.

Later, Wraith sat in a chair next to Valentine’s bed, trying to decide if she had failed. Waking up, he reached out and patted her hand.

“Doll face, don’t go thinking that you’re somehow to blame for this.”

“I didn’t make sure Jack destroyed his father’s body. I didn’t make sure the artifact was destroyed or hidden or…”

“You trusted them, that’s not on you.”

“You can’t trust everyone…”

“You,” He flinched as he sat up straighter, “you sound like Deacon.”

“Yeah…” She faked a smile; trying to put on a brave face for her friend, “I sent a courier so there should be a cart here soon. The ride back to the city is going to be a little rough…”

“Suppose I’ll just have to have some more Med-X, huh?”

“Shocking! Detective Valentine on chems!”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t tell John, he’ll never let me hear the end of it. Also, Wraith… the caps on Nuka Cola aren’t supposed to be twist-off…”

When Hancock didn’t answer her knock, Fahrenheit took a deep centering breath before letting herself into his office. Her relief to see he wasn’t engaged in anything embarrassing quickly dissipated when she saw the melancholy look on his face. Seated at his desk, he stared out a window with a letter in his hand and an empty container of Mentats at his elbow.

“That a letter from Wraith?”

Jerking slightly he turned and smiled at her, “Oh, hey Fahr. Did I miss a meeting?”

“No. It’s been a while since Wraith left and you’ve a tendency to become… lugubrious, the longer you’re without her.”

He smiled at her verbiage, “Fancy depression, huh?”

“Yes. I try to make it a point to check in on you.” She stabbed a finger at the letter, “What is that?”

Irritation and sadness passed over his face, “It’s a update from the Sunglassed Ass.”

“Things are bad.”

“No, no they’re just fine… don’t really want to talk about him…”

“Very well, would you like to play chess?”

“Always!”

A few minutes into the game Fahrenheit noticed that the ghoul was toying with a defeated pawn. It was unlike him to fidget during matches and combined with his obvious distress over the letter she decided to push the issue. Subtly of course.

“Regrets over your gambit?”

“Hmm?” He frowned at the piece in his hand before setting it back on the table, “Sorry, I took too much and now I’m spinnin’ in my mental loop.”

“It’s interesting what some individuals consider acceptable loss.” Advancing her knight she took another pawn, “That’s why I think Deacon would have been a worthy opponent; his agenda is paramount. Very few distractions.”

Hancock scoffed, “Unless you count Wraith.”

“Did he?”

“I said I didn’t want to talk about it.”

“Right.”

Suddenly standing, the mayor crossed his hands behind his back and began to pace, “He’s always been a pain in my ass; showin’ up outta nowhere… but he was here. Helping. I’ve been a part of the Railroad since I took over but he’s always made sure no one knew. He told Wraith that I ‘turn a blind eye’...”

“Lies from a liar.”

“You know, he was on this faux fruit kick for a bit; would leave bananas in my boots. Complete fuckin’ nonsense from him, all the time…”

“The balloons.” The memory made her frown.

“Exactly! So why is it that I’m missing him being… here?” He was gesticulating wildly now, “I’ll fuckin’ tell you why; Wraith! She loves him! I know she does. And he loves her. And I love her. If she can love someone, then there must be some worth to ‘em.”

“It’s interesting how you don’t apply the same logic to yourself…”

He dismissed her with a wave, “She would have died without his help. It’s possible that, at some point I could have been axed, had he not been there to prevent it!”

“And so, what?”

“He could have come back by now. He’s repaired their infrastructure, set up new safe houses, appointed new agents… He’s not comin’ back though. You know why?”

“Do tell.”

“Because he knows that he loves her and that is dangerous. And he doesn’t think that he’s good enough. He told me himself he doesn’t deserve…”

Fahrenheit’s laugh was humorless, “This from the ghoul who staged a fight with her because, ‘it’s what’s best for her’.” She drummed her nails on the chessboard in irritation, “She is one of the most capable people I’ve ever met, and you foolish men treat her like a child.”

Looking abashed, Hancock sat back down, “Suppose… yeah.”

“Your self-sabotage knows no bounds, does it?” She leaned forward and caught his eye, “Do you really want him to return, profess his love and carry her off into the sunset? Do you find her so fickle? Nonsense indeed!” Leaning back she folded her arms, “No, she’s chosen you and MacCready; may the heavens have mercy!”

“I’m being stupid.”

“You… need her. She levels you out.”

“Sorry, Fahr. Wanna finish the match?”

“No. I see the empty box of Mentats, there’s no way I could defeat you tonight. This was a ruse.”

He feigned shock, “Using my beloved chess against me? No Fahr, tonight you definitely defeated me.”

“I’m pregnant.”

Hancock froze. He stood up. He sat back down only to stand up immediately again.

“You… going to keep doing that?”

“Baby?”

“Yes, potentially; if the pregnancy is successful, I will give birth to a baby.”

He sat back down, “Baby?”

“Oh, boy... It’s going to be like that, huh?”

He stood back up and began rushing around his office, grabbing various items and putting them in his coat pockets, “We should leave right now!”

Alarmed and confused she stood up as well, “Leave and go where? Hancock? Hey stop! Dad, stop!”

“You… called me… you called me dad?”

Taking his scarred hands in hers, she led him to the couch, “Yes, dad. Leave and go where?”

“Sanctuary. Amari doesn’t have ultrasound. Pregnant daughter needs ultrasounds.”

“All those chems and I still managed to shock your intelligence down to a super mutant’s.” She pulled him to her and hugged him tightly, “I’ve already talked to Amari; she sent a letter to Curie and everything will be fine.”

“Does Michael know?”

“Yes, this was all carefully thought out and planned.”

“Of course.” He sniffled, fighting tears.

“You can cry if you want, grandpa.”

So he did.

“… and daddy and Pants-her and Doggy and Mr. Cap’n all fought it! The kitty was hurt bad and Mr. Cap’n was very sad but he’s all better now and Curie is a really good docker!”

“Wow Dunk, that sounds scary!”

The small boy puffed his chest, “No I wasnit, Waif! Daddy ‘nd Mr. Cap’n are really good and Shaun was there!”

“Thank you very much for telling me.”

Wraith held Duncan’s hand as he and Shaun escorted her from Sanctuary’s main gate. She had already been updated when she met with Cait at the Red Rocket but she enjoyed his enthusiastic story-telling.

“Your daddy on duty?”

“Yup. He’s the best shooter-man!”

“He sure is, honey.”

“Hey grandma, Curie says she needs to talk to you as soon as you got back.”

“Okay,” Passing Duncan’s hand to his she stopped and stared hard at Shaun, “You grew.”

“Jeez, grandma! You say that like it’s bad.”

“I’ll have to measure you again… ugh. That’s it; I’m teaching you both to sew!”

Shaun laughed, “If I’m making my own clothes does that mean that they can look however I want?”

She stuck out her hand, “Deal!”

After visiting briefly with MacCready, Wraith jogged to the clinic. The loveseat in Curie’s office was over-full with napping Danse, Panther and Dogmeat. Wraith stifled a giggle as all three were snoring.

“Psst! Madame…” Curie waved Wraith into her lab, embracing her once she was inside, “Bonjour! I am so very happy to see you return safe.”

“Thanks, Baby Bird. Shaun said you wanted to see me?”

Suddenly nervous, Curie knit her fingers together and held them to lips, “I have made a discovery. It might be shocking to you, so please sit.”

“Uh, oh. What is it?”

Pulling another chair across form Wraith’s, the doctor sat and reached out to hold her hands, “We have long suspected that Panther was a synth, oui? As you probably know le chat was gravely injured defending against the deathclaw. Mon ours was so distraught!” She frowned at the memory, “I did my best and thankfully I was able to save our dear friend.”

“Thank you, Curie. We all love that cat.”

Curie’s face was grave, “I analyzed some of the blood samples I obtained, for science, and I found that…”

“Tell me.”

“DNA from your late husband was used to create Panther.”

“Yes, I know.”

Shocked, Curie’s mouth worked, opening and shutting as she tried to find the words, “How… who… when?”

“Okay, probably should re-phrase that. I have long suspected that at some point Father would have harvested some of Nate’s… information.” Wraith smiled, “I know it sounds odd but when I first saw Panther, my thought was ‘that’s Nate’.”

“Why have you never told me this? I could have verified for you…”

Wraith took her by the shoulders and hugged her again, “Don’t worry about it! The cat isn’t literally him… Sure they act alike in some respects but… No, it’s fine. I will always love Nate. He is gone now though, and I have done my best to move on. I can’t be always looking for his shadow in everyone I meet.”

“That is most poetic, madame.”

“Thanks, Baby Bird.” Wraith stood up, “Was there anything else? I need to go meet with Sofie.”

“Mademoiselle Fahrenheit is pregnant and Ellie Valentine as well.”

Wraith sat back down.

Thank you so much for reading! Like what you read? Looking for more? Please see my master-link post tagged under Wraith in the Ruins in my bio. As always, if you have any questions/comments/concerns, my ask is open to you. Anon too! I’d love to hear from you. =^..^=

#wraith in the ruins #fallout 4 #fallout fanfic #fallout fan fiction #fo4 deacon #fo4 hancock #fo4 maccready #fallout curie #curie #fo4 danse #fallout danse #john hancock #rj maccready #fallout companions #nick valentine

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dazzlingfantasiesblogs · 6 years

Text

Hurricane P31

Happy x Reader

Warning/Triggers: 18+ Only! If under 18, kindly un-follow me!. Violence. SMUT..

Notes: o_o

Tags: @moodygrip @trippinjenni @jenny885

Pics and gifs are not mine.

Next morning you got up and headed to Cara Cara to talk to Luann and explain you just couldn’t work from their office. Lorenzo stayed by your side just in case you needed him. Both of you drinking ice coffee since you stopped and talked to Craig. Opening the door to the Jeep, you stepped out. Lorenzo made his way to your side. You took a step back seeing his motorcycle.. you shook off the pain and sorrow. You needed to attend to your work. Lorenzo slid his hand on the small of your back smiling down at you. “It will be ok darlin.” Nodding you grabbed the handle to Cara Cara and stepped in. The same smell of cheap perfume and sex filled your nostrils making you slightly nauseous. Man you hated this place. You looked at Lorenzo, he looked around with utter disgust on his face. He had no issues with porn, but just the sheer fact you worked in this place upset him. He knew why this caused you such pain.

You walked down the main corridor to see a lot of SOA in the main relaxing room. Lorenzo tightened his grip till he seen Kozik. He relaxed a bit knowing he would never let anything go on. You walked up to your brother, hugging him tightly. “Morning sis.” “Morning.” You handed him some of your coffee to drink. You went to grab it and he pulled away. “Mine now!” he smirked. “Fine, fine.” Lorenzo laughed a bit handing you his to drink. Jax walked in seeing you standing there. He seen Lorenzo in a nice clean-cut suite and was slightly impressed by his calm presence. Jax stuck out his hand to Lorenzo. “So you’re the guy Happy wants to kill.” Lorenzo smirked a bit. “We have met before Jax. And yes, I suppose. He won’t get passed her though.” He smiled down at you. You chuckled a bit hugging Jax. “We won’t kill him, can’t. He is SOA. God above knows we don’t want to be on your bad side.” You laughed a bit at him. “Need to talk to Luann, where she at?” “She is in a meeting right now. Your help has made Cara Cara a lot of money.” “Well, I won’t be working from here anymore.” Jax squinted a bit. “I will be doing it remotely. If I need anything, I will ask a friend of mine.” “Your leaving?” “Not exactly. I am done putting myself in positions where I might commit murder.” Chuckling he nodded. “Fair.” “Haha yeah no kidding!” you looked back to see Luann and Happy walking out of the office. “Thanks for your help Happy, Otto will love the tattoo!” he nodded to her. “Luann, can I talk to you?” she looked up seeing you there. “Oh my gosh! Hi beautiful! Of course!. Who is this handsome lad?” she looked Lorenzo up and down. “Someone close to my heart.” You smiled to her. “Ok, sure come to my office.” Happy was stopped in his tracks. The fact you where here astounded him. You where always strong in his eyes. He looked to see Lorenzo close to you, almost protecting you. One thing he could read was auras and it was shielding you from him. Walking passed Happy you ignored his whole presence. Like you two where never a thing. Walking into the office you sat down.

After talking with Luann she understood everything that you where saying. She agreed to have offsite meeting at least once a week. Walking out you all where laughing at something she said. You smelt the same fake perfume as you walked out. You seen Ima flirting with Happy and Jax. She looked over to you and then Lorenzo. She stride over “I wouldn’t..” Jax spoke, warning her. “Your playing with fire..” he mumbled. She stood in front of Lorenzo as he tried to walk away from her. “Well who are handsome!” he looked at her with pure pity and then disgust. “Ugh, you are gross.” He walked around her, she grabbed his wrist. You reached out grabbing her wrist before she could touch him. “You can have Happy and SOA. Touch him, I’ll kill you.” She rolled her eyes. “Sorry Luann..” speaking, you grabbed her wrist twisting it back till you hurd a crack. She howled in pain. She hit you, scratching your cheek. You smirked a bit shoving her back against the ground. Turning around you walked passed Happy “Y/N..” He went to grab you and Lorenzo grabbed your hand before he could. “Stay away from her!” he growled at Happy. Rarely did you hear him get so upset. Kozik ran over between the two. “Enough.” Was all he said. “I agree with Kozik. We are done Happy. That is final. Do your own thing, but leave me and him the fuck alone. What we had, is gone.” You nodded to him, seriousness covered your face. Grabbing Lorenzo’s hand, you dragged him out of Cara Cara.

“Holy shit, I think you broke her wrist.” You laughed a bit. “No, I dislocated it.” He nodded, his eyes burning into your head. “Why are you staring at me like that?” he bit his lip slightly. The sheer image causing you to let a moan escape your lips. Pulling up to your house, you stepped out, Lorenzo hot on your heels. Opening the door, he shut and locked the door pulling on the blinds to close. He picked you up, bringing you to the couch, spreading your legs he kissed your passionately. His lips intertwining with yours in the most delicious of ways. His hands slid over your body, hiking up your dress over your hips. He slid his hands to your panties, pressing them against your core. “Baby..” he slid his lips over your neck and down your chest. He stood up, pulling your dress completely off. “Stunning… so beautiful…” he slid his lips over your cleavage. Sucking on your skin he created small marks to your breasts, lapping both nipples in his mouth, taking his turns with both. You were so precious. To him you reeked beauty both physically and internally. “Lorenzo..” you moaned out. He slid his fingers passed your laced panties and started to rub your clit. Closing your eyes you whole body shook with pleasure. He touched with you such care, making sure you felt everything. “Mmm..” he kissed down you stomach and sides. His head between your thighs.

You swore you where going to explode right there. He tugged your panties lower down on your legs. He kissed your hips licking them faintly, swirling circles. He slid his tongue to your bundle, moaning at the taste. Your hands traveled to his hair, pulling slightly. Growling he wrapped his hands around your legs, pulling you as close as possible to him. Your body was lit on fire from how good his tongue felt. You couldn’t stop from moaning loudly, chanting his name over and over. He was bringing you to your peak very quickly. Your legs started to shake, you begged him not to stop. He didn’t, he helped you fall over that edge. Your vision went blurry as you arched your back. Your breathing was off a bit as you came down from the high. Lorenzo stood up, his chin wet and his lips shiny from you. He pulled off his tie and then proceeded with the rest of his suite. He picked you up, bringing you to the loft and laid you on the bed. “I don’t want this to ruin our friendship..” he choked out slightly worried. “Has it ever?” he laughed a bit nodding no. Sliding off his black Calvin Klein boxers, you seen how hard he was. He licked up and down your neck, going to suck on your ear lobe. “You have no clue how bad I have wanted you…” you smiled up and him as he slid between your legs. You felt him push into you. Crying out he kissed your lips. He was very well endowed, and it took awhile to get use to it. He slowly pushed in, groaning at the wonderful feeling. He waited till you nodded it was ok for him to move. As he slowly pulled out and pushed back in you felt yourself falling for Lorenzo all over again. He was a very attentive lover and you remembered that when you two where younger. He always said he wanted to give you the world, even as just friends. “So wet baby…” he groaned as his lips sealed against yours.

He licked down your neck to your breasts and began to suck and play with your nipples. His saliva coating both of them, the cold air sending a tingly feeling to the rest of your body. His eyes were like pools of sex, such a beautiful blue, that where mostly black with lust at the moment. “Please… faster..” He smirked pulling out and pushing in a bit harder causing you to scream out in bliss. His hips snapped against yours as he kept filling you completely. “Im… gunna..” before you could finish your sentence, you came hard. More so for a long time. Your held on to Lorenzo for dear life. Your hands wrapped around his strong arms. “Fuck.. me too..” he groaned moving harder. Pulling out he came on your hips, rolling over exhausted. “Sorry… forgot to ask If you wanted me to you know.. in you or not..” you chuckled a bit. “I am on the pill so I get it if you ask.” He quickly stood up, going downstairs grabbing you a washcloth. He came up, wiping up your body. Kissing your lips gently.

Happy sat at Cara Cara with the boys. He stared at the ground, trying to control his inner emotions from spilling out. He seen first hand how Ima was a slut. How you ignored him like he was nothing but trash on the side of the road. How violent you got when Ima tried to touch the asshole in the suite. How you stuck up for him when he tried to grab your hand but Lorenzo stopped him. His heart sank into his stomach. He made a terrible choice. Kozik watched as Happy sat there. To most people it would look like he was relaxing, but Kozik knew how his brother was. “Happy, I need your help.” Happy looked up to Kozik and nodded. He followed him outside of Cara Cara. “You relized you fucked up right?” Happy nodded. “I am not sure who she is supposed to be with. I know damn well that Lorenzo would never hurt her. I also know you love her to the moon and back as they say. Yet, never once did you go to try and get back with her when you left her.. you never tried to make things right. So when she appeared again, it was odd you wanted her back..” “I had distractions.. Club was riding me hard. I knew damn well that I missed her daily. I should have never left her in the first place.. thought she would be better off and maybe she is..” Koziks face fell slightly. He was not use to his brother being so low. “Up to you.” Kozik shrugged. “I hate to be mean, but you hurt her. She was so upset in New York. I could see the pain take over her again and it was a terrible sight.” “We fight so much. When we are good we are great.. but we are bad it is like being in hell hottest fire..” Kozik chuckled a bit at that. “No kidding.” “I don’t know what to do…” Happy sat on the curb of the road. Head in hands as his eyes filled with tears. “Out of everyone in the world, she was the last person I wanted to hurt..” Kozik seen the tears stream down Happys face. He sighed slightly sitting next to him. “I will see if I can get her to talk to you…” Happy looked at him with a slight smile that was so rare. “Thank you..”

#happy #kozik #jax #luann #soa #soa imagine #sons of anarchy #sons of anarchy imagine

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