#Maddie Rice

[mantaypeli]

My Policeman

★★☆☆☆ Un quiero y no puedo. Eso es lo que me ha parecido My Policeman (Michael Grandage, 2022), la esperada película protagonizada por Harry Styles, Emma Corrin y David Dawson. La historia narra la relación entre Tom (Styles), un policía casado con Marion (Corrin), y Patrick (Dawson), conservador de un museo, en el Reino Unido de los años cincuenta, cuando la homosexualidad era ilegal. ¿Amor con…

[angst-and-fajitas]

Mess with Maddie, you get the stabbie

[purple-afternoon]

them😍

[finalspaceraven]

I had to draw this for me and the 6 other Pantheon fans

[zamyamf1028]

MADDIE VAN PELT, KATIE RICE, SOPHIE JOHNSON

Every Witch Way S01E1 - Discovery

[gelflingshawty]

I remember how apprehensive I was about seeing another actor try to play Lestat de Lioncourt when the show was announced and I look back on how my relationship with actor Sam Reid mirrored that of Cher and Christina Aguilera in Burlesque in the sense that some black box dye haired bitch is having some poor blonde perform and prove herself like the eviction notice was being taped on her door at that very moment

[hexasaurus]

#a summary

[midnightmoonbeams]

Kidd and Hornsby were working out. Maddie was enjoying a donut (no, not a "jelly-filled donut") under a spring blossom tree.

April 9th, 2020

[buddierecs]

aly's favourite fic's

this is a list of my all time favourites buddie fics :) it will be a mixture of ratings. please check the rating/tags!

let's hear it for the boy by hattalove (anything by this author is incredible!!!!) "in which eddie attends a self-empowerment group for gbtq men to supplement his therapy, and is empowered to: forgive himself, say "i'm gay" to his own reflection in the mirror, accidentally adopt an adult, make fried rice, and tell his straight best friend that he's in love with him. not necessarily in that order." word count: 56k rating: teen and up audiences important tags: self-discovery, coming out, friends to lovers, pining, gay disaster!eddie diaz.

leave the light on (i'll be coming home) - highly highly recommend this!!!!! by: HMSLusitania "an accident on a call leaves buck with custody of chris after eddie is... missing presumed. while they navigate their new family circumstances -- and fight to stay together, despite eddie's parents' best efforts -- a john doe wakes up in a coma ward with no memory of his own life beyond the knowledge he has a son named christopher and, somehow, he needs to get home." word count: 44k rating: mature important tags: presumed dead, grief, mourning, angst, amnesia, getting together a leaf falls on loneliness by: iimpossible_things "buck doesn’t think that if he were to say, “i’m in a bad place”, that anyone would turn him away. really, he doesn’t. the 118 has too many good, kind people for that. but every time he wants to open his mouth, to say something, to reach out to eddie or bobby or hen or chim, he hears eddie yelling, “you’re exhausting.” —you’re exhausting, you’re exhausting, you’re exhausting— so each day he does his job and he laughs and he jokes and he pretends he’s the care-free goofball he’s always been. And each day he packs away his bruises and his worries, takes them home to his empty loft with its quiet rooms, and licks his wounds in silence." word count: 11k rating: not rated important tags: angst, fluff, happy ending, orginal male character and i'm not good at winning fights anymore by: spaceprincessem "five times buck needs to feel eddie's heartbeat and the one time eddie needs to feel his" word count: 24k rating: teen and up audience important tags: 5+1 things, whump, protective!eddie diaz, getting together, soft boys in love, ptsd i know you're hurting (but so am i) by: justhockey "eddie understands better than maybe anyone else ever could, how it feels to have everything unravel in the palm of your hands. he knows frustration - he knows fury. he’s painfully familiar with that burning rage that crackles in the tips of your fingers, that makes your skin hot and chest tight, and makes you want to punch anyone that dares to even look at you. but that doesn’t give chim the right to lay a damn hand on buck" word count: 3.7k rating: not rated important tags: ptsd, feelings realisation, protective!eddie diaz, communication, 5x04 coda good pretender by: likeshipsonthesea "an au where buck broke up with taylor before 5b, ravi and buck become (actually platonic) friends with benefits, and ravi, eddie, and buck all go on a journey of self-discovery that ends with them all getting what they need" word count: 85k rating: explicit important tags: friends with benefits (buckandravi), casual sex, childhood tramua, healing, feelings realisation, jealous!eddie diaz, ptsd, love confessions, anal sex

the best life is the truth (my best mask is my face) by: letmetellyouaboutmyfeels the buckleys are celebrating their 50th anniversary, and maddie and buck are both expected to come. to take the heat off maddie, buck impulsively blurts out that he's seeing someone new. obviously, there's only one solution: bring eddie as his fake boyfriend, pretend to be in love with him, and survive the weekend with minimal bloodshed. no problem, except for the, uh. "pretend" part." word count: 43k rating: explicit important tags: fake dating, idiots to lovers, there was only one bed, eventual smut

tomorrow will always and forever now be today (tomorrow is our always and forver) by: withmeornotatall "eddie gets trapped in a time loop on the day buck marries natalia" word count: 43k rating: mature important tags: time loop, minor buck/natalia, heavy angst, eventual happy ending, weddings, love confessions winter prayer by: daisies_and_briars "when a work conflict prevents athena from accompanying bobby to minnesota for the ten year anniversary of his family dying, buck and may offer to go instead. over the course of the trip, they all learn more about each other, and bobby faces his grief." word count: 18k rating: general audiences important tags: road trip, family bonding, grief, healing, angst, bobby being a dad to may and buck, may and buck are siblings

what a heart can do by: bvckandeddie "in which buck becomes the guardian of the daughter he never knew he had. together, they discover what happiness truly means to them." word count: 128k rating: teen and up important tags: girldad!buck, slow burn, friends to co-parents to lovers, oblivious!evan buckley, therapy, light angst, emotional hurt/comfort

[freshdanks]

My girl Maddie Rice shredding it right in front of the camera!

[disasterbuck]

Eddie, you have food on your face

710 words inspired by this instagram video: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C72LNWTNb82/

read Buck's version here

Sinking down onto the couch beside Eddie, Buck reached for a plate and began piling food onto it. They were at Maddie and Chimney's place, joining in on Buff Friday while Hen and Karen looked after all the kids – they'd said something about missing having heaps of foster's to look after the other day, and Chim and Eddie had immediately jumped on the opportunity for some free babysitting.

"Are you even gonna be able to eat all that?" Eddie asked teasingly as Buck stacked some hot chips on top of his already full plate of fried rice, two slices of pizza, and a hot dog.

"Shut up," Buck said fondly around a mouthful.

Eddie rolled his eyes and turned back to his own plate, which despite his teasing was also stacked high.

Maddie and Chimney had settled on the couch opposite them and for a few minutes they were all quiet as they focused on eating. Once they were about halfway through, conversation slowly picked up and they began discussing various different topics.

Using the last bit of a pizza slice to scoop up the remaining food bits on his plate, Buck then stuffed it all into his mouth and set his empty plate down on the coffee table. He glanced over at Eddie, who was nodding at something Chimney was saying, and noticed he had ketchup on his cheek.

Nudging Eddie's knee to get his attention, Buck pointed at his face and then tapped the same spot on his own cheek to give a clear indication of where the ketchup was.

Then, to Buck's utter surprise, Eddie leaned over and pressed a kiss to where his finger had just been.

Buck stared at him. Eddie smiled back.

Slowly, Eddie's eyes widened and he suddenly slapped a hand to his face, feeling the ketchup there and turning away to get a napkin and wipe it off. He hunched forward as he did so, hiding his face from the three pairs of eyes that were staring at him.

Buck managed to swallow the last of his food without choking, but it was a near thing. He reached a hand towards Eddie, but just as he did so Eddie shot up from the couch, muttered something about needing some air, and sped down the hall to the bathroom.

Buck now found himself being stared at.

"Evan!" Maddie hissed, eyes popping. "Go after him!"

"Go… Maddie, he's in the bathroom!" Buck hissed back.

"He just kissed you!" Maddie replied. "He's hiding! Go talk to him!"

"He kissed my cheek!" Buck retorted, feeling his face flush with embarrassment and – not that he would admit this – pleasure. "It didn't mean anything!"

Maddie's face went through the five stages of grief and then she turned to Chimney, throwing her hands up helplessly.

"If it didn't mean anything," Chimney whispered. "Why did he run away?"

Oh.

In a flash, Buck was on his feet and heading down the hall. He banged on the bathroom door loudly, then rocked back on his heels and wondered if he should've gone for a softer approach.

"I'll be out in a minute," Eddie called, his voice sounding weird.

"No," Buck said firmly.

"'No'?" Eddie repeated, sounding flabbergasted.

"That's what I said." Buck jiggled the door handle uselessly. "Let me in."

There was silence for a moment, and then Buck heard the lock click. He immediately turned the handle again, opening the door and letting himself into the bathroom.

Eddie was looking at him hesitantly, shoulders hunched and arms crossed protectively.

"Why did you run away?" Buck asked softly.

Eddie swallowed and said nothing.

"Cause it meant something, right?" Buck continued. "You thought I was asking you to kiss my cheek, and you just did it. Cause that's who we are. We're the kind of people who kiss each other's cheeks."

Looking slightly pained, Eddie shook his head. "That's not it, Buck."

"Then what is?"

With a sigh and a glance to the heavens like he was saying a silent prayer, Eddie murmured:

"I'm in love with you."

Buck crossed the short distance between them in one step and brought his hands up to cup Eddie's face.

"I'm in love with you too, idiot," he said.

And kissed him on the mouth.

-

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Let me know if you'd like to be added or removed 💕

[try-set-me-on-fire]

38 for the soft fic prompts: giving or saving for the other because they know they haven’t had a chance to eat anything and they don’t want them to be hungry

Filing this one under “takeout” for list checking purposes. Soft prompts! Finished ones here!

“Oh those aren’t- that’s probably not good anymore.”

Buck turns a little away from the cool of the fridge, dim sum takeout box in his hand. “When’d you get ‘em?”

Eddie shrugs, and comes to stand next to him to look in at the other containers. There's half a tub of saag paneer, some pad see ew, a couple of slices of pizza in a ziplock bag. "The… I think the pizza might be ok. That was only from the other night."

Buck grins at him as he takes out all the leftovers and sets them on the counter to be ferried to the trash. "I'm in a coma for just a few days and you and Chris order out every night, I see how it is." He paws through everything, and agrees with Eddie’s assessment that much of it is past wise consumption. “What groceries do you have, I’ll make something-“

The words evaporate somewhere in his throat when he looks at Eddie again, sees the stricken expression he’s trying to smooth off his face. Eddie blinks at the eye contact and clears his throat. “Uh, not sure… sandwich stuff, eggs, pasta. Not- I went to the store a few days ago, I should probably...” Eddie opens the fridge again, stares into it at an angle Buck thinks is meant to hide his face. “You can use anything. But you don’t have to cook, Buck, we can just order something again.”

“Eds, I ate hospital food for days and then when I got home Maddie glared at me if I so much as looked at a spatula. I would love to cook something myself.” He makes his tone joking, pleasant, carefully watching Eddie’s unfocused gaze and tight grip on the refrigerator door. “Come on, you’re letting the penguins out.” He kicks the door very lightly and Eddie huffs something sort of close to a laugh and shuts it.

Buck fishes the rice cooker out of its usual cabinet and sets it up, and rearranges pans on the stove, trying to create noise and clatter and some sense of normalcy. Eddie leans against the fridge and watches him, looking settled and unsettled. When Buck gets back to the old takeout and moves to toss it all, Eddie’s hand comes up for a second before jerking back down to his side. Buck drums his fingers on the counter next to a fallen, kind of funky piece of pepperoni for a moment before crossing his arms and walking close to Eddie. The kitchen isn't that big, and his legs are long, so it only takes two steps.

“You can keep all that if you want but your fridge is gonna get pretty gross.” He tries to make eye contact but Eddie is resolutely staring somewhere around the tattoo on Buck’s forearm as he sighs and shakes his head.

“No, throw it out, I’m- being dumb. You were in the hospital- I’m being dumb.”

“Not sure how those things are connected.”

“What?” Eddie looks at him, finally, an eyebrow raised.

“I was in the hospital, you’ve got a lot of sentimentally valuable takeout, you’re dumb.” Eddie makes a pouty little face on instinct, and Buck grins for a moment. “Come on, I missed a lot, connect the dots for me.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Well then I’m not gonna share the fried rice,” Buck says, something they both know is an absolutely empty threat. But neither of them can really deny the other, so they have a little staring contest that doesn’t last all that long before Eddie relents with a sigh.

His hand comes up to curl in the air around Buck’s elbow, centimeters from actually touching his skin but still perfectly in the shape of it. “I thought-“ he shakes his head, squinting out at the dimly lit room. “I thought you might be hungry. If I- if there was food you would-“ his index finger barely brushes Buck’s arm and his whole hand flinches back to a safe distance that Buck more than anything wants him to close. “If we had leftovers you’d come home and eat them.”

“I’m home now.” Buck can just feel the warmth of Eddie’s hand, even with the space between them.

“Yeah,” Eddie whispers.

“I’ll eat your nasty pizza if you want.”

Eddie snorts and the motion of his body brings his hand into contact again, and Buck thinks it makes them both sigh in relief. “Don’t. You’ll have to go right back to the hospital. Then I’ll land in the bed next to you because Maddie will do me grievous bodily harm.”

“In bed next to me, huh?”

“Jesus,” Eddie laughs, looking past him towards the stove, or the window maybe. “You’re not smooth, Buckley.” He doesn’t take his hand away. Buck thinks this is a dance they’d started at Hen and Karen’s vow renewal, or maybe five years ago in the back of an ambulance. Eddie’s smiling a little now but he still looks worried, and tired, and Buck silently promises to find ways to apologize for interrupting their footwork by leaving him here alone, even if just for a few minutes. Fried rice, a shared meal, the comfort of Buck and Eddie together in a kitchen so familiar to them, seems as good a place as any to start. Eddie’s hand travels up Buck’s arm to rest on his neck. “You’ll stay after dinner?”

Buck glances at the clock. “Pretty late, Eds. This is probably more of a midnight snack.”

“Buck.”

“I’ll stay,” Buck says, a little more hushed than he intended, but maybe it’s the right tone for the gravity of the promise. “After breakfast and lunch, too, if you’ll have me.”

“Of course,” Eddie says, just as quiet, just as serious, but smiling again and brushing the tips of his fingers through the hair at the nape of Buck’s neck. “Any time. Always.”

[anonymousangstmonster]

Prompt #45

Little baby Danny had a lab accident at age three. Electrocuted, killed, and revived, little Danny came out half-ghost. His parents were distraught and devastated, but ultimately accepting and embracing of their son’s condition.

A year later, at age four, the GIW came to FentonWorks and took Danny to their lab for experiments and study, despite Maddie and Jack fighting them every step of the way.

It wasn’t until ten years later, Danny at age fourteen, that the Fentons found a way to bring their son home legally. But he had been living as a lab rat for more than two thirds of his life. The only education he had was what little he picked up from the scientists, he didn’t recognize his mother when she came to pick him up, he had to be taught the meaning of words like ‘sister’ and ‘freedom’, he had to be readjusted to foods other than plain rice and stale bread, he didn’t know how to read, he was shy and afraid to share his opinion or say when he didn’t like something.

He had to be reintegrated into society.

[artemismoorea03]

DPxDC Writing Prompt Idea

I have no idea if this has been done before but I just had this idea so if it has been done feel free to ignore this but I gotta share this.

So, I always see these prompts of different characters being related to different DC characters. For example I've seen some where people say that Tucker is related to Lucius Fox. Dash is related to Harley Quinn. Jack being related to Bruce Wayne. Danny related to Tim/Damian/Dick or any of the other Batfam but one I haven't seen before is one that I feel could be easily used.

Maddie Fenton is related to Jim Gordon.

Now, I've never seen this or even heard people talking about it and I can kind of understand why. Maddie is shown to have a sister but like - hear me out anyways.

Maddie has a cousin, she has met him a couple of times as a kid and only once as an adult when Danny was around 7. There wasn't any real reason for it, just a Family Reunion and an excuse to spend time as a family, something she often forgot to do when she was so determined to get the Ghost Portal open.

Her cousin is Jim and his daughter is a good ten years older than Danny. She had heard that Jim was quickly rising in rank in Gotham City and that his daughter - despite the occasional odd truancy issues - had her head on straight. Jazz also adored the older girl and followed her around the entire reunion, looking almost like Barbara's little sister.

Danny got closer to Jim than his daughter though, and started talking about things that he probably shouldn't have. After all, what 7 year old has a filter? What 7 year old knows not to mention the fact that sometimes their food attacks them or that Jazz is learning how to cook because sometimes mom and dad forget to feed them because their research is important. The more Danny talks the more concerned Jim gets, but he's also conflicted.

This is his cousin, the same cousin who the time Danny fell and scraped his knee peppered kisses on each and every one of his freckles on his face and danced with him until the pain stopped and then patched him up and danced with him again. This is family. He's sure that Danny is just... making things sound bigger than they are, as children do - at least he hopes that's the case.

But on the off chance that there is something going on he slips Jazz and Danny both his number and gives his cousin the same number in case anything came up.

As the years go on though Jim starts to see more red flags. Small things at first - Jazz asking how to change the batteries in a fire alarm. Danny calling to ask if pot-lids could be stuck in the microwave to cover rice. Basic questions that could be asked to a parent or a parent should be doing for their kids anyways. But whenever Jim asked about this the answer was the same.

"Mom and Dad are busy in the lab."

This continued for years until a call from Jazz one night seven years after he'd met them for the first time. She was crying and sobbing, her voice shaking as she tries to get the words out.

"Danny had an accident. Mom and dad aren't home, what do I do?"

Jim was 900 miles away, he had no way to get to them. No way to get him to them. So he did what he could and instructed her to hang up with him and call for an ambulance. Jazz was scared though, she didn't trust the doctors but thankfully Danny's voice could be heard.

The relief Jazz had when her brother woke up was enough to make Jim feel like he was going to throw up. The call ended shortly after that but he made sure to call a few days later and ask his cousin how Danny was doing.

"Danny? He's just fine!"

"That's good. He healed from the accident then?"

"What accident- oh, Jack no, that goes to the right - your other right. Jim, sorry I have to go. We can talk about this later, okay?"

Jim was appalled. Jazz had called him in tears, hyperventilating and Danny had been unconscious - Jazz though he was dead - and their parents didn't have any idea?

It was a little over a year later that he got another call. Just as frantic, just as scared, but much worse.

Danny was all but screaming in the back ground, voices were telling him to holds still and that they knew it hurt but he was bleeding out and he needed to hold still. Terrified, hurt, betrayed voices. Jazz again explained the situation, this time eerily calm.

"I can't go into details over the phone but we're coming to Gotham City to seek Asylum against a law that will get Danny killed. We need you to keep Batman off of our tails until Danny is healed. We'll handle everything from there."

"Healed? Healed from what?" Why did these calls always happen during work. "Jazz, what is happening? You have to give me something if I'm going to protect you guys."

"... My parents cut Danny open, Jim. They cut him open and he's hurt bad. Myself, Danny, and two of our friends are on our way to you now." Jim felt like his jaw hit the floor then snapped back up so hard it gave him whiplash as he sank back in his chair. "Before you ask; no. Hospitals aren't an option. Danny isn't a meta and they weren't violating any laws when they cut him open. Which is why we need you to keep Batman away from us for as long as possible. What... what Danny is shouldn't exist and if anybody gets a hold of him they'll cut him back open, turn him into a super weapon, or destroy him."

"Then why call me. I'm a police commissioner. What makes you sure you can trust me?"

"I'm not. Neither are the others with us but the only thing Danny has said since we saved him is 'Go to Jim'. We're following his lead on this. So... I'm trusting Danny, who has his full trust in you, Jim. Don't let him down."

[inawickedlittletown]

Don't Make A Shadow Of Yourself (BuckTommy fic) - 9/12

Summary: "A man who's pure of heart...may still become a wolf when the autumn moon is bright" - Howl (F+TM)

BuckTommy Werewolf AU. Throughout most of his adult life, Tommy had dealt with what he was. The duality of being a man and also an animal…a beast. Werewolves weren’t born, they were made. 

Words: 3,850

Read on Ao3

Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three

Chapter Four - Chapter Five - Chapter Six

Chapter Seven - Chapter Eight

-

Chapter Nine

Arms wrapped around Buck’s middle over the apron he’d thrown on before he started cooking. Tommy’s chin dropped to his shoulder and Buck leaned back into the strong chest behind him. 

“I don’t know what smells better,” Tommy said, voice low.

“Hmm?” 

Tommy responded by giving Buck a sniff. Buck couldn’t help but laugh. Tommy’s hold on him tightened for a moment before he kissed Buck’s neck and let go. Buck couldn’t deny that it felt hard to get back to cooking when he knew that Tommy was within reach. But, he’d promised to cook for Tommy for their third date — Buck was counting the two of them hanging out and making out on his couch after the hang out at Hen and Karen’s as the second date — and he was not going to burn down their food. Especially not when it had taken them almost a full two weeks to find the time for this date to take place. 

“How can I help?” Tommy asked. 

“Open the wine?” 

Buck meanwhile got busy with plating up the chicken stirfry. It had seemed like one of the easiest and tastiest dishes to make, especially since Buck had finally perfected making rice. It didn’t take long for them to be seated. 

“This looks amazing,” Tommy said. “Thank you for doing all this.” 

“I enjoyed doing this for us,” Buck said. 

Tommy ducked his head. No one would ever think that a man like Tommy could be bashful or lack confidence because he didn’t come off that way. As far as Buck was concerned, it was because Tommy hid it well. He just tended to drop those walls around Buck and Buck appreciated that more than anything, he knew how hard it was to open up to be vulnerable. 

“How did it go with Maddie today?” Tommy asked. 

The wedding was drawing ever near and Buck had jumped in to help Maddie with anything she still needed help with. In a little over a week their parents were arriving and considering the full moon, Buck was going to do his best to put his distance between them. A part of him kind of hated that Maddie was still trying to have any kind of relationship with them, to expose Jee to them. He always had to remind himself that he had a very different relationship with his parents than the one that Maddie had with them. 

“She finally settled on the flowers,” Buck said. “I never knew she could be so picky about flowers.” 

“It’s a wedding, Evan. Brides get picky about everything.” 

Buck nodded slowly. “I know. I mean her last wedding wasn’t anything like this…none of us were even there. I don’t think I ever want to have a huge wedding like this.”

Tommy paused, fork halfway to his mouth. He coughed. 

Buck knew he was blushing and it wasn’t fair how easily Tommy could cause him to blush. 

“Is that a hint for the future?” Tommy asked, carefully. “I mean, we’re nowhere near marriage but—”

Buck reached over to hit his shoulder lightly. “No. Just in general…why throw such a lavish party when the thing that matters is really the start of the marriage. I think Maddie got swept up in the whole thing and I don’t blame her exactly.” 

“Big party doesn’t mean they’re not both equally if not more excited about what comes next.” 

Buck took a bite of his food. The strange part of it was that he could see him and Tommy lasting. It was far too early to think it, much less voice it, and yet it was there. Their connection. They were literally in the middle of their second date, but it felt like they had been together longer than that. It felt like they were meant to be together maybe even forever. 

“Hey,” Buck said. 

“Yeah?” 

“Do you want to be my date to the wedding?” 

Tommy stared at him, a little surprised, but Buck could tell that he was pleased by the question. 

“I know Chim invited you, but I want to sit with you and I want to dance with you and I don’t want to hide this. So, what do you say to our next date being my sister’s wedding?” 

Tommy chuckled, and he reached his hand out to Buck. “I want to say yes, but a week ago you warned me off your parents.”

And Buck still hadn’t told him about them. He hadn’t had the time or known just quite how to explain. He had fully planned to when they got to his place that other night, but they’d both been a little distracted. Buck couldn’t even remember what movie they had tried to watch, though he did remember the taste of Tommy’s lips and his neck. 

“I’m not worried about them finding out I’m dating a guy,” Buck said. “I don’t know how they’ll react about it and I don’t care.”

Tommy looked at him, took in Evan’s determination. So he nodded. “Sure. I’ll be your date.”

Evan smiled really wide. Even his eyes looked like they were shinning. 

“You really don’t care what your parents will say?” Tommy asked. 

“I don’t.”

“But it matters if they find out you’re a Werewolf,” Tommy said. 

Buck nodded. He tightened his grip on Tommy’s hand. Gulped. Then: “My parents are hunters,” Buck said. 

“Hunters as in…” Tommy trailed off. 

“As in Werewolf hunters,” Buck said. 

“That’s a real thing,” Tommy said as if Buck were talking about Santa Claus or Bigfoot. 

He watched Tommy as he processed the information. It wasn’t the easiest thing to understand. Even Buck still grappled with it. After leaving them behind, he’d never quite left behind the worry for what they might be up to. There was never concrete proof as far as he could tell and when the Werewolf Division did nothing about it, Buck had sort of figured there had to be a reason. 

Buck still remembered when he told Eddie. It was right before his parents came out to see Maddie when she was pregnant. Buck had wanted Eddie to be careful just in case and he himself had had to keep himself in check the whole time. They had made it extremely difficult, and Buck had only showed up because Maddie was begging him to. He’d almost lost it with them a few times and he was lucky they hadn’t figured him out from that alone, but he would have been justified for the things they’d kept from him. He would have been justified if he just wolfed out and proved to them the monstrous side of a Werewolf. Somehow, he’d been able to hold it in. It had gone better the second time they came — of course he’d been in a coma for a part of that and they’d been busy getting to know Jee Yun. 

“Evan, where did you go just now? You said they don’t know you are a Werewolf.”

“They don’t,” Buck said. “I just…I know what they’ve done to Werewolves. I found out when I was a kid. Eleven or so. I didn’t know until a few years ago why.”

Tommy’s hand gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

Buck shook his head. He hated thinking about it, about the way that it had messed him up and how he had wanted absolutely nothing to do with his parents afterwards. Still didn’t. Their apologies and explanations hadn’t meant much to Buck then and they hadn’t meant much when he saw them again the second time they came to visit. Maddie could keep her relationship with them — Buck wouldn’t tell her not to — but he couldn’t. He knew she was conflicted too, but for Maddie it was a bit different. After the wedding, unless Maddie asked him to, Buck didn’t think he would actually see his parents again. 

“I want to,” Buck said. 

Tommy nodded. “Alright.” 

“I had a brother,” Buck said. “His name was Daniel.” 

Tommy looked at him with a confused expression. Buck almost laughed. 

“It’s relevant,” Buck said and he reached for his wine glass to take a few sips. He focused on tasting the wine, but also on Tommy’s thumb on the back of his hand. 

“Okay. So, you had a brother.”

“I didn’t know about Daniel until a few years ago. I don’t think my parents would have ever told me about him. Maddie kept it from me as well…but it came out and the reason I never knew about him was that he died.”

“Oh, Evan,” Tommy said. 

It was strange, was the thing. Like mourning a stranger because he’d never known Daniel and he’d never known anything other than the way that he grew up with Maddie and distracted, traumatized parents who never moved past their grief and excused their actions with it. He felt something like sadness for a boy that never got to grow up, but he never knew him.

“He was diagnosed with Leukemia,” Buck continued. “My parents were desperate and so when it turned out neither them or Maddie were bone marrow matches they, uh, they—”

“They had you,” Tommy filled in. “You were a savior sibling.”

Buck nodded. He still didn’t quite know how to feel about it. He imagined that if it had worked out things would have been different. Maybe he would have been there as spare parts whenever his brother needed them — or perhaps even vice versa considering who Buck was. Instead, his parents had seen the whole thing as an effort to save Daniel that failed and maybe they had never fully seen Buck as more than that even when he wasn’t to blame. Not a replacement son, not the kid they wanted, but the failed experiment. 

“It didn’t work,” Buck said. “Well, Maddie got to look at the paperwork from the hospital so he rejected the bone marrow. It, uh, it didn’t matter in the end.” 

“Evan, I am so sorry,” Tommy said. 

Buck gulped. He looked at the remaining food on the table, but neither of them seemed to be interested in eating anything else. 

“So, Daniel died?” 

“Uh. Yeah. Yeah, he did. But not because he was sick. Daniel died from a Werewolf attack,” Buck said. 

Tommy looked exactly like someone that had just gotten punched completely out of the blue. It was the twist that Buck hadn’t seen coming when Maddie finally explained everything. Buck had been so angry with her. Because it was one thing when he knew that the older brother that he didn’t know existed had died while sick, it was another to find out that he’d been killed. Attacked. By a Werewolf no less. 

“What?” Tommy asked. 

“I don’t know how it happened. They didn’t explain and Maddie doesn’t know, but he got attacked. Mauled. According to Maddie there was so little left of him that they couldn’t even have a proper funeral for him.”

“And they became Werewolf Hunters,” Tommy said. 

“Yes,” Buck said. “I, uh, I reported them to the Werewolf Division of Pennsylvania when I left but clearly nothing happened. It’s not like the Division ever warned about hunters.”

“No they don’t,” Tommy said thoughtfully. “I didn’t know actual hunters existed.” 

—

In all his time as a Werewolf, Tommy had never known that Werewolf hunters were a thing. No Werewolf that he had ever met before had mentioned them and neither had the division. Evan’s story, the full explanation for why he was acting the way he was about his parents, it hurt. It hurt because it hurt Evan. He could tell that there was a deep scar left behind on Evan due to all of it. Because while Evan hadn’t said it, it had been there in the way he talked about them. They had never cherished him or loved him the way that he deserved. Instead, their grief had led them to hunt the very thing that Evan would become. 

If it were up to Tommy they would be kept far far away from Evan. Tommy could hardly understand how Evan had any type of contact with them and worse why Maddie would be okay with bringing them anywhere near Evan knowing what he was and what they were. 

“What?” Evan asked. 

“Your sister is okay with all this?”

“Uh, what do you mean?”

Tommy stared at him incredulously. “First I just thought you had a bad relationship with them, but now that I know it’s this I just…how is she still okay with them being a literal threat to your life?” 

Tommy didn’t know Maddie that well, but he’d always gotten the sense that she and Evan were close. Howie was clearly marrying her for a reason. She wasn’t bad people. The opposite, in fact. So this didn’t make sense to Tommy.  

Evan took a breath. “Maddie was there when Daniel died. She was there when he got sick and she was there when he died. I think she understands it differently. It’s not that she agrees with them, and she wouldn’t let them do anything to hurt me…they’re still our parents.”

There was something absolutely misguided about it. Then again, Tommy’s own family life was better left in the past. He couldn’t help his own very protective feelings about Evan, though. They had been horrible parents and as far as he was concerned horrible people too. 

“I don’t think I can understand that, not when they’re what you’re saying they are. Evan, they hurt people…they’ve done more than that.” 

Evan hung his head. “I know. I know.”

“Why are they allowed to get away with that?” 

“I don’t know,” Evan said. “The Division did nothing about them when I gave them a warning. I’m afraid to ask why they did nothing.”

Tommy frowned. “Evan, how many people have they hurt?”

“I don’t know,” Evan said. “I don’t want to know.” 

Tommy didn’t want to step on any toes, he didn’t want to force Evan to do anything he might not want to do, but that didn’t mean that any of this was okay and looking at Evan, he was sure that he would agree. 

“Have you ever told Athena?”

“Not in full,” Buck said. “Eddie knows. They all know I don’t get along with them but I’ve never…”

“Maybe you should.”

“I kept up with news from Hershey for a while,” Evan said, he looked a little far away. “Wanted to see if any suspicious deaths were ever reported. That type of thing. I think it made me feel better when I didn’t see any. Some of the missing person reports haunted me, though. Sometimes I tried to figure out if they were Werewolves or not.”

“Evan,” Tommy said. 

Evan’s eyes shot to him. 

“Evan, you aren’t to blame for what they’ve done.” 

“I could have done more to stop them.” 

Tommy shook his head. “No. They could have handled things better. They could have put all the energy they put into hunting to being yours and Maddie’s parents. And I really…I hate to question Maddie’s reasons but why is she bringing them back into your lives like this.” 

From how Tommy had understood it, both Maddie and Evan had left their parents behind. Maddie to marry the first husband that didn’t turn out to be a good guy, and Evan to wander the country until he found a place on the other side of the country to settle down in. 

“When Maddie got pregnant she felt like she needed to tell them,” Evan said. “I hated her for saying anything to them. It was covid, too, so I guess maybe that made her look at things differently. Plus, she knew them differently. Knew them before Daniel died. She’s not a Werewolf either so…”

“None of that makes it okay,” Tommy said. 

Evan finished the wine in his glass. “I guess I decided to just let her have them as long as I wasn’t involved. It’s how I even found out about Daniel in the first place. Maddie was pregnant and I didn’t want to add to her stress, but I didn’t speak to her for a week.”

Tommy could see how conflicted Evan was. It was the thing that allowed him to not push and to keep to himself how offended he felt on Evan’s behalf. 

“So that’s my parents,” Evan said. “The whole story. They tried to teach me their ways, it’s how I got so interested in Werewolves. They just never wanted to hear anything I said about them, not when it contradicted their whole belief system.” 

Evan stood up, then. Tommy reluctantly let go of his hand. 

“We should clean up,” Evan said and it felt like a way to put an end to the subject. 

Tommy didn’t mind. He liked that Evan had felt like he could share with him, that Tommy could handle the baggage of Evan’s family life. One day, Tommy would tell him all about his parents. How his dad had expected certain things from him and how his mother hadn’t really cared about anything including Tommy. But that would be a different day. 

Together they cleaned up the table and then did dishes and put away leftovers. Tommy loved every second of it. The way that they brushed past each other and how they would linger in each other’s space. The way that Evan kissed his cheek in passing or swatted his ass with a kitchen towel. 

It lifted the gloom of their earlier conversation, dropping them back into the ease of how they were with each other. The warmth and the comfort and the acceptance.  

Afterwards, they went out to the terrace, each of them holding a glass of wine. It was nice and windy out, the night dark but the light pollution from the city would never let them see more than the moon and maybe the shinier planets. Back when he was still with the 118, Tommy had often gone out to a spot outside of LA to stare at the sky. He didn’t really study astronomy enough to know the constellations really well, but he could admire the beauty nonetheless. He could also admire the moon. 

“No one knows why she affects us like she does,” Evan said as he sat down. “There was a book I read once that called it a curse, something that tied Werewolves to the moon that also made us possible. That book said a lot of things.”

“Yeah, like what?” 

Evan was blushing, he could see it even in the dim light as he moved the chair closer to Evan’s before he sat down. 

“It, uh, it talked about the usual things. Silver. The moon. Packs. Alphas. It also talked about mates.”

“Mates?” Tommy repeated. 

“It’s all story,” Evan said. “I’m sure you’ve come across it. Just that some Werewolves find strong compatibility with other Werewolves. They could form a kind of magical bond or something, a thing that linked them. The book called them mates. It also said that packs had to have an Alpha and that’s definitely not a thing. It’s not even a thing among regular wolves.” 

Tommy frowned at Evan. “It isn’t?” 

Evan shook his head. “Only when wolves are studied in captivity. Out in the wild, most packs are just a family. They’re all related wolves and if there is leadership it’s the parents of all the baby wolves — the male and female wolf of breeding age. You know, it’s kind of the reason they mate for life. In captivity, they’re not studying a pack as much as individual wolves thrown together. Why wouldn’t there be a fight to be on top. Wolves aren’t solitary and Werewolves certainly aren’t.”

“No we’re not,” Tommy agreed. “That’s interesting, though.” 

“What?” 

“Everything. Wouldn’t be the worst thing to have a mate.” 

Evan laughed, but he gave a short nod. His cheeks were still pink. If Werewolves actually did have mates, there was no doubt in Tommy’s mind that his would have been Evan. 

“There’s this book series about Werewolves,” Evan said. “Wolfsong is the first book. Each of the Werewolves meets their mate and it’s like this crazy strong connection. There’s so much that the author gets wrong and yet there’s things he gets really right too.” 

“Oh?” Tommy asked. 

“You’d probably like it, come to think of it. I only picked it up because I was consuming everything Werewolf at one point, even this Werewolf romance,” Evan said and then he laughed. 

“What?” 

“It’s just…I never thought about it but I think all the wolves in the book are queer. How did I not remember that…”

Tommy was suddenly a lot more interested. He was definitely more of a movie or tv-show kinda guy, but he picked up a book here or there when someone recommended it. Usually it was a thriller that Melton or one of the others at the 217 were obsessing over. As much as he loved a romcom, it just felt different to read romance especially when it was het and even more so when it got more graphic than was necessary. The last few years had brought more quality lgbtq books and Tommy had a small pile of books for when he had nothing left to watch or re-watch. He’d be adding this Werewolf book to his list. In fact, he pulled his phone out to look it up. 

“What are you doing?” 

“Looking for that series.” 

He found it after a quick google search and turned immediately to Evan. “This was written by TJ Klune.” 

“I guess so,” Evan said. “I didn’t remember the author.” 

“He wrote one of my favorite books,” Tommy said. “I have no idea how I didn’t know about this series.”

“I have a feeling I’m going to lose you for a little while to reading,” Evan said and when Tommy looked at him, he was pouting.  

“Not if you get busy reading The House In The Cerulean Sea,” Tommy pointed out. “But neither of us has a book in front of us now.” 

Evan hummed. “We don’t,” he said and then drained the last of his wine. 

Tommy did the same and he didn’t mind when Evan moved his chair so they were pressed together, or how he linked their hands. With his free hand, Evan caught Tommy’s face, thumb sweeping over Tommy’s lips and down his chin to his cleft before Evan leaned in, slanting his lips over Tommy’s. The angle wasn’t comfortable with the way they were sitting, but tasting Evan’s lips would be worth any aches and pains. 

Evan pulled back a moment later, but his gaze was glued to Tommy and his hand went down from Tommy’s cheek to his jaw to his neck and then to rest over Tommy’s chest where his heart was beating a bit faster than normal. They both leaned in, their lips meeting again. The kiss was sweet, it was deep, and Tommy could taste the last dredges of wine in Evan’s mouth.