#SAY DAAADDYS HOME…

[lqfiles]

u guys haven’t heard the last of me!!!! just bc stg is over does not mean i will shut up!!! my nct bias line consists of hyuck xiaojun jaehyun jaemin and john.. (honorable mentions na yuta) … for the past two weeks i have NOT stopped thinking about johnny j suh… SAVE ME JOHNNY SUH 😖😖😖

i would give up my first born if it meant getting to compare hand sizes with johnny.

sidenote johnny and gojo satoru sit at the same table in my head siri play daddy’s home by usher

—🪼

professional yapper🪼 WILL continue to clock in and continue the rambles we love it !! OMGFHSJDJE im not big into johnny in that sense but did you see him at paris fashion week the other day? whole chest out like HAVE SOME CLASS OH MY GOD…. (he looked good) and your gojo johnny comparison reminds me of this tiktok edit i saw of jaehyun and toji. you best believe that went straight to my saved folder 🤫

[sashi-ya]

It is okay to request a part 2 of angst Ace? like their child is searching for s/o in Amazon Lily and asked Ace: "Papa, when is Mama coming home?"

I'm so sorry 😭

Hi my dear! I got too into the story, so I always end up crying a little 😅. But, either way I hope you enjoy this second part full of pure angst! Thank you so much for requesting and reading ~ 💖

PART 2 - Portgas D. Ace x F! Reader ~ Why isn't she here?

PART 1: https://sashi-ya.tumblr.com/post/652998156866486272/hi-may-i-request-a-one-shot-of-ace-x-femreader

TW: pure ANGST. Hurting, wounds, blood. Mentions of death

WC: 887

Boa is asking Law about the state of health of Ace, while Luffy stays by his side making funny faces, but Ace won’t wake up.

“Mugiwara-ya, let him rest, all the wounds have opened again. He is not ok, please. Plus, you should rest too”, says Trafalgar Law, who thankfully arrived to give them treatment at a crucial moment while escaping Marineford.

Boa looks at the ground thinking about ways to make Luffy head off a little, and she offers him some food. Even Law has a worried expression on his face. The whole Heart pirates crew is outside, really touched about the news.

Jinbei is on the coast with Rayleigh taking some fresh air, trying to calm himself. He is wounded too.

Truth is, so many lives have been lost in the war, but all of them were deeply touched by the loss of Ace’s lover… because Ace won’t be the only one suffering…

While inside, Ace still remains unconscious, yet salty tears flow from the outside corners of his eyes and has his fist clenched hard over his heart… Losing the love of his life, made a scar over his heart, almost as if he has a big hole in it. But somehow, he keeps breathing.

Luffy tries to act tough, he struggles not to fall because of his weak legs, so Boa helps him to walk away from the room. Some Kujas have brought a big pile of meat, but he is not eating. It hurts to see his brother suffering, plus, he knew his sister-in-law since they were little.

“This is going to take a long time to heal, and I’m not even sure if this type of wound could be cured completely, Luffy-kun. We should be next to him, as much as we can”, Jinbei tells Luffy while both are sitting on the shore looking at the sunset. “Yeah…”, says Luffy, with a tone so unusual, almost extinct.

The night comes, and everybody goes to sleep. Luffy, who can’t fight anymore against the exhaustion, falls asleep sitting next to Ace with his head over the mattress. Boa, who is at his side, also falls asleep. While Law sits on the ground outside with his back over the wall with his katana on his shoulder. He does not sleep, he knows Hiken no Ace’s life is hanging on a very thin thread, so he is ready -even if he doesn’t show it- to save his life if it’s necessary.

The sea and his sounds surround the darkest of all the nights. Law is watching at his submarine docked on the port when he hears some child shouting. He turns around and devises a little kid running towards the hut. The doctor stands up, and sees some Kujas running behind the child, who screams “Daaaddy!! Mooommy!!”. He gasps, he knows the little girl is Ace’s daughter.

“Oi, oi, kid, stop”, he tells her trying to tackle her to avoid her entering. “Let-Let me in!!”, she says and kicks Law. “Rouge, wait!”, everybody shouts at the little girl, but she is already inside. Boa and Luffy wake up scared. “Dad…?”, she asks at the foot of the bed. Rouge cries, without any sound, but with tears that could flood the world. Uncle Luffy is not moving, Boa hugs the little girl, she is not moving either.

“R-Rouge…”, a weak voice struggles to say. “Daddy!!”, the little girl says, and aunt Boa let the little girl approach Ace. “Daddy, what happened?”, she asks. Ace reaches for her and pulls his daughter to his chest. He needs to feel the warmth of his baby girl. He brushes his hair, while Rouge hears the heartbeat of his father slowly increasing. “There is a reason to keep living, Ace”, says Luffy.

“Daddy… where is mommy? I searched for her all over this island, I couldn’t find her… is she here? When is Mama coming home?”, Rouge asks. Ace shuts his eyes, once again, he feels a dagger to his heart, slowly but firmly stabbing him. “How am I supposed to tell my daughter her mom died protecting me? I am the one who should protect her mother… She is going to hate me...”, Ace thinks repeatedly.

The moment seems to be stopped in time; Ace can’t hear anything besides the words of her daughter asking for her mum. He needs to tell her the truth, even if that means he is gonna lose his baby girl, too.

“Baby… Rouge, my baby…”, he mumbles. Rouge looks at his aching father, perhaps already knowing what he is about to say. “Mommy… Mommy is in heaven now…”, he tells her, trying to sound as soft as he could. “Daddy… Mommy is dead?”, she asks. Ace cries, but swallows something that tastes like sand, mixed with blood. “Yes, baby. Mommy is gone… I’m sorry, I’m sorry she died protecting me. It was my fault, I’m sorry baby. I’m sorry…”, he tells her, trying to stand up, failing miserably.

“Daddy… don’t leave me, please. Don’t you ever go away, ok?” Rouge tells his dad while wiping his tears out of his cheeks. Ace gasps, and tells his little baby girl, “I won’t baby, I will always be with you…”, and daughter and father close their eyes as they melt into a tight hug.

[mageofseven]

Back again with the request of the brothers and undateables reaction to MC drunk texting them that they love, Love them ❤️

Oh thank you so much for resending this! I'm sorry about the mishap before. I hope you'll enjoy these~ Since you didn't specify, these are written from the perspective that MC and the boys are in a relationship when they text the boys.

Also, I decided to split these up into two posts so this one will only have the Brothers in it, but I will put up a post for the Undateables real soon!

~

Lucifer:

The man sighed at his desk, signing what felt like the thousandth paper that night. It was only 1am so the night was still young; he knew he'd be at this till morning only to have to go through his duties tomorrow without rest. It was not unusual for him, but the oldest brother was still feeling a bit burnt out.

Ding.

He paused for a moment before setting his pen down and picking up his phone from the corner of the desk.

'Daaaddy. Mammnk dispered'

Ignoring the name they gave him, the man just stared down at the text. He gave another big sigh.

'MC, where are you?'

'I djnno. I went tk a party with Mammm and Asmo and thyy jsyt went poooff.'

God, his brothers were idiots. What if something happens to MC while they're off doing whatever?

'I'll track your phone then. I'll be there soon'

'Nuuu. I jsut wanna get my phone bacc from Mamsmm'

Oh dear Diavolo...

'Love, you're texting me off your phone.'

'Ooo. Yur rite!'

'I am coming to get you now.'

'Okaaaa bye Daddynm. Love yuo.'

The man rolled his eyes, but smile slightly down at the screen. What was he going to with his Love?

Mammon:

Shit! Where'd they go?! He took MC with him to the casino to help distract the other gamblers as he played cards-- hey don't judge!! He promised to buy them a few drinks afterwards. So there they were, sittin' and drink together when this guy he owes money to starts running up and yelling at him! Of course Mammon had to bail! He told MC to run with him but at one point he turned around and the human wasn't there! He's been rushing around and searching for them for the last twenty minutes. Where did they go??

Bing. His phone went off. The moron facepalmed. He has his phone! He should have been calling them or something.

'Baaaabbby. Im loneyl.'

'Oi! Where'd you go? I told you to follow me!'

'But I waz tlkin to thhe fnny man! He evn boght more deinks.'

Shit. They're still back at the bar. But with him of all people??

'Babe, why ya drinking with that jerk??'

'Im not. Hss wife cam e adn got him.'

Wife? Oh thank Diavolo, Belinda came through for him!

'Stay put, got that? I'm heading back now.'

'Kk I love yuo babbny 😘'

Mammon blushed as he read that last message.

'Ya, ya, just stay put, human.'

Leviathan:

Okay so Levi himself is not really a drinker in most circumstances. He pretty much sees it as another thing normies do and use as an excuse to spend time with other normies. Like, why would he care about something so stupid anyway?

Still, that doesn't mean there aren't exceptions to that kind of thing. Like the new bottle he won from a contest run by the creators of the anime I Partied So Hard That I Ripped Opened The Frabric of Reality And Was Met By My Future Wife Who Is Secretly A Cat Girl From Venus! I mean, it's seriously cool! It's the same brand of Venustian wine that Nyanitia loves in the anime!

Levi was so excited when it arrived that he practically begged MC to come to his room to drink it with him as he played his new video game from Akuzon. Honestly it didn't end up like he thought it would though. The wine barely did anything to him at all. I mean, yeah, the third brother didn't have a lot of experience with alcohol but he thought he would at least feel a little different than normal. Eh, whatever. The effect is kinda lame but it's still from the anime! If it's good enough for Nyanitia then it's good enough for him.

The demon shrugged it off and got absorbed in his video game to the point where he even stopped talking to MC, which wasn't unusual. After dying a couple times, he threw his controller down.

"Uggghh, can you believe that MC--"

The boy just noticed that he was alone. Oh... was he really that boring to hangout with? The Avatar of Envy started mumbling a lot of insults to himself as he picked up the bottle.

"Was my gaming that bad? Or was it the wine?" He mused sadly. "No, I bet it was the wine. It barely did anything to me so I doubt it effected them either...."

He starts reading the label on the back, skimming till he reads a section on alcohol level. Level for demons: mild.

"That explains it..." He grumbled, continuing to read in his head.

Level for Angels: low medium. Level for Humans: HIGH. WARNING. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF HUMANS.

Oh...oh no. What's gonna happen to his Henry?? Are they gonna die?? Is Lucifer gonna kill him??? GAH! Where did they go--

Beep. His phone!

'Leeevvvvvi. I fels wooozy.'

Panicking, the boy typed back.

'Where are you??? Are you dying???'

'Nuuuu. I'm jsyt wwwoooosh.'

Gah! What does that even mean?? Before the demon could respond, he got another message.

'Leeeevvvvi chan I lvoe you~.'

The boy's face and ears blazed red. I mean, yeah, it's not the first time he's heard/read them say that but still! Now isn't the time for this!

Another message.

'Sweeeeetue. Coem love me 😢'

The demon let out a panicked yell and charged out his door. His foot collided with something and he heard a whine.

"Sweeeeetie why?" MC laid on the floor of the hallway, pouting and looking more hurt emotionally than physically.

Still panicking, Levi picked up the human and brought them back into his room. He laid them in his bathtub and start researching the affects of Venustian wine on humans.

Boy nearly collapsed from relief and exhaustion when he found out they only had a sip and shouldn't have any health issues from it.

Ends up apologizing a million times over and becomes extra protective of them for the next couple weeks and is paranoid about every food and drink placed in front of them.

Satan:

It was an average evening for him. He was in his room, reading in bed as he waited for MC to come home. Asmo managed to convince them to go to a party with him. Satan didn't really want them to go tonight, but he saw their eyes light up with just the idea of it and the blonde couldn't bring himself to say a thing. Like him, MC didn't really have any experience with parties prior to this, but unlike him, they had a great interest in them. How could he ask them not to go if this was an experience they had wanted for a long time?

Ding.

The man laid his book down next to him and reached for his phone that he laid on the closest stack of books.

'Satn, peple are sk mean 😥'

The demon launched into a sitting position.

'Who needs to die?' He texted back, protective instincts springing up inside himself for them.

'Nno. Teh people here just amke me feel so lft out.'

He sighed. MC was too sensitive for that kind of environment.

'Kitten, tell Asmo to take you home now.' Satan texted before adding 'Tell him I said so.'

'Btu hes tlkin to a succubus'

'I don't care. Tell him what I said.'

'Okaa 😔'

The demon waited a few minutes, but didn't get a new message.

'Kitten?' He texted them.

Minutes when by. Nothing. The blonde got out of bed and started pacing. When that didn't help, he started to transform from the anger at his brother. He decided to text Asmo.

'Bring them home now or so help me, you will face a different type of hell when you get back.'

No reply from his brother either. The Avatar of Wrath was ready to start breaking shit.

Ding. He quickly checked his phone. It was MC.

'Bb I love you.'

The blonde stopped in his tracks. Why--after over 20 minutes of waiting-- was that their only response?

The demon reached out for his door knob, ready to go out and hunt for them, when his door swung open, revealing his brother, who was holding up an intoxicated MC.

"Ugh, you ruined my night!" The fifth brother complained.

Satan, still in his demon form, was ready to deck the other man at best and at worst, who knows. He didn't get the chance to find out because instead, MC tumbled forward and into his arms.

"Satan," They whined. "I wanna.... I wanna lay down."

The blonde took a deep breath before looking to his brother.

"Just leave. Now." He slammed the door closed on the other demon before laying MC down in bed and joining them. He pulled the blanket over them both and held his Kitten close to his chest.

"I should have...stayed home." They mumbled.

He kissed their forehead.

"It's fine. You're fine now, Kitten."

Asmodeus:

After a long, but fun night at The Fall, the Avatar of Lust had his fill was ready to get his beauty sleep. Sadly, he had lost track of his Doll. Oh dear, where could they be? Despite being so late, there were still plenty of people out and he was having trouble tracking them down.

Beep. The demon checked his phone.

'Azzy, I lvoe you🥰'

Asmo giggled, texting back.

'Aww! I love you too! Now where did you run off to? I miss my Dolly~.'

'By eth bahroons'

The man headed off that way and found MC on the floor in the hallway that led to the bathroom.

"Well, what are you doing down there?" He teased.

MC started giggling.

"I fell."

Seeing that they weren't hurt, the demon simply bent over and helped them up. The human instantly leaned against him and hugged him close.

"I love you, Azzy." They told him, closing their eyes as they enjoy the embrace and pressing their cheek against his.

Asmo let out a small laugh then pulled back just enough to kiss his Doll on their cheek.

"Oh you're just too adorable, you know that?" He told them before leading them to the front of the building. "Now let's go home, okay?"

Beelzebub:

Beel woke up for a midnight snack and headed to the kitchen. It was a quick in and out thing, not wanting to be caught by his brothers. He grabbed a whole cabinet full of snacks and carried them back to his room.

Ding. His phone went off and as he opened the door to his room.

The demon laid his snacks on his bed and got in before grabbing his phone off the nightstand.

'Beeesly, I love oyu~'

The redhead smiled happily. It was MC.

'I love you too. When are you coming home?'

No response. The demon simply opened up a bag of chips and started eating. It's fine; he can be patient.

Instead of getting a response however, he was greeted by his Muffin at door.

"I'm baaack~." The human giggled, stumbling just slightly as they walked up to the bed and flopped down before snuggling up to the big demon.

Beel kissed the top of their head, smiling at them.

"Did you have fun with Solomon, Muffin?"

"Mhmm." They said, closing their eyes and stretching out their legs, causing some of the snacks to fall to the floor. He didn't mind.

"That's good." He sat the chip bag on the stand so he could use both hands to hold them close.

The two of them laid there, cuddled up together. The big demon stroked their hair till they heard the human's breath slow and were asleep.

"G'night, Muffin." He whispered. "Dream sweetly."

Belphegor:

It was the middle of the night and Belphie was asleep. That might sound normal for the Avatar of Sloth to you, but in actuality, this was unusual for him. The sleepy boy slept so much during the day that he was usually awake starting from whenever he woke up from his after-dinner nap up until around 4 or 5 am.

Tonight, however, Belphie really wasn't feeling it. Ya know, the whole 'awake' thing. He didn't feel like being conscious. The same reason he didn't wanna be awake was the same reason why he wasn't sleeping very deeply either.; MC wasn't there with him.

That scum Mammon took them out somewhere and they didn't even tell him. He had to hear it from Beel. The 7th brother has been grumpy since then and didn't wanna do anything so he hid away in his attic and fell asleep.

Bing. Bing. Bing.

The demon let out a frustrated sigh. That was the 9th text he got in the last two minutes. He picked up his phone from the other side of the bed and begrudgingly read his messages.

'Belpphi'

'Beelphi

'Belphii'

'Babb'

'Babe'

'Babr'

'Beeelpie'

'Heeyy'

'Mr Moomooo man pay atttention ot me 😢'

"Mr. Moomoo man?" Belphie said out loud, scowling down at the screen. If he wasn't mad at MC, he would have cracked a smile.

'What's wrong with you?' He texted.

'Mammmn lfet me all alone 😔'

Belphie eyes went wide.

'What happened?'

'Mammo owes mnoey to this big Moloc guy and eh chased Maaamkn away.'

Ugh. Mammon's a dumbass.

'Where are you?'

'I dunno. He lefy me on a bench. Teh park?'

'The one by the school?'

'Mmaybe?'

The demon let out another big sigh.

'I'll be there soon. Don't move.'

'Okyy'

A couple seconds later, they sent another text.

'I love yuo, bb. Im srry 😔'

Belphie frowned. His anger at them was dissipating.

'Yeah, I love you too, butthead. Now stay there.'

~

Masterlist

[babysizedfics]

remus teasing roman and accidentally pushing him into acting even littler

okay i accidentally built on a remus roman concept after making that other post jahshshd

remus visiting the house one day with janus and barging into romans room unannounced

and roman WAS playing with his cars but he instantly comes out of littlespace and jumps up from the floor to try to shoo remus out of his room

but remus keeps dodging him and making himsef at home like 'OOH nice beanbag chair' and roman literally shoving him out the way before he sits in it and 'NO thats vee's baby jail u cant sit there!'

and remus being rlly annoying by keeping picking things up and gigglin when roman gets annoyed and puts them back down

then remus sees the toy cars and he goes >:D "aAWWW was widdle ro ro playing with his widdle toys?" in a rlly teasing baby talk voice

roman blushes and yells "SHUT UP, GET OUT!"

and remus saying "jeeeez i didnt know you were so protective of them. doesnt your daddy teach you how to share toys?"

and romans like >:/ "i am good at sharing just not with you!! and im NOT protective of them!"

so remus goes >:3 "ohhh okay so you wont mind if i do... this?"

and he starts rolling the cars around WITH HIS BARE FOOT

and roman literally HATES gross stuff and he gasps and pushes remus out of the way whining "stop it!"

and at this point he's genuinely getting upset, he feels that hot pressure behind his eyes that always comes before he starts crying

and remus is laughing like "hmmm i dunno u seem pretty protective of them bro"

and roman jumps back into littlespace because its so much easier to cope with these emotions if he's little (and has an excuse for the tears of frustration welling in his eyes) "NU UH i just dont want your yucky feet all over my stuff!!! you're mean and icky!"

then remus actually apologizes?? and roman is surprised and sniffs and frowns, silent

BUT when romans guard is down remus suddenly grabs a couple of the cars with his hands and runs out of the room cackling AND HE EVEN TOOK THE RED ONE

and roman gasps and chases after him yelling "REMUS! GIMME MY CARS BACK! DAAADDY MOOOOMMY!!!" o(*˃̶᷄ ⌂˂̶᷄)o

and its a short chase, it ends when remus runs into the dining room only to find janus and patton who both reprimand him for stealing the little prince's toys

janus gets control of remus and forces the toys from his hands to give back to a sniffling, pouting roman. "there you are, darling."

patton asks his little prince what happened and roman grumbles that remus was being mean and demands that daddy should ban him from ever ever coming back forever

but they dont agree on that, patton just asks that remus please not do that again and say sorry to roman for upsetting him

remus does apologize in his own obnoxious way - he explains how he didnt really WANT to make his twin cry but its not HIS fault roman was being such a baby about it (roman tries to throw a car at him after that comment, then settles for stomping his foot and yelling through his tears "I'm not a baby!")

after that ordeal, roman sulks and plays with his toys in the same room as his daddy and nana janus so remus cant annoy him anymore

so yeah, remus is actually the only person whose mere presence pushes roman to act younger just to deal with the frustration that comes from his twin teasing him about something he can't get remus back for...

[fluffy-lee]

"You Know I'm Gonna Get You."

Part 3 of the series "Keeping Her"

This is a TICKLE series. If you're not into that, you don't have to read.

PLATONIC Avengers x reader. Dad! Bucky

Warnings: You might get a cavity from the sweetness.

Summary:

On a snowy night, the reader is spending time with Tony, Steve, and her father, Bucky, when Bucky threatens to wreck her during the father-daughter duo's playful antics.

It was a calm evening at home for the Avengers. It was snowing outside and the window panes were frosted over. Everyone was in comfortable clothes, doing their own thing around the compound. You changed into your pjs and decided to spend time in the main living room where Tony, Steve, and Bucky were hanging out. Tony was relaxing barefoot in his recliner messing around with who knows what on his tablet. He had on glasses, an emerald green sweater, and black sweatpants. 

 “Tony, do you know if Peter is still out patrolling? It’s dark and cold out there.” You asked as you walked in. The living room was cozy with the fireplace crackling and warming the room with it’s soft glow. 

“He’s not patrolling, y/n, he’s going to be here any minute. He’s spending the weekend again.” Tony said, smiling as your face lit up with excitement. Tony was just as excited as you to see Peter, if not more. 

“I didn’t know he was coming over! You don’t tell me ANYTHING, Tony!” You whined dramatically. He simply rolled his eyes at you. He mostly keeps you up to date with what’s going on, but he didn’t get the opportunity to tell you this in particular. 

“Well it’s not my fault I’ve barely seen you the past few days.” Tony stated, not looking up from his tablet. 

“It’s because this guy was making me do extra training.” You pointed at your dad, Bucky. He was laying across the entire couch, and wearing a long sleeved shirt and pajama pants. He was snacking on a big bowl of caramel corn, ignoring you and focusing on the movie he and Steve (who was in the other recliner) were watching.

Bucky, who you called “Daddy,” “Dad,” and sometimes “Bucky/Buck” simply because of how much you loved his name, absolutely adored you more than anything. He hadn’t expected to be a father, and when he found out he had a daughter after all he had been through, it definitely took a while for him to process it. After all his recovering, you had become his life. It’s like you two had never been apart in your lifetime. Bucky loved being your dad. You two got along so well and loved to play fight/ tease each other, like you were doing now. 

“Stop hogging all the caramel corn!” “I want some!” “Daddy! Share!”

Bucky kept pretending to ignore you while eating with a smirk and watching his movie. That is, until what you did next.

“You’re gonna get chonky!” You said, squeezing his tummy. This caused him to jolt with a smile, before turning serious, and glaring at you with his bright blue eyes. He slowly sat up and set the bowl of popcorn on the coffee table, not breaking his glare. You giggled and backed up to Steve for protection as you knew what was about to go down.

“Y/n, come here.” Bucky said, casually, still sitting on the edge of the couch.

“No!”

“Y/n, just come here.”

“No way!”

“Why?”

“You’re gonna tickle me!” You blushed profusely. Though you liked being tickled (which you could never admit), you would still always get nervous and shy when you knew they were about to get you. It was still fun to you, though. 

“Now why would I do something like that?” 

You then tried to climb onto Steve for safety but he set you down, giggling at you adoringly that you still always come to him for protection. Steve had been trying to wean you off of him and encourage more independence in you. You had trouble in training with keeping your head up. You had the habit of running to Steve, sometimes even with lots of crying, instead of learning self-defense. Ever since the accident and rescue, you had become very attached to Steve. He loved this and often bragged to the others that he was “the chosen one.” However, after some time, he knew you needed to get stronger, so he won’t allow you to depend too much on him anymore. 

“This is YOUR fight, y/n. Go get him.” Steve encouraged. 

You gave him an annoyed look and ran right to Tony, climbing onto him. Unlike Steve, Tony snuggled you to his side. 

“Don’t worry, y/n/n. I’ll protect you.”

This made Steve so jealous that he thought his blood was literally boiling. He had a very pissed off expression. He regretted not protecting you. Bucky, on the other hand, just chuckled at you for shying away from his tickles. 

“I’ll get you. You know I’m gonna get you.” Bucky teased, casually leaning back on the couch, continuing to watch his movie.

You didn’t say anything back. You just stuck your tongue out at him. Tony then distracted you by showing you some new Spider-Man suit advancements he and Peter had been working on. You both became focused with that. You and Tony tapped around the screen, as you asked him all kinds of questions, which he happily answered. 

     Several minutes went by and you had become distracted by all the cool suit designs and Bucky and Steve seemed to have gotten lost in the movie. This is when Pepper walked in.

“Well you all seem cozy! Would you like me to make my hot chocolate recipe?” She asked. You leapt to your feet in excitement. 

“Yes, please!” 

Pepper smiled and went to go make her delicious cinnamon hot chocolate. 

Suddenly, you were snatched from where you stood, causing you to yelp. 

“Gotcha!” Bucky yelled, throwing you on the couch and hovering over you. You blushed and awaited your fate. “You didn’t think I’d forget, did you?” 

You giggled nervously and pushed at his chest. 

Bucky dug into your sides and laughed at your reaction. You squealed and giggled and wiggled around trying to escape his hands. He then began tickling your tummy, bringing out everyone’s favorite belly laugh of yours. Bucky, Steve, and Tony all looked at each other, laughing. You were so flustered, but you were having a lot of fun. Yet, it tickled so much that you couldn’t stop wiggling. 

“Why are you such a wiggle worm, y/n? Does it tickle?” Bucky teased. You didn’t answer. You just tried your best to cover your face with your hands. 

“Stahahap thahahat!” Bucky laughed, shooting his fingers under your arms. You immediately brought your hands down and kept wiggling and laughing your precious laugh. 

“Steve, hold her down, please. I’m trying to tickle her, but she’s not cooperating!”

You were laughing at both the tickling and Bucky’s funniness. He always made you laugh even when not tickling you.

“Of course!” Steve said. A teasing tone was also apparent in his voice. He grabbed your wrists and held them above your head as Bucky ruthlessly tickled you in all your worst spots. 

“TONY! HELP!” was all you could get out. 

“I’m sorry y/n! Peter’s here! I’m going to go down and get him,” Tony announced, walking out of the room toward the elevator. 

Bucky began to vibrate his fingertips into your ribs as you tried to squirm out of Captain America’s grip. You just couldn’t help but try to squirm. Bucky tickles are more on the rough side, but they never hurt. He was still gentle, even though he squeezes, shakes, and drills as part of his tickle skills. This is only when he’s wrecking you though, like now. He could give more gentle tickles too. You preferred to be wrecked by him.

He then vibrated his fingertips in your tummy and your laughter went silent, and you must’ve turned blue, because this is when Bucky finally stopped and Steve let you go. 

You caught your breath again and playfully kicked Bucky’s chest, before hiding your face in the couch, flustered. 

“Awww, did I tickle too much?” Bucky said in a babyish tone to embarrass you even more.

“Daaaddy don’t talk to me like that!” You whined, even though you had a big smile. 

Bucky scooped you up in his arms. “But you’re my baby.” 

You loved the fatherly affection your dad showed you. You grew up never shown any love for most of your life. You had seen Bucky around quite often in the different facilities you lived in, but you never knew who he really was. Sadly, Bucky never knew who you were either. He never knew they made you by taking his DNA. He was still grateful for you, but feels a large amount of guilt for never knowing you. He also has a ton of anger. Anger that you were taken away from him. He didn’t get to teach you, watch you grow, or anything. Not even when he was free. It wasn’t until he began recovery by the Wakandans that Steve and Tony, and Bucky himself, finally allowed you to be around him. 

You smiled at Bucky and kissed his cheek, which he in turn attacked your cheeks with kisses, making you giggle. 

  A few minutes later, you heard the elevator ding, signaling that Peter and Tony were here. They then walked in and you launched into your best friend Peter’s arms.

“Oh! Hi! I m-missed you, y/n! And also, thank you. I need your warm hug, b-because I’m freezing!” Peter was shivering and there were snowflakes in his curls. 

“I missed you too, Peter. Come here, by the fire!” You pulled Peter over to the couch and wrapped a blanket around him. Tony and Pepper brought in the tray of the hot chocolate Pepper had been making. 

  “Here you go, Pete.” Tony said, handing Peter a mug and combing the snowflakes out of his curls with his hands. Steve then handed you a cup and you sat next to Peter, asking him about all of his latest adventures.

You spent the rest of the night watching movies and spending time with your family. You fell asleep between Bucky and Peter on the large couch. That night became one of your favorite memories.  

[miafic]

“Shhh... sh-sh-shhh...” Geoff whispered, lightly patting Awsten’s back. 

He was crying again, crying for no reason. Geoff had asked him not once, not twice, but three times what he was so upset over, but Awsten hadn’t been able to give him an answer.

Teri, Awsten’s social worker, assured Geoff that this was not something to be particularly worried about. She labeled the child “traumatized” as simply and easily as someone might label milk “one percent” and told him that sometimes Awsten would be upset. He might be experiencing flashbacks, might have nightmares, might have trouble adjusting to a new home and a new adult and - for the first time - new rules. 

There were a few temper tantrums at first, but they’d mostly stopped. Awsten loved operating on a schedule and even having to follow instructions and receive punishments. Children want boundaries, Teri had explained. But there were still times like this, times when Awsten would start sobbing out of nowhere and be completely inconsolable for fifteen or twenty minutes. Even when Geoff put the TV on or played him some music, he just wanted to bury his face in Geoff’s shoulder and weep.

And that’s where they found themselves right now: Geoff walking slowly around the kitchen with a sobbing Awsten on his hip. Awsten was holding onto him - loosely, because all of his energy had gone into crying, but he was holding on nonetheless. 

“Hush now,” Geoff soothed. “Everything is alright.” 

Geoff felt hopeless, helpless. There was nothing he could do, and he understood that, but waiting it out while Awsten was in pain was terrible. It was grating to his ears, and, worse, it tore mercilessly at his heart. 

“I have got you. You are safe.”

“D-Daaaddy,” Awsten wailed, the first word he’d spoken since the episode began.

“Yes. I am here.” He stroked the back of Awsten’s head and pressed him closer. “I am here.”

But Awsten couldn’t seem to stop crying. 

“Shall we sit?” Geoff asked rhetorically. He made his way to the sofa and slowly sat down, careful not to lean back on Awsten’s arm. 

Having Awsten’s weight off of his side was nice, but the little boy slumped down onto Geoff’s chest, sobbing shamelessly into his t-shirt. Geoff rubbed his back, just listening to the sounds of his cries. He covered his eyes with one hand. 

Tuna came over, jumping silently onto the couch and pawing hesitantly at Awsten’s arm. Awsten didn’t react, so Geoff gave her a little scratch behind the ears. She purred softly in acknowledgement and then laid down, watching Awsten without blinking. 

Geoff continued rubbing his back and listening to him as he processed his pain.

There was nothing to do. There was nothing to say. 

So Geoff sat and sat and sat, listened and listened and listened. He offered comfort where he could, but he was fairly sure that his presence alone mattered more than any words he could utter. 

Finally, Awsten sat up and wiped at his nose. His eyes were red and swollen, and his skin was pale and streaked with tears. “I finished,” he declared in a shaky voice.  

“You are finished?” 

He nodded, and then he laid back down on Geoff’s chest. 

Geoff was about to speak when Awsten asked timidly, “Can I have some orange juice?” 

“Yes,” Geoff replied immediately, skipping the ‘May I?’ that he normally would lead with. 

“And some peanut butter on a spoon?” 

I love you, Geoff wanted to tell him, but what he said instead was, “Of course.” 

Awsten gulped down the tiny cup of orange juice Geoff brought him and immediately moved on to licking at the serving spoon full of peanut butter. Geoff stroked his hair, watching his little bloodshot eyes.

At least, Geoff thought, we are doing this now. At least things were stopped when they were. He couldn’t even bear to imagine how things could have turned out had it continued for another month or another ten years. 

Awsten held out the empty spoon. “More?” he pleaded.

Without a word, Geoff handed him the entire jar of peanut butter. 

Awsten dug in.

[chuffyfan87]

Hiding. Part 78b

“They do?”

"They may act all cheeky and brave but I see them watching you, learning from you constantly."

“Really?” Emily was surprised by that.

"Your daddy and me wanted to run an idea by you if that's OK?"

“Yes. What’s that?”

"We noticed that you keep sneeking upstairs to the spare room in the loft. Would you like that to be your bedroom instead of sharing with your sisters?"

Emily nodded, a huge grin on her face. “Really? It’s nice up there. I like seeing the stars.”

"I'll talk to daddy and see if he and Peter can move your stuff into there at the weekend."

Emily nodded, “That’s amazing! Thank you!”

"Should give you all a bit more space." Duffy smiled. "We should probably go back downstairs but he looks so comfy there."

Emily smiled as she looked down at her brother. “He’s so little.”

"He won't be that little for long sadly."

“I’m gonna look after him.”

"I'll just go back to work now shall I?" Duffy teased affectionately.

Emily blushed, “Mummy?”

"Yes princess?"

“Are you sure you’re ok?”

"Of course. What makes you think I'm not?"

“Just asking.”

"I'm a little sore and tired but that's perfectly normal. I promise."

Emily nodded. “Ok mama.”

"Daddy wouldn't have let me come home if I wasn't ok."

Emily nodded and lent up to kiss her mum’s cheek.

"Shall we go downstairs and see if it's still chaos down there?" Duffy chuckled.

Emily nodded.

Duffy tried not to groan as she stood up from the bed but a small noise escaped her lips.

“Mama?”

"I'm ok, just the medicine wearing off." Duffy smiled reassuringly as she stooped awkwardly to pick up Paul.

“Ok. Mummy?”

"Yes?" Duffy gasped as she stood up with Paul.

“Are you okay?” Emily frowned.

Duffy debated the question momentarily before sitting back down. "Can you get my medicine from your dad?"

Emily nodded and shot off the bed, running down the stairs. “Daaaddy?”

Everyone looked up in a panic as Emily came barrelling into the lounge. “Mummy says she needs her medicine.” She smiled sadly at the doorway.

"Is she OK?" Peter asked, his eyes wide.

“Mummy says yes, she’s fine. She’s upstairs with Paul.”

Charlie stood up and went to the overnight bag. He took out the medication and got a glass of water from the kitchen.

Peter hesitated. Experience taught him to take his mum saying she was fine with a pinch of salt.

“Stay down here Em, I’m gonna go and check.” Peter went up the stairs, two steps at a time. “Mum, mum?” He called.

Charlie followed him up the stairs, with the water and medication.

"In here." Duffy replied.

Even though they couldn't see her yet Charlie to hear the eye roll in her tone. It made him smile.

Peter skidded to a halt outside the bedroom door, “You alright?” He asked.

"I'm fine."

“Ah I panicked when Emily said you were fine.” Peter admitted shyly.

Charlie came in and handed her the meds and placed the water on the bedside table.

Duffy smiled softly at her eldest son before taking the medication. "Its just normal aches and twinges."

“After a c-section?” Peter asked.

"Yeh."

Peter nodded, “I’m gonna go back downstairs.”

"OK sweetheart."

Peter went back downstairs to his siblings, feeling a little embarrassed at his outburst.

"Mummy says I can have the room in the loft!" Emily told her father excitedly.

“She did?”

"She said you'd talked about it."

"Sorry. I know we planned to tell her together." Duffy added sheepishly.

Charlie crouched down to Emily’s level, “Would you like your own room in the loft?”

"Yes!" Emily giggled.

Charlie bopped her nose gently, “Then my princess shall have her own room in the loft.”

"Yay!" Emily giggled, throwing her arms around her dad.

Charlie held her tightly, “Love you.” He said as he kissed the top of her head.

"Love you too daddy."

A little while later everyone was settled downstairs. Emily was busily drawing a picture of how she wanted her new room to look.

Kate was having a cuddle with her new grandson. “Oh he's gorgeous,” She cooed.

"When he's behaving himself he is." Duffy chuckled.

“Causing trouble already, is he? It must be a trait he gets from his father.”

Duffy laughed. "She's got you figured out." She nudged Charlie.

Charlie laughed, “Dammit.”

"Daddy said a rude word!" Tilly giggled.

“Daddy did not.” Charlie laughed.

Oli toddled over and pulled at his gran's skirt. He was getting bored of the attention the new baby was getting.

“Oli, you cheeky monkey. Come here.” Charlie picked him up.

Oli squealed, waving his legs in the air.

“You’re so noisy. Wonder who you get that from.” Charlie pondered as he held Oli in the air.

Duffy cast her eyes around the room. A lump formed in her throat and her eyes filled with tears. It still threw her sometimes that she had this wonderful family.

Kate noticed the tears in her daughter's eyes and smiled. Even though this lot were a rowdy bunch, Charlie and Duffy were just perfect at being parents.

Duffy noticed her mum's gaze settle on her. She swallowed back her tears. "Did the kids mostly behave themselves whilst we were away?" She asked.

Kate nodded, “Good as gold. Even that little monkey.” She replied referring to Oli who was still in the air squealing.

"So they weren't too much of a handful?"

“Oh no, not at all.”

"I realise it was a big ask for you to take them all. That's why I didn't want to stay in any longer than necessary."

“You need to look after yourself Lisa. And allow us to help you.”

"Hmm..." Duffy replied, rolling her eyes. In doing so she caught sight of the time. "How did it get so late?! Dinner needs cooking!" She gasped as she hauled herself up from the sofa.

“Sit down.” Charlie told her, “Your mum and I will cook for tonight.” He needed her to sit down and relax, take it easy following her c-section.

"What if Oli runs into the kitchen?" Duffy fretted, refusing to sit back down.

“Duffy, calm down please.”

"I'm perfectly capable of cooking dinner!" Duffy remarked as she headed towards the hall.

“Duffy, if you don’t listen to me. I’ll send you back to the hospital.” Charlie jokingly threatened.

"Try it!" Duffy retorted, her hands on her hips as she stood in the doorway.

Charlie's eyes roamed over her figure as she stood in the doorway before he looked up to meet her gaze, he was clearly getting distracted by something!

"Thought not!" Duffy smirked before heading to the kitchen.

Charlie shook his head fondly. She drove him wild at times.

Kate looked up at Charlie. "You're not seriously going to let her..?"

“I can’t stop her.”

"Fine. If you won't then I will!" Kate retorted as she stood and carried Paul through with her to the kitchen. "Lisa!"

"Oh what now?" Duffy harrumphed, instantly recognising the tone in her mother's voice.

“You should listen to Charlie and take it easy. You don’t want to overdo it.”

"Have I missed something? Why are you two suddenly in cahoots and ganging up on me?"

Kate shook her head. “We’re not ganging up on you.”

"Seems like it to me." Duffy replied as she slowly made her way around the kitchen gathering ingredients.

“Charlie just doesn’t want you to tempt fate that’s all!”

"I can't just sit on my arse doing nothing!"

“Yes you can!”

"They need me!" Duffy replied, gesturing to the kids in the other room.

“Yes they do. They need you here at home and not cooped up in hospital with an infection because you’ve done too much too soon.”

"Why does everyone just assume I'm going to get sick and die?" Duffy gasped, throwing down the item in her hand and bursting into tears.

“Oh sweetheart.” Her mum tried to hug her but it proved difficult with Paul in her arms.

"All of you treat me like I'm so fragile. I can't bare it!" Duffy sobbed.

“We just worry about you.” Kate replied attempting to comfort Duffy.

"I don't like being a burden. I can look after myself." Duffy insisted.

“You’re not a burden!”

"I always have been." Duffy mumbled.

“No you haven’t.” Kate smiled sadly, “Is that how you feel?”

Duffy nodded silently.

“Why do you feel like that?”

Duffy shrugged.

“Talk to me, Lisa.”

"I've caused so much damage to those around you."

“No you haven’t.”

Duffy pulled away from her mum and went back to preparing food.

“Baby blues?” Kate asked.

"I'm fine!" Duffy shot back.

“Lisa, will you stop pretending you’re fine when you and I both know you’re anything but.”

"I'll be OK."

“You don’t have to do this on your own.”

[yrpspiritsintheshadows]

Winding Down

Winding Down

The wind blew in his face, the city below him a vast jungle of buildings towering over it all.

One wrong move would mean serious injury or even death. He had to make this next jump count. Carefully, he maneuvered himself onto the building nearby, holding his arms out for balance as he found his footing. He moved carefully along the edge, looking down at the hustle and bustle of the streets below. The wind picked up blowing his inky black hair around as he tried to take focus of the roof across from him.

This is one small step for Miyamoto’s… One giant leap for Ken.

The young man made his way for the edge bracing himself for the jump.

“One… Two…”

He jumped his limbs flailing as he missed the edge just barely, his fingers brushing against the rooftop.

“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!”

Ken fell landing on a pile of pillows, on the rug that was printed to look like a busy street. The six year old threw his head back laughing breathlessly, as he caught his breath.

“Almost! So close!” He cheered, as he looked around to be sure no one had heard him actually fall off of his dresser. If his mother had caught him… Ken could already picture his mother, chancla in hand ready for a warning throw.

All was well in his world, just waiting for his dad to come home so he could ask him about how his investigation went… And so he could get tucked in. Ken didn’t want to miss a single moment of his father’s time with him.

He got up dusting off his pajamas, making his way for the window near his bed. He peered out to the driveway. He had timed it perfectly as he saw a very familiar van pull into the driveway. A large black SUV with four letters stenciled on the side door.

“Daddy!” He squealed pushing away from the window and running down the stairs, getting the attention of a large black and cream wolf like dog. The dog perked up her ears twitching as she chased after the boy. “C’mon Okami, Daddy’s home! Daddy’s home!”

The dog gave a loud howl bolting down the staircase, waiting as Ken hopped up onto the banister sliding down before following after him.

The front door opened as a very tired man entered. He yawned a bit as he stretched, running his hand through his shaggy black hair, blue eyes showing exhaustion.

“I’m home-” He called before letting out a surprised noise as Ken ran right to him throwing his arms around his father’s leg.

“Daddy’s home!” Ken cheered.

Eiji chuckled scooping his son up into his arms. Ken hugged him tightly, nuzzling him.

“Good to see you kiddo. Missed ya… Shouldn’t you be in bed?”

“Nya!” Ken stuck his tongue out a playful look in his eyes. “Parkour doesn’t require sleep.”

“Oh yes it does.” Eiji was glad he and his team had agreed to go over the evidence in the morning. All he wanted to do now was to spend some time with his family and sleep. “And I thought we talked about the ‘parkour in your room’ thing.” He lowered his voice to a whisper.

“Mommy doesn’t know.” Ken whispered back.

Eiji grinned ruffling his hair.

“Good.” He chuckled before sighing in relief. It was worth it, he knew it was… But sometimes he wondered if he should cut back on the number of clients he accepted. He was gone nightly at the rate he was going.

And the last thing he wanted was to miss out on his son’s childhood.

“Welcome home mi corazon.”

Eiji looked to the staircase seeing his wife standing before him. Her long curly brown hair was tied into a ponytail, warmth in her eyes.

“Carmen..” He whispered. Ken smiled waving to his mother as she made her way over, kissing her husband’s cheek before nuzzling her son. “It’s good to be home mi amor.”

Eiji brought his free arm around her as she wrapped her arms around the two people who meant more than life itself to her.

“Oh I’ve missed you. How was work?”

“Tiring. Also because the door wouldn’t unlock we had to go the Chase route.”

Carmen raised an eyebrow, displeasure in her green eyes. Eiji grinned sheepishly.

“I was careful.” He insisted.

“Eiji. How high was it?”

“... The fifth floor…?”

“Ay dios mio!” Carmen gave him a stern look before it changed to a smirk. She couldn’t stay annoyed with him and she knew better than anyone else what it was like when a lockdown didn’t go exactly according to plan.

Especially when it was Chase involved in arranging that particular arrangement. The history teacher by day, investigator by night had a knack for somehow bringing unintentional chaos in his wake.

Eiji buried his face in his wife’s hair inhaling the scent of marigold and lavender that was just so… Carmen.

In this house in the woods was everything precious to him. His wife, his child… And their dog who eagerly sat at his feet awaiting a pat on the head.

“And who’s a good girl?” He asked with a grin earning a bark from the dog as he rubbed behind her ears.

“Okami’s a very good girl!” Ken chirped. Eiji chuckled giving a nod in agreement. He set Ken down on the floor.

Carmen smoothed down her son’s hair.

“Alright you, it’s very late. You need to go get ready for bed.” She told him. “And then me and your dad will be up there soon to tuck you in.”

“Okay Mama.” Ken hugged both of his parents quickly before scurrying upstairs, whistling as Okami chased after him up, her paws pounding on the stairs as she did so.

The couple watched him go, before exchanging a warm look. Eiji kissed Carmen quickly bringing her in close.

“You need to take a night off sometime soon.” She told him, running her hand through his shaggy black hair.

“I know. But you know me, I can’t help it.” He chuckled, grinning sheepishly. She cupped his face in her hands touching her forehead to his.

She had a playful look in her eyes as he gazed at her with a gentle one in return.

“What am I gonna do with you?” She whispered.

“I dunno, marry me again?” Eiji teased lacing their hands together.

“Heh, true, true-”

“Daaaadddyyy! Moooommyyy!”

They laughed a bit, before heading upstairs. They could catch up more once Ken was asleep. Eiji raised an eyebrow at the amount of pillows on the floor, picking one up and giving the six year old a smirk.

“Clever.”

Ken bounced in place on his bed, still wide awake and alert. Okami was on the bed wrapped around the boy acting as a pillow to lean against, nearly dwarfing him.

“Oh no you don’t. Okami.” Carmen snapped her fingers. “Down.”

Ken hugged the dog’s head, giving his best sad face, his bottom lip quivering a little. Carmen and Eiji both wincing as he did so.

“Please?” He whimpered, the dog joining in as dual eyes gazed up at the couple.

“Okay, okay just for tonight. Claro?” Carmen told him as Ken nodded rapidly, laying down.

“Claro.” He giggled.

Eiji chuckled bringing the covers up over his son, kissing his head.

“We love you so much Ken.”

“Love you too.” Ken curled up a little. “Can I hear a story tonight?”

“Sure thing.” Eiji sat on the edge of his bed, as Carmen sat on the floor beside them. “What story?”

Ken rolled onto his side curling up more.

“I want…” He yawned. “A story about the unknown…”

Carmen and Eiji exchanged a warm look, as she reached up taking her husband’s hand. They had a lot to thank the unknown itself for… Especially due to the circumstances of their meeting.

“A long, long time ago… In a galaxy far, far away…” He joked.

“Daaaddy…” Ken whined. “The real story!”

Carmen giggled as Eiji cracked a mischievous grin.

“Alright, alright… The Memoria, are a coven who reside under the guidance of Vitalis. A being who was known to help aide in the life and death cycle, via aiding with crossing over wandering spirits…. And giving those who wished to stay a means of staying.”

Ken nodded tiredly.

“They receive gifts due to this job… Abilities to enable them to see the world beyond. The ability to help cross over spirits or help them become more than what they could ever dream… To protect this world.” Eiji continued, stroking his son’s hair, eliciting a little yawn from the child. “And the Memoria are all over… They work together if they can, to protect this world. Isn’t that amazing Ken…. Ken?”

Ken let out a quiet little snore, as Okami laid her head down finally, content her ‘pup’ was fast asleep now.

Eiji smiled softly, kissing Ken’s head, giving Okami a scratch behind her ears.

“Now, you watch over him tonight Okami. Okay?”

Carmen stood up, tucking her son in more, before pressing a kiss to his forehead.

“Te amo, my little one.”

Eiji brought an arm around his wife, as they fell quiet watching him for a moment. It was hard to believe they were married and had a child at that.

Carmen lifted her gaze, meeting his eyes a smile on her face.

“I’m so glad I married you.” She whispered.

“I feel so lucky I married you.” He whispered back, bringing her close. “Oh Carmen…”

“Eiji…”

He kissed her head, inhaling the scent of her hair. She nuzzled him a bit in return, before they left Ken’s room, hand in hand.

“I didn’t think he’d go down that fast.” Eiji sighed in relief. Some nights were better than others… Ken was their world and they adored every second they had with him…

But it wasn’t to say all was easy. Eiji glanced to his wife, giving her a sneaky look.

She raised an eyebrow.

“What?”

“How much do you love me?”

“Oh no. I am not falling for that.” She pulled away, holding her hands up in the “I’m unarmed” pose.

Eiji gave her his best kicked look, following her as she started to walk away.

“But Caaarmeeen… I’m hungry. Starving in fact!”

“What? Did Chase swipe your snack?” She asked, mostly teasing him as he brought his arms around her from behind. She brought her hands up, brushing against his as he did so.

“In fact he did!” He remarked.

Carmen shook her head but cracked a grin, feigning a dramatic sigh.

“Okay but I want a movie night then.”

“Deal. I pick out a movie for us and you make us a snack?”

“Deal.”

They exchanged a hug before going their separate ways. Eiji, getting ready to wind down, taking his chance for a hot shower while he had some free time.

While he had gotten lucky this time, that he didn’t get totally covered in dust, he still wanted to get the chill out of his bones.

Next time, no haunted farms unless we get bonfire rights. I swear I need to learn to say no to Chase about that.

He rolled his eyes a bit. He was glad his friends were also his business partners, it made running their paranormal group easier… But he did still find himself unable to say no at times still.

But he wouldn’t trade them for the world. Even if sometimes he questioned their choices.

Now… He just had to worry about winding down and enjoying his downtime with his wife before bed.

Glancing in the steamy bathroom mirror, he noted what appeared to be a hand print making it’s way through the steam.

Raising an eyebrow he looked closer at it, noting the size and shape of it.

Probably was when I was supposed to clean it earlier and didn’t notice the residue… He reasoned.

Despite his work, he still didn’t want to completely blame the supernatural for everything. Some things were just coincidences after all.

So with that in mind… And hoping he wasn’t wrong, he exited the master bath, clad in his favorite pajama bottoms and a t-shirt that had a movie logo on it. It was two sizes too large but that made it comfy to sleep in.

“Got any preferences about the movie love?” He called out the door.

“No.” She called back but after a moment appeared in the hallway, carrying a bowl of popcorn. “But we are not watching Ghostbusters.” She added.

“That’s a preference.” He replied.

“We watched it three times last week.”

“Fair enough.” Grabbing up his laptop, Eiji settled beside his wife, trying to pick one to watch. “Hm…”

Carmen laid her head on his shoulder, already munching on some of the popcorn.

“We haven’t watched that one in awhile…”

“.... You know the music gets stuck in my head.”

“I know. We own the soundtrack on everything possible for a good reason.”

Eiji smirked, bringing an arm around her, making himself comfortable.

“Greatest Showman it is.” He hit play, laying his head back, as Carmen tucked hers under his, hand coming up to play with the necklace he wore.

“You know, I still plan to sleep with this on.” He winked.

She giggled, nuzzling her husband, so glad he was home. Even if they teased and goofed around, at the end of the day they were still each other’s.

They both chose for the time to ignore the sound of the bathroom cabinet slamming shut on it’s own. She glanced up, seeing his eyes had shifted briefly only to go back to the characters on the screen.

Even if sometimes, he brought home uninvited guests.

[mhalachai]

HoC question: Will Barnes/Rogers family be doing anything special for National Taco Day?

National Taco Day! Oct. 4!

(So this would be in the following year, when Clint is seven and Natasha is a very grown up six and it’s a weekday)

The kids hear about Taco Day at school or something and at afternoon recess, Natasha schemes. “We gotta get our dads to take us for tacos!”

Clint, on the other hand, is a little more dubious of the plan. “We have to go do homework,” he says. “And my dad said that we have to eat leftovers tonight.”

Natasha is dismissive of leftovers. “We’ll make ‘em!” she exclaims. “I’ve got a plan!”

Clint, warily, says, “I don’t know.” Because all that seems to come of Natasha’s plans these days is Clint ending up in trouble. “I want to do homework.”

Natasha cackles. “Tacos!” she yells, and runs over to the swings.

Later that afternoon, when James comes to pick the kids up after school, Natasha looks beseechingly into her father’s eyes and says solemnly, “Dad, I am very hungry.”

“Oh yeah?” James takes hold of the kids’ hands and together they walk down the sidewalk. Clint sometimes wonders if he’s too old to hold hands on the walk home (he is, after all, seven years old), but he likes holding hands.

Sometimes he doesn’t know about this whole growing up thing.

“Yes,” Natasha said. Her eyes are very big, and Clint’s stomach feels bad. He can see trouble coming. “Daddy. Daaaddy.”

Clint looks up at James, and wonders why James is smiling like that. “Yes, Natasha?”

“I’m hungry!” Natasha says again. “So hungry!”

“Huh.” James coughs. “Well, I guess we got some cold leftovers at home. Old spinach and rice.”

“Yuck!” Natasha exclaims. Clint gags. “No, I don’t want that, Daddy!”

“Okay,” James said. He’s still smiling. “I think we got a can of tuna in the cupboard.”

“No!”

“Come on,” James said, wiggling their hands. “Tell me about school. What happened today?”

“We had chicken for lunch,” Clint says, and doesn’t  understand why Natasha is glaring at him. “And I ate almost all my broccoli.”

“Sounds delicious.”

“Not as good as tacos,” Natasha grumbles.

“What was that?” James asks.

“Nothing,” Natasha mumbles.

She glares at Clint all the way home.

At home, James tells them both to go upstairs and change into play clothes. Clint bounds up the stairs and into his room, dumps his backpack on the ground, and is out of his school uniform in ten seconds flat.

He’s into his track pants (black with blue stripes on the side, just like the ones Uncle Tony has!) and reaching for his penguin t-shirt when Natasha appears in the doorway. She’s still glaring at him. “How come you messed up my plan?” she demands as she crosses her arms over her chest.

“What plan?” Clint pulls his shirt on.

Natasha stomps her foot. “My plan for tacos!”

“Oh.” Clint readjusts his glasses. “You didn’t tell me what your plan was.”

“You shoulda known!”

Clint is starting to feel a little angry. Why’s Natasha getting mad at him, when she didn’t tell him anything? “If you want me to help you plan, you have to tell me first!”

Natasha stomps her foot again.

“Hey!” James yells from downstairs. Clint can’t quite make out the rest of what he says, but Natasha storms off into her own room, scowling.

Mad and sad and feeling a little bit bad, Clint grabs the strap of his backpack and hauls it with him down the stairs, bounce by bounce. James is in the kitchen, drinking a glass of water. “Hey, peanut,” he says when Clint enters the room. “Which one of you was stomping around?”

“Natasha.” Clint lets his backpack go, and trudges over to James. He leans against James’s side. He wishes he wasn’t too old for hugs.

“Want some water?”

“Uh huh.”

While James gets another glass, Clint climbs up on the counter. He chugs the water, then hands the glass back to James for a refill. He swallows most of that down, then puts the glass  in the sink.

James is looking at him. “Do you want to tell me what’s going on with you two?” he asks.

Clint shrugs. No, he signs.

“Are you okay?” James asks, signing along with the words.

Clint shrugs again.

“Is there something I should talk to Natasha about?”

Clint shakes his head. Then, because all the feelings in his stomach are getting so big and mad, he bursts out, “Natasha had a plan and she didn’t tell  me about it and now she’s mad that I did it wrong!”

James sighs. “That sounds very frustrating,” he says.

Clint nods.

James goes over to the entryway to the kitchen and yells out into the house, “Nat, get your little butt down here!”

Feeling miserable, Clint picks at the tiling on the counter while they wait for Natasha to descend the stairs. When she finally appears, she’s changed into her afternoon clothes. “What?”

“Come here.” James guides her across the kitchen, then heaves her up onto the counter beside Clint. “All right, you two little punks, I got some growing up advice for you.”

Natasha crosses her arms over her chest and scowls. Clint feels even badder.

“You’re big kids now, in second grade. And me and Steve and your teachers and everyone else, we can’t go solving your problems for you.”

Natasha scowls harder.

“We’ll always be there if you want help, but honestly, you two, you gotta start figuring out how to sort things on your own.”

Clint can’t  take it any more. He puts his hand up in the air. “It’s not fair!” he bursts out. “Natasha didn’t tell me her plan and now she’s mad at me and that’s not fair!”

“You shoulda knowed my plan!” Natasha exclaims.

James whistles. “First off, Natasha, proper grammar. I’m paying that school a whole lotta money to teach you to talk properly.”

Natasha heaves an exaggerated sigh. “Clint should have known my plan!” she grinds out, signing at the same time.

“Did you tell him?” James asks.

“No, but he shoulda— should have known!”

“Maybe you should tell him the details of your plan anyway, so you’re on the same page and everything is fair.”

Natasha huffs.

“Nat.”

“Okay,” she says finally. “Next time I will tell Clint my plan, with words, so it is fair.” She adds in sign language, I will write. Or I will sign. So no one can hear.

Okay, Clint signs back. He feels a little bit better. He likes it when stuff is fair.

“Now,” James goes on, “And this is for Natasha. How many times have I said that if you want to ask me something, you should ask me straight?”

Natasha rolls her eyes. “A hundred times,” she moans. “A billion times.”

“So make this a billion and one.” He taps her knee. “Natasha, do you have something you want to ask me?”

Natasha looks at Clint. Clint looks at Natasha. Then they both look at James. “Daddy,” Natasha says in a normal, not at all scheming voice, “It’s National Taco Day.”

“It is?” James makes a surprised face. “That’s neat.”

“And Daddy!” Natasha is swelling up with impatience now. “Daddy, I want tacos!”

Please? Clint signs. Dinner? Yummy T-O-K-O-W?

“Tacos,” James says, and finger-spells T-A-C-O-S for Clint. “Well, I know that Steve had his heart set on left-over mashed potatoes for dinner…”

Both Clint and Natasha slump, dejected.

“…But I figure that we can make an exception for our new national holiday,” James finishes.

Clint and Natasha perk up, staring at James in faint hope.

James is smiling. “Go get your shoes on, we’re heading out for tacos,” he says.

Natasha screams in delight, and Clint is so happy he nearly falls off the counter.

On their dash to the living room, Clint could just make out James saying, “Now how’m’I gonna tell Steve?”

Epilogue: They go to Ricos along with everyone else in Brooklyn and Steve meets them there and they eat too many tacos and Clint is super happy and Natasha is super happy and Steve and James make faces at each other all the way home.

[sonofvarian]

I posted 1,299 times in 2021

209 posts created (16%)

1090 posts reblogged (84%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 5.2 posts.

I added 1,947 tags in 2021

#be true to yourself: isaiah - 842 posts

#learning from my mistakes: varian - 302 posts

#my aunties: kiera and cat - 174 posts

#we could be friends: miss cass - 170 posts

#my awesome boyfriend: sora - 134 posts

#my family: cat and kiera - 114 posts

#gem of the kingdom: emerald - 83 posts

#crazy redhead | catalina - 44 posts

#my uncle: captain eugene fitzherbert - 42 posts

#a good friend: sora - 42 posts

Longest Tag: 63 characters

#ooc vc: i'll still be on today as i have high muse but i'm angy

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

@waitlifted​ liked for a starter!

Varian wandered silently through the market. He had gotten everything on his list. “Good, now I can hopefully make that solution...hopefully..” He said with a nervous chuckle. He looked up briefly before returning to his list but something had caught his eye making his head shoot back up.  He felt his eyes widen and mouth go agape. his list fell out of his hands and fluttered to the ground. “C-Cassie!?” He said the shock evident in his voice.

20 notes • Posted 2021-03-03 16:12:36 GMT

#4

@silntstrikr​ asked for a starter

“Oh no no no no...” Varian said as he paced back and fourth looking out through the window as it was assulted with rain. Looking down at his cell phone he dialed the girls number. It rang a few times before he heard the sound of it being picked up. Before the person could say a word he let his panic out. “Help! Girls! I messed up! Isaiah came home late so we got in an argument and I accidentally said ‘what would your mother think’ and he left! he’s not answering his phone i’m worried sick!”

28 notes • Posted 2021-07-15 19:56:32 GMT

#3

@waitlifted​

The forest was dark and noises sprang up all around Isaiah. He just wanted to go exploring. not to get lost. Isaiah whimpered as he heard a howl a little ways off from him. It was starting to get dark. His daddy would be looking for him. The overgrown brambles tugged at his clothes and scratched at his skin drawing some blood in the process.  “Daddy?” He called out. when he received no response his lip quivered. “Daaaddy?” He tried again. Suddenly from behind him he heard the heavy crunching and clink of metal armor against leaves and twigs. His daddy never wore armor. Isaiah let out a panicked audible whimper and bolted in the opposite direction. He dashed into the woods and hopped over a small stream. he heard the footsteps following and he screamed as he ran. a bramble caught his sock sending him harshly to the ground and scuffing his knee. Feeling cornered and helpless Isaiah finally sobbed out. “DAAADDDDYYY!!!”

40 notes • Posted 2021-02-11 21:48:07 GMT

#2

@keywcilder​ liked for a starter

Isaiah sat on top of the old wooden roof of his family barn. He still remembers the day when he was little that he first climbed up here. Of course his father had a conniption that his “baby” was on a roof and of course he did fall off but his fall was cushioned by a bale of hay. Ever since then he came up here to be alone or when the orchard was occupied.  His toffee blonde hair swayed in the breeze as he over looked Old Corona. He sniffled and stroked his pet cobra that rested delicately upon his shoulders. Being lost in thought Isaiah hadn’t noticed the brunette come up behind him.

40 notes • Posted 2021-02-09 01:36:50 GMT

#1

@silntstrikr starter!

Sitting in his lab at the castle Varian gazed down at the tiny wriggling form in his arms. This was the first time Varian was able to get time with his son.

See the full post

62 notes • Posted 2021-03-23 18:31:41 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[kimonobeat]

aiko bon “Profile interview” Chapter 1 (Part 3/3)

ーWould you say you were a pretty precocious child?

aiko: I think so. In kindergarten I’d kiss other kids in tunnels I made out of cardboard boxes. (laughs) Like, a boy would come from the other end of the box and I’d kiss him. I’d also paint my nails in secret with my mom’s nail polish, or put her lipstick on. One day I was shaving the hair off my legsーI was copying my momーand ended up covered in blood. I tried to hide it by getting the bathtub, but it didn’t really go as planned. That got covered in blood too. My mom caught me while I was toweling myself off and asked, “What happened!?” And I said, “Hm? Nothing.” (laughs)

ーBecause in your head, you were just playing a little game.

aiko: Exactly! But the games I played were games boys would play. Most of the little kids who lived in our apartment complex were boys. I never once had a Licca doll or a Barbie doll. I mostly played outside games: tag, hide-and-seek, kick the can, skateboarding, roller skating, soccer, baseball, softball, catching cicadas, catching sparrows, stuff like that. All the toys people bought me were squirt guns and other ‘boy’ toys. The one ‘girly’ thing I had was a Little Twin Stars moon set. When I was alone inside the house, I used to play this game called “Robot Q”. Or I’d play records on my record player, or read the “Karasu no Panya-san (The Crow’s Bakery)” picture books. I mostly played outside though. I always came home from kindergarten just before my dad was leaving for work, so sometimes he’d ask me if I wanted to go to the amusement park. If I said yes, he’d take me! Once summer came around, he’d take me to the beach and the mountains too.

ーDid you play any ‘girly’ games at all? Like playing ‘mommy’.

aiko: Nope. I played in the mud almost every single time it rained. You know, like making mud pies. I loooved how mushy mud felt in my hands. I never really ever wanted dress-up dolls or anything like that.

ーYou really were like a little boy.

aiko: I was, huh? I liked coloring too, though. You know those things they sell at Volks? The ones where all you have to do is just dot the color on, get it wet, and then you can paint with it? I used to do that a lot. I don’t really remember much about playing inside because I was always running around outside though… Oh, that reminds me! I used to play this game while listening to English songs on my record player where I tried to write down what I thought they were on saying on a piece of paper. I think that was when I was in elementary school? I’d listen to the song and write down the English words in katakana. I didn’t know how to write the ‘tu’ sound in Japanese when writing out the word ‘tomorrow’ though, [because there’s no ‘tu’ sound in Japanese]. I remember really fretting about it. “T… t… huh?” (laughs)

ーI’m sure you played a lot of pranks too, given how lively of a kid you were.

aiko: I did! Well, they were more like games than pranks, but oftentimes my parents ended up getting mad at me. For example, one time I was playing with a pachinko set my grandma bought me. My mom called me, and when I turned around she saw something shiny in my nose. She got so flustered. Turns out my whole nose was stuffed with pachinko balls! She went, “Oh my GOODNESS!” and took all the balls out of both sides of my nose, one at a time. Apparently when I fell asleep that night, I was making a strange sound and breathing really hard all night. She took one more look and saw that I had even MORE in my nose.

ーHow did she get them out?

aiko: We went to the hospital. It was a huuuge ordeal. I kept crying, “Chop (stop) it! Chop it, chop it!” so they couldn’t get them out. My dad told me that eventually he just said, “Give her to me!”, snatched the tweezers from the doctor’s hands, and took them out himself. I used to think that was why my nose is turned up like this. (laughs) My grandma went home during all this hubbub because she was upset. My dad had yelled at her about buying a little kid something like that. I wondered why I didn’t see her around, but that was because she’d gone home silently even though it wasn’t her fault at all. There were a couple of times when I tried to find out how long my nose would bleed too. It was summer break and I had a ton a free time, so I just decided to find out how long my nose would bleed if I let it. It trickled onto my desk and made a whole pool of blood. But then it didn’t stop bleeding even after a long time had passed, so I quit because I thought I was gonna die. Other than that… I ate too much liver once and had to take an ambulance to the hospital.

ーWhat happened!?

aiko: Nothing, I literally just ate too much. (laughs) I’ve loved liver ever since I was a little kid. I had some liver that my dad had chopped up. We were cutting each other’s pieces… my dad totally set me up for failure! I ate a WAY bigger portion than any little kid should’ve eaten and started having convulsions, so they called an ambulance. I remember them taking me to the hospital and crying, “Daaaddy, I don’t, I don’t wanna die!” (laughs)

ーYou were a pretty amazing kid. (laughs) What were your eating habits and favorite foods when you were little?

aiko: My parents were pretty strict about what I ate. They didn’t let me eat a whole lot of junk food. I got to have instant ramen every Saturday, but that was about it. At our house, the only kind of juice I got to drink were the ‘100% fruit’ kind, and the only snacks were like rice crackers and yogurt. Basically, we didn’t eat sweets that much at our house. We really didn’t have anything ‘just for kids’. Aside from them leaving the wasabi off of my sushi, I ate the same exact things as my parents. I got to have a lick of beer almost every day because of that. (laughs) I’d be like, “Gimme!” and I’d get to lick the foam off the top. My dad also brought me to a bunch of different places throughout my childhood so that I’d learn about all kinds of food. So like, I’m serious, I’ve been eating soft-shelled turtle since I was a little kid. They never gave me sweet curry just because I was a kid either. The curry my parents made was nice and spicy. That’s the reason why I like bar snacks so much now, I think. You know, like atarime, nuta, kinpira, ohitashi.

ーWas there anything in particular you really loved or hated?

aiko: I LOVED the omelettes my mom made for me. She put potatoes, onion and sweetened ground meat in them; I loved ‘em. And what I hated? My dad made me eat raw bell pepper he’d sliced into rings and covered with dried bonito flakes and soy sauce almost every night. He’d also make this super sour dish of cucumbers and seaweed in a mixture of vinegar, water and sesame oil. They were so horribly sour that I’d cry like a big baby every time I ate them. I wasn’t a huge fan of nattou or carrots either. And, since I wasn’t used to eating them, I’d feel so gross after eating potato chips because of all the oil. Yeah, you heard me. I was a little kid who couldn’t eat potato chips OR cake. They gave me heartburn. (laughs)

ーSo you didn’t have any cake at birthday parties either, or… ?

aiko: Nah. I’d blow the candles out, eat a little bit, and immediately feel awful. Everyone else would be eating cake while I was off to the side eating ochazuke. (laughs) I like rice and udon noodles quite a bit though. I also loved flour. One of my favorite things to do was make these thick okonomiyaki with just onion in it, almost like a crepe.

ーSounds like you were really big into Japanese food!

aiko: Yes I was. Ever since I was little, any time I went to my grandma’s house I’d just slurp up a bunch of nukazuke. Then, I’d eat dinner with pickled mustard leaves. I really loved umeboshi too. One time I ate 18 of them while watching “Toyama no Kin-san” on TV. (laughs)

ーWhen they said you could eat whatever you wanted, what did you ask for back then?

aiko: I’d say, “Volks”! (laughs) Volks was a reward for me because I’d always ask to go. I still like that place, especially their corn soup. Some Volks locations have a soup bar with consomme, minestrone, you name it. They’re more about soup more than they are their steaks to me.

ーDid you have anything problems eating school lunches?

aiko: The food they served at school was just eh. I was the type of kid who took so long to eat that I’d still be eating while everyone else was starting to clean the lunch room. I was always begging my friends to eat some of my food too. I’d say, “Wow, you eat so fast! I wish could be like you. You’re so awesome!! Mind eating this too?” to get them to eat my food. (laughs) Not only was I a slow eater, they also served a lot of food I hated since I didn’t really like kiddy food… Like, I hated cream stew. I’d never eaten spaghetti with meat sauce either because we only ate mentaiko spaghetti at my house. (laughs) Butter and margarine were too greasy for me and would give me heartburn, so I didn’t like that. Didn’t like milk much either. The thing I liked the most at school lunch was brown sugar bread, or stuff like tangerine jelly cups. I liked their yakisoba a lot too.

ーSo basically, you hated over half of it.

aiko: Yeah, I guess so. But when I was in elementary school, you had to stand up in front of the class and say why you didn’t finish your food at lunchtime. I mean, the real reason I didn’t finish it was because I hated it. (laughs) I’d just lie and say something like, “My stomach hurts, so I left behind one piece of bread.” That was a pretty cruel thing to do, now that I think about it.

ーWas that the only sweet thing you liked? Anything else?

aiko: Ohhh, I used to love eating the warabimochi seller that came every day in the summertime. He’d come singing this song that went “Warabiiimochi, warabiiimochiii, so coooool and refreshiiing, how about some warabimochiii?” His warabimochi melted on your tongue so fast it was almost like water. He also put a TON of kinako on it. I used to love that so much. I still like warabimochi and abekawa mochi to this day.

ーSounds like you did a lot of lessons as a kid too?

aiko: Yes I did, because I told them I wanted to do every lesson that caught my eye. Swimming, piano, English, abacus, calligraphy, and… Kumon, I think? That way I had something to do just about every day. I’m fine at starting things, but then it was hard to find a time to quit, and then my parents wouldn’t let me quit either. Not that I was going to a foreign university or anything, but it was kinda like that: easy to get in, hard to graduate from. (laughs) I did all those lessons my entire childhood because of that.

ーThese were all things you’d said you wanted to do, right?

aiko: The only one my dad made me do was swimming lessons. One of my dad’s friend’s kids drowned at the beach and went into cardiac arrest. They managed to revive him with CPR, but he made me go because he was worried about my safety if I didn’t know how to swim. At first I was so scared of the water that I’d throw a big crying fitー“NO! I DON’T WANT TO!”ーand cry next to the pool. After the third time, I swam so much I’d even cut in line waiting for my turn to swim again. I’d swim around saying, “Mom, look at me!” (laughs) I said I wanted to do all the other lessons besides swimming but would always focus too hard on the way I looked doing it instead of the fundamentals. Like sitting up straight while doing calligraphy. (laughs) I asked to do Kumon too, but I had a ton of homework almost as soon as I started. I really wasn’t sure if I could do it all, but I didn’t want them to get mad at me for quitting, so I just put up with it and kept going anyway.

ーDid you want to do piano lessons too?

aiko: I did. At first, anyway. (laughs) I started when I was 3 years old, and my hands were so tiny that I couldn’t actually play the piano. We just used paper cards instead. Like, the piano teacher would ask me, “What is this one?” and I’d say, “A ‘ti’ in treble clef.” And then they’d ask, “How about this one?” and I’d say, “A ‘mi’ in bass clef.” Just practicing how to read music. I liked when I was eventually to play the piano itself. By early elementary school I’d already learned a lot and was pretty sick of it. My teacher did one-on-one lessons with two Yamaha pianos facing each other. Sounds like a lot of pressure, right? So I’d say my ‘I wanna quit’ feeling was at its peak in first grade. It was like Pavlov’s dogs almost: I got sleepy every time I even touched the piano. (laughs). I was like, falling asleep, drooling on the keyboard while practicing.

ーDid your parents get mad at you whenever you did that?

aiko: Ohhh yeah, they’d really rip into me. If my mom heard the piano go silent while she was in the kitchen doing dishes, I’d hear her stop washing dishes and yell, “AIKOOO!” She’d go back to cleaning when she heard me start playing again. After a little while I’d stop playing and fall asleep… Then she’d come into the piano room and say, “Aiko?” And of course I’d get in trouble. (laughs) I did piano lessons up until I was in 4th grade. I think I got up to doing “Sonachine”. I don’t remember any of it though.

ーDid you hate doing piano recitals at all?

aiko: Maybe. I don’t think I liked doing them much. I’m pretty sure I’d walk on stage to where the piano was, but then I’d skip off the stage when I was done. Like, “Phew, I’m done!” (laughs) I remember everyone laughing at me for skipping back to my seat.

ーYou weren’t really interested in getting attention as a kid, but you didn’t mind getting it, did you? (laughs)

aiko: I think so? I did English lessons up until I was in early elementary school too, but the older kids would always pick on me. They’d ambush me on my way to and from lessons to pick on me. According to my dad, I was real down in the dumps because of it. So he told me to fight back. “If you get in a fight, and something happens to you,” he said, “I’ll take your side.” He said my mood did a total 180 after he told me that. (laughs)

ーWere you the kind of kid who’d get into fights with boys?

aiko: Yeah, all the time. I even practiced how to punch correctly with my dad. Early in elementary school I wanted to try it out in real life just once. I landed a pretty solid hit on a  boy who kept picking on me on the way home from school. (laughs) For a moment I was like, “What have I done!?” But then the boy just got really quiet and went home. In fact, my friends would call out my name so I’d come over whenever they were fighting with a boy. I guess I must’ve seemed pretty manly to them.

ーDo you think that was because there were a lot of boys around you?

aiko: Maybe? All the kids in the apartment complex we lived in at the time were boys. I’d say there were 2 or 3 boys who were about 4 years older than me, a boy who was about my age, and a girl who was a year younger than me.

ーHow was kindergarten? Were you a handful for your teacher?

aiko: Hmmm… I used to say whatever was on my mind, so in that sense… probably. (laughs) I didn’t think twice about saying things that ended up being problems for the PTA.

ーLike, you stood out a lot in class?

aiko: I did whatever I wanted to. (laughs) Oh, speaking of standing out, one time I was the main character of a play we did. It was a story about a caterpillar becoming a butterfly, kind of like “The Ugly Duckling”. In the beginning, everyone’s mean to the caterpillar: “Ew, you’re dirty! Gross! A caterpillar! Shoo!” The caterpillar wonders why it’s so different from everyone else. Then it gets its wings, and it turns out that the ‘caterpillar’ is really a swallowtail butterfly. I was the main character of that story… I really was an oddball.

ーAn oddball, huh? (laughs)

aiko: Yup. But you know, now that I think about it, of course I am-- I’m my parents’ daughter after all. ‘Like father, like son’, right? They’ve got totally different personalities, and I’m a mix of all the good things about them. I think about that a lot. My mom and dad were meant for each other... We used to have a lot of pets at our house even though my mom hates animals. I’m not sure what was going on then, exactly. (laughs) We had almost 100 birds.

ー100 birds!? Can you even do that in an apartment building?

aiko: No, they weren’t supposed to have them. We just kept them a secret. We had an American short-hair cat at first, but had to return it to the pet shop when the landlord found out. But guess who didn’t learn their lesson? We had a Shih tzu after that. The Shih tzu was so attached to our landlord that he just said, “Fine, but keep it a secret, okay?” The whole apartment building became officially ‘pet-friendly’ after he gave us the OK. (laughs) He said he changed it because we were his very first tenants to move in. Soon enough there were so many pets in the building, it was almost like a pet exchange. People were saying stuff like, “Here, I’d like to give you a turtle.” (laughs)

ーBack to the 100 birds you guys had though…

aiko: We had Java sparrows, society finches, canaries, and Gouldian finches; crucian carp, koi fish, snakeheads, ranchu, shrimp, eels, pond loaches, catfish, Japanese rice fish, crayfish, turtles, and crabs in our aquarium; a Shih tzu and a mutt, as well as a hamster and a rhinoceros beetle.

ーA rhinoceros beetle? (laughs)

aiko: Yes. (laughs) They’re always selling them at Expoland whenever I go there. I hate bugs now but was totally fine with them back then. We also kept cicada larvae at our house. I used to watch them emerge from their shells.

ーWhere do you even keep all these pets, anyway?

aiko: Out on the veranda. Which is why their veranda always looked like a jungle, even though it was super tiny. The left side of the veranda was the corner where we kept the fish, the right side was the corner where we had all the bird cages stacked on top of each other. You go inside, and that’s where we kept the dogs and the hamster. The ranchu swam around in the entryway of the apartment. My dad took good care of all of them, every single day.

ーDid you have any pets that were sort of weird, or unusual to have as pets?

aiko: Hm… Well, we never had any reptiles… Maybe the flying squirrel? We also had… what was it… we had piranhas and such too.

ーI wouldn’t keep one of those as a pet. (laughs)

aiko: Well, we didn’t think anything of it! My dad got so excited watching them grow. He had so much fun taking care of the piranhas. (laughs)

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[diyunho]

The Joker x Reader- “The Black Plague”

The Joker’s unexpected death left you behind with a young daughter to raise and unbearable pain. Things have never been easy but now that he’s gone you miss him so badly it hurts. And you have a lifetime to endure without The King of Gotham.

“What…took you…so long? I almost died waiting…literally…” J takes deep breaths, trying to focus on you. He’s lying in a pool of blood, still holding the cell to his chest.

You rush by his side and kneel, so shocked you can’t make a sound. You lift his head in your lap, wiping a few red drops splattered on his pale cheeks.

“Those bastards…got me…” he manages to point towards the two dead bodies a few feet away in the underground parking. “But I got… them too,” The Joker pants, making an effort to continue. “I’m glad…you answered…the phone…” and he groans in pain; it’s so hard for him to speak at this point. “If…if there’s something…you wanna tell me…you should hurry…” he faintly smiles and your mind is completely blank. You finally start bawling, reality suddenly hitting with its cruel outcome.

“I love you,” J hears and it seems so far away.

“I…I know that…What else?” He starts coughing, almost choking in his own blood.

“What am I supposed to tell Emma, hm?” you bring your face close to his, so desperate and hopeless you can’t stop shaking.

“Tell her…that…” and The Joker really strains to finish but can’t. “Tell… … …her…” His eyelids slowly close, the world fading away.

“J…? J…?” you gently caress his hand even if it’s too late: you know he’s gone. “What am I supposed to tell Emma?… What am I supposed to tell her?…”

*************

As soon as you step out of the elevator into the penthouse, your three years old daughter runs towards you, excited:

“Mommy!” and she hugs your legs, giggling. “Whe’s daddy?” Emma glances behind you, pouting. You don’t even pick her up, not realizing that’s what she wants. Frost gave you his jacket to cover your clothes soaked with blood.

“Up, mommy, up!” she pulls on your jeans, whimpering when you ignore her and walk away.

“Whe’s daddy?” your child insists, hoping he will be the one to play with her.

“Daddy will never come home again,” you turn towards her for a few moments, feeling the unbearable pain crushing your heart.

“Com’ere, kid,” Frost sighs, lifting the little girl in his arms, her pigtails flying in the air.“You want chocolate cake?” he asks, distracting Emma and she nods a yes, forgetting she was about to whine.

“Cake?” the squeaky tone excitedly inquires.

“Yes, kiddo, your favorite.”

“Yaaayy!!!” she bounces in his strong hold, happy to get a sweet treat. You barely drag your feet to the nearest bathroom downstairs, locking the door and start to undress, your body convulsing under the pressure building up inside.

Jonny is very quick to hurry out of the penthouse so the child won’t have to hear the screams that will soon echo in the stillness.

**************

“Wanna see daddy?”

“U-hum,” Emma impatiently reaches her hands for you and she gets picked up right away.

The silver casket is opened and she peeks at her dead father.

“Daddy?” she leans over and strokes his forehead, not understanding why he’s not moving. “Daddy, wake up,” and his daughter kisses his cheeks, snickering; she thinks The Joker is pretending and will tickle her for sure in just a few seconds.

“Daddy can’t wake up, sweetie,” you bite on your lower lip as hard as you can to stop the tears.

“Why?” she sulks, rubbing her blue eyes, then pets his hair, sensing something is not quite right but she’s too young to comprehend the awfulness of what is happening.

“He has to go far away and we won’t see him after today, ok?” you try to explain in the best way possible, your voice breaking towards the end of the sentence.

“Nooo,” she whimpers, clinging at your black dress.

You sniffle and Emma kisses his temple, upset.

“Daddy’s cold.”

You lift your shoulders up, incapable of mustering a reply. She puckers her lips and blows warm air on his neck a few times, then the little girl smiles once more, waiting for him to say something.

“Daaaddy…wake up…” she gets disappointed again since J is not reacting. The kid taps his hand, not giving up. “Daddy…daddy…”

Your daughter notices you’re crying and she frowns, wincing when you squeeze her in your embrace.

“I want my daaaaddy,” Emma places her arms around your neck, her mother’s behavior making her uneasy yet you can’t control the raging emotions anymore.

“Your dad is gone,” you whisper in her ear, sobbing. “It’s only us the girls now.”

***************

“Is this seat taken?” someone wants to know while you are immersed in your book, waiting for the meeting to begin.

“Yes!” you almost shout since you always want to be alone and not socialize with the others.

“Perfect!” the person grumbles and takes a seat by you, disregarding the answer.

“Do you mind?!” you get pissed, slamming the pages shut.

“No, I don’t mind,” the arrogance takes over.

You want to tell the man to fuck off or something but as your eyes meet his, that can’t be done: it’s The Joker. You kind of had a one night stand, then another one, then another one, then a few more, then…nothing in the last two weeks.

“I can seat wherever I want, Y/N, I don’t need permission.”

Avoiding confrontation with J is tough, almost impossible. He pretends to brush an imaginary crumb off his green suit, resting his fingers on the top of the cane matching his outfit.

“You’re all dolled up; going on a date or something?” The King of Gotham teases because he loves to annoy you: he calls it “his hobby”.

“In the matter of fact I am after this boring crap,” and it’s actually the truth.

“Pretty popular, huh?” he grins, chuckling.

“Yeap, always,” the sassiness bothers him and J growls.

“In your dreams, Y/N, you’re not that special,” the malicious smirk on his face irritates you.

“Well then, thank God you don’t have to go on a date with me.”

“Indeed,” he snarls, crossing his legs. ”You get on my nerves; I couldn’t stand you even if you pay me.”

“I have better things to spend my money on, Mister J. You’re just jealous.”

He glares in your direction, burning holes through you.

“Jealous?! Me?! I bet the guy’s a loser anyway,” he starts laughing and you don’t find it amusing. If you continue the conversation he won’t shut up so you swallow your pride and let him have the last word.

** “Is this seat taken?” you hear his voice and panic.

“Yes!!” you look up to see him as he’s positioning himself right by you.

“Excellent. So the guy’s not here yet?” The Joker pries in your personal life, wanting to hear the scoop.

“No, not yet, so I would appreciate if you would just leave. Are you following me around?!” you bluntly demand to know.

“Ha! That’s a good one, Y/N. Like I don’t have better things to do with my precious time. I actually have a date too, not that I need to inform you. I am being a gentleman here because I saw you all alone at the table and I thought you should know: your date is not coming.”

“Wha…? How do you know he’s not coming?” you suspiciously squint your eyes.

“I told him not to show up or I’m gonna kill him. It worked, didn’t even fight it. Told you you’re not that special,” J winks, satisfied with his victory. He gets up and steps away, leaving you behind dumbfounded.

You try to call your guy and after a couple of rings, the message makes you cringe: “This number is no longer is service.”

Are you kidding me?!  you angrily yell at your cell, concluding things will not happen so you abandon your table on the terrace, making your way out of the restaurant when you see him: J with a woman, getting reading to have dinner.

You stomp towards them, antagonized.

“Is this seat taken?” you touch one of the two extra chairs, yanking it away.

“Yes,” the woman stares you down, confused. “We are expecting company.”

“Cool !” and you drop on it, nonchalantly grabbing an extra menu and reading through it.

J ignores you, continuing to gaze at his.

“Who is this, Mister J?” she frets, appalled somebody has the audacity to interrupt them.

“The Black Plague,” he snarls, sucking on his silver teeth, calm and composed. His favorite nickname for you.

“Can you tell her to leave, please?”

“It’s a free country. If you want her to leave, tell her yourself.”

The woman is very confused and you interrupt:

“So what are we having?”

“Lamb,” The Joker shortly responds, closing his menu.

“I’ll have the same,” you decide. “What do you want?” you address the woman and she is lost. “Mister J, what’s going on? I thought we’re on a date.”

“We are.”

“It’s very awkward,” she complains.

“I love awkward,” you serenely smile, apparently without a care in the universe.

“I don’t!” the woman snaps and J retaliates:

“If you don’t like it, disappear!”

Her mouth opens and before she protests, you enunciate with an indifferent tone:

“I’m pregnant.”

“Why?” he debates on the question, skeptical.

“Why what?” you continue, scratching your arm.

“Why are you telling me? You need a father for your kid?”

“Nope, I thought you would want to know,” and the woman feels out of place since her presence is totally disregarded by both parties. “You want a paternity test?”

“Naahh, I will spare you the embarrassment of everyone finding out I’m not the dad.” “More like you want to spare yourself the embarrassment of finding out you are the dad after creating such a fuss over it,” your confident comeback makes the woman abandon her seat and The Joker doesn’t acknowledge the move.

“This is ridiculous! We are on a date! I can’t…”

“Then get lost!” he rolls his eyes. “Or stay! Your choice, allright?!”

**************

“Daaaadyyyyy,” you hear Emma’s mouse voice and open your eyes, still tired as hell. You fell asleep inside the walk-in closet again: it’s been your refuge and sanctuary lately, the only space that keeps the demons at bay. Surrounded by his clothes and everything he left behind, you don’t come out of the sacred hideout for hours.

“Daadddyyyy,” your daughter little feet run up and down the stairs: she’s searching for her father again. The poor child believes J is playing hide-and-seek with her, that’s why he’s not around. Sometimes you join the quest, finding your troubled mind actually hoping he would just show up out of nowhere and brag about how amazingly diligent he is since his girls couldn’t find him. An idiot’s hope, fueled by your daughter’s innocence and you own sorrow…

“Y/N,” Frost knocks at the door, “I brought food, come and eat.”

You lick your dry lips, remembering you didn’t even drink water today.

“I’m not hungry,” you yawn, adjusting your body on the air mattress and turning on the laptop.

“You have to eat; Emma’s hungry, come on,” he insists and you obey, not in the mood for anything.

You roll off your current bed, cracking your stiff bones as you stretch. Somehow it’s even hard to breathe. After a couple of minutes you are finally out of the closet and find your daughter at the table in the kitchen, already munching on some mashed potatoes. You really don’t know what you would do without Jonny; he takes care of her and everything else since you are incapable of being a full time mother or tend to any business.

“Mommy, look,” she proudly shows you her plate, excited to see you for the day.

You kiss her forehead and sadly smile, not touching your food.

“Eat mommy,” Emma tries to feed you. “This is f’om meeee,” she drags the word and you are familiar with the game so you accept the tiny spoon. More mashed potatoes come your way. “And this is f’om daaadddyyy,” you daughter giggles and you can’t even chew. But you pull yourself together as she goes on: “This is f’om meeeee… …This is f’om daaaddddyyy.”

You forcefully eat and can’t stop the tears anymore when the inevitable question arises:

“Whe’s daddy, hm?” and she looks around, probably wanting to feed him also.

“Daddy’s not here,” and you abruptly get up and run away, bumping into Frost that is coming over with more food.

“Hey, Y/N, did you eat already?!”

You don’t reply and go back to your oasis, crying so hard you can’t focus as you go through the laptop, looking at pictures and videos, precious memories that summarize your only hope for some kind of closure. You accidentally click on “Accounts”, then want to back out when a subfolder gets your attention: “For The Black Plague.”

What is this? you wipe your eyes, not having a clue about what it would be: you rarely go into “Accounts” on your laptop because J had all the links on his and kept track of the money more than you did.

You double click on it and it opens up a video icon, dated 6 months ago.

How intriguing.

Click again and…

“So only watch this if I’m dead, OK?” The Joker’s face popping up on the screen makes you gasp. “Are you still watching?… Well, I guess I’m dead then. First thing first: don’t cry. Your eyes get so puffy you look like a blow-up fish! Very unattractive! It’s 2 in the morning, I am in my boxers and after you totally ignored my request for sex, I guess I’m bored enough to make this stupid video. What is that?!” he turns around and you can see yourself in the background, sleeping, completely out of it. “Is that snoring? Huffing? Puffing? The Queen of Gotham, making all those sounds! Geez, woman,” and J faces the camera again, tucking his messy green hair behind the ears.

“Anyway, in case you were wondering, yes, I hate you. I hate so much that I had a kid with you,” his husky voice announces. “I guess that says it all. E-hem,” J fake coughs and you are mesmerized, can’t even breathe. “Hey, Princess!” he yells, “I’m horny, wake up!” Some mumbling about being tired is heard, you don’t recall anything. “For the record, this is a direct threat to my health,” his blue eyes stare at the camera. “ I have to be able to walk tomorrow so I must insist. Hey, Princess!” he yells louder. “I’m horny, come on, wake up!”

A faint answer, can’t even understand what you said.

“Wow, that tired, hm? Don’t care. I’m gonna get laid no matter what,” and that cocky grin gets you out of trance for a second. “It’s a miracle we got a kid out of this relationship. Before I go, here’s the deal: since I obviously died first, I’ll wait for you. Don’t take too long: try not to live until you’re a hundred or something, you are aware I get easily bored. Then after you come, we’ll wait together for the kiddo, ok?”

Then he stops, thinking about what just came out of his mouth.

“Oh my God, see what being horny and ignored makes me do ?! I talk about a bunch of stupid stuff; it’s all your fault !!!” he scrunches up his face, squirming in the recliner. Then it seems J is having an interior struggle about his final words. “Are you gonna make me say it?” and you involuntarily clench to your shirt. “Fine, I’ll say it again: I hate you. You know what that translates into? Do you?… It translates into I don’t like you. What?! Were you expecting I love you? Pfft, in your dreams, woman, get over yourself; you’re not that special,” The Joker hisses. “I might delete this since it’s complete garbage. I’ll decide after you take care of my needs.”

And his finger goes over the camera, the video coming to a halt.

You are so overwhelmed your body is petrified, looking around the closet and expecting for something to happen. But nothing happens, so you sigh, replaying the video over and over again until you fall back to sleep.

*****************

Emma crawls by J, sucking on her binky, trying to climb up his foot.

“You’re pretty helpless, aren’t you?” he scoffs, watching her retry and dropping back on her little butt numerous times until crying starts.

“For heaven’s sake, why can’t you just do it?” and he helps her up, firmly pressing the 6 months old against his leg. She clutches to his pants and starts smiling so widely that the pacifier falls out of her mouth.

“What, you’re happy now?” and that almost toothless, sweet smile makes him groan.“You’re not a cute baby, you know that?”

“Stop saying that to our daughter, she is cute!” you get mad since you heard him.

“You’d think she would be better looking kid: I’m handsome and the mom is not that hideous,” The Joker blares out a bunch of obnoxious unfunded opinions.  

You snatch her from him, frowning.

“Let’s go, sweetie. Daddy’s just a bitter, cranky man!” “Watch it, Y/N!” he shouts after you as you leave the premises and after a while a door gets slammed, then the elevator descending makes him aware you left.

Great, he gazes at the ceiling, already knowing where you’re headed.

He didn’t contact you in a week, you didn’t bother either. Just stayed at your apartment like you usually do when things go sour. And they go sour very often.

It’s the middle of the night and you go check on Emma when you realize the nightlight in her room is on. You quietly approach and peep inside from behind the wall: J is there, holding the little one in his arms.

“You are cute,” he kisses her forehead. “I just don’t like you too much.”

You decide to make your presence known.

“What are you doing here? You came to see your ugly baby?”

The Joker growls, full of spite.

“Why didn’t you bring her over?! It’s been a week!”

You lift your shoulders up, grouchy and resentful.

“Why bother? You’ll be mean to her and she doesn’t deserve it.”

“Shut up and stop aggravating me! You’re coming back to the penthouse first thing in the morning.”

“No!”

But fighting him is pointless.

“You can’t keep a father from his child; it’s illegal!” J throws that in your face and it sounds so silly you chuckle.

***************

“Da’yy,” Emma babbles and J drops the cellphone in his lap.

“Did she just…did she just say daddy?!” he inquires and you snort.

“I think so,” and you watch the one year old hesitantly stepping towards a fascinated Joker.

“Can you say it again?” he lifts her in his arms, probably expecting a full conversation. He’s that type of person.

But Emma just baby talks, preoccupied with his crazy colored hair.

****************

“Daaadyy, Daaaddyyyy, Daaaddddyy, la, laaa, la, Dadddyyyyy, la, la,laaaa,” the two year old keeps on singing, walking her Doll on her father’s knees.

He’s getting a headache: she’s been singing that for the past 15 minutes, completely insensitive to her parent’s pain.

“Pumpkin, are you going to stop soon?!”

The singing gets louder and you have to underline:

”Aren’t you excited you have your own song? I don’t!”

“Ughhh, lucky me,” The Joker grumbles but caresses her tiny head.

***************

“Mom, mom, wake up, you’re talking in your sleep again.”

First thing you see upon awakening is Emma, sitting on the bed and holding your hand. She is 35 now, almost the same age you were when you lost J.

You got so sick in the last month. You had walking pneumonia and didn’t even know until you fainted in the living room. Added to your heart disease and other complications, your health doesn’t seem to improve, only worsen day by day. Your daughter refuses to leave your side, even if you tell her you’re fine.

“I dreamed about your father again,” you confess. “Dreams about a long time ago, when you were a baby…”

She softly laughs, kissing your hand.

“Did you dream about when we used to look for him all over the place?”

“How do you know?” you smile, sliding up your pillows.

“You keep on repeating his name, mom,” Emma helps you up as you kind of struggle to keep your balance.

“Let’s look for him again, we didn’t do it in so long!” you suddenly have an outburst of energy.

“Really?” she holds your waist as you walk outside your bedroom.

“Humor an old woman, would you?” you beg, playing the weakling mother.

“Fine,” your daughter agrees. “Let’s search for him. Daadddddd!!!!” she raises her voice and you follow.

“Jaaaaayyyyyyy!!!!!!” and you search the penthouse in every room, even the closets.

“He’s nowhere to be found…again…” you get sad and Emma feels guilty.

“Mom, come on, don’t get upset.”

“Why can’t we ever find him?…” and your teary eyes make hers the same. “I don’t feel too good, kiddo, help me back downstairs.”

“Did you take your meds, mom? You must have high blood pressure again.”

“Stupid pills !! My heart disease it’s from a broken heart, can’t fix that,” you repeat to the young woman like you always do when she asks about the meds.

Emma places you back to bed, tucking you in.

“I’ll bring some water for your tablets. You have to take your antibiotics too. Did you eat anything today?”

“Of course!” you lie, dizzy and drained.

“I don’t believe you. I’ll warm up some food and I’ll be back shortly, ok?”

“Stubborn like your dad,” you playfully slap her thigh.

“Stubborn like both, from what I’ve heard,” she points out the truth, exiting the room.

You want to reach for the remote so you can turn on the TV, but the sudden, sharp ache in your heart knocks you out of breath. You try to call Emma’s name but the sounds freeze on your lips. The piercing pain claws at your chest and your vision gets cloudier. The second wave of throbbing ache calms your labored breathing and as you close your eyes forever, you hear his voice so clearly:

“Finally, Princess, what took you so long ?!”

Also read: MASTERLIST

http://diyunho(dot)tumblr(dot)com/post/153664676321/joker-x-reader-masterlist

[onebookonelink]

One book: The Perfect Find by Tia Williams

One book: The Perfect Find by Tia Williams Thursday, February 9, 2017

Featuring author and honorary guest Tia Williams herself.

I’d bone dark hair Suzanne any day. - WC

This is a safe space. - NP

Fiction stresses me out. Because I see all the work in it. - TW

I loved how it started. Who knows what world of opportunity could be in this book? - LT

I love your references to pop culture. There’s always some little comment or something. You’re always engaged with it. - SM

It’s like drunk history. -KM Lauren, could you review every book please? - KM You have to come to all my signings. - TW She does marketing. - SM Are you getting an Australian accent? - SC

So the main character, she went out with this Tinder date. - LT The guy with the slippers? - WC Ugh! The slippers. - TW

When they went to Home, I pictured Home Sweet Home. - SM

This is so amazing. Explaining the story from the book in front of the person. It’s authorgasm. But after the authorgasm, I’m gonna cry. - TW

Well, I teared up at the end of the book. - SM It’s like, “Forest, this is your daaaddy.” - LT

I can’t write a novel that isn’t me somehow. But I couldn’t put my ex in the book because he’s too boring. - TW

When I first moved here, Brooklyn was a different place. I lived on Quincy and Bedford/Nostrand. It was attached to a KFC. - TW Say no more. - WC

You have to have one person know your secret in case anything goes down. - TW

So…the guy from work…so much of this book was an inside joke to him. He came to my reading and I was shocked. He walked up and he had in a book in his hand…- TW …And and he was like, “Girl, I don’t even need to read it.” - NP

People were Snapchatting him at the signing. Probably because he was the only 14-year-old there. I hadn’t seen him in four years.- TW

Well L and I read some of your scenes in bed. Just FYI. - NP

I know that talking about your dreams are weird, but still. - WC Your dreams are really the only things that are real. - LT