#They fought for 30 seconds once and ended up on top of each other

[chappellcastiel]

Live footage of Merlin trying to keep it together when Arthur and gwaine start doing their weird competitive homoerotic practice duels during training:

[sicksucculentz]

Regretavator headcanons: Pest part 2

He has an exoskeleton like material around his hands and about half way up his forearm. He has the same structure on his feet as well that blends in and ends around the middle of his shin/calf. He has some gnarly exoskeleton structure along his back. It's segmented so he can bend and stoop but he can't bend backward very far. The exoskeleton starts to fade into skin as it branches out his shoulders and his sides/tailbone. What skin he does have is a touch tougher to penetrate than something like human flesh. His skin has a grey hue to it, the grey hue lightning up a slight lighter grey color along his neck and tummy, darkest hue of grey around his elbows and knees. The palms of his hands the bottoms of his feet are also a light grey color.

His teeth are sharp, triangle shaped, and very thick at the base of the tooth. As the teeth progress farther into the back of his mouth they become flatter and longer, a great big molar with a few meek dull points here and there. Due to the length of these molars he only has 4 molars on the bottom jaw and 4 on the top totaling out to 8 molars total vs the 12 humans have.

His mother and his father are the same beetle creatures as he is. He actually has about 27 siblings! His species still lay clutches of eggs and as stag beetles do, lay clutches of roughly 30 or less. His mother laid a clutch of the standard 30 but some of the eggs didn't make it. Pest himself almost didn't make it and came out the second runt. His parents sadly didn't prioritize the runts and instead focused more on the bigger and more aggressive offspring. Pest survived because he just hatched an asshole. Despite his size disadvantage he had no problem bulling his way in to get what he needed to eat. Sure he lost some fights but most of the he could handle himself and kept a steady good weight on him. At about aged 18 he left. He left in the middle of the night and never looked back, never contacted his parents or siblings ever again, they think he's dead. He's not an asshole because of the treatment of his parents/siblings he was just always a 'bad egg'.

As much as he tried to leave his family behind he ended up stumbling into one of his brothers years down the road. He was NOT happy to see him and that set him off. There was a massive nasty beetle fight in the parking lot of a restaurant. Their greeting was legit them crashing their heads together and using their mandibles on the tops of their heads like deer fight with antlers. They were not opposed to using their fists and going for cheep blows. Blood quickly started to fly, within 10 seconds honestly. Fights between this species are incredibly violent and can often be to the death. Luckily the fight was broken up before anyone got seriously hurt.

The two of them ended up getting locked together when they first charged at each other. Pest’s brother is much larger than Pest so he just dragged Pest around for a bit before their horns let go. Pest went right for a cheap shot goring his brother while his brother was recovering. His brother promptly grabbed a horn and threw Pest to the ground.

If one were to grab hold of the large mandibles on the top of his head he will instinctively start pushing, pulling, and trying to fight like he would with another stag beetle. He can't really help it he just falls into the motions. It's not nearly as savage as he fought with his brother more along the lines as this slow harmless sparring type. He actually really likes using those big mandibles, he loves them overall and is very happy with the size of them.

He does have hair, it's short and has a wirey texture but because he's always wearing that hat people always assume he's bald. His colors leans pretty close to black but is more in the dark dark grey hues.

He has very tiny external ears, smaller than average for a human and do not have an ear lobe.

He once blew himself up AND knocked himself out. Something went wrong with something he was building and it exploded sending him flying. He was thrown back into a wall and cracked the back of his head off the wall. He was out cold as soon as his head hit the wall and slumped to the ground. He was out for 3 hours. He came to confused with a monster ear/head ache. He couldn’t remember the day at all and had no idea how he ended up in pain.

If he lets someone, a person can pet and or massage between his eyebrows and his expression will soften. He scowls a lot so that area is often stressed, it feels nice to him. He will start doing real slow relaxed blinks like a cat. Unlike a cat however the slow blinking doesn't mean trust, it means he’s pleased with something or relaxed.

He does have antenna. They are hidden under his hat. They pop up when he takes his hat off and he has to smooth them back when he puts his hat back on. They aren’t very long at all.

He sleeps for up to 14 hours on most nights 9-10 on others. These hours are oddly cut up. He will sleep for about 3-4 hours straight then wake up and do something for about an hour or two hours, go back to bed, repeat that. The hours asleep and the hours awake are never pin point and often change. One night he may be asleep for 2 hours before waking up, others he will wake up after 5 or so hours. It works for him and he's remained well in this sleeping pattern.

He sleeps with a stress ball. It’s a little yellow bird shaped stress ball that he holds in his hands and sometimes squeezes as he’s falling asleep. It helps him fall asleep. He really likes this stress ball and sometimes even has it with him during the day.

He has a Red Teddy ball as well. I loves that ball so much, it makes him laugh.

DrRETRO is the only one that can boss him around. She’s like a mother and that for some reason makes him just comply

[ophaeliacs]

xavier underwood, better known as "chance", has lived in blue harbor for the last eight months. identifying as genderfluid, using he + they pronouns, they were born in san diego, california and fought his way tooth and nail up through the restaurant industry due to a failed dream. at age 30, born on october 29th, 1994 — making them a sun sign in scorpio — he is the head chef @ the newly - opened oyster & pearl. they are known to be determined & comedic, but can also be rather sarcastic & short.

biography. ( cw mentions of death / grief, smoke, & drink )

born in sunny california, as the youngest of three underwood kids, their name sounds on the pretentious side, and their upbringing was comfortable. the result of hard work, instead of hardly working, he and his older siblings were pressured to become even more than what they'd been born into. with his mother as a known banker, and his father having worked in medicine, both coming from humbler upbringings, they instilled this concept of success is how high your grades are and a stable career, and material things to show for it, were what made you. there was nothing shady about it on the outside. yet as you grew older, you started to see signs that you hadn't before. ones that indicated your parents were human, and not superheroes. your mother's stressed all-nighters, checking numbers once or twice, taking phone calls in the car driving you to school in hushed tones about money loans. your father, pouring a bit too many drinks to relax after a tough surgery. you thought this was normal: work hard, relax with a smoke and a drink. end scene.

he admired his older brothers. a room full of boisterous boys who all laughed and shoved at each other. there was always friendly — and sometimes unfriendly — competition and rivalry between all of the siblings. the eldest, roger, was expected to take on the mantle of the doctor, or surgeon, or anything medical. the second eldest, hayes, was taking on finance and business. zoomed around as if in a private jet, shouting i wanna be a millionaire! , all of them singing that song at the top of their lungs. though they didn't raise themselves, they sometimes only had each other. too late night shifts keeping their parents away and preoccupied, getting into video games, sneaking out to friends' parties — and breaking into their dad's cigar drawers. it was all in good fun, nothing bad about it. and xavier, as the youngest, watched his older brothers know their fate. and he — didn't. in high school, he rebelled. started not doing his homework. was it some kind of cry of attention? it's not that he was spoilt nor passed over; just hanging in purgatory. at the same time, the fights started. roger had a different dream than what his parents wanted: he wanted to be a chef.

it wasn't taken seriously. but xavier took it seriously. he stood by his brother when they would cook for family gatherings, help on the grill, engage in telling stories. hayes didn't seem to mind the finance side of things; but xavier saw the struggle. in his rebel without a cause phrase, clad in leather jackets but still showing up to help with the cookout, stepping in when roger would get distracted, getting compliments on how he seasoned things. did he have a natural gift? he went off for college for a regular degree, not culinary school. halfway through a marketing degree, he got the call he dreaded most: his brother was gone. the pressure had gotten to him. going to the funeral passed in a blur. xavier doesn't remember much about it; only now that his brother wouldn't get to be a chef in this life. so xavier became determined, and hardened, to do it for him. he crashed and burnt hard out of his original degree, relied too much on the cigars and alcohol he stole from his dad's cabinet before cutting off his family entirely. he spent most of his 20s going from restaurant to restaurant, gaining as much experience behind the lines and desserts as possible.

even so, he refuses to entirely become his work. he's afraid of what might happen if he takes this dream too seriously. that he'll become exactly what he hates. his nonchalant attitude is grating to most kitchens, despite how quickly he learns and how willing he is to come in to early and closing shifts. the sun of california started to burn and choke him from the inside out. every corner he stood at, he thought he saw his brother staring at him, laughing genuine happiness at how xavier was turning out, or shaking his head in apt disappointment. there was never any in-between.

in the midst of a second crash-and-burn, he saw an advertisement pop up in a facebook group for new restaurants around the united states. a seafood joint, opening up brand new in a place called blue harbor, searching for a chef. he took his years of experience, his rescued stray cat, and his single car full of belongings — left the furniture in his shoddy apartment and everything — cross-country one way. he is determined to make something of himself. make this restaurant have a reputation that extends beyond blue harbor. and maybe a small town, instead of a big city, is exactly what he needs.

[afterglow-tommylee]

Chapter 26. I’ve Been Around For A Long, Long Year

Holy fuck dudes can you believe this? 

Oh wait, hi, it’s Tommy again… well I guess you probably could tell that anyways. Nevermind. Ok where was I? Oh right, 

We’re fucking married!!!

Alright, I know I’m a little late to the fuckin’ party on that one but there was so much Andi had to get to before she would let me come in here again. She’s a perfectionist that way let me tell ya.

Dude, it feels so fucking amazing to be married to that girl. She’s like, everything I’ve ever wanted in a wife I promise. Now I know you’re all thinking, ‘what the fuck, you’ve been married 3 fuckin’ times Tommy, how’d you just figure this out now?’

Ok to explain this I’m gonna have to go back a few years here, so sorry babe I’m taking over for a little bit. You’re all cool with that right? Awesome, I thought you’d be.

Ok, so my first wife I married when I was just a 19 year old kid and I mean that in every sense of the word. I mean I know most people think I’m still just a kid and most days I still feel that way but in this sense, now looking back, I had no idea what I was getting myself into, and I’m definitely not the first one to think that years later. I was in love though and I thought it would last forever. Let’s be honest here, we made it a whole 30 days. I should’ve figured it was a mistake when I introduced her to my parents and, well my mom was shocked to say the least and my dad, well he just looked the other way. 

We were just insane. She was over the top crazy jealous and when we fought, shit you better look out. But that’s what made it all the more hotter I swear, or so I thought at the time. She’d throw anything she could at me when we were in the midst of our fights and there was even a time where she fuckin’ stabbed me in the hand with a butter knife then turned around to finish making her peanut butter sandwhich with it. Like, What. The. Actual. Fuck.

The last straw was when she called my mother a cunt. I don’t remember what started it, but once again we were fighting and she all out called my mother that, and she wouldn’t let it go no matter how many times I told her to stop. No one calls my mother a cunt and I fuckin’ kicked her out like yesterdays trash. After that I swore I was never gonna get married again.

Yea I know

But I did get married again, and I know you know all about Heather so I won't bore you with all that. I’ll only say this, I loved her with everything I had. We had been through a lot together and after a while, we just weren’t on the same path anymore. She wanted to focus on her career and I wanted to start a family and since we wanted different things, it just went all bad from there. 

So I was single guy again, and it was fuckin’ crazy. But I wasn’t single for long, I know I can’t help myself. I started dating Bobbie Brown - you know the chick from the Cherry Pie video? Yea her - and holy fuck that was crazy. She was super sweet and so hilarious and we were crazy about each other. But once again, jealousy is one angry motherfucker when it comes out. Like one minute we couldn’t fucking keep our hands off each other and the next minute we were fighting like animals. We were engaged but I never ended up pulling the trigger. There were just so many odd things that made me second guess her. Her strange mood swings and her paranoia, and then especially since she had me arrested for domestic violence after a big blow up we had. I know, sounds familiar right? 

Cue Pamela 

Now I’m not going to go into all of that here with you, since I did mention some of it earlier and again you guys are probably over the whole thing, I know I am. I feel like you all are screaming at me like “Shit Tommy didn’t you learn anything?” - I know, I know. Fuckin’ trust me dudes I know. You want drama in your life? Marry an actress. I’ve had enough to last me 5 lifetimes over, maybe even more.

After that I was done. Truly done. There was no fuckin way I was gonna do that all over again. After Pamela and I had finally called it quits - after months of us going back and forth missing each other, then fighting, then missing each other and hooking up, and I knew we had to stop but I just wanted us to be a family for our boys - we finally ended all the bullshit. I signed those divorce papers and never looked back. I came to realize that we really just needed to stay friends cause everything else just wasn’t working anymore. 

I stayed single for a long fuckin’ time - I mean I’m not gonna lie, there were a few late night booty calls in there somewhere - but I was free and clear and just didn’t want anything to do with relationships, dating, or like… y’know any of that shit. 

Then Andrea walked into that boardroom and I was done. That’s it, I found her. I found the one and even though I know I said that so many times before, this time I truly meant it. I still have no idea how she is my wife. She absolutely changed everything. It’s like, where the fuck has she been all my life? There is no fuckin’ way this is real. I keep thinkin’ I’m gonna wake up, like it’s all some sort of dream that isn’t really happening. 

Everything she does just blows me away. When I pulled out the titty cam - you guys remember the titty cam don’t ya? I mean how can you forget him? - I wasn’t sure what she was gonna do but I thought I would just play it up, y’know? If she got mad, or embarrassed I knew I was gonna hear about it later, but she totally just jumped right in. In later shows, it was like this competition between us, who could get more girls to flash us? She always won and I mean c’mon who could resist that sweetness she has.

She has opened up so much since we’ve been together and I’m so incredibly proud of her. That photo shoot we did together for that article, fuck dude, she was so fuckin’ gorgeous and those shots came out incredibly beautiful. When she showed me the final photos, I had to frame them right away and I hung them up right in the foyer so that everyone could see just how beautiful she is. 

She takes on so much and being a woman in this business is tough, and that’s comin from a guy who has seen it all. She has definitely seen it all and then some, but she never lets any of that shit get to her.

I mean we’re not all perfect, rainbows and fluffy clouds all the time. We fuckin’ fight just like any couple would. You’ve only seen just a glimpse, but trust me, you do not want to fight with an Irish girl. You will fuckin’ lose bro. 

No, but seriously it’s not to the extent of my previous relationships, she is definitely way more level headed even when she’s angry. I could never see her do anything like what I’ve experienced with my ex’s. She may want to though, cause I know I can be a dick when I want to be haha, but she would like, never carry it out. 

She never lets the business get in the way of us. Even when we’re butting heads about where I’m playing next or, the interviews and press she has set up, and I’m being a little brat about it, not wanting to fuckin’ do any of that shit - only some days though, most days I love it - We’ll definitley argue. But once I’m about to go on that stage, we make up, and she is like, in my corner ready to battle the world with me.

She is an amazing step mother to my boys, and they get so excited to see her everytime I pick those little monkeys up to see them. I swear they love her more than me. I just never thought I would ever find someone like her in a million years.

So, all of this to say, she is everything that I ever wanted in a wife and then some. I honestly didn’t think girls like her existed. Every time I was with a chick they’d be all cool with what I do until after a while they’d try and change me. Andi isn’t like that. She loves me for who I am and I love her for who she is. Music is always going to be my number one no matter what, but Andi is my number one too - er as well - y’know what I mean. She is the first woman to ever understand that. She’s never fighting against it or trying to change me in any way. She’s right up there with me and for that, there aren’t any words to explain my love for her.

Now that I’ve rambled on for the better part of… fuck what time is it? Shit! Ok, gotta go dudes, but I promise I’ll be back. I always am.

See ya!

[krawlernyannyan]

HSR 9-8-23

Relic grind today had nothing worth mentioning. A set of Healing gloves had an Attack main stat but the substats weren't even worth sticking Luocha with.

6x Abundance Trace rounds

6x Aether Calyx rounds

4x EXP Calyx rounds

Hit Level 30 on Nameless Honor today, which means I get to pick out on the specialty Light Cones! Going with the Pela Lesbian Moments one since I could use a nice Abundance LC for Lynx when she gets here. Probably going to be spending a bit of the next week or so getting this leveled up.

With dailies out of the way it's time for another run of Swarm Disaster! I'm running Hunt again this time since the Pathstrider goals I have right now would really benefit from the Trotter Beacons the Path lays out. Only Difficulty II since I'm not confident enough with this Path to go for the actual challenge.

Found out (at least in SD) the opening benefit options have been changed so they can swap out and you're not guaranteed to get the same three each time. Went with the "2 Good Curios, 1 Bad Curio" option and thankfully the negative one only makes enemies aggro a certain character for a couple turns.

Had the Path of Propagation activate as a random event so I got a free Propagation Wax Curio (on top of having gotten a Propagation gold blessing from one of the Curios I got at the start).

Got the Hunt/Abundance Interplay in the first plane thanks to Screwllum's blessings store (and with reduced prices from a Curio, to boot).

Got the "Reroll all Curios" Curio from beating the Voidranger centaur as the first boss and wound up with like, 5-6 Blessings plus a couple Blessing enhancements (and wound up with one of the other initial Curio options so, never punished for gambling).

Got the Trotter Occurrence and managed to kill all 3 this time! Got the Elation Blessing that turns all Ultimates into follow-up attacks which is very handy.

Managed to get the Hunt/Elation Interplay after an Elite fight on the second plane after picking up some damage-boosting blessings.

Fought Kafka as the second boss and was worried since I'm not remotely on a cleanse-heavy strat (and I was at Planar Disarray 2) but thankfully the lower difficulty + all the speed and damage buffs made it so I only even had the brainwash status applied once in the entire fight. I got the third Path Resonance for The Hunt afterwards, which is great because I rarely ever get those!

Got two Pathstrider goals met by the end of the second plane, one for triggering Planar Disarray twice and the other for clearing 6 domains with any beacons applied. Big round of bonuses here for Nihility, Abundance, Elation, and Destruction.

Got the barrel-busting Adventure domain in the third plane and actually full-cleared it for the first time! It takes some careful maneuvering but Bronya did it with a couple seconds to spare.

Definitely one of the wilder runs I've ever had in the Sim Universe! Although I won't be able to cheese progress at Difficulty II anymore, the goals I have on Pathstriding all need to be at III or higher.

Five-Star Fund: 84/90

[atlanticcanada]

Going for gold: Canada roars back to beat U.S. in world junior semifinal

Canada is one step away from its 20th gold medal at the world junior hockey championship.

Adam Fantilli scored the go-ahead goal in the second period and Thomas Milic was outstanding in making 43 saves as the tournament hosts fought back from an early 2-0 deficit to defeat the United States 6-2 on Wednesday in another emotional matchup of the bitter international rivals.

Joshua Roy had two goals, including one into the empty net, and two assists for Canada, while Connor Bedard and Logan Stankoven each scored once and set up another. Brandt Clarke had the other goal, while Fantilli added an assist for a two-point night.

Czechia beat Sweden 2-1 in a thrilling overtime to also qualify for Thursday's final.

Logan Cooley and Kenny Connors replied for the Americans, who will play the Swedes for bronze. Trey Augustine stopped 31 shots for the U.S.

TSN's complete coverage of the world juniors

Canada, which advanced to face the Americans thanks to Bedard's incredible individual effort in a dramatic overtime victory against the Slovaks in the quarterfinals, dropped a 5-2 decision to Czechia in an embarrassing tournament opener.

Expected to go high at the 2023 NHL draft — but also largely overshadowed at the men's under-20 event by the breathtaking Bedard, the presumptive top pick in June and world junior scoring leader with 23 points in six games — Fantilli started the tournament on the second line, but was pushes to the fringes of the roster as the showcase progressed.

After the Canadians fought back to tie the score 2-2 early in the second, he scored his second goal of the event off a terrific feed from Zach Dean to ignite a red-clad Scotiabank Centre.

Milic made a terrific stop on Jimmy Snuggerud off a 2-on-1 to keep Canada, which won its 19th gold at the pandemic-delayed summer tournament, in the driver's seat.

The U.S. appeared to tie it at 6:22, but Jackson Blake's goal was overturned following a coach's challenge for goaltender interference.

Augustine then denied Dylan Guenther in alone at the other end, but Roy scored his fourth on a backhand at 12:20.

Olen Zellweger hit the post on a Canadian power play before Milic stopped Connors on a short-handed break.

Rutger McGroarty looked to have made it 4-3 just 38 seconds into the third, but Canada once again correctly challenged for goaltender interference.

Milic made four huge saves on a U.S. power play that also included McGroarty chiming a shot off the post.

The Americans had their neighbours on the ropes as the period wore on, but Fantilli set up Clarke for his second at 9:45 for some much-needed breathing room.

Roy iced into the empty net on a U.S. power play with 3:15 remaining to send the Canadians to Thursday's final as fans chanted "We Want Gold" at Scotiabank Centre.

Canada, which came in losers in five of its last six meetings with the U.S., including the finals of both the 2017 and 2021 tournaments, had a terrible start Wednesday.

Cooley, second in tournament scoring behind Bedard, broke the ice 1:19 into the first when he swept home a loose puck for his sixth.

The U.S. led 9-0 on the shot clock before Canada tested Augustine and came close when Luke Hughes hit the outside of Milic's post before going up 2-0 at 10:30 when Connors banged home a rebound for his second.

Bedard, who set five national or tournament records in the quarters, responded at 11:49 after the Canadians — poor against the Slovaks in the faceoff circle and even worse early Wednesday against the Americans — won an offensive zone draw and took a nice feed from Ethan Del Mastro in front to make it 2-1.

Stankoven got the hosts back on level terms 57 seconds into the second on a scramble.

Fantilli hit the post on a power play, but wouldn’t be denied later in the period before Milic stopped a Chaz Lucius breakaway.

AMERICAN PRAISE

U.S. head coach Rand Pecknold was asked before the game what stood out about Canada’s star-studded roster that features seven first-round picks — including three NHLers — plus Bedard and Fantilli.

"Talent, talent and more talent," Rand said. "They've done a great job developing players."

CZECHS FOCUSED

Czechia will have to pay close attention to Bedard, but forward Gabriel Szturc said his team knows there’s more to the Canadians than just the dynamic forward.

"Every player on Canada is very good,” Szturc said. "You can't say, 'Hey, you have to play only against Connor Bedard.'"

NO CHATTER

The Michigan Wolverines of the NCAA were well-represented Wednesday with five combined players taking the ice.

Fantilli suited up for Canada, while Hughes, Rutger McGroarty, Gavin Bindley and Dylan Duke were in the U.S. lineup.

There just hasn’t been much chatter.

"I stuck to my word,” McGroarty said when asked if he’s been in contact with Fantilli throughout the tournament. "I haven't texted him at all."

Hughes echoed those sentiments.

"Radio silence."

Now Fantilli has world junior bragging rights.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 4, 2023. 

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/7695QyO

[extremelyblackandwhite]

ascendance - 01

PAIRING: mob!bucky barnes x reader

WARNINGS: violence, dark themes, age gap (reader is 23, bucky is 37)

SUMMARY: she was at the wrong place at the wrong time and a misunderstanding dooms her to a life as an ascendance card under the watch of the executer.

A/N: i’m so excited to go back to my mob writing roots with this one. there’s a bit of a few twists and changes to the traditional mob writing i’ve done before and i am really excited to be sharing chapter one with you. hope you enjoy it xx

> NEXT CHAPTER 

The ambience was dark, badly lit by the yellow flickering lights in the halls with echoes of the buzzing of the hot old light bulbs. There was no sound but that buzz and the heavy sound of his boots hitting the rotting wood floor boards. The scent in the air was putrid, a mix of what seemed like life meeting its end stage, cheap cider and weed. It was definitely different and he didn’t trust it. 

At the end of the corridor there it was. 107. The 107th flat in purgatory with the door slightly opened. He pushed the door open, the smell getting more intense and his boots sticky with the liquor spilled on the floor. 

     - What did you do? - each word was punctuated with intense disbelief, as if this was all a nightmare. 

     - Bucky, help me!

PRESENT

The wind brushed and pulled her hair into different directions as she stepped off the train’s step. She rushed through the streets of New York, hair pin stuck in the middle of her teeth as she fought the winds to try and set her hair into an appropriate hair do while running down the street at the same time. The chattering people and the sun peaking through the clouds was hopeful as she grabbed her coffee from the same vendor off the side street as her eyes gazed upon the Metropolitan Opera House which had been gracing the New York landscape for longer than she had been on this earth and now she was part of it, she was a small speck in an almost 60 year long history. 

Her smiled widened as her sneakers hit the pavement, eyes gazing over the fountain and the flags of the production coming down from the opera house’s arches. The same production she was part off. Sure, she was a chorus girl but the mere thought of singing on that stage, of watching that public in those red velvet seats under the chandelier just made it all more exciting. She walked inside the theatre through the stage door, meeting the manager at the door. 

     - Hi. - she leaned her hands against the desk where the manager was surrounded by attendance and cast sheets as well as a big laptop shining a blue light onto her face. The woman didn’t even look up, instead putting up a board with the names of all people in the production in front of her. - Do you need to see my ID? 

     - Just sign in front of your name. 

Y/N giddily looked at the list of names, hers closer to the bottom but there, written in bold Arial font. She signed her name in front of her printed one with the barely working pen, before pinning it over the board and handing it over to the manager who pointed inside the opera theatre. She held onto her gym bag harshly, padding the sublime floors and looking around with such wonder one would believe she’d never been here. She’d been here before, she was here every month to watch a performance but now she was not guest, she was not just another person walking in with a ticket, she was part of it, she was part of the show. After years of doing community plays, workshops and failed auditions, she had gotten here and suddenly all those days spent in bed feeling miserable in bed after getting rejected yet again didn’t matter anymore she was here.

Her eyes glanced at every tiny little ornament in the opera house until she entered the theatre room. Her heart filled with joy and happy nostalgia as the red and golden tones of the room involved her. There wasn’t anyone in the theatre yet except for a few musicians from the instrumental pit and some cleaners so she was free to roam around. Her fingers traced the suede velvet of the red seats, finding a few missing binoculars on the grounds but not really caring. 

     - You! - she whipped her head towards the voice which came from a woman, probably in her mid 40s all dressed in black with a gold name tag slightly above her left breast. 

     - Hi. - Y/N smiled, extending her hand towards the woman. - I’m Y/N, I’m the new ...

    - I don’t care, we need silk ribbons, now. 

    - Oh, I ... I’m new, I don’t know where I’d get silk ribbons, m’am.

    - The costume room? Go, stop looking at me as if you were Bambi and go.

    - Oh, okay. 

She made her way hastily out of the theatre room wondering how she was going to find silk ribbons, where she was going to find them and why she had to find them. Maybe it was a hazing ritual for new people, after all, she had been into various hazings during her career, including downing a whole bottle of honey which she couldn’t even finish, only eating one fourth of it before becoming nauseous. 

She stopped in the middle of the hall, wondering where the costume room could be. It couldn’t be on the top floor, that was usually where the bars and common rooms were so if the building followed regular construction protocols for opera houses, it was probably on the underground section of the house where the dressing rooms used to be. Y/N ventured into the lift, pressing the lowest number on the number chart of the panel until she reached the underground floor. Y/N looked around, people running in and out yet no one stopped whenever she tried to question where the costume room was. She had managed to find the costume shop but no luck finding the costume room until she was pretty much pressed against a dark door with those exact words by the passing crowd. 

She twisted the knob of the costume room door, tumbling onto the dark room as a result. The room was filled to the brim with costumes on each side of the room, a plexiglass divider between the two sides which stopped every meter or so and also appeared to be divided onto female and male costumes with the ensemble costumes at the back. She padded across the concrete floors, looking through dresses and accessories for ribbons but no successful attempt. The ruffling from the other side of the room had her turning around, forehead furrowed as she walked towards the plexiglass divider. 

     - Hello? - she questioned, wondering if there was someone in this room who could help her find silk ribbons. Great, she had barely joined the company and was already screwing up. Great, Y/N. Way to go, Y/N. 

She saw someone all dressed in black just like the women before, yet there seemed to be something which didn’t match up; black jeans, black shirt and black leathe jacket as well as a pair of also black boots, scruffed and probably entirely too old to still be holding up together. Her eyes caught his which despite the low almost non existent light of the costume room, were light, a sort of greyish blue like the calm sea before of storm. His gaze pulled hers in, like gravity and she couldn’t help but clutch the jacket next to her as a bad feeling along with something she’d never felt before settled in her stomach. 

His hair was mostly pushed back yet the ones which framed his face fell like dominos. She moved along the side where she was to one of the plexiglass gaps and he did the same still maintaining eye contact with her, until the two reached the gap. She didn’t notice she was holding her breathe in until she breathed out.

    - Hi. - her own hand gripped her wrist, shoe grinding against the floors. - Uhm, I’m new here and this lady sent me down to find some silk ribbons but I can’t find any. Do you ...

    - I... uh ... I don’t know where they are. - he faltered for a few seconds before regaining his posture.

    - Oh, I thought since you were here, you might be one of the stage managers. 

    - I’m not. - his tone was monotonous, almost as if he had the answer to her question before she even made it. 

    - Oh ... - she rubbed her neck. - Are you also looking for silk ribbons?

    - I’m looking for the dressing rooms, actually.

    - They’re down the hall. -  she pointed at the door as if it was the “down the hall”. - Hum ... Are you new here too?

    - Yeah. Thanks. - he walked towards the door, opening it and stepping out before catching her gaze once again. 

Y/N remained in the middle of the room as if she were in a transe and maybe she was. It felt like she was falling yet she was firm on her feet and she did not like that feeling. She did not like that feeling of falling, it wasn’t feeling, it was hopeless falling and she wondered why looking at a man who looked like an 80′s glam rock reject made her feel like that, so lost. Maybe it was the respect he appeared to command by merely looking at her or maybe it was the nerves about being new and not being able to find some goddamn silk ribbons. Damn it. 

    - Call for 30 minutes before dress rehearsal. - the voice came from the intercom and immediately her mind dropped the idea of finding silk ribbons and moved to finding the ensemble dressing room and get dressed and ready. Damn it, this was going well. 

She rushed down the hall, bag almost slipping off her shoulder until she saw the door with the ensemble plaque on it. The young woman peaked inside the room where pretty much everyone with a role on the ensemble were already sat down. She shyly walked in the middle row until she found her own little corner, her name written on a sticker on the mirror along with photos of how the makeup should be done as well as how to get the costume in correctly. The same goofy smile returned as she sat down and saw her name above her. It was fine, she was here, she was part of a company.

    - Hey you’re new. - the girl next to her twirled her chair to face her. She already had her makeup on and hair pinned curled up and ready to put a wig cap on. - I’m Elliot but people call me Elle.

    - Y/N, I’m the new chorus girl. First day. 

    - Aw, welcome. - she had a bright smile, inviting and almost as exciting as the whole experience of being there. - Do you want help pincurling your hair? I can get it done while you do your makeup. 

    - Yes, please. - she pulled out a big box from her bag which had all her makeup and pins. 

Elle started pin curling her hair up while she put an inappropriate amount of blush on which was just appropriate to get on stage under the bright yellow lights. Turns out half the practice for opera is learning to do your makeup under bright yellow lights and then learning to sing. 10 minutes to rehearsal start, she was along with Elle going down and up to the main stage where most dancers were warming up. Elle left her to do so, leaving Y/N once again to just stand there, looking around like a little sheep in the middle of wolves. 

    - I’ve never seen you around. - her shoulders almost went up as he turned to see one of the principal sopranos, if not the principal soprano. She had seen all of her shows ever since she was a teenager and she had even wrote an essay for university on her for a module. Catherine Vargas, the best New York could offer, if not the best the world could offer. - I didn’t know they were still casting dancers.

    - Oh, I’m a chorus girl, Mrs Vargas. 

    - A chorus girl? - she furrowed her brows at her, looking her up and down. - What type?

    - The type who ... is in the back with the ensemble. - her voice lowered at least a few volumes down, back curved as if she were bowing. 

    - I know what chorus girls do. I asked what vocal type. 

    - Lyric soprano, m’am.

    - A lyric soprano in the chorus. Interesting. Where did you train?

    - Julliard, m’am.

    - Julliard? - she looked her up and down again. - That is a great school. What is a Julliard graduate doing in the chorus line?

    - Everyone starts somewhere. - she laughed nervously, scratching her arm as she did so.

    - Not a lyric soprano from Julliard. Composers sure do love an ingenue, don’t they? Don’t worry, a few months with me and you’ll be supporting. 

    - That’s ... that’s really kind, Mrs. Vargas. Thank you.

    - Don’t thank me. Could you get me some honey from my dressing room? I’m feeling a bit strained. 

    - It’s 5 minutes until rehearsal starts.

    - It’s okay, chorus normally doesn’t do much during rehearsal. Can you get it?

    - Yeah, I think so.

She straightened her crinkled skirt, looking behind her back before going down the stairs which led down to the dressing rooms. This was good, right? Getting into one of the main star’s good graces besides she was right, the chorus didn’t really get much attention during rehearsals, at least not as much as the main characters. It’s easier to get away with screwing up in the back than in the front, her teacher would tell her which would always earn a few laughs from her colleagues. Yet, Y/N hated to make any mistakes. She would stay up all night in front of a cheap piano she had bought from a charity shop, playing and singing the same 5 note progression until her flatmate yelled at her to shut up. For her, if it wasn’t perfect and if she didn’t get any criticism while performing it, she hadn’t done it right. It didn’t matter at the end of the day but what did matter was to climb up the ladder. She didn’t want to be a star, all she wanted was to be able to be on that stage forever with the spotlight shining on her and she knew there was only one way to climb up. Actually there were two, extreme luck and connections. Now, she didn’t have the best of luck so her major choice was to make connections and reach that status. 

She made her way into the principal dressing room. It was probably one of the biggest she had ever seen, with expensive decor and various flowers covering it. She wondered how many flowers she received on opening nights if that was the number she had on regular days. Y/N made her way to the desk, opening drawers and more drawers to find honey until she found it on the lowest drawn. She went down on her knees to grab it, mindless and careless to everything that was happening until she felt a sharp pain on the side of her her.

Then everything went dark. 

TAGLIST: @lookiamtrying @buckyswillows @blossomslibrary @juliesland @iloveshawnieboi @unmagically​ 

[whatgaviiformes]

Olympic prompt

July 30 - Virgil

* brain fizzles* -- I knew exactly what I was doing...

So, I didn't drop everything to write this. butitotallydidwhat?

From prompt list here - ask me things!

***

This was his moment.

With the floor exercise and the pommel horse behind him, the competition was almost halfway through the six events that made up the Olympic order. He’d started to trail behind his competitors in the first two, but the still rings was where Virgil shined, and he knew he could gain back the momentum he needed to carry him through the final three events – the vault, parallel bars, and finally, the horizontal bars.

Suspended from a metal frame, the still rings didn’t look quite right without a gymnast performing feats of gravity-defying strength between them.

It was Virgil’s preference not to watch his competitors, to focus on his own performance and not get lost in his head. That self-preservation fought with his desire to support his teammates, but it often won in the end. It would do him no good to compare himself to others – the sport itself did that enough for them.

He let Coach tell him his placement, but not the scores. Not until the end. He was glad to hear though that Alex had won first place in the floor exercises; he was a spitfire of man who worked like hell the past four years to make it back to the Olympics, and who deserved every win coming to him. And it would help Team USA immensely. They might actually be able to win this thing.

No pressure or anything, Virgil.

Virgil didn’t know it, but a camera panned over him where he sat with his head bowed, eyes closed, his USA jacket draped over his shoulders but not on, and his fingers twitching in tandem with the light piano from his earbuds sending calm through his neck and shoulders where he needed it most.

The reporters were not privy to his music; that was just for him. And when asked what he was listening to, he always responded “the sound of victory” with a charming grin that the fans just adored. They all speculated he might actually share when he retired, though no one liked to think about the man leaving the gymnastics world just yet.

So Virgil didn’t know when the television captured him in the throes of his nerves, but Scott did. He’d stepped out from a TI meeting that was unable to be rescheduled and turned on the livestream just in time to hear the reporters share their speculations. They were confident he would take the event, if not the all-around win, and even as they spoke over the image, their words seem to sink into Virgil as if he could hear them, the weight of the world on those broad, cut shoulders. Virgil took after him in that manner. Scott had a lot of practice putting too much pressure on himself.

He wouldn’t be able to watch all of the competitors, but he could catch Virgil’s part. It was his hope that he’d be able to finalize the contract with his client, then hop on a plane to catch Virgil’s next event and help him handle that load he carried.

Scott knew how hard Virgil worked for this. Even if his heart clenched every time Virgil defied the laws of gravity with the sheer force of his twists and turns (and God, the vault was the absolute worst), he had every faith in his brother and his abilities.

He’d win.

The camera panned then to the stands, where in the front row Gordon and his friends on the Olympic Swim Team, also in full Team USA uniform, cheered over the call of his brother’s name.

“And here we have Gordon Tracy,” the reporter said. “A real contender for the men’s butterfly in a few days. I don’t know Jim – looks like the Tracys are a family to watch.”

Back in the arena, Virgil stood, spared a few moments to fold his jacket, lay it on the bench, and placed his music player on top. His eyes searched the crowd for Gordon, who nodded once they found each other.

A breath, as Virgil checked the grips that protected his hands and added chalk.

Then Virgil was in the air, his muscles straining, the tension in his face showing just how difficult this sport was.

But his body moved like it wasn’t.

He manipulated the rings like they were extensions of his arms, into the difficult swings and holds that were part of his routine.

In his ears was silence.

He lifted. Held.

For a few seconds he pushed the rings outward and held his body completely parallel to the ground.

He flipped and turned, held himself upward into a inverted cross, a handstand if he were on the ground.

And with a final set of difficult elements, he dismounted and landed on his feet.

The sound returned.

[roseabelle21]

Synopsis: Every anniversary spent with your partner are always unpredictable, joyous, and exciting. You never know what a certain blond has planned every year for your special occasion. And after five years of being together, this might be the best one yet. 

Pairing: Pro Hero! Bakugou Katsuki x Fem! Reader

Status: Unedited

Genre: Fluff🐰🐇🐰

Tagging: @jazzylove @babymilkawa @cloudsinthecosmos @withlovefromjo @unicornlover25

The ambience of the local cafe never fails to soothe your nerves. The work of a Hero is neverending. After all, no one can tell when a villain might show up and cause destruction. The Hero business is relentless; they will call you up when the job becomes too much for your sidekicks, even on your days off. Of course, you know what you are getting into the moment U.A reached out to you for recommendation trials, and peoples lives are at stake, it was understandable.

The sidekicks are still learning though that doesn't mean that they are not progressing, being the most experienced in the field, they still need your help. You love helping people, don't get it wrong, their smiles and relief noticeable in their faces and posture, the ease they felt when you show up because they knew you are capable of taking that villain down, is enough to make it all worth it. But the reports you have to type up after the fight is less than exciting. Sure you have someone who can do it for you, but that damned Hero Commission wants it to come from you. 

So no matter how little time you get to relax, you take advantage of that. Now, here you are, catching up with your best friend since birth in this small, homey cafe. It's rare to have the same day off with someone from class, when you found out that Momo also has her day off today, both of you immediately agreed to meet up. Both of the women practically running up to each other the moment you caught sight on the other side of the road. Wrapping your arms around each other in a tight, and overdue hug, almost squealing in public. 

The giddiness from your bodies did not stop even after 30 minutes later, laughing and telling stories from your work and personal life. Even though you already know from your weekly - if not nightly - calls from each other. Bakugou once jokingly said you and Momo act more like in a relationship rather than the both of you do. To tease him back, you wondered out loud if both of you are, you would already be married. Let's say he did not like that one bit, informing the office the next day that you are sick, unable to move your legs and sore body. Fucker just gave you a smug look before leaving to work, Bakugou did cook you breakfast though. 

Speaking of him, "Hey- Uhm, I have something to tell you." 

Momo looked at you through the top of her mug and gave you a nod. She grew concerned when you bit your lip and traced the rim of your  glass with a finger, "what's wrong?" 

"It's silly," you chuckled. Nervous to tell the truth, but you knew you had to take this feeling off of you, and there is no one better to tell your problems to other than your ride or die. 

"Is it about Bakugou?" she took your hand and intertwined your fingers together, rubbing her thumb along the back of your hand. 

You nodded, "it's just that we haven't spent time with each other as much as we want to. We always find time to eat together, breakfast, lunch, and dinner if one of us is not asleep. We always find time for each other. Now," you gulped. "Now, that rarely happens." 

Momo listened to your story silently, smiling softly when your eyes met. "It's not silly (N/n) you miss him. And that is normal for couples, have you talked to him about this?”

"No," you shook your head, embarrassed, "I can never find the right time to swoop it in." 

She hummed, tapping her chin in thought. You swear you can see her eyes lit up for a split second before it disappeared. Maybe it was just the trick of the afternoon light, so you shake it off. 

"I won't be too worried about him cheating on you if that's what you are implying," your eyes immediately widened and hastily shook your head. Embarrassed flushing red on your face as you frantically waved you hands in denial, "n-no! It's not like that!"

Momo giggled and motioned you to calm down. She's only teasing, no one in class - and the whole world - will question the blond's loyalty towards you. 

He won't even spare a second glance at any girls who are throwing themselves at him. That was proven when someone tried to flirt with him at a class field trip during your third year of U.A. Bakugou and you only being in a relationship for less than three months, the blond shut her down rather harshly. You almost feel bad, had you not been telling her he had a girlfriend for 10 minutes straight. 

You laughed in your head evilly at her tears. 

Do you give a fuck? No not one.

How many fucks do you give? Zero. 

Were you mean for thinking that? Absolutely. 

Do you regret the minuscule smirk of victory forming on your lips once she ran off, crying? Nope. She had it coming. 

"Then there is absolutely nothing to be afraid of," she cooed. "You and Bakugou-san have been inseparable ever since your accidental confession," you groaned, embarrassed. "Maybe he's just busy on a mission? You know how obsessed he is with becoming the number one hero. And now that he's so close to achieving it, he might be losing time for you, but that doesn't mean he loves you any less." 

A small smile graced your lips at her, thankful to have Momo as your friend to confide in everything. She was and will always be your safe person, other than Katsuki. 

After going through that enemies-to-lovers arc? Did she think that Bakugou would easily sway to another person's pursuit of him? Nah, both of you fought for the other to give that up easily (either together or against each other). 

"Make sure to tell him what you feel in all of this. Communication is the most important quality in a relationship." Momo reminded with a stern yet soft voice with a wag of her finger, which caused you to giggle. 

"Thanks, Momo," the ebony-haired girl only responded with a grin. Her eyes sparkled, excited about what's to come in the next couple of months. 

~*~*~*~*

Right now, you felt like the worst person on the planet. With only three days away until the five-year-anniversary with the love of your life, finding the perfect present is almost impossible. Curse you and your perfectionism!

Not only that but the last couple of weeks had been hectic. You think your manager and agency is purposefully doing this to make you suffer. Villains attacking were the farthest reason for your stress, surprisingly. Sure there are petty crimes here and there, nothing your sidekicks couldn't handle, but the media stuff are the ones weighing you down. You grew accustomed to taking a quick shower, at times, dinner with the blond before crashing down on the bed passed out. 

Commercials, photoshoots, travelling, sponsor partnerships here and there, it was almost as if you were back in rising to fame. It was exhausting and frustrating at the same time. You can never seem to find a break anymore. The only time you can rest are lunches with Katsuki and coming home late at night, sleeping. 

However, both of you made the most out of it after your lunch with Momo a few months ago. You took her advice and told Katsuki how you felt. No surprises, he understands how you felt, gave you a tight hug and explained everything. 

Sadly, he can't tell you the mission. It was confidential. Only the higher up's and the rest of his teammates knows it. You understand it's part of the job at the end of the day. And to keep you from worrying too much even though you know he's capable of taking care of himself out in the field. 

Both of you miss each other, and with breakfast and lunch is the only reason you get to see your partner, it was slowly becoming regular to you, much to your dismay. "A small price to pay for becoming a Hero" is what your manager would say. 

Waking up in the morning to either you or Katsuki making breakfast, taking turns to visit each other at their agency to bring lunch despite the limited time, it was more than enough.

Being in the mere presence of the other is more than enough. 

"(Y/N)! Five minutes left till you have to go!" 

The voice of your manager snapped you out of your trance. Turning your gaze from your phone screen to their place in the doorway, clipboard in their grasp, hair messy and dark bags forming under their eyes. 

A small, sorry smile formed on my lips. Well, at least they're not the only ones. 

"You know, both of us would look much, much better if you reject a sponsorship or two." you teased, walking up to them and patting their shoulder as you walked past them.

They smiled sarcastically in retort.

"I wouldn't have too if not for getting a raise," they mumbled under their breath. Tiredly rubbing their face, reminding themselves to suck it up, only three more days, these will all be over. A raise and a week vacation promised, the ones to look forward too. 

"Ah, shit! Almost forgot," they pulled out their phone and typed in another errand. 

Accompany (Y/N) today, tomorrow, and the next day to find a gift. 

~*~*~*~

You found it, the perfect gift to give your explosive man. 

You clapped your hands excitedly, placing the carefully wrapped box on the nightstand atop your beloved night book, away from the possible dangers of the world. 

Sighing peacefully, a flopped down your shared bed. Curling up the warm blankets and cuddling with Katsuki's pillow, enjoying the peaceful afternoon day. 

Finally, a day off. 

The day of your anniversary. 

This day would have been perfect if your other half was here, you know, spending the rest of your day off together. Waking up with his arms wrapped around you, cooking breakfast with his arms still around you, even walking around with his arms around you. 

However, you can't find it annoying. After months of being apart, that was the most and longest physical touch you both have experienced. 

Unfortunately, the office called him for an emergency. The phone call was urgent. Katsuki furrowed his brows in annoyance and concern as he listens to his sidekick give him the information. To put the cherry on top, he only answered calmy. That's how you know it was severe; they need desperately need Dynamight in action. 

Katsuki was reluctant to leave, telling you he's already been away from you for too long. His eyes screamed for forgiveness, hesitant, and something else you can't quite place. 

You pushed him to get dressed, told him if he can finish the mission early, the earlier you can spend the rest of the day together. The fire in his eyes sparkled brighter than ever, accompanied by his menacing grin, accepting the challenge of beating the damned villain who ruined his day faster than they can blink.  

He pulled you in for a deep kiss before heading out the door, running back for a quick kiss before finally leaving. A giddy giggle erupted from you at his actions, watching him ride away with his motorcycle. 

With nothing else better to do, you decided that a quick nap wouldn't hurt anybody. You know that Katsuki will be back soon, safe and sound. He's come so far, and stopping him right now when he's so close to achieving his dream would be an insult. You have so much faith in him, one of the many reasons he loves about you. 

You were ready to drift off into dreamland; had it not been for the insistent and rapid knocking suddenly coming from the front door. Groaning, you muffled your scream in your pillow, wanting to cry from annoyance and stress. 

Only one person could be doing that. With their strong voice chanting your name over and over again at the same rhythm as the door knocking, your manager must have something important to tell you. 

Their bright smile greeted you when you opened the door, in contrast to the annoyed and tired look you gave them. Telling you what is needed to be said, you dramatically collapsed, landing on their chest. Another commercial to shoot!

"Don't you know what today is?!" You questioned dramatically, flailing your arms around to exaggerate your point. 

They smiled apologetically at you, rubbing your back for comfort. "Believe me; you're not the only one dying to sleep right now."

You pouted at them, tiredly rubbing your eyes to chase the sleepiness away. 

"Don't worry (Y/N)! It will be the last one for a long time! I've made sure to give us both a break for the next couple of months to give you time to discuss something important with Katsuki!"

You tilted your head, confused at their cherry voice and excited smile despite the darkness under their eyes. 

"What-?" 

"Let's go! No need to change, costume and your hair and make-up team is already waiting for you, no script needed since you only have to be there, answering the question naturally. And then -"

They continued babbling about what to do the moment you got in the car and towards your destination. As you drive for almost an hour, you noticed the changes in scenery. Gone are the tall skyscrapers and bright lights of the city, now slowly replaced by luscious green grass fields, strong thick trees and clear blue sky that you rarely see nowadays. 

It was satisfying, seeing the wonders of nature even in it's simplest forms. You sighed, feeling at ease compared to earlier this morning, wishing that Katsuki was here to enjoy this with you. A nice picnic here or at the park will be enough. 

You noticed a large, white tent approaching your view when the car started to slow down. To your surprise, Momo and Mina were there, waving at you excitedly, with bright grins adorning their faces. 

"I forgot to mention," your manager started, stopping the car. "A few of your friends will be joining you in this."

You nodded, getting out of the car, wishing you could have changed into something decent other than your sweatpants and Katsuki's shirt. 

The girls were immediately shoving you eagerly towards the tent, noticing that they are already dressed and ready for the shoot. 

"I'm so excited for this shoot!" Exclaimed Mina excitedly, bouncing up and down carefully as to not ruin her hair. Incoherable noises left her lips as she continued guiding you. 

The dark-haired girl beside you, although much more calm and collected, couldn't stop the giggles, holding your hand firmly as they opened the flap of the tent. 

A surprised smile painted on your lips when the rest of the girls in your class greeted you.  

"(Y/N!)"  Ocahako ran to you, giving you a giant bear hug. 

"We finally get to be together on a shoot, kero!" Tsuyu added with an excited clap.

"Hurry and get ready!" Hagakure pushed you towards the chair. You would have tripped on the way there had it not been for Jiro holding you by the shoulder. 

You let it slide with a happy chuckle. It was almost impossible to get all of the girls together for anything. If they try to plan anything together, one of them will always be busy or on patrol that day. 

It was nice being together once again, as in the good old days. Everyone was already ready and dressed in their complementary colours, you noticed. They chatted with you as you get your make up ready, some going out and coming back in for picture taking outside. 

Again, you can't help but feel sad that Katsuki is not with you. These would have been perfect if he was beside you. No matter, you told yourself, I'll be with him after this. 

"Whoa, (Y/N)," the girls cooed at you simultaneously when you got done. Looking you through the mirror with soft smiles and - were those tears welling up in some of them? To say you are confused will be an understatement. This is not the first time they've seen you glammed up.

"Are you all okay? What's the matter?" 

They only smiled at you, dabbing the corners of their eyes to prevent tears from further falling. 

"Whooo, enough of this," Mia sighed, fanning her eyes whilst looking up. "Get dressed honey, your dress is already there." 

When you entered the dressing room, a beautiful white knee-length cocktail dress greeted you placed on the mannequin. It was off the shoulder with sheer sleeves designed in flowers and a flowy skirt. When you touched the material, you are shocked that it was silk. 

Now, you are beyond confused and highly impressed. Then you wondered, what kind of commercial are you making? The company must be loaded to get all the well-known woman Pro Heroes together for this one shoot. 

Your brows furrowed in thought but ended up letting it go. Slipping on your dress which hugged your figure perfectly, doing a little twirl to watch the dress flow. You are feeling yourself in this dress. 

Once you exited the dressing room, you were surprised when you recognised one of your classmates in dance class there, wearing a bright costume along with the other dancers. They grabbed your hands and guided you to the centre; the music suddenly blasted from somewhere and danced around you. 

You were beyond confused as you looked around. None of the girls except Momo was in the corner of the room, laughing and taking a video of you. You are so confused. 

What is going on?

They prompted you to dance along with them, and you did, albeit softly; the dancers still cheered you on.

You laughed as they twirled you around towards Momo. "Come on," she pulled you out of the tent, dancers continued cheering you on from the inside. 

You walked out towards the open field. The trees decorated in pastel shades of your favourite colours, the ground littered with the petals of your favourite flowers, your heart started to beat faster and faster with every step you take. 

You swore you felt your heart leap out of your chest when you spotted more of your classmates came into view. A hand covered your mouth in sheer shock, happiness, and confusion. 

Tables and chairs surrounded the open clearing. Red linens covered the tables along with silverwares, the surrounding trees decorated in lanterns and ribbons, a buffet filled with your favourite food on the side, a fucking swan ice sculpture beside it, chocolate fountain. But the one that caught your attention the most was the gazebo: built in the middle of a tree with beautiful white leaves at the tip of it. 

You didn't know that you are now standing alone at the entrance, still frozen in shock as you looked at everyone with wide eyes. 

What the fuck? 

Kirishima then approached you with his usual bright smile, although this one might be brighter than the rest. He chuckled softly at your expression before offering you his hand.

"How are you feeling?"

"Like I'm about to faint and vomit at the same time," you answered shakily with a laugh. "What the heck is happening, Kirishima?"

"Well," he shrugged his shoulders, "why don't you ask the planner of this event?" 

The pounding of your heart reached your ears, your face glowing bright red, as he led you towards the gazebo tree; only then did you see a single stool in the middle. 

"Wait, the fuck?" You questioned a bit loudly. The rest of the crowd only laughed at your nervousness. 

When you sat down, the table to your right; seated two crucial people in your life; your parents. They are smiling at you, tears running down your mother's eyes with your father's arm draped over her shoulder, both of them wearing white clothing like yours. 

You mouthed a 'what are you doing here?' with a teary smile. Your father responded with a shrug of his shoulders. Your eyebrows flew when you saw the couple beside them: Mitsuki and Masaru Bakugou, both reacting the same as your parents. 

The sound of a microphone caught everyone's attention. Aizawa came into your peripheral vision on the left, wearing his usual black colours. He is nicely clean today; his hair tied away from his face; it looks like he shaved as well. The most surprising of all was the small smile he wore. 

What is going on?

Your mind raced at the possibility, a hand resting on your chest as if it can calm your racing heart. It was all too much to take in. 

"It's been a while since we're all together," Aizawa started, gaining everyone's attention, soft background music playing in the background. 

"I'm not surprised by the length's this man is willing to go; he does want to be the best at everything- which explains everything." Everyone agreed silently. "He will never do anything half-assed."

He then walked up to you with a gentle smile, "now (Y/N), do you know what is happening?" 

"No, I don't even know what's happening anymore," you answered shakily. "This is like a joke: Is this a joke?" you joked, albeit shakily. 

Aizawa only smiled when you continued, "I'm just waiting for the director to shout 'Cut!' I don't know what to do, am I going dance? Will I start acting? There are camera's here, but they're not giving me instructions."

"You have no idea what's going on?"

"No! I'm already getting scared," you chuckled, voice already starting to reveal that you are about to cry soon. You chose to laugh it off. 

"In all honesty, I know that you know and everybody knows and agrees; that you are the most beautiful woman today." You responded with a silent thank you, deeply flattered. 

"You know (Y/N), all of this happened because of one person only. Just one person," you swallowed your heart back down, tears starting to escape your eyes as your heart and mind screams of that person's name. 

"So don't be surprised; because this is how much he loves you."

Tingles ran down your arms once the background music stopped and Aizawa stepped down. You held your clasped hands in front of you and placed them on your lips, tensing up a little, waiting in anticipation. 

"Sir, I'm a bit nervous about being here today." 

The world stopped turning when you heard that line. The tears escaped along with a happy sob. The figure of Katsuki Bakugou emerged from behind the tree at the entrance, holding a microphone to his lips. The other hand, resting deep in his pockets. 

"Still not real sure what I'm going to say," he walks up to you. Not once tearing his eyes away from yours when he met them. The smile on him was nothing like anyone has ever seen before; nervous, happy, content, love. 

"So bear with me, please, if I take up too much of your time." 

He was nothing short of perfect. No words could ever describe how beautiful he is right now; of course, he's always beautiful, but now, he is taking your breath away. 

It was already rare when you see him not wearing his baggy clothing; it's considered a blessing to see him wear a formal white tux that suits him too well. 

When he neared you, he took out a red velvet box in his pocket: gripping on it tightly as he angled it towards you. 

"See in this box is the ring for your oldest. She's my everything and all that I know is. It would be such relief if I knew that we were on the same side."

Everyone watched in anticipation as the blond finally reached in front of you, kneeling on one knee as he continued to serenade you. 

"Can marry your daughter, and make her my wife. I want her to be the only girl that I'll love for the rest of my life. And give her the best of me 'till the day that I die, yeah." 

At this point, you don't care if you look like a mess. The love of your life is looking up at you like you are the most beautiful person he has ever seen; it's probably true. 

"I'm gonna marry your princess, and make her my queen. She'll be the most beautiful bride that I've ever seen. I can't wait to smile; as she walks down the aisle; on the arm of her father. Till the day that I marry your daughter."

You told him about your dream proposal; it doesn't have to be anything special as long as the song is there along with your family. And you know Katsuki, you give him an inch, he'll take it to the moon.

Katsuki stared at you with a soft smile, reaching his arms to wipe the tears off of your face. Laughing at his actions, you held on to one of his hands, placing it down on your lap. Both of you took in deep, calming breaths to ease your nerves before smiling at each other again. 

"Hi (Y/N)," he called with a soft, shaky tone. A short laugh left you at his adorable nervousness. "Hi, Katsuki."

"You already know what the fuck is going on," the crowd laughed at his bluntness. "I'm not gonna beat around the bushes any longer. I want to make this official." 

He opened the velvet box; a gasp left you as you saw the ring inside. A beautiful red ruby gem immediately caught your eyes as it shines in the sun. 

A large smile adorned your lips as Katsuki looked at you with a tender expression. Everyone wiping away their tears at the moment before them. 

"I'll save all the sappy words at the wedding vows, now, (Y/N)," when his eyes met yours again, you are sure. 

"Will you do the honour of making me the happiest man alive by being my wife? Will you marry me?"

Despite the tears falling like a waterfall, your answer was clear and sealed. No matter how many different worlds there might be, how many different lifetimes are there in this universe, nor all the possible scenarios this proposal can take in, you will never get tired of saying the answer over and over again. 

"Yes." 

One way or another, Katsuki Bakugou and (Y/N) (L/N) will always find a way to be together. Herein is arms and the ring on your finger; all is well and where it should be. 

Even though you can't give him his present now, I'm sure the box is still safe and sound on the table. 

After all, you are the one carrying the most important gift. 

The two strips of pink line on the stick only confirms it. 

A/N: This is the longest and hardest story I have ever written for a one shot so far. Wedding?

[lissacmonster]

Wrong Place, Right Time

TMNT x (Gender Neutral) Reader (Non-romantic) Synopsis: Reader goes into an abandoned building to find their dog, and ends up finding a lot more than their dog. Rating: Teen Genre: Action/Thriller Pairings: None Content Warnings: The dog is in danger for some of it (but isn’t actually hurt) Other Tags: Funny, Combat, Short Story, Fanfiction, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Shredder

When you left your apartment that night, you had no way of knowing how unprepared you were for the events that would unfold. Armed with a flashlight and a roll of doggy bags you and your dog Cody had slipped out into the fresh, cool night air. You also brought a can of bear mace in case you ran into any creeps. Bear mace wouldn't have necessarily been your first choice, but it was leftover from the time you went camping and you wanted to put it to good use.

The dog was just happily sniffing around and relieving himself when he suddenly stiffened up. Following his gaze, your eyes landed on a cat. The cat was happily strutting across the street, unperturbed by the dog even as he began barking hatefully and straining against the leash. You held your grip and started pulling him back the way you had come. But he turned around, dug his heels in and managed to pull out of the collar.

The cat suddenly noticed it was in danger and darted around, looking for a place to hide. Cody followed the cat in circles around a parked car, then he chased it around the corner.

You ran after him, "Cody! Get back here!"

You were half angry, and half worried that he would run out into the street in front of a car. Instead, when you rounded the corner, he was wriggling his way into a boarded up building. His tail disappeared through the space in the boards just as you leapt forward to grab him.

"Cody! NO! Get back here, now!" You said, using your best angry parent voice.

But Cody was on a mission to find that cat. You knew that he would be single-minded until he found what he was looking for. It might have been admirable if you were coon hunting together out in the countryside, or something. Instead, it was annoying because you were on an evening walk in the middle of Manhattan.

You groaned in exasperation and looked up at the building. It was an old apartment building or something, a rough brick structure that was 5 stories high. The windows were mostly boarded up, and the ones that weren't were missing their glass. There were no lights on inside. It didn't look like anyone had been here for a long time. At least, nobody you wanted to run into...

And nobody you wanted your dog to run into either! Your protective instinct kicked in. You called through the hole to him for another 30 seconds. When he didn't reappear, you started looking around for a way in.

In the alley where you were standing, there were lots of bits of metal and you took a second to poke through them and find a good one. First you found a weird, 3-pronged dagger of some kind, which you tucked into your belt. Maybe you could use it for protection in case somebody dangerous was squatting in there. (Although, if you were being honest, you mostly kept it because you thought it looked cool.) Then you found a metal rod that seemed sturdy enough to work as a crowbar. In no time, you were squeezing through a gap you had made in the boards covering the doorway.

After clicking on your flashlight, you noticed that you were standing in an old lobby. There was a torn up spot on the floor where the front desk had obviously once been affixed. The wallpaper was peeling. The hardwood floors, which had probably been gorgeous when they were kept up, were covered in a thick layer of dust. Cobwebs were hanging in the corners and doorways, with their own gathering of dust.

You followed the sounds of Cody's feet skittering against the floors.

"Cody!" You whispered harshly, creeping towards him. If there were any questionable people around, you didn't want them hearing you guys. Luckily Cody wasn't raising hell yet, which told you that he must have lost track of the cat.

You spotted him at the end of a hallway.

"Cody, c'mere," You called, sweetly.

He looked you dead in the face and then turned and walked through a doorway into pitch black nothingness.

What. A. Brat.

Gazing down the stairway, you wanted to cry so bad. That damn dog had just run down into what must be the basement. You stood at the top, feeling sorry for yourself, trying to see down the steps. After a minute you realized that it wasn't actually pitch black. There was some kind of light that was dimly illuminating the bottom of the steps.

Gathering every last ounce of courage, you made your way down the steps. Every step creaked horribly, and with each one, you felt certain that your foot was about to sink through rotten wood. A dank smell invaded your nostrils more as you descended. How long did you have to breath black mold in before it would make you sick, anyway?

Once you reached the bottom of the stairs, you found that you were standing in a hallway. The floor here was even more dirty than the ground floor above. There was garbage piled all over the place. If anyone had ever squatted in this building, you were willing to bet that they'd done it here in this basement level.

A voice sounded from down the hallway. Your head snapped towards it in alarm, but after a few seconds it was clear it wasn't directed at you. It had come from a doorway at the very end of the hall which was slightly ajar, pale blue light spilling from it. You fought the urge to sprint back up the stairs and instead crept down the hall towards the voice. You tucked the metal rod into your belt and pulled out the strange dagger, ready to strike if someone suddenly rushed out at you. The voice was speaking again.

"...think you can defy me, turtles, but once again I've proven you wrong."

"You're not gonna get away with this, Shredder!" A second voice, female this time. She sounded scared. What were you walking into? You felt strangely numb as you continued to move forward, your heart pounding.

"I already have. Look at them! Once I have what I need, I'll dispose of you all," It was a deep, rich voice with a cold fury beneath.

"And then what? You took the mutagen out of our blood when we fought you years ago. So what could you possibly want with our blood this time?" Another male voice countered, sounding calm, but angry.

"Th-that's right! Our blood is free of mutagen, you can't use it to mutate anybody!" Another, nervous-sounding male voice agreed.

You reached the doorway and peered around the doorframe very slowly...

Within the room was some kind of makeshift laboratory. One bulb hung from the ceiling, casting the whole scene in harsh bright light. Several figures were visible in the large room. The first one that caught your attention was the huge figure in the center of the room. It looked like a man wearing a thick, heavy suit of strange armor. The armor had lots of sharp angles and spikes on it. You couldn't see anything else about him because he was silhouetted against the harshly-lit room. He was facing two figures who were lying on the floor.

One of the people on the floor was the woman. She had dark hair and eyes and was wearing a yellow jacket. Her hands were bound and she was glaring hatefully at the armored man. Next to her was another man. He wasn't talking, and he was lying very still... Was he ok? Or was he...?

You didn't finish that thought because you caught sight of four... somethings against the far wall.

They were... turtles, you guessed. But they weren't like any turtles you had ever seen. They were tall and buff with humanoid faces and bodies. Each was wearing a different colored mask, as well as various gear. They were strung up against the wall by lots and lots of chains. There was some kind of machinery connected to them, but it was hard to make out what it all was from this far away.

The spikey man- what had she called him? Shredder? He was speaking again, "I don't need to mutate anybody. All I need is your DNA, and I will have an unstoppable army."

"He's cracked, you guys," A new voice. It was gruff, and it came from the largest turtle, who was wearing a red mask.

"Oh no... I-I think I know what he's talking about!" The nervous voice was coming from the tallest one, in the purple mask, "He wants to clone us!"

"Is that true?!" The orange one finally spoke up, "Man, you can't make another Michelangelo! I'm the one and only!

"Stockman, how much longer before they're drained?" Shredder interrupted.

You nearly jumped out of your skin as an answer sounded out from very close to you.

"Another 2 hours, Mr. Shredder!"

"Why must it take so long?" Shredder asked, threateningly.

"W-well... We only had so much equipment..." Stockman defended, "I mean, there are ways of removing it faster, if you catch my drift. But if you want a clean, untainted sample, this is the best way to go!"

"Hmm... Very well." Shredder agreed after a moment.

You were now pressed against the wall just outside of the door, clutching your chest. That Stockman guy had been no more than 4 feet from you just inside the door! He was against the wall that you couldn't see, though, so you hadn't noticed him.

Stockman was talking again, more to himself, "Aw man... That cat got in again..."

A soft growling sounded from within the room. Oh god. Cody.

"What the..." Stockman started and then yelped, "HEY!"

His chair clattered to the ground as Cody's chorus of barks started up. You rushed back to the door and were frozen to the spot as you watched the scene unfold. It was utter chaos as Cody tore around the room after the cat, which was leaping around on the equipment and furniture. Cody managed to knock over 2 chairs, jump up on a table, and upset several important-looking instruments before he was caught around the neck by the monstrous man's hand. Cody's high-pitched cries snapped you out of it.

"STOP!" You hurled yourself forward. Everything in the room seemed to stop in time. All eyes settled on you and every face held surprise. Shredder's helmeted head turned towards you, observing as you sprinted toward him. You had the dagger drawn back with the intent to jam it into the metal of his stupid, shiney armor.

You didn't even feel it when he swatted you away like a fly. All you noticed was that suddenly you were flying backwards. You quickly sprung back to your feet. Your skin felt electric as adrenaline coursed through your body. There was a throbbing feeling in your face where he had struck you. The strange dagger had skittered out of your hands.

Cody was no longer in his grip, that was the good news. The bad news was that now you were getting an up close and personal look at this Shredder guy. You could see every facet of the armor from here. The most striking part was the helmet, which resembled a leering skull.

You wondered what his face looked like behind the helmet. Did he look as surprised as everyone else? His voice didn't betray any surprise, only amusement.

“Well, well, well, look what we have here... A new hero, come to save the world. Such a pity you’ll have to die."

You tried to keep your voice steady as you explained, “Look man, I don’t know what you’re talking about- I’m just here for my dog!”

"Really, turtles, is this weakling the only ally you have left?"

None of them answered. They were still staring at you and glancing at one another, like they were trying to figure out if they knew you from somewhere. This was getting awkward.

"No, really, I don't know them," You insisted.

"Is that so? Well, then, how do you explain that." He lifted one of his huge metallic arms. It took you a second to realize he was pointing at your shirt. You looked down and gasped.

Save The Turtles was emblazoned across your chest in bright green letters, complete with a cute little cartoon rendering of a turtle.

God damn it. Of course you had chosen to wear the shirt you got from that time you volunteered at the turtle sanctuary.

"Uh- that's-!"

Before you could explain it to him, Shredder cut you off, "ENOUGH! Stockman, restrain this fool."

"ME? I'm not here to be your muscle!" Stockman sounded indignant.

Shredder was just throwing out another line about how weak you looked, and that restraining you would hardly require "muscle," when you darted around him and over to the far corner where Cody was cowering. You had to climb around some equipment that seemed to be collecting blood from the turtles. You were uncomfortable being so close to them, as you had yet to discern whether they were friendly or not.

"Hey, that's my staff!"

You looked up at the turtle with the purple mask. He was peering down at you through glasses that made his eyes look 3 times bigger than they actually were.

You glared at him, "No, that's my dog!"

"No, I mean that thing on your belt!"

Was he talking about the metal rod?

"WHOA, WHOA, WHOA! DUCK, KID!" The one in the red mask was shouting.

You dropped instantly to the ground. A huge BANG! sounded from above and drywall rained down on you. There was a big piece of metal embedded in the wall where your head had just been. Cody scampered away, whimpering in fear.

"He's coming up behind you!"

You whirled around to find Shredder was advancing towards you. You glanced around for an escape, but you were boxed in by equipment.

Suddenly Shredder stopped dead in his tracks and whirled around. Stuck in his back was the dagger you had dropped. The girl in the yellow jacket was standing there, having plunged it into the battery pack on the back of his suit.

You stepped carefully out of the way of the equipment and cast around desperately for a way to help her.

"Quick! Use the staff!" The purple one called.

When you looked clueless, he clarified, "The thing on your belt!"

Oh, the rod! Great idea! You grabbed the rod, jumped on Shredder's back and started pummeling his helmeted head with the thing. This drew a chorus of complaints from the turtles.

"Aw MAN! C'mon, kid!"

"Duuuude, that's not funny! Kick his butt for real!"

Purple was fighting desperately to be heard over all the commotion. He sounded completely exasperated by this point, "No, I meant-! Press the button!"

What button? There were no buttons on the-! Oh, wait. There was a button on the rod. How had you missed that? You pressed your thumb down on small, red button. Instantly, both ends of the rod shot out, extending it by about 5 feet. In the process, it struck Shredder's helmet, launching it violently from the man's head. With a startled cry you toppled off of Shredder's back. The man rounded on you. You looked for the staff, but it had launched itself far out of reach.

"Now, I'm going to put an end to this little game," He said, and you could see the full extent of his fury on his face.

The four turtles were all shouting things and you couldn't make out any of it. All you could see was the hate in the man's eyes as he approached. His long black hair hung in his face untidily. He was panting and his lips were pulled back in an angry grimace. He looked like some kind of beast, like a lion, or like a...

"Bear!" You shouted suddenly. You tugged the bear mace out of the little pouch on your belt.

Shredder was towering over you now. He raised one of his bladed arms, poised to strike. Popping the top off, you raised the bear mace, pointed it at him, and pressed the switch.

Shredder was suddenly engulfed in a cloud of orange smoke. He roared and stumbled backwards. While he was distracted with that you scrambled to your feet. The woman was busy unlocking the chains that were trapping the turtles.

"Thanks, Angelcakes!" The one in orange said gratefully as he shrugged off all of the blood-collecting equipment.

He came over and stood next to you. You eyed him warily, but he was just looking at you with interest, "Hey, that was pretty rad how you stood up to Shredder like that! You pretty much ruled, even though you kinda-sorta... suck at fighting!"

Your pride had never been particularly tied to your fighting skills, so you just said, "Thanks. What's your name?"

"Michelangelo. But the ladies like to call me Mikey."

The two of you kept an eye on Shredder while the woman continued unlocking the turtles chains. You even sprayed a few more times in his direction when he got too close. Eventually he managed to rip the metal armor off of his hands so he could rub his burning eyes. Now he rounded on you again.

He looked truly out of his mind by this point, his blood red eyes were streaming and his face looked pinker than any face you had ever seen.

"Whoa... I think he's gonna-"

Before Mikey could finish, suddenly Shredder was charging at you. Mikey yanked you aside as someone barreled past you. The one with the red mask slammed into Shredder, colliding with him with the force of a refrigerator.

"Oh, shit! Is he ok??"

"You mean, Raphael? He's fine! He gets thrown into cars and stuff all the time," Mikey waved his hand dismissively.

Raphael rolled to his feet, pulling the dagger out of Shredder's back as he did so. He walked back to where you guys were standing, "Thanks for bringing one of my Sais, kid."

Things were kind of a blur from there. The turtles restrained the Shredder. The one with the blue mask was apparently the leader, and his name was Leonardo. He was on the phone with the chief of police. Wow... So your local police department was cool with these turtle ninjas? Who would have thought... Maybe your uncle's conspiracy theory about reptiles controlling the government wasn't totally crazy.

Donatello, the one with the purple mask, was attending to the man who had been lying on the ground when you came in. The man's name was Casey, and he wasn't dead as you had previously thought. He did have a pretty nasty concussion, though, and kept repeating the same phrases over and over (A common symptom with concussions, Donatello told you).

Don also took a look at your own injuries while he was at it. Your face was beginning to swell from where Shredder had struck you, and you would be sporting a nasty-looking bruise for a while. Other than that, you would be just fine.

After everything was said and done, and you had talked to the police, and Shredder had been loaded into an armored vehicle and hauled away, you and Cody were finally leaving to go home. You were back in the cool night air, walking your dog on his leash. You wondered if Cody would think twice about chasing a cat next time, or if the whole event had gone over his head? He definitely didn't look like he cared that he had just been in life-threatening danger.

Before you could ponder it much more, the brothers suddenly appeared around you.

"Heeeyyy, let us walk you home!" Leo offered aggressively.

"No, that's ok! You don't have to!" You really just wanted to be left alone now.

"We insist." The grin on Leo's face looked mostly threatening.

Leo threw his arm around your shoulder, as if to make sure you wouldn't run away, and started practically dragging you along.

They took you on the coolest shortcut you had ever been on. You scaled buildings and leapt across rooftops. It was just like in Assassin's Creed! Of course, they had to carry both you and Cody the whole way like a couple of carry-on bags.

When they set you down finally, you were in the alley next to your apartment building.

"Thanks guys," You said, "But how the hell did you find out where I lived?" You hadn't ever given them any directions.

"I have my ways..." Donatello said. He adjusted his glasses and they glinted dramatically like in an anime.

They were all kind of staring at you in a vaguely menacing way, "Uh... Are ya'll gonna... kill me because I know too much or something?"

"What the-! Of course not!" Donnie yelled.

"Hey, relax, buddy! We're not those kind of ninjas!" Mikey laughed, "That's not how we handle people who know too much!"

"Not any more, at least..." Raph said, narrowing his eyes at you, "The chief said it was too messy to keep covering it up."

You gulped nervously.

"Raph! Don't tell people things like that!" Leo shoved him and turned back to you, "Don't worry, he's joking. YOU'RE JOKING, RIGHT RAPH?"

"I'M JOKING. JESUS CHRIST!" Raph yelled back, "Just, don't go runnin' your mouth about us, aight?"

The leader in blue leaned in uncomfortably close to stare into your eyes, "If you say anything about us, we will come back to see you..."

"Aaaand PUNISH YOU," Mikey added, "In a gentle, non life-threatening way!"

You put up your arms defensively, "Trust me, I am not telling anyone that I fought some kind of terminator samurai to save my dog and some turtles."

You thought you saw a twitch at the corner of his mouth before he straightened up and lead his brothers away. They scaled the walls of the surrounding buildings with ease, and then they had vanished just like that.

============================

Will you ever see them again? Would you LIKE to see them again? I hope so because I have a lot of ideas for this series.

Thanks for reading, ya’ll. It’s the first story I have finished in ages and it feels good to be back.

[snelbz]

Light Up the Ice - 12

Summary: Aelin Galathynius has never really been into sports. Yes, she likes to keep in shape, and she works out, but watching people run up and down a field, trying to keep a leather ball away from each other? It’s always seemed a bit childish to her, and decidedly NOT a way for a grown adult to make a living.

Rowan Whitethorn has recently been drafted by the Terresen Staghorns, one of best teams in the EHL (Erilean Hockey League). And since he moved to Terresen from Wendlyn, it’s been hard for him to get more than 30 seconds alone from someone demanding a picture with him. Getting drafted straight out of college wasn’t exactly what he had in mind, but he’s not complaining. Until he accidentally meets a girl. More specifically, until he accidentally meets his neighbor. She seems to have no idea who he is and for some reason, that’s refreshing. But will she still want to be with him once he shows her the truth?

Co-written with @tacmc​.

A/N: No tag list tonight. This is the 3rd time I've tried to post this chapter and every single time, it's crashed before I can post or save. AKA I’m about to punch my computer and don’t want to push my luck anymore. Next chapter, I will be copying and pasting my old tag list, deleting the inactive blogs, and adding those who have asked. Enjoy!

It never failed to amaze Aelin how slow business got when the university took their breaks. It was only the second day of the University of Terrasen’s fall break and she’d already had enough spare time to reorganize the stock room, deep clean the kitchen and now, she was sitting at a table in the corner, staring at a print out of her menu.

She chewed on the end of her pen and then drew a line through another item. In the four years she’d had the café, she’d never changed a single menu item. It wasn’t that anyone was complaining about her food, but she was bored with it and wanted to add some new variety. She scribbled some notes in the margin of new recipes she wanted to try to replace the old ones, but the sound of the bell above the door distracted her. She was beaming before she even got out of her chair.

“Hey,” she said, approaching Rowan and Lorcan, pressing a kiss to the cheek of the former and keeping her distance from the former. “How was practice?”

“Good. Save for the fact that I’m still sitting on the bench,” Rowan said, sighing. “Coach said I can be on the ice from now on, as long as I’m still not running drills and agree to see the trainer every day.”

“That’s great,” she said, smiling. “You hungry?”

“Yes, please,” he replied, a lopsided grin on his face.

She headed for the cash register Elide had been sitting at a few moments before. She was now working on rolling silverware father down the counter, quietly humming along to the music that played in the café. “You want the grilled cheese and tomato soup again?”

“Please,” he said, smiling. He turned to his friend and asked, “You want the Reuben, Lor?”

Lorcan didn’t reply. He was staring back towards the door.

Back towards Elide.

“Lorcan?” Rowan said, again, finally getting his teammates’ attention.

“Reuben, yeah, sounds great,” he mumbled, pulling out his wallet.

“Lunch is on me,” Aelin said, eyeing him, not liking the way he turned back to glance at Elide.

She didn’t like the way Elide was sneaking glances at him either.

As she walked behind the counter, Aelin cleared her throat, making Elide jump, her fingers dropping the silverware in which she held. It clattered against the counter.

“Care to give me a hand?” Aelin asked.

Elide blinked. “It’s just two sandwiches-.”

“If the bell rings, you can come back out,” Aelin said, taking Elide by the wrist and dragging her back toward the kitchen. She called back to Rowan and Lorcan, “Make yourselves comfortable!”

Once in the kitchen, Aelin dropped Elide’s wrist and began with the sandwiches. 

Elide watched her friend, her boss, skeptically. “Care to tell me what that was about?” 

“You were practically drooling over him,” Aelin said, raising an eyebrow as she looked at Elide.

Elide’s cheeks darkened and she hurried around to the other side of the kitchen to get Rowan’s soup. “I was not.”

“You definitely were,” Aelin replied, turning and dropping the grilled cheese on top of the griddle. She may have put more cheese on than she would have for a regular customer and melty, delicious goodness dripped out the surface of the cooktop.

Elide was standing in the alley of the kitchen, looking back through the serving window at Aelin. “And…? So what if I was? He’s hot.”

Aelin fought the urge to roll her eyes. “He’s a hockey player, El. Rowan has told me about how he spends his away games.”

Elide was quiet as she put the soup in the window to stay warm as Aelin finished their sandwiches. If her friend and boss’s back hadn’t been facing her, she probably wouldn’t have had the courage to say, “Wow, Ace, be careful. Your hypocrisy is showing.”

She whirled, pointing a spatula at Elide. “That’s a completely different situation and you know it.”

Elide lifted a brow. “Do I?”

Aelin’s lips thinned. “Yes, you do. At least, you should. Rowan and I… it’s different.” 

“If you would have known he was a hockey player, you would’ve never started seeing Rowan,” Elide went on, trying to hide both her frustration and amusement. “The fact that Lorcan plays hockey is all you can see when you look at him.”

Aelin scoffed. “Wrong. All I can see is his jackassery.”

“Jackassery?” 

“It’s a word,” Aelin snapped, flipping over the sandwich on the griddle. “And, again, Rowan has told me about his post game activities when they’re on the road.”

“It doesn’t make a difference, I don’t know why you’re even upset about it,” Elide muttered, coming around to the salad station and popping a cucumber slice in her mouth. “He’s Lorcan Salvaterre. He’s the captain of the team. He dates bikini models and actresses. I’m just a broke college student. I’m just…me.”

Aelin’s eyes softened as she turned to one of her oldest friends. “That’s not true, Elide. You are a phenomenal, beautiful, smart woman, and anyone who doesn’t see that is blind. Including yourself.”

Elide’s cheeks darkened, slightly, as she tried to fight the smile growing. “I’m going to go finish my silverware. Holler if you need me.”

Aelin nodded and watched as she pushed through the swinging door to the dining room. She finished up the sandwiches before grabbing Rowan’s soup and carrying them out front.

While she and Elide had been in the kitchen, Fenrys had appeared, a fast food bag open in front of him. She chuckled as she sat down Rowan and Lorcan’s food. “You know I would have cooked for you.”

His mouth was full of a massive bite of hamburger, so Lorcan answered for him. “He also knows coach would kick his ass if he knew he was eating that. Yet he does it anyway.”

“It’s so good,” Fenrys said, his mouth still full, his manners shot. “What coach doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

Rowan snorted. “Tell yourself that when you feel like shit once the grease sets in.”

Lorcan stared at his sandwich for a long moment. Then, he mumbled, “Thank you.”

Aelin blinked. Even Rowan looked nearly surprised.

“Did you just thank me?” Aelin asked, perfectly still.

Lorcan didn’t say anything else as he bit into his sandwich. 

A few more people trickled in and Aelin got back to work, the shock of Lorcan’s almost-kindness still shocking her. The dinner rush, even though slower with the college campus dwindled, still kept her and Elide busy, and by the time eight rolled around, Aelin was ready to close up.

Rowan, Lorcan, and Fenrys remained at the corner table. 

Elide came out of the kitchen, having grabbed her purse and coat from Aelin’s office. “I’m gonna head home, if there’s nothing else you need me to do.”

Aelin shook her head. “Nope, you’re all set. Have a good night.”

“You, too,” Elide said, smiling, and Aelin noticed that her eyes slid to the table again, before she turned and was out the door, heading around the building to the small lot behind the café.

As she approached the table, Lorcan was standing and shrugging his jacket on. “Thanks for dinner. It was good.”

Aelin was still stunned by his niceties earlier that his words barely registered. “You’re welcome, I’m glad you liked it. I guess I’ll keep it on the menu.”

“You heading out, man?” Fenrys asked, finishing off the large plate of fries he’d ordered after his burger and first order of fries was gone.

“Yeah. Got some stuff I gotta take care of.” He said nothing else, but headed for the door.

Turning towards Rowan, Aelin tried to keep her expression in check as she realized that he, too, was heading for the back lot. Rowan, not fooled by her attempts, held his hands up in surrender. “I’m not getting involved.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “I don’t like it.”

“Like what?” Fenrys asked, and Aelin rolled her eyes as she took his plate and headed towards the kitchen.

“I’ve gotta lock up,” she called out over her shoulder. “I’ll see you at home. I love you.”

“Love you, too, sweet cheeks!” Fenrys called out.

Even through the swinging door, Aelin heard Rowan smack him on the back of the head.

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

Rowan skated around the ice. 

He was bored shitless, not even in his hockey gear, but sweatpants and a hoodie. His hands were shoved into his pant pockets as he circled the rink, close to the sideboards. The constant blow of the whistle was the only thing keeping him awake.

He didn’t even bother asking if he could practice, even though he felt up to it. He already knew what the answer would be. 

And yet, he longed for practice to last. When it was over, he’d have to make his way into the locker room for Maeve.

And he was not prepared.

He’d felt her eyes on him since the moment he hit the ice, yet he hadn’t looked over at her once. Dorian was thankfully on the other end of the rink, so as he skated by at the beginning of practice, he was able to flag him down.

“Hey, man, how are you feeling?” Dorian asked, leaning on the half wall separating them.

“Much better, like it never happened,” he said, and the lie was barely there.

Dorian quirked an eyebrow and snorted. “Good try. You can’t practice today.”

“No, I get it, I understand that.” Roan cleared his throat. “But, uh, is there a different massage therapist I can see?”

Dorian blinked. “Did something happen with Maeve the other day? She didn’t mention anything-.”

“She’s my ex,” Rowan interrupted.

Dorian hesitated before nodding, slowly. “I see.”

“You can massage me,” Rowan said, quickly.

“As flattered as I am, I’m not a massage therapist,” Dorian chuckled. “I can talk to-.”

“No, don’t…tell anyone. If you don’t know of anyone, it’s fine,” Rowan said, the words rushing out of him. 

“Look, I don’t know Maeve very well,” Dorian began, shaking his head. “But, she seems perfectly fine, alright? Has it been a while since you’ve been together?”

Rowan gave him a curt nod.

“Then give her a chance to be civil,” Dorian said, shrugging. “If she’s disrespectful, let me know. Otherwise, I have no reason to think she won’t do her job appropriately, and if she doesn’t, then you can leave.”

He sighed, nodding, and skated off.

He spent the next two hours dreading every minute that passed.

He heard Brello’s whistle blow and slowly glided across the ice, coming to a stop next to his line.

“Everyone was looking good today,” he said, looking at them one by one. “Take it easy tonight. The boys from Eyllwe aren’t going to go easy on us tomorrow night, especially since we’ll be in their territory. I want all of you in your best form.” He gestured to Rowan. “Whitethorn will be back on the ice next week.”

There were cheers and hollers from the team and Rowan couldn’t help but smirk as Lorcan shoved him.

Brello, to everyone’s surprise, smirked as well. “Hope you’ve enjoyed your time off, but relaxation time is over. You ready to go?”

“Aye, coach,” he replied, nodding.

“That’s what I like to hear.”

After a couple more announcements from the coaching staff, everyone was skating towards the locker rooms of the practice facility and Rowan felt like his nerves were going to snap.

He took his time removing his skates and grabbing his bag, before slowly walking down the hall leading to the training rooms. He was silently praying Dorian would be in his office, right off to the side of the therapy room, but he wasn’t.

There was only one room with a light on, and with a deep breath, he approached and knocked on the half-open door. 

Maeve looked over her shoulder with a smile. “Come in, I’m ready for you.”

Rowan hesitated, but went in. Dorian was right. Maybe she had changed, maybe there was nothing to worry about.

Yet Rowan felt nauseous as he approached the blanket covered table.

“I’ll give you a minute to strip down and be back.” She left without another word, shutting the door behind her.

Rowan stared at the door before kicking off his shoes then lifting his shirt over his head. He only hesitated for a moment before kicking off his sweats and laying down on the table, pulling the blanket up to his waist.

A soft knock informed him of her approach, and he grunted to let her know he was ready.

When the door reopened, the lights suddenly dimmed and Rowan awkwardly shifted on the massage table.

Neither of them spoke for a few minutes. Rowan was grinding his teeth as she worked on the muscle in his lower back that kept spasming when she said, “I have to say, I was surprised to see you the other day. Dorian hadn’t told me who I would be working on, but…” She paused and chuckled quietly, running her hands up his back.

Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit.

When Rowan was drafted into the EHL, it had been a pretty big deal in his city, but more specifically, his university. He’d dropped out of school to accept the offer from the lower level team and climb his way to where he was. And everyone in Wendlyn knew.

There was no way Maeve didn’t know he was playing for Terrasen when she took the job.

He gave her a small nod and a quiet noise that said he was listening. She kept going, taking that as a sign he was interested in the conversation.

“I feel like it’s been so long since I’ve seen you,” she sighed. “Things ended so...abruptly. I’m glad to see your doing good.” Another chuckle. “Save for the injury, of course.”

It was so strange to hear another accent from Wendlyn that was still somewhat fresh. Lorcan, Gav and Fenrys, they’d been in Terrasen so long, the accent almost disappeared sometimes. But the lilt of her tone, the way she phrased certain words… It both soothed and unsettled Rowan.

“Don't you care to know how I’ve been?” She asked, her voice low. When Rowan didn’t reply, she continued on, anyway. “I’ve been pretty good. Got myself a little place in the city. A dog. Little chihuahua named Fiona.”

Rowan blinked. He was tempted to say that he hadn’t asked, but she didn’t seem to mind.

“I’ve got some pretty wealthy clients, too,” she continued, continuing to work out that knot. “For the first time in ages, I’m secure, you know? Not just financially, just…secure.”

“Good to hear,” he replied, the words sounding more like a snarl through the pain, and she dug her knuckles into his back. The sound he made was halfway between a moan and a groan, he bit his lip to cut it off, but he noted the change in the way Maeve’s hands touched him.

Her touches became less like determined movements meant to heal and were more akin to petting, brushes along his side and a slow finger down his spine.

“And you?” She asked, pulling the blanket a bit lower on his back. He’d worn underwear for just that reason, not trusting her to not make an inappropriate move. “Are you living in Orynth?”

He cleared his throat and said, “Yep. Got an apartment down the road from the university.”

His answer was short and sweet. He wasn’t trying to invite more conversation.

“Not far from me then,” she replied, humming quietly.

Rowan’s shoulders tensed, but that just made her want to ease it away. His eyes closed and he remained quiet. 

“What about your personal life?” Maeve asked, at last.

Rowan didn’t answer, he just took a deep breath.

“Not trying to pry,” Maeve said, at last. “Just trying to make conversation.”

“I’m in pain,” he said, gently, the lie coming out easy. “Not really in a mood to make conversation.”

He could have sworn he felt the temperature in the room drop several degrees.

Her answer was curt. “Sorry.”

She stayed quiet for the rest of the massage, and when she finished, she told him to get redressed and left, heading back out into the main training facility.

He emerged a few moments later, pulling the hood of his sweatshirt over his silver hair. He was already heading for the door, giving her a nod of thanks, when she spoke up.

“Rowan, wait.”

He hated hearing his name on her lips. His steps slowed and he turned around to look at her.

She hesitated slightly, but said, “I was going to go get dinner in a little bit. It’s been a while, I didn’t know if maybe you-.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Mae,” he sighed. The familiar nickname slipped out before he had time to stop it. It caught him off guard. “I- I gotta get home. I’ll see you later.”

Rowan had grabbed his bag and was out the door before she had time to say another word

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

Aelin was at the stove, stirring a pot of homemade marinara sauce and humming quietly along with the radio when Rowan unlocked the door to her apartment and came in. Glancing over her shoulder, she smiled at him before turning back to the cooktop. “Hey, you. How was practice?”

“My new massage therapist is my ex.”

The words came out in a rush and Rowan wasn’t even sure he consciously knew he had planned on saying them.

Aelin’s back stiffened and she set the wooden spoon on the trivet beside the stove. Silently, she turned and asked, “Your ex-girlfriend is giving you massages?”

Rowan closed his eyes and took a deep breath before nodding. “Before you say anything-.”

“Did this just start today?” she asked. Her tone held no judgement, only curiosity. However, there was a slight edge to her tone.

“She gave me the massage in my apartment-.”

Aelin held up a hand, and Rowan’s words instantly fell into silence.

Silence, where the room remained for far too long. “Aelin-.”

“Who is she?” Aelin asked, one brow raised. “I’ll kick her ass.”

“Her name is Maeve,” he said, making his way into the kitchen. He leaned against the counter. “She was my girlfriend in college. We dated for a couple of years, but… It didn’t end well. It became more about who I was in hockey, how I was playing, than it was about our relationship.”

“Maeve,” Aelin repeated, turning back to the stove. “Maeve, Maeve, Maeve… Hmm.”

Rowan was quiet, not exactly sure what to say.

“And you have to see her? You don’t have a choice?” She finally asked.

He shook his head. “Brello told me to get over my personal issues. I’m sure I can book a personal masseuse, but-.”

“No, your coach is right,” she sighed, stirring the pot, before putting the lid on and walking over to where Rowan stood. She wrapped her arms around his waist and looked up at him. “I don’t like it, but… that isn’t really my call to make.”

Rowan let out a relieved breath. “I know, it’s not mine either. Maybe you can give me massages here to help?” He smirked and, finally, Aelin’s beautiful smile returned.

“We’ll see,” she chuckled, leaning up to press a kiss to his lips. “Looks like I’ll just have to come to your games and make my presence known.”

“Make your presence known?” He crooned.

“I like to mark my territory,” Aelin breathed, her eyes bright. 

“And I’m your territory?” Rowan grinned.

“Whether you like it or not,” Aelin said, laughing softly. “Yes, you are.”

“Hmmm,” Rowan said, narrowing his eyes. “I can’t say that I don’t like that.”

He leaned down and kissed her one more time before asking, “So you aren’t mad?”

She stepped away, back to the stove, and said, “No, I’m not mad.” She paused and pulled a few spices from the cupboard. “Do I like it? Of course not, but there’s not much we can do about it.”

“Once I finish up this round of therapy, I won’t need it again,” he promised. “No more fights, no more getting slammed into the boards. I won’t have to see her anymore.”

Aelin laughed as she turned back to him. “You can’t make that promise, who’s to say what could happen?”

Rowan cringed. “That’s true. No more fighting though, I mean that.”

Aelin nodded, and he could tell she believed him.

He took a step closer and brushed her hair back. “You look beautiful.”

Aelin’s lips quirked as she said, “Trying to kiss my ass to get back on my good side?”

“Maybe,” he muttered, and kissed her forehead, softly. “Is it working?”

“Hmmm,” Aelin began, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Not yet, keep trying.”

Rowan’s grin widened as he leaned down and pressed his mouth to hers. “Now?”

Aelin sighed. “Getting there.”

“Only getting there, huh?” He breathed, his lips still brushing hers.

“I guess you’re going to have to step your game up,” Aelin cooed, slipping her hands down his back and into the waistband of his sweatpants.

Rowan’s grin was positively feline as he picked her up and carried her back into her bedroom.

Dinner was forgotten about for quite a while.

[sokkas-honour]

Hi there! Could you write for your #30 for your music playlist? Zuko x reader 😁😁 thank youuu!!!!

nothing has changed - zuko x reader

pairing: zuko x fem!reader

wc: 2.3k with lyrics

notes: reader is katara & sokka’s older sister! this time the lyrics are in bold + italic so that you don’t confuse them with the flashback + dream scenes, not that i think you would but just in case.

warnings: mention of sibling problems, if there’s anything else feel free to lmk!!

-

nothing's quite the same, as it has been on those familiar days,

as the night sky reigned above the fire nation, zuko looked out the window of his palace bedroom, memories flooding back from his time travelling around the world, away from his nation. wether it had been looking for the avatar or actually working with him, you had always somehow been there. first as his enemy, then as his friend, then as his lover.

he remembers the days where you’d find yourself fighting each other; he would attack you with his fire bending while you’d land hits with your battle club, knife or your whales tooth scimitar. when he’d feel nice, back in his avatar hunting days, he’d solely use his duel swords to make the playing field more even but he’d constantly forget that you were able to handle yourself even against benders. he had always found you to be beautiful and the tension between the two of you when you fought was undeniable.

he remembers when he tried to make amends with team avatar and even try to join, he remembers your initial reaction to it. you sided with your sister, not liking the idea of the boy who tried to hunt your friend, your siblings and yourself down, and the idea of accepting someone of the firenation, a nation that had taken your mother from you, into your friend group.

you came around before your sister, having joined your brother and zuko to try and free your father. he had proven himself in terms of having changed and as being a valuable member for the gaang. he still remembers exactly what you said when you came back from the trip.

“zuko!” you called before he could go too far, wanting to give some sort of privacy to the reuniting family. the ex prince stopped in his tracks as he waited for you to catch up to him.

“yeah?” he asked, unsure of what you would say. your brother had already made his amends with him but had warned that although you wouldn’t be as hard as katara, you still might take a little while to come around. either he was about to hear you accept him as part of the group, or you were about to, well he didn’t know.

“i wanted to say thank you. thanks for helping me get my father back. you really have changed.” zuko was a tad bit taken aback, not thinking he’d get your approval right after the trip but it didn’t bother him. a small weight seemed to be lifted off his shoulders. you gave him a proud smile and he felt his heart race.

“it was nothing. you both deserve to find your father again.” he blushed, bringing his hand to scratch the back of his neck awkwardly. he returned your smile with a small one.

all of a sudden, you grabbed your scimitar and pressed the sharp tooth end lightly on his neck. his heartrate sped up but it wasn’t fully from you being close but also out of fear, sokka hadn’t warned him about this. his eyes widened.

“but if you even dare double cross us. if you even dare lay a finger on either of my siblings, i won’t hesitate to hurt you.” your previously bright face turned dark as you threatened him, not moving your weapon from his neck until he nodded nervously. when he finally did, you lowered it and your face returned to what it was before.

“good, i’m happy to have you as part of the team zuko.” you put your hand on his shoulder as a sign of acceptance, accompanying it with a small grin before turning around to go reunite with both of your siblings and your father.

he laughed a bit at the memory, remembering the fear that he felt during those few seconds but also the weird attraction he still had while you threatened his life.

he also remembers when you both finally admitted your feelings for each other. unbeknownst to him, you had also felt some sort of weird attraction to him when he was still hunting the avatar but it went from a weird and almost uncomfortable attraction, to one of genuine caring and love.

you had both grown rather close after your rescue at the boiling rock, spending many moments together along the beach and in town. it was after seeing the horrible play about their mission thus far, your character seeming to constantly fight with katara over zuko while also being an annoying and overprotective sister, constantly belittling your sibling’s feelings.

zuko remembers you storming out right after the show closed, sokka’s and katara’s characters having almost insulted you multiple times and you just needed some air. the words of the characterised katara still ringing through your head. ‘you’re a terrible sister y/n.’

“hey y/n.” he approached you calmly as you leaned against the balcony, staring at the bright moon that had been your friend during many sleepless nights after your mother died and your father left.

“you ran out of there pretty fast so i just wanted to make sure that you were okay.” zuko informed, leaning his back against the balcony after you gave him no response. he turned his head towards you and searched for a reaction.

“yeah, the show was just.” you took a deep breath, thinking of a word to describe the monstrosity you had just seen. “horrible, let’s put it that way.”

zuko laughed at your bluntness. you turned your gaze away from the moon to zuko, a small smile creeping up on your face at his carefree and content expression. his laugh was also something you didn’t realise that you liked about him but the last couple of days had made you create a long list on things about him that made you swoon.

“that’s certainly one way to put it.” his laughter died down and he met your staring gaze, both of you not breaking it.

“listen, if there was anything happening between katara and you, or if there is anything, i’m totally cool with it.” you blurted out, needing to get it off your chest to have an answer on the relationship portrayed in the show. you knew that katara would’ve told you something if it were to happen but you had to be sure.

“why would? why would something be happening between katara and i?” zuko asked, confused at your question that seemed to have come out of nowhere. the firebender knew that he wasn’t great at expressing his feelings but he had hoped that he’d been somewhat obvious about the way he felt toward you.

“the show, in the show you two have a lot of romantic scenes. that’s literally one of the main fighting points for katara and i’s character, other than me being told i’m a useless and horrible sister.” you mumbled the last part. pushing yourself off from leaning over the balcony to stand up straight, body still not facing zuko.

“you do realise that the show is incredibly inaccurate?” he rose an eyebrow and stared you, confused as to why you would base your information on some horrible adaption.

“yeah but parts of it were true.” your head fell, letting the words of katara’s character get to you.

“hey, you’re not a horrible sister. in fact, i know that sokka and katara would say the opposite, in fact, they already have! multiple times!” zuko wasn’t about to let you beat yourself up over a badly interpreted story that was based off of misinformation. he put his hand on your cheek that had since turned away from him. when you felt his warm hand, your brought yours up to put it on top of it, letting your head settle against his hand and turned to fully face him.

“i know it’s just. katara and sokka have always been closer and, i sometimes neglected katara and was overprotective of her. i had always been closer to my dad so i had no idea how to deal with her and was just jealous of the attention she got as the youngest.” you admitted, not wanting to look into zuko’s eyes as you confessed something that not even your siblings knew.

“that doesn’t mean your a bad sister. katara and sokka both love you and know how much you love and care for them.” he caressed your cheek with his thumb in a caring manor as you finally met his caring gaze once more.

“thanks zuko.” you smiled in recognition, thanking him for his comforting words.

“and not only do katara and sokka love you for who you are, i love you for who you are. the y/n in the show was nothing like the y/n i know.” he ranted, not noticing his confession that slipped but you caught it and a huge smirk grew on your face.

“what?” he stopped talking when he noticed your mischievous grin.

“you love me? zuko we only became friends like two weeks ago.” you laughed, butterflies still dancing in your stomach at the idea of him feeling so strongly towards you in such little time.

“i mean i dont if it’s love but it’s definitely something similar. i like you y/n. you keep me on my toes, you make me laugh, you challenge me to be a better person.” he clarified his previous statement which just made things even better for you.

“uh huh.” you nodded, indicating him to keep going. zuko usually wasn’t the one to have a lot to say but tonight seemed to be a special night.

“and after seeing all the horrible things i’ve done, not only in person, but theyve all gotten thrown back into our faces tonight. it’s totally understandable if you’re not there yet to completely forgive me, i mean i would but.” zuko’s out of character rambling continued, making you laugh but you couldn’t keep letting the poor boy dig himself an even deeper hole so you took a deep breath and grabbed his hand to remove it from your cheek so you could lean in and press your lips against his in order to shut him up.

zuko’s eyes widened in surprise, taken aback by your bold action but you were always the one to take bold moves. after the initial shock, zuko eagerly kissed back, moving his hands to your waist in order to bring you closer to deeper the kiss. some part of him had been waiting for this moment ever since he had laid eyes on you.

“spirits zuko, you never talk that much.” you teased once you broke apart from the kiss which just earned a blush from the raven haired boy.

“well um, i.” zuko stumbled, failing to find a reason for his previous ranting but he never got the chance to answer as you pecked his lips , and you both got interrupted by a certain watertribe boy.

“y/n!” you heard your brother call out, probably concerned at your running away and the fact that you still hadn’t come back.

“looks like sokka’s calling me, if you don’t mind.” zuko unwrapped his arms from your waist and you started walking back inside to the voice who called you. you made sure to send a wink in his direction before you left, leaving the banished prince blushing and with a stupid smile on his face.

zuko grinned as he thought about your first kiss. he sighed happily and went under the covers to doze off and let sleep take over temporarily.

i dream about an old familiar face, then wake up and you're gone without a trace,

“zuko!” the firelord lifted his head up and saw you running towards him down the long hallway of the palace. enormous smile on your face at the sigh of your boyfriend at the end of the hallway.

“y/n!” he greeted you with a mirroring expression and a hug when you finally reached him. arms wrapping around your waist as you cuddled into his chest.

“ i missed you.” you mumbled into his chest, feeling his chest rumble as he chuckled at your statement.

“i missed you too.” he replied, eyes meeting yours as you lifted your head to look at him. he used one of his hands to move the hair out of your face before placing his lips softly onto yours.

“i have news.” you announced as you broke the kiss, a huge grin on your face as you looked up at zuko with an infinite amount of love.

“which is?” he asked, not knowing if he should be concerned or excited.

“well, as you know i went to see katara while i went home and you’ll never guess what she told me! i’m pregnant!” you told zuko the news and you swear you saw him panic for a split second before he fully processed the information and his face was replaced with pure bliss.

“really?” he didn’t believe it, you two were finlay going to have a child together. who would’ve thought back then when you two fought against each other that you would’ve been carrying his future child. you simply nodded before he leaned back into kiss you.

he woke up in the morning, thinking that his dream was a memory and that you were laying right next to him but as he turned around, he was met with an empty bed. he sighed slightly, you were still away in the south pole with your family as you had been for months. nonetheless, he was happy to have dreamed about your beautiful face.

and though you're away, nothing has changed, we always made it out, even when im old and blue, i’ll think about my time with you.

when he stepped out of his chamber, he was met with a servant giving him a scroll, no doubt a message from you. the firelord thanked them before returning to his room to read in peace.

whenever one of you were gone on a mission somewhere in one of the four nations, you both communicated through letters so that you could keep in touch. it would also serve as a way to your future selves to look back in the early moments in your relationship fondly. you’d always have memories that would never go away written in those scrolls.

atla taglist: @draqondance @biqherosix @missmorosis @firelady-jay

zuko taglist: @duh-dobrik

[whumpersdump]

Project Rebirth - CH3: Storage

This chapter is heavily inspired by The Machine from @just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi (which is awesome, btw. Whumperflies each time I’ve read it). There is also a brief implication that such a thing exists in this work’s universe.

Also I should mention beforehand, the whumpee’s “youth” is mentioned by whumper, but they are not a minor.

[ Previous ] -- [ Masterlist ]

TW: forced intubation / loss of bodily autonomy /restraints / muzzle / blindfold / pet whump (institutionalized) / dehumanization / drugging (brief, though on the graphic side. Two sentences) / sensory deprivation / starvation (mentioned, non-graphic) / intimate whumper (I think?)

Subject One / Whumpee’s POV. Whumper and his staff need time to prepare the program based on the evaluation. During the short second stage of the Project, the pet has to be stored away. Of course, with pets, no time can be wasted. So, Whumper has found a use for it. Instead of being locked in cage for days, Subject One will be locked in their mind.

Whumpee trashed against the restraints as whumper pushed them through the hall. The jacket was looser now, they basked in the extra breathing room. Toby had given them something that made their muscles all weak, but they fought that like they fought everything else.

They hadn’t found a way out yet, but it wouldn’t take long. They were used to straitjackets and restraints. Drugs, not so much. Most trainers didn’t have the budget. Most trainers had never seen someone like them. Whumper thought he he could break them, but whatever horrors he inflicted, Whumpee would find a way to let it fuel their rage instead.

When Toby split off into another hall, that only became easier. Now they wouldn’t have to listen to the feigned concern in his voice. And the name. Subject One. They had many names over the years. It was the only thing they submitted to. They didn’t have their own anyway. Not that they remembered. This one sucked the most. It wasn’t even a name. Toby never lied, he was too much of a goody-two-shoes for that. They were getting a new one.

Whumper opened a door to a white room. He clicked Whumpee in place and looked down on them. “This’ll only be for a few days, so we won’t bother with food. Use your time wisely,” he warned. “Thoughts can help the learning process a lot.”

He leaned down and began re-tightening all the restraints and the jacket. They were tighter than before. Whumpee couldn’t move at all anymore when Whumper was finished. They’d still come out on top, though. Just watch. 30 escapes, they could make 31.

Whumper turned on a camera. “Don’t mind this,” he said. “You are a test subject after all.” He cleared his throat and faced the camera. “Welcome to stage 2,” he told it. He went on about the specifics and all the reasons he wasn’t talking about them for ages, before turning back to Whumpee.

“Now, usually we don’t put subjects as young as Subject One on tier 3. Normally younger pets respond well enough to the large amount of restraints, and the impressiveness of this operation. It’s not my favorite method, but it’s rather easy to replace their youthful defiance with fear.”

Stupid to think the two can’t exist at the same time, Whumpee thought.

Whumper continued. “With this one, that would cause the opposite effect. This one we’re cutting slack. For the duration of their storage here they can fight as much as they like. We’re prepared for it. No punishments, no threats. This one will need to get worse before they can get better.”

He pushed a button on the wall.

Whumpee’s pulse skyrocketed as they began to tilt backward. “First, the earpieces.” He pushed two blobs into Whumpee’s ears that—despite their small size—blocked any and all sound. Then, he removed the muzzle.

Bad choice. Whumpee screamed and cursed as loud as they could. Sure, Whumper wanted them to. They didn’t care. They always fought. That way they could never be tricked into doing the opposite. They never heard themselves struggle, but Whumper did. That didn’t stop him though. He smiled, turned to the camera and continued speaking until he turned back around holding a small tube.

Whumpee shuddered, understanding what was about to happen. What was about to be taken.

It wasn’t the first time they would be trapped like this. With their chest rising and falling at someone else’s commands. There was a trainer once. A private one. Like all the others, it didn’t work. Or… it didn’t last. They’d been trapped for months, multiple times. No wonder they almost broke. They had a talent, though. They could build themselves back up. It only took them a week last time. They could do it again.

The intrusion came through their nose, first. They fought it. The foreign object whumper plunged down. Every second of it they gagged, and chocked, and pushed against it. It didn’t budge, they knew it wouldn’t. When was in, Whumper squeezed their cheek and reached for a small device Whumpee didn’t recognize. It pricked into their neck, and fastened like their collar did.

Whumpee couldn’t move their head because of all the straps, but they still caught a glimpse of the clear liquid that sunk through small tubes, toward their neck. Their body went limp, for the second tube. Whumpee couldn’t fight it. The flow toward their neck had stopped already, but it hadn’t worn off yet. Whumper pushed it down their throat effortlessly. But the air didn’t come yet. Whumpee had to live off tiny breaths for what felt like eternity.

Whumper held the tube up and picked a strange muzzle off a table. It had two straps at the back, and and two holes in the middle. The edges were lined with a soft plastic. Whumper weaved the largest tube through one of the holes, followed by the smaller one in their nose, and pushed the muzzle against whumpees face. He buckled the two straps. One around the back of their head, and one over the top.

Their breath returned, no thanks to their own efforts. Whumpee’s chest moved up and down, along with the rhythm the object in their throat demanded. There was no defying it. They tried. All they managed to do was tire themselves. Nonetheless, they kept fighting. Even if it didn’t work, they would never be so weak as to stop. They didn’t care Whumper didn’t mind. They fought. They always did.

Whumper leaned over them with a mask. It had a pre-shaped top—that would go over their head—and a strap at the bottom. The last part, Whumpee read of his lips. Which was likely the reason for said mask. The tried to turn their head, but they were stuck. Stuck under the restraints, the foreign rhythm in their breath. Whumper’s lips shushed them, though Whumpee couldn’t hear the sound.

The mask went over their eyes, perfectly molded to their face. It forced them shut with a dull pressure. Even blinded by the mask itself, they couldn’t open them. The top of the mask fit perfectly on top of their head. It couldn’t shift down. The bottom strap clicked to the other ones that lied in their neck. It couldn’t shift at all.

They couldn’t see, hear, feel. They didn’t have to worry about breathing. Thoughts, Whumper had talked about. No. They wouldn’t be alone with their thoughts. They were stronger than that. Breathing. Resisting. That was what they did.

They fell asleep. That was their mistake. Whumper had kept them up for days at a time with all the tests and questions. Now they fell asleep, and their breath complied. With Whumper. They fought. Until every muscle went sore, they fought. Until everything hurt, they fought. They lost their breath for a second when they shifted the tube. Over and over. Until a pressure on the muzzle pushed it in the right position, and they couldn’t fight it again.

Even worse, their stomach rumbled. They hadn’t eaten in days even before this situation, and this didn’t help. They fought against the feeling like they fought everything else, but it didn’t end. So they ignored it. This was temporary. Whatever the real procedures behind this program of Whumper’s were, they would find a way to come out on top.

Though Whumpee had no way to track the time, their stomach told them they had been there for a while, after they woke up for the second time. Memories floated through their head. Memories the trainers had tried so desperately to extinguish. Memories Whumpee had tried so desperately to extinguish. Memories that made them shake even if their entire outfit was designed to prohibit it.

They couldn’t feel anything other than the fabric of the jacket over their body. Even that feeling faded. Touch. That was what had made Toby so annoying. He kept touching them. Little squeezes, or a stroke over their head. Whumpee wanted to gag at the thought, but in the past month they’d gotten used to it. Now, they missed it.

The silence made it worse. They cried, they whimpered, they sobbed. But heard none of it. They’d never hidden their fears. Never had to. They chose fight. Always. No matter what happened, they would fight. They would always end back up into someone’s hands, but still, they fought. This though, was getting harder and harder to fight with each second that passed.

They were tired, full in their head. Their mind was loud, their body rigid and tense. They needed calm, they wanted calm. They craved calm.

“Subject One,” a voice in their head said. No, that wasn’t right. It was in their ears. The earpieces. The voice came through again, freeing them from days of utter and complete silence. “Tonight is your turn to be Reborn.”

Whumpee shuddered, then fought.

~

Taglist, I guess?

@suspicious-whumping-egg @just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi

[crossoverworldtree]

Cataclysm/No Man's Land

The Great Battle in New York in 1999/2000, when King Ghidorah battled Godzilla at the behest of a guardian of the earth (Mothra) left scars. The Battle lay waste to great sections of New York in which repairs did not begin for almost 10 months. During those 10 months, sections of New York were quarantined by the government due to various… exposures. The draconian tactics enforced by the US government were largely decried, as many people found themselves trapped behind a high electric fence. Humanitarian efforts occasionally entered, but none were allowed to leave until a year had passed for the Radiation and Chemical toxins to dissipate.

King Ghidorah Flyby:

During the attack, or just prior to it, King Ghidorah flew overhead blasting all in sight. To simulate such an attack, players take Wind Damage within the radius of the creature. This radius is over a 500ft wide, though ducking inside can save people from the worst of it (or just allow a wall to take the brunt of the blow, negating the damage or reducing it using the inanimate object chart). Everything exposed within the radius takes 30 points of damage from the wind alone. Then, they must dodge Shrapnel carried aloft: against 16 or suffer 45 Slash/Stab damage. Occasionally King Ghidorah will let loose a blast. Determine who will be hit by having the players roll and add their willpower (Drama Points function as normal). The lowest roll (or the lowest 3 who fail to get at least 9) are targeted by King Ghidorah and thus must dodge a gravity beam from the behemoth normally.

Radiation Effects:

Godzilla leaves a trail of destruction where he goes. Most of it is fire and collapsed buildings. Some of it is in raw radioactivity. Godzilla’s path through New York is contaminated. For the first 30 days after the Cataclysm, people who visit his pathway incur 10 rems per hour. After that, it is reduced by 1 rem every 30 days until it fades into the background. However, Godzilla bled on New York in the course of his battle with King Ghidorah. Those visiting those areas where he bled out (in Gotham) results in a dose of 40 rems per hour. If a chunk of Godzilla is located, that chunk releases 20 per hour--and there are some unscrupulous people who will pay top dollar to get their hands on such a sample.

A character recovers from radiation exposure at a rate of 1 rem per day, so it is suggested they are closely recorded. Once 100 rems are reached, the character truly begins to suffer (See Conspiracy X for details). Radioactivity is resisted with a Constitution (doubled) Roll vs. 18 with negative modifiers added for larger and larger doses.

Scrounging:

Scrounging became a way of life for the year No Man’s Land lasted. Picking up the pieces left behind by those who fled and general looting becomes a means of survival for some groups. It’s not exactly easy. Scrounging uses an Intelligence and Crime or Knowledge roll to determine where to go for a required part or item. Then a second Perception and Notice or Crime roll is needed to uncover the item. As time goes on, it becomes harder and harder to find places that haven’t been scrounged and scroungers become more creative in finding what they need. Each month of No Man’s Land places a -1 on all Scrounging rolls in addition to other circumstances.

Factions: One of the effects of No Man’s Land was the formation of large gangs as the only remaining society left. Each fought for control and No Man’s Land didn’t really end until the Police and the Batman took over the last bits of territory held by these gangs. Only then could reconstruction really begin. Territory was marked with urban tagging and some darker practices in some areas. The factions are as follows:

Cops – Also called the "Blue Boys" since, technically, they weren't cops. The police are overworked and stressed as many people turned to them for aid after the attack. They are trying their best, but are stretched thin. The Cops gang generally included all civil service representatives—from lawyers to nurses to firefighters.

Bat-Family – The Bat-Family keep their territory in order, but it is distinctly their territory and not that of the police. Only near the end of No Man’s Land did Batman ‘seed’ his territory to the cops (it was a plan between him and the commissioner). The Bat-Family, at the top, consisted of what generally comes to mind with that group. They also received aid from the Spider, the Shadow and Superman on several occasions—as they could slip by the quarantine with ease. They also received aid from an unlikely source: the Manhattan Gargoyle Clan. Other members of the “Gang” came from all walks of life: prince and pauper alike held rank in Batman’s organization. Many of these were also informants of the Shadow at one time or another.

Two-Face and Penguin – Both Crime Lords extended their reaches as far as they could, living as medieval kings in their territories—with a near total feudal system in operation. The original gang members being akin to landed knights or lords in the new system, and the helpless civilians trapped within the territory became their serfs.

Jokers – the Jokers gang was possibly the most dangerous, marking their territory with joker-venom laden civilians and bystanders—often impaled on makeshift pikes or rigged with venom-laced traps. They ran berserk through the streets, reveling in the carnage for almost a full month before settling into a similarly feudal system as that of the other major players. Other gangs—Vultures, Scorpions and others—held onto territories of their own but were absorbed into one crime lord or other territory.

Poison Ivy – Poison Ivy was first captured by Clayface and held captive in her home. Batman freed her two months in, and she took over the parks and channels between them, turning them into fruitful gardens for the city (a "Neutral Zone") as Batman’s boon for freeing her. Her “Gang” is actually dozens of orphaned children created during the panic and destruction. She did not release them after No Mans Land, however. When the police came to ‘rescue the children’, she resisted them, growing thorny protective vines around her home before sending the children into the spirit world to escape.

Morlocks – The Morlocks, already underground, suffered greatly from the attack and were forced in part to the surface. They took in some more people after a while, but the stress got to Marrow quickly. They allied themselves with the Batman but kept their homes distinct as they remained underground for the most part—and their enemies the CHUDs began appearing on the surface thanks to all the chemical and radioactive material the two Kaiju left in their wake.

Other Dangers:

Because of the radiation and mutative alien DNA of the Ogdru-hem King Ghidorah, many mundane creatures were mutated. Roaming throughout the city—peaking in population in the central months of the event—are many monsters: Giant Mutated Vermin (Ants, Rats, Slugs, Bats, Rabbits, Spiders), Ghouls, CHUDs, Lepus Gigas, and a population of Triffids (at Poison Ivy’s beck and call). These beasts hunt and haunt the rubble, abandoned homes and ruins of No Man’s Land, preying on each other and unfortunate humans alike.

Abandoned Dogs also roam in packs through the streets looking for food where they can. As time goes on, they grow more and more feral and that can include people. Cats quickly turn to wild natures as time goes on. Though not dangerous, they can scratch a player who’s not careful. Feral Dogs, however, operating in a pack, is the Wolf of No Man’s Land. These packs range in size from 3 to 10 on average.

[violetarks]

Can you please make a happy end part 2 to Let Her In? I literally cried reading it 😭

Let Her In

Anime: My Hero Academia

Character: Bakugou Katsuki

Summary: A break was what they decided on, but it was more easy said than done. But somehow they weren't as confident as they were a few weeks ago.

Song: Certain Things — James Arthur (ft. Chasing Grace)

Part One | Part Two | Part Three

Y/N woke up, the sun shining towards her through the window. She shifted in her spot, sitting up and wiping her eyes. It was warm this morning, how ever shivers ran up her spine from the feeling of her body waking up. It didn't help that an arm laid on top of her waist.

It had been a week, maybe two, since Bakugou returned his copy of her apartment key. Since they last hugged and were a couple. They made no move to contact each other but didn't delete their numbers, nor try to ignore their social media.

Bakugou saw all the times Mina and Jirou came over to have movies or dinner, just to cheer Y/N up. Or Y/N when Kirishima and Kaminari took him out to drink or try to cook for him. It was nice to know the two of them were doing okay.

She glanced down to the person beside her. Y/N's apartment bed was big enough for at least three people to sleep comfortable in. She got this bed when she and Bakugou slept in the same bed for the first few times. He would toss and turn and squish against her because of their small space. So she got a bigger bed, although Bakugou got lonely and kept her closer to him. It was usually cold on Bakugou's side so he'd go over to hers.

It still smelt like him. The pillow beside her.

It was kind of weird, considering how he hasn't even set foot in her bedroom in the past few weeks.

The arm around her waist shifted as Y/N moved to stand up. She looked behind her and placed a hand on the arm. "I need to get up and make breakfast." She said, a smile on her face.

The arm pulled away from her, hearing a groan in return, "But Y/N, it's only like... 7:30!"

"No, Mina, it's 10:00." Y/N chuckled, standing up and stretching, "Why don't you just cuddle Kyoka?"

"We have separate rooms for a reason, Y/N." Jirou replied, on the other side of Mina with her eyes still closed. She then peeked over her shoulder to Y/N, who was getting a hoodie over her head. "What are you making?"

Y/N replied, walking towards the doors, "My famous omurice. I'll call you when I'm done."

She closed the door behind her before walking into the kitchen.

The girls had been staying with Y/N in her apartment for a while. At first, it was just check ins and such to make sure Y/N was travelling smoothly. And she was for a bit, until Jirou walked in on Y/N just staring at herself in the mirror in her bathroom, just playing with the ring around her finger. When Jirou touched her shoulder, Y/N began crying silently and made no move to stop. Mina and Jirou slept over from then on.

They were afraid Y/N would lose her mind over the 'break-up'. She was so excited to announce to all their friends that they were engaged and ready to be happily married.

The proposal was only three weeks before they separated. If you didn't know the two well, you would've thought they shouldn't have gotten engaged after six months of dating. But Y/N and Bakugou had been friends since UA. They'd been around each other since forever ago.

Bakugou's proposal was more of a spur of the moment decision. Of course he'd been thinking about it for ages, but it slipped out when Y/N was cleaning his wounds with alcohol. He just plainly asked 'do you want to marry me?'. And she replied with 'if you're serious, then I'd love to. But we should wait until we find the right time'.

The 'right time' being once Bakugou had free slots in his schedule, and when he confessed that he loved her. Needless to say, that would be postponed until further notice.

During breakfast at Bakugou's house, Kirishima and Kaminari barged through the door with takeout. They cheered for their friend, trying to lift his spirits.

Bakugou needed a distraction. Something to do. He took out his frustrations on the villains, nearly beating them to a pulp. He would also cook a lot. He was so used to cooking for the both of them so it was weird only cooking... so little. Kirishima and Kaminari picked up on that when they came over unexpectedly and Bakugou had set up two plates of curry. He didn't even realise until the boys asked if someone was coming over.

"Bakugou! We got you some ramen from the place you like!" Kirishima called, placing the meals on the table, "We were gonna' try and cook here, but we decided that it wasn't a good idea."

Kaminari pouted, pulling out chopsticks and napkins. "Y'know, I can make pretty good ramen too." He claimed, placing the bowls on each spot for the three of them, "You just never wanna' try it out."

Kirishima rolled his eyes and placed a hand on his hip. "That's because the last time you cooked, you somehow got your quirk involved and it electrocuted Sero's tongue." He stated before looking around the kitchen and living room, "Where is Bakugou? He said he had a day off today."

Kaminari shrugged his shoulders. They had decided to go check it out and see if Bakugou was anywhere inside the house. The two travelled towards the bedroom, seeing the door half-open.

On the bed meant for two, Bakugou was sitting on his side, flicking through his phone. He was hunched over, obviously stalking her and her friends' social medias. He gave a sigh before falling back into the mattress. It was then that he realised the two standing at his door.

"What the fuck do you want?" Bakugou questioned, wiping his face.

"Bakugou, I don't think it's healthy for you to check her page every few seconds." Kaminari said, rubbing the back of his neck slowly.

"I'm only checking to make sure of something, idiot." Bakugou said, tossing his phone onto his pillow as he closed his eyes.

Kirishima hummed, leaning against the door sill, "And what is that?"

Bakugou opened his eyes and glared at the ceiling. "That she doesn't give up on me." He sighs out quietly.

The last photo he check was the one Mina had posted a few minutes ago. Y/N was wearing a hoodie and shorts, standing in front of the stove with the egg on the pan. She looked at the camera with a soft smile as Jirou looked away. Y/N gave a small wave, letting Bakugou see the band still around her finger. It was still there.

He was worried that she'd give up on him. The first few days were Hell, all the anxiousness of Y/N taking off the ring was clouding his mind. Bakugou put all his trust in Y/N. He needed her to remember that she loved him and she said she'd wait for him.

Y/N hated to admit it but she was scared that Bakugou would never come back. Maybe he'd realise that the reason he never said those words was because he truly didn't love her. Or maybe he'd believe his statement that nobody would wait for him to be ready, and just leave. Bakugou was straight-forward. He wouldn't want to waste time.

Kaminari sat down beside Bakugou, Kirishima on the other side. His hand rested on Bakugou's shoulder as he sat up. "Dude. You sure you don't wanna' move on?" Kaminari asked warily, "You seem... stumped."

It's not that he didn't like Y/N, but Kaminari didn't like seeing Bakugou like this. Y/N and Bakugou were amazing and Kaminari loved their relationship. He didn't know where it was heading and if it should keep going. So he tried to make it better for Bakugou, as he knew the girls were doing for Y/N.

Bakugou glared at Kaminari. If looks could kill. "Fuck off, Dunce Face." He scowled, standing up and walking towards the bathroom, "I'm not gonna' move on from her. Even if I wanted to, I wouldn't. We're in this shitty mess because I couldn't just tell her that I..."

Fuck, he thought, too much.

Kirishima sighed once he stopped. He knew the situation. Bakugou had been beating himself up about it for days on end. He even once asked Kirishima for help, whilst saying 'hypothetically' to make it seem like he didn't really need help.

He couldn't leave her. Not when he was addicted to everything she was and is. She was the reason he hadn't gone mad yet and he'd be damned if he wasn't allowed to be in her arms again.

But maybe she'd get tired of waiting.

"What are you gonna' do?" Kirishima questioned, getting up and nudging Kaminari to do so.

"I'm hers." Bakugou whispered softly to himself, staring down at the sink. He wasn't going to cry with those guys in his room. "I don't want to be anyone else's. Just hers."

Kirishima and Kaminari heard it. They only smiled a bit before calling him to eat breakfast.

The first time they fought, like really fought, was after the Bakugou Rescue Mission. Y/N had gone with the group to save him. And he was a wreck on the way back. Y/N stayed with him at the station and walked home to his house before going to hers.

He was angry with her that she went. At the point, they were barely even friends. Well, to Bakugou, as Y/N viewed him as one of her best friends already. She had told him that she couldn't let him go. Y/N wasn't even in his class. She was in the Support Department, one of the students who worked on his suit. Which is how she met him.

He got even angrier. Why was this... person caring for him so much? He was going to yell at her when Y/N just placed her hands on his cheeks, holding his face in her palms. She glanced at him seriously before saying that she adored things and ignored others. She decided that Bakugou fit into one of those categories and it certainly wasn't the ones being ignored.

He was calmed down before heading inside.

A lot more weeks was all it took for Bakugou to finally realise that Y/N was still there.

Really, it had been seven months later. But it felt like just yesterday they had left each other.

At the supermarket, she was grabbing milk and butter. It was Mina's birthday soon and she wanted to practice making Mina's favourite cake. Y/N was determined not to mess up the recipe. Bakugou had turned the corner with his basket to get some yoghurt when he noticed her.

"Kyoka, are you sure she wants red velvet?" Y/N asked into the phone, the voice catching Bakugou's ears. He couldn't believe it. Y/N looked on the other side of the aisle and saw amounts of tubs. "Mina really likes ice cream. How about we make her something with that? What? Oh my God, Kyoka, she's 21, she want an ice cream cake."

She stopped a moment on the phone as people passed Bakugou. He was frozen in his spot, standing in the dairy aisle like a lost kid. Y/N then giggled, "Oh okay, she might. I'll try the velvet and then we can do the ice cream cake. You have sprinkles at home, right?"

He stopped on his tracks. His heart beat increased almost immediately. His eyes felt tired from staring too long. It wasn't until she turned the corner and out of his vision that he snapped back into reality.

He got his things and paid, heading home. He was thinking about Y/N, how she still looked good in her clothes and how she picked the same milk he got. A habit she got from him. Y/N was still so amazingly enchanting.

In his driveway, Bakugou hooked his fingers around the bags and pulled them inside into his house. He set the bags on the table and began to unpack them.

Y/N mentioned something about Mina's birthday party, which meant that he would have to go. It'd be the first time in months that he'd properly see her. She hadn't talked to him in ages. Would her voice still sound the same as it did that long time ago? Would she still light up when she saw him.

He would have to see her again, have to speak with her again. Maybe he would be able to say the things he never said. Bakugou's been working on himself. He really has. Just the thought of her was enough for him to drive forward.

"Was she wearing her ring?"

He mumbled it to himself. A question that drove him insane almost instantly. She was wearing. Of course! She never took it off.

Right?

So why couldn't he remember seeing the ring?

She's given up. Hasn't she?

Another two months and it was Mina's birthday. Also, by this time, it had been nine months since they last spoke or interacted. Nearly a year. It was amazing that he could last that long without talking to her.

The party was held at Mina's apartment. Jirou had reluctantly allowed it because of the last time they had one at their apartment, they spent the next two days cleaning up. Y/N offered to do it at hers, but Jirou declined. She didn't know how Y/N would feel having Bakugou at her place again.

Mina dressed Y/N up in a dress, much to her dismay as she wanted to wear jeans and a nice top. It was down to a few inches above her knees and the sleeves ran just off-the-shoulders. The dress was Mina's, and she said she wanted Y/N to look her best tonight.

Y/N knew Bakugou would be there. They were all friends, of course. She was... nervous.

Maybe Bakugou had made up his mind and said he would move on. He went out more with the guys, Sero even bringing him to the club every once in a while. Kirishima and Kaminari got him drunk a few times. Even more than he did before. But Bakugou was still himself, perhaps just more independent than before.

So he didn't need her, did he?

"Hey, Y/N!" Uraraka and Midoriya called, walking up to her, "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Y/N chuckled, holding her drink to her chest, "Yeah, it has. The last thing I remember was helping Ochaco with her new upgrades." She smiled at the brunette before shrugging her shoulders. "How's it going between you two, anyway?"

Midoriya and Uraraka were married at this point. Midoriya had proposed and they got it sealed only two months later. To say Y/N was a little envious would be true. But she was happy for them.

Midoriya rubbed the back of his neck. "Actually, we're celebrating our one year soon." He claimed, making Y/N widen her eyes at him, "Ochaco said that she wanted to spend it with everyone, so we're planning to have people over to celebrate. You're definitely one of the top people on our list, Y/N."

Y/N giggled in return, covering her mouth a little to make it look convincing, "That's great! I'd love to come, we've been friends so long!" She downed the rest of her drink. "I'm so happy for you, Ochaco, Izuku."

Uraraka held onto Midoriya's arm closely. "Thank you, Y/N!" She laughed happily, rosy cheeks as she rings shone in the light, "Speaking of which, how are you and Bakugou?"

Y/N stopped smiling at that point. Truth be told, she hadn't tried to reach out to Bakugou mainly because of fear. The fear that he would ask why she was contacting him. The fear of Bakugou saying that he didn't want to continue this 'relationship'. The fear that he would... just let her go.

Her throat was tightening up and she felt her head spin. "Katsuki and I..." She began, fiddling with her skirt, "Well, I don't know how to say this—"

"Y/N! It's been so long!" Kirishima called out, walking towards her with his jacket on his arm, "How've you been? You look great tonight!"

Uraraka and Midoriya must've noticed the change in mood, because they quickly excused themselves as Kirishima dragged Y/N away to the balcony. He shut the door behind them, turning around to see Y/N already staring at him.

"Thank you, Eijiro." She said with a soft smile, breeze running through her hair, "I don't know how to tell the others. It's kind of difficult."

Kirishima shrugged it off easily. "It's okay. I know how you feel about Bakugou." He spoke, leaning against the balcony with her, "About that... You know he's here right?"

"Of course I know." She replied, watching the cars rush around beneath them, "You, Denki and Katuski arrived together. But don't worry, it's fine. He doesn't have to talk to me if he doesn't want to."

Kirishima glanced at her before looking away. "I'm pretty sure he does want to talk to you, Y/N." He states, tilting his head to the side, "He saw you already and made an excuse to go to the bathroom. I just think Bakugou won't know what to say."

"He should."

Kirishima looked down to her. "What do you mean?" He mumbled out to her.

A few minutes of silence passed through them.

Y/N stood up straight, hands leaving the balcony railing. She fixed her dress skirt and took a deep breath in, making sure the off-the-shoulder parts were comfortable. Walking towards the door, she looked over her shoulder.

"Because he knows that if he wants to get back together, he has to tell me something."

The door shut behind her and she walked back to get a refill on her drink. Whilst at the sodas, Jirou came up and tapped Y/N's shoulder. "It's nearly time for cake. It's in your fridge, right? Do you want me to get it?"

Y/N shook her head and gave Jirou her cup. "No, I'll get it. Just come and knock at my door if anything goes wrong." She said, making her way to the door. Jirou nodded her head.

Y/N opened the door, waving 'hello' to Yaoyorozu and Ojiro who were on the other side of the room. She failed to notice the vermillion eyes following her moves.

TAGS: @jazzylove @urmomsshousee @multi-fandom-fanfic @shydeepblue @silentw-lkr @bakugousflowerprincess (anyone crossed out was unable to be tagged)

[watermelonlipstick]

Dreams, Chapter 7

If you haven’t read this series before, you might want to start on Chapter 1, or check out the Dreams Masterlist! Here’s the series description:

When Dean dies for good leaving Sam and his girlfriend (the reader) behind, they must figure out how to carry on without him. Alone, reeling, and unsure what to do next, trying to honor Dean’s memory and follow their hearts gets even more complicated when their nightmares become dreams that feel a little too real.

Title: Dreams, Chapter 7

Pairing: (past) Dean Winchester x Reader, (eventual) Sam Winchester x Reader

Word Count: 4184

Summary: Life moves toward normalcy for Sam and the reader, regardless of emotional turmoil.

Warnings: angst, fluff, swearing, s l o w  b u r n

          A few days later the Kaisers came into the bar for a nightcap and asked you and Sam to come to their house for dinner. You couldn’t think of a reason not to, and honestly thought maybe it would be nice to have something to structure the week around. It had been quiet, just barely beneath solemn while the dust settled and Sam stayed mostly silent while you moved around each other throughout the day. At least at the Kaisers’ Sam would have to talk to you, maybe even sidle up close to you during waking hours to keep up the couples’ charade. A little zap of guilt moved through you as you politely agreed to a time, that the second thought you’d had was about getting closer to Sam under this guise. In any case, the Kaisers were kind, it wouldn’t hurt to have a nice meal with someone else, and if you were going to stay here, it would be a good idea to avoid appearing standoffish. You bought their last drink and were waving after them when Sam came upstairs from changing a keg.

           “We’re going to the Kaisers’ for dinner tomorrow,” you offered, trying to keep your voice even and making a point of not staring at Sam too long. It was a challenge; since Sam had kissed you and even more since he’d divulged that longing was part of the tangle of emotions he was feeling, it was on your mind nearly constantly, adding a murky stripe to the ever-present grief.

           “Oh, uh, okay.” Sam jammed his hands into the pockets of his jeans like he didn’t know what to do with them. “What time?”

           “They said 7:30. Don’t let me forget; I think we should bring a bottle of wine or something, so I can grab one tomorrow.”

           “Yeah, that works.”

           You wanted to drag out the conversation but couldn’t think of any way to that wasn’t cloying or desperate. If this (hopefully temporary) emotional distance was what Sam needed, it was unfair for you to try to take it from him. A quick nod and you returned to washing glasses.

           The rest of the shift passed agonizingly slowly. Sam put on a podcast about Jonestown for the drive home.

           You’d decided to walk over to the Kaisers’ with Sam the next day, bundled up on top of a presentable sweater that you hadn’t worn in a few years. Biting wind sliced through your jeans and seemed to creep into your coat even as you dug your chin inside the collar like a turtle, and when Sam noticed he threw an arm around you. His side blocked a bit of the wind and he rubbed your shoulder to warm it with friction. The impulse to curl up into his ribs was fierce, but you fought it down to wrap your forearms around the bottle of red wine that looked the fanciest of the midrange bottles at the grocery store. Where seconds before you had been wishing the walk were shorter, now you could’ve stayed out in the ice forever if it meant Sam would allow himself to be close to you again without being asleep. You’d made peace with the want, trying hard to decide that feeling crazy on top of your grief wasn’t helping anyone.

           “Ready?” Sam asked with a tentative smile at the doorway. The Kaisers lived in a version of your cabin, in the sense that many of the houses in the area were log-hewn and rustic. However, they were clearly here to stay. Window flowerbeds filled with pinecones for the season and delicately carved shutters framed warm casts of light streaming onto the snow through gauzy ivory curtains, and their door opened to a tiny front porch where yours simply had a small ungraceful cement platform. For a moment, you thought about how comforting it would be to come back here at the end of a shift. It didn’t feel like somewhere as darling as this could have a half-broken boiler that rattled all day or plastic-coated countertops. This was a home and not a hideout.

           You gave Sam what you hoped was a reassuring grin and watched as his long finger pressed an old-fashioned doorbell encased in wrought iron.

           Mike answered the door. He had on a fuzzy pullover that made him look even more like a teddy bear than he normally did, nubbly wool spanning his belly like fur. He had the kind of rosy full-cheeked smile some jolly men combined with their booming voices to seem like the Ghost of Christmas Present, and a well-groomed beard with two starkly delineated streaks of gray-white dropping straight down from the corners of his mouth. From previous neighborly hugs, you knew he smelled like piney aftershave. He was a little taller than average, and built former-linebacker solid. You would’ve bet anything he was the perfect dad to call to help move you into a college apartment or scare an ex-boyfriend, and the thought of it made you cheerful and sad all at once. The hand not holding the doorknob had a pint of dark beer. “Great, you’re here! Babs, they’re here,” he added over his shoulder, gesturing an arm to welcome you into the home.

           Sam waited for you to go first, shuffling his feet along the doormat in tandem with you as Mike closed the door. You followed Mike’s socked initiative and gently toed your boots off while you handed him the bottle of wine somewhat shyly. For all the years you’d been on your own, there was something so decidedly adult about bringing wine over to the dinner party of a middle-aged couple that felt like those first few meetings of your parents’ friends after college, when you’re not sure whether to call them by their first names or resign yourself to a life of Mr This and Mrs That. Mike seemed to pick up on it, thoughtfully appraising the bottle and squeezing your shoulder, humming about how you didn’t have to bring anything. He clapped Sam on the back and asked him how he was doing before teasing gently about how long his hair had gotten, and you took in the house.

           It was bigger than the cabin you were staying in, the staircase to your left suggesting an upstairs that yours didn’t have, but what was far more striking was how warm it felt both in mood and literal temperature. A fire crackled straight through the main room in front of you, surrounded by giant river rock stonework that offset caramelly beige walls. A deep, plush canvas sofa faced the fireplace, flanked by two equally overstuffed armchairs upholstered with burnt sienna stained leather. Quick visual survey gave you a count of 4 throws in the room of various weights and patterns.

           The kitchen was over to the right through the dining room. Barbie was wearing an apron covered in piglets and appeared to be basting something in the oven, turning toward you and absentmindedly wiping her hands. Fluffy, soft-looking hair was held back from her face with a pair of no-nonsense tortoiseshell barrettes. “Oh, perfect! I thought I hadn’t left enough time for the roast, but it looks about done. Can I get you two a drink?”

           Sam’s soft, encouraging smile was enough to make you feel a little weak in the knees. “Sure! It smells great in here.”

           “How about an old fashioned? We’ve been working through a great bottle of bourbon.”

           “Works for me,” Sam agreed, and you nodded as well.

           A few moments of small talk later, Sam offered to help Barbie with the food. She graciously accepted, giving him some job you knew she could’ve easily done herself as a way to make him feel more comfortable. Mike noticed you looking at the variety of pictures on the wall and started talking about their kids, putting names to each cheerful face. They were a good-looking family, the Kaisers, all big beaming smiles and limbs protectively wrapped around each other over the course of different seasons and major events. You’d had to let go of this idea years ago, long before Dean was gone, but it still made you ache in a nondescript way to see a family so happy and so each others’, not only in the way they loved but also in the way they so obviously belonged. Mike and Barbie were good people, and they deserved this. You tried to focus on the affection in Mike’s face as he talked, asking a few clarifying questions as he went. A few moments later, Sam came up behind you.

           “Barbie says we should go sit down.” There was a pinkness to his cheeks and you couldn’t tell if it was the warmth of the kitchen or residual windburn from your walk over.

           The table was one of those single-plank, live-edged ones you’d always coveted and knew were far more expensive than they looked. It fit the elevated rustic feel of the Kaisers’ house and the delicious, rib-sticking meal you were eating off of it. As you fawned over the roast and Barbie did the requisite Midwestern dance of ‘oh it’s nothing I’ll give you the recipe’ it was easy to fantasize about belonging somewhere like this, having parents like this, pictures of your cousins and nieces and nephews lining the walls of your childhood home. Indulgent, clearly, even more so than the rich food and smooth liquor, but you couldn’t bring yourself to feel guilty about it.

           “So, have you two always worked in the bar industry? That always seemed so fun to me—but I’m too old to do anything like that now,” Barbie asked.

           “Oh, come on, you’d be a great bartender,” Sam insisted, always coming down on the exact right spot between flattering and politely flirtatious. “But uh, no. This is the first bar I’ve worked in for more than a few weeks, actually.”

           Mike raised his eyebrows in an indication to continue but Sam artfully avoided his gaze. You couldn’t tell what the cue was—how honest was Sam planning on being? An old classic, the technically-true, seemed like the best option. “I worked as a bartender through and a little bit after college.”

           “Silly me, I guess I had always thought that’s how you two had met; you seem like such a good team there! How did you meet, then?”

           You artfully popped an entire fingerling potato in your mouth to force Sam to take over. “Uh, our, ah, families were friends.” In the sense that Bobby had been like an uncle to you both, maybe. A complete non-answer that sort of encompassed the barebones of the situation if you squinted at it right, but neither Mike nor Barbie seemed to recognize the opacity of it.

           “That’s great. I bet your parents were excited then, seeing you get together,” Mike suggested before taking a sip of bourbon. Both you and Sam smiled affirmatively—not together, many of those parents long dead before we had even met—and hoped the moment would pass. “How long has it been, then? Since you got together?”

           That one you couldn’t even guess what the right pretend answer would be and prepared to joke ‘too long’ before Sam said, “About two years. We knew each other for a long time before that, though.” It made sense, as far as answers went. ‘About two years’ since Dean was gone, since your lives changed, but it still ripped through you like an electric shock and sent you reeling. You could have spent an hour looking at that statement from every angle but snapped out of it when Barbie gave you a basket of rolls to pass to Mike.

           “So that explains why she doesn’t have a ring,” Mike winked, playfully knocking Sam’s arm with his fork still in his hand. “Two years isn’t that long.”

           Two years is a lifetime. Sam blushed and looked down at his plate. “Be nice. Kids don’t get married at 20 like they used to,” Barbie teased from across the table, smirking at her husband with so much love behind her eyes. You couldn’t help but wonder if you would’ve looked at Dean like that across some dining room table if things had been different and your mind flashed on the kitchen counter a few nights before, silently clinking rocks glasses together over pie and wanting to hold Sam until the world got more fair.

           The plates were cleared and an amazing, sticky bread pudding was brought out. Mike and Barbie coaxed each other into telling stories that made you genuinely belly laugh until finally you couldn’t suppress a tiny yawn and the final drink was poured with a joke about how it wasn’t like you were driving home, so what was the harm? You all moved to the living room in front of the fire, sitting next to Sam on the couch when Mike and Barbie took what must’ve been their normal spots in each armchair. Old cushions folded up around you comfortingly and rolled you slightly into Sam’s weight next to you, lining up the firm stretch of his thigh along yours. Warmth from the fire and Sam, the pleasant sounds of your hosts’ voices and Sam’s answers to them rumbling through you as vibrations when he spoke were so sweet and heavy under the bourbon, and your eyelids began to droop.

           Sam’s hand gently covered your knee. “Ready to go?” he asked, low with a private smirk.

           You made a conscious effort to sit up straight. “I’m so sorry, I can barely keep my eyes open! Where are my manners?”

           Mike laughed a big belly laugh from his armchair. “Babs, we’re outlasting the bartenders!”

           Everyone chuckled as you all got up from your chairs, Sam accepting a Tupperware of leftovers before the at-the-doorway conversation of people who didn’t want to go and hosts who didn’t want them to either. You’d been so nervous about the dinner and now you didn’t want to leave, honestly hadn’t really wanted to leave the sofa, just doze against Sam in the heat and company like a child. It had seemed before like maybe Mike and Barbie were just asking you for dinner because it was the thing to do, but they had been genuinely welcoming and you realized that these were the first non-hunter or hunting-related relationships you had made in literal years as you zipped your coat up all the way to the top and followed Sam outside into the quiet night.

           “Man, they are really nice,” he remarked, walking closely enough next to you that your sleeves brushed together.

           You could barely see his face when you looked up to him. “Yeah. We should have them over sometime.”

           “Our place looks like a flop house.”

           You giggled, the sound falling softly on the snow around you. “We can fix it up first.”

           “No real point in fixing it up if we’re not staying here for a long time.”

           “Maybe we could stay a while.”

           Sam looked down at you, slowing to a stop even as the icy wind whipped around you. “You want to stay?”

           “I mean, I—yeah, I think I do. Unless you think we should go somewhere else.”

           “No, I just…I guess I hadn’t really considered it here, the whole “roots” thing.”

           “It’s fucking freezing, can we talk at the cabin?”

           Sam’s laugh rang out across the woodsy surroundings as he clapped an arm around you and shuffled you both home.

           That night you tucked your cold toes between Sam’s flannel-clad legs and tried to imagine Dean as an old man.

           If you’d thought December and January were bad, the intense cold snap of February sent you for a loop. Something about the months of darkness and frozen fingers was making you more stir crazy than normal; the idea of coming home to the cabin seeming less and less enticing as the days went on.

           And then the boiler broke.

           Well and truly broke, not just making the horrible clanging sounds it was prone to, but no heat at all. It had only been a couple weeks since going to dinner at the Kaisers’ and the experimental conversation with Sam about investing time into the cabin which had since fizzled out. A lack of heat at the border of the Upper Peninsula in winter was obviously untenable, and it forced the topic again as you grumpily helped carry in the remnants of another dead tree Sam had felled to heat the home with firewood.

           “Is it worth fixing or is this a sign?” you huffed through the tiny clouds of steam coming out of your mouth. “How much would it cost?”

           “I don’t have a ton of experience with boilers, but I’m pretty sure it’s the heat exchanger. And I have no idea how much it would cost to fix, but I can try to do it myself if the parts aren’t too much.” Pragmatic, genius Sam with the patience for machinery that you didn’t have. He snaked a long arm out from the bundle of wood he was carrying to open the door and hold it for you to scurry under his arm before closing it after both of you.

           Generally, you thought a landlord would probably fix this kind of thing but it always felt a little scary asking him for anything, knowing you paid cash every month and the owner had never asked for a background check. It could have been fine, but every potential conflict seemed like it might be an opportunity to be unceremoniously evicted. Better to either leave before it could happen or solve the problem yourselves. You put a hand on Sam’s chest before he could go back for another bundle of wood. “Let’s talk about it for a second.”

           Sam put his hands on his hips and it accentuated the broad span of his shoulders in his thick jacket. “Okay, right. What do you think?”

           “Well, I mean, do you want to stay here? Or do you want to go somewhere else, or start moving again or something? We haven’t even really talked about it.”

           He seemed to be weighing the options before biting his lip. “Here seems as good a place as any in a lot of ways, you know? Off the beaten path, probably not going to get spotted by anyone we know—knew—and the money is honest.”

           You cut him off with a flippant wave of the hand. “Right, but I’m not talking strategically. Do you want to stay here? Do you like it here?”

           A moment of silence fell as you searched his face for clues. “I—yeah, I do. I like being in the woods, I like the bar, I like people like the Kaisers and Steve and Jake. Maybe I’ll feel differently in the summer but right now I do.”

           The grin cracked open your face slowly. “Good. I like it here too. Do you think the hardware store would have the stuff you need to fix it?”

           “Definitely the first place I would check.”

           After getting the rest of the wood inside and leaving it next to the small fire already burning to dry out, you started to follow Sam to the car before he turned around a step before the door. “Where are you going?” he asked as you almost bumped into him.

           “Hardware store, I thought?”

           “Nice try, we can’t both leave with a fire going.”

           “Oh, I get it. So you get to go sit in the warm car and hang out in the warm hardware store while I turn into a popsicle over here.” You were half-joking, but it was genuinely freezing in the cabin, even with the fire going. Sam rolled his eyes over a smirk and strode around you, pushing the couch tight to the fireplace before retrieving the down comforter from the bed and throwing it on top. He grabbed a rinsed plastic bottle from the top of the recycling bin and filled it with water hot from the tap before throwing it in the microwave for a second.

           “Unless you feel like learning a lot about boilers today, then yes.” He gingerly pulled the bottle out of the microwave and tightened the cap back on, deftly shifting it between hands before tossing it under the comforter on the sofa.

           You were having a hard time holding onto your anger as you watched him make a cup of peppermint tea, still wearing his boots and coat as he moved around the tiny kitchen. Reluctantly, you shuffled over to the couch and removed only your boots and gloves before getting under the blankets, tucking your socked feet around the poor man’s hot water bottle and finally smiling only when Sam brought over the steaming mug of tea with more than a touch of affection under the exasperation coloring his face. “Fine?”

           “Fine.”

           When he came back, you were well into a worn paperback and had put two more logs on the fire already. “Do you need help?” you called over your shoulder from within the comforter cocoon.

           “I think I’ve got it, thanks.” His words came into the room on a gust of cold air while he tapped snow off of his boots.

           “Think you know what you’re doing?”

           “Actually, yeah. The woman at the hardware store—you’d recognize her, Diane I think—knew a fair amount about it. I’m pretty sure I have it under control.” He brought a paper bag weighted with supplies over to the utility closet you knew held the boiler and got to work.

           It was nice watching Sam in this element, always had been. As much as Dean had loved doing little projects and fixing things, both Winchesters were far handier than your average bear and Sam’s natural interest in learning lent itself well to tinkering with all kinds of things. Evidently boilers were not an exception. He shucked his coat off to lie flat on his back, looking up  at something you couldn’t see with his hands gently resting on his ribcage before reaching to grab a wrench. The twisting motion raised his elbow and tugged his shirt a bit up his torso to reveal a few inches of Sam’s lower abdomen, the trail of hair tracing to his belt buckle in slightly sharper contrast to the taught skin around it given the consecutive months spent without sun. It made you blush and you quickly looked back to your book, grateful for the heat that the fireplace was bringing to your cheeks as cover.

           About forty minutes later, Sam tapped your shoulder and startled you out of the goofy historical fiction of the paperback. “Wanna see if it works?”

           He had a stripe of oil or something on his cheek but you resisted the impulse to swipe it off, instead nodding and extricating yourself from the heat of the blanket and couch around you. When you turned it on, the boiler clicked loudly twice in a way you thought might be a bad omen before going silent again. You let an extended beat pass and placed a palm on the side. It was already on the edge of being too hot to touch and you momentarily forgot that you and Sam had decidedly not been continuing your new normal level of comforting affection lately before throwing your arms up high around his neck excitedly. He chuckled into your ear and closed the embrace, forearms crossing your ribcage and hoisting you off the ground as he stood up in your hug. You could feel the fingers of one hand splayed out over your back and side through your jacket, the other still holding the wrench tightly.

           “Okay, no promises it’s going to last, but I think that was it,” Sam offered as you released each other.

           “Crank it! I want it to feel like the Caribbean in here.”

           “You say that now, and in 3 hours you’re going to be whining about how hot you are,” Sam grinned, clearly feeling a little proud of himself even if he wouldn’t admit it. He tapped the wrench absentmindedly against his palm for a moment, considering whether he wanted to say something. “When I was at the hardware store she said our landlord might be open to cutting our rent if we offered to fix up the place.”

           “Who’s we?” you teased, holding your frozen fingers close to the boiler like it was a campfire.

           “I thought you might say that. But seriously, I know you don’t like the color of the walls or the shower pressure or whatever, could make it feel a little less…sterile.”

           You tried not to remember that the last time you’d picked out paint was for a bright pink bedroom at age 12. Sam was right, it could be nice. Even more than that, it would be great to have some leftover cash around, and an extra project to kill a few hours of daylight wasn’t a bad idea.

           “I kind of like the sound of that. I’ll talk to him about whether he’d be game.” Sam squeezed your shoulder before massaging your neck, admiring the boiler distractedly when you continued. “And seriously, thank you for fixing it.”

-

Continue to Dreams, Chapter 8

Thanks again for reading! If you liked it, check out my Masterlist or send me a request!

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