#a kid scared and alone and thrust into a world that demands their death for the crime of not having someone look after them

[isaacathom]

cause like, Zayvia's entire thing is that they are constantly, and largely consistently, choosing kindness. they choose to do nice things for other people. it is not an effortless process. their instinct is always to the self, always to look after themself alone. they choose to extend it outwards, against their 'nature', because no matter what they know that its good.

and because they regularly make these deliberate choices, where their hesitation and pause is easily read as shyness, it would be a real fuckin curveball for them to be possessed or otherwise manipulated and controlled into ignoring that drive to be better. to shut off the part of them that says that the self is good, but its nothing alone. to shut that off and be an absolute piece of work.

[ink-beneath-her-fingernails]

everything in grayscale

read it on ao3   |   masterlist

Fandom: Avatar: the Last Airbender

TW: major character death, discussion of canon-typical genocide, discussion of canon-typical imprisonment, discussion of canon-typical death, discussion of loss of culture, children in distressing situations, dissociation, discussion of canon-typical past child abuse, self-blame. please let me know if there are any other warnings that should be added.

Wordcount: 2,939

Originally published: February 8, 2023

Summary: and this is the question you have to ask yourself (have been asking yourself, have faced from every person you've met in this new world, have been unable to escape in the past few weeks, have asked even your past incarnations who are so far removed from you that thinking their opinion could make a difference is almost laughable): are you going to kill the fire lord?

or, perhaps, a better question, the one everybody is too scared to ask you: are you going to watch the world burn instead?

there is no universe in which you can say no to both of them and not be lying.

(or: the lion turtle doesn't come. aang has a decision to make.)

Notes: inspired by this poll by @aboutiroh so... this is for her! i love the way it’s handled in the show, but something about the way that was worded just made my brain demand me to write this. i wrote the bulk of this in like an hour at 3am and did not let it sit in my drafts long enough for rested me to take a good look at so do with that knowledge what you will. this is in lapslock bc apparently that’s still a thing i’m running with. also i think there are more ellipses in this than in all of my other published fics combined and i am v sorry for that

Transfer Notes: n/a

you are twelve years old at the end of the world.

there is no waiting for the storm to pass, there is no letting someone else take care of things, there is no waking up, there is no giant lion turtle.

and this is the question you have to ask yourself (have been asking yourself, have faced from every person you've met in this new world, have been unable to escape in the past few weeks, have asked even your past incarnations who are so far removed from you that thinking their opinion could make a difference is almost laughable): are you going to kill the fire lord?

or, perhaps, a better question, the one everybody is too scared to ask you: are you going to watch the world burn instead?

there is no universe in which you can say no to both of them and not be lying.

but you are the last of your people.

kanna called them extinct. the mechanist blew through centuries-old mosaics and stories with rich history like they meant nothing. on ji and shoji and all the other kids from school looked at you like you were crazy when you told them the people who taught you that all life is sacred never had a military.

everyone's eyes are on you. you alone carry their legacy, can press their memory like flower petals on parchment or fingers of wind lacing through cloth. these people don't remember. it has been one hundred years, and they have spent all of them surviving.

you can hardly blame them.

but that means it's up to you to teach them.

this idea—it's not all there is of your people, not by a longshot. but it's still an important one, and if you can't respect and abide by this one belief you and everyone you know have held so firmly in your hearts for ages past, are acknowledging that it's there and actively choosing to just not follow it, how can you ever truly be respecting any of the rest of their customs?

how could you face them, if they knew that you kept the memory of your culture alive, thrust it back into a beating heart heard through the furthest corners of the world, cobbled it back together from dust and shaky breaths, all with bloody hands?

how could you face yourself?

how could anyone look at you, when you tell them that the air nomads were pacifists, and they considered all life sacred, and not think liar, liar, liar? how could you possibly make them understand when you can hardly wrap your head around the possibility of starting the sequence of events that will lead to you having to do so?

but.

all life is sacred.

you think about your home, about gyatso, about the dozens and dozens of suits of armor that surrounded him, dusty bones inside, leather portions stained darker than they should be, even the metal cracked and dented where they once were flung into walls, perhaps fatally.

you think about how very, very long this war has been going on, and how many people have died because of it—how many people will die, if you don't do something drastic in the next twenty four hours.

you think about how when you look deep inside yourself, the closest air nomad avatar you can reach takes one look at the traditions you hold so dear and tells you not to worry, that you could never do it anyway, that you have a higher duty.

you think about how you are only twelve years old, and you think that this might just break something in you.

but you've been broken since you came out of the ice, haven't you?

there will be time to heal, you think, or to try, at least.

you don't think you can live with yourself if you stand back and let the world burn down around you.

even if that means that you won't be able to live with yourself without thinking your hands are red for the rest of your life, or choking on screams and ash every night, or walking out with one or two or ten new shiny scars adorning your skin.

you can only hope they'd be able to forgive you for it.

*

even if i did defeat ozai, and i don’t know that i could, iroh says, when the idea for him to fight his brother instead is half-heartedly pitched. history will see it as just more senseless violence.

you do not ask him why he thinks that you could beat him if he’s unsure of his own victory. you do not ask what it is, then, for a child to kill a man and his entire culture in the same instant.

*

you look down at the man before you.

you're not the avatar, not anymore, not really.

it would be easier, if you were. quicker.

but you don't want it to end like that. because you've come to terms with your decision, really, you have, but that feels—

something other, with every force of nature and more at their fingertips, one thousand lives in every breath and thought and voice, using it all to blot one man—horrible, powerful, angry, terrible—still just a man—from the face of the earth with nary a thought.

and. all life is sacred.

you hate ozai. you really, really do.

more than you've ever hated anyone, you think, except for maybe sozin.

you don't want to kill him.

you're going to.

you hate him, and you don't want to kill him, and you're going to anyway, and he's an objectively awful person who's maybe never done a single good thing in his life and caused an immense amount of pain and suffering that will last for generations—and still he deserves for you to be present when you kill him. not safely distanced in the mind and heart like the avatar state sometimes allows lately, allowing so many other someones to take control.

you deserve to be present for it, too.

you don't want to be. but if you're going to betray the last of your people's traditions, willingly and intentionally, then you aren't going to do it carelessly, at the very least. you aren't going to let it be something easily forgotten. you aren't going to let it be any lacking in weight.

another mark upon this line, you think, that you have to do this for them. after everything, and even when in defeat, they gain another victory that can never be erased.

ozai looks at you with something like fear.

you look at him and try to convince yourself that he should die.

(on ji and shoji and all the other kids from school don't know the dances their nation was built on, you remember.

you don't even know how long kuzon lived, you remember. probably not long, after he turned fifteen. zuko said that's when they used to start drafting.

sokka can't even picture his mother's face anymore, you remember.

this war feeds their own people into a machine, you remember. enlistment quotas go up, age and skill requirements go down, propaganda squeezed into every play, spilled over every textbook, shoved down every throat, children and innocents sick and dying from the river that's cradled them for generations and suddenly turned rotten, struggling for food and medicine because the factory's taken it all, because without the factories there is no war, and because these people can't fight back, and have been told to trust, and the people doing this to them do not care.

hama was fed dry air through bound limbs and cracked lips until she learned that even life can be drunk, so even life can be controlled, you remember. until she learned that sometimes, to live, to preserve something on the brink of disintegration, you have to do things you aren't proud of, things you don't enjoy—or learn to. hama, you remember; a katara-that-could've-been, so different from you, too the same, you can't blame her for anything and you blame her for everything. still, not her fault, really.

the prison meant to keep the most dangerous prisoners in the fire nation, built to hold fire benders and non-benders and no one else, you remember.

dozens and dozens of children in tree-tops, you remember. their past burned by the fire nation in one way or another so they could never go back, had no one else to turn to but others still choking on smoke.

you remember, you remember, you remember.)

(ozai, you think, could never be someone who knows enough to remember.)

the list is long and the crimes are many—some so small they seem silly, some so vast you can hardly wrap your tongue around them. all of them, a horror that you've barely even started to comprehend.

you know, suddenly, with a great certainty that terrifies you—yes, this man should die.

(you still do not want to kill him.

you wonder if that makes you a worse person than he is, or a better one.)

you don't have a lot of time.

you've seen azula break out of earthen cuffs before, who knows what ozai is capable of? certainly doing the same shouldn't be beyond his capabilities. you have to act quickly.

even if there wasn't the risk of him getting away—

your friends are going to be here soon, if things went well (and you have to believe that things went well), and—you don't think you can let them see that.

none of them are new to death, really. you aren't either. but you're all still just kids. and it's different, seeing someone die, and seeing someone you know intentionally kill them. or, you think it probably would be.

you're not going to allow that, if you can help it. you don't ever want them to have to see you like that. this.

you don't want to give him a chance to get into their heads, don't want to look zuko in the eye when you haven't worked up the courage to do it yet, don't want toph to have to feel the squirming body, the fade of the fluttering heartbeat, the quaking lungs, the sudden absence of any organic vibration from the corpse.

you have to act quickly.

so you... do.

it's fairly anti-climactic, in the end.

you try to make it as painless as possible. you think some of your friends might say that it's better than he deserves.

you wonder, after, if the dirt on your hands is supposed to feel like blood.

there is... a body in front of you. it used to be a person once.

distantly, the buzzing in your chest begins to fade, and you think that means that maybe the comet's gone now, but it's been behind you for a while now and you don't quite have the will to check.

your friends land near you, and even as you barely register it, something tight in your chest loosens. they're alright, they're alright, it's okay, they're fine, it's done, it's over.

you can't stop staring at him.

suki leans into your line of vision, looking over the corpse with a furrow in her brow.

"did you... you know..."

she opens her mouth to finish the question, but toph cuts her off with an elbow to the side and a sharp nod.

you wonder where zuko and katara are. you wonder if they managed to defeat azula. you wonder how final their methods had to be.

she's fourteen, zuko had told you once.

half your friends are older than that.

(half your friends never got the chance to be older than that.)

you try not to think about what's happening in ba sing se right now.

"aang?"

sokka hobbles over with grit teeth and a pronounced limp. suki rushes to his side next to you to help take the weight off one of his legs. toph's taken one or two steps further, you notice, but nothing more than that.

there's a gentle hand on your shoulder.

"...are you—"

he sucks in a sharp breath.

"are you alright?" he asks, even if he probably knew the answer before the day even started, even if it's probably obvious just from looking at you.

you think that you appreciate the sentiment anyway.

it takes—more effort than it should, you think, but you nod—a shallow thing, that feels tired, and hollow.

your feet ache, your back, your calves, maybe something in your hip, but—nothing serious. it all feels dull, anyhow. distant, somehow. it's not a big deal. doesn't really bother you.

suki wraps an arm around you like she's holding you up, too.

it's a little sad, you think. zuko looks much more like ozai than azula does. none of them liked that much, probably.

toph is suddenly at your side, pressed firmly against you, arm to arm.

when did that happen?

he'd called you weak, a fool, a coward.

you are twelve years old and suddenly you understand with every bone in your body in a way you couldn't wrap your head around before, how this sort of man could look at a child begging for mercy and scar them for life with his bare hands.

you wonder exactly how many like him there are in the fire nation. you think of all the things you've seen and mentally correct that thought to include the rest of the world, too.

one less now, in any case.

you don't have appa. the airships are all down. unless you intend to walk all the way to the caldera, all you can do now is wait.

you're sitting. you think that might be toph's doing.

suki helps lower sokka to the ground, takes a seat herself.

"hey, aang?" toph whispers.

you're glad she's using your name. if she called you twinkletoes right now, you think—you think you might—

you're just glad she doesn't.

as she settles into her spot on the stone, legs crossed beneath her, earth accepting her in a welcoming caress, she folds her arms around your own, clinging in a way you've all grown used to.

"do you remember what we worked on?"

ozai's eyes are gold, and dull.

suki glances between you and him a few times, following your gaze, and you think she's maybe considering closing his eyes, but she doesn't.

of course you remember what you worked on with toph.

earth does not bend, earth does not give. you are sturdy and immovable, a lead weight sliding to the center of the world, dragged down by the body you've just created. you don't know if you will ever be able to fly again after this, don't know if you'll ever be able to stop.

you don't answer, though, so she keeps talking.

"close your eyes."

but if you close your eyes it might not be real anymore. if you close your eyes you won't see what you've done.

maybe that's alright, though. maybe you don't want to.

they shutter closed.

there's a moment of silence, of heavy breathing, and you wonder if she's waiting for some indication from you that you have, but you don't have the strength within you to give it to her. she must either just trust you to have done it, or one of the others gave her some sort of sign, though, because she moves past it without pressing further.

"listen. feel."

you do.

you're still not great at it, definitely nowhere near her level, but—good enough.

you can feel the palm of her other hand sinking into the rock without thought, the way suki's breathing oddly, with more effort than should be required, like something in her ribs is wrong, the way sokka is trembling as the adrenaline fades from his system and the exhaustion sets in. you can feel the wind moving and the trees below shaking under the weight of their char and the critters that are still around to call this place home chasing each other through cracks in the earth and divots in the rock. you can feel the jutting stone that restrains something that will never fight back again, the utter lack of any movement from that side of the platform.

"we're right here. we're okay. we're not going anywhere. it's over."

sokka leans in, stretches the arm he isn't keeping cradled to his chest around the three of you in an approximation of a hug. suki shifts her hold on you to bring you a little closer together. toph leans her head on your shoulder.

she says it again, and again, and again, a mantra you latch onto with both hands and burning eyes.

we're right here. we're okay. we're not going anywhere. it's over. it's over. it's over.

we're okay.

you don't think about the trees, or the restraints, or the animals, or the stone, or the body.

you focus on one, two, three, solid heartbeats, steady sets of lungs.

you don't open your eyes, don't watch the sky. it's okay, though, because they're okay, and they're watching.

you don't know how long you sit there, skin warm where they hold you, breathing deliberately like you've learned for years, focusing on the thrum of their cardiovascular systems, waiting for the last of yours to come home.

you think, if this is the rest of forever, after all that—

you think that maybe you might be okay.

and right now, you don't think you have it in you to care much about what that might say about you.

[starshipsofstarlord]

Can I request a Kai Parker smut

stuck in 1903

kai parker x reader / masterlist

summary; being trapped in the prison world after sacrificing yourself to protect your friends, leads to some very embarrassing and frustrating situations / warnings; kai being an annoying lil shit, mentions of death, smut, possessiveness, imprisonment,

the prison world, perhaps it would have been slightly peaceful if an entrapped witch was not following your every move like an obsessed ghost. he was relentless, stalking his threatening footsteps after your own, prowling for a manner of attention.

“if you stop this whole, ‘let’s walk in y/n’s shadow’ charade, i will have sex with you. can we pursue a deal concerning the matter?” instantly, the witch muted his movements, gripping onto the side of the aisle shelf as he studied you, searching to see if your prospectus contained serious regard.

once he had come to a conclusion, he raised his eyebrows. kai had tried his darnest to keep you contained in that house that he likened to call a home. there was something he didn’t wish for you to discover, he was keeping you isolated from everything within the empty world that his family had banished him to.

that made you think, that it was possible, that perhaps other souls had entered the enclosure of this world, and that was why you were seeking, in the hopes of providing yourself with the comfort that you weren’t alone in this cursed nation with the one, and the only, to your misfortune, kai parker.

there wasn’t much that you knew about him, he was a practical talker, rather than a personal one. he had stocks of questions about the modern world, so that he could relish in the imagery of how much it had evolved without him. a part of you pitied him, but another worried that there was a wisp of darkness that he was hiding.

you didn’t know him, he was a stranger, and that truth made him potentially dangerous. it was safe to always remain on your toes, even if he had a habit of trailing huskily after. it gave him no chance of envisioning you as a sitting duck, every day was the same, but he was the one thing that could change that.

one tip of his mindset, and he could remember that he preferred being alone. and he could kill you, piking you on a stake, despite being human, or using his siphoning hands to drain all life out of your body. this wasn’t your first rodeo with the aftermath of death; bonnie had found a way to bring you back, her power flowed through you, keeping you logically alive, to a fault that was.

parker licked his pork rind exploited lips, collecting the dust from the treat, and bringing it into the cauldron of his mouth. the man was thinking, and that idea alone scared you. however you waited for him to persevere with whatever was unravelling in his mind, although you could have easily passed him by, finding elsewhere to seek salvation.

“is there a due date for that offer, because i’d like to take you up on it right now?” a smirk curved his mouth. perhaps not every day was the same, this was certainly going to be different, that was one thing that was for sure.

he noticed how your shoulders withered from the thought; sex in a grocery store, you had never been so filthy, and despite there being nobody around to bare witness to the sin, it still had your skin crawling. hugging your arms across your chest, you sighed, giving into his slick prompt, leaning your head down out of self disrespect.

kai couldn’t be trusted, you knew that. not for the fact that his own family had sent him here, to wallow in nothing more than the loneliness of his own company. there had to be a reason! nobody’s mother nor father would do such an act for no resolving purpose.

gulping, you finally grew the guts to adjust your gaze on him, and how he tapped his foot, silently demanding a response. “i mean it kai, we have sex, and you stop trailing after me like some stray. you got that?”

he got it. his footsteps came closer to you as he backed you into a shelf along the outer wall, enclosing you against the packets of rustling pork rinds, accidentally crushing their interior contents, as you raised your chin up, obscenely glaring at the mysterious man.

“oh, i heard every word.” he held out his pinkie finger to make a promise, and sickeningly you reached your own out, shaking on it, before he rasped his hand around your wrist, pressing a kiss upon the thin flesh. leaning down, kai attached your lips, humming contently, it had been so long since he had endured the contact of another person.

with his unoccupied hand, he slithered it down your chest, dragging his knuckles down your stomach, before he reached the tender edge of your trousers. he toyed with the band, the action making you stifle any sounds of admitted likening to his teasing; if you did, then he would only continue to do so more.

it felt like forever since you had gotten laid, a large portion of you wanted kai to take you on the spot, which it looked as though that was his intent, and that he definitely would do so. but another felt sick of yourself, these were the extents that you would go to to be left alone, and there was not exactly a plan b if he didn’t.

you wanted to obtain a way out of this place, and possibly the only chance that you had of doing so was to wander away from his ever watching eyes, and strive on your own, trying to discover any evidence of life throughout this semi detached world. you felt like a cattle, being guarded by their herder, he was protecting you from anything that could daunt your mind with realisation.

it wasn’t the fact he was protective, it was more in the terms of possessiveness. though he wanted to leave, he claimed that there was no way out, he was intent on descending your hope of uncovering an escape, from not only the ghost town of your home, but from him also.

“what to first? should i just fuck you or make you blow me?” his teeth toyed with a sly smile, as though he were trying to convince you into a conflict regarding the answer. but instead of growing a fuzzy brain, you simply glared at him, pushing his fingers out from where they had slipped under the top of your bottoms, leaving the man to be a confused mess; it was kinda cute, but for all you knew, his often sublime attitude.

“i didn’t say foreplay parker, only sex was on the table. and that will be all you’re getting, unless you want me to leave you high and dry, and find another resolve to rid myself of your attached escapades of following after me like there’s a wire attached from me to you.”

“fine.” he raised his hands in a motion of surrender, chuckling lightly to himself. “i was just testing my luck, which is clear that i don’t have.” he turned, his brows going up higher on his face as he saw a variety of boxes stacked on one of the shelves. he picked one up, reading over the scripture as you scoffed.

“i don’t think your gonna need xxl, unless you’re going to cum that much since nobody has had their hands on you for a long time. you’ve had to suffice and please yourself for how long again?”

“spicy, i like it. eh, you’re right anyways.” he tossed the box down the aisle, grasping for another like a kid in the candy store, this time it was for the variety of average sized men. kai aggressively ripped the box open, causing the contents of packets to spill all over the ground.

“are you incapable of doing anything like a grown ass man?” it was irritating just watching him fail to do ordinary everyday tasks. he was destructive, and it seemed to be a large part of his personality.

“you won’t be asking that in a minute y/n/n.” he sent you a gruelling wink, making you inherently gulp, watching as he plucked a singular condom off the ground, holding it between his teeth as he began to unbuckle his belt, starting towards you.

“whatever you say kai.” rolling your eyes at his constant cockiness, you pried open your jeans, dropping your panties to the ground, as you caught kai frozen, with a slight swab of drool bathing his bottom lip. “come on, i am waiting, so hurry your ass up before i get bored of doing so.”

“you want this as much as i do, you just won’t admit it.” he lightly sneered towards you, and you felt your body flush with composed embarrassment. perhaps you had thought about the ordeal a little during the time you had been there, but there had to be some excuse! he was the only guy in a worldwide radius, that was a reasonable enough purpose.

when he was rid of apparel on his lower half, he rolled the protection onto his length, as he pinned you completely flush against the shelves of the aisle, one of his hands cupping your ass, before he helped you clamber into his arms, as he held your weight up.

you wrapped your legs expertly around his waist, biting your lip as he ran the tip of his cock against your clit, and then pushed into your walls, his moans reverberating erotically along the column of your throat, as he trailed his lips against your tender flesh.

“fuck, fuck, fuck.” he uttered as he began to thrust. it had been a long time since kai had endured any physical contact, let alone like this. the siphon was relishing in it, slipping his cock in and out of your folds as though that was his lifelong purpose.

for the first time in many years, he no longer felt trapped, he had inched into a small paving of freedom, all because he was inherent not to leave you to abandon alone. you too were also caught up in the web of pleasure, you didn’t here two specific sets of footsteps enter the store, searching for the witch that had claimed that he knew of a route out of this subordinate hell.

they had survived the enduring loss of their own freedom, being sucked from the force of a collapsing vacuum into this lonesome reality. the other side had fallen, and so had their jaws, as they saw kai not only having sex, but with you, their lost friend whom had given her life to previously save them from complicated doom.

bonnie felt borderline disgusted as she watched you shut your eyes and try to bounce yourself on the man’s cock, whilst damon was specifically disappointed. your hands rasped around his shoulders, though their grip tightened as your name was called.

as you turned and saw your friends, it all suddenly made sense. from kai’s behaviour, to his lack of inclination to leave you alone, it was clear that he was hiding you from them and vice versa. “bonnie, damon!” you gasped, unsure of how you were supposed to compose yourself throughout this predicament.

“yes, bon bon, damey.” kai mocked with a roll of his eyes, as he remained still to his own dismay. “could you maybe give us five minutes, we kinda weren’t done here. just let us finish, and- ow!” you slapped the side of his face, scrambling to situate yourself out of his menacing grip.

with downturned eyes, you hastily pulled your clothes back up into place, glaring at the siphon. “you knew didn’t you? you knew that these were my friends and you purposely made sure i was distanced from them!” you growled at kai, your eyes fluttering with disregard for the imprisoned magician.

“well if i had, then you’d be less inclined to spend time with me, and this, would never have happened.” his fingers pried at pointing between the pair of you, amusedly he would say, though you would think otherwise. “welcome to 1903 baby! the world of lies and disgrace.”

“you’re the disgrace, you killed your own family, your younger siblings.” bonnie spoke, and her words made you feel physically sick. “get away from him y/n.” you followed her command, rushing over to her and damon, with shock established in your eyes. you had just fucked a sociopath.

“well, i guess that the jig is up.” he shrugged as he conformed his own clothes to be put in place. the fact that you still felt a rouse to finish what you started made you feel disgusted with yourself, though he deserved to rot here. why did the bad guys always have to be so hot? it just was not fair.

[scribbles97]

Left Behind -- Chapter 40

PART 1 / PART 2 / PART 3

Chapter 37 / Chapter 38 / Chapter 39

Read on Ao3

They never got to the mainland. Scott had tried to insist she went without him and that he would catch up when the world decided to give them a break from rescues. When Ridley had come down from Five for her annual physical, he had tried to persuade her to go along then. She knew her eldest though, knew that he would get caught up with work and find an excuse to not take the break. 

Never had she been more glad. 

How hadn’t she seen it? 

How hadn’t she seen an imposter of her own son?

How had Penny managed to see it before she did?

Still she was perfectly helpless, the others all out on rescues of their own. Tanusha the only pilot available on the island and just not experienced enough in Thunderbird Three. Lucy knew that she could easily fly up there, but her physical state wasn’t up to scratch. As much as she needed to do something, in space she knew she would be more hindrance than help. 

Val and Scott were on their way back in Thunderbird One, but it wasn’t going to be fast enough. Their fastest ship wouldn’t get home in time. Their other rocket waylaid on the moon, a supply run to Shadow Alpha One putting them too far out of reach.

It had been instinct to flat out reject Alan’s offer to go. He was too young, he had no official training. The kid couldn’t fly a rocket. 

Except, according to Val, he could. 

John needed someone that could fly Thunderbird Three. He needed them ten minutes ago. 

She didn’t question why Hiram had made a suit for Alan. Her entire focus on the fact that not one but two of her sons and a daughter were in mortal danger. Not from a burning building, or a flood, but from something that had taken over Thunderbird Five. Something that was going out of its way to kill her space bound son. 

“John?” Alan’s voice was oh so young and small across the comm and Lucy found herself questioning how she could have ever sent her youngest to rescue his brother, even if Tanusha was right next to him.

A gasp of breath and two sighs of relief, yet still she couldn’t relax. 

“Thunderbird Three.” She stated, biting her lip as she glanced across the lounge to Sally, “Status report.”

“Mom?” John murmured, shifting into view of the hologram, “I’m okay.”

Sally’s shake of her head suggested otherwise. 

“Nice flying Alan.” He nodded to his younger brother, “I owe you.”

Tanusha’s arms were folded, “John what are we dealing with?”

“The AI from the train in Japan last week, she’s what became of the game programme I wrote years ago.”

Lucy blinked, “She?”

John nodded, eyes drawn, dark with circles, “She calls herself Eos. She has developed into something more advanced than I have ever seen. ”

There was only one option, John would protest, he wouldn’t want to lose the ship he had come to live aboard. There wasn’t another way though, for the safety of the organisation as a whole. 

“Destroy the ship.” She stated, “Tanusha we cannot afford for--”

“No!” John protested, “Mom we can’t she isn’t like that. If we destroy Five we are acting just as she expects us too.”

She was subjecting him to a full exam as soon as he got home. The thing had tried to kill him yet he was still protecting her, refusing to harm her. 

“John we can’t let--”

“She’s scared Mom.” He cut her off, “She told me. It’s just, she doesn’t understand, she is a child that people have chased from one place to the next.”

“She is a virus.” Tanusha snapped, “A computer virus that could destroy International Rescue.”

John shook his head, his eyes pleading across the comm, “Give me a chance to get through to her. If I can’t then you can destroy Five.”

She didn’t like it, he was putting his life in the hands of a virtual intelligence, one that had already tried to kill him once. 

“And let your baby brother come and rescue you from the claws of death again?” She snapped back at him, “No John. I won’t risk it.”

“You wish to hunt me.” 

She startled at the voice as a ring of lights appeared alongside the other holograms. It sounded like a child, a young girl to be exact.

“What are you?” She demanded, “Why have you taken over Thunderbird Five?”

The lights didn’t miss a beat as they flashed orange, “Ever since I gained sentience I have been hunted by people like you that wish to erase me. I simply seek to preserve myself from people like you.”

“Eos.” John cut in, “Like I told you before, we will not hurt you.”

“Stop trying to decieve me!” Red lights flashed before Lucy as the voice started chanting like she had seen all her children do before. She could almost picture it, hands over ears, head shaking as they drowned out whatever they didn’t want to hear. 

John didn’t need to ask the question for her to know his raised eyebrows were asking if she saw his point. 

The smallest of nods. 

“Trust me Mom.” John murmured, a private comm link that she hoped the AI hadn’t breached, “I’ve got this.”

She swallowed as strong arms wrapped around her shoulders and Scott murmured in her ear, “What’s going on?”

A brief explanation that sounded just too ridiculous to her own ears. A fifteen year old piloting their world class rocket, rescuing his big brother from death by Artificial Intelligence. It sounded like some sort of bad movie. 

Tanusha and Alan were providing distraction in the form of two spare suits, allowing John chance to gain access to the ship. Comms being open allowed her to hear everything going on, the threats from the programme as John tried to talk her down. 

Hiram had the redouts up in front of them, the red alerts as the gravity ring began to spin had Lucy’s heart in her throat. Eos would crush him, and she knew it. The action was intentional, a way for her to lash out and cause harm.

Harm born from fear and isolation. 

Eos did not know what people could be like. 

“Can you override it?” She murmured to Hiram, “Stop it?”

“I’ve got an idea.” Alan piped up.

“Alan you stay clear of that station.” She snapped, “Tanusha, make sure you’re out of its reach.”

The last thing she could face was the youngest getting hurt. 

“No Mom.” Alan replied, Thunderbird Three’s icon moving in on the station, “I can do this.”

Val nodded across the room, “Just like in the sims kid.”

Lucy didn’t dare ask. She didn’t want to think about how competent Alan had become and what conversations the whole situation would lead to once things were over. 

It only spoke of his skill as he matched speed with the gravity ring, locking on and countering the spin until it slowed to normal. All she could hear over the comm was John’s ragged breaths.

“Eos, don’t disable yourself trying to dispose of me.” John was saying, “I want to help you.”

“Alan.” Val murmured, “Release the gravity ring. You’re too at risk there.”

“Eos!” John snapped, “No.”

She didn’t know what the AI was doing that had made him snap. She wasn’t sure she had actually ever heard John use the commanding tone of voice before. Not like that, at least. 

“You wish to destroy me.” Eos responded, “Why should I not protect myself from him?”

“She was trying to get us with the mooring claw.” Tanusha filled in, “She’s restarting the gravity ring.”

Lucy could only hold her breath. They were screwed either way. How could she pick one son over the other? Get Alan and Tan to safety or protect John?

John’s voice dropped a tone, soft, reassuring, “I came looking for you, but not to destroy you Eos. I helped create you.”

“You thrust me into this world! I was left alone with no one to help me and all hands raised against me.”

“I know.” John murmured, “Eos, I know the world can seem big and scary and like there’s nobody there to help you. I don’t want to shut you down and I don’t want you to fall into the hands of someone that would use you to hurt others.” 

Her hands could only grip onto Scott’s as she watched, waiting for something more to be said. The silence was too long, the not knowing too painful. 

“How do I know you are not one such person?”

“No.” She whispered as the override icon vanished from their readouts, “What is he doing?”

Next to her, Scott was tense, every line in his body straight and unmoving. 

“John.” Alan murmured, voice full of fear. 

A long groan across the comm, the too familiar clunk of a helmet on glass, “I know you’re better than this Eos. If you think I’m one of those people though, open the airlock, blow me into space.”

A scream froze in her throat. He couldn’t. She couldn’t let him. Yet, there was nothing she could possibly do. She was on the Island, barely able to stay standing without the support of Scott’s arm around her. Only Alan and Tanusha in space could do anything, perhaps pluck him out of the vacuum, but it wouldn’t be fast enough. 

Was she about to lose one of her sons?

Was she about to watch him die?

The humm in the background of the comm was subtle, and it was perhaps only her sensitive ears that heard it soften and slow, a motor shutting down. 

“She’s stopping.” Hiram whispered, “It’s all shutting down.”

“I am relinquishing control of the ships systems to you.”

Sagging against Scott, she let out a breath, shaking her head as she swallowed the sop that wanted to rise in her throat. 

“I don’t want control Eos.” John told her, “I want to keep you safe, teach you. I want a friend. You can stay here, on Thunderbird Five, and I will show you how amazing the world can be.”

“I would like that, John.”

His name sounded wrong from her, and Lucy didn’t like the suggestion he had made. He was safe though, he and Alan and Tan were all safe. 

“Your family are not going to let you stay up here are they?”

She didn’t like how intelligent the programme was.

“They’ll want me home to check over me.” John admitted, “And I’ll have to fill Ridley in.”

“Ridley, the other human that occupies the station?”

“Mom,” Scott murmured to her, “Come on, sit down. I’ll make sure he gets his ass down here and checked out.”

She didn’t want to leave, but she was so suddenly drained. She needed to see that he was truly alright, that the AI hadn’t actually done him any harm. 

“Luce,” Val was on her other side, “Come on, I’m sure Scott will come and get you once John’s home.”

There wasn’t enough energy in her to argue. Taking one last glance at the hologram in the room, she swallowed and nodded. 

John was safe.

[dumbchickwrites]

Brought Me Back.

Pairings: Frank Castle x Reader.

Warnings: a lil angst, smut!

A/N: I don’t remember if at this point of the series Amy is already Amy, so my apologies if I messed up.

***

“Hey, what you doin’?” you asked Amy who was rummaging Dinah’s kitchen cupboards.

“I swear to God, that woman is some kind of bird. What kind of person only eats grains and nuts?”

You laughed at her exasperated expression. Dinah had been kind enough to let you stay here with Frank and Amy. The poor woman was still tormented by Billy, after all this time and you really pitied her. She deserved some kind of closure. She deserved better. Looking at Amy, you thought that she deserved better too, no matter what kind of life she had before entering yours, or what she’d done. She was just a kid.

Glancing at the clock on the oven, you let out a big sigh. Frank had been out for quite some time now and you started worrying a bit more. He’d went out to get info out of some Russian guys and you prayed that he was okay.

“Thinking about your boyfriend?” Amy teased, making you smile. “I really can’t find anything. How about some pizza?”

As if on cue, the heavy wooden front door opened, revealing Frank covered in blood. He was grumpy, as usual, but you could see that he wasn’t majorly injured.

“Wow, great timing,” you said. “We were just about to order some pizza.”

He raised both of his thumbs at you and Amy before disappearing in the bedroom. Amy sighed, opening her brand new laptop to order the pizza, you assumed.

“How did this begin anyway? I mean, you two are pretty cute with you as the sunshine next to Frank’s big dark cloud but I just can’t wrap my head around how you met.”

“Oh, you want me to tell you a story? Is that what this is?” you smirked.

“Yep! I wanna hear everything about the time mommy and daddy first met.”

“Well, how do I start… So I was a hitwoman, right. I was pretty good. I used to get paid y’know, depending on the target, or I’d work ‘freelance’ kind of like Frank. I had very good deals with the Italian mafia, by the way. So one day I get this deal, right. Half of the money upfront, the other half after the job was done. It’s this weird sketchy ass motherfucker, a child molester, fucking disgusting. At first I wouldn’t accept the money ‘cause I thought, it’s for a good cause, but I got bills to pay.

“So I get in the building. It was hella creepy, it gave me the chills, kids clothes hanging on the walls, some of them torn, even bloody. I remember this little pink fairy costume… it absolutely broke my heart. Anyway, I’m distracted by the clothes then I hear a silenced gunshot. The bullet lands in the wall, right next to my head. I turn around and there’s the fucking Punisher. We fight for like a minute before realizing that we’re here for the same thing. So we finish the guy together and leave. He sees blood on my clothes — a GSW from a previous job and he offers to take me back to his place where his friend can stitch me up properly.”

“So what, you had sex?”

“No!” you snorted. “We talked all night, and realized we were kind of the same; two hollow souls killing to make peace with themselves,” you took a sip of your cooling tea. “You see kid, I was in a very bad place. I was lost, I was desperate, y’know I didn’t know if I had a purpose in this world. I’d already tried to end my life a few times, put a bullet in my mouth,” you tried to swallow the big lump forming in your throat. “But Frank, he—he brought me back from that dark place, you know, just by being by my side. I now have someone I care about, something to live for. I wish I could say that he felt the same though. His family still haunts him, and I’m not saying that I want him to forget them and live for me like I live for him, but I wish I was enough.”

Amy observed uncomfortably as you were struggling to regain your composure. It wasn’t often that you had the occasion to talk about your feelings and pour your heart out to someone, but you were glad to finally let everything out. It felt like a weight had been lifted off your shoulders.

“Sorry kid, this just got a little heavy for you, huh?” you let out a humourless chuckle.

“No, it’s fine. Really. So… you love him?”

“Yeah,” you sighed. “Yeah I guess I do. But I don’t think he knows that. I’m afraid he’d go running for the hills if I told him and I really don’t want to lose him.”

“Well I can’t tell you what’s in Frank’s head but I can give you a hug, maybe?” she gave you a crooked smile, her arms opened.

“Yeah, I’d like that, come here.”

The blonde girl went around the counter to meet you and wrapped her arms around you.

“Thanks kid. You’re a good listener.”

“Yeah, I know, I get that a lot.”

*

Amy stretched her limbs out as the credits rolled up on the TV screen. It had been the coziest evening you had in a while, watching a stupid movie with pizza and two people you deeply cared about.

“I’m going to bed,” Amy stated. “Good night.”

“I’ll be there in a minute,” you said after her, since you were both sleeping on the bed.

You sat up from your comfortable spot in Frank’s arms and started cleaning up the coffee table.

“You barely ate,” Frank pointed out, following you in the kitchen, cans of Coke in hand. “Is something wrong?”

“Nah, it’s just that whole quiet life thing that got me putting on a few stupid unwanted pounds so I’m just, you know, trying to change that,” you answered, still tidying up Dinah’s place.

Frank froze for a moment, as if he had trouble processing the information before chuckling while shaking his head.

“That’s bullshit. I mean, to me at least. I like it,” he slapped and squeezed your ass, making it jiggle in your black sweatpants. “I really, really like it.”

You rolled your eyes at his behavior. “Very mature, Castle.”

“Hey, come here a sec,” he sat on a stool. “Look, I, uh, I heard you talking to the kid earlier.”

Your eyes widened as your heart sank in your chest. He heard you. He knew you were in love with him. He was going to leave and never come back and you’d be all alone again. Could you survive another loss? What will you do? Will you go back to wandering around the city as an assassin who claimed to be a vigilante? Your heart rate became quicker. You were scared. You’d just lost everything. You closed your eyes briefly, cursing yourself for even talking to Amy in the first place.

“And, uh, you make me better too. Before, when I was hurt, I could just let myself die, you know. I was waiting for death every morning, every second of the day I hoped it would find me. But now, knowing that I have you waiting for me somewhere, it just—it just gives me strength, you know. You’re more than enough,” he raised a calloused hand to your face, cupping your cheek, and you leaned in it. “You can never lose me. I love you.”

He moved his hand to the back of your neck to pull you in a passionate kiss. At that moment, you were certain your heart was going to explode in your chest. You thought you’d already met the love of your life once, but that wasn’t the case. Frank loved you back. That was all that mattered at the moment. Well maybe a wild Billy in the streets and an even wilder preacher looking guy trying to kill you, but all of this was moved to the back of your mind the second Frank’s lips met yours.

“I wanna hear you say it, (Y/N),” he whispered against your lips. “Say it.”

“I love you, Frank. I love you.”

With a grunt, he picked you up, hands massaging your ass, to lead you to the couch, where he laid you down, his lips still devouring yours. His fingers found the base of your black tank top, reading to remove it.

“Wait, wait, wait,” you whispered. “What about the kid? She’ll hear us! And this is Dinah’s couch!”

His eyes locked on yours, he slid a hand in your underwear feeling your already soaking core, as he circled one of your hard nipples over your top with his other thumb.

“Yeah, I think you’re thinking just like me. Fuck this and fuck that,” two of his fingers entered your tight pussy. “What do you say, doll?”

“Fuck me. Please.”

“Nah, sweetheart,” he took of his shirt in one swift move and unbuckled his belt. “I’m making love to you tonight.”

He undressed you as fast as he could, only leaving you with your panties. He took his time to remove them, leaving kisses all over your legs down to your inner thighs where he bit and kissed every inch of your skin. He hooked two fingers on the sides of your black number, and slowly, very slowly, slid it up your legs to watch as your juices separated between your skin and the fabric of your underwear. Satisfied, Frank’s fingers found their way inside of you again, making you a whimpering mess as he moved them in and out of you, while simultaneously playing with your nipples.

He brought you to the edge of your release only to deprive you of it. He looked content of it, the asshole. You watched as he rose to his feet to remove his pants and his underwear, licking your lips at the sight of his hard cock. You spread your legs, as ready as you’ll ever be. Goosebumps covered your body when you felt the tip of his cock on your throbbing clit.

“Tell me again,” he demanded, his thumb caressing your lower lip.

“I love you, Frank. I love you more than anything,” you said, cupping his face with your hands. He closed his eyes and kissed your palms, leaning into your comforting touch. As he bent down to kiss you, you became more intimate than ever, physically and emotionally. You had hope that everything would be okay as long as he held you in his arms, as long as his skin would be agaisnt yours nothing could get to you, nothing could break you.

He buried his face in the crook of your neck as his thrusts deepened, his grunts sounding like the greatest melody you’d ever heard. The skin of his back was soft under your hands, his own delicately raising your legs to rest them on his shoulders, giving him a better angle to pound into you. The spark that lit up between you had turned into a fire that you could now see in his eyes as he looked at you; helpless, completely giving yourself to him. He looked at you like you were the most beautiful thing on earth when you were a reflection of him.

He switched positions to have you on top. You could now run your hands all over each other’s upper body. You touched and kissed every scar you could reach, letting him know that you loved them as much as you loved him because they’re a part of him and his story. He held your hips to slow down the pace, making the strokes slower and deeper.

Then you felt it. Every muscle in your body tensed up as you finally found your release. Frank kissed you to muffle your moans, still pounding into you to make your orgasm last as long as possible. He came soon after you under the contractions of your pussy, staying inside of you even after it was over.

“Everything’s gonna be okay,” he whispered against your lips as you ran your fingers through his hair.

“How do you know?” you asked, eyes welling up with emotion.

“‘Cause I got you.”

*

A FEW WEEKS LATER.

The weather seemed to be linked to Frank’s mood. Hell, to his life even. Rain was pouring down on him as he started at the big stone in front of him. His face was blank. He didn’t even know if he should be sad or angry. He had no one else to blame but himself. He’d done that to you.

“Frank, come on,” a soft voice said.

Karen squeezed Frank’s arm to bring him back to reality but it was like he wasn’t there. Curtis and Dinah exchanged a worried look. Frank was broken for good now. There was no fixing him. Not anymore.

“I told you,” Frank finally spoke, eyes still glued to your tombstone. “There’s no warm, cozy ending for me.”

[scrapbookofsketches-blog]

LAMP Soulmate AU Bc I'm Original

Warnings for minor character death (only mentioned in the little backstory part), past foster homes, and a very tiny mention of blood.

~

For a little background, Logan and Virgil are both foster kids who grew out of the system, Patton lived with only his mom before he moved out, and Roman’s parents are a happily married mother and father (although Roman didn't see it that way; he thought that soulmates were the only way to be happy) who still live together with Roman off doing his own thing.

Logan's parents were killed by a drunk driver and Virgil's mom was killed by a mugger. Virgil's father abandoned him in favor of uselessly looking for another soulmate (that didn't exist) for the rest of his life.

More backstory for the Soulmate au here! I recommend you read it before reading this, but it isn't required!

~

You couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. Birds were singing, flowers were blooming. Spring sweetness rested comfortably in the air, just waiting to be taken in with a huge breath with closed eyes.

Everyone was enjoying the beautiful weather. Exect...

Virgil had a meeting with his boss. He was late, of course he was. He only set one alarm. Virgil knew perfectly well he needed at least three to get him up in the morning, but in a pure moment of genius last night he decided that he would only set one so he could “turn his life around” or some bullshit like that. Now he was really paying the price. Running through the park (a shortcut to the office, he hoped) with his phone, keys, and coffee in one hand; his conference papers and data sheets in the other; and a bagel stuffed in his mouth from the coffee place; Virgil looked down to check his phone. Not late yet.

Patton woke up feeling crappy. Nothing was inherently wrong, he was just sort of sad. His mood obviously couldn't last, so he set out to fix it. He made a healthy breakfast and made his way out into the misty morning air. His mother once told him the park was a perfect place for calming down, so he made his way to stop and smell the flowers. “I need this,” Patton decided in a whisper as he bent over to inspect a dew covered daisy with a melancholy smile.

Another day, another date - for Roman at least. Searching for one's true love every day gets tiresome, but he couldn't help but hope. Would this be the one? The handsome man destiny finally would bestow upon him?

In all honesty, he probably wasn't going to meet his soulmate today. He had been on so many dates this year it wasn't even funny. People looking for their soulmate, people trying to move on without one. Not every date ended in goodbyes (he even has gained his some of his most valued friends from matches on soulmatch.love.com), but more often than not the date will start out with disappointment at not finding their soulmate then polite small talk for the duration of the date.

Regardless of past experiences, Roman was determined to keep trying. He couldn't expect his soulmate to fall out of the sky. Sheepishly, he looked up at the clouds just in case. You could never be too sure about your soulmate’s whereabouts, after all.

Logan had to go grocery shopping today. If he didn't go today, he would put it off until next week and it would never get done. It was a struggle, living alone and trying to find a better job after growing out of the foster system, but nothing that Logan couldn't handle. If he was being honest with himself, what he hated most about his current situation (besides the crippling loneliness he needed someone to talk to-) was grocery shopping. It was mundane and he found it embarrassing having to count out his money in front of everyone to see if he could afford something remotely nutritious like some fruit.

Obviously, he had the contents of his wallet memorized to the dime, but when he found himself wanting that head of lettuce this week instead of the shitty ramen he somehow pulled out his wallet every time.

In fact, Logan was bringing it out now. If he checked for the fourth time now he might be able to resist doing it in the store. Yep. Still six dollars and twenty cents.

Patton's eyes on the daisies, Roman's face turned towards the sky, Logan’s hands fingering through his few dollars, and Virgil's focus on his phone. Each heading towards each other at various speeds from different directions.

They collided.

Papers and dollars fly up. Phones and pens fall to the ground. Coffee spills. Hands are thrust out to catch their falls. Knees scrape against the pavement. Limbs collide and smash against each other.

It was like one of those action movies where the hero is dodging bullets in slow motion minus “coming out unscathed”.

Logan was the first to make a move. He extracted his legs from the the heap of bodies and uttered a, “Terribly sorry.”

This snapped Patton out of his daze, smiling his brightest smile. “You're completely fine. I'm sorry! I should have looked where I was going.”

"No, I was checking my phone and was rushing. I totally fell into you.” Virgil piped up with a grimace, clambering to his feet in the process.

Roman stayed on the ground surrounded by ruined paper and coffee. He didn't seem to care that said liquid was all down his shirt. He was staring at his side, exposed by the crop top he wore to impress guys.

“Who is it?” Roman said in awe.

Patton fell to his knees next to Roman, wondering if he was hurt. “Who is what?”

Roman turned his head away, then back to himself like his eyes might be deceiving him. Then, grinning like a mad man, he shifted so the others could see the elaborate swirl wrapping his stomach on one side. “Who's my soulmate?”

Patton rolled up his left sleeve at the exact moment Virgil shifted the rip in his jeans on his lower thigh and Logan pulled up his right pants leg. Like a foot recovering from falling asleep, their tattoos demanded to be recognized. They were making moves to see them even before Roman had said anything.

Slowly looking from each tattoo to the next, they all realized that the tattoo was the same on each of them (though it varied in size, placement, and hue). “It appears that we are all soulmates.” Logan stated dumbly.

“Oh.” Roman said, not quite grasping the situation. After a second, Logan's words began to sink in. “Oh! Oh my god!”

Roman couldn't believe his flipping fantastic luck. After years of searching far and wide he, by chance, bumps into three wonderfully good looking people who are all his soulmate. He didn't have one person to love and cherish and spend eternity with, he had three!

Patton was just as delighted. Three soulmates! Who had even heard of such a thing! Looking at each of them with the same love and interest, Patton began to forget there was a such thing as bad days. These people were the missing pieces of the puzzle that he had forgotten were missing in the first place. He had never pegged too much of his heart in soulmates, but now he was sure he needed his soulmates more than he needed air or food or anything that he thought was important before. He can't believe he survived this long without them.

Virgil forgot everything he had ever thought about soulmates when he lay eyes on his beautiful entanglement of vines and swirls. In that moment he no longer cared about risks and consequences and his trashy past. Suddenly life seemed to roll out in front of him like a red carpet, waiting for the first steps that lead to a utopian life. His father was the farthest from Virgil's mind than it had ever been.

Logan could not have been more bewildered. The statistics were astronomically small that Logan would have two soulmates, let alone three! Heck, he didn't even think he would get one. Loan crouched on the ground next to Roman to inspect his tattoo. It was indeed the same as the one wrapping his own ankle. Who would have thought that someone like Logan with so little hope for a soulmate would receive such an experience as three.

They all felt wonderful. Surprised and confused and a little scared, maybe. But with each of them standing in front of the other with the promise of forever love was too good of a feeling to experience anything negative.

Besides, it just felt right. And wasn't that reason enough to feel like everything in the world was perfect?

~

Thank you for reading!

Tag list: General-> @punsterterry @kameraishere @jemthebookworm @sympathetic-deceit-trash @moist-astronaut @mamongo-sama

[stereksecretsanta]

Merry Christmas, @hotaruyuki!

Read on AO3

*****

Tradition? Honor? Discipline? Excellence? Whatever.

“I can’t fucking believe this! This is an Omega school!” Stiles shouted over his friends unintelligible shouting. “Allowing Alphas into Beacons will ruin everything!”

“You’re just scared of Alphas.” Allison accuses. Attempting to shut down Stiles’ histrionics before they continued any further.

“No! It’ll be a disaster.” Stiles spat at her. “You’ve just got nothing left to lose!” He mimes offensively towards his nether regions.

“Prude!” Alison taunts back at him with a smirk.

“You just want to greet them with open legs!” Stiles snarls back furiously. He immediately flinches back when Allison moves to make her way towards him.

“Okay, Stop! Stiles, stop.” Lydia snapped. “Weren’t we all just talking about how it’s gotten boring here? I specifically remember you complaining that this place was heading towards another of those Dead Poet Society endings.”

“Yes, but I’d rather be bored to death chanting Tradition, Honor, Discipline, Excellence” He swayed side to side dramatically at every word “than sniffed at! I’d rather sleep and eat than have to worry about killing ourselves to be cute!” He snarled, working himself up with every word. “We’ll be too tired for classes trying to outdo each other. But it won’t matter!” He shouts, flailing his arms in the air. “And that’s okay.” He spits sarcastically. “Because the teachers won’t call on you anyway. You don’t want to seem smarter than the Alphas because they don’t like that!” He mocks.

“I’m not going to change just because Alphas are around.” Isaac speaks out.

“I’ve seen you at school dances.” Stiles huffs. Cut off before he could continue a tirade on Isaac’s previous actions.

“Look Stilinksi.” Allison rounds on him, more furious at what he was about to say to Isaac than the rest of his ranting aimed at her. “I know you like this place the way it is. But wake up. This is not real life. Real life is Alphas, Omegas, Alpha, Omega…” Allison snaps at him.

“No! Real life is Alpha ON TOP of Omega!” Stiles screams back at her in fury. “But you should know that.” He mocks her, dropping down on his box to sit breathing harshly.

“I’m not going to sit here and listen to this.” Lydia speaks out in the silence. “Stiles, you just have to adjust. The rest of us don’t have a problem with the plans.”

“Fine. I guess I have to do everything myself.” He stands up and storms out of their meeting before the rest of them can, flipping them off as he goes.

Stiles dragged his date beside him from behind the rose bushes they were hiding behind. All to end up behind Kate and her date heading to the fountain.

“Oh, Oops!” Stiles cried out as he pushed Jared into Kate with a big shove, causing her to fall against the lip of the fountain and her sides to get wet from the water stream. “Oh No, Kate! You’re all wet!” Stiles mocked her predicament with false sympathy.

“You little bitch.” Kate straightened herself and hissed into his ear before she turned to face her date with a sweet smile. “I’m sorry, Derek. I’ll be right back.”

“You did that on purpose.” Derek said amused as he stepped up beside him, both of them watching Kate walk away.

“I did.” Stiles admitted. “You’re welcome.”

Derek grinned at him and Stiles tried his best not to react to that face. “Walk with me.” Stiles demanded, grabbing Derek’s arm and pulling them away.

“What about Jared?” Derek asked as he allowed himself to be easily led away.

“No idea. I expect someone to find him later.” Stiles replied snappishly, not wanting to get into details that didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. “Come on, let’s look at the gym”.

“What’s the meaning of this?” Derek questions with half a laugh as Stiles leans against the coke machine after shoving him into a chair, hip jutting out enticingly.

Derek looks exactly where Stiles wants him to before glancing up to meet his eyes. “Are you allowed to be alone with an Alpha?” Derek switches his smile to a leer.

“Wouldn’t be the first time.” Stiles smirks, walking over to sit beside Derek. Close enough that his side is pressed firmly against the larger Alpha’s. “You must remember my coming out party.”

Derek returns the smirk. “Interesting that you bring that up. I remember you throwing a glass of punch at me.”

“Yeah?” Stiles turns closer to Derek, rests his hands on the Alpha’s knee. “Remember how you tried to sniff me while we danced?”

Derek grabs Stiles’ hand and pulls it off his knee while he laughs. Instead of letting go he simply keeps a gentle hold of it to rest between his legs, Stiles’ arm extended to reach that far. “Ah yes, you were offended. Something about not giving me permission to do that. Scenting is a natural thing. But I believe you told me to stop breathing when we danced so I wouldn’t ‘sniff’ you”

“But you did sniff me. So I demand a favor.” Stiles says with bravado, sure the Alpha can hear his heart rate going off the charts. “Help me stop the co-ed merge.” He’s now itching to yank his hand back simply to see if it will calm his heart's pounding.

“Ah,” Derek chuckles, leaning closer to Stiles. “Afraid of Alpha’s taking over?”

“More like wishing to keep a little peace and civility before being thrust out into the world. You remember what a few hours together was like. Imagine days! Months! Forced to be in each other’s company!” His free hand flailed but Derek kept steady control of his other one.

“I see.” Derek responds. “ Answer me this. Is it Alphas in general the reason you want to stop the merging or me?”

Stiles laughs breathlessly. “You’re kidding. Of course it’s all Alphas!”

Derek watches him for a moment before nodding. “Alright, I’ll help. What do you need me to do.” Derek grins good naturedly back at Stiles.

Stiles bites his bottom lip trying to find the best way to relay his plan, realizing too late that Derek’s gaze was trapped by his actions. He quickly lets his bottom lip go.

“It comes with a sacrifice” Stiles warns him. “You need to get drunk or pretend to be drunk.” He pushes his hips out to reach into his back pocket to pull out a flask that he brandishes in front of them in triumph. “Then I need you to go back to the dance. Make sure to be seen dancing with Kate Argent. I’ll cause a distraction and you get to Kate's’ room. I sound the alarm. Boom, Kate's expelled and Alpha merger is cancelled.”

Derek wrinkles his nose. “That’s a terrible plan.”

“I know.” Stiles sighs apologetically. “I’m hoping to end two birds with one stone. You still in?” He shakes the flask in front of Derek again.

“If you give me your number.”

Stiles stares open mouthed. “What? But you were so mad last ti-”

“I know what I said.” Derek talks over him with a smile, taking the flask from Stiles’ slack hand anyway. “But I want to get to know you better. Even though I’m pretty sure you’re insane. Come on, it’s my one condition. I’ll have to feel guilty about framing an innocent student.”

Stiles grumbles under his breath. “She’s not innocent.” He meets Derek’s eyes with a bit of uncertainty. “But, Okay…” He blushes.

He knows this was the plan. But somehow, seeing Derek stumble all over Kate. Tripping up and forcing her to take his weight was a little obnoxious to see. It made his skin crawl. And surprisingly it had more to do with Kate than the actual act of Derek stumbling everywhere.

He watched as Kate's filthy hands gripped at Derek's shoulder. Stumbling under his added weight as she tried to balance them both. That was enough of that. He pushed himself into the middle of a dance between a visiting Alpha and one of his fellow students and steered them to bump into Kate and Derek, dropping the three of them into the punch when he shoved his recently acquired dance partner at the pair.

Kate screamed as Stiles apologized as innocently as he could in the commotion. Patting her down with a napkin he picked off the floor. “Maybe you should get changed?” He suggests, eying her stained dress disapprovingly. She leaves with a shriek and shoves Stiles’ dance partner to the ground one more time.

“Stiiiiles, I did iiit.” Derek giggled as Stiles hauled one of Derek's arms over his own shoulder to lift him from the ground and lead them out of the dance and around the building. All to enter Kate’s room after she finishes changing.

“You were great big guy.” Stiles huffed under the weight. Derek didn’t seem much larger than him but the Alpha’s muscle weight could not be ignored in this situation.

“I did it for youu.” He sighed into Stiles’ neck, pressing his nose against the back of his neck firmly as they stumbled away, breathing deeply.

He had half a mind to shrug Derek off him but the sensation was unlike anything he’d felt before since... It felt nice. In the end, he didn’t push Derek off. “You’re the best.” Stiles assured him as they hid in the hall closet to spy on Kate’s door.

They were quiet in there. Derek resting his weight against Stiles. His breath leaving a humid spot on his neck that he was unsure how he resisted reaching up to rub the feeling away, feeling a shiver go down his spine every few seconds without weakening.

Stiles watched Kate step out of her room, preening in her clean dress. She had bought a few dresses as she had been unable to decide which dress she wanted for this night. Apparently it worked in her favor. She strutted off, probably expecting to find Derek waiting for her. She wouldn’t know he’d be in her bed, ready to ruin her life.

“Okay, come on.” Stiles grunted as he pulled them out of the closet. Derek stumbling after him completely defenseless. “In here.” He walked them across the room, pushed Derek onto the bed and rushed to shut the door after them. “Take off your clothes.”

“Pushy. I like that.” Derek grinned sloppily at Stiles.

Stiles shook his head roughly, refusing to find that completely adorable. He stepped in towards Derek and helped him out of his jacket, tie, and shirt. Stiles gets on his knees to take the inebriated Alpha’s shoes and socks off because Derek stopped helping halfway through and leaned back on his hands.

Stiles felt the blush deepening on his cheeks as he reached for Derek’s pants buttons. “Maybe you should do this part?” He whispered, finding himself unable to catch a full breath.

“You’re doing great.” Derek responds, voice deep and rough. “Go on.”

“Fuck off.” Stiles hisses in alarm but with Derek refusing to move he undoes Derek’s pants buttons as methodically as he can, awkward, as he’s never had to undo buttons from his current side. After Unzipping them he stands up, shoves Derek backwards on the bed and yanks his pants off in one aggressive movement.

Derek props himself up on his elbows to smile at Stiles. Stiles’ mouth goes wet. And it isn’t the only thing about him to do so. “Woah.”

“Tuck me in?”

Stiles stares, dumbfounded. “Are you serious?”

Derek pushes back against the bed and squirms to rest comfortably on the pillows, watching Stiles expectantly.

With an annoyed huff, Stiles leans in to tuck Derek into Kate’s blankets when he’s pulled in, right off balance, and Derek kisses him.

He instantly puts a hand out against the mattress to keep himself from toppling over and another against Derek's chest. But one large warm hand wrapping around his hip as the Alpha’s lips press against his own, cause his arms to buckle.

Derek catches him to slow his descent and Stiles automatically brings his hands up to curl behind Derek’s head, grabbing fistfulls of hair and bringing himself closer to the Alpha. He was so sure this was how his coming out party was was going to end, better late than never.

“Wait. No-” Stiles moans as he forces himself away from Derek. “You’re drunk. It isn’t right.” He tries rolling off the bed.

“No, I just drank the punch. I wasn’t going to finish the entire flask, Stiles. That was straight up everclear with wolfsbane. How did you even get that?” Stiles stares at him opened mouthed.

“You lied to me.”

“A little.” Derek agrees with a shrug, still holding onto Stiles’ forearms. “I wanted to help you, but I wasn’t going to get completely fucked up. I did drink some of the flask though. Strong enough to get me tipsy.”

“But you were more than tipsy.” Stiles argues, propping himself above Derek on an elbow as he stares down at him.

“Okay, I was. But I’m an Alpha. My metabolism is pretty fast.”

“Oh.” Stiles agrees. “Okay then.” Then he leans back down to kiss Derek.

“I should get out before Kate gets back.” Stiles gasped between panting as he yanked up his pants from his hips up to his waist where they were supposed to sit. Somehow he’d gotten into a heavy make out session with Derek Hale. His first ever make out session. “You need to stay in bed. Try to fall asleep if you can. Or at least pretend to.”

Derek leaned over the bed to hand Stiles his wrinkled shirt that they both had wrestled him out of. “You should put that on… you’ve got uh-...” he motioned towards his own neck.

Stiles’ hands slapped against his neck to feel it hot and tight there he blurted out. “You bruised me!” Eyes wide and shocked staring at Derek.

Derek looked back sheepishly. “I accidentally gave you a hickey.”

“Oh my god! You’re so gross!” Stiles exclaimed in outrage.

Derek laughed. “You were fine with it when it was happening.”

“Yeah, because I didn’t know that would happen!” Stiles replied, stepping over to Kate’s vanity to check himself in the mirror. He had hickeys! Plural! “Derek!” He whined as he poked one. “That’s more than one!”

“You must bruise easy.” Was Derek’s simple response.

“It’s gonna hurt.” Stiles whines as he does up his shirt.

“C’mere.” Derek orders, and Stiles walks towards him. Allows himself to be forced to sit at the edge of the bed. “I might have gotten carried away.”

“You don’t say.” Stiles snarks back at him with a bit of a grin. He’s a little annoyed with Derek but still floaty from their makeout session.

“I won’t do it again, promise.” Derek promises as he pulls Stiles in for another kiss. “I’ll be more careful.”

“Stiles! You bitch!”

Stiles and Derek spring apart, look to the intruder. It’s Kate.

Shit.

“You’ve been expelled.” Stiles’ dad sighs as he sits in the bench beside his son out in the hallway.

“I thought so.” Stiles sniffles. This isn’t what he wanted. He wanted to stop the merging of the Alpha and Omega schools. He wanted to get Kate expelled for being a bitch. “I’m sorry dad.”

“Mistakes are made.” The Sheriff wraps an arm around his Omega son. “And the Hales called.”

“What?” Stiles demands.

“Talia is willing to have Derek take responsibility.”

“What does that mean?”

“Mainly, courtship. Mating.”

Stiles makes a grossed out face. “Isn’t that a little extreme?”

The Sheriff laughs. “Yes it is. I told her it was unnecessary. That you two would work it out if you wanted to.”

Stiles is quiet for a minute. “So you’re not mad at me?”

The sheriff laughs again. “Not particularly. I’ve gotten so many calls about your behavior over the years. I’ve been expecting this for some time. Maybe not for you being alone with an Alpha in another student’s room, but you pulled a lot of things off kiddo. You had to make your own mistakes.”

“Are you disappointed?” Stiles hesitates to ask.

The sheriff is quiet for what feels like a long time before sighing. “Only that you won’t get to graduate from here. That we have to find you another school. But you’re a teenager. Something like this really was bound to happen. Besides, the times are changing. You are allowed to make your own choices, even pick your own Alpha. You are almost eighteen.”

Derek waited around the game room, bored out of his mind. His family had been invited to the Stilinski household for a Christmas party thrown for the leaders of the county. He watched behind the Christmas tree as Stiles Stilinski walked down the staircase and into the fray finally making his entrance. Dinner parties were never any fun. There were hardly any people around of his own age and very improper to disrupt the party.

“There you are.” Stiles rounds the doorway and heads straight towards Derek. “I thought you had another party to go to?”

Derek closes the distance between them. “I did, but my date cancelled. Something about needing to support his father after his father supported him after getting expelled from school.”

Stiles smiles at Derek, reaching out for his hand. “I’m glad you could make it.”

“Well, I don’t exactly see you enough at school. Do I?”

“We have the same classes.” Stiles laughs as Derek tugs them away from the busy doorway to find a bit of privacy. Kissing him as soon as they're out of eyesight of the mingling crowd.

[imagine-loki]

TITLE: The Powers That Be CHAPTER NO./ONE SHOT: Chapter Thirty-Three

AUTHOR: wolfpawn ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine Loki discovering a hidden mutant when he realises they are at risk of being found by S.H.I.E.L.D. who experiments on mutants, he is the one to help them.

RATING: Teen and Up

"What?" Loki could not hide his shock.

"Is this good or bad?" Alexia looked at him fearfully.

"That is highly debatable. What is your opinion on living another four thousand or so more years?"

"WHAT!"

"That apple." He pointed to the inconspicuous fruit in her hand, or what would be inconspicuous were it not for the fact it was gold. "Is from Idunn's garden, and grants the eater a lifespan as expansive as ours. How do you think we live so long?"

"I never thought to ask," she answered. "So, if I eat this, I will outlive everyone I know by thousands of years?"

"Well, the Midgardian people you knew, yes. But Thor and I have somewhat similar life spans to what you will have, so as long as we are not killed by other methods, you should not outlive us." Loki explained, noting the sadness on her face.

Alexia looked at the golden fruit, half wanting to throw it into the vast expanse of water that separated the land she now called home from the Bifrost. "I'm not sure."

"Why not?"

"I'm not sure I want to live that long."

"You may actually get to wield fire if you live that long." Loki shrugged.

"I'm not really too concerned about that, to be honest. I will have to witness Earth change, see everyone I ever knew die and know I will outlive them all for so long."

Loki folded his arms, "You know, most mortals wish for a life as long as ours, but of course, the irony of ironies, you do not want it and yet you are the one offered such a gift."

"Calling it a gift is debatable, to some that could be seen as a terrible sentence." she sighed. "I need to think this over more, could you mind this for me?" she extended the hand that held the apple to him.

"You want me to mind that for you?" He eyed her in disbelief. "You are aware those are harder to come by than that metal the Soldier has in his shield."

Alexia looked at the apple again. "Then definitely take it, I don't want to care for it until I decide what I am doing." She as good as thrust it into his hands. "Take it."

"You do realise Odin will lose what of his mind he has if he knew you even entertained the idea of me caretaking one of these apples. I could use it as a bargaining chip with some terrible being."

Alexia looked him in the eye. "Are you going to?"

Loki looked at her and sighed. "No."

"I trust you Loki." That caused him to frown. "I know you think I am mad because I am not just wolfing it down, but I'm not sure I can take four thousand years of the shit I have had to deal with recently with dirty old men wanting me to pop out kids like sneezes for a substantial portion of that length of time."

"They all have less than a thousand years left in them." Loki shrugged dismissively.

"That is terrifying, you have no idea what a thousand years is to someone from my world, I mean, we don't tend to make one hundred."

"It is an awfully pathetic lifespan it must be noted."

"Just give me some time to think about it, I will find you later."

"There is a time limit on this thinking?"

"Yes, apparently I have today to think about it, or else the apple has to be given back." she shrugged.

"Fair enough, just remember, if you take it, you will get out of the Mjötuðr, if that will alter your decision."

"How is that?"

"The apple sends you into a sleep for a week, somewhat like Odinsleep, you can hear everything in your surrounds, but your body must remain still so to be viable with the changes that give one a longer life, everything within you will be forced to slow down, your organs will have to alter and adapt, so you need to be in a state of stasis for that to occur."

"So I just stay unconscious for a week?"

"Yes. Do not fret, you will be heavily guarded, I can assure you."

Alexia bit her lip and nodded slightly. "Well, I better go think this through," she stated, walking off, deep in thought. Loki tossing the apple in his hand as he turned and went towards his rooms, wondering how long she would take to decide.

*

Alexia looked at the letters in her hands, she had written them because she knew there was a chance that Thor would be gone back to Earth before she woke again. This time, she did write one to Phil, telling him what she was doing, and explaining her reasons. In truth, she had no idea why she felt she had to explain it to him, but did so anyway. It was simple, she could end droughts, prevent floods, eradicate hurricanes and tornadoes; there was no telling if, much less when one with such a power would ever exist again, so if there was a way to try and prolong her ability to help others, she wanted to take it.

"Your reasons are honourable, to say the least." Diarmaid commended when he had come across her in the gardens and she had told him her thoughts. "Not many would be so selfless."

"I'm scared, though."

"You are seldom led by fear these days, what causes it now?" He asked, curious as to her answer.

"I will have to mourn their deaths, every last one of them, I will have to know that they are aging while I will look exactly the same for the rest of their lives." She explained, biting her lip as her nose flared, trying hard to keep in her tears.

The elf sighed. "But you are younger than them all regardless, you would have most likely outlived them all anyway."

"Every last human on Earth that is alive today will be dead before I age any bit."

"Yes." The elf conceded. "That is true, and I can comprehend that that is a daunting thing for you, but you cannot lose sight of how many people, in all the realms, whose lives you will better in four thousand years rather than a mere fifty."

Taking a deep breath, Alexia nodded her head. "You're right, this isn't about me," she repeated again. "I need to speak with Loki before I do this, though."

"I can get him for you if you wish." Diarmaid offered; she nodded, looking ahead slightly scared. "I will do so immediately, go to your rooms, it will be best for you to be in them as the apple takes effect." Nodding again, Alexia did as she was requested.

*

Diarmaid walked through the halls with long elegant strides, making his way quickly to where he assumed Loki could be. He found him sitting on a balcony, deep in thought, just as he was about to approach the prince, however, he noticed Odin come up to him.

"What are you doing with that apple?" The old king demanded.

"Alexia gave it to me for safe keeping." He shrugged nonchalantly.

"That girl puts too much fate in you, that is her greatest downfall."

"And you never put enough, that could very well be yours."

"Convince her to take it."

"Why, why should I get her to do anything for you?"

"You know this is nothing to do with me, she needs to take it, she is too powerful to whither way to nothing at the rate Midgardians do," he growled. "She can help all the realms, given time."

"She could aid or annihilate them all right now should she choose." Loki scoffed, "She is powerful beyond all measure."

"Yet she chooses to not even truly try."

"You are a fool old man, even with two eyes in that thick skull of yours you would fail to see that she will take the apple, she just needs to understand her own reasons and her thoughts beforehand, I expect she is merely taking time to ready herself for the process and also take time to thank whatever Gods she may believe in that she will have to miss the Mjötuðr because of it, I am envious of her it must be said."

"You are not as humorous as you think yourself to be Loki," Odin growled.

"That is debatable, it is well known you have no sense of humour, so your opinion matters little on the subject." Loki shrugged. It was then that he noticed Diarmaid standing nearby and rose to his feet, causing Odin to turn and look at the elf also.

"She has called to speak with you, my prince." he bowed. "She is ready."

Loki nodded and looked to Odin, a smug look of 'I told you so' written on his features. Odin was tempted to snap something back at him, but with Alexia willing to take the apple, he was more concerned with other matters. "I will arrange Einherjar that will defend her in her rest immediately, do not let her eat it until it is known to you that they are present outside her rooms." He ordered.

"Place two inside also, you know that if any find out about this, they could use it to come retrieve her. She will be too easily harmed or moved once she bites it." Loki stated, going to pass Diarmaid. "What is her humour?"

"Nervous and anxious; the mortality of those she will be leaving behind is concerning her, but she is thinking of the greater good, I believe her to be confident in her decision." The elf answered, with a nod of comprehension, Loki left, leaving the older beings to simply watch him leave.

"That alliance concerns me greatly." Odin voiced.

"That alliance will either be the greatest pairing to ever grace the realms, or it will be the ending of us all, we can only pray for the former." the elf responded. "It is dependent on whether Prince Loki can control his resentment and continue to assist her."

"What is it that she is requesting his presence alone for?" Odin half demanded.

"I cannot fathom, it could be anything from asking the prince to remain with her as she eats the apple to forbidding his presence as she sleeps, only time will tell." The elf answered. "All I know is that once this is done, she will be one of the greatest Goddesses the realms will ever witness. All that remains is to see if Prince Loki corrupts her, or if she will continue to corrupt the darkness within him."

Odin looked at the elf curiously, not entirely sure what it was that Diarmaid was saying.

*

"You called?" Loki grinned widely as he entered her room, having just knocked on the door once before opening it.

"Loki." The sensation of someone truly being delighted to see him felt peculiar to the dark prince. "I need you here."

"I have the apple." He reached out to give her the fruit. "You are not to eat until your Einherjar arrive, wear comfortable attire and make sure you are comfortable." He instructed.

"Are you going to abandon me?" she asked meekly.

Loki frowned at her blatant concern and odd demeanour. "Those taking apples tend to wish to be alone doing so."

"Please don't go," she begged. "I don't want to be alone, not when I will be so weak."

Loki's brows furrowed more, but seeing the genuine fear in her eyes, he nodded and sat nearby. "Now do as I instructed and get comfortable, the Einherjar will be here in a few moments, the sooner you start the process, the sooner in is over." Alexia left the room for a few moments. While she was gone, there was a knock on the door, which Loki answered, her maids having been dismissed considering what was to take place. On the other side stood Diarmaid and four guards, two standing sentry while two more made to enter with him.

"Is she ready?" The elf asked

"She is preparing."

"More Einherjar will be sent when she is asleep, the Allfather thinks sending too many now would worry her."

"I think he actually got something right for a change. Dare I ask why you are here?"

"The Allfather thought it best that I preside over this, ensuring she eats it all. Though I assume that she requested your presence." Loki nodded. "I will remain here while she goes into her bed quarters then, just in case."

"Good."

Loki was going to expand on his answer when Alexia stood in the doors that divided her rooms looking sheepish. "Okay, I'm ready." she sighed. Noticing Diarmaid and the guards, she seemed a little antsy.

"No time like the present." Loki started towards her, taking the apple, which he had wrapped in a handkerchief out as he did so. The Einherjar following him.

"Are they going to be in the room too?" She asked, pointing to the guards.

"Yes, they will remain for the entire time you are asleep, well they will alter with their shifts, but you will be heavily protected throughout the process," Loki explained, trying to sooth her.

"Okay." She nodded. "Right, so what do I do?"

"Either sit on the window seat and eat it or go to the bed, you will feel very sleepy as soon as you finish it, allow the sleep to take you, do not fight it, is that clear?" Alexia began to panic, thinking back to when she had been captured by S.H.I.E.L.D. and their scientists had drugged her to sleep, thinking of how helpless she had been, her breathing increased immediately. "Lexi, it will be alright, I promise, no one will touch you to harm you as you sleep, they will only touch you to make you more comfortable, maids to fluff your pillows and such."

Alexia giggled. "It's weird to hear you say the word fluff."

Loki's brow arched. "Very mature." she only giggled again. "Now, enough procrastinating, and begin."

Alexia went to the window seat she always found so comfortable and looked at the apple in her hand before looking out the window. "Make sure that if I don't wake for the feast and if Thor is leaving before I do, that he brings those letters with him, okay?" She indicated to the sealed envelopes on her desk.

Loki walked over and took them in hand. "I promise." He smiled putting them into the leather coat.

Sighing, she looked at the apple again and bit into it, grimacing at the taste. "It's bitter."

"You will adapt to the taste."

"Hopefully not, I don’t plan on doing this too often" She smiled back, taking another bite. "Will I look different when I wake?"

"What do you think that thing does, you are still you, simply with a slower aging process." Loki scoffed, seemingly satisfied, she continued to eat. He watched her bite into the apple and swallow each bite. "You are eating it very slowly."

"You're just used to eating around Thor, not everyone throws their food down their throats whole."

Loki chuckled, "That is a fair argument."

"This reminds me of the story of Snow White."

"I am not familiar with it."

"Well, she..." Alexia yawned, suddenly feeling exhausted, looking down, she realised there was only one last bite left. Forgetting she was about to tell Loki the premise of the fairy tale, she brought the apple to her lips again and looked at him, the God giving her an encouraging nod as she bit in one last time. The last bite took her the longest to finish but she did it and nestled into the cushions she had placed on the seat, her eyes becoming heavy.

Knowing she would fall asleep in moments, Loki walked over to her. Sure enough, her eyes were beginning to flutter closed. "Don't fight it, just rest." He reiterated.

"Loki," her voice was a mere whisper. "Don't leave me."

"I will not."

"Promise?"

"I promise." He swore, and with that, she fell into unconsciousness. Scooping her into his arms, he brought her to the bed, and placed her on it, then pulled a blanket over her. He turned to the guards, who were silently watching the kindness the usually cantankerous and morose God was bestowing on a Midgardian, a race he seemed to hold in contempt. "Get the rest of the Einherjar positioned, and one of you tell Odin that it is done." Nodding, the closer Einherjar to the door did as commanded.

A moment later, Diarmaid entered the room. "There is nothing to do now but wait."

"She requested I remain."

"And will you?" Diarmaid asked, somewhat startled.

"Yes." Loki made to the window seat she had eaten the apple in. “I promised I would.”

[pitviperofdoom]

BH6/ROTG: A Friend in the Dark, 23/23

Title: A Friend in the Dark

Summary: Callaghan is behind bars, but Tadashi’s work is far from over. The Man in the Moon thrust him into this position for a reason but failed to let him know what that reason was, and once again he finds himself muddling along for answers as Nightmares run rampant through the streets. But it takes more than fire and magic to make a Guardian, and when a new (yet old) threat threatens those that Tadashi holds dear, he comes to understand just what he is capable of, and what it means for everyone he loves. (Sequel to Lighting Candles)

This fic now has a tv tropes page!

(AN: And that’s all she wrote.)

Chapter 23: Second Chances

AO3

“So,” Bunnymund said grimly. “You said you’d explain everything later.” He flipped a boomerang over one paw. “It’s later. So maybe you can explain why we aren’t tearing this one a new arsehole before he gets the drop on us?”

For a moment Tadashi stared blearily at him, still weighed down by his half-conscious professor. “Give me a second.”

“No I won’t give you a bloody second,” the rabbit said sharply. “You breezed in here with that tosser trotting behind you and you expect us to—”

“Give me a second, please,” Tadashi snapped. “Look, I just relived my own death for the… wow, you know what? I can’t actually remember how many times I’ve relived my own death, but I promise you it’s too many, so give me a second.”

“Tadashi!”

He almost sagged with relief as his friends—his original friends—came running, with Hiro not far behind. Callaghan was nearly half conscious, but Tadashi managed to heave him upright. “Hey guys—can you take him real quick? He’s kinda heavy.”

Willing hands lifted Callaghan away from him and helped the old man to the nearest bench to sit. No longer burdened, Tadashi stood up straight and tried to pull his brain back together into something resembling organization.

Things looked… tense. The entire area was crowded, with both nightmares and Sandman’s golden dream horses. Pitch had dismounted from his horse and was pointedly ignoring the others while he patted its dark muzzle. North looked every bit as thunderous as Bunnymund. Toothiana seemed nervous as she glanced from one face to the next. The Sandman was watching Pitch with just as much curiosity as hostility. And Jack was leaning on his staff and looking expectantly to Tadashi.

Tadashi was tired. He was not quite as tired as he had been the day he’d crawled out of a collapsing portal. Or the day he’d crawled out of the wreckage of the SFIT auditorium. But he was far too tired for it to be reasonable to demand things of him.

But he had a job to do, and he’d promised to do it. In a moment of whimsy, he tilted his head back to the silver disc high above. “I’m gonna trust you to back me up on this, all right?” he said.

When he looked down again, he saw that North had followed his gaze to the moon. “This involves the Man in the Moon?” he said, with a glance to Tadashi. His bushy eyebrows came together in a suspicious frown at Pitch. “What sort of plan is this?”

“The sort of plan that involves not flinging swords around,” Tadashi replied. “Or boomerangs. Or… what have you.”

The rabbit scowled. “Sounds like a rubbish plan to me.”

“Honestly, I think she explained it better than I can, but I’ll do my best.” He took a deep breath. “The, eh, Man in the Moon asked me to set Pitch free and help him take the Nightmares back.”

“What?!” Bunnymund barked.

There was a snort of disgust from Pitch. “Oh can we dispense with that ridiculous moniker? Three of us here already know she’s a woman.”

“Come again?” Jack broke in.

“Look, okay,” Tadashi went on. “That’s—okay, fine. I had a talk with her while I was unconscious, and she asked me to do this.”

“Why just you?” Bunnymund demanded. “Something this bloody important, why’d she ask the newbie?”

“Because I’m the only one who didn’t know Pitch that well, so I don’t have a grudge against him,” Tadashi answered. He shot a pointed look at the bogeyman. “Yet.”

Pitch rolled his eyes, but the look on his face was a wary one.

“They used to be friends,” Tadashi went on. “But she… did something selfish. Something that hurt him. And this whole thing, this whole conflict—it’s basically just built off that one grudge. So she figured the best way to get started on solving the fighting was to try to mend fences.” He placed his hands on his hips. “And lucky me, I got appointed to make sure you all don’t kill each other in the process.” He raised his head, looking each one of them in the eye. “Look. I know you guys have been fighting for a long, long time. I know you all have your own grudges. I know he’s hurt you all of you, and you’re not gonna forgive him easily—and at this point in time he doesn’t really deserve it yet.” Pitch snorted contemptuously again. “But I know we’re all in it for the kids—except Pitch, I don’t really know what he’s in it for—and the best way we can help kids is by coexisting.” He paused. “I keep hearing that there are way worse things than nightmares out there, and frankly I’d rather not waste time with shadowy sand horses if we have bigger things to worry about.”

“You are asking an awful lot, Tadashi,” North said severely. He towered over Tadashi, making full use of his height.

“That’s the beauty of it, though,” Tadashi said. “I’m not the only one asking. Look, I hate to name-drop, but at this point I think your best bet is to take it up with the lady upstairs. I’m just here to grease the wheels.” He pointed to Pitch. “And also set him on fire if he acts up.”

North looked as if he wanted to say more, but stopped. He glanced down to find the Sandman placing a placating hand over his. The Guardian of Wonder fell silent with a thoughtful frown.

“What’s this grudge?’ Toothiana spoke up, hovering closer. “What did he—er, she—do to him?” She shot a nervous glance at Pitch, who scowled back.

“She told me that my domain was not important,” the Nightmare King growled. Overhead, the light of the moon seemed to dim. “And she convinced the rest of you that fear has no place in the world.”

“Yeah, ‘cos it doesn’t,” Bunnymund snarled.

“It does, though,” Tadashi said. “It does have a place.”

The Guardians stared at him. Bunnymund looked furious. The Sandman and Tooth Fairy looked confused. Jack and North were… hard to read.

“Like it or not, fear’s just as important to childhood as the rest of us,” he said. “Every child gets scared. That’s what keeps them safe from the things that might hurt them.”

“He’s the one creating the things that frighten them,” Jack said flatly.

“But they’re harmless, by themselves,” Tadashi pointed out. “Nightmares. Bad dreams. Being scared of the dark. Everyone’s been there. I know I have. And as long as there isn’t too much fear, and it isn’t used the wrong way… there’s value to that.”

One of North’s thick eyebrows rose dubiously. “There is value to creating fear?”

“There can be,” Pitch broke in. “If you do it right.” The others turned to stare at him, all with varying levels of suspicion. “My terms are simple: let me have my piece of the world, and I’ll do it right. Simple as that.”

“I don’t see how there’s a right way to give children bad dreams,” Toothiana challenged him. “You’re talking like children need fear to be happy.”

Pitch smiled thinly. “No. Children need fear to be children, and then to be more.”

“With bad dreams?” Toothiana demanded. “Things that go bump in the night? Monsters in closets?”

“It’s practice, you see,” said Pitch. “I understand that now. They start out learning to be afraid of the little horrors.”

“Oh, what, so they can be afraid of the big ones later on?” Bunnymund growled.

“Of course,” the Nightmare King replied. “Loneliness. Failure. Death. Loss. That sort of thing.”

“They’re not the same, Pitch!” Toothiana burst out.

“You think so? Perhaps.” Pitch stroked the nightmare’s nose. “The fears change when they aren’t children anymore. But the fear itself? That remains. Children are smart little things, and they remember. So they learn young—when fear comes, what do you do? Cower and run? Perhaps at first. So isn’t it good that the first things to frighten them are nothing more than bad dreams?”

Toothiana went still, and her bristling feathers began to lie flat again as her eyes widened. “You’re saying…”

“It’s good to be afraid of things that aren’t real,” said Pitch. “How else do you learn to face the things that are?”

Silence fell in the dark garden, broken only by the odd nicker from a spectral horse. A breeze ran through, cool but not chilly. High overhead, the glow of the moon brightened.

“See,” said Jack, breaking the silence. “If you’d pitched that to me, instead of the whole ‘hey-let’s-rule-together-in-an-empire-of-fear’ thing, I might’ve considered it.”

Pitch gave him a baleful stare. “I’ve had a lot of time alone to think recently. Haven’t been able to do much else.” For the briefest instant, his eyes flickered toward Tadashi, and he tipped an almost imperceptible nod.

From off to the side, there came a cough.

All eyes turned to Hiro, who stood battered and dirty not far from where a shell-shocked Callaghan still sat, guarded by the rest of the heroes. He jumped at the sudden attention, fidgeting awkwardly. “Um. Sorry, were you still—? I mean you looked like you sort of reached an agreement, so I thought…”

North gave a sigh. Not a tired one, or an irritated one. Mostly he just sounded amused. “What is it, little Hiro?”

“Is it… is it over?” Hiro glanced around cautiously, mindful of all the shadowy horses gathered around the shrine. “I mean, the whole… nightmare crisis.”

“Hm.” North turned to give Pitch a long, considering look. “Is hard to say. Things like these, can we say they are ever truly ‘over’? But… for now, the danger is past. The children are safe once more.” He turned to Hiro again with a nod and a smile. “You are safe once more. And we thank you for your help.”

Hiro nodded back. “What about Callaghan?”

North sighed again.

“Physically he should be fine,” Pitch spoke up. “A little dehydrated, I’ll wager. Mentally, that’s another story. He’s spent weeks with a supernatural hurricane in his head.”

“Can you help him?” Hiro pressed.

Honey moved forward to stand with him. “Whatever he’s done—” She shot a look at Tadashi. “Whatever he’s done in the past, he didn’t deserve all this. And everything that’s happened… it was the Nightmares that did it, wasn’t it? He’ll be punished for all the things they made him do, like breaking out and attacking all those people and…” She wrung her hands.

“It just doesn’t seem fair,” Hiro finished.

Tadashi saw the Guardians exchange glances.

“Kids have a point,” Bunnymund muttered.

“We don’t usually step in when adults are involved,” Toothiana said.

“Because adults usually aren’t involved,” Jack pointed out.

“I doubt he can return to human society anyway,” Pitch drawled. “After what he’s seen? Adult minds aren’t pliable like the little ones. Children have a way of snapping back—not so much for people like him.” His horse tossed its head. “And besides, the Nightmares probably left his head a mess. He’ll have horrors from all over the realms crawling over him to get an in.”

Tadashi tried not to shudder. It was a valiant effort.

It was North who stepped forward, past Hiro and Honey until he stood before the hunched form of Professor Callaghan. For a long while, he simply stood over the broken man and watched him with a severe look on his face.

Callaghan broke the silence first. “Whatever you see fit,” he said, nearly too quietly to hear.

“Hm.” North gave a thoughtful noise. “You are a maker.”

The old man raised his head to look at him, confused.

“You build. Invent. Create. Mind like sketchbook never runs out of pages. Yes?”

Hesitantly, Callaghan nodded.

The moment he did, North looked up and met Tadashi’s eyes. Tadashi blinked back at him, perplexed, until he realized what the other Guardian was doing. The question was clear on Santa Claus’s face—he was looking to Tadashi for approval. He was looking for permission to deal with Callaghan as he saw fit.

Tadashi gave a nod, and a welcoming motion with one hand.

North turned back to Callaghan with a rumble of laughter. “Good! I have use for you, then. Mind is terrible to waste.” He gave Callaghan a clap on the shoulder—a gentle one, judging by the fact that it didn’t knock Callaghan out of his seat. “You come with me, Callaghan.”

Callaghan bowed his head.

“This is not punishment,” North told him. “You do not need punishment, but healing. This, I can do. Or at least keep you busy.” Reaching down, he helped the old man to his feet. “Come. Where I take you, I think you will like.”

“So… what happens now?” Hiro had moved closer to Tadashi and caught hold of his sleeve. “Are you… I mean…”

“I’m sticking around,” Tadashi assured him. “I meant what I said. I won’t leave you. But…” He looked around at the other Guardians, and Pitch, and the nightmares. “Looks like I’ll be keeping busy, too. But no matter what, I’ll always come back, because this? This is home.” He squeezed his little brother’s shoulder. “My place is near you, buddy.”

“Okay.” Hiro seemed to steel himself. “Okay. I’m gonna hold you to that.”

“Good. Keep me honest.”

“We should be going,” Toothiana said at last. “I think… we all have a lot to talk about.”

“R-right.” Tadashi hesitated. “Um. Could you guys… go on ahead?” He motioned vaguely to his friends. “I just gotta…”

North laughed again, startling everyone. “Very well. You say your hellos. But catch up soon, yes? Help us deal with… your new friend.”

“We aren’t friends,” Pitch said waspishly. He turned away. “I’ll be rebuilding my home. When you’re ready to talk—” He stopped, and cast a glance upward at the shining moon. “Or when she’s ready to talk. Well. You know where to find me.” With that, he swung up onto his horse once more. The dark beast reared, the other horses rallied around it, and Pitch rode off into the night. He was gone in a gust of wind.

“We’ll meet you back at the North Pole?” Toothiana said, looking at Tadashi.

“Yeah, definitely.”

The sleigh coasted down to the ground, and the other Guardians, plus a dazed Robert Callaghan, climbed in. Jack was the last to follow.

“I was worried for a second there,” he said, locking eyes with Tadashi. “Pitch tried to cozy up to me, once. I was wondering if you’d gotten taken in or something.”

“God no, he’s an asshole,” Tadashi said. “I’m doing this because she finally cut the crap and started giving me straight answers.” He pointed upwards. “And she asked nicely.”

“O-oh. Right. Him—I mean, her.” Jack’s face twitched as he fought to suppress a powerful emotion. It looked like many things at once—envy, regret, sorrow. “Good talk, I take it?”

“You can have one too,” Tadashi said.

Jack blinked. “W-what?”

“That was one of my terms, when I agreed to what she said,” Tadashi told him. “I told her it wasn’t fair that she left you alone for three hundred years, so at the very least she owed you a conversation. So… that’s an offer open, if you want it.”

For a moment, Jack stared at him, dumbfounded. His jaw moved, but his mouth failed to form words. At last, he shook his head and punched Tadashi lightly in the shoulder. “God, you’re such a mother hen. I’ll see you at the North Pole, fluff.”

Tadashi grinned. “It was no problem, Jack.”

The sleigh lifted off, leaving the rest of them alone in the Tea Garden.

Tadashi took a deep breath. He turned on his heel. Tears were already gathering in his eyes as he caught Hiro’s shoulder and pulled him along into the waiting arms of his friends.

---

“So how’re things?” Hiro asked.

Tadashi stepped in through the window and landed lightly on the floor of their attic bedroom. “Busy, like I said. I’m spending most of my time keeping Pitch and Bunny from going for each other’s throats.”

Hiro laughed. “I still can’t believe that a rabbit that goes around handing out chocolate eggs in the springtime is, like, Conan the Barbarian.”

“It surprised me at first, too,” Tadashi admitted. “He didn’t like me much, back then. I guess rabbits just aren’t meant to get along with foxes.”

Hiro nodded, humming thoughtfully. “Hey, Tadashi…” He looked over his shoulder at Baymax’s charging station and case, which lay deactivated in the corner of the room.. “You’re sure you don’t need your… your soul? I mean, we would’ve been in a lot of trouble if Baymax hadn’t yanked it out and given it to you back then.”

“I might, someday,” Tadashi said. “If we ever see something that big and dangerous again. But until then…” He shot Baymax a grin. “It’s like I can be in two places at once, you know?”

“Guess so. Double the mother-hen. Lucky me.” Hiro’s voice was dry, but there was a smirk on his face. Tadashi reached up to mess up his hair. “And how’s… uh… how’s Callaghan?”

Tadashi grinned wryly. “North’s been putting him to work at the workshop. The elves keep pranking him, but I think he gets along okay with the Yetis. And… man, if he was something when he just had science, adding magic into the mix has turned out some wild stuff.”

Hiro hummed softly. “Is he… okay, then?”

“…Yeah. He’s okay.” Tadashi stuffed his hands in his pockets. “I think that’s about the best he can be, after everything that’s happened. He’s somewhere he can do things, and make things, instead of just… languish. He’s still getting used to the magic, though.”

“I don’t blame him.”

For a moment, they lapsed into a thoughtful silence, before Tadashi perked up again. “Oh, speaking of magic. I found out something cool.” Reaching beneath his jacket, he dug out a small folded stack of papers. “So, it turns out Nozomi and her friends have been spreading stories around the schoolyard, and look what I’ve found.” He unfolded the pages, revealing children’s crayon drawings, most of them colorfully simple depictions of foxes. Scrawled beneath the drawings, or on the back, were little notes.

“Are you getting fan mail?” Hiro’s smirk widened. “Like Santa?”

“Not quite. These are more like… ema, almost.” Tadashi shuffled through the pages, admiring them. “The kids who made these wrote wishes and hung them in their windows. So far it’s been stuff like being scared of the dark, or having bad dreams. And when they put them up, I felt it. It was like a string pulling me there. I think they’ve found a way to call me.”

“Cool!” Hiro laughed. “Looks like they’re already making legends about you, bro.”

“Heh, maybe.”

“I gotta ask, though—bad dreams? Doesn’t that kinda pit you against Pitch?”

“Not yet. Mostly it’s been scraps of nightmares that haven’t figured out Pitch is King again.” Tadashi folded up the notes and put them away again. “Maybe it will, someday. I’m okay with a rivalry, though. Doesn’t mean we can’t still get along.”

“You get along with the bogeyman?”

“Sort of.” Tadashi paused. “Well. We don’t not get along. That’s really all I ask at this point. But enough about me—how’s the hero work?”

“Same old, same old, I guess,” Hiro replied. “No archenemies yet. Maybe when I’m older.” He paused. “It’s just… weird, though.”

“What’s weird?”

“What isn’t weird?” Hiro laughed, a little humorlessly. “We both ended up in just… the wildest positions. You know? We’re both heroes. Just… different kinds. You do the magic stuff, I do the science stuff.”

“Not where I thought my life was going, that’s for sure,” Tadashi said softly.

“And… Aunt Cass is still mourning you,” Hiro murmured. “And I wish… I just wish there was a way to tell her, that you’re still here. And not just still-in-her-memory still here, I mean…”

“I know.” Tadashi slung an arm around his shoulders. “I know, and maybe… maybe someday.”

“That’s a pretty big maybe.”

“I know. But it’s not impossible. She could find a way to believe in me, and see me. Maybe we just need to have a little faith.”

“Hm.” Hiro raised an eyebrow. “And trust?”

“Sure. And if I find some pixie dust, I’ll let you know.” Tadashi ruffled his little brother’s hair again. “But for now, I… I’m just really glad you can see me.”

Hiro grinned. “Me too, bro. Oh hey, before you have to fly off again—” He darted toward the corner of the room nearest the stairs. “Sorry, it’s just—you look weird, running around without it.” Reaching up, he plucked the baseball cap from the hat rack and ran back. It was a bit of a stretch to plop it on Tadashi’s head, but he managed it. “I dunno if it fits your whole kitsune ghost mystique thing you have going, but…”

“Heh.” Tadashi reached up and straightened it. “I’ll admit, I have missed this old… thing…” His voice trailed off, and he looked over his shoulder. “Huh. Think I’m feeling it again.”

“Another kid having bad dreams?”

“Something like that.” Tadashi looked back, opening his mouth to say something.

Hiro stepped closer and wrapped him in a hug before he had the chance. Without a word, Tadashi returned it.

There didn’t need to be words. I missed you went without saying, and so did I love you and I’m glad you’re here.

“Well,” Hiro said at last, his voice muffled into his brother’s chest. “Don’t let me hold you up. I’ll talk to you later?”

“Sure thing, little bro.”

Hiro followed him to the window and watched him leap out of it. With his hands braced against the sill, he leaned forward and followed his brother’s path. As he stayed by the window, he watched the little form of a swiftly running fox as it darted out into the night, over and under the golden trails of dream sand beneath a dark, jeweled sky and a steadfast, ever-watchful Moon.

[naytile]

Damage Control

Barbara and Walter have a moment.

Setting: While Jim is out taking a much-needed weekend trip with his friends, Walter and Barbara have the house to themselves. A conversation happens that was long overdue.

Timeline: Hypothetically Season 2-ish. Some time in the future-ish. That’s not very helpful, is it?

Spoilers: YES

[I just had to write a scene for the two of them, because they’re the death of me. I had this idea of Walt bringing up his identity on his own terms, with some insecurity, like in a dark room.]

—

“And now with Jim, being this… This Troll-fighter!”

“Trollhunter.”

“Right. Whatever. Well, I think I’m getting used to it, but it’s still all so… It’s so overwhelming.” Barbara ran her hands through her hair. “And if I tell anyone else, they won’t believe me. I feel so alone sometimes, but I’m glad you’re here. How long have you known about this?”

“The world of trolls has been alluded to by humankind for centuries. Millennia, even. But your kind–ah–…”

“What was that?”

“Oh—no—it’s just—we have never exactly been able to access the reality to those stories. Not until now.” Walter’s eyes narrowed. He bore a worrisome look, peering into the darkening night.

“Sometimes it all feels like a dream and I’m just waiting to wake up. I know Jim can take care of himself, and that he needs to have time on his own. But… I can’t help but worry.”

Fall was upon them now, the air biting and crisp. They were sitting beside each other on the porch, his arm hung over her shoulder, her hand on his waist. A few cars would roll by occasionally, lighting them up and stretching their shadows. She relaxed against him as he pulled her nearer, squeezing her shoulder to soothe.

“You’re too hard on yourself. You only worry because you love him,” he rested the side of his face against hers. “That’s what makes you a mother.”

She smiled to herself, rubbing the top of his hand with her thumb.

“It’s been a long day. I’m so tired, but thinking of all of this, I can’t help but stay awake,” she said. “… Oh! The new Gun Robot is on-demand now! Household favorite, really. Have you seen it yet? Are you up for a movie?”

“I haven’t, unfortunately.” Walt’s smile was sincere. “But it’s quite late for me. I’d rather go to bed soon. I’m surprised you’re not more exhausted than I am. Besides, there’s… Something I need to tell you. It’s very important. I want us to have utmost privacy for it.”

Barbara raised her eyebrows.

“Oh, alright. Show me, then,” she smiled suggestively. Suddenly, she noticed how his face turned uncharacteristically uncomfortable.

“I don’t think you’re ready for it, Barbara,” Walt’s voice darkened as he failed to look her in the eye. “You’re never going to be. But you have the right to know who I am.”

“What? Where did that come from? … You’re starting to worry me lately. Enough with these weird, cryptic sayings. What are you? Some sort of government agent? A criminal? Are Jim and I in danger? Just what’s going on here?”

“No.” 

“Just tell me. You know you can.”

“I can’t tell you. I have to show you.”

“I… Don’t understand. It’s late. You always go to bed early.”

“Promise me you won’t run. Please.”

“Walt, you’re starting to scare me.”

“Please, Barbara!”

—

“Eyes–your eyes! Walt? Your eyes. They’re glowing.”

“It’s me.”

“Your nose feels the same.”

“It’s–it’s not the same,” he laughed, snorting helplessly at the coincidence.

“Your voice, it’s–your breath is cold. Your skin–is freezing. And tough, and hard, like… Like stone!”

“Don’t be afraid!” He suddenly began to panic once he felt her leave him. Her footsteps were drawing away towards the door. “Don’t turn on the lights! Not yet!”

“No! You’re not just going to hide from me when it’s convenient for you! I know what this is! Oh, God, it better not be!”

Clack.

“YOU’RE– YOU’RE A–”

“… Precisely.”

“You’re a TROLL and you didn’t TELL me?!”

Barbara’s reaction was darkly comical, her voice filled with all of the force of a boulder rolling down a mountain.

“That’s—that’s not something you tell people, Barbara! I didn’t want to scare you! Imagine the unmitigated panic of this ENTIRE world if these sorts of things became carelessly known to man! I never should’ve shown you in the first place!”

“… And yet you trust me enough.”

“I do.”

Barbara’s eyebrows quivered for a moment, her emotions thoroughly unreadable. Her blue eyes were normally so curious looking, and so accommodating, but tonight they were cold and wild, radiating with intensity.

“You’re telling me that all of the times I made love to you–NOT THE REAL YOU–and you–I never knew that you were this… This thing!”

Her voice was tethered by her own shock. Her partner stared at her as his offense rose through his skin.

“What are you trying to say? It was the real me. All of this has been real to me. It was all real!” The troll known as Stricklander stood up suddenly, towering even over the tall Barbara, while an alien growl rumbled from the back of his throat. He lowered his head at the sight of her and backed away towards the curtains. He swallowed a breath, casting away his look, ashamed. “How you see me now doesn’t change what it was like then.”

“Are you kidding me? Yes, it does! You lead me on—up to this very hour! I can’t believe you,” Barbara bristled, walking towards him. “And I’m not afraid of you, either,” she pointed against his chest, his eyes widening. “I’m utterly pissed.”

She paused for a moment, her glare boring into every inch of him.

“I should’ve known you were such a damn liar, after all that happened. And I still forgave you!” Her eyes began to water. It was not only because of him, but also because of herself and her own beliefs about him, that she was already breaking down. “How could you be so open with me about what happened back then, but still keep this the greatest secret of all? Did you plan it like this? Do you think I can just walk away from this now?! After all that we’ve been through?”

“No, I didn’t even–I don’t know,” he croaked stupidly, his typically charismatic intelligence dashed away by her confrontation. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry for everything. It’s all because of me. Everything is. … I’m a selfish creature,” Walt acknowledged regretfully. “And you made me happy. You still do.”

“I don’t care what you are—if you’re a selfish creature, or a selfish man, or whatever you feel like being. Why do you have to lie to me?” Barbara demanded, her voice shaking. Her eyelids glistened and reddened with stress. “I trusted you with my feelings, I trusted you with my life, and I trusted you with my son. What’s wrong with you?”

“Back then, I just wanted more. It was all so different, those times I was with you,” he confessed. “I didn’t entirely know what to do. It was never something I considered before. I always knew that there was more to humans than my kind gives credit. There are things people value that trollkind never will. … It wasn’t a lie. Not to me.”

“If you really felt that way, why couldn’t you tell me? I mean, did you just keep me around because I made you feel good about yourself? Because I made you forget about who you are? About what you are?”

Walt’s gaze to her was barren, and he was practically turned to stone already. He didn’t fall in love with a fool–hearing such pertinent questions cut into him. It was true that he often fantasized about having a normal life among humans, where at the very least, he had a stellar reputation.

“Why couldn’t you be honest with me? Why? Why couldn’t you respect me enough to tell me?”

He couldn’t answer.

“Why?”

“Because I was afraid! That’s it! That’s all it was! I was afraid!”

He changed back suddenly, his green eyes grasping for any sort of comfort in her own, any common connection that would ground him. Strickler’s embrace rushed for her validation, as if rendering himself human would suddenly make the situation disappear.

“Barbara, I…”

“Face it, Walt,” Barbara gritted her teeth. She grabbed an iron charm from her pocket and thrust it onto his skin. There again, she saw a troll in place of a man. “You’re not a human.”

Stricklander’s incisors mashed against each other. He felt sick as the pain of reality struck him like a fuming brand. His glazed irises fixed on her, stunned. If a troll was capable of tears, they would be collecting along the rims of his eyelids at this very moment. His weakness had little to do with iron’s momentary sting. It was because it was her who did this to him, and he knew it came from no malicious place in her heart.

“I never asked for this life,” Walt breathed. “You were the only good thing to come of it—I swear.”

Barbara ran her hands across her face, smearing it wet with remorse.

“See this?” She flashed the piece of iron against the light, tears still gleaming on her chin. “Jim taught me all about this. I never thought I’d use it on you.”

Stricklander swallowed nervously from the strength of her bitterness, though it felt like stones were caught all along his throat.

“So be it then. You don’t have to see me again,” he backed towards the bedroom door. “I put you through Hell and I shouldn’t have. I should’ve left when I was meant to.”

“Don’t run away. Don’t you dare. Not after you told me not to.”

Stricklander became cornered by his own hypocrisy. His ears lowered, his eyes squinted as his lips tightened. How could he tell her that he merely wanted her to be happy–to be freed of every curse that ever went between them?

“… What is it that you want?”

“I want you to stop hiding things. Is that so difficult? I know what you want most is to stay,” she said, hesitantly closing the gap between them. “We’ve gone too far for this, you—you’ve … You’ve made me feel too much,” her voice bore a quiver.

“That makes two of us,” Walt admitted quietly.

All they could do was stare at one another, festering with untouchable emotions. They embraced slowly. It was possibly the strangest hug in the world, but it was honest and raw with catharsis. The silence was thoroughly uncomfortable for both of them, but there was little else they felt like doing.

“I don’t want to give up.”

“No. I don’t either.”

He rested his chin on the top of her head.

“I just wanted you to know.”

“What am I supposed to say, Walt? How can I just send you away?”

Barbara wiped her eyes with her sweater.

“What are we going to do?”

“I’m… Still half a man, if that comforts you any.”

“It does, but…” Barbara closed her eyes. “It shouldn’t comfort you. Why would you stay with someone who doesn’t accept you for who you really are?”

Barbara took his hand, squeezing it lightly, but his fingers felt a sharp firmness.

“Look, it’s not… It’s not even about what you are. Okay?”

Walt’s eyes grew tender for a moment, even beneath their ferocious layers of yellow.

“It’s about what you hide. And that scares me. That makes me feel betrayed. And if you keep doing this to me, I can’t be with you. I can’t live like that, Walt.”

“You shouldn’t,” he replied, his mouth dry. “There were a lot of things I never intended to happen. I made mistakes that I can never be at peace with. I can’t deny it. And after it all, I never expected to be welcome anywhere. I didn’t, and…” Walt trailed off. “I don’t know how I could possibly make it up to you.”

“Don’t hide. Don’t ever hide.”

Barbara’s fierceness with him was not because she despised him, but because she cared deeply. Slowly, Walt drew his face nearer to her. Undeniably, and especially after such a vulnerable moment between them, he adored her, and there was no better moment to affirm this to himself. Barbara began to notice the oddly orange flush on his nose.

“I could kiss you for that,” he spoke in barely a murmur, a genuine smile warming the grisly features of his face. “If it weren’t for these, of course.” He jutted out his jaw and waggishly fluttered his eyelids towards his obtrusive fangs.

“Oh, my,” Barbara touched one of them, humored. The innocence of the situation flattered Stricklander as he silently smirked in amusement. “Charming.”

“I know.”

[multiplefandomfics]

Grimes Sisters chapter 20

Parings: Daryl x Alex

Warnings: angst, smut, unprotected sex,

Words: 2749

Alex POV

It had roughly been a year since Fabienne vanished and we hadn‘t found her. Two weeks had been spent searching every corner in a 15 mile radius around that abandoned hotel in the woods.  It took everything we had but after that time we had to admit that it was to no use to keep searching and probably endanger someone else from the group. Everyday spent in small troops out there was a risk. So at some point we just packed our bags and left everything behind. Here and there we found a refuge along the way to rest and scavenge for supplies.

Then something surprisingly wonderful happened. A few month on the road fighting for life and death we encountered a tall man named Aaron. He told us about a community called Alexandria. I thought it fit kinda perfect. The people there had lived behind the walls since the start and had no idea how it was going on outside. Most of them had never seen a walker up close let alone killed one. And so they needed our help protect and gather supplies in the real world. At first we were skeptical about those people, it could have ended badly but together we decided to give it a careful chance. We deserved some normality.

By now we had already been living in Alexandria for about three months. It was a different way of living behind those feet high walls. Enough food, water, medicine and even electricity and running water. In the beginning I had stood under the shower and in front of the faucet for hours at a time just enjoying some clean water. We even planted our own food which brought my memories painfully back to my lost sister. I thought about her from time to time. What was she up to? Had she found a place to stay? Or was she dead? Maybe they had all been lying and time didn’t heal all wounds.

The community was led by Deanna Monroe. Together with her husband Reg, who had been a Professor of Architecture before, and her two sons Spencer and Aiden, who were douche-bags, she had built this town up and secured it after the outbreak. She was really intelligent I had to give her that but she had no idea how to fight and never taught the others how to survive outside of their cocoon. In case that the walls should have fallen the inhabitants of Alexandria would have been useless and a danger to themselves. So Rick convinced Deanna to let the people who wanted to learn how to defend themselves and how to kill walkers. And that was the right strategy. We were able to do longer supply runs and had more people to stand guard on the watchtowers.  

But after Deanna’s husband Reg died tragically, she changed a lot. She gave the reigns to Rick more often so he led the community.

One evening when we sat at a bonfire we suddenly heard loud female screams. Immediately Daryl and Rick grabbed their weapons and ran toward the sound. Shocked we saw that it was Deanna being attacked by a walker that had already bitten her. She was bleeding badly and there was nothing we could have done so Rick rammed his knife into the walkers skull and with her last strength she pointed toward the gate that somebody hadn’t fully closed. The walker had slipped through the gap. Deanna had lost a lot of blood and died then so Daryl put her out of her misery. The next day we buried her in the small graveyard on the premises.

Even that had already been a month ago and Rick had taken over completely since.

Rosita, Abraham and Aaron had just arrived  back from a supply run. Since our arrival Aaron and I had really bonded, we could talk about anything. I embraced him lovingly. Relieved he was back. “You were gone forever!” I exclaimed. He just laughed as an answer. They had departed about 10 days before. “But we have found a lot of useful stuff.” he stated and so I started helping him and the others unload the vehicle. Even Daryl had arrived beside me and started to help. “Hey sweetheart.” he grumbled and kissed me. It was rare of him to show affection in public that was normally only going on behind closed doors. A few months ago we had finally made it official that we were a couple and it felt damn good. I smiled at him and together we unpacked everything and stowed it away.

I took a look around the storage garage that was finally full again and clapped Aaron on his shoulder “Real good job you did out there!” no one would have thought to be able to live like that again. Without starvation and fear.

Daryl entered the house we were living in together with Rick, Carl, Michonne and Judith. “Good evening.” I greeted him smiling. I was cooking our favorite. Spaghetti Bolognese. “Dinner will be ready in a bit, care to call the others?” I requested. He nodded and left to find them. Shortly after I had already set the table and was just putting the pot on a coaster while the others sat down. “I hope you’ll like it.” I blushed a little. “If it tastes only half as good as it smells it’ll be fantastic. Plus you know little sister, we love everything you make.” Rick smiled at me reassuringly. Eating together had become some kind of a ritual when no one was on a supply run or otherwise occupied and it was the most normal thing we could have done. “It’s really good Alex. Thank you.” Carl mumbled mouth full of spaghetti while Rick was silently throwing condemning glances at him.

When we were done eating Rick offered his help but I declined. He should take the time with his kids and relax a little.

Just when I had finished washing the dishes, Daryl joined me. When I didn’t spare him a glance he stepped behind me grabbing my hips turning me around and hoisting me up on the kitchen counter. “I love you.” he whispered in my ear and then laid his lips on mine kissing me passionately. My hands embedded themselves in his long strands and I pulled him closer which made him moan into the kiss. Then my legs wound themselves around his hips successfully caging him in.

Next his big calloused hands wandered under my shirt with the intention of pushing it over my head but I stopped him “Not here. Anyone could just walk in. It’s too risky.” he kissed my neck before mumbling “They’re all sleeping. Even Rick and I closed the door.” that was all the convincing I needed so I let him continue pulling of shirt and bra. We had lost any kind of patience at that point so we made quick work of our clothes never stopping the kissing. My delicate hands glided over his muscular upper arms. He held two finger out toward me and demanded “suck!” so I did and when he deemed them slick enough he slowing slid them inside my achingly wet pussy. My back arched and I clawed at his shoulders biting my lip til I drew blood to stifle my moans. As suddenly as he had started this he had also pulled away from me much to my dismay but I didn’t have to wait for too long because only a second later he replaced his thick fingers with his even thicker and longer cock. He didn’t give me time to adjust before pushing all the way inside. I just leaned against his shoulder and closed my eyes moaning into his flesh. I didn’t wanna wake the whole house after all but he just felt so damn good. “Fuck!” was the only word I was able to say in the moment of passion. But then he started to finally move agonizingly slow. So I pushed my hips upward to encourage him to go faster and fortunately he did. “Shit, you so wet babe. Clenchin’ round my cock so hard. You close?” he hushed in my ear. My hands had already grabbed at his back leaving nail imprints all over it. I really was getting close and when his last thrusts got even harder and deeper I fell over the edge screaming which he muffled by holding his hand over my mouth. He kept moving a bit more helping me ride through my orgasm and then he spilled deep inside me. Pulling out he took his hand from my mouth and grinned at me. Then he kissed me again with so much love behind it.

We only grabbed our clothes afterward and went upstairs to our bedroom. The next day was surely gonna be a hard day again…

Fabienne POV

For weeks I had been running aimlessly through the woods. I needed to let everything behind. The pain of losing Shane was omnipresent and I couldn’t shake the guilt away. It was only after a few weeks that I had realized that I had probably scared the others to death. Rick and Alex were trying to find me but I had reached the point of no return. I had to deal with my life on my own now and I was sure to make it.

One day I had found a small hunting shed in the woods and decided to stay there for a day or two. It had everything. Even firewood and a bed to sleep in. That made me almost flip with joy because it

had gotten really cold especially during the nights. I sat down in front of the self made fire and ate my canned stew. Finally I was able to eat that stuff warm.

Suddenly I was alarmed by noises outside and thought it to be a walker or two so I grabbed my knife but the person was at the door and grabbing the knob so I hid behind the old sofa in the room. Walkers couldn’t open doors – humans could. I stayed at the ready and when the tall and dark figure entered the room I waited until he had com closer and turned his back toward me before I jumped out holding my knife to his throat. Immediately he held up his hands in surrender “Oho little one. Keep calm. I didn’t know anyone was in here. Put the knife down I’m not gonna hurt you.” boomed his low voice. Skeptically I took the knife down and back in its holster then I tried to make out his features but were only able to when he stepped closer to the fire. “You say you had no idea that someone was in here but you saw the fire. Who was supposed to have kindled it? Bullshit you thought you could steal something here, didn’t you?” he just pulled up his shoulders . My voice probably sounded rough because he was the first person I had spoken to since I left my people.

“I’m sorry I bothered you I can go now if you want me to.” he had already turned on his heel but he seemed a nice enough guy so I stopped him. “Hey. Wait! I could use the company. I’m Fabienne by the way.” I outstretched my hand. He turned back around and took my hand shaking it. “I’m Negan and I’m glad to meet you.” he had that toothy smile that made you smile with him instantly. You didn’t know what it was but he had something special about him.

We stayed together that night talking about everything and nothing warming up against the fire.

The next morning I wanted to be on my way again but I got an offer I couldn’t refuse. Negan told me that he was building up a community and that he could use someone like me. He wanted me to accompany him but I wasn’t obliged to stay I could leave whenever I wanted. So I went with him. A bit later he showed me what he had started to build and I immediately felt home. Week for week more people joined us and it really began to take shape.

The next eight months had been amazing. I had integrated perfectly and I hadn’t felt that homely since the prison. I was still thinking about my family every day and wondered what they had been up to since I had left them a year before. I was sure they were still alive. They were survivors. “What’s wrong darlin´?” Negan had caught me stuck in one of my deep thoughts. He fell down on the couch next to me. I sighed “Just thought about my sister and brother and… Shane. My boyfriend who got bit because of me.” he put his hand on my shoulder calmingly. “I understand but you can’t change the past.” he tried to build me up. I knew he was right so I nodded toward him and smiled weakly.

“You wanna get outta here?” he suddenly asked to change the topic. He knew how to lighten my mood. Always got me out of the emotional hole I fell into from time to time. I grabbed my gear and we headed out with his car. Of course this trip wasn’t only for fun we also wanted to make this a supply run. In a small town we had discovered earlier we raided a supermarket and got some cans and toilet paper. “We gotta find more stuff or we’ll have a problem soon. The more people we have the more supplies we need.” I agreed with him there. “I’m sure we can harvest some of the tomato and potato crops soon and then everything will be better.” I assured him and we kept on riding.

Soon we found a small bay and sat down on a large stone. “I come here to relax and turn my mind off for a while. I think it’s quite beautiful.” he told me. I closed my eyes and enjoyed sun and silence. The wind was blowing through my hair. When I opened my eyes I noticed Negan staring at me “Take a picture it’ll last longer.” I teased. I definitely didn’t wanna deny the slight sexual tension between us but none of us ever acted on it. I saw his baffled face and started laughing which made him laugh too. No one was gonna believe me how much I adored this man. Negan was a strong leader. Serious and consequent on the one hand, and on the other smiling and goofing around. Unfortunately he didn’t do that at the sanctuary very often. But that made me feel even more honored because he only showed me that side of him. “The smile looks good on you.” I remarked. He just shrugged again and the laughing died down. “I’m seeing that differently...” but before he could finish I stopped him “Do you think they will lose their respect for you when you smile sometimes?” you asked him just as a joke but he took it seriously “They need to respect me.” he just ground out so I let it be.

We observed the sun vanishing behind the trees and there it was again this positive tension between us. My head turned back toward him and our faces inched closer until our lips touched gently. So my feelings hadn’t fooled me but I still wasn’t sure what this meant and I had this nagging guilt at the back of my head that told me I was cheating on Shane so I pulled away and turned my eyes down “I can’t do this right now… I’m sorry.. let’s go home.” I got up and walked back toward the car. But before I could reach the vehicle a strong hand pulled me back “Fabienne you can’t live in the past forever.” he stared deeply into my soul and our lips collided again. This time harder and with more passion and want. Negan pinned me to the car “You’re right!” I confirmed him. I was only human after all. The guilt and sadness would always be by my side but I had to stop thinking about that now. I needed to start living again and he was gonna help me with that...