#adam: one wrong call or bad decision and people you care about will die

[rosymorns]

hobbies: thinkin about rosanna <3 

[simsadventures]

Gilded: Chapter 2: Our House (The Mess We’ve Made)

Mobster! Steve x Reader

Summary: Steve doesn’t like to be questioned, and you learn that the hard way. When he wants something, he gets it, and now he wants to have everything over with as quickly as possible. But there are a few bumps on the road. 

Warnings: mafia au, swearing, violence, blood, threats, violence on women, slight mention of a rape, fluff, I mean, Steve is very demanding here, but it’s a theme so… 

Word Count: 6087

A/N: I’m beyond excited that you guys liked the first chapter so much and are giddy for the next one. So, here we have it. More of our arranged couple and more mafia stuff. Let me know what you thought, and again, thank you for reading! xx

Series Masterlist __ Masterlist 

< Previous Chapter 

“You did what? Are you fucking kidding me right now? Y/N, I love you, but you must have hit your head real hard because this is not like you, at all,” Caroline reasoned, but you could see she was close to losing it completely. 

They were both waiting for you to come home that night, and you first had to make sure neither of them would talk about anything you were about to reveal. You trusted both of them with your life, that wasn’t the issue, but you were afraid that if they talked outside of your apartment, Steve might know and the things he could do to them would be the core of your future nightmares, you were sure of it. When they finally agreed, you got to explaining. But you didn’t even get a full sentence out before they started jumping in it, asking questions and wildly swatting their hands, trying to make you see just how stupid of an idea it actually was. 

“Do you think I don’t know it sounds insane? I do, but also like, it’s gonna take care of so many issues, and, I mean, all he needs from me, as far as I understood it, is to go to a few events with him, go to some vacations with him and that would be all. I mean, I can still have the job I actually enjoy and don’t have to slave in that fucking pub with all those weirdos, and I won’t have to worry about money,” you tried to sound reasonable and sensible, but from the looks on your best friends’ faces, you weren’t doing too good of a job. 

“Right, right, cool. So, you wanna tell me that the most notorious fucking mobster in America will let you live here, with us, while he parades you around the city at night? Or that he doesn’t have enemies you should worry about? Or what about the fucking police, Y/N, huh? Have you thought of that? You will be affiliated with a known criminal, and they will start to notice you and your life won’t be as easy as you picture it,” Aidan sighed and massaged his temples, the stress of it all getting the best of him. 

You sat down next to them and smiled at them fondly. It was sweet that they worried so much about you, and just the mere thought that there were people on this planet who gave a shit about you, even to the point of yelling at you at 11 PM on Wednesday night was heartwarming. You understood their reservations, you really did, but you also knew this all before you said yes to Steve. You knew it wouldn’t be as easy, and while you weren’t sure whether you would have to live with Steve in Manhattan or somewhere else, or if he let you just be on your own, you knew you could take it. The police didn’t scare you, you’ve had enough training in diverting the police from yourself, so the police was the last thing on your mind. Besides, you were signing petitions left and right to defund them, so… You were pretty sure they already knew your name from the demonstrations in front of their precincts. 

Enemies were a bit more challenging to handle, but you were sure Steve wouldn’t want his new wife to die on his watch. How would that look for him? So really, all that was at stake was your sanity and your integrity, and thinking about it, Steve didn’t ask you to do something illegal. The only thing he wanted from you was to be a good girl, marry him and be by his side. And you could do that. And you were only human, Steve was a sight to behold, so you didn’t mind being connected to him, even though he specifically told you he wasn’t attracted to you. 

That one still stung, but maybe it was for the better. You wouldn’t have to worry about doing something stupid when the other party was completely uninterested, and knowing it, you could just never let your body have even a minor crush on him, so the situation really resolved itself even before anything could have happened. 

“I really think I can gain more than I can lose, you guys. I didn’t imagine my life being like this, far from it, and maybe Steve and his money can help me get where I want. And I won’t even have to sleep with him or anybody else. He even talked about putting a no-sex clause in our contract so that I would be safe even on paper. You always tell me that I’m not taking enough risks and that I stay rooted in my comfort zone. Well, this is quite the improvement, isn’t it?” You laughed, and they both just shook their heads but chuckled nevertheless. 

“You are a psychopath, babe,” Aidan muttered but gave you a side hug, and Caroline soon joined. 

“We love you and worry about you, that’s all. But if you feel good about this, then so do we. I just hope he’s ready for our wrath if anything even remotely bad happens to you,” Caroline said, and the three of you started to laugh. You would bet somebody like Steve would be scared shitless from two 20-something-year-olds who, one who was scared of wasps so much she almost fainted every time she saw one, and the other having a hard time peeling a grapefruit. Yup, they were the combat duo you would bet your money on in a fight, for sure. 

Waking up, you had a good feeling about the decision, even more so than the night before. You had mulled it over and over in your head, seeing that this was the way out of everything and also your way to a lot of those things you wanted to have by now. You even thought of the saying, sometimes, the only way out is through, and this was your through. There was no foreseeable way of getting out of debt, of getting out of the depression caused by your hectic and unsatisfying life. Your way through it was accepting Steve’s money and his help for a year, freeing you from the shackles of your current life, in a sense. 

That it would come with a different kind of shackled you were sure of, but everything was better than your life now because you really couldn’t even call it a life. You wanted so many things, see so many places, but the world wasn’t made for the people playing by the rules, slaving in their ordinary jobs. No, this capitalist world was made for sharks, and you had been disguised as a sheep for too long. 

When you got to the gallery, you were welcomed by a sight that surprised you, and not in a good way. Where you were used to sitting every day for the past two years was another girl. She was pretty, and you bet she was wonderful, but at that very moment, all you saw was that somebody replaced you. 

You swiftly unlocked the door and walked in, the girl standing up immediately to greet you with a shy smile and a wave. You couldn’t be a complete bitch to her, after all, this was way above her pay grade. So, you just nodded and strode towards the offices where the director sat. 

“Good morning, Ms Y/L/N. I see you have met Laura, our new receptionist. And before you say anything, I just wanted to tell you that we appreciate everything you had done for this gallery for so long and that we thought it was time for you to learn some other skills, as you are more than capable of that,” he smiled warmly, and you weren’t sure if it was a nice way of saying you were let go of, or if you were promoted. 

“What does that mean, Mr Jones?” You asked incredulously, not really in the mood to search in between the lines. 

“You have become my personal secretary, Ms Y/L/N. Congratulations! I know you have the aspiration of becoming a curator, so, this way, you could get a little closer to art even though there is still some way to go, naturally,” he winked and chuckled, and you let yourself relax with the news. 

Wow! Your life was already taking a turn for the better, and all you had to was to go with your gut and risk a little. You wanted to laugh out loud at the universe and its mysterious ways of working. But, thinking of mysterious, your mind suddenly pictured Steve and his devilish smirk, and your smile faltered. 

“And may I ask, why now? Don’t get me wrong, I’m extremely grateful for the chance, and I will do my best to succeed in expectations. I just wonder what happened that the chance has come now?” 

Mr Jones scratched the back of his neck, and you gritted your teeth. You already knew that it wasn’t the universe praising you for your bravery. No, this had nothing to do with the universe. 

“More things have come together, to be quite honest, Ms Y/L/N. First, my long-time secretary left for her maternity leave a few weeks ago, as you might remember, and I have been looking for her replacement ever since. And I forgot what an amazing student we had here, who is already established with the clients and with our partners, and that this will be a win-win situation for everybody. And your fiancée was quite adamant that your resumé is remarkable and that I should give you a chance,” he smiled and piled gathered in your throat. 

How Steve managed to persuade Jones to do this was beyond you when you left him only a few hours ago, most of which were during the night, so there wasn’t much room for negotiation between the parties. You just hoped people wouldn’t start treating you differently when they realised your affiliation. That was the only thing you obviously didn’t think through: the opinion of the society. And since the New York society had been one of the most judging and selective ones even back in the 19th and 20th century, you knew not that much has changed since. People were afraid of Steve, with a good reason too, and now they might become frightened of you too. Fucking awesome. 

“I want to assure you that my fiancée won’t be present in my work life, however notorious he is,” you tried to sound as confident in what you were saying as you could, but you weren’t sure if you were doing a good job. But Mr Jones just smiled and sat down, signalling for you to sit down opposite of him, and he started talking about business and about what the job actually was. And while you tried to give him your full attention, there was this angry voice in your head, ready to bite Rogers’ head off. He would meet your famous wrath sooner than you thought, but it was all his fault anyway. 

The job was, actually, quite impressive. As your boss told you, you got to meet several artists already, you could sit in the meeting where they decided what kind of art the gallery was interested in, and you soaked all that in like a sponge. You were radiating by the end of the day, and the wrath subsided a little, but only till the moment, you saw a black SUV parked in front of the gallery and one of the turtlenecks standing beside it. 

You decided that if Steve could do what he wanted, so could you and so you walked in the opposite direction than was the car, leaving the turtleneck yelling your name and running after you. But you ignored him completely, even when he reached you and patted your shoulder, slightly bewildered that you recognised him and still decided not to do as he said. Oh, these obnoxious mobsters needed to learn that they couldn’t get everything they wanted. 

“Miss Y/L/N, please, you need to come with me. Mr Rogers is waiting for you in the car,” he said, and you finally stopped and looked him deep in the eyes while you folded your arms across your chest. You hoped you looked intimidating, but since the guy was wearing a pair of sunglasses you couldn’t be entirely sure whether it worked. But you didn’t relent and just stared him down, and when he shifted uncomfortably, you knew you were winning this contest. 

“Would you please come with me? Mr Rogers hates to wait,” he mumbled the last thing, and you would have snickered if you weren’t so determined to be the tough guy there. It was only when you heard other footsteps somewhere behind you, and the guy in front of you actually flinched that you realised the big boss himself was there to get you. 

“No, Mr Rogers really doesn’t like to wait, Y/N. Is this the way to treat your fiancée?” Steve asked when he reached you, and you shuddered from the poisonous undertone in his voice. Safe to say, it might not have been the best strategy to try and walk away from him, but you had decided for it once, and now you were gonna stand by your decision. 

“Oh, I don’t know, darling,” you hissed but continued before he could comment on your behaviour, “is intimidating my boss to give me a promotion a way to treat me? You really think you have control over everything and everyone, Steve, but let me tell you something. This is my fucking life, and you have no fucking right to march in and do as you please!”

He just raised a brow, and his nostrils flared before you felt his hand on your upper arm, squeezing it so tightly you were sure your arm wasn’t getting any blood. But you didn’t want him to win, which would definitely happen if you pleaded with him, so you just gritted your teeth and stared him down. Steve nodded at the guys around him to leave you two, and they took a few steps back, sure enough to protect their boss but to give him at least some privacy with you. 

“Who the fuck do you think you are, talking to me in that tone, huh? I think you’ll understand soon enough that disobedience is punished greatly here, honey! So, stop acting like a brat who gets off from causing scenes in public and come with me. And, for your information, this is a fucking order, and I dare you to move from me again,” Steve spat in your ear, and you trained your eyes on the ground. 

Well, not your best idea, you had to admit that, and you valued your own head enough to just shut up and follow him. And by following him, you meant walking beside him because Steve obviously didn’t trust you enough to let go of your arm, even if his grip loosened slightly. 

He thrust you in the car with a force that could scare many, but it only just slightly surprised you. When he finally sat down next to you, he bid the driver to just go and stared out of the window, not addressing you in any shape or form, and you huffed in annoyance. 

“Look, Steve, you brought me here for a reason, so what do you want? I thought we agreed to meet tomorrow and not today, in broad daylight in front of my job.”

“Show some respect!” He roared, and you saw the eyes of the bodyguards, or whatever they were, flick towards you in fear. It was funny how such huge men were clearly so afraid of one of them. You remained calm, however, and just remained looking at him. Then you realised something. He didn’t mind your mouth the night before that much when the two of you were alone, but he couldn’t stand it when people were around. He needed to be the man, his people needed to know that nobody treated him differently and that not even his future wife could disobey him, let alone publicly. You swallowed your pride and shifted your gaze elsewhere. 

“I’m sorry, Steve, I’ve had a long day, and I’m taking it on you now. I just wished you spoke to me before you called my boss, but still, thank you for the opportunity,” you muttered meekly, and the triumphant look on Steve’s face spoke volumes. He just hummed and patted your shoulder, his own shoulders slacking and relaxing. These people were so easy to read, you were actually quite astounded that they weren’t played like violins by some secret agents or something like that. Well, you thought, at least you could play them, and it would make your life a little easier if you did it well enough. 

“I came because we needed to discuss more things, honey. I had a pressing matter to attend to yesterday so I couldn’t stay longer, but I have the whole afternoon reserved just for you today, so we can go over all the parts of our agreement in great detail and that we can start planning our wedding,” he flashed you a smile, and it was your time to tense up because if you were to have a wedding soon, which was clearly something Steve wanted, you needed to get a move on and that stressed you out. The arrangement might have been just for a year, but you knew that Steve’s wedding was supposed to be magnificent, showing all that he obtained and all that the mere mortals couldn’t have. You included. 

But then you realised something. 

“Sure, but I need to take care of something first if you don’t mind,” you added quickly seeing the mobster next to you tensing up again. “As I no longer work at Joey’s pub, I need to get my things from there. My boss called me this morning telling me that I still had my work shoes and other stuff there and that I should pick it up or they’ll throw it away.” 

“Just give the address to the driver, we’ll get it, and then we’ll go to my place- oh, excuse me- our place and discuss what we need,” he said simply, and you followed his orders. 

The rest of the drive was silent, and you could unwind a little, reminisce about the 24 hours you have had. From taking the subway anywhere you needed to, to driving in an armoured SUV with the most prolific mafia boss of the USA, your life took quite the turn. You needed to set some boundaries with Steve, but you needed to do it tactfully and, most importantly, alone. You hadn’t known him at all, but you knew the type. There would be reasoning with him as long as he thought he had a free choice and knew that his position wasn’t neither threatened nor questioned.  

This was a part of your agreement that you actually didn’t mind. Joey’s pub was not the fanciest of places in New York and while some of the customers were lovely and tipped well, the weekend sort was made of sleazy assholes who would touch you without your permission and not having to be around them would definitely be something you could get used to. 

The boss who’s name wasn’t Joey, surprise, surprise, but Thomas, nodded your way when you came in. The pub was only half full, but the odour of mixed sweat, beer and vomit was ever the same. Gosh, how you couldn’t wait to be out of there. 

Taking the places of the little box by the box with beer cans, you scanned the supply closet one last time and nodded as a goodbye. However, when you turned around, you bumped into somebody, and it sent you flying back a bit as you didn’t expect anybody to be there with you. You looked up to see Thomas standing there, looking pissed. 

“Funny! I never knew you were on the market, pussycat. And now I find out you are newly engaged and to Mr Rogers no less? I thought you said you didn’t want a relationship,” he sneered as he neared you and you instinctively took a step back. That he had a crush on you, you knew, and you told him multiple times that you weren’t interested, that you weren’t looking for a boyfriend and that you just wanted to be left alone. You scoffed at his immature behaviour now and tried to push around him without saying a word because you knew there was no talking to people like him. But he wouldn’t let you go, of course. 

“Maybe if I fucked you, you would see that I deserve you just as much, huh?” He hissed and took your already sore arm, yanking you towards him till you were pressed tight against his chance. You still remained calm, knowing that trashing and screaming would get you nowhere. 

“Let me go, Thomas. Steve is outside, and he is waiting for me, so I suggest you take your disgusting hands off of me and just let me go,” you tried to reason, but, again, there was no such thing with dumbasses like him. What was more, he probably didn’t like your remark about his disgusting hands, and so, without warning, he slapped you right across your left cheek. 

That made you gasp for the first time because till then, you really thought he was just playing and that he would let you go, but now seeing the bewildered look on his face, you suddenly realised that maybe you didn’t have the upper hand in the argument. 

“Like fuck he is, what would Rogers do in these parts, huh? I bet it wasn’t even him who called me last night and that you were just trying to get the upper hand. But guess what, you fucking whore, you are not getting out of here until I fuck you unconscious,” he roared and you gulped, trying to think of possible escape routes. But you were in a fucking supply closet, so there was literally just the one door, and Thomas was occupying the whole space in front of it. So, you’d just have to fight your way through. You were a little rusty, but this big-bellied idiot would stand no chance. 

But before you had the opportunity to execute your plan, the door behind him flew open and revealed one fo the turtlenecks (you made a mental note to actually learn their names because this was just awkward) and a very angry-looking Steve. 

Thomas faltered in his movement towards you and checked who had the audacity to interrupt him. The shock and fear on his face were priceless. 

Steve didn’t waste any more time as he lunged himself at the man and punched him straight in the nose, and the sickening crack you heard must have meant Steve broke it. But you couldn’t bring yourself to care enough to pity Thomas. You warned him, even though you didn’t expect Steve actually coming to your rescue. There were some advantages to being tied to him, it seemed. 

The turtleneck then took Steve’s place by Thomas, probably so that he wouldn’t escape and Steve marched towards you, still looking too pissed for you to stand calmly under his searching gaze. 

“Did he hurt you?” He sneered but didn’t wait for your reply as he checked your face, seeing your puffed left cheek which told him all he needed to know. The bruise already forming on your arm was both from him and from Thomas, so he didn’t comment on that, but Steve wiped the trickle of blood in the corner of your mouth before he turned around and now calmly walked towards Thomas. 

“Next time that degenerated brain of yours even thinks of her, I will come and slice your throat. Am I clear?” Steve spat into Thomas’s face who just nodded, probably glad that he got out of it so easily. What he didn’t see coming (and to be honest, neither did you) was the turtleneck suddenly pulled out a big-ass knife out of somewhere and the air filled with the bone-chilling cries as he cut Thomas’ finger off as if it was the most normal thing to do before he wiped the knife on Thomas’s shirt and tucked it back in his pocket. The blood flowing from the wound was thick and almost purple, and you had to shut your eyes at the scene. But the image was already seared into your brain forever. 

“Fucking rapist,” Steve said and kicked the already laying man, motioning to the turtleneck and you that you were to follow him. But your legs weren’t listening to your brain, as you were just watching Thomas writhing in pain, wailing and sobbing, and all that because he dared to touch you. An involuntary shudder shook your body, and it as only when you felt an arm around your torso, pulling you to the person’s side that you woke up. Steve didn’t say anything as he came back and wrapped his arm around you, walking you out of there, probably used to that people were dazed when they saw that much blood. And that was just a cut-off finger, how would it look if a person actually bled out there?

“Here, have a piece of chocolate, it should help you,” Steve whispered into your ear as he handed you a little piece when you finally made it to his car, and you took it without question, savouring the sweet taste on your tongue as it streamed into your system like the most delicious medicine. You took a deep breath, your brain recognising that it was a different environment and that the stench of the pub was long gone as was the blood. 

“You didn’t have to do that,” you heard yourself saying meekly, but there was no reprimanding him, there was no anger in your voice and Steve heard that. He knew it was the shock of the scene talking because you weren’t one of them. You didn’t see blood on an almost daily basis as he did and you had the right to be surprised. 

“I actually had to, Y/N. He touched you, he hurt you and nobody hurts what’s mine. And you are mine now or will be very soon, and I can’t have dickheads like him running around the city thinking they are invincible. You are under my protection, and the whole world has to realise that,” he tried to make you see his point, and when you nodded solemnly, he saw you understood it. You might not have been ok with it, but that was another thing, and that would take time. Steve hoped people wouldn’t be so dumb and try anything on you, but, the truth be told, inwardly he knew he would have to protect you more often than not because some people had a death wish. 

“Are you up to discussing our marriage, or do you want me to drive you home?” He asked, and you looked at him for the first time since the pub scene. You shook your head and chuckled a little, not understanding where was this coming from. It was apparent that there were many layers to Steve Rogers, but his mood swings were giving you a headache already. One second he was the infamous mobster and the other he impersonated a caring boyfriend? 

“I’m fine, Steve, thank you. I was just taken by surprise because I thought I would have to take him down myself, and I probably wouldn’t cut off his finger in the process, but we all do our things. I’m good for a discussion, if you are,” you gave him your best encouraging smile and Steve stared at you in disbelief for a moment before he averted his eyes towards the driver and gave him a signal that he was to take you two to Steve’s mansion. 

Three hours later, you regretted your decision greatly. Steve and you had been talking the whole time, trying to reach a compromise that would be suitable for both of you considering your marriage and your wedding. You were quite surprised when Steve came up with things that were up for discussion because you really thought he would just come with a set of rules for you to follow, and that would be it. Well, the set of rules was there, but so were other things, like where you’d like to live (it was either the New York mansion which he called the apartment or some villa he had in Hamptons, apparently), what were the countries he could take you (which was actually a nice touch) and others. You didn’t give a damn about a lot of the stuff, but the countries were something that caught your attention. 

“I would love to visit different places, that’s beyond doubt, but I do not wish to be taken to California, ever,” you insisted, and while Steve tried to inquire why it was that California was on your hard-no list, you wouldn’t budge. You just told him that you weren’t a fan of the hot weather and the swarm of people you heard was in LA and that it was the only place where you wouldn’t go with him, under no circumstances. After a while, he gave up and just jotted it down with a nod. 

“Now, to the sex thing, do you want it on paper that I don’t want you in this way or are you good with my word?” 

You felt your cheeks heating up, but you tossed your pride away again. This was a business meeting, and Steve was actually extremely honest with you, so the best you could do was to be frank with him as well. 

“I’m good with your word, thank you for asking. What I’d like on paper is that you won’t trade me with information. I don’t wanna wake up one morning to be chained by some of your pistol-buddies who wanted to fuck Steve’s wife,” you raised a brow, and Steve chuckled and licked his lips, which was something that got your attention. You snapped at your brain to stop the thought flooding your brain, and a part of you considered putting licking his own lips around you on the hard-no’s list for a second. 

“Alright, I will never do that, and I will put that in our contract. Now, have you decided where you want to live? And no, your own apartment isn’t an answer. I’m willing to pay the expenses so that your friends can stay there, but you are coming to live with me, either here or in Hamptons. So, which one is it?” 

“Here,” you answered after a while, “I have my job here so I can’t be going back forth to Hamptons every day. Speaking of my job, will you require my presence at every meeting? I’m just asking if I even have a chance attaining my job as is, or if I should quit now because you will never let me go there again.” 

“I would have let them fire you if I thought about not letting you work there anymore, now, wouldn’t I? Most of the meetings that I will need you are at night, so your work is fine. I hope your boss will give you enough vacation days because we will need those, but other than that, I think you will be fine at the gallery. Besides, I’ve assigned a personal bodyguard for you who will go everywhere with you, so you won’t have to worry about anybody attacking you,” he concluded, looking proud of himself. You, on the other hand, were bewildered. 

“A personal what now? Steve, I can’t just show up at work with some huge guy in all black following me everywhere I move. I saw the looks from some of my coworkers, and they would never accept me if I had a bodyguard, c’mon,” you were desperate now because just the thought made you shudder. 

“This is not negotiable, so just learn to live with it. Alright, I think that’s all from that, and we will both sign it before the wedding. Now, the wedding will be next week. I already hired planners, so that the only thing you need to care about is the wedding dress. It’s just for a show, and if it were up to me, we would just go to the city hall, but the world needs to see this wedding, so we’re doing it in the Weylin. Write down your favourite colours and flowers, the cake will be red velvet, and that’s not negotiable, but everything else you want, you write down, and the planners will do it. Also, write down all the guests you’d like to invite, family and all that, so we know how many guests we’re having,” Steve rambled on, but your mind wandered towards your family. 

None of them would be attending the wedding, and your heart gave a painful tug at the thought. You had always wanted your dad to walk you down the aisle, and he was so excited to do so, but now that wasn’t possible. And your beautiful mother… The memories made your eyes water, but you blinked the tears away quickly enough so that Steve wouldn’t see them. But he was used to reading people, so he saw your reaction to him mentioning a family very clearly, he just decided against commenting on it. Yet. 

“Alright, I’ll send you all the lists by Saturday, if that’s good enough, and I’m actually good with red velvet. It would be a problem if you said some cakes with loads of nuts because I’m extremely allergic to a majority of those, you should know about that, but red velvet is fine enough,” you nodded, and Steve did as well, glad he didn’t have to fight you on that one. Not that it would be a fruitful fight since the red velvet was his favourite type of cake on Earth. 

“I want you to move in before the wedding, I’ll have a room set up for you tomorrow, and you can bring whatever you want from your home. You will have access to my credit card, but I’m warning you, excessive spending will not be tolerated, alright?” 

You scoffed and rolled your eyes but bowed your head in mocked understanding. Steve had obviously spent his life with women only caring about the sum on his credit card, while you couldn’t care less. The card would be good for the wedding dress, but that was about it. You realised a long time ago that the fashion industry was one of the most dangerous ones for the environment, and while you still shopped from time to time, you tried to reduce it to a minimum. And if you did shop, you loved local stores and fair-trade manufacturers, who vowed to keep the well-being of the planet their number one priority. 

“I’ll take it that you understood it. Fine, so, you’ll move in tomorrow, I think my people can manage it till that. So, they’ll pick you up, let’s say, around 8 PM? That enough time?” 

You blinked and took the information in. He wanted you to move in tomorrow. Not in a week so you’d have time to actually pack and say goodbye to your friends, even if you still planned on meeting them every other day or so. You wanted a goodbye sleepover where you’d just laugh and drink and hope that the year would be a good one. Or, at least, not a disastrous one. 

“That’s definitely not enough time, Steve. Can’t it wait till next week? I need to say goodbye to my friends, and it’s already late, so we can’t do it tonight and just… Give me at least till Saturday evening, Steve, please,” you tried to bargain, and while you saw he wasn’t the greatest of fans, he agreed eventually. That ended your discussion, and you were soon driven away from the house you would soon call yours.

/ Next Chapter >

Taglists in reblogs :) xx

[solardragun]

Oz salt? Please spare Oz salt. 🥺

rubs hands. let's do this again because tumblr crashed.

first things first: I want everyone who has ever called him a liar to pay me $20 and then turn in a 40 page essay on how he's a liar, MLA format, sources cited.

now, onto that. everyone harps on ozpin for lying. keyword: lying. they call him a liar, they say they can't trust him, etc. let's talk about this. keeping secrets is not lying. lying is intentionally FALSE statements / information.

so, with that, let's count the number of times ozpin has GENUINELY LIED. that'll be a total of one (1) time. what lie was this? the relic having questions.

this ENTIRE time, everyone has been dragging this poor man by the ankles and punching at him while he's down when he's lied... once.

he's kept secrets, he's kept information to himself. that, by definition, is not lying. keeping secrets is not giving false statements. to keep calling him a liar is inaccurate.

now, let's move onto the way the narrative paints him.

"he forced pyrrha to be the maiden. he didn't give her a choice. he told her to pick or everyone would die. he guilt tripped her." — to that I say, no he didn't. he explained the gravity of the situation. if he didn't tell her the heavy parts, everyone would've ripped him to shreds because he "didn't warn her". he explained what he felt she needed to know: they needed someone to take the other half of amber's power. it's a big decision to make and it will change your life. there are people out there who want their hands on this power and we don't want the wrong person to have it, like cinder. you can take your time to choose. if you don't, we will consider another option.

he gave her the information she needed and he gave her time to think about it. when she accepted, he continuously asks her for consent and if she truly wants this. she said yes multiple times.

on that note, he is not responsible for her death. he told her to LEAVE when cinder attacked. he told her to go get qrow, james and glynda, and then get to safety with the rest of the students. SHE chose to come back and fight cinder all on her own. jaune even begged her not to do it before she shoved him in a locker and launched him away. ozpin is not responsible for her death.

"he's evil because he tried to leave salem and take their kids" — okay so clearly male abuse victims don't exist to you or the narrative. ozma was MANIPULATED by salem. jinn says as much: "the hearts of men are easily swayed." this is said over salem goading ozma into being a false god with her. he continuously questioned their choices, he was consumed with guilt, his host even asked him wtf was going on.

when their daughter came into her power, ozma decided to lay the truth out, and with it came the horror of salem wanting to USE their daughters to start a new generation of magic-users. she SAID it, right to his face. he BACKS AWAY IN DISGUST AND HORROR. his logical thought then was to LEAVE. wouldn't you if your spouse decided they wanted to use your children??

it astounds me because if the roles were reversed, ozma would be the villain and salem would be justified in leaving. interesting, isn't it?

next, we have the girls ripping his past away from him and then blasting him for hiding information. this... look, I don't care how "urgent" it was, there is NO excuse for doing this. if this had happened to blake when she was keeping secrets about being in the white fang or being with adam, the characters and audience would be livid, especially when the white fang were written as dangerous terrorists and adam was written as an abuser. they're dangerous, they posed threats. if this had happened to blake, if someone forced her trauma out into the open, they would be in the wrong. but because it's ozpin, it's fine.

moving on. "lying about lionheart." — this is just ridiculous. telling the world "hey, the headmaster of haven, who was a faunus by the way, was actually the one behind huntsmen dying and the attack on the school as well as contributing to the fall of beacon." it sends a BAD message and sets the human-faunus relationship back even further. ozpin chose not to tell the people about lionheart betraying them because not only would it cause issues, he also says that he would rather people believe in all the good leo had previously done. your mistakes don't define you, that kind of logic.

"oz lied about the lamp attracting grimm" — no he didn't. he didn't SAY that it did. that's not a lie. he kept it a secret so the students wouldn't worry and actually attract grimm. which, by the way, interesting how that "attraction" seemed to have disappeared by the time v7 and 8 dropped. never once saw grimm following them around because of the lamp. the only grimm that actively attacked were the ones coming through the hole in the wall. weird, huh? almost like the story NEEDED something for the characters to be mad at oz about.

anyway, I'm gonna move on. the fact that ozpin received ZERO apologies and / or sympathy, especially from those we'd expect it from (ruby, weiss, blake) is infuriating. EMERALD was forgiven in a heartbeat, and she actively helped cause the fall of beacon, she helped kill penny, she killed a faunus in vale to prove a point to cinder (who got mad at her for, btw), she helped frame yang into "attacking" mercury so she'd look violent, she worked for salem by proxy of cinder. emerald did way much worse than ozpin, and she was forgiven !! in that same episode, ozpin is given dirty looks and "hm, idk if we can still trust you." hell, HE apologized. he had NOTHING to apologize for. these kids were in the wrong, especially when they lied throughout all of volume seven and then were justified for it. "you're not like oz, you're trusting people to prove themselves first." uh. you mean like ozpin was doing???? these students actively lied to ironwood for most of v7 until it finally caught up to them, and then they were STILL in the right. yet they got on ozpin and still reprimand him.

idunno man, I'm so tired. this isn't even the half of it but I'm angry all over again.

in any case, ozpin isn't perfect, he has made some really stupid mistakes (CCT towers that cause global disconnection when one tower falls, etc.), but like, he's not the devil either.

[ddixons-angel]

Stay

Requested by Anonymous

This is my first ever scenario request and I honestly had a lot of fun doing it haha big thanks to @twdeadfanfic for helping me out with this one and motivating me with going on, love you!!! This is probably the longest one-shot I’ve written so far, I hope you all like it!

Request - Daryl finds Reader in the woods, alone, dirty, possibly even hurt. She’s been alone so long that she’s scared of anyone she encounters. However, she’s practically glued to his side when he brings her around other people. Daryl has a hard time getting her to talk/leave the house. Fluff and angst

Mid-season 6; Alexandria

Run. That was the only thing on your mind. You just knew you had to run. It’s the only thing that kept you alive for the last few weeks, your only means of survival. You were alone in the woods, not knowing where you were going, the only thing you knew was that nowhere was safe. Without slowing down, you look over your shoulder behind you to gauge how far the dead was from you, but that was a mistake. You found yourself tumbling down to the hard ground as you tripped over a large root of a tree that stuck out of the ground. You let out an involuntary shriek when you feel your hair being grabbed, you had no doubt it was the dead when you feel the cold fingers gripping your arm. This was it. This was how you would die; getting ripped apart while screaming for your life in the middle of a forest. 

“Hey, ya a’right?” a rough voice calls out to you.

It was only when you registered the voice that you realized that the dead that had grabbed you was no longer moving or trying to kill you. You look over to the dead body that lay still, there was an arrow of some sort sticking out from its skull. You get up, letting out of a breath of relief but then freeze when you remember that you weren’t alone. Your eyes dart to the figure in front of you; a man with long dark hair and icy blue eyes. 

Your first instinct was to run, but your legs weren’t listening to you. They stayed planted in the ground as you felt your knees going weak. The adrenaline from running for hours and hours, days at a time without anything to eat, it was all catching up to you as you stared at the stranger who just undoubtedly saved your life. Rather than answering his first question verbally, your legs give out as you fall into a state of darkness.

---

“So... let me just get this straight...” Rick says as he pushes himself off the kitchen counter he was leaning on and turns to look at Daryl, “you brought someone back but know absolutely nothing about them?”

“Couldn’t get a chance...” Daryl says; he knew how this was going to go down the moment he decided to bring a stranger back to Alexandria with no information on who she was.

“Did you at least get a name? Or if she has a group?” Carol asks, standing by the counter with her arms crossed.

“Told ya I never got a chance to.” Daryl says, frustration evident in his voice.

“I know you’re not stupid, Daryl, but what the hell were you thinking?” Carol pesters on.

“She fainted ‘fore I could ask her anythin’!” Daryl snaps, “wha’ was I s’pposed to do? Leave her out there for the walkers to have at her? That can’t be who we are!”

“And I’m not saying that’s who we are or that you should have left her out there,” Rick says calmly, “I’m just concerned about bringing a complete stranger back, someone we know absolutely nothing about.”

“She’s jus’ a girl, Rick! We got her locked up in that house with people watchin’ over her, she ain’ dangerous, she’s jus’ hurt ‘n’ scared.” Daryl says in defense, the others could tell he was getting emotional.

“I know that, but you can’t blame people here for being worried, people are still shaken up by those Wolves that attacked us a few weeks ago. For all we know, she could be one of them.” Rick tries to reason.

“Well, she ain’.” Daryl says immediately.

“And how do you know?” Rick challenges.

“I don’ see no ‘W’ on her, do you?” Daryl asks rhetorically, “‘sides... we didn’ hesitate bringin’ in Michonne when she showed up at the prison an’ she turned out okay. No offense.”

“None taken,” Michonne chuckles softly at his apology, “why are you so adamant on keeping her here, Daryl? This isn’t like you.”

Daryl lets out a deep sigh before answering the question, “the look in her eyes jus’ before she passed out... she was scared ‘n’ alone... nothin’ bad ‘bout her... so even without askin’ her anythin’ I chose to bring her back ‘cause o’ that look... she ain’ a bad person... but guess I’m jus’ fightin’ y’all on it ‘cause I don’ wanna be wrong again.”

The looks on his friends’ faces soften at his words. They heard what happened a few weeks back when Daryl, Abraham, and Sasha had to lead the herd of walkers away from the community. Daryl ran into some people he thought were good, only to turn on him and steal his things. They all noticed that ever since then, Daryl changed. He started to doubt his own instincts and even his ability to tell who was good and who was bad. 

“What if uh...” Glenn pipes in after a moment of silence, “what if we wait for her to wake up and ask her the questions, then make a decision when we hear what she has to say?”

Glenn, Michonne, Carol, and Daryl all look towards Rick, waiting for his decision. After pondering for a moment, he walks over to the kitchen counter and looks at Carol.

“Can you put together a sandwich and get a glass of water? If what Daryl said is true, the girl probably hasn’t eaten in a while, and if we want answers, we should show some sort of hospitality.” Rick says. 

Carol sighs softly with a stern look on her face but nods, “okay.”

Rick nods to her as thanks then looks over to Daryl. The two lock eyes, communicating without words as they wait for Carol to prepare the food. Once they’re ready, Daryl takes the plate and glass of water and walks out of the house, following Rick to the jailhouse the community had set up for temporary confinement. Rick knocks on the door before opening it, stepping in with Daryl behind him. The two of them greet Tara as she was given the task to watch over the stranger. 

“How is she?” Rick asks, stepping further into the room.

“Still out cold,” Tara informs, glancing back at the sleeping figure on the mattress. 

“Well, we brought her food for when she wakes up,” Daryl says, holding up the plate and glass then he heads over to the sleeping girl and places down the meal, “I’ll take over yer shift, Tara.”

Tara nods in understanding and leaves the two of them alone with the sleeping stranger. Daryl goes to sit in the chair that was placed in the corner of the room. 

“I’ll be on guard outside, call me in when she wakes up,” Rick says.

“Why ya gonna be on guard outside?” Daryl questions, a frown of confusion on his face, “think I can’t handle her?”

“It’s just in case,” Rick says just before he steps out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Daryl sighs, he knew why Rick was keeping guard outside, he wasn’t stupid and it wasn’t that Rick underestimated his ability. Daryl knew that Rick was aware what this entire thing meant to him. What it would do to him if the stranger he believed to be good turned out to be bad. 

His eyes fall back on the sleeping figure in front of him, the peaceful look on her face made his lips involuntarily twitch into a small smile. His smile turns into a frown though when he sees her hands tied up with rope. 

“Dammit Rick...” he sighs, then he gets up to untie of the rope. 

Daryl thought he had convinced Rick that there was no need to tie her up since she was unconscious. He told them all that she looked frail and weak, as if she hadn’t eaten for days. He thought he got through to Rick with that logic but he was wrong. Although, Daryl couldn’t blame him for being extra careful. Their community had gotten attacked by a group a few weeks back, they couldn’t take any chances. 

Kneeling down, Daryl reaches out to the girl’s bound hands and gently tugs at the rope. As he begins to untie the knots, the girl shifts a bit then her eyes start to open. Daryl freezes at the movement and he looks at her face. Her eyes lock with his, looking at him with fear like a deer in headlights. She pulls her hands away and whimpers, backing away from Daryl only to hit the wall behind her. 

“It’s okay, I’m not gonna hurt ya,” Daryl says quickly, holding his hands up to show her that he means no harm, “I jus’ wanted to untie yer restraints.” 

She continues to stare at him, not moving or saying anything in response and Daryl isn’t quite sure what to do, not sure what exactly to tell Rick about the situation. He woke her up by trying to remove the rope Rick had originally tied as a safety precaution; yeah, he wouldn’t like the sound of that. Daryl sighs and slowly crouches down to her eye level, his hands still out. 

“I found ya out in the woods, ya passed out an’ I brought ya back here,” Daryl explains, then he grabs the glass of water, “I can tell ya’ve been out there for awhile, here.”

Slowly, Daryl reaches out and offers her the glass of water. Her eyes glance at the glass then back at him, he can practically see the gears turning in her head whether or not to trust him. 

“I ain’ gonna hurt ya, I promise.” Daryl says.

It seems that she heard the sincerity in his voice as Daryl sees her eyes soften. He waits patiently for her to take the glass in which she slowly but surely does. She takes the glass in both hands and she looks at it, then back at Daryl who smiles softly at her. Finally, she starts to drink from the glass. At first she’s taking small sips but her thirst catches up with her as she desperately finishes the contents of the glass within seconds. Daryl reaches out to her again to take the glass from her. 

“Brought ya some food too,” he tells her, gesturing to the plate on the ground, “ya wanna let me untie ya so ya can eat?” 

She still has her hands close to her chest as she contemplates Daryl’s words. He sees her lips quiver slightly, her eyes peering at the plate on the ground. She takes a few breaths before hesitantly raising her arms towards Daryl, her hands tremble as she holds them out. 

“Easy now,” Daryl whispers, carefully and gently untying the rope around her wrists.

He backs away once the ropes are off, pursing his lips together as he gestures to the plate again and sits back on the chair. He watches as she timidly reaches for the sandwich, she picks it up and holds it to her mouth. She pauses, looking at Daryl as if asking him permission with her eyes. He nods at her again, a soft smile on his lips. Daryl can’t help but think that she reminded him of a lost, abandoned puppy. She carefully takes a bite of the sandwich, then another as she starts to feel a little more relaxed. 

“There’s more where that came from,” Daryl tells her after she finished the sandwich, “I can get ya another if ya want.”

Before she can respond, the door to the room opens, startling her and she cowers away again with her back against the wall, afraid of Rick who had just walked in. Daryl had gotten up from his seat on the chair and stands between Rick and the girl. Rick frowns as he sees the rope on the ground. 

“Hey, hey, it’s okay, it’s okay, he’s a friend,” Daryl says gently, trying to calm her down.

“Daryl...” Rick sighs, he beckons him to come over, “you untied her?”

“Ya said to show her some hospitality,” Daryl says.

“I also said to call me when she wakes up,” Rick retorts, he then sighs again, “did you ask her the questions? She tell you anything?”

“Nah, she jus’ finished eatin’. Look at her, she’s scared, man.” Daryl says, gesturing towards her; she had that deer in the headlights look again as she stares at the two.

Rick ponders for a moment then nods pointedly towards her, “alright, let’s ask her now then, are you okay with that?”

Daryl purses his lips and nods. The two make their way towards the girl again and she watches them, mainly Rick, warily. Rick takes the chair and sets it down in front of her before sitting on it as Daryl stands idly behind him. He notices that she flinches at Rick’s every movement as if afraid that he was going to hit her. 

“My name is Rick Grimes,” he starts, “now, I’m gonna ask you a few questions and I want you to answer me as honest as you can, can you do that?”

She stares at him, not blinking, her eyes hard again showing her distrust for Rick, and when she stays silent, he continues, “how many walkers have you killed?” 

Daryl waits anxiously for her to answer, he chews his bottom lip, nervous when she doesn’t respond. She just continues to stare at Rick. 

“I’m gonna ask you again, how many walkers have you killed?” Rick repeats, seemingly running out of patience. 

After another moment of complete silence from the stranger, Rick huffs and gets up from the chair. Daryl steps to him putting his hand on his shoulder to calm him down. 

“Lemme try, a’right?” Daryl says softly.

Rick sighs and nods, stepping back to let Daryl try with the questioning. Daryl carefully kneels down instead of sitting on the chair, catching the girl’s attention again. Her eyes seem to soften when she looks at him. 

“Ya a’right?” Daryl asks, his voice gentle, he continues when he sees her nod shyly, “I’m sorry ‘bout him, he can be a real pain in the ass sometimes.”

Rick furrows his brows at this, not in annoyance, rather in confusion. Daryl has never been like this to a complete stranger before, he was always serious when interrogating new people. This is the first time he’s been so lightheartedly joking around with someone and if the circumstances were different, Rick would be teasing him about it. 

“‘M gonna ask ya some questions, a’right? An’ I want ya to be as honest as possible, if ya do that for me, maybe I can get ya another sandwich,” Daryl says, nodding pointedly to the empty plate. 

The girl bites her lips together in hesitation but then she nods again. Rick crosses his arms as he watches, an impressed smirk forms on his lips. 

“How many walkers have ya killed?” Daryl asks, he catches the look of confusion in her eyes at the term they’d all become used to, “the walkers out there, the dead, how many have ya killed?”

She furrows her brows once she understands the question, she shrugs then lets out a small whisper, “a lot.”

“Wha’ ‘bout people?” Daryl asks, “how many people have ya killed?”

There’s a look in her eyes when she hears his question that Daryl isn’t quite sure how to describe. It was a mix of hurt, fear, and guilt. It was a look that told him that she had definitely killed at least one person. Tears well up in her eyes, as if she was reliving the memory. 

She takes a deep breath before whispering again, “one...”

“Why?” Daryl asks the last question, furrowing his brow in concern at her body language. 

She looks away from him, cowering back again and her arms wrap around her own body in a protective hug, her hands grasp tightly to the fabric of her shirt. Daryl sighs at the sight of this then he turns to look at Rick; both of them knew exactly what her body language meant and why she had to kill. The two men communicate without words then Daryl turns his attention back to the girl.

“Hey,” he calls out, his voice soft, “what I promised ya before, ‘bout not hurtin’ ya, I meant it. I ain’ gonna hurt ya, none o’ us will.” 

She looks at Daryl again, her eyes watery but there was that same softness in them that told him that she trusted him. She nods, her grasp on her clothing loosening slightly. Daryl gives her a small smile then turns to look at Rick.

“Can ya go an’ bring Denise here?” Daryl asks him.

Rick opens his mouth to speak but then decides against it, trusting Daryl and his instincts. Rick nods then heads out to find the community’s doctor. Daryl looks back at the girl who’s now staring at him. 

“Ya got a name?” Daryl asks, “‘cause I don’ wanna just keep calling ya ‘girl’.”

A hint of a smile tugs at her lips at his attempt at humoring her, she whispers, “Y/N.”

“You’re gonna be safe here with us, Y/N.” Daryl tells her, “I ain’ gonna let anyone hurt ya.”

Daryl didn’t know what made him say those words to her. From what he could remember, he’s never said those kinds of words to anyone, not out loud at least. He’s always been the type to say those words through actions, but there was something about Y/N that made Daryl feel the need to convince her that they were good; for some reason, he needed her to know that. 

It seemed as though his words got through to her as her smile grew slightly and she nods at him, trusting his word. Unfortunately, her smile was replaced by another look of fear when there was a sudden knock on the door. Daryl quickly glances over to the door as it opens; it was Denise. He looks back over at Y/N who has yet again put up defensive walls, wary of another stranger now in the room.

“It’s okay, Y/N, it’s okay, she’s a friend, a doctor, she’s here to help ya,” Daryl says in a soft voice before getting up to greet Denise.

“Hey,” Denise smiles at him, “uh, Rick said you sent for me?”

“Yeah, the girl I brought back, Y/N, was hopin’ ya could make sure she’s okay. She also has some cut ‘r somethin’ on her left forearm,” Daryl tells her, he’d taken note of the dried blood on her sleeve.

“I figured it was something like that,” Denise says with a smile, showing her medkit she’d brought with her, she then goes over to Y/N who is staring at her warily, “hi, I’m Denise.” 

Y/N doesn’t say anything in response to her friendly introduction, instead she cowers away. Her body language clearly telling Denise that she does trust her and to stay away. Denise furrows her brows at this but she takes no offense as she heard from Rick that she must have been outside for a long time alone. 

“Y/N,” Daryl makes his way over to her, he crouches down to her eye level, “she’s helped a lot ‘o people, even me, she’s a good person.”

Denise furrows her brows when she takes notice of how Y/N’s expression changes when she looks at Daryl. Her eyes were soft and trusting, as if allowing only Daryl to see a completely vulnerable side to her. A smile reaches Denise’s face when she gets an idea.

“Daryl,” she calls out to get his attention, “I think you should treat her.”

He turns to look at her with a confused look on his face, “wha’?”

Denise sighs at his ability to be so oblivious then beckons him to come closer so she can explain, “she trusts you, Daryl, way more than she trusts me, you can see that just by the way she looks at you compared to me. I’ll take a look at her wounds, but if she needs stitches, you’re going to have to be the one to do them, I’ll only end up hurting her if I stitch her up while she’s tense.”

Daryl purses his lips together, nodding as he understands what Denise was saying, “a’right.”

“Don’t worry though,” Denise pats his shoulder, a teasing smile on her face, “I’ll still be here to guide you through it.”

He scoffs playfully at her then he goes back to Y/N’s side, crouching down beside her again, “Denise is gonna take a look at yer arm, okay? Jus’ to make sure it ain’ infected, then I’ll help ya patch it up.”

Y/N bites her lips together, glancing down at her arms then back at Daryl. Her eyes told him that she wasn’t quite sure how Daryl knew about her injury, but she nods in agreement to his words. Slowly but surely, she pulls up the sleeve of her left arm, revealing a gash. Denise carefully takes a step closer to see the wound and Y/N flinches at the movement. She stares at Denise then glances at Daryl who nods at her encouragingly. She hesitantly extends her arm towards Denise so that she can examine her wound. Denise raises both of her hands to show that she means her no harm then takes another step towards the mattress. 

“It doesn’t seem to be infected, which is a really good thing. And it doesn’t look that deep so I don’t think you’ll need stitches either,” Denise says with a smile after examining the wound, “the only part that might hurt is when Daryl has to disinfect the wound, but other than that, you’ll be okay. Now, do you have any other injuries we should know about?”

Y/N shakes her head at the question and Daryl smiles softly at her, then gestures to Denise, “told ya she’s a good person.” 

Denise chuckles then hands Daryl her medkit, “I’ll leave this with you, I trust you know how to patch up a simple wound without messing up too badly?”

He rolls his eyes at her then scoffs, “yeah, I done it enough times.”

“I’ll leave you to it then,” Denise laughs then walks towards the door, but then she turns to Y/N as she remembers something, “by the way, if you end up feeling sick or feverish in any way, you have to let Daryl know right away, that could be a sign that your wound got infected by his dirty hands.”

“Jus’ go a’ready!” Daryl scoffs making Denise laugh at his reaction just before she leaves the building, he looks back at Y/N, “I won’ give ya an infection...”

“I know.” she says in a slight whisper. 

Daryl smiles at this then places the medkit on the ground. He opens it and takes out an alcohol swab, tearing open the small packet then looks at Y/N. She seems to know what he wants as she extends her arm towards him. 

He gently takes hold of her arm, “this might sting a bit.”

He begins to gently dab at the wound, cleaning off the dried blood and dirt on her skin. He furrows his brows when Y/N winces at the sting. Daryl proceeds to blow onto the wound to try and soothe the pain. Once he’s done cleaning the wound, he dresses it with a bandage. 

“How’s that feel?” he asks her, leaning back a bit to give her some space.

She looks down at the bandage and a small smile tugs at her lips before she looks up at Daryl, “a lot better... thank you.”

Daryl returns her smile and nods, a small moment of silence passes when he dares to pose his next question, “do ya have a group?”

He watches as her brows furrow in confusion at his words so Daryl tries to word his question differently, “do ya have a camp or a group ya stayed with?” 

Finally understanding his question, Y/N shakes her head, “no... I did but... I lost them...”

“‘M sorry...” Daryl says, he purses his lips, seeming nervously shy, “did ya wanna stay here? We got food, water, walls, ya’ll be safe here.”

Y/N bites her lips together as if unsure how to answer, “...can I?”

“Yeah, we got a few houses we can spare, won’t be a problem,” Daryl says, “so ya jus’ gotta tell me if ya wanna stay, I ain’t gonna force ya if ya don’t wanna.” 

Although he hadn’t spoken with Rick on the matter of Y/N staying yet, he was sure that their leader would be accepting of it after seeing her. Daryl was sure Rick could see that Y/N wasn’t a threat to their community. He watches as she carefully contemplates her choices then finally she looks up at him with a soft smile and nods.

“I want to stay... with you.” she says shyly.

Daryl couldn’t help the shy smile that tugs on his lips, he also couldn’t help the blood rushing to his face as he blushes at her words, “a’right... let me jus’ talk to Rick, figure out where ya can stay. Wait here” 

With that, he gets up and heads for the door. Just before he leaves the room, he turns and gives her another reassuring smile. 

---

You stayed sat on the mattress in the room for what felt like a few hours, obediently waiting for Daryl to come back. You trusted Daryl. You didn’t know why but there was just something about him that made you believe that you could trust him. Maybe it was the way he looked at you, or how he did his best to make sure that you felt comfortable. You couldn’t explain it, and it wasn’t like you trusted easily either. You didn’t get the same sense of comfort when Daryl’s friend, Rick, came by and started interrogating you. You didn’t even feel that safe when the doctor, Denise, came to help you, and she looked completely harmless, although you had to learn the hard way to not judge a book by its cover. 

With everything you’ve been through though, you couldn’t help but feel jumpy or nervous and that proved to still be the case when there was a knock on the door. The end of the world forced you to always be on high alert, but you found yourself relaxing when you saw Daryl walk back into the room. There was a feeling in your heart that confused you when you saw him, as if you were happy that he came back to you. As if you missed him. That was a feeling that felt so foreign to you, but you couldn’t help it.

“Ya a’right?” Daryl asks, crouching down again, he continues when you nod, “I talked to Rick, an’ he talked to some o’ the others. They’re okay with ya stayin’.”

You smile at his words. It was only then that you realized just how much you wanted to stay in this place. How much you wanted to stay with Daryl. 

“C’mon, I’ll show ya ‘round an’ where ya’ll be stayin’.” Daryl says as he stands up, holding his hand out for you.

You glance at his hand then back at him. Carefully, you reach up and take his outreached hand and he gently helps you stand. His other hand hovering around your body to make sure you don’t fall. Once you’re steadily on your feet, he guides you out of the house. You have to shield your eyes from the intense rays of the sun at first but once your eyes adjusted to the light, you gasp lightly in disbelief. 

This place was.... Incredible. You never thought you’d ever see a place like this, not after the world ended. It felt as if you went back in time when the dead didn’t roam the Earth, this place was like one of those suburbs with huge houses you could only dream of affording. 

You look over at Daryl when you hear him let out a soft chuckle. He must have caught your bewildered expression as you ogled at your surroundings. You look down at the ground, shy and embarrassed as you blush. 

“C’mon,” he says, tugging at your hand gently.

He must have sensed that you were embarrassed as he didn’t comment on the look on your face. You follow him around, trying to ignore the growing butterflies in your stomach as Daryl holds your hand. He points out the house that he’s staying in as the two of you walk by it. You feel slightly shy as you spot some of the people watching you walk with Daryl. By the sly smiles on their faces, you were sure it was because the two of you were holding hands. 

“Infirmary’s over there,” Daryl says, pulling you out of your thoughts as he points over to the house where you see Denise sitting on the porch reading, “if ya need anythin’ or yer arm starts to act up, ya can go an’ find Denise, she’ll help ya out.”

You smile and nod at Daryl in acknowledgement then continue to follow him around until he stops in front of one of the large houses.

“This one’s yers.” he tells you, making you gawk at him.

“Mine?” you question, not believing it.

When Daryl said that they’d figure out where you could stay, you thought you would have a room that you shared with someone, not an entire house to yourself. 

“Yeah, we got a few houses to spare... if ya don’ like it, ya can look at one o’ the other free ones,” Daryl bites his lip nervously, as if he was afraid you wouldn’t like it.

You quickly shake your head, “no, it’s not that I don’t like it... I just... didn’t think...”

You trail off as you look at the large house in front of you, slightly intimidated. Daryl seems to sense this as well as he gently tugs at your hand again, then he nods pointedly towards the house. You understand his intent and begin to step towards the house. You walk up the porch slowly, continuously taking hesitant glances back at Daryl to make sure he’s still following behind you; he had let go of your hand, much to your dismay. 

Taking a deep breath, you slowly open the door to the house. Although you knew that the house was empty, part of you still expected to be greeted by snarls and growls of the dead. You guessed that being on your own and running from the dead for weeks would do that to you. 

“Wow...” you say breathlessly as you step into the house.

This wasn’t just a house, this was a mansion. Even just looking at the kitchen, it was twice as big as any room you stayed in, before and after the world ended. It looked to be fully furnished, clean, completely untouched by the outside world. You had a hard time believing your eyes as you looked around in awe. 

“Is this... real?” you hear yourself wonder out loud. 

“It is,” Daryl says from behind you and you turn to look at him, he smiles softly at you, “ya like it?”

You return his smile and nod, “I do... thank you.”

There’s a sort of sweet silence between you two before Daryl clears his throat, maybe he felt awkward, “I’ll leave ya to it, get settled ‘r somethin’...”

You feel your heart drop at his words, something you haven’t felt in a long time, “what?”

“I showed ya where my place is, if ya need me, I’ll be there.” Daryl nods and he begins to turn to leave.

A slight panic rises in your chest when you see him turn. You didn’t want him to go, you didn’t want to be alone. It was true that you were safe in a community, surrounded by walls and protected from the dead, but you were still afraid of being left alone. 

Before Daryl could leave, you quickly step to him and reach out, your fingers clutching onto his. He turns around to face you again, a confused look on his face. You notice his eyes soften when he looks at you. 

“Please don’t go...” you say in a small voice, “please stay...” 

Daryl purses his lips together, not sure of what to say. You can tell that he’s thinking of what to do. You were sure that he was trying to think of a way to tell you that he shouldn’t stay. You were practically begging him with your eyes. 

“Okay.” Daryl says with a shy smile after a moment of silence. 

You couldn’t help the smile on your face at his words. Daryl had agreed to stay with you. He had saved your life, brought you back to his community and given you a home. On top of everything he already did for you, he even agreed to stay with you. Even if you had just met him that day, you knew that he would be able to keep you safe. And for the first time in a really, really long time, you finally felt safe. 

---

This was one of my very first attempts at writing in Daryl’s perspective so I hope I did it justice! Please let me know what you thought about this one, I personally loved writing it haha 

Taglist (please let me know if you’d like to be added/removed!):

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[andilovetowrite]

Enemies (To) and Girlfriends

NPeter Parker x Stark!Reader

Summary: Peter and Y/N are at each other’s throats all day. Every minute of every hour of every day. They hate each other. For whatever reason, these two brilliant minds absolutely despise the other one. At least, that’s what everyone believes.

Warnings: Suggestiveness and some bad words. Lots of fluff though

Here is my Masterlist in case you want to find more of my work :)

For as long as anyone can remember, you and Peter had hated each other. Well, hate is a strong word. You both had a mutual dislike for each other, and as years went by, the status of your relationship skyrocketed from people who can’t talk to each other, to people who can’t stop screaming at each other. You two had been friends for years when you were younger. But when Peter was recruited for Spiderman 6 years ago by your dad, you couldn’t help but hate his decision. It was a dangerous life, and you didn’t want him to be on the field. You’d rather have him safely tucked away in his room, where May could keep an eye on him, and he could have sandwiches with Ned.

Unfortunately, he thought the same thing for you. He accepted the job, not only to save and protect Queens but to protect you as well. Just like what you thought of him, he felt the same of you. He believed that a 14-year-old shouldn’t have been fighting every night against drug dealers, mob lords and god damn aliens. You should have been having movie marathons and singing karaoke on Fridays, not trying to stay alive.

You remember the night you both fought vividly enough.

It had just been when Tony had come to Peter’s house to bring him to Germany. You didn’t even know that your dad had gone over to Peters. For all he knew, Peter was just another school friend of yours who was wooed by the fact that you were Y/N Stark.

When your dad had finished talking to Peter, they both called you, Peter from his room, and your dad from the car.

“Y/N, you won’t believe who I just saw-”

“Y/N, I think you’ll be thrilled with who I just met-”

And that was the start of the issue. You had hung up on your dad when you heard Peter’s voice, and boy, were you glad you hung up on Tony. Because he wouldn’t have been delighted to listen to what came out of your mouth.

“What the fuck?”, you had asked, shocked. Running downstairs while still on the call with Peter, you had grabbed your suit, activating it as quick as possible. “What do you mean ‘coming with me to Germany’? You know that it’s just for Avenge-”

“That’s the coolest thing! Your dad just recruited me for the mission. But I think I sounded dumb. I mean, I said something about homewor-”

“Wait, hold up, recruited?!”

Flying next to his house, you saw the opened window. De-activating your metal armour and jumping in. You stood up, dusted off your arms and looked at Peter, tilting your head to ask him what the hell was going on.

Peter nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, he came in, showed me a couple videos and asked me if I wanted to go with him to Germany. Not sure what’s gonna happen thought… “

You shook your head, shocked at the idea. “You are so stupid!”

Peter scratched the back of his head, not understanding what you were saying. “Yeah, I feel like I should know, but I haven’t really been following some media stuff…”

“No! Yo-you can’t go there! You can’t go to Germany!”

Peter looked confused, his lips sucked in. “Why? You’re going, plus… Mr Stark needs me!”

“Peter. You. Can’t. Go. There.” You shook your head, aghast at the idea of putting Peter in harms way. “Do-do you even know who’s gonna be there?! Captain America, Winter Soldier…Hawkeye! They are much more stronger than you…they could kill you!”

Peter looked down, but then glanced back up at you. “What about you then? They will hurt you as well! You are on the same team as me, aren’t you? How do you know they aren’t gonna kill you?”

You crossed your arms, scoffing. “They’ve known me for years Peter! At most, I just gotta keep the opposite team away from my dad and Nat. You? They don’t know you are a 14 year old kid. They will try their be-best to hurt you, because they don’t know what you could do?”

Peter glanced at his suit, then back at you, his face hardened. “Wh-why don’t you want me to do this Y/N?! This- this suit…Spiderman…. It’s the first real thing in my life since Be- his death. Why don’t you want me to pursue this? I-I could protect the city, make sure no one gets hurt.” He looked at you, his face disappointed. “I thought you, of all people, would be happy to work with me…”

You sighed, sitting down on his bed, frustrated. “Peter, this- this hero gig… saving the city… protecting lives. It’s alot of work… guilty and pain. Physical and mental.” You looked at him, worried. “You aren’t gonna be able to save everyone Pete. This comes with alot of hardships. I-I was born into this world, of fighting and crime fighting. Yo-you are just Peter Parker. You could go high places, just stay on the ground.” You looked at him, trying to make him understand.

But it didn’t work. He just laughed unbelievably. “Wha- Y/N, I-I’m not just Peter Parker anymore! I’m also Spiderman. I have been Spiderman for months. And I love it! I love saving people and helping them. Why don’t you think I can do this?!”

You gaped at him. “What-why would you- Peter! I love you helping people, but why don’t you just stay on the ground? Help people find lost cats and walk old ladies down to the grocery store? Why do you want to go fight people who might die any second? Be part of a group that might die any second!”

“Be-because you are part of that group! I have to be able to take care of you Y/N! Now that I finally can!”

You took in a deep breath and walked closer to the window, picking up the small bracelet you wore to change into your suit. “Peter, I can manage myself. You can’t! Leave the big stuff to other people.”

“Like who?!”

“The Avengers!”

Peter opened his mouth to argue but you beat him to it. “You aren’t part of the Avengers Peter! As much as you want to be! I know you have a talent, but why not just stick to being the friendly neighborhood Spiderman for now?”

Peter clenched his jaw, and diverted his eyes. You knew what that meant. He wasn’t budging on his decision. So you said the only thing that came to your mind.

“Peter, if I see you on the battlefield in a few days, th-then don’t bother saying hi, got it?” You both knew what this was implying, but neither of you wanted to back down, both too stubborn. All the 14-year-old-you could do, was hope you wouldn’t see any sign of the red and blue hero when you landed in the airport in Germany.

Sadly, the minute that your father had called out “Underoos!”, you had a sinking feeling in your stomach that things would not be the same any longer.

And it wasn’t. For the rest of your lives…

6 years later (Avenger’s compound)

“Fuck you, Peter Parker.”

“Oh, you wish!”

You laughed comically, glaring at him. “Oh please, I feel so bad for any one who actually does. Well, you know, if you can even fuck someone…”, you said, gagging exasperatedly. Peter’s glare tightened as his adam’s apple moved up and down.

“Hmm, at least I have a girlfriend, who do you have?”

“Please! I have half of New York after me!”

Peter looked hurt for a moment, but then his steel gaze returned. “I didn’t think some one could be as obnoxious as you, but guess once in a while, I’m proven wrong.”

“Really? Because I’m pretty sure everybody proves you wrong. Well… at least they prove your nerdy science theories wrong.” You knew this was crossing the line. You could insult his physique, his bed skills, his flirting skills…but never his academic skills.

You could practically see smoke pouring out from his ears, and so could everyone else.

“Oh shit”, muttered Sam from behind you, poking Bucky’s stomach. “Fight’s gonna go down, for sure.”

Bucky looked indifferent, probably used to us, but when he saw Peter’s red face, he backed up, hands up. “Damn, this is gonna be a bad one. You wanna stay and watch or get out before we both get killed?”

“Well I think-”, Sam began, but was cut off by you and Peter starting to yell at each other.

“You are a complete asshole!”

“At least I’m not a spoilt brat!”

“Oh, you did not just go there!”

“Yeah... I did, what are you gonna do-?” He looked you in the eye and muttered out the next word, almost whispering. “Brat?”

You gave a harsh growl and lunged at him, almost knocking down a vase on the table. He quickly jumped out of the way, arms snapping back at you. You could see Sam and Bucky running out of the room, yelling at other people in the tower to evacuate.

You turned around to see Peter, standing there, a smug smirk appearing on his lips as he pulled his webshooters out of his pocket, shooting them at you before you could react.

“Hmph”, you grunted, being pushed back against the wall. Peter leisurely walked to you, as if he was a tiger pouncing on his prey. His eyes were dark as he smiled at you cruelly.

He was really close to you, and he could have done what ever he wanted if he had reached you… Too bad you were more of the type of predator rather than prey.

You felt your knife spurt out of your wrist as it cut through the webs. Untangling yourself, you jumped with ease, twisting your arms and legs around Peter, as you both tumbled to the ground. Peter groaned, trying to get up, but you just pushed your weight further on him, jumping on his chest, straddling him.

“Can you get off?”, he asked, his voice strained. You smiled, knowing you had won. Coming close to his face, you smirked cheekily, before whispering in his ear. “You think they bought it?”

Peter smiled at you, kissing your neck. “Of course, we are great actors…”

You pulled back, kissing him back, fingers tangling in his curls. “Sorry…. Bout’… the theories thing”, you said between kisses, pulling back to make sure he was fine.

“Yeah, that was a good touch. What about the brat?”

You laughed hotly, moving down. “I loved it…probably more than I should have”, you said against his neck.

“Oh is that it? Well, there was one thing I didn’t agree with.” He flipped you over, pining your arms above your head. “You don’t think I can fuck my girlfriend well?” Just as he was about to reach down to catch your lips, you heard a glass shatter. Looking up, you saw the group, everyone having shocked face and Tony in the front, mouth wide open.

“What the FUCK-”

——————————————————————————————————

Tagged: @idkatee @eternalscribblesforthesoul @loudbluepancake @poisondevotion @scram1326 @t-hollanderr @305weasley @starknik22 @marvelfansworld @lou-la-lou @lomlparker @marvelfansworld @wowitsel @vanteguccir @fullcheesecakeengineer @ladykxxx08 @allegras-sunflower @a–1–1–3

Loved writing this one! Always wanted to try Enemies to Lovers, so I hope you enjoyed it! See you next time :)

[crimeronan]

Can you explain the appeal of Julian Blackthorn? This is a genuine question because I read the books and came away utterly bored by him and unconvinced of his moral greyness as opposed to like, Adam Parrish’s. He seemed so one dimensional to me but I want to know if I’m Wrong TM considering I tend to be very very biased toward my favourite characters and bored by the rest, and my favourites were Mark and Kieran. So maybe I just didn’t pay him enough attention??

it’s been a while since i wrote any earnest tsc meta but cringe culture is dead and the chance to infodump about my julian thoughts has me vibrating where i’m sitting so.  yes okay.

technical stuff

(aka: things pertaining to How The Story Is Constructed)

cassandra clare’s characterization has become much stronger just in general since she first began writing the series like twenty years ago

perhaps most importantly: the more recent stuff i’ve read from her has involved characters who actually grow, change, and learn from their past mistakes 

rather than repeating the same stupid decisions over and over again

and over and over and over some more

seriously take a shot every time someone in tmi miscommunicates or self-destructs in ways They Have Learned Not To Do for no real reason. u will die of alcohol poisoning

in tda this shines ESPECIALLY with the evolution of mark, kieran, and cristina’s relationship, but that’s a separate post

clare’s trademark is also the angsty traumatized jerkass love interest with a secret heart of gold

the woman is almost singlehandedly responsible for draco in leather pants and the proliferation of this kind of character type in fandom and teen lit. this isn’t a criticism it’s me marveling at how if you commit hard enough to a single trope you truly can change the world.  follow your dreams

sad jackass with a heart of gold isn’t an Inherently Problematic Character Type

but poorly done it can lead to relationship dynamics in which one partner is constantly being hurt by and then forgiving the other despite them making no real effort to change, because they are narratively absolved due to being sad

(there’s a lot of this with earlier jace content.  in some ways i think will was later created specifically to be a same-archetype protagonist who actually does get called on his shit and grow. that’s also another post)

also if all of your sexy male love interests are tortured jackasses with a heart of gold then people start calling you a one-trick pony

enter julian blackthorn!

from the very start everything about him is designed to be the INVERSE of the heart of gold jackass.  which immediately makes him interesting just from a meta perspective

(mark and kieran are also both alternate angles on this time-honored archetype.  mark gets the heart of gold and kieran gets the jackass and then they’re both much more deeply messy than that.  yet another post)

julian is kind, self-sacrificing, empathetic, artistic, emotionally supportive, responsible, and favored by old grannies everywhere

so a completely nonthreatening milquetoast guy, right

immediately forgettable if you’re only here for the dramatic conflicts and shithead antics of clare’s other protags

except that he is A Mess

and that he has structured his priorities very carefully, and they are as selfless as you expect from The Hero (TM) but they are also Not Heroic (TM) and they do not align with the moral framework The Hero (TM) is supposed to use

moral ambiguity in characters always exists in relation to their narratives imo. you mention adam parrish - trc’s narrative already mucks around in different ethical shades of gray, and adam falls on the canon scale about where julian does on his canon scale.  both more willing than the average pov character to do the ruthless thing or make the fucked-up choice if the ends justify the means; both with an intensely strong sense of internal priorities that they adhere to at all costs, both so unbelievably fucking down for murder; etc

i do think there are ways julian’s choices could have been pushed even further, but considering the number of readers who hate his guts already, i can see why clare opted not to go for the most controversial possible conflicts

so we’re flipping the narrative

instead of seeing this angsty bad boy and peeling back the layers of his trauma to find his heart of gold, we’re seeing the put-together selfless family man and peeling back the layers of his Responsibility Mask to expose the rotting husk underneath

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

THAT IS FUN AS FUCK

then when julian DOES lash out in hurtful, uncontrolled ways, he has significantly more narrative justification for it than most of clare’s protagonists (will elaborate in characterization thoughts)

julian is also interesting as fuck because of how his struggles allow for a more in-depth look at the failings of shadowhunter society, something that’s also sorely lacking in clare’s earlier work

his apparent amorality is simply the result of him making pragmatic and impossible choices because he has been faced with fucked-up ethical dilemmas since age 12 Because Society Has Failed Him

which opens the door for narrative exploration of how and why he’s been failed so badly & what needs to change

i also love that he has such a coldly calculated way of analyzing situations and allowing harm to occur when need be, bc a lot of clare’s early protagonists have such a bad case of Rush In And Get Myself Killed Because I’ve Got Feelings About Impulsive Heroism syndrome that i wanna push them in front of a truck

probably there’s other meta narrative stuff i could say but i’m stopping myself and moving on to character analysis

characterization stuff

(aka: reasons why i’m also attached to him in a vacuum)

i don’t read him as one-dimensional at all tbh

u may feel the narrative pushes “ruthless julian blackthorn” too much without delivering enough actual ruthless julian But i don’t think that’s the same as having only one dimension

from the get-go, the big question centered on julian is always “how far are you willing to go?” and the narrative pushes the stakes slowly higher and higher to continuously test julian’s “the price is always justified” mindset

he has a far more layered and realistic response to trauma than clare’s early protagonists - trauma affects every single aspect of his personality and how he conducts himself, and the effects vary depending on the circumstances

his conviction that he has to be the perfect parent to his siblings because they will fall apart if they see him show weakness??  rooted in how he feels like he’s fallen apart since losing the stable adult support he once relied upon

his willingness to hurt semi-innocent people, commit coldblooded murder, manipulate people using political leverage, allow harm to befall any stranger if it protects his family??  rooted in how he has already had to ask himself how much he’s willing to sacrifice, and how his family is his only source of stability when the world has never done Shit for him

his conviction that he has a darker heart than anyone else because he killed his possessed father, even though intellectually he knows he was saving his brother’s life??  rooted in having no means of processing this trauma and being unable to voice his feelings for fear of backlash from a deeply non-understanding society

the way he represses every single negative emotion he ever has, to the point where emma - his actual literal magic soulmate who can feel his emotions - is startled to find him hurting or angry??  once again all about how he has to be the perfect father or he’s failed completely

the way his anger is so totally disproportionate to different situations and the way his negative emotions can only come out in completely uncontrolled breaks??  all that repression baybey.  this kid has not processed a single bad feeling in five years.  every single real grievance and petty annoyance has been festering indefinitely inside him like a slowly spreading infection

julian’s arc involves him needing to get thru being his worst self to actually start to heal

as in, he has to actually learn to acknowledge his feelings, take care of himself, lean on his family, and let other people take some responsibility

he also has to learn that in his quest to be the perfect emotionally controlled authority figure, he has not actually learned how to control or deal with his emotions. like. At Fucking All. good god

the narrative setup is also about asking “how far are you willing to go?” until the answer is finally “not this far.  not this far”

and once he reaches that point, he has to reevaluate everything about how he weighs his priorities and morals and plans, etc

(i also like that emma has a perpendicular arc in which she’s always the one tempering julian and telling him “no we can’t go that far” until she’s willing to do something horrific that he absolutely won’t and HE has to stop HER. very sexy)

it’s also just really nice to have a character who’s learned to relate so well to literally every single member of his family while still having a very detached ruthless interior consciousness. i have similar feelings about how adam teaches himself to love people, but with julian it’s spelled out more explicitly in canon & it’s a more central character theme

i’m sure i’m also forgetting stuff here but this post is long enough so i’m gonna say good enough

and like i said in the tags on my other post, there are things i’d personally write differently if it were my story - plot points i’d shift, character contrasts i’d up, themes i’d explore differently, pacing i’d adjust, etc.  i have plenty of ways i could be nitpicky and editorial about the effectiveness of julian’s arc.  but i also don’t feel like writing them out at the moment & none of my critiques on effectiveness have an impact on the core appeal of his character 2 me.  he’s so fucking good

[kitkatopinions]

I’m probably over thinking/over complicating things but Ironwood and Penny have been really bothering me. It because prior to the moment that destroyed Penny’s arc the show and Ruby were really pushing that Penny not matter her body was human and that’s a very positive I like that especially when it comes to characters of Penny’s nature.

So my problem kicks in when I think of Ironwood. Namely this part in his song:

“What if it's true as they say

That I don't have a heart

That I'm more a machine than a man?”

Like wtf. I mean I “get it” especially with that dumbass line of Winter. But when it’s talked about Ironwood it was always in reference to the fact that his body is half robotic and there for we are meant to see the correlation between his body and his character.?

Put next to Penny’s message that really bothers me. Even more so since Penny gets a “reward” of becoming human, but the writers push that Ironwood sacrificing his arm to stop Watts and replacing it (a medical decision that could be debated given that he wanted to be up and able immediately to handle things not to mention that fact that nerves and muscle are severely fucked up) with a new (uncharacteristically uncovered) prosthetic means that he’s moving away from humanity. This thought has been driving nuts for a week.

I don’t think you’re overthinking at all. The writers have been pretty blatant about what they think of disabled people.

On the topic of James, 1. They wrote their triple amputee character to be coded as losing his humanity. This is suspect from the get go, but writers imo need to be especially careful and sensitive when they display things like villains with prosthetics. CRWBY is not careful and sensitive. 2. They specifically connected the loss of his limb to the loss of his humanity outside of the show, and as you said, his new prosthetic is uncharacteristically uncovered as well, and there were some pointed shots showcasing his arm and emphasizing it before showing Ironwood doing something wrong as well as a shot that particularly bothered me of them having James fall to Winter when his aura broke and then them immediately flashing to a fallen, broken robotic soldier. Tying the loss of someone’s humanity to them losing a limb / gaining a prosthetic in any way is wrong imo. There are better ways to display someone’s loss of humanity than villainizing the loss of his arm, and I don’t care what justifications people have for ‘they just meant to say that he was too impatient to-’ Idc. Tying the loss of humanity to the gaining of a prosthetic is wrong. 3. They never once treated Ironwood’s clear PTSD, history of mental health problems, and trauma with any sympathy, instead spending their time ragging on him for not wanting to feel his pain anymore and condemning him for... Trying to control his emotions. 4. CRWBY also gave him a semblance and explained how it worked by saying he hyper focused, talking about how James’ passive semblance that he can’t control forces him to focus on one single goal and fixate. I’m not disabled, but I do hyper fixate. It’s not something I can control, and to see it used as a justification for evil (in one of my favorite characters in the series who reminded me of my father lol) and being treated as something bad... It doesn’t feel good. I can’t imagine how other people must feel who are much more affected by this than I am. 5. As you say, the writers go out of their way to reference his metal body as being more ‘machine than man’ and make lines about him being heartless. And yeah, I get that he’s an allegory for the ‘Tin Man’ from Wizard of Oz but ffs the Tin Man had always had a heart and I honestly thought that was what they were going for in V3 with Qrow commenting that sometimes he thought James didn’t have a heart and the audience seeing Ironwood’s actions as questionable, only for the entire show to tell us repeatedly that he actually is a caring and good person who’s willing to destroy all the forces he was proud to show off if it means saving lives and was actually pretty freaking blameless in the Fall of Beacon and was super kind to the kids and when the chips were down, Qrow and Glynda both absolutely knew without even questioning that James would never ever willingly hurt the world or fully betray them and had absolutely no hand in the Beacon attack. Like, I’m sorry, but between Penny and Ironwood, season eight is the season of taking well done character allusions and throwing them out the window for the exact opposite moral done incredibly poorly. And anyway, getting off of that rant, making a ‘more machine than man’ sentiment tied around a triple amputee character is incredibly harmful and hurtful to people with disabilities and only propagates the real world stereotypes against people like James.

So, yes, their treatment of Ironwood, his mental health, and specifically his disabilities was so badly done, harmful, incredibly insensitive, and frankly, appalling that it came from grown adult writers in 2019-2021! But, as you point out, it’s not just Ironwood. And here’s where things really get bad for CRWBY. Because Ironwood alone is enough for me to say they were ableist - unintentionally or otherwise - and ought to apologize for the hurt they’ve caused their fans. But when you get into the rest of their treatment of characters with metal prosthetics or non-flesh elements to their body, it becomes a pattern.

Penny’s entire body is removed from her on threat of death, with the justification that it’s hurting her and that her body is just a machine and not part of who she is, contradicting Penny’s earlier themes of self-acceptance and validating her humanity in the body she already had. She then dies by assisted suicide in a way that feels unneeded, after having asked to be killed earlier in the narrative. So many people have talked about how destructive her story became in V8 and how it personally hurt them, especially non-binary people, trans people, autistic people, or disabled people who saw themselves in Penny or saw in her arc something that they could relate to, only to have Penny’s differences stripped away from her, having her conform to normal body standards and have her previous body type invalidated by her friends, and then they had her killed via assisted suicide in an unbelievable way, insisting as well that she never made a choice before she was a flesh-person and couldn’t feel things right. It’s all horribly done, but it’s important to remember that while Ironwood is accused of losing his humanity as he loses a third limb and gets a third prosthetic, Penny’s earlier validation is taken away and is instead only granted and she is only justified as a person when she loses all her ‘nuts and bolts’ and becomes a flesh person. And then she’s killed anyway.

Yang’s prosthetic is the least ill handled, but it is still dismissed as ‘just extra’ despite her former fairly strong arc of coming to terms with her disability and making it a part of her. She casually justifies what’s happening with Penny despite Penny not being in a position of adequate consent. Yang’s trauma and PTSD also vanished when Adam died at the end of season six and in my opinion, that situation was handled very badly.

Maria and Pietro, two other disabled characters, disappeared, left when Amity fell and were not even mentioned iirc since. Not even when Penny is awake, not even when they’re evacuating, not even when Penny is choosing to die. She never brings up her father. And Ruby’s supposed ‘mentor’ who never had an actual narrative role that couldn’t have been filled by Qrow and has had nothing to do since season six even past that is also forgotten out in the tundra and not mentioned again.

The writers go out of their way to have Winter say that because she was just following orders (a statement that contradicts her previous character imo) and pushing down her emotions, she was the real machine, whereas Penny had been human underneath her apparently easily tossed aside and destructive previous metal body.  And I don’t know if this means anything, but in that scene where she and Penny meet when Penny is dying and transferring the maiden powers to Winter, Winter is in her V7 character design, instead of wearing her assistive brace. Like I said, I don’t know if I’m reading into that, but with everything else, it feels like an iffy choice.

So yeah. In the past season CRWBY specifically cultivated a pattern of disrespect, dismissal, and villainization of any non-flesh attributes in my opinion. It seems pretty intentional and clear to me, but I’m willing to accept that maybe this was just a wildly bad uneducated mistake. Here’s the thing about that, though, after the Faunus/Racism allegory, the CRWBY writers should’ve learned their lesson and not touched on any real world topics that they weren’t willing to do the research on and treat with the sensitivity and care and respect the topics needed. Their Faunus/Racism allegory was harmful and hurtful and frankly could’ve sunk them in the water, they should’ve learned to put much more care and effort into their work or stayed the hell away from anything that could further spread the negative stereotypes surrounding real world people. But they didn’t learn their lesson and they’ve continued to push harmful narratives with no awareness or sensitivity. I don’t think you’re over-reacting at all, I think this is something that - intentionally written or otherwise - the writers should be called out on, or they’re just going to continue writing harmful narratives.

Also, I am not disabled, many of my opinions on the treatment of these characters comes from posts I’ve seen from many disabled or neurodivergent RWBY fans (or former RWBY fans,) or other people more affected by these narratives - minus the thing I said about Winter appearing without her brace when she talks to Penny, as it was something I just noticed while typing out this post. Since I’m not disabled, I’m not the best person to talk about these things, so if I got anything wrong in this, anyone more affected, please know you can let me know and I can edit and fix.

[razorblade180]

Looking Back

[Lasting Embers au spoilers]

A constant in life is that life is constantly changing; a concept known to any huntsman that were worth their salt on the battlefield. As well as anybody who chose a dangerous life style. For Adam, it was the second constant in his life. The first was the stary void that dawned over him with its trillions of stars. It might be the only real perk of night watch. It was his turn to keep an eye out for any enemy that could’ve been following him and the rag tag fever dream of a team he found himself with. When Jacquelyn told him life is a story that goes the way each person decides, he never imagine somehow he had written a story that would lead him to helping members of team RWBY, their families, and his as well. Crazy for sure but hey, crazier had happened. This didn’t even make the list.

Yang approached him from behind with two mugs in her hand. The both of them were ordered to watch the forest clearing from the tree line. Ruby was dead set on making sure the two of them were in sync enough to fight together if things got hairy. Yang could think of a million other ways to spend the night but she wasn’t about to complain and handed him the coffee.

Yang:One coffee, black. If you’re going for something gross to keep you awake then I understand.

Adam:I told you black so you couldn’t slip anything in it.

Yang:....

Adam:Joking, I wasn’t serious. Mostly.

Yang:Your humor is more bitter than your drink. *sips* you should try to be more grounded.

Adam:That was terrible. We can’t both be bad at this or I might die from boredom alone.

Yang:Stabs to the chest didn’t end you. I doubt puns will. I’d be upset; could’ve gotten rid of you a long time ago if they did.

Adam:What can I say? I’m one lucky bastard.

Yang:I’ll say....

The blonde bruiser sat down with her head supported by her hands. Being here was awkward, too awkward. Neither of them really continued speaking. One watched the fields whil the other star gazed. Adam would sometime steal glances at Yang’s arm before going back to mapping out the sky. Yang let out a long and over the top sigh. At this point, talking to Adam couldn’t be as unbearable as saying nothing.

Yang:We should play a game.

Adam:What?

Yang:You heard me. It’ll pass the time. Besides, I’m positive Ruby will keep sticking us as partners if we don’t even pretend to get along.

Adam:Who’s pretending? I made my peace with my thoughts on you a long time ago. If I hadn’t then I wouldn’t have entertained the thought of looking over your daughter for over a decade.

Yang:Hmm is that right? Well, can’t say I’m not entirely over that hump.

Adam:This makes the fourth of fifth time you’ve told me that. You need new material. Freeing Jackie, me, when I showed up at your home, the train ride; I get it. Messaged received.

Yang:Tsk, no need to sound smug about it.

Adam:I’m not. I just don’t see a reason for you to state the obvious. You don’t forgive someone who shouldn’t be forgiven. What, are you upset because people like your sister don’t share the sentiment?

Yang:Why bring Ruby up and not Blake?

Adam:Like I said, stating the obvious. How are you two though? You’ve had plenty of time to properly bury that hatchet.

Yang:We’re just fine. Even before this whole cult shit.

Adam:Good. It’s already insane you two “killed” me and didn’t get together. I’d feel some type of way if you weren’t even friends. Talk about a let down.

Yang:You’re the reason- ugh, why the hell am I even trying to hold a proper conversation with you? I might as well pull my hair out...

Adam:....The hate game.

Yang:What?

Adam:It’s the game I wanna play. You and another person take turns talking about something you hate about the other.

Yang:That....sounds so stupid.

Adam:That’s the spirit, I’ll go first. You’re really loud all the time. Ever heard of a inside voice?

Yang:That’s rich coming from the screaming goat. All you ever did was scream Blake’s name.

Adam:All you ever did was scream in general. I hate how you always seem to butt into everything. It’s one thing to help a friend but you like act like you have a right to have an opinion on people you know by association.

Yang:I don’t need to know much about a terrorist to know you’re terrible.

Adam:I hate how you haven’t realized this is the first time you’re judging me by the crimes I committed for the first time, instead of claiming I was nothing but fake towards Blake and Ilia.

Yang:....

Adam:Everything is personal with you.

Yang:Says the hypocrite.

Adam:I won’t deny that. You feel better or you got more on your chest?

Yang:We’d be here for years if I said it all.

Adam:Then say the important ones I know you wanna say. “I hate that you’re still alive.” Or is it “I can’t stand your dismissive attitude?” The fact anybody like me was given a second-

Yang:I hate that you’ve spent more time with Yujin than me...

Adam:Oh....hmm. *lays back*

Yang:Got nothing smart to say, jackass?

Adam:Hey if you raised my kid with me barely around, I’d hate you too. Can’t fault you for that one.

Yang:It’s a twisted joke really. So many people to look over her from afar and it’s you. What was Sun thinking?

Adam:We were under staffed and things got ugly really fast. Decisions had to happen quickly. Plus the threat was clearly too unknown and dangerous to half ass anything. They killed two of you after all.

Yang:It would be wise to keep that incident out of your mouth. Ruby might tolerate you but that’ll change before I can even lift a finger.

Adam:Now you’re warning me? I thought your sister stomping me out would make your day.

Yang:Dude...shut up.

Adam:....What happened to your uncle and friend was terrible, sorry.

Yang:Ugh, even you saying that feels so wrong.

Adam: Please, thank you, and I’m sorry aren’t that hard. It’s not even new. The white fang wasn’t all snarls and chanting like you think. For awhile I pretty calm there.

Yang:The key word being “awhile.” You murdered your own.

Adam:Yep.

Yang*grits teeth* That’s all you say? People keep saying you’re different left and right and yet you don’t seem even a little regretfull. You’re sipping coffee and staring at the stars as if you hadn’t spent most of your life ruining other’s! What part of that sounds like a change of heart!?

Adam didn’t break his attention away from those stars. If he did, Adam would’ve no doubt seen how irritated Yang was. Her eyes burned red as she waited for an answer. Yang’s coffee was even boiling.

Yang:Well?

Adam:Regretting doesn’t bring them back, or the most heartfelt apologies. It just stirs anger. You wouldn’t feel better about your arm if I apologize.

Yang:So you choose to not even try.

Adam:No, I’ll just convince Jacquelyn to get the relic of creation whenever we eventually go to Atlas.

A perfectly good cup of coffee falls out of Yang’s hand. Did she hear that right? Adam just said he planned on creating an arm with a relic, for her!

Adam:What? It made me an eye. Making an arm is far less complicated than that. I’d say that would be better than any words I could say that you wouldn’t believe anyways.

Yang:....It’s your turn again.

Adam:Ah, let’s see. Well, if I were to be honest I guess...it really bothers me how similar you are to your daughter.

Yang:The hell does-

Adam:Let me finish before you break my ribs. That kid of yours pretty feisty and passionate about so many things. She bugged me to help train her until I finally said yes. Yujin gets frustrated easily and gets really sensitive about certain maternal subjects; yet it isn’t like she doesn’t want to avoid those conversations altogether. Seriously, your daughter is a little bit of a mess, but a fun mess. That bothers me because for a split second I can’t help but wonder that maybe if you and encountered each other on the same side in the beginning...maybe we’d be decent acquaintances or something.

Yang:D-Did you just say what I think you just said.

Adam:Who knows? I suck with words. I’m gonna rest for a little bit.

He turned his back to her to avoid eye contact. Yang couldn’t believe what she was witnessing. Was he embarrassed? Did he actually try some roundabout way of saying she was a good person? If only Blake was here for that. She would’ve flipped. Yang looked up the sky then back at the field; still nothing. When her guys went back to the stars it was curiosity.

Yang:Hey, were you staring a constellation in particular or something?

Adam:You can see Capricornus well from here. I joke all the time with Jael about that one since she’s into a shark faunus. Looking at it made me think about her is all.

Yang:Jael is your second daughter right?! I can’t believe I didn’t know that. I remember the first one for sure.

Adam:You were a little preoccupied to notice anything regarding Jael. Her and Yujin share a birthday.

Yang:No foolin!? Well how about that.

Adam:Yeah, life sure does like it’s jokes. I get a lot of flack if I’m not around for one’s birthday. Jael will get pouty and your daughter gets fussy. “You promised!” I’ve heard that too much.

Yang:Hehe, Jin might get that from me. It’s natural for your kid though. I know I wanted my dad around for mine. Even when I grew up and acted like I was too grown to really care, I wanted his birthday breakfast. Your kid looked like a real beauty.

Adam:Thanks, definitely got that from her mother.

Yang:Haha, don’t feel bad. Seeing Yujin with short hair made me think Jaune had another younger sister I just never met. His genes are way too strong.

Adam:Trust me, I’ve seen her with long hair and in the middle of a fight. I might’ve called her your name a few times.

Yang:Oof, that must’ve pissed her off.

Adam:No....she was actually surprised more than anything. Yujin never hated you Yang. Despite how she acted whenever your name was mentioned. I think she just wasn’t sure how to feel about you besides feeling lonely. I’m not any better with Jael. You wanna talk regrets, I don’t think I spent enough time with her the way I should’ve. Hopefully I’m wrong.

Yang:It’s very telling that you don’t regret your past but you regret something like that.

Adam:My past is terrible and dark, but it led me to my wife and kids. It feels wrong to regret it, so I’ll just accept it and carry on. Otherwise I don’t think I’ll ever have time to live in the present.

Yang:Geez, ever the drama queen. Though I can see a little bit of that view point. Still a spit in the face to people and yourself if you asked me.

Adam:The world thinks I’m dead and has made their mind up about me a long time ago. I go around taking down other terrorists and orginizations to keep them safe as a way to give back. I don’t owe the world anymore than that. I’m simply a remnant among Remnant. My regret is my kids have me as a dad. A kid should be able to talk about their parents and be proud.

Yang:Can’t argue with that. At least you stayed and are apart of their life. I can barely say that.

Adam:Helping save Remnant from another shadow war is a pretty strong excuse. Especially when the group has actually killed your family members. You’re just protecting them. Jaune and Yujin understand that.

Yang:....I hate that you’re not as terrible anymore. Reasonable you is too...

Adam:Reasonable?

Yang:I really hope I don’t have with this for another ten years.

Adam:I give it two, tops. You have a maiden with you this time and me. I’ll just hit you so you can get stronger and wreck shop.

Yang:Hit me and I hit you.

Adam:I’ll block, now we’re both wrecking shop.

Yang:Jacquelyn must have the patience of a saint to deal with you.

Adam:Yep, she’s pretty great. Saved my life, saved my soul. Couldn’t ask for more. You two would probably get along.

Yang:Nah, we worked together once. Wasn’t the best experience.

Adam:I was kidnapped and you were both pregnant. I’m not the smartest person but I’m positive that was a recipe for disaster. She thinks you’re cool, really respect your virtues. Sometimes it feels like she’s quoting you unfortunately.

Yang:Oh, glad I left a good impression. Maybe I can have her whisper regrets into your ear. Seriously, I regret things like lying to Ruby about tiny things yet you don’t really regret anything?

Adam:My regrets take place before the white fang. They remain in the work camp I escaped from. It’s funny, Yujin reminds me of my little sister, Eve.

Yang:Are you telling me that you, Adam, had a sister named Eve?

Adam:When you live in a place devoid of hope or faith, you cling to it in any way can. So my mother named us to help maintain hers. Probably had something to do with the loss of our father. Can’t say, never met him.

Yang:What was your mother’s name?

Adam:Don’t know. I called her mom and the gaurds called her by a serial number. Even that’s a little hazy. Anyways, sis got caught in an mining incident; mother was gunned down because I furious at a gaurd that stopped me from saving Eve.

Yang:Wow that’s umm, heavy stuff. Is that how you...*point to face*

Adam:Yeah, called it my punishment for disobeying. As far as regrets go, it would’ve been nice to be a son and brother; one that got to actually have proper meals.

Yang looked at Adam stare deeply into the void of space. It was strange. Yang has never seen Adam look mournful before. His eyes seemed to get more lost in thought by the second. A part of her felt....sorry for him.

Yang:I’m sure they’ve watched over you since day one. Who knows? Maybe they’re the real reason you’ve survived so long? If I know a thing or two about little sisters and mothers, they’ll never let you rest until you clean up your act, hehehe. Ruby can vouch for that. I bet both of them would be proud of your end result.

Adam:That’s funny. It kinda sounds like you just tried showing me compassion.

Yang:Pfft, I think you may have brain damage you didn’t know about.

Adam:Oh it’s possible. Neo and Mercury have put me through some shit.

Both of them laughed and continued to chat aimlessly, unaware that Ruby and Raven were watching from their own vantage point.

Raven:Well look at that? Maybe the gods haven’t abandoned us if people like those two can chat like that.

Ruby:Looks like our colorful team has gotten a little more stable. Now if only Weiss can get used to Nora’s snoring.

Raven:That’s seriously on your to-do list?

Ruby:I refuse to lead my team poorly this time around. I’ll do whatever I can whenever I can.

Raven:Qrow and Oscar would be proud to see you back on your feet, the right way this time.

Ruby:Can’t mourn forever. This is the mission to end all missions. I’m going full throttle...

[jewishbarbies]

i honestly don’t know how we got to a place where the line between manipulation and choice was so fucking blurred. forget the ship bullshit - this is something that translates into a very dangerous way of thinking for society as a whole. you have to look at every situation individually and not paint with a wide brush, my dudes. there’s a significant difference between being abused and choosing to kill millions of people. what you have to do is look at what the person in question did/how they acted after the killing. were they remorseful? were they only being a hero for someone they personally cared about? if so, did saving that person help anything else or do nothing at all?

so let’s break this down. anakin died saving his son, which then meant his son could bring back the jedi, which would help the entire universe. ben solo saved rey, after she’d already done everything important she needed to do and the sith were destroyed, which helped virtually no one but rey and possibly her friends. what’s the difference? selfless vs selfish. anakin said “I fucked up but I’m gonna save you because i’ve learned the difference.” ben said “I’m gonna be good again so I can be with a girl, and save her life bc i simply don’t want her to die.” there was no selflessness in that ‘redemption’, because resurrecting rey was for ben’s own selfish reasons. anakin saved luke because, finally, he realized he had to stop being selfish and possessive (ie. the padme situation). it’s not about what’s best for anakin or what’s best for ben, it’s about what’s best for everyone in the long run, and anakin’s sacrifice did show some personal growth in that respect.

with ben there was no “oh shit what i’m doing is wrong and i need to stop”. there was no remorse for the things he’d done that hadn’t affected him specifically (ex. han and leia’s deaths). in his final moments, anakin knew he fucked up. even leading up to that final fight scene, he was adamant that there was no saving him because he knew what he’d done was too bad to fix. you could use the argument of “well they were poisoned by the dark side” but what is the dark side? anger, hate, bad emotions that come from within yourself. yes, your point of view can be skewed and you make a rash decision bc of it, but there’s no proof of that with ben. there’s regret with anakin from the very moment he starts to tip to the dark side. “I want more and I know I shouldn’t.” that’s a very self-aware thing to say, anakin. just his persistent “I know i’m better than this” attitude toward his shifting emotions speaks volumes because he’s visibly warring with it the whole way. again, we don’t get anything like that from ben. there are a few calls to the good side that always come about because of rey, the only person he cares enough about to do anything good, after killing billions of innocent people who did not matter to him.

the final thing I wanna touch on is a kill count. feel sympathy for genuine abuse victims. do not feel sympathy for someone who continued to make conscious decisions to kill. ben solo chose the dark side because he believed his grandfather was telling him to finish his legacy. he decided to kill billions of people because his grandfather wanted him to. he genuinely believed it was real, and made a choice to go along with it. palpatine said “hey ben would you kill billions of people and do unspeakable things if your grandfather asked?” ben said yes and palpatine was like “okay cool, here’s a lightsaber.” and ben went through with it. he gave into anger and hate, and he alone is responsible. anakin is also responsible for what he’d done, but only one of these men showed selfless remorse before death - and it wasn’t ben.

[chocolatecakeandbl]

Because you loved me - Character Outline

-- Character Outline for the multi-chaptered work ‘Because you loved me’ --

Idol!WWX isn’t based on Xiao Zhan. 

I have taken the outline of his career in this AU from someone else. (As well as the description of the dance practice video LWJ watched!) 

All characters in this work are as close to the original as possible. It might seem OOC at some parts, because I stripped them down to their original treats and then set them up with a new (modern) life environment. How would they react if they would grow up with a caring family? How would the Lan’s react to daily life if there wouldn’t be 4000 rules? How would the Jiang Family change if there wouldn’t be pesty misunderstandings and situations? What would happen if there would be more communication between everyone? 

A lot of thought went into this. A lot of calculations from my side. I still tried to keep to traits we see in Untamed, so I dearly hope you are okay with the way I set up their characters! 

----

LWJ (22), Professor, is more outgoing than in his past. He still enjoys silence and he is still misunderstood by most others for his lack of showing emotions (or rather, the others not being able to read him). He has a close relationship to his brother and his parents. He hates to inconvenience others. But at the same time he knows what he wants and takes it if he can. He is rich but not arrogant.  He swims everyday (in the University Pool or in his own, if the other is not available) and goes through the Lans Sword Forms every morning after waking up and meditating. He still wakes at 5am and goes to bed at 9pm. There are as many (if not more) versions of “Mn”. His students have dedicated a blog solely to their Professor’s “Mn” in order to find the key how to interpret them. They are not any wiser than the time they started guessing.  His icy glare is a weapon. He is able to silence a class with just one blink.  In the cultivation part of the University there are rumours LWJ can defeat his brother in a Sword Duel. No one had ever seen him fight, though.  

WWX (22), Idol, is still cheeky, likes to rile up others in a playful (but never hurtful) way. Everyone who meets him falls for him immediately - no matter the gender. He has a smile to die for and likes to laugh a lot. He doesn’t need to pretend like in his past. There are a lot people who care deeply for him and he knows he can trust them. His job is stressful and he doesn’t have a regular sleep schedule.  He debuted as an Idol in the age of 14 in a boyband called “Yiling Mounds”. He started his solo career with 21. His first album peaked number one and fought its place for weeks. His first mini album (with “Forgetting Envies” as the title track) ranked number one too and was released two months prior the story. 

Lan Xichen (29) had wanted to become the University Principal since his childhood. The Lan Parents gave him all options, letting him choose whatever he wants to do for work later, but he kept firm on his wish. He loves his job. He always smiles but there are many rumours that he is actually terrifying when crossed on the wrong path. He is not dating anyone (or at least this is what everyone thinks). He cares about his younger brother deeply and was overjoyed when he had heard his decision to become a professor in the University.  He had always got sad at the thought of having his brother working somewhere else (or worse: living somewhere else). Now he knows his brother is safe in the University campus. He can always visit him and that puts him at ease. He isn’t sure why he does care about his brothers safety so much and why he hates seeing him leaving, though. He is guessing it’s just a brotherly instinct.  LXC had won the annual Sword Competition of the Cultivation World 9 times in a row. He is currently ranked number one in Swordmanship. 

The Lan Parents are very adamant there are no punishments no matter what had happened. They rather sit down and talk about it, explain why something was good or bad than to physically reprimand their children. 

Lan Qiren is still a bit grumpy (especially towards his students) but he is overly nice to his nephews. Courtesy of Mama Lan and Lan Qirens wife, who are best friends. Both get very fierce should they notice Lan Qiren isn’t treating the Twin Jades with care (The two women had taken him aside for talks, he is rather careful since)  Overall Lan Qirens wife knows how to handle him, so he became calmer in general. They don’t have children. 

Jiang Fengmian is the CEO and founder of Lotus Entertainment. His best selling Artist is Wei Wuxian.

Wei Changze is the adopted brother of Jiang Fengmian (they are both the same age). Jiang Fengmian met Yu Ziyuan in a Gusu University Summer Break Cultivation Class. She had defeated him in a Sword Duel within the first minute. He fell in love. They married five years later. 

Wei Changze met Cangse Sanren in the same summer break. At the University Pool. He saw her and knew she will be his future wife. He told her so seconds after thinking that. She had thrown him into the pool as an answer. When he emerged she had held out a towel towards him and laughed. They married two years later. 

Cangse Sanren and Yu Ziyuan are good friends. The often hold sword duels against each other which almost always end in draws. Their husbands usually sit at the sites, watching them in awe. 

WWX, JC (20) and JYL (26) grew up together, almost like siblings. The Wei and Jiang houses are next to each other, so the children often played at each other houses. 

WWX and JC still live at home (WWX would have the money to get an own place but he just doesn’t have time to search a new home or to move / JC is a student, he plans to move out once he graduated).

[obeyme-and-you]

MC the Lamb Part 2

A look into the relationship of MC, Diavolo and Lucifer

Spoilers for chapter 37

Gabriel is Italics

Kimimela is Bold

MC’s Disciples

(The information used to explain the disciples was taken from this website https://www.britannica.com/topic/Apostle)

(Some of these Disciples don’t have much information about them or at all in some cases but they will be briefly mentioned for comparison sake still)

Fyi, even though 90% of the disciples are martyrs, and I do make jokes about them dying, I do not believe everyone is just gonna die, and I do believe that any character that may die, will come back.

Andrew and Diavolo

Andrew- The four main things that Andrew is known for are as follows: He was the first named Apostle named, he was the brother of Peter, he was one of the disciples to ask Jesus what the signs of the end of the world would be (Mark 13), and he was crucified on a cross in the shape of an “X”.

Diavolo- Similar to Andrew, Diavolo is the first of the twelve characters to be named within the game. Diavolo is very close to Lucifer, and probably sees him as a brother (which is possibly part of the reason why Diavolo was jealous of Lucifer and his brothers’ relationship to MC and why he doesn’t know if he can trust Lucifer to be on his side in the end). In chapter 37 of Obey Me, Diavolo tells MC how he believes that MC is the reason for all the weird things that are happening between the three realms. The earthquakes, the destruction of temples, a lake in the Celestial Realm drying up…, Diavolo has blamed MC for some “world ending” events. The crucifixion of Andrew on a cross in the shape of an “X” could mean that Diavolo could be killed, or it could mean nothing :). 

Peter and Lucifer

Kill me now

Peter- Peter is the brother of Andrew, one of Jesus’ three “pillars”, he was known as the leader of the twelve disciples, he was wavering and unsure of his relationship with the church of Antioch (the first Gentile church was founded in Antioch, which is were there’s the first recording of people being called Christians) but he was also known at times to be resolute. At times he was depicted as rash and hasty, or irritable and capable of great anger, and also had a forceful personality. Often pictured as gentle but firm, in terms of his relationship to Jesus, he was loyal and loving. Unlearned in terms of Mosaic Law (the 613 testaments of Moses in the first five books of the Hebrew bible, the lists are different depending on the interpretations presented), took to learning slowly and was wrong time and time again about them, but once entrusted with responsibility, he shown he was capable and mature. 

Was constantly the first question Jesus about his parables, was a spokesman, enjoyed his precedence over the other disciples, and when the disciples were discussed, he would always be named first, and at times the only one named. He was the one who faced a moment of weakness and denied Jesus (as in, when asked if he knew who Jesus was, at a time when he could’ve faced punishment, he denied knowing who he was). Before he denied Jesus, he sought to overrule the prophecy Jesus gave about his denial and said, that even if the other disciples abandoned Jesus, he would suffer death rather than disown him. This was rooted in his love of Jesus, and his overestimation in his own abilities. Afterwards he faced great guilt over it.

Lucifer- Lucifer has a very close relationship to Diavolo, now in terms of “brotherly” from his side is debatable. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

In terms of his relationship to MC, it is heavily pushed that he would be one of MC’s “pillars” for many reasons. He is the one who’s constantly trying his best to look out for MC’s wellbeing and helps them throughout their stay in the Devildom. He put Mammon in charge of keeping MC safe (even if not his best move in the beginning let’s be honest) and he saved MC when Leviathan attempted to kill them. Even though there are times where he is VERY bad at showing he cares, he truly does try his best. Also, in terms of his relationship with MC, is his wavering relationship with them and his brothers relationships with MC. On one hand he has shown time and time again, being fiercely protective of them, but on the flip side, in the beginning of the story, he had threatened MC’s life a uh, couple, of times because he didn’t trust MC and their adamancy in trying to gain packs with his brothers and interfering with their relationships. He also didn’t like how close his brothers were getting to MC, but didn’t try and stop them completely. 

Lucifer has been shown to be very resolute when it comes to protecting his brothers, MC, and in his loyalty to Diavolo. When he locked Belphegor in the attic, this was a rash and hasty decision on his part, because he was trying to keep him safe while remaining loyal to Diavolo. Another time he was rash and hasty, and capable of great anger, was when he found Luke in the royal tomb holding the grimoire. In his fury he almost killed Luke, Beelzebub, and MC, and was going to kill them in order to protect the grimoire. I feel like I don’t really have to explain him having a forceful personality, it’s a pretty obvious trait of his. There have been many cases of him being gentle and firm to both his brothers and MC. He does his best in terms of protecting them and taking care of them. He greatly cares for MC, both in terms of loyalty in keeping them safe, and his general love for them, to the point that Diavolo and Barbatos wonder that if the time comes, will he remain loyal to Diavolo. (Thinking about in chapter 20 when MC goes to talk with Lucifer and can give him a hug goodbye instead of a kiss and he thinks you must be in love with someone else ah ha ha ha,,, T-T)

Alright, in terms of him being unlearned in Mosaic law and being slow to learn it and also wrong in its understanding many times, there’s two main ways this could be interpreted. First one being in terms of when he first came to the Devildom it would’ve taken him time to understand the drastically different rules there to the Celestial Realm. The second way would be in terms of dealing with and taking care of MC. It took him, many times, to properly handle MC and their needs, and the fact they seem to be a magnet for trouble and a little too curious for their own good. He was,,, a bit slow in that department. But, just like in both situations, once he figured it out, he was dependable and trustworthy in his job.

He, constantly, questions MC and their antics. He questioned them when they seemed curious about the attic, questioned them and what they think they’re doing making pacts with his brothers, and questions them every time they decide to make a stupid decision (which, quite frankly, is a lot). 

When it came down to talking on behalf of the brothers, Lucifer was typically the one who did it (exception for MC being the spokesperson when protecting the brothers from both Lucifer and Diavolo which caused part of his Problems™ with MC). He was the one who directly talked to Diavolo about any concerns for the brothers or MC. 

Lucifer definitely takes pride (heh) in his role as the oldest. He has brought up the fact that he is the oldest, and therefore the strongest and one in charge against his brothers and he takes a certain amount of pride in having Diavolo rely on him. He is also typically the first one on everyone’s lips when talking about any of the brothers. There are numerous times where he’s the only one talked about and is typically the first one mentioned. Not to mention there are times where it’s “Lucifer’s and his brothers”, him being the only one named.

Peter and Lucifer comparison 

“He was the one who faced a moment of weakness and denied Jesus (as in, when asked if he knew who Jesus was, at a time when he could’ve faced punishment, he denied knowing who he was). Before he denied Jesus, he sought to overrule the prophecy Jesus gave about his denial and said, that even if the other disciples abandoned Jesus, he would suffer death rather than disown him. This was rooted in his love of Jesus, and his overestimation in his own abilities. Afterwards he faced great guilt over it.”

This is where things become a bit complicated. Peter denied Jesus three times, aka betrayed him three times. Lucifer has done two big betrayals to MC. Both of those being almost murder, but he really hasn’t had a third time, at least one that’s big enough in my opinion to account for this. This is why, if you remember in the Mammon essay, I, very briefly, mention how Lucifer choosing between country/Diavolo or MC isn’t as easy to come to a conclusion for. He has an obligation to Diavolo and is not one to back down against his word, especially in terms of protecting his family. (Demons and deals come to mind, possibly making Lucifer literally bound to his word) If it came down to it, he will always choose them over MC. 

Lucifer actually questions MC if they would choose their duty or love in chapter 30-19.“... You remember the play we put on for the school festival, right? My character… the prince… was forced to make a difficult decision. He had to decide whether to fulfill his royal duty by marrying the princess, or to throw everything away in the name of love… MC, if you were in the prince’s shoes, what would you have done? … Actually… …Never mind. I’ve said more than I should.” 

Lucifer, at that point of time, is questioning himself on which he would choose. Will he choose Diavolo? Or will he choose MC? (If he even can) The problem with this lies in the fact that he will overestimate his ability to do both. He has already proven how far he’s willing to go to follow his duty and protect those he loves, and it proved it blow up in his face then. This happened when he locked Belphegor in the attic. He was trying to protect his brother from Diavolo cause he knew Belphegor would’ve been severely punished, but he was trying to remain loyal to Diavolo and it proved to be too much. Even though he deeply cares for MC and truly does believe he can be loyal to both, he won’t be able to. In the Mammon essay, it talks about how you can’t serve two masters, you will always love one more than the other. “Ye cannot serve God and Mammon”, or in this case, Lucifer cannot serve MC and Diavolo. He will have to choose, and in the moment I truly believe he will choose Diavolo, and that will probably be one of his biggest regrets. First he loses Lilith, and now he loses MC, but unlike with Lilith, he could have chosen to protect MC. And by choosing Diavolo, he may lose his brothers too.

PREVIOUS: MC the Lamb Part 1 / NEXT: MC the Lamb Part 3

[vancilocs]

Half and half with a space pair of your choice and ariel and sabine?

couldn't decide. you get both

1. What is their relationship to each other?

Depending on the placement on the timeline, Ninida and Harlei are dating

Kadiz is one of Tal's three partners

2. How did they first encounter each other? What did they first think about each other?

Probably came across at some shipyard or something, Ninida was more impressed by her ship and guns than her and her "guns", respectful as always but didn't think anything further

Quail introduced them, both were equally baffled by the other but for different reasons

3. What is their relationship like now?

Dating yo

Dated until Tal's death, now she's his son's godmother

4. What will their relationship be like in the future?

Well they broke up but uh. Not entirely

Loved one another from one life to the next

5. What traits does each person find endearing in the other?

Both are hard-headed, very smart, determined and clever, have a similar sense of humor except Harlei is naughtier

Both are gentle by nature, good-humored, work well together, Tal enjoys listening to her (happier) stories and listening to math helps him sleep/he sleeps easier when she's around

6. Which traits does each person find annoying in the other?

Ninida'd low libido vs. Harlei's high one, Ninida is more work-oriented and has his worsening rivalry with Vim taking up more and more of his time

Tal doesn't have anything bad to say about Kadiz but he is adamant about avoiding doctors and neglecting his mental and physical health

7. How often do they see each other? How often do they talk to each other?

Pretty often, if not in person they probably text daily or have video chats

Often if not daily, calls are frequent

8. Could they live together easily? Why/why not?

Eh, kinda? It could be too domestic for Harlei and she'd chicken out. But sleepovers are fine

Probably? Tal mainly lives with Mitra and Styx, Kadiz fits in

9. How much physical contact would these characters have with each other?

Much more if Harlei is concerned but as a nedian Ninida also likes to tuch, hold hands, play with hair

Cuddles aplenty, just avoiding any sharp parts (both have them) or electricity, kisses are common, petting hair or face

10. What would they get for each other as birthday gifts?

Dick-shaped candles and ahegao apparel

Tal would be happy with a half-eaten hamburger but doesn't particularly celebrate his birthday nor remember when it is

11. What hobbies do they share, if any?

Guns maybe? If not building/designing then going to the shooting range

Tal doesn't do much outside work. Relaxing is a shared hobby

12. Do either of them have any hobbies or interests which annoy the other?

Not really, I don't think? Unless Harlei is annoyed bu Ninida handcuffing her to bed and then sitting down to work on a gun

No, unless self-surgery counts

13. Do any of their beliefs (religious, moral, or otherwise) differ? Do they conflict strongly?

They're both pretty chaotic and have a morally bankrupt streak but otherwise they vibe well, criminals and whatnot. Ninida may have his family history of criminals but it doesn't make him a better one than Harlei, just more careful about what he says around her parents

Both are gentle with a pretty strong sense of justice and a clear moral compass, but Tal is much more brutal and has no qualms about killing

14. Who is the better cook? Who is better at general household tasks?

Neither is a good cook. Ramen noodles and frozen pizza it is

Kadiz doesn't eat, Tal would eat small rocks if necessary

15. Which of them is more adventurous? Is the other adventurous enough to go along with them?

Both are kinda but I think Harlei more

Outside work I doubt either would get into trouble

16. Would they go on holiday together, and where would they go?

Anywhere is free game, though maybe avoid going past the In-Between to the Outer Rim side

Holiday to the bedroom to watch TV and eat snacks and sleep

---

17. When one is feeling down, how does the other respond?

Ariel is confused because Sabine doesn't show much emotions and especially not the negative ones, they'd just buzz around her asking what's up and how can they help. Sabine just wraps the thief in a blanket and a hug and asks what's up, what do they need

18. If one was in a difficult life situation, what would the other do for them?

Sabine has helped Ariel financially before, after they got together what's hers is theirs, so whatever difficulties there are they face together

19. Has one ever had to stop the other from making a very foolish decision? And did the other listen to them?

Sabine has pulled Ariel back from stealing some really expensive things, even if they whine that it's a gift for her. Ariel usually listens and even if they don't, Sabine will return the item if she sees it fit

20. Has one ever strongly encouraged the other to make a big decision? Did they go through with it?

All big decisions they've done together, but maybe Sabine encouraging Ariel to join the knights. Imagine the benefits.

21. How would one feel about the other being in love (with them or with someone else)?

They better be in love with another and they are and they're both living for it

22. Are there any other people who are a part of both their lives, e.g. friends or family members they share?

Sabine is good friends with the one sibling of Ariel's who they still speak to. Ariel is familiar with Sabine's family because her parents and siblings want to see Lisette and thus have to tolerate Ariel as well

23. How does each person feel about the other person’s family members and close friends? Do they get along with them?

Ariel'd brother likes Sabine and the feeling is mutual, Sabine's siblings like Ariel somewhat, her parents tolerate them

24. Do either of them get jealous over relationships the other one has with friends/family/romantic partners/other people?

Ariel might get a little jealous if Sabine is very buddy buddy with a handsome fellow but a little attention takes care of that. Sabine doesn't have much self-esteem but Ariel has made it a mission to fix that so she's not worried about them looking at others

25. Is either person jealous of the other’s wealth or possessions?

Ariel used to be, now they share everything (and they now see her less as a bourgeoisie wench since she doesn't much care for the wealth)

26. If the pair of them had to look after a young child or pet, what would happen?

They parent Lisette well, no problem there

27. How far would each go to protect the other?

Would straight-up die for one another, also Ariel ensured Louise died after she killed Sabine

28. Is there anyone else that each person would protect over the other, if they had to make a choice?

Lisette for both of them

29. If one died, how would the other respond? What would happen to them afterwards?

Ariel was enraged at Louise and despondent over the loss, definitely was more quiet and reserved for the rest of their life, devoted to raising their kid and telling them stories of mama but never took another lover

30. How far would each person follow the other? Would they trust them enough to commit crime because the other asked them to?

If Sabine asked Ariel to commit a crime they'd do it in a heartbeat because they know she has their back and will bail them out

31. If one wronged the other badly, would the other forgive them easily?

Not easily either of them, Ariel is too spiteful and Sabine too proud. Maybe one day they could reconcile but it'd take a while

[fiction-in-my-blood]

Switching Sides: Part 7 (HLITF)

if anyone possibly wants to get on a tag list I’d be happy to make one 👉 @theshove 👈 If you wanna catch up, Part 6 is right here! Happy reading :) Premise: Growing up in a life of crime in a Japanese mafia, Atsuko Motomori has seen enough injustice to last her a lifetime. To try and give back to the universe her family has taken so much from, she dreams of being a detective from a young age. Her twin, sharing her disgust for her father and many uncles, just wants an ordinary life away from the crime, paing and suffering. Instead, she wants to be in the spotlight with the soft notes she makes with her cello. In their escape of 2015, on their coming of age birthday, they must split ways, never to be together ever again. If one was found, they didn’t want the other dragged down with them. Atsuko, having changed her name and appearance as best she can without a scalpel, sets off to start her life of car chases and arrests. Four years in a seemingly dead-end police station in the middle of nowhere, being passed over time after time for promotion, Atsuko finally gets a shot at her dream, having been sent to an academy for the best candidates in the country by her boss who had always kept an eye out for her. After discovering her boss may have made her bite off more than she could chew, Atsuko must become the slave of a dominating instructor!? Who so just happens to be the captain of the most famous police unit in Japan? Not to mention a total knockout! Will Atsuko finally achieve her dream? Or will her new instructor put her through the wringer? Warnings: Language, Reference to sexual activity, Forceful nature, Description of bloody scenes

~~~~~~

When I woke up next, there was a face right in front of mine. I yelled out in surprise to see Kaga peering down at me. 

"Hush with the shouting." He frowned as he straightened and I jumped up. I looked around to find I fell asleep in his living room. "Why are you out here?" He asked and I remember the nightmare I had last night. 

"I-I couldn't get to sleep in there," I muttered, shy that I didn't have a very good excuse. Instead of questioning me further, he threw a towel in my face, telling me to go shower.

As I walked into Kaga's bedroom, I noticed something glinting in the sunlight. I kneeled down and reached under his bed to pick up whatever it was. It was a picture frame, cracked before I had anything to do with it. There were men dressed in suits, one I recognised as Kaga. I started to worry that, in my frantic awakening last night, I knocked it off. Pretending like I hadn't seen anything, I place it on the sideboard, hoping he won't realise as I ran into the bathroom. 

~~~~~~

When I got to school, at a different time to Kaga as he left while I was in the shower, I was listening to Naruko gossip about my night at his apartment. As usual, she was less worried about me messing up than she is with the risque situations she can think up. 

"You two alone... seeking out each other's skin to heal your tired bodies." She goes off into her own little world as she pictured it. "Then your shadows overlap..." I quickly tried to silence her as her retelling of the night got too vulgar for me. A memory of him recently out of the bath flashed through my mind and my cheeks burn brightly. ‘Not to mention how much nicer he was...’

~~~~~~

After school, I was walking to the Instructor's Staff Room for a briefing on Takeda's mission. My leg still hurt and I had to rebandage it in the infirmary during my break because it started bleeding again. ‘I’m lucky it wasn't that deep, but it needs to heal quickly or I'll fall behind.’ I began to worry about my training as I walked along. Taking a quick sigh, I knocked on the door. 

Many people were already there, so I walked fast enough so that no one can see my limp and bowed my head to Instructor Kaga. "I'm truly sorry for inconveniencing you yesterday." He didn't even look in my direction as he looked at the papers in front of him. "I understand that I failed miserably and I'm very sorry." Thinking he wasn't listening, I tried apologising again.

"This mission is back to square one thanks to you." He spat. "I have no need for useless morons." He scowled but still couldn't look at me. 

"Yes sir. I will be more careful next time." I straightened my back, trying not to seem scared as he rightly reprimanded me. 

"You can leave already. Disappear." His final words made my heart stop, but I quickly regained my composure. 

"I have no use for useless morons. Get lost. Now." He announced again and I tried to find the words to respond. He seemed angry. Usually, he would just be annoyed and get me to do more meaningless filing. But, right now, there's hatred in his words. 

"Didn't you hear me? I'm done with you. Get out." He didn't even raise his voice to brush me off, but he may as well have. Everyone around us acted like nothing was happening, just like at the station. I clenched my fists to calm myself down. What had changed since last night? 

"Yes sir," I muttered, turning to leave when the door opened. There, Ishigami came to stand in front of Kaga.

"What's wrong? Did something happen?" Ishigami directed his question to Kaga, but I was the one who tensed up. 

"It's no big deal. Just getting rid of this moron." 

At my instructor's words, Goto stared at me. I try to seem unaffected by them, but I felt so tired from the little sleep I got last night, I couldn't meet his gaze. The triggering words don't help, my fists clenching harder, but I couldn't feel the pain I'm sure I'm inflicting on myself. I couldn't feel anything. No pain. No warmth or sensation. It wasn't only the mental scars I left that house with. 

"Kaga, explain." Ishigami looked at Kaga with a stern expression. 

"As you know, the investigation was a failure thanks to her mistake yesterday. There's no value in using her, so I'm disposing of her. That's all." The triggering words he was saying set alarm bells to go off in my mind. I was left frozen in this room of professional detectives. 

"Same as ever, aren't you? You can't simply-." Soma tried to butt in with a smile, maybe even to help me out, but he was cut off. 

"This is my decision," Kaga argued. Even though it was my first job, there seemed to be no excuses in the Captain's eyes. Why was I surprised?

For a moment, I felt numb. My heart was hammering hard in my chest, my temper through the roof, and stress pumping through my veins, mixed with the maddening adrenaline. Squeezing my eyes shut in an effort to calm myself down, I took a deep breath, not really caring how strange or pathetic I might have looked trying to console myself. When I opened my eyes again, luckily, no one was looking at me.

"Excuse me," I muttered before he could insult me further and left the room without a reply. 

~~~~~~

I escaped to the rooftop, seething with anger and trying to breathe through it. ‘Why am I so stupid?’ I scream at myself, kicking a trash can with my injured leg. 

‘Okay, that hurt more than I thought.’ I held my foot, hopping over to a bench by the railing. 

"What is wrong with me?" I asked myself, letting my head fall into my hands. ‘I'll never be able to help Juna at this rate.’ I let out a heavy sigh, falling back in the seat to look up at the orange-hued sky. 

Soon, the door to the roof opened again and I heard someone call my name. It was a girl's voice and, getting ahead of myself, I thought it was my sister coming to comfort me. Unfortunately, it was just Naruko and some of our male friends. Naruko saw me physically deflate as she approached. She sat down next to me, placing a hand on mine. 

"Did you really get cut from doing undercover work?" She gasped and I almost laugh. 

"Yeah, but that's not what's bothering me." I forced a sad smile as our male friends stood around us.

Naruko smiled to encourage me to continue. "I think my sister's in trouble." I sighed, bringing my knees up to my chin. She seemed shocked and told me she thought Juna was dead. The guys were more shocked, they had no idea about any of my relatives. 

"What would give you that idea?" I raised my voice in shock. She explained how sad I seemed when she brought up the pictures and anything about my family. 

"Well, I can assure you she's still alive." I laughed, maybe trying to make myself aware of that fact. I sighed just thinking about it and fell back on the back of the bench. 

"We didn't grow up in a great family. My dad was a pretty bad influence and my mom left us when we were kids. It was hard to leave home, but when we did, we kinda lost contact." I tried to be as vague as possible, but I wanted to get some of this stuff off my chest. I had been bottling it up for years. "I guess I've just had her on my mind lately." I looked at my printless fingertips and wiped my thumb over them again as if reminding myself of the damage my father could do.

"Well, Instructor Kaga has been pushing you really hard." Naruko smiled and I nodded. She probably thought the stress of school was rehashing old memories. "You made it here! So don't get down on yourself when an instructor forces you to do more than you could do." She tried to cheer me up. Even though she made sense, it was nice to think Kaga trusted me enough to do more than I thought I could do. Besides, if I wanted to stay here, I needed to be able to do this stuff.

"Besides, it's probably best he cuts you loose now." Our friend spoke up and I threw him an inquisitive expression. 

"How's that?"

"There's a rumour about him. That he killed his part-." Before another classmate could continue, I brushed it off. 

"I don't believe it." My adamant statement seemed to shock my group of friends. "I accept he's mean and scary, but leave a man to die..?" My brows furrowed as I contemplated everything the instructor had done for me. 

"Isn't there a saying for that? There's no smoke without fire?" The men started to shrug off the rumour as something they would never really know as true or not and they all left me on the roof to cool off. 

~~~~~~

Left with my own thoughts, I started to realise what being fired as Kaga's aide meant. I would have no access to the case. No way to make sure my father was involved. No way to tell Juna if she would be safe or not. And I sure as hell couldn’t keep tabs on who the team was dealing with. 

I groan out upon the realisation that I had messed things up so much more than I originally thought I had. 

"You depressed over Hyogo tossing you out?" A voice I wasn't expecting to hear called from the direction of the fire escape and my gaze darted over. 

"Shinonome?" My face screwed up in confusion as he walked over. 

"Or are you depressed over being yelled at?" Ayumu finished his question as he came to a halt in front of me. 

"I've been yelled at far worse than that before." I laughed self-deprecatingly, thinking back to when my father was ever in a 'good' mood; whenever he didn't feel like he needed to punch the closest thing to him

"Wow, you're tough." The young detective smiled and I stared up at him. 

"Besides, it's not like he's yelling for no reason..." I sighed, pouting at my own shortcomings. 

"Then why are you making that face?" He looked down at me suspiciously and I felt like glaring back. Whenever he asked me questions I felt like I was being interrogated. I didn't trust him or his stupid smile, and I especially didn't trust his words of consolation- if that's what these words were meant to be.

"What're you doing here anyway? Coming to accuse me of being a missing person again?" I frowned, dropping my chin into my knees. I just wanted to mope around now, not have him question me. Ayumu just sat beside me. Maybe he was here to hear me out. Maybe he was here to tell me I was out. But I couldn't tell when the only expression he had was somewhat positive. 

"I came here to save people, and all I've done is mess up over and over again." I sigh, staring at the floor in front of me. "It's like I don't know anything, no matter how long I've been here. Every time I try to fix something, I end up doing something worse." Thinking back to when I tried to stop Takeda from being suspicious of us by pulling Kaga close, I also remember how I eventually broke the investigation. 

"Well, if you're comparing your detective skills to Hyogo's, you would be close to nothing." Ayumu laughed and I secretly glared at him. 

‘How was that meant to make me feel better?’ 

"It's because that guy has put everything he has into becoming a detective." The statement made me think back to everything I had been holding back. All my past experiences with the law and seeing it fail miserably, just like I felt like I was doing, had been locked away so no one can figure out who I was or where I came from. I didn't want anyone to get close or to draw any unneeded attention to myself, it had only ever gotten me in trouble. But, when you're in a competition to get to the top, or pass the bare minimum bar, you really need to show everything you've got. 

"By the way, they may seem like complete opposites, but Ishigami is the same way." Ayumu leant over to pull me out of my thoughts. 

"Don't tell them that." I laugh at the idea of both of them having a similar trait. 

"We're here because those two recognised something in us." The instructor closest to my age added and it filled me with a little hope. Until I remembered my application here was totally falsified. 

"But..." Ayumu got my attention again before I could spiral. "I've seen very few people last this long with Hyogo. Let alone a woman or a student." I started to think that maybe my childhood experiences could have attributed to my ability to withstand the man's abuse with a smile most of the time. 

"I can follow him like a puppy all I want. That doesn't mean I'm at all helpful," I complained, thinking back to my late night filing sessions and carrying Kaga's papers from classroom to classroom. 

"Really? I'm sure Hyogo would've cut you off much sooner if that's all you do. Just think about the guy in the alleyway." Ayumu seemed a little surprised with my depressed attitude. 

"What?" I recalled defending Kaga from that blade-wielding maniac as we tailed Takeda. It was an instinct, mainly meant for when I was protecting Juna from any of the men in our house. 

‘Kaga wouldn't have been in that situation in the first place if not for me though...’

"Since he hadn't then... surely some part of him approves of you?" The word echoed in my brain and my heart fluttered at the idea. "Well, it could just be his fickle temper too..." Ayumu immediately shut me down. "The only time I thought you were helpful was when you made me tea." The innocent smile he portrayed was completely different compared to his demeaning words. 

"And I was just starting to think we could get along." I sighed, standing up once I realised my private time wasn't mine anymore. Although, I did feel a grin growing on my face as I thought about the possibility of Kaga approving of me. If only a little. 

"I'm going to put everything I have into this exam." A grin finally appeared on my face. 

"Where did this come from?" Ayumu, on the other hand, was evidently confused. I had only ever done one exam in my life, and that was the officer's exam in the police academy. I did pretty well in it, so I was confident I could prove to Kaga I wasn't completely useless. 

"That's all I can do, for now, to prove I'm worthy." I looked triumphantly into the distance. 

"Do your best. But Hyogo will be giving the exam." The information slightly deflated my resolve. 

"That means I'll just have to try harder than my all." I nodded to him before turning and leaving the rooftop.

~~~~~~

It was the weekend after my abysmal show of a mission and I was on my way out of the school to meet Juna at the cafe I suggested to update her on my situation. It was hot. Unbearably so. So I'm wearing shorts, which I hadn't worn since enrolling in the basic training academy. And, to hide my face from anyone looking for someone with my features, I had a baseball cap and sunglasses.

"Atsuko, where are you going?" I heard Naruko call out to me in the cafeteria. Usually, on our days off, I'm doing work for Kaga. Maybe there was one blessing to come with being let go. 

"I'm just leaving campus for a bit. Need to clear my head." I kneeled down to grab the coffee can I bought from the vending machine. Naruko was in her casuals as well as everyone else in the room at this point in the morning. 

"Oh? I thought you were going on a date." She cheered and I just laughed her off, used to her vivid imagination by now. 

"I'll see you before curfew!" I waved behind me as I ran out of the cafeteria.

~~~~~~ 

Just as I was about to pass the school gates, I heard my name again. I turned to see Instructor Soma wearing his usual suit. 

"Are you teaching today, Instructor?" I asked as he walked up to me. I was in a rush, but I disn't want to seem rude or suspicious in front of the only friendly special instructor. 

"Something like that. Are you on your way out?" He asked with his kind smile. 

"Is that a bad thing?" I laughed awkwardly, not wanting to seem like I was slacking off after Kaga dropped me. 

"Not at all, we all need some r'n'r" Soma grinned at my reaction to his question. 

"Then you should too, sir! I'll see you around." Finding that I'd have to leave now to catch my train in time, I ran out the school gates.

~~~~~~

At the cafe I used to work at, I took a seat at one of the tables outside. It hadn't changed much, except for some of the staff that ran around taking orders. The last I heard, my father didn't control this area of the city. Control in the sense of demanding protection money or laundering money through its businesses.

After I asked for a coffee and what I remembered my sister's favourite drink to be, I saw a woman walking up the street with long, flowing green hair. She sat at the table behind me.

"Were you followed?" I asked low enough so only she could hear, hiding the movements of my lips with the edge of my phone I knocked against them casually. 

"No, I went on three different lines to lose them. And left my phone in his house." She replied in a whisper as well, looking down at the paper menu left out on the tables, lifting her shades only slightly with one hand. "What about you?" Her question surprised me, seeing as she was the one being held hostage. 

"Who's going to follow me?" My face screwed up in confusion before I realised I had to be covert, sitting up and looking around just in case her own concerns were valid. I shuffled in the metal seat, my own sunglasses sticking to the place on the bridge of my nose with the glisten of sweat that collected there due to the weather and my nerves. Luckily, I didn't see any familiar faces or vehicles. 

"You literally go to a school for cops." She laughed in response and I heard the screech of her chair being pushed back as she stood up again. I jumped up as well, turning to my sister dressed in large sunglasses to hide her face from recognition. 

"I'm so glad you're safe." I breathed a sigh of relief as we enveloped each other in a tight hug. I sniffed to hold back my tears, of relief or fear I didn't know, and the fresh scent of the shampoo my father had us use filled my nose. The sense of fear that I drew from that made me hold her just a bit tighter, my arms wrapped around her neck.

"I had to get to you, didn't I?" She pulled back with a bright smile, noticing my tenseness, and we sat back down on my table. I took off my sunglasses but left on the cap and she left her glasses on. 

"Not like you to wear shorts, though." Juna looked down at my bare legs once we got our drinks. When we lived with my father, I hated showing any skin in front of our creepy uncles, or anyone for that matter. My sister grew a little concerned at the bandage around my shin.

"I came to the realisation that heatstroke is more important than keeping my modesty." I laughed nervously in response and she giggled, pushing her questions to the side for now because I seemed positive. As we made easy conversation, I felt my nerves bubble up again.

"Juna... I... I got kicked off the case." I told her, anxiety written all over my face. Her hand freezes from stirring her iced tea and my palms became clammy around my freezing coffee. "I messed up when we were following Takeda and we got attacked. He got away and my instructor got really mad." I explained slowly, trying to speak in a low voice so no one would overhear who or what we're talking about. 

"Actually, I have something to say as well." She responded in a low, frail tone and I gulped to push away my guilt. I put her in danger by asking her here, just to tell her that I was losing my chances to save her. 

"There's a meeting happening at a hotel in a week. Dad's going to be there, along with a lot of the uncles... Katsumi, I'm scared they're going to do something really bad." Her glasses were off now and I could see the true fear in her eyes. 

"And... I overheard someone talking about a detective that broke into one of the offices. They mentioned a woman that they found familiar..." She didn't have to explain why they found me familiar. I already knew who she was talking about. I sighed, frustrated I had been so reckless. "They know you're in the city, but I don't think they know your name or where you live..." She explained and my heart stopped. I was lucky Kaga doesn't refer to me by name and I didn't have my badge on show. 

"I think we need to leave while we can. The next meeting is going to be big. If you can manage to be there, I'll be waiting for you. But I'm leaving the first chance I get." Her words echoed in my skull. 

‘I'll have to leave my life behind? The one I worked so hard to get? I'll have to leave my job, Naruko..? I'll have to leave Kaga...’ The words vibrated in my skull like a resounding alarm as I thught about what being discovered meant. 

"I have money and a ride. Somewhere to stay. It won't be difficult once I get away. Katsumi, I want you to come with me. My life has been so empty without you. So much more than I expected..." Juna reached forward to grab my hand. I was biting the tip of my thumb, trying to plan with the information she gave me. 

"We'll be safer together..." Juna added on, leading off when she realised I was stunned to silence, clutching my hand to bring me back to earth but knowing I couldn't feel her support that way. Her fingers worked up my wrist and I finched when she touched the skin on the inside of my wrist, a place I could feel, and my gaze fell on her. She looked just as scared, just as earnest as she was the day I talked her into running away. I never thought I'd be the one that would hesitate. 

"What about our plan, Juna? I'm so close. If I can just get the pictures to one of my instructors, he'll be locked up. Maybe even executed. They're already doing an investigation." I explained. I really wanted to stay. I was enjoying the life I had made for myself. Even with how hard it was right now. Even if the people I had grown close to c ould never know the real me, the reason I became a cop, I felt like they knew the me I had become. Hopefully they trusted me enough to not ask why I had those pictures.

"What happens when they ask you where you got them? When they find out who you really are? Who we are? The moment dad realises where you are... He'll kill both of us." She argued back, trying to bring me to my senses. 

"You're not safe there, Katsu. Just look what happened to you when you got involved with his case." Juna gestured to my bandaged leg and I cursed how right she was. If they were already suspicious, it wouldn't take them long to realise what I was working on. The threat of being discovered would push them to be more reckless. More unpredictable. Who knew what they'd be willing to do. 

"I've been out for too long. Look at this. It might help you decide." Picking up the black backpack she had carried here with her, Juna sighed. 

"What is it?" I asked, pulling on the zip. I peered in to see a few files of paper, a piece of cloth and a flash drive. 

"I found your old camera hidden in our room," Juna explained as I pulled the paper out to find photos of gruesome acts and forced them back in desperately but carefully enough not to crease them. 

"Juna..." I led off, knowing how dangerous it could be to get these images. 

"I saved some accounting documents to the flash drive. It proves they're embezzling from uncle's company and they’re paying off cops and hitmen. I think I saw Takeda's name in there as well." She continued and I looked at her in shock. 

"You're a better detective than I am." I laughed defeatedly, ashamed she had to do this when it was my job to protect her. I should never have left her or made us try and forget each other.

"It's kind of exciting. I can see why you do this." She returned a tired smile. She was probably kept awake at night, worrying that someone would discover what she was doing. I know I was.

"What's this?" I pulled out a silken rag decorated with red splatters. 

"It was under dad's bed. I'm not entirely sure, but it might be from mom..." She led off, knowing what this meant. 

‘So he really did kill her.’ I clenched the bloodied scarf in my hand, having a vague memory of our mother possibly wearing it. 

"I have to get going. Will I see you at the hotel?" She stood up without the bag. I looked up and smiled sadly, giving her a heavy nod. 

As she turned to leave, I noticed a black SUV approaching the shop with the back window pulled down. Seconds later, a hand pulls a gun through the window. 

"Gun!" I screamed, running to Juna and pushing her to the floor with the full force of my launched body. As bullets sprayed into the glass storefront, I held my body over my sister's to protect her. 

When the blaring bangs halted, I hesitantly raised my head to look around. Car alarms were going off and I could hear a woman crying loudly as I searched for the car. 

"It's gone," I muttered, standing up to get a better view of the street. 

As I looked at the destruction in front of me, my sister hobbled to her feet. "A-Are you okay?" She looked at me with trembling legs, arms reaching out to hold mine, maybe in an effort to stable herself or make sure I'm actually alive. I saw some customers rising from the hiding spots and heard a man calling for help.

"You need to go. Before the police get here." I rushed to my sister's side, guiding her in the direction she was already going. 

"But Katsu-." 

"They'll question you if they see you here. Go home, tell dad it was a rival or something. Just go." I spoke in a low voice as I pushed her along. "I have things here," Were my last words to my sister as she started running down the street.

When I turned back around, I saw some bodies laying on the floor and glass was sprayed everywhere. 

"Ma'am, can you call emergency service?" I kneeled in front of a woman who was likely in shock but seemed otherwise unaffected. She gave me a rushed nod as I got up to look at the injured.

There was a man lying in the doorway with the cafe's uniform on. A woman in a similar uniform was holding him up, tears spilling out of her eyes as blood poured out of his abdomen. I hurriedly grabbed a fabric tablecloth from where I had been sitting and rushed over to them, not caring for the glass mugs that shattered on the ground. 

"Sir, are you awake?" I asked, remembering to apply pressure to the gunshot wound from my training in the police academy and what I could gather as a child. 

"H-He passed out. Or he's dead. I... I can't tell." The woman stuttered out as his head laid in her lap, voice hoarsening as she spoke. 

"Miss, can you press on here. I need to see if anyone else is injured." I didn't try to make my voice softer as I grabbed her arm, pulling her to my side. I had felt him breathing through his mouth. There's nothing more I could do for him personally. I had no first aid kits and no professional medical training apart from this.

"Bu-But what if he dies?" The shock she was in prevented her from wanting to touch him except for cradling his skull in her lap. 

"He won't if you apply pressure. An ambulance will be here soon, but he won't live if you don't do this." I forced the tablecloth into her hand and then on the man's side where he was hit.

Once I ensured she was aware enough to continue, I moved onto the next person. There was an older man, resting, or having fallen that way, with his back against the half-wall of the cafe. He was clutching his shoulder, red seeping through the partings of his fingers.

"Hey, how're you feeling?" I slid to his side, asking to see his wound so I could assess the damage. 

"A... A little woozy." He stammered out, trying to act strong but I could tell he was scared. 

"That'll be the shock. The bullet went straight through, so it should be an easy fix when you get to the hospital." I explained as I took the tie from around his neck, obviously asking first. 

"Well, I've lived this long. I guess I've gotta keep going." The man was in the makings of a suit, but I assumed he had left his blazer at his office. Tying the tie over his wound, I took a few of the paper napkins from the host's counter just outside the front door and stuffed them under the tie. I knew he'd be too weak to put appropriate pressure himself. 

"Too right. Stick tight, help will be here soon." I put a comforting hand on his other shoulder and gave him a calm smile before heading inside.

Climbing through the now empty window frame, as I wasn't sure if I should move the man from the doorway and sure as hell didn't want to try and step over him, probably scratching up my legs on the shards that settled there, I looked around for anyone crying. Calling out, I heard a little kid yelling from the back of the small room. My eyes widened at the familiar cry of an innocent child and charged to where I heard them. In the corner, behind the service counter, a little boy was sitting next to a woman with blood already puddling at her sides.

"H-Hey, kiddo, how are you doing?" Knowing how traumatic it could be to witness something so horrific, I kneeled by the opposite side of the woman the boy is sitting. The spots of red on her blouse, holes ripped through it, was obvious she had been hit twice, maybe three times, I couldn't count right now. Not when it was possible this kid may watch a human being die right before his eyes.

"M-Mom got hurt." I could see he was trying to hold back tears as he held his mom's hand. I looked down at her body and saw a splatter of red pumping out of her thigh far more intensely than the others on her torso. The mother's expression was pained and she looked a little out of it, probably delirious with agony and blood loss. 

"Toto. Are you alright?" She mumbled over and over as I found something to plug the hole in her leg.

"Is that your name? Toto?" I tried to distract the kid from his mother's slurred words, trying my best to plug the two other holes in her body. Hopefully, god please, I could help her enough until paramedics arrived. The kid nodded curtly, scared if he talked he would cry. 

"I'm Atsuko. Can you be brave for me?" I asked, pressing on the wound that likely came from a major artery. He looked up at me. "I asked a woman outside to call the hospital, but she seemed a little shaken up. Can you call them for me?" I tried not to let my gaze leave his, wanting to draw his attention away from the wettening body below us. Taking the phone from my back pocket, I hand over what must look like a relic to him.

The boy called the emergency services and put it on speaker so I could talk. "This is Officer Atsuko Motomori. There's been a shooting at Cafe Zero down Empire Street. Please send paramedics for at least three victims." As I announced my badge number so they knew I wasn’t lying, I spoke fast and clear, noticing the mother's consciousness fade. 

‘You can't do this. Not to him. You can't die in front of him.’ I moved from her leg to her torso, feeling for a pulse on her neck. ‘It's weak, but there.’ I started pushing on her chest to keep her heart beating and blood pumping to her brain. Luckily, there was a waiter watching over us that had a belt so I could secure a makeshift tunicate to her thigh so she doesn't bleed out as fast.

"Ambulances and police are on their way." The operator responded bluntly. 

"Can you take him somewhere else?" I peered up at the waiter standing in the opening of the counter. 

"No! I don't wanna leave my mom!" Toto cried out but I shot him a concerned and slightly annoyed look, probably scarely similar to Kaga's. 

"Your mom doesn't want you to see her like this, okay, Toto? I'm going to make her better so that you guys can go to the hospital together, but it's going to be scary." As I'm telling him, sweat is growing on my brow far thicker than the ottest day on earth could make as I pressed all my body weight on the woman's chest to a rhythmic beat. 

"I-I'm brave enough." The boy stuttered and it was clear he was terrified. 

"You're not a wimp to go, Toto. You're not cowardly to hide, you're brave to leave your mom's life in someone else's hands. Trust me, you don't want to see this." I lowered my voice so only he could hear, hoping to seem more personal. He looked from me to his mom's sleeping face and I could see the tear dams break behind his eyes. He got up and took the hand of the waiter, walking to a table on the other side of the counter.

"You can't die on him, you hear me? Do you know what that will do to him?" I panted as I whispered, enraged my father would open fire on a building of civilians. It was likely that the people following Juna hadn't lost her and decided to do this as a warning. Hopefully, for both of our sakes, my sister could convince him that this was some sort of action performed by a rivalling gang trying to intimidate him or a gang members betrayal.

When I next checked the mother's pulse, it was slightly better than before. 

"The paramedics are here!" A voice called out and I looked up in relief. Toto came running around the corner, probably having escaped the waiter, and looked down at his mom, covered in blood but slowly awakening. He cried out her title and ran to her side and I couldn't help but smile. I stood up, calling the paramedics as they made their way through the door, having extracted the male waiter.

"She lost consciousness for a bit, but I performed compressions and she's coming around again," I explained as they came running around the counter. I grabbed Toto and pulled him off her so the trained professionals could get a look at her before sending her to an ambulance. 

"I-Is she going to be okay?" He asked as I picked him up, carrying him around the counter so that we wouldn't intrude. I didn't want to give him false hope if I was too late to save her, but I didn't want to break his heart unnecessarily.

"She should do good. It was all because of your bravery that she woke up again." I laughed, tapping underneath his chin to get him to raise his head. I only noticed now that my hands were covered in blood. I looked down and so were my legs, having kneeled in the mom's blood that had come out before I got to her. 

"Thank you!" He cried out, wrapping his arms around my neck as he sat on the counter.

Then, the paramedics announce that they were ready to go. I told Toto to go with them and he ran after her gurney.

Finally having a moment to myself, I dropped to the floor in exhaustion. I had been running on so much adrenaline that my head now felt light as I sunk to my knees. Soon, the waiter who had helped me with Toto ran to my side, helping me up so I could sit in a glass-free chair.

After he got me a glass of water and the other paramedics on the scene looked over me for any serious injuries, I heard police sirens driving closer. Several uniforms came out of the cars that pulled up outside and started questioning us all about the incident. I explained how I had seen the car approaching and, after I heard the gunshots ending, went to help the people who were injured. I left out the part where my sister had been here, not wanting to get her involved, and hoped no one else noticed her through the mania.

"Well done, Officer Motomori. You were good to act so quickly. Although, you do look a little pale. Do you want a ride to the hospital?" The officer questioning me slapped his booklet shut and I jumped a little at the sudden noise. 

"I-I should be fine." I stuttered, even though I noticed my hands shaking. I had already refused an ambulance ride, I definitely didn't want to go in a squad car.

"...Okay. We'll give you a ride back to your home. You can't go wandering the streets like that." The older man chuckled and I looked down at my reddened body. The bandage I had around my leg had unravelled and my own wound had started bleeding again, probably because of any glass that I most likely kneeled in. I had a lot of little cuts as well.

"Can I make a call first?" I look back up with a tired expression and he nodded, handing me his phone. I had washed my hands by now, so I wasn't too worried about getting blood all over his possession.

Shakily, I typed in the number for the Instructor's Staff Room. "Captain Ishigami." The stone-cold voice spoke up over the phone and I was somewhat disheartened, somehow expecting to hear my mentor's. It wasn’t like he would answer a phone anyway. I shook my head. 

"U-Um, sir, it's Motomori. I'm sorry f-for disturbing you. But... There was this... This..." Not knowing how to explain the situation, I took in the scene around me. There was glass swept all over the floor and tables and chairs are overturned. I could see bullet holes in some of the furniture and the actual bullets were either in the wall or on the floor next to it. A cold shiver ran through me to finally understand how close to death I really was and the sweat on my body only made the breeze blowing through the hollowed window frames icy.

"Motomori, what is it?" Ishigami sounded annoyed that I was lost for words. Then, the officer who had been watching me took the phone back. He introduced himself before explaining the situation, but I wasn’t  really listening. 

‘I was actually able to save someone.’ Joy filled my heart. My father had done something despicable to so many innocent people, and I was actually able to help. I didn't just have to sit there and take pictures for when I could use them in an investigation, I was able to stop a murder from taking place in the first place. However, that delight was short lived.

"Alright, Officer Motomori, you're captain will be by soon to pick you up." Hanging up from the conversation with my instructor, the officer looked at me with a smile. 

"Did that really just happen?" I looked up at him with shame and fear wrapped in my expression. Even though I was able to help, it was still my fault they all got hurt in the first place. If I hadn't come here or told Juna to meet me, there would never have been a shooting. Toto would never have had to see his mom almost die. 

"Are you sure you're going to be okay?" The officer put a hand on my arm as my gaze wandered again. At the end of the counter, I could see the puddle of blood left by Toto's mom slowly crawling out, almost taunting me with the knowledge of my naivety. 

‘How could I think we could meet safely?’  

I nodded with a small, encouraging smile.

~~~~~~

By the time Ishigami arrived, I was still sitting with the cop, just trying to compute what happened. He looked at the destroyed cafe, and then at my bloodied body. Soma was with him, but no Kaga. I found myself looking around them in hopes he would be here. 

"Captain Ishigami. You have a very capable, young cadet here!" The officer sitting with me jumped up, trying to lighten my spirits by praising me. "She was able to act quickly and three people are on their way to the hospital instead of our morgue." However morbid, the statement was true. It was lucky I had the training I needed to save them.

"Atsuko." Soma kneeled down in front of me to catch my gaze as it drifted to my legs. The blood had dried by now, staining my legs and my clothes. I looked at Instructor Soma as he smiled kindly. 

"Instructor. I...I'm sorry." I apologised, but I'm sure they didn't know why. He laughed at this and I realised what I said. I bit my lip to stop myself from talking further. It was an instinct from a child. The last time I had seen this much blood in one room.

"I'm not Kaga. I'm not going to yell at you. Come on, you need to rest. Remember that r'n'r we talked about?" He s stood up and I followed his rising stature with my eyes. 

"O-Okay." Embarrassed by the apology I made, I got up. As I was walking out the door, I remembered the bag Juna had left for me and rushed to pick it up, making sure the zip was closed so that no one could see the contents.

"Is it really okay? Won't your car get messy?" I asked as Ishigami tells me to sit in the back seat. My legs were covered in blood, thankfully not all mine. I only had little cuts and scrapes. And when I say covered, it looked like I was wearing red shin pads. My clothes were likely ruined and I felt like I might smell a little, having exerted so much energy trying to keep Toto's mom alive. 

"It's fine, just get in." He got in the driver's side and I was forced to jump in before I got left behind.

~~~~~~

When we got back to the academy, everyone that was sitting out in the rays of the setting sun were staring at me. I probably looked crazed. Maybe they thought I had flipped out after Kaga dropped me from the case, because it looked like I had killed someone. Suddenly, Naruko ran up to me as I walked behind the instructors. 

"Atsuko! Oh my god, what happened to you?" She held my arms as she shrieked. 

"There was a shooting at the cafe I went to. Don't worry, I'm not hurt." I laughed, trying to help her not worry. To be honest, I probably wasn’t as affected by that scene as I should have been. I had watched people die before, many times before, so I was somewhat used to it. 

"You're covered in blood!" She yelped again and I could tell Ishigami was getting annoyed. I reassured her that it wasn’t mine and she just sighed. "How are you so calm?" She sounds exasperated as she held my arm, encouraging me to keep walking to the dorms. 

"My dad was a butcher, so I'm used to blood." It took me a moment to respond with a nervous shrug, hoping to make up a viable lie. Hopefully the instructors wouldn't feel the need to double check that information on my made up file.

"I swear you're not even human." She laughed, thinking back to all the training I was able to do without complaint.

~~~~~~

Once she escorted me back to my dorm, I threw my bag far underneath my bed and took a shower, scrubbing at my skin to get all the blood off. I hadn't realised, but I had smudges all over my face from where I was wiping the sweat off my brow. 

‘This... This can’t happen again. I can’t let it happen again’. I clutched the water basin to hold my weak body up during my contemplation. I felt so guilty and helpless in that moment. If I couldn’t go back in time and stop that shooting from happening, stop Toto’s mom and all those people from getting hurt, I would have to make sure it never happened ever again.

~~~~~~

When I was done cleaning myself up, I went down to the cafeteria to get a well-deserved meal.

"Hey, Motomori! Heard about that cafe. Well done out there!" A male classmate called out from his table as I passed. 

"Oh, thanks, but I was just doing what I could at the time." I showed an anxious smile, not wanting to give it more attention than it already had.

"Motomori, did you really bring someone back from the dead?" Another called out from a different table and my gaze whipped around. 

"W-Well, it was a close call, but she didn't die. And how did you hear about that?" I replied, stumbling over my words as everyone started to surround me, asking questions of what it was like to be in such a disastrous scenario. 

After a bit, having escaped the line without buying any food, I got overwhelmed and stormed out the hall.

~~~~~~

On the roof, I made sure whether or not anyone was there before I started to pace. If Kaga wast here, I would ave hated for him to see me so freaked out, he would think I was more moronic than he already did. Unfortunately, I saw him in his usual corner, breathing out smoke. Just as I was about to turn, his gaze caught mine. He looked down at my body, scanning for any signs of fear or delayed shock. When he saw that I'm neither shaking nor swaying, holding my breath just in case my racing heart betrayed me, he turned back to the view of the city before him. I released the breath I was holding and ran back to the door, wanting to be here as much as I wanted to be badgered by my overexcited classmates.

~~~~~~

Once I returned to the dorms, it was a little after dark. "Oh, Atsuko, there you are!" Naruko cheered when she saw me pass by a common room she was lounging in. 

"Sorry I had to leave! I just needed to get some air." I smiled, although nervous that she would ask me where I had been. 

"It's not a problem. Those guys were too pushy." She shook her head and frowned at some of the men that had surrounded me earlier. 

"So, what did you do today?" I asked, wanting to get my mind off those memories. She looked a little surprised at first, but soon understood why I asked. 

"I got to do some serious studying for next week's exam!" She smiled brightly as we started walking to our rooms. 

"Oh yeah..." I quickly remembered a big part of my plan for next week might be greatly impeded if I were to attend.

"It's at this hotel. Apparently it's a big meeting of some major crime syndicates!" Naruko was so excited, she didn't even notice me stop. 

‘Could that be the meeting Juna was talking about?’ I started to think about how, if the mission went well, I wouldn't have to run away again. I could continue my life here, like my past wasn't a thing. As Naruko pulled me back to earth, I showed her a smile full of hope.

[chickensarentcheap]

I Found (chapter 14)

Warnings: fluffy but angsty Tyler

Tagging: @alievans007 (even though she asked where her chapter was and knew this was coming ;) ) @c-a-v-a-l-r-y  @hemmyworthy

He watches her as she sits on a bench  in the hotel courtyard,  the hood of the sweater pulled over her head, eyes riveted on the cellphone in her hand as her fingers composed a text message.  Tyler has his work cut out for him; recognizing his own faults and his own mistakes has always been a struggle, never mind actually apologizing for them. He had learned a lot over the past year. Specifically the last eight months; having to get used to domestic bliss and worrying about someone other than himself. It had been a long time since he'd had to take someone else's feelings into consideration, and even now he struggled with. Easily reverting back to old adults and an old life where he only had himself, a dog, and a chicken to take care of.

In his mind, he had made the right decision for his family. The most feasible and logical option. The safest. Lure the bad guys away from Ovi and effectively Esme and the baby. He hadn't stopped to take into consideration that she needed him. That he was the only who who has ever made her feel safe. Secure. Protected.

He moves towards the door, only to have Jason step through it and effectively block his way. There's something he doesn't like about the kid. Something he just can't quite put a finger on. Normally he could read others feel; able to easily see through their bullshit, identify their weakness, exploit them if he had to. But this kid remains an enigma. A puzzle to crack. Something more sinister and untrustworthy hiding under those boy next door looks and his polite, almost naive down south persona.

“Just what in the hell do you think you're doing?” Tyler asks. He isn't a man that plays games. And this kid was well on his way to playing a very dangerous one.

“She said she needed some fresh air. A chance to be alone. Think.”

“Are you honestly trying to stop me from going to see my own wife?  You need to take about two steps back. Before I drop you on your ass.”

The younger man moves to block his way once again. Using those wide shoulders to effectively bar Tyler's entrance into the courtyard.

“I just think it's best if you leave her alone,” he suggests. “Let her catch her breath. Clear her head a little.”

A smirk tugs at the corners of Tyler's mouth and his eyes narrow and his voice drops.  The way it always did when the bad guys tried to play their mind games and pull their bullshit.  When they didn't know just exactly who he was, what he did, and how dangerous he could be. Like that day back in Dhaka, when he gone into that squalid apartment, surrounded by hostiles, and laid eyes on Ovi Mahajan Junior for the first time.

“You've been here for what? Two days? Forty eight hours and suddenly you're an expert on what is best for her? For my wife?”

“Well someone has to think what's best for her,” he bravely retorts.

Tyler gives a derisive snort. Fists clenching. Jaw tightening. “I think you better take those steps back, mate. I've dealt with bigger and better than you. I won't hesitate when it comes to putting a foot up your ass.”

“I just think that everyone needs to calm down. Look at this all rationally. Take a breath and...”

Before he can finish, Tyler has his forearm in a vice like grip; twisting it painfully behind his back and then propelling him forward, slamming him face first into the plate glass window.

“I don't know exactly who you are or who the hell you think you are or what games you're playing. But if you ever get in my way again. I will fuck you up so badly your own mother won't be able to recognize you. If you so as much look at me the wrong way, if you so as much even think of trying to get between me and my wife, if you so as much as even go near my daughter, I promise you that I will make what guys like Asif to do people look tame. You understand me?”

A brisk tap on the glass next to them captures Tyler's attention. Nik stands behind it, watching the altercation through the window.  And when she and Tyler make eye contact, her gaze hardens and her brow furrows and she shakes her head with the utmost disdain.

He relents. Giving the kid one last shove before stepping backwards, hands held up in surrender.

The kid shows no emotion. Not a hint of fear playing on his face or glittering in his eyes.  Whether it was an act or he truly was cold as ice, Tyler didn't know, but it was unsettling. Troubling. Like the moments before an ally turns out to be an enemy and they strike.  The only outward sign of uneasiness is the sweat that beads across his forehead and the bobbing of his Adam's apple as he swallows noisily. His eyes never leaving Tyler's as he simply straightens his suit jacket and his tie.

“Have you ever stopped to consider that maybe it's you that needs to worry?” he speaks, no shakiness or trepidation in his voice. “That maybe you're the one that needs to step back and watch yourself?”

It's a threat. Tyler knows it is.  And now he is the one that's feeling uneasy.  Uncharacteristically frazzled by the tone in the younger man's voice and that icy cool demeanour.  “I don't want to see you around her again,” he warns. “Unless I'm the one that tells you to be. You hear me? Now walk away.”

Jason takes a step forward, then hesitates when he notices the fiery in Tyler's eyes and the way his arms are tense as they hang by his side, hands clenched tightly into fists.  He'd heard the stories. He'd seen the numbers. The aftermath of what one single man...this man...could do.  Tyler Rake was fearless. Savage. Merciless.

“Walk...away...” Tyler's voice is low, menacing. Nostrils flaring as he fights to control his temper.  He had promised he wouldn't be that man again. The one that could smile at someone one minute and rip them apart the next.   But old habits do truly die hard.

Jason finally cracks.  With nothing more than a simple nod as he turns on his heel. His gait slow. Unhurried.  Purposeful. The message he is sending loud and clear.

****

Esme looks up briefly as he approaches.  She's been crying; eyes rimmed with red, swollen and puffy. That sad, heartbreaking glitter  that he hates seeing. And hates himself for causing.

“Very smooth, Tyler,” she looks back down at her phone  “Beating up the help.”

“Nothing's more hurt than his pride. You know, there's something about that kid I don't like. He's too eager. Too willing. Especially when it comes to you.”

“That's called jealousy, Tyler. I know you're usually incapable of feeling other emotions outside of intense anger and astonishing self loathing, but I'm actually quite flattered that you feel that strongly about something. About someone. All over little old me.”

“I deserved that,” he says in response, and she gives a little snort, refusing to make eye contact with him.

For what seems like an eternity, neither of them speak. The kind of silence that hangs so thick in the air, you can hear the rushing of the blood through your body or a pin drop in a room on the other side of the house, on an entirely different level.  One that is so deafening that you would do anything to quell the agony.

He stands in front of her, hands on his hips, watching her.  The gun seeming impossibly heavy as it sits in its holster, clipped to the waist band of his pants.  It's a weight that he had hoped to never bear again.  A life that he had hoped was well and truly behind him. Naive, he supposed. As once you were in the game, you never were truly out of it.

Unless you were dead.  

He's the first to break.   “What are you doing?”

“Texting.”

The one word answer aggravates him.  “Who?”

“My other husband,” she huffs, and heaves a sigh of exasperation. “My mother. I've been trying to get a hold of her since last night. I don't know if my texts aren't going through or if there might be something wrong or if she's just given up on me and is just completely ignoring me...”

“I'm sure she's just busy. I doubt she's given up on you. She's your mom. Moms don't give up on their kids.”  He'd only had a short time with his own mother. But in the time that they had had together, he discovered that it was true.  No matter the distance or the issues between them, a mothers love for their child never stops.  Nor does their desire to nurture them. Or protect them at all costs.

“I just wanted to let her know that we had to go away for a while.  Not to bother calling the apartment because we wouldn't be there. And not to panic or worry if she can't get a hold for me for a little bit. I just wanted to...I don't know...”  another sigh. This one shaky and sad. “...I just wanted her to know that I love her. That I miss her. She needs to hear that.”

He nods. “I think she deserves to hear that.”

“Just in case,” Esme says, and flips the phone case closed. “Just in case.”

He drops to his knees in front of her, grimacing at the pain that shoots through his right leg. Gently pushing the hood off of her head.  His hands rest on her thighs. The weight of them heavy. Familiar. The familiarity that comes with the things that you love the most.  The smell that lingers on the belongings of the person you love,  the sound of their voice over the phone when it's the dead of the night and they can't sleep and need to call you,  the feeling of their body alongside of you.  The little things that you take for granted but would miss if one day you woke up and they were no longer there.

“Everything's going to be okay,” he assures her. “We're going to be okay.”

She shakes her head. Wanting to believe him. Needing to believe him. But not knowing where to start.  “What if all goes wrong? What if shit just hits the fan and things end up worse than before. What if...”

“Stop,” he implores. “Just stop.  This isn't like before. This is nothing like that. What happened in Dhaka was almost a year ago. Almost twelve whole months. You need to let it go. You need to put it behind you. Leave it in the past.”

The tears that escape are hot, unrelenting. Huge droplets that linger on the tips of her eyelashes before rolling down her cheeks.  He hates seeing her like this. Struggling with her own demons and the things she'd seen and heard. While his life had nearly ended on that bridge, her new one had just begun.  A life that only two short weeks before hadn't involved him.  Neither of them had even known that the other existed. Two people on the same planet, at the same time, oblivious to the wheels that were already turning. Completely unaware that fate would soon drop them in one anothers paths.  

And he wonders...not for the first time...just what would have happened if he had have just walked away. If he hadn't let her rile him up and get the best of them  that day in their motel room. If he'd just fought that unbridled lust and the overwhelming need and want to feel alive again. The desperate hunger of needing to feel as  if he mattered to someone and had something to live for.

“I can't,” she whispers. “I don't know why. I just can't.  I was the one that was there, Tyler. With you. Not just on that bridge. But in all those moments afterwards. In that hospital. In a country on the other side of the world, thousands of miles from my home. In a life that I never asked for. That I definitely wasn't prepared for. A person that I didn't even recognize any more. I gave up everything for you, only to have you completely betray me. To turn on me the very second you got a chance.”

He feels like an asshole. A complete and utter fucking asshole. And he thinks of how he should have just walked away. That he never should have given into that temptation. No matter how hard she tested him. And he can see her. Standing there in front of him in that dark, filthy motel room. Looking up at him with those huge dark eyes full of desperation.

The ghost of a lost little girl lingering under the shell of a grown woman.

She had needed to feel something. Anything. And she had  wanted him to be the one that helped her feel it.  Two people damaged beyond all repair. Finding a way to escape from their pasts. Needing to silence the tortured voices inside of their heads. Needing to feel something other than emptiness and the bitter sting of loss and bad decisions.

“That wasn't my intention. I didn't betray you. I didn't do it to hurt you. I did it because I thought it was for the best.  I did it to protect you. To protect our daughter. Not to hurt you. I would never hurt you. I told you that a year ago. When you said that you were scared. Not of me but what you were feeling towards me. And I asked you what you were scared of. Do you remember?”

She nods. And she finally touches him. Those small hands resting atop of his.

“You told me that you were afraid of being hurt. That I'd hurt you. And do you remember what I told you? Do you?”

Another nod.

“I said I would never hurt you. And I meant that. I meant that right to my very soul.  Even then.”

“But you did.  Hurt me. Whether you meant to or not. Why would you do that? Why would you make all those promises to me about never leaving unless you had to? Unless you had no other choice? You have  a choice, Tyler. And you decide to just leave me there.  Why? Why would you do that? We're stronger together than we are apart. We always have been. I've put everything I have into you. Right from day one. All my love and all my trust and you turn around and make a decision like that.”

“I didn't do it to hurt you. Or betray you. I did it to keep you safe. To protect you.”

“The only time I've ever felt safe and protected is when I'm with you. I didn't even know that was something I wanted. Or a hole that needed to be filled. Until you came along and did it.”

He reaches up to take her face in his hands. Thumbs gentle as they brush away her tears.

“Don't leave me,” she begs. A far cry from the girl she was a year ago. The one that took no shit, who never let her guard down, who refused to let anyone past the walls that she'd built around her heart. Years of being let down by the men that she had let into her life. Trusting them and giving them her all, only to be left broken and battered when it all fell apart.  She's a shell of that former woman. And he blames himself.

  “Please. Don't leave me there. Don't run off on some goddamn suicide mission. Promise me. Promise me you won't do that.”

“Esme...”

“Promise me, Tyler. Promise me that I won't wake up one morning and find you gone. You don't have to fight this battle alone. This isn't just yours to fight.”

“But it should be.”

“But it doesn't have to be. Please don't do this.  Don't drop me there and then just disappear. Don't walk away from me. From our daughter. From us.”

“I'm not walking away from anything. Not from you Not from us. Not from our baby.  I made the decision that I thought was best for both of you. To protect my family.”

“I'm scared,” she admits. “I'm scared that you're going to just disappear on us in the middle of the night. That you'll just take off and that I'll never see you again. Promise me you'll stay.  Promise me you won't do that.”

She cradles his face in her hands. Thumbs brushing against his beard, the pads grazing over his lips.  Those tortured and desperate eyes never leaving his.

“I promise,” he says. “No running off in the middle of the night. No walking away.”

“Tell me we're in this together. That you're all in.”

“We're in this together,  I'm all in. I've been all in from the start. Wasn't that obvious? When I let you seduce me in that hotel room?”

She manages a laugh, sniffling through the remnants of her break down. “You and I remember that day very differently.”

“I remember what you what you were wearing.  A black tank top and jean shorts. The ones with the hole in the left leg and a tear in the ass. I remember that your hair was damp  and you had it had it up in a ponytail. And I remember that I could taste strawberries when I kissed you.”

There was more. So much more. The little things from that day. From that moment.  The sound of the traffic on the street outside; the clamouring of cars and the blaring of horns and the chattering and shouting of pedestrians. Loud music coming from the room upstairs. The sickly heat and humidity that hung in that little room and coated their bodies in a thin a sheen of sweat. The way his blood rushed through his veins and his heart hammered in his chest and his throat tightened.  The way she stood there looking up at him, challenging him to do something. Anything.  Looking impossibly small; desperation, want, need, all visible in those eyes. There was no fear in them. Even with his hand wrapped tightly around her throat.

And when she'd touched him, the brief brush of her chest against him, every nerve felt as if it were on fire.

Things that he'd hadn't felt in a long time. Things he'd never felt that intensely.

And he could remember...clear as day...how they lay in that in that mess of rumpled sheets and sweaty, tangled limbs, utterly spent from the intensity of the sex. How his hand was in her hair as she rested with her face against his chest, her breath warm and soft against his chest.  And that he'd thought how he didn't want it to end. That he didn't want her to walk away when the job ended. That he'd hoped she saw him  as more than just some conquest and a way of filling an empty bed and an empty heart.  And how he'd worried he wouldn't be the man that she needed.

That she deserved.

No. He wasn't brave. Regardless of what she thought. Or what Ovi said. He wasn't immortal. He was just a man that tried very hard not to show the world that he was human.

“I remember being scared,” she confesses.

“Of me?”

“No. Not of you.  I was scared of what was happening. How quick it was happening.  The things I was feeling. How screwed up it seemed that it was happening where it was happening. I mean, it wasn't exactly the ideal place. Or the time.”

He agreed with that.  But even when his brain had been telling him how just how wrong it was, his heart had been telling him the exact opposite. And for once he'd followed the latter.

“But no. I wasn't scared of you. Never of you.”

He smiles, turning his face into her hand as it rests on his cheek, pressing his lips to her palm.

“I can't lose you, Tyler. I already came close. Way too close. I don't want it crossing that line this time.”

“It won't,” he promises, and places a kiss to the inside of her wrist. “I have something for you,” he says, and digs a hand into the pocket of his hoodie. “I found it. In that little box you keep in the table by your side of the bed.”

By traditional standards, it isn't much. A simple leather bracelet. Intricately braided, with one small lapis stone in the middle. She'd spied it at the market that fateful day in Dhaka; when they allowed themselves to cross over that line. And it had been what driven him to loose his temper in the the first place: the fact that she had wandered off alone when he had distinctly told her to stay by his side at all times.  And when suddenly she wasn't beside him any longer and he couldn't spy here in the sea of people, he'd become frantic. The first time in his life that he'd felt genuine panic. Nik had entrusted him with the job of keeping Esme safe. And he'd failed.

He'd lost it on her. Practically dragging her back to the hotel and then just unloading on her once the door closed behind them. The next day...while she was still sleeping and recovering from a late night of numerous rounds of incredible sex...he'd went back to the market. Searching for that same vendor so he could find out just what had captured her attention.  It was the first thing he'd ever given. Aside from a baby in her belly.  And she'd looked at that inexpensive and simple bracelet as it if were the most priceless piece of jewellery in the entire world.

It had broken on that bridge. Where he'd nearly lost his life. And she'd still hung on to it; cleaning it the best she could and tucking it away into that little box that held various other mementos of her life that she'd squirrelled away.  He didn't have much to give her. And that had never mattered to her.  But that bracelet held more value than anything else in the world.

She smiles as she sees it. Resting there in the palm of his hand.

“I fixed it for you.  And I cleaned it. The best I could.”  There are still remnants of blood.  His blood. Clinging to leather, discolouring it in places. But she still doing it.  Sidelong glances he'd give when she was feeding or cuddling their daughter. Or when she'd be sitting on the couch with her legs tucked under her, top teeth resting on her bottom lip as she immersed herself in a novel.  Or when she'd laugh at one of his stupid jokes or she played along with his teasing, the way her eyes sparkled and the corners crinkled.

His fingers are gentle against the inside of her inside of her wrist as he secures the newly repaired clasp, and she places that hand on the side of his face and leans into him. Covering his mouth with hers in a kiss that ,while soft and so sweet, still manages to take his breath away.

[ddixons-angel]

Fated: Season 2

Summary: Gloria Rhee narrowly escapes Atlanta with her brother as the outbreak reaches the city. Luckily, they find a camp outside the city and together, they fend through encounters with the living and undead.

Starts a little before Season 1 and then follows the main storyline of the show.

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x Glenn Sister!OC

Warnings: major TWD spoilers, language, violence (the typical TWD stuff), self-harm

A/N: So I found out this morning that I just hit 104 followers, thank you to everyone’s support! I really really appreciate each and every one of you and I hope I don’t disappoint you guys with my writing. Anyway, enough of my rambling, on to Chapter 7!

Chapter 7

Gloria wakes up in Daryl’s tent, only to find it empty as she looks around. They had moved his tent back closer to the main camp the night before. Gloria puts on her jean jacket over her army green tank top then gets out of the tent, finding the crutches on a tree right by the tent. She hops over on her good leg to the tree and mounts the crutches. She sees Daryl over by Shane’s truck as he’s getting ready to go out and look for Glenn, Rick, and Hershel. The sound of a car zooming onto the property catches everyone’s attention. Hershel stepped out of the car first, relieving everyone that they were all back, safe.

“Patricia, get the shed ready for surgery.” Hershel calls out.

Gloria frowns at this, “surgery... that can’t be good.” she makes her way to the car, letting out a breath of relief when she sees Rick and Glenn come out seemingly unharmed.

Glenn looks over towards Gloria and nods to her, wordlessly telling her that he’s fine, she smiles and nods back. Maggie runs over to Glenn and hugs him tightly. 

“Who the hell is that?” T-Dog asks aloud, pointing to the blindfolded teenager in the backseat.

“His name is Randall.” Glenn answers simply, pushing Maggie gently off him. 

He makes his way over to help Rick carry the semi-conscious Randall into the shed where Hershel had already walked off to. Sitting around the dining table, they all discuss what to do about the newly found stranger. 

“He’s a threat, his friends shot at Rick and Glenn, we need to get rid of him.” Shane voices out his opinion.

Rick nods at this, “I agree, he is a threat. We’ll drive out with him blindfolded so he can’t find his way back here, leave him out there with supplies to get by for a bit.”

“No, what if his group finds him here before he heals up?” Shane argues, regardless of Rick agreeing with him at first.

“They’re not looking for him, they left him for dead.” Rick assures. 

“And you’re sure he won’t be able to find his way back to the farm?” Gloria asks, referring to the first plan Rick had explained.

“We brought him here blindfolded and we’ll do the same when we drop him out there. He won’t know where this place is.” Rick says confidently.

With Rick’s plan being the final decision, he and Shane wait for Hershel to finish with the surgery before consulting with him and to their surprise, he agrees to the idea. They take the now unconscious Randall and load him up in the trunk, making sure to tie him up and blindfold him beforehand. 

Hershel goes off to check on Beth, and Gloria follows him, “she had a fever before, but it’s gone down a fair bit. We made sure to keep her fed and hydrated until you came back.” she updates him.

Her words make Hershel look at her, “do you have any background in the medical field, young lady?”

“I studied in Health Sciences and interned for a few years at a hospital.” she shrugs.

A pleasantly shocked expression spreads on Hershel’s face, “well then, how come you didn’t bother to help me with the surgery?” he chuckles.

“I didn’t want to overstep my boundaries, especially with everything that happened in the last week.” Gloria explains.

Hershel nods, smiling softly at her, “I’m glad you’re this thoughtful, completely different from a certain individual in your group.”

Gloria chuckles, “Shane... he hasn’t always been this way, although I can’t say for sure since I only met him a few months ago.”

She glances over her shoulder as Maggie walks into the room, a serious and disapproving look on her face as she looks at her father. Sensing the tension, Gloria excuses herself and hobbles out of the room, giving the father-daughter some privacy. Gloria makes her way down the steps and to the main camp where she sees Glenn, looking rather distressed. 

“You look stressed,” she calls out, “what’s wrong?”

He sighs, “Maggie told me she loves me.”

Gloria blinks at this answer, confused, “shouldn’t you be happy about that?”

“Maybe if we were still living in a world where we aren’t always in danger or fighting for our lives.” Glenn says, shaking his head. 

“Sit down.” she sighs, then takes a seat beside him as well, “talk to me, bro, what happened?”

He takes a deep breath, “when I was with Rick and Hershel at that bar, we had a run in with Randall’s people, had a shootout and Rick and Hershel were depending on me to help them get out of there but... but I froze, I was scared.”

“Hey, it’s normal to be scared during a gunfight.” Gloria tries to comfort him.

“It’s not that simple.” he sighs again, “I wasn’t scared for myself, I was scared for Maggie. I was scared that if anything happened to me, she’d get hurt. I never have to worry about you like that because you’re the badass in the family, yeah sure you’ll hurt for a bit but you’ll get over it, but Maggie isn’t the same.”

Gloria looks to the ground, she ponders whether or not to tell him that it would kill her if anything happened to him, but decided against it since Glenn was relying on her to comfort him, “Then you go in guns blazing and make sure you make it back in one piece. Be extra careful, that’s all there is to it.”

Glenn rolls his eyes at that, “that’s a lot easier said than done.”

“Glenn,” she looks at him seriously, “do you love Maggie?”

He blushes slightly at the question then nods, “I do.”

“I think you should tell her.” Gloria smiles, happy for him.

Glenn shrugs, “I’ll think about it.”

“What is with you guys and saying you’ll think about it when you know you’re already gonna do it.” Gloria rolls her eyes and scoffs. 

“What?” Glenn raises an eyebrow, “who else are you referring to?”

“No one, just talking in general.” she says, leaning her arms on her knees. 

Later on in the day, Glenn had left Gloria at the tents to go keep Dale company with T-Dog on top of the RV. Maggie and Andrea were supposed to all be in the house looking after Beth who had woken up as she was emotionally unstable. Hershel was tending to his crops with Patricia. Gloria watches from the tents as Maggie comes out of the house and shortly after Andrea comes out of the house as well. She frowns at this as she wasn’t sure where Lori was and someone was supposed to keep an eye on Beth at all times. Grabbing her crutches, Gloria hobbles to the house and makes her way up the steps, struggling slightly but still making it. 

“Beth?” she calls out as she enters the house, making her way into the room she was supposed to be in. 

Gloria gets to Beth’s room and frowns when she sees that it’s empty, she hears footsteps from behind her, “where’s Beth?” Maggie asks once she also sees the room is empty.

“I don’t know, I saw you and Andrea leave the house so I just got here to check up on her.” Gloria explains. 

Maggie’s about to say something else when they both turn at the sound of glass shattering from the closed door of the bathroom. Panicked, Maggie runs to the door and starts trying to open it, banging on the door and calling out to Beth. 

“Beth? Beth, sweetie, open the door, please! I’m not mad, come out Bethie, I’m not mad.” Maggie desperately calls out for her sister.

The commotion causes Lori to come into the room, immediately realizing what’s going on; she whispers that she left her with Andrea. Lori frantically looks around and quickly grabs a crowbar leaning on the wall by the fireplace. Lori ushers the two others to move as she pries the door open, revealing a crying Beth as she holds onto her bloody wrist.

“I’m sorry.” Beth sobs out.

Maggie tears up and whimpers as she enters the bathroom, attempting to soothe her younger sister. Gloria turns to Lori and asks her to go get Hershel, she nods and heads out. Maggie, Gloria and Lori are outside on the porch as Hershel stitches up Beth’s wrist, Gloria and Lori trying to comfort Maggie. Andrea had made her way to the porch, rushing as she heard what happened. 

“Where the hell were you?” Maggie walks up to Andrea as soon as she sees her.

“I heard, is she alright?” Andrea asks, breathless.

“If you stayed with her, then she would be.” Maggie crosses her arms, “where were you?”

Ignoring her question, Andrea asks, “how bad is she?”

“Not that deep.” Lori tells her, as Gloria eyes the blonde. 

A smile grows on Andrea’s face, “she chose to live.” 

“Beth just tried to kill herself, my dad’s stitching up her wrist right now!” Maggie says, furious.

“She’ll live.” Andrea says arrogantly, and that was the last straw for Gloria.

She throws her crutches down the porch, startling Lori, and makes her way down the porch and grabs Andrea’s arm, pulling her away, “What the hell is wrong with you?”

Annoyed now, Andrea yanks her arm out of Gloria’s grip, “I did nothing wrong! Beth made her choice and she chose to live!”

Gloria scoffs at this, “are you stupid?! Do you actually believe that you did the right thing by leaving her alone?!” 

“I do, I am right, because Beth now wants to live, she realized that she wants to live.” Andrea still adamant on her answer. 

“Do you have any idea how lucky you got with that?” Gloria says, glaring at Andrea, “What if she really did want to die? What if she did die? Or what if she wanted to take it back, realizing she wants to live only when it’s too damn late?! What if she cut too deep and Hershel wasn’t able to stitch her back up, did you ever think about that?! If Beth died today, her blood would be on your hands. Now you look me in the eye and tell me you can take responsibility for that.” 

Andrea looks down, ashamed and defeated, she cowers, giving her answer to Gloria’s last question as a silent no.

“Yeah, I didn’t think so.” Gloria backs off, “stay away from Beth and Maggie.”

Embarrassed and ashamed, Andrea turns around and walks away from the house. Lori and Maggie had gone back into the house. Gloria picked up the crutches she had thrown out of anger and mounted them again, making her way to the tents, not wanting to swarm Beth since there were enough people in the house. 

---

Rick and Shane had returned from their trip to drop off Randall, however, they had brought him back to the farm as they had learned that he knew who Maggie was. This made him an even bigger danger to the group now because even blindfolded, he knew how to get back to the farm. He could potentially lead his old group to them, possibly for vengeance towards Rick as he had killed some of their people. Daryl was in the barn where they had imprisoned the teenager, interrogating him. The others were waiting for him to come out at the tents. Gloria was leaning on a tree, keeping her eye on the barn and once she saw Daryl coming out, she pushed herself off the tree, mounting her crutches. 

“Boy there’s got a gang, thirty men. They got heavy artillery and they ain’ lookin’ to make friends. They roll through here, our boys are dead. And our women, they’re gonna wish they were.” Daryl explains once he gets close enough to the group, his eyes glancing to Gloria as he says his last sentence. 

Rick nods at the information gained, “That’s it, he’s a confirmed threat and he has to go. I’ll do it, tonight.” 

Daryl escapes to his tent as Gloria heads over to Dale’s RV where she kept her first aid kit. She’d noticed that Daryl’s knuckles were bloody after interrogating Randall. She hobbles her way over to his tent and sits down beside him. He was fumbling with his crossbow when she got to him and he stops moving when she holds her hand out to him.

“Hand.” she says simply.

Daryl squints at her, “What, are ya treating me like yer dog now?” 

Gloria rolls her eyes at his reluctance then chuckles, she reaches over and gently grabs his hand, placing it in her lap as she opens the first aid kit. She starts to clean the wounds from dried blood and dirt, then patches them up with bandages. 

“I’d hate to see the other guy.” Gloria jokes as she finishes up with one hand, then moves on to the other. 

Daryl smirks as he watches her work, “hey... stay away from him, ya hear?”

“Honestly, I was thinking of going to see how he was doing after I was done patching you up.” Gloria tells him truthfully, her professionalism getting in the way.

“Nah, ya ain’ goin’. I don’ want ya near that piece o’ shit.” Daryl scowls. 

“I’ve dealt with worse, Daryl. When I worked at a hospital I’ve patched up gangsters in the ER, they were much more dangerous than this kid, I can handle him.” she says, placing the last of the bandage on his hand.

“Ya ain’ goin’ near that damn barn!” Daryl raises his voice, making her look up at him, “ya ain’ a nurse no more, ya don’ need to be a damn professional. Rick’s gon’ kill him tonight anyway so what’s the point of patchin’ him up?!” he tries to hide the hint of jealousy in his voice, Daryl’s blood boiled at the thought of Gloria patching up anyone else but him, Glenn being an exception. 

Gloria sighs and nods, “you’re right. I guess I just wanted to make myself feel more useful.”

“Ya are useful, even if ya don’ patch the kid up.” Daryl takes his hand back from Gloria once she’s done treating him, he wraps his arm around her shoulders and pulls her close to him, kissing her temple gently. Gloria smiles shyly, staying in his embrace as she wraps an arm around his waist.

---

Next Chapter

I had the hardest time trying to find this specific gif haha but it was worth it! Yep so Daryl is pretty protective of Gloria now, which I think is very sweet~ And the little moments of fluff at the end, aren’t they cute?? :D 

I hope everyone stays safe and healthy, please don’t panic, we will get through this!

And as always, I would really appreciate any comments left for me! I’ll be replying to any comments in a new post because this is a sideblog!

Taglist (please let me know if you’d list to be added/removed!):

@twdeadfanfic​ | @fandomfanatic97​ | @crossbowking​ | @watchmeaspire​ | @spidergirla5​ | @kamieshep​ | @letsstarsfalling​ | @molethemollie​

[frostygar]

The Flash S5 Ep7 Thoughts

- Oh, so his daughter was his niece… okay

- OMG THIS IS THE CUTE PIE MAKING GIF I’VE SEEN IT’S MUCH BETTER SEEING IT FOR MYSELF UGH THE DOMESTICITY!!!!! The amount of chemistry in this one tiny scenes tells all as to who Barry should be with (and who he’d be happier with) I just have to point that out.

- Killer Frost joining in we love an ice queen

- NORA!!!! YOU DO NOT HAVE TO APOLOGIZE!!!!!! FOR NOT LIKING YOUR MOTHER!!!!!!! WHO LITERALLY ABUSED YOU!!!!!! Their relationship could actually be cute if it wasn’t forced, and shoved down our throats. 

- Not Iris telling Nora about when Barry went into the speed force as if at the end of it she didn’t want him to come back… What’s even more annoying about this whole thing is that Nora came back to get to know her DAD who went missing when she was young but they’re SO fucking focused on making Iris the angel she isn’t, Nora isn’t really hanging with her father anymore and that’s just so fucking dumb?? This was about Nora and Barry, not Nora and Iris. It was so refreshing and different from how other shows are but noooo gotta cater to Iris because she’s the main annoying bitch placed on a pedestal!!!

- However the background cute Snowbarry? Love it

- Grace is so adorable :(( And he didn’t want her at first? That’s interesting.

- Wait… Sherloque had seven marriages but five wives…………. does that mean that two were men? No one decided to tell me that Sherloque was LGBT?? I’ve been iffy with him for being extra and shit I—

- “Something doesn’t feel right” “Just listen to Iris!” NO NORA LISTEN TO YOUR GUT IGNORE YOUR DAD

- Hold awn… Barry gets struck by lightning… and it stops his heart??? Tell me how the FUCK that make sense if he got his powers BECAUSE of lightning.

- Poor Nora she has to fucking save her dad like five times since she got here like holy fuck

- I mean I knew Barry wasn’t going to die because he’s the main superhero and shit and there’s more seasons but like that was actually really interesting to have him die in a random episode because other shows do it at the end of the season so they worry for months until the next season comes out only for them to be (usually) okay. It almost… made it more worrying.

- “Maybe someone else should be making our decisions” I mean, yes, but thinking about it from a superhero’s perspective: save the many with sacrifice. HOWEVER Nora has come back because her dad is missing and losing him like that right before her eyes would be absolutely horrifying and I can see why she’s being like this. Although I just KNOW that someone’s going to manipulate her into thinking that her reaction was wrong/over the top and then it’ll be swept under the rug or something because that’s happened for the last 6 episodes with Nora whenever she had valid thoughts and actions

- Barry actually realizing that she’s freaked out from having to bring him back, umm yes! Iris slightly jokingly only caring about her bonding with Nora…… 🙄

- Sherloque you didn’t have to go that hard damn

- GRACE CALLED A KID A RAT BASTARD? WHAT A FUCKING LEGEND. “I hate you, and you hate you too!” WELL DAMN GRACE SPITTING TRUTH OVER HERE OKAY

- “Anything for our friends in the press.” Wow the writers REALLY want you to remember that they’re finally giving us what we want (Iris to be a reporter, albeit less involved with Team Flash shit but) and to be grateful. Jesus.

- Barry automatically assuming she only blames Iris, but realizing that she is aware that he agreed to the plan that got him killed, too.  Omg that was amazing. Why can’t Barry realize that she’s their daughter, and of course she’s not going to want him to get hurt because he’s her dad??

- Joss is cute, and OMG that’s his daughter 👀 okay

-  LMAO BARRY USING A HIGHER VOICE TO VOICE JOSS I MISS THIS JOKING KING

- They’re using Weather Wizard to tell Barry that shit happens and sometimes mothers and daughter’s just don’t want to get along? Finally, but it’ll probably be ignored and he’ll be annoyingly adamant in making them get along

- It’s cute that Cicada is truly trying to be a good parent for Grace :(

- Nora’s not upset with Iris? BUT TWO SECONDS AGO SHE WAS—you know what never mind I’m just not gonna question why everything is suddenly okay. I’m just sad that the one time Iris was actually going to apologize for her actions and Nora cut her off how rude 

- Cisco everyone knows why Thanksgiving is actually awful. People just like it for the food… 

- Iris did a good hologram ngl however I’m wondering how the flying fuck weather witch got a fucking car to fly…?

-  FINALLY NORA TELLS BARRY OFF

- “It’s not easy having a parent who puts their life on the line for others. I remember feeling the same way about Joe being a cop when I was a kid.” That is for all of the westallen’s who don’t believe that Joe adopted Barry and westallen is legit incest <3

- Nora so desperate to have her father that she argues that he should stop being the flash awwww bby 😭😭

- “I need my dad” OH BITCH THE HEARTBREAK

- You know you have a good villain when you sympathize with them 🥺🥺

- NORA TELLING BARRY TO RUN AND DO WHAT HE NEEDS TO DO A BITCH IS SOBBING RIGHT NOW.

- KILLER FROST OMG THE QUEEN IS HERE!! GOD WE STANNNNNNN

- BARRY SPITTING HIS DRIRNK BACK INTO HIS GLASS LMAOOO

- I love these sweet Barry and Nora moments 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

- First off, how would it be cicada’s fault (yes if you couldn’t tell I forgot his name so I’m using his other name) for what happened to Gracie, second of all, IT WAS THE FUCKING NURSE WHO TURNED HIM ONTO METAS THAT BITCH.. I mean I understand her concern but like don’t pretend there’s not meta humans who literally do good???

- Cicada has to be one of my favorite villains because you can sympathize with him. Also finally now they know who Ciacada is dhsfkjfasjf

- Overall I liked this episode. I was afraid too watch it because normally after having random, amazing episodes, shows tend to go right back to their bullshit (although it wasn’t as bad thankfully) but I’m glad I got myself to watch it because this was a great episode.