#am i just taken in by a fast talking maybe villain in a long coat? yes

[3gremlins]

no, you watched all of hazbin hotel season 1 in one sitting!!

...okay it was me. it was so good?!? def check out if you like cool animation, interesting designs, queer characters and musicals!

[patt-writes-stuff]

Pink (Hawks x gn!Reader)

Pairing: Hawks/Takami Keigo x gn! Reader

Word Count: 4.6k

Warnings: cursing but that’s about it!

Genre: Fluff, slight angst, Romantic/Relationship

Tags/Aus: boss x secretary, pining, slow burn, slight cannon divergence probably

Summary: 5 times your boss, Hawks, made you flustered + the one time you made him flustered

A/N: MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS!! This is my fic for the Attack on Academia server’s Secret Santa Event!! This is for @sugacookiies​ !! and I really hope you like it!!! 

~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸

Event No. 1

“Thank you so much for coming today, we’ll be sure to get back to you soon,” the lady who had been interviewing you said, smiling at you. You bowed your head slightly, thanking her for her time with a small smile on your face.

After exiting the room and closing the door, you took a deep breath, as if to calm your still very present nerves. You had been up for a job as a secretary at pro hero Hawk’s agency, something you were more than thrilled about.  

Growing up, you’d always been immensely intrigued with the world of pro heroes. Your room had been decked out in hero figurines and posters, the whole nine yards. Hell, even your comforter was hero themed at a certain point in time. It had just always fascinated you how these people would use their quirks for the good of humanity and to protect those who couldn’t protect themselves.

Sadly, your quirk, MoodLocks, wasn’t very useful in crime-fighting. All it did was allow your hair to change colors depending on your mood. It was pretty, of course, but you had a hard time controlling it and it could never help you beat an opponent. If anything, it would give the villain an insight into your thoughts and put you at a clear disadvantage.

So, as time passed, your childish fantasies of becoming a hero did as well. It didn’t bother you anymore, as you were more than happy with the career you’d chosen. Your love of heroes was still very much present, hence why you were so nervous about today’s interview. If you got the job, not only would the pay be incredible, but you’d also get the chance to help an actual hero. Maybe you’d even get the chance to meet more of them!

You were pretty sure you had made a fairly good impression so hopefully, you would indeed get a call from the agency soon.

Walking out of the agency, you couldn’t help but let out a yawn. You’d stayed up far too late last night googling commonly asked job interview questions so you wanted nothing more than to get back to your apartment and catch up on some much-needed rest. Maybe you and your roommate could order in.

“Oh God, I am so sorry that was my fault. I just finished this super stressful interview and I’m super tired so I was not watching where I was going-” your babbling came to a sudden halt as you looked up, brain losing all ability to form coherent thoughts.

Right before your very eyes was the man who’s “a bit too fast” in all his red-winged glory. You’d seen him in interviews online, of course, you kept up with most pro hero interviews, so you knew he was handsome. However, the cameras most certainly did not do the man justice. His yellow glasses were resting on his forehead, pushing his messy (and very soft looking) blond hair back. His gold eyes seemed to be looking right into your soul, calculating yet calm.

God, you wished you could make your eyeliner look remotely similar to his.

He raised an eyebrow at you, and you realized that you’d been staring for what you could only describe as an uncomfortably long amount of time.

Before you could embarrass yourself further, the winged hero placed a gloved hand on your shoulder. He looked at the top of your head, an intrigued expression adorning his face before morphing into an easy smile, he spoke, “‘S no problem, chickadee. Good luck with your interview.”

And just like that, the hero went along his merry way.

Curious what he’d been staring at, not to mention the nickname, you looked up at your hair, which had previously been a bright shade of orange due to being anxious, was now very pink. You blanched at the thought of having lost control of your quirk so easily, in front of a cute guy pro hero who might be your future boss no less.

‘Well,’ you thought, ‘at least I can say I met Japan’s #2 hero even if I don’t get this job.’

~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸

Event No. 2

Much to your surprise, and pleasure, you had indeed received a call from Hawks’ agency about a week later. After several follow up interviews (much more than you were expecting, honestly, but you suppose it made since he’s such a high ranking hero) a very thorough background check, you had gotten the job.

When you had gotten the job, you had been hoping that the blond would have forgotten your first encounter, since you had literally malfunctioned right before his very eyes. The chances of him forgetting weren’t exactly small, after all. You were sure he met plenty of people every day and your interaction had been incredibly brief.

A month into your job as his secretary, you seemed to be in the clear. Sure, he knew about your quirk, since he was your employer and the ever-changing array of colors in your hair aren’t exactly subtle, but seeing as he hadn’t mentioned it so he’d probably forgotten.

You’d stayed at the agency long after your shift was overdue to a couple of low-ranking villains attempting to rob a bank. It had been an easy win for Hawks, he was in and out of there long before his sidekicks had even gotten there, but the villains had caused a lot of unnecessary damage to the building, so there was a ridiculous amount of paperwork.

You couldn’t wait to get home and change out of your stuffy work clothes and into the comfiest pair of PJs you owned. Your roommate, always a sweetheart, had been kind enough to save you some leftovers from her dinner so all you had to do was warm it up, eat, shower, and crash on your bed.

Whilst you were getting ready to head home, your boss had decided that it was only fair to walk you home, seeing as it was late. You had insisted that he didn’t need to do that, even showing him the can of pepper spray you carried around your person at all times. Still, he’d insisted, and who were you to say no?

The winged hero had originally offered to fly you home, but you’d profusely told him it wasn’t necessary. So, the two of you ended up taking the train. The two of you got a couple of weird stares from your fellow passengers, seeing as the flying hero was taking a train instead of y’know… flying and his wings took a significantly large part of the seat the two of you were occupying (it seemed uncomfortable but he didn’t mention it). Hawks seemed to either not notice or not care, opting instead to have an animated conversation with you about the best fried chicken places in Fukuoka. It was mostly him talking, but you’d add to the conversation every once in a while, and sometimes people would interrupt and ask for an autograph, which he’d sign with a carefree smile on his face.

“You don’t have to walk me home, sir,” you told him after the two of you had exited the station closest to your apartment.

“What kind of hero would I be if I let a civilian walk alone across the dark streets of Japan?” He asked you, tone light and teasing. “Also, didn’t I tell you to call me Hawks? Sir makes me feel old.”

You rolled your eyes playfully at his words, turning to the left towards your apartment. You’d get there soon and a small part of you wanted to keep the banter going for as long as possible.

“I don’t think that would be very professional of me, sir,” you said playfully. He laughed and the two of you settled into a comfortable silence while you walked.

After a moment, he shoved his hands into his coat pockets and he spoke up, “I’ve been meaning to ask you, how exactly does your quirk work?”

“Oh well, y’know, it changes color depending on my mood, so red means I’m angry, blue can mean I’m sad or calm, pink means I’m flustered or embarrassed, purple means I’m scared, etc.”

“So your hair went pink the first time we met because you were starstruck by my devilishly good looks?” He asked in a faux haughty tone. “Don’t worry, I don’t blame you.”

The asshole remembered your first encounter.

Your hair turned pink and you celebrated inwardly as you approached your apartment. As you opened the glass door to the complex, Hawks laughed at your hurry.

“Good night,” you stated, tone indignant at his laughter, as you made your way inside.”

“‘Night, Pinky.”

~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸

Event No. 3

Working for the red-winged hero himself was both everything you were expecting it to be and completely the opposite of it at the same time.

The hours were crazy, something you were anticipating considering villain activity had been increasing and your boss was a busy public figure. What you were certainly not anticipating, however, was that Hawks would be such a teasing little shit.

Not only had the man remembered your first encounter, but after you had explained your quirk to him (he’d asked you about it despite it being in the agency’s records since you had applied for the position, you guessed he’d done it as a way to break the ice) he’d taken it upon himself to fluster you to get your hair to go that embarrassingly bright shade of pink.

He’d call you all sorts of nicknames ranging from pinky to songbird (your favorite was by far Pinky since it feels so personal. Not that you’d ever tell him that). He’d also gotten into the habit of trying out all sorts of ridiculous pick up lines on you. The greater majority of them were bird-related, of course. Those never really got you but they did make you laugh.

The one that probably got you the most was when he’d bring you your favorite drink or lunch from a place you’d mentioned you’d like offhandedly, saying he had just been “flying by” and remembered your conversation.

You didn’t mind his flirtatious banter in the slightest. He never crossed any boundaries and kept things professional when it came to business. It was pretty fun to see what nicknames or pickup lines he had up his sleeves.

The only downside was that you’d begun to develop a slight crush on the red-winged hero. It would never lead to anything, you were well aware of that. He was not only a famous hero who was constantly under public scrutiny, but he was also your boss.

It can’t hurt to dream though.

“What’s got you so distracted?” An all too familiar broke your very him-centric train of thought. You looked up from the paperwork you’d been blankly staring at. You’d been trying to multitask between eating and doing paperwork so you wouldn’t have to take any work home. After much insistence from your roommate, who was well aware of your crush on Your boss (she’d teasingly gifted you a pair of Hawks themed PJs on your birthday), you had finally given in and agreed to let her set you up on a date with a former schoolmate of hers.

“Nothing, just thinking about a date I have tonight,” you lied, looking up from your desk to meet those lovely honey-colored eyes you spent more hours than you’d care to admit thinking about. You scanned his body language, trying to gauge his reaction. Not that you could ever get a read on him. More often than not, it was impossible to get a read on him under the visage of carefree indifference he was so well known for. In the almost half a year you’d known him you’d never once seen the hero lose his cool or show any emotion other than the ones he wanted to portray. It was kind of unfair seeing as he could get a picture-perfect look into your thoughts and emotions just by looking at the color of your hair and here you were, left grasping at straws.

He seemed to have no outward reaction other than his shoulders tensing and his eyebrows scrunching up a bit in mild distaste. It was gone so fast you were sure you must have just imagined it.

“Pinky’s got themselves a date?” he said after a moment, a slightly forced teasing tilt to his voice. He crossed his hands and placed them on the taller part of your desk and leaned his weight on them, staring down at you with a cheeky grin.

“I guess so,” you said, fiddling with your chopsticks as you continued, “I’m kind of nervous though. I haven’t got on any dates since I started working here, I’m a little rusty.”

“How come you haven’t gone on any dates?” he asked, staring at you with an intensity you weren’t quite expecting from him. “Had a special someone in mind?”

The roots of your hair went white in surprise before you managed to school them into going back to your natural hair color. It was brief but he had surely noticed.

“I’d go on lots of dates if my boss gave me more days off,” you said, pushing past the momentary lull in the conversation and giving him a pointed look.

He let out a laugh, a real and genuine one, unlike the ones he’d let out during interviews or out in public. The thought made your face heat up. It made you feel special. Even if he didn’t see you in the same way you saw him, he at least trusted you enough to be real around you. That was enough for you.

“You’ve got nothing to be nervous about, kid, any person would be lucky to land a date with someone as beautiful as you,” He stated, looking at you with a certain emotion behind his gaze that you couldn’t quite decipher. “If your date happens to go south, just give me a call and I’ll pick you up. After all, what kind of hero would I be if I didn’t look out for my secretary?”

You looked at his retreating form, your hair as pink as bubble gum and heart threatening to beat out of your rib cage. He’d just called you beautiful. He’d also said that anyone would be lucky to date you. Did that include him? Did he like you?

“Hey Hawks,” you called out, surprising both him and yourself. Despite him telling you to just call him Hawks instead of ‘sir’, you’d stuck to calling him sir for the sake of professionality. “Thanks for the offer.”

~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸

Event No. 4

You let out a tired sigh as you watched the number of floors go up on the tiny screen atop the doors of the elevator you were currently in.

When you had signed your contract to work at Hawks’ agency, you were aware that you would need to be accessible 24/7, however, you thought that if he did contact you at an ungodly hour, it’d be for something important, perhaps something along the lines of a press scandal or a massive villain attack that you’d need to start filing paperwork promptly so that the agency could report the casualties or cost of the destruction. You had highly doubted Hawks, Japan’s literal #2 hero would call his secretary at 3:00 a.m. in the goddamn morning and order them to bring him a bucket of fried chicken from fucking KFC.

You clearly hadn’t known the man at the time, you thought as you stared at the red and white bucket in your arms.

The elevator dinged, alerting you that you had arrived at your destination. Making your way through the hallway, you tried to figure out why your boss would be so cruel as to make you get him fast food when he had two perfectly capable wings that could take him to and from the nearest KFC faster than you ever could. You bet it’d even be warmer.

You’d need to download UberEats on his phone.

Before your fist could make contact with the door, it was swung open, surprising your half-asleep brain. Before your eyes there was a very awake looking Hawks, his eyes zeroed in on the bucket you were holding

“Hey there, chickadee,” he said in a teasing tone, resting his arm on the door frame in a very attractive manner. God, if you were just a bit more coherent and a little less sleep-deprived, your hair would be the most embarrassingly bright pink color imaginable.

Thankfully, you weren’t and you could hear your bed calling your name from across the city, so without bothering to answer, you shoved the bucket of chicken into his arms before turning around to speed your way back to your at this point cold bed.

Before you could get very far, however, Hawks had grabbed your wrist with your free hand.

“You’re not leaving already, are you?” He asked you, letting go of your wrist.

“It’s 3 in the goddamn morning, Hawks,” was your deadpan answer.

“C’mon, you wouldn’t let your poor boss eat all alone would you,” you could tell his tone was meant to be light and playful but it was lacking his usual flare.

Your concern for the overgrown pigeon won out, and with a defeated sigh, you walked into his apartment, Hawks trailing behind you, visibly pleased that you stayed.

Despite all your time working for Hawks, you’d never actually been inside of his apartment. You had come here several times before to drop off documents he needed to sign or a new schedule (because the Hero Commission apparently couldn’t send emails directly to him) but you had always left the things at his building's front desk.

Hawks’ apartment was… emptier than you had expected it to be. It was nice, the furniture was obviously high quality, not that it was surprising considering he was a high ranking hero, but it lacked a personal touch. It had no pictures or knick-knacks in sight. It felt more like a house instead of an actual home.

“So, how’d your date go?” Hawks inquired once the two of you settled in his living room, him on the couch and you in the armchair next to it. He picked up a piece of chicken, offering it to you. However, it was far too early to even think about consuming food, so you politely declined.

“It was fine. He was nice,” you answered.

To be honest the date had gone well. He’d been nice, a complete gentleman. He’d taken you to a nice restaurant, he was great in conversation, he’d even walked you home but at the end of the night, the two of you had agreed that there was just no chemistry between the two of you whatsoever. You had decided to just stay friends.

“There won’t be a second one, though,” you added after a beat of silence.

“Good,” your eyes widened at his words and suddenly you had an epiphany.

Hawks had been jealous. He was jealous because he liked you. That’s why he had asked you to come here.

Before you could voice your thoughts, he spoke again, a sly smirk on his face, “By the way, I love your pajamas. I wasn’t aware you were such a fan.”

Your hair turned pink, as it often did whenever Hawks was around when you looked down at your clothes. In your haste to get Hawks his food so you could go back to bed, you had forgone changing clothes. You hadn’t realized you were wearing the Hawks themed PJs your roommate had gotten you as a gag gift. They were mustard-colored with lots of cute red feathers and tiny Hawks chibi heads scattered around the fabric.

He would never let you live this down.

~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸

Event No. 5

Following the KFC event, the two of you hadn’t spoken about the situation further. At this point, you were well aware of his feelings for you, and you hadn’t exactly been subtle about liking him. The two of you just hadn’t spoken about it. You weren’t official but there was an unspoken rule that neither of you would go on dates with other people.

You were fine with it. Really, you were.

Except that you were definitely not okay with it and you were very much upset that he had just answered that he was single when the lady that had interviewed him had asked him if he was seeing anyone.

Rationally, you understood why he said no. You weren’t official and saying yes would just throw the media into a frenzy while they speculated who he was seeing. You remember how crazy everyone went a couple of months ago when pictures of Mirko and Hawks in their street clothes hanging out started circulating on Twitter. They were trending for weeks, and you had had to answer call after call, explaining that no, they are not dating and no, they don’t have time to go on the 8:00 a.m. news to answer questions about what it was like to date as pro heroes.

On the other hand, you were tired of dancing around each other. You were aware that dating a pro hero would come with hectic schedules and even some danger, but you didn’t care.

“So I was thinking you could come over and we can watch that hero documentary you told me to watch- hey are you mad at me?” Hawks asked, brows furrowed as in confusion.

“No, I’m not angry at you,” you answered, putting your stuff away and heading to the agency’s doors. You were more than ready to go back to your apartment and there was a pint of your favorite ice cream waiting for you in the freezer with your name on it.

“You totally are,” he scoffed, following after you.

“No, I'm not.”

“Yes, you are.”

“No, I am not.”

“Yes, you are.” Your overgrown pigeon of a boss insisted, mimicking your tone, “If you’re not angry then why is your hair red?”

With a sigh, you spoke, failing to hide the snarky tone to your voice “So what if I am angry? Why do you care? It’s not like we’re dating or anything.” You walked out onto the sidewalk.

“Oh, that’s what you're upset about?” He asked, realization dawning upon his features. When you didn’t answer he kept talking, “You of all people know why I didn’t say anything.”

“I know. It’s just- nothing, never mind. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” You told him, looking away with a defeated sigh.

You were about to walk away before he stopped you by placing his glove cladded hand  

“At least let me take you home,” it wasn’t much of a question, but you nodded anyways.

All of a sudden, you let out a shrill scream when he picked you up bridal style, hands instinctively clasping on to his coat to assure you wouldn’t fall.

“What are you doing?”

“Taking you home,” he explained as if it were obvious. Before you had a chance to argue he set off into the sky.

You couldn’t hear anything but the wind in your ears and his heartbeat, but you finally understood why he loved flying so much. Exhilarating was the only word you could use to describe it. And cold. It was also really cold. You understood why he walked around with such a heavy coat now. You snuggled more into him, trying to get some more warmth, which caused Hawks to tighten his hold on you. The affectionate gesture alone had your hair going a shade of pink.

You got to your apartment building much faster than you ever would by taking the train, something that you regretted a bit since it meant he’d let go of you.

“Look, Hawks,” you started, “maybe we should-“

“Keigo,” he said, effectively cutting you off,

“W-what?” You spluttered, caught off guard.

“I want you to call me Keigo,” he said with a sense of finality, looking into your eyes with an emotion you couldn’t quite read, or at least one that you were just choosing to ignore. It’d just make what you were about to suggest harder.

“Look, Hawks,” you started, opening the door that led to the stairs, “I really like you, hell, maybe even more than that, and I want to be with you but I don’t want to be whatever we are right now forever.”

Ignoring the way his wings physically dropped at your words, you closed the door behind you and headed to your apartment.

~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸

Event No. 1

Once you got home, you immediately stripped out of your work clothes and into your Hawks-themed pajamas (because they're the comfiest, not because they remind you of him, obviously) and you’d taken out your ice cream and went to town on it. Your roommate had noticed the dark blue that had taken over your hair but you’d brushed her off, saying it was nothing to worry about. She’d been doubtful, but she had a night shift so she left, but not before making you promise to call her if you needed to.

You’d spent the rest of the evening eating your ice cream and watching tv before deciding to get some sleep so you would feel at least a little less sorry for yourself tomorrow.

You were currently in your room, scrolling through your phone on your bed before calling it a day when you started to hear a tapping sound. You’d ruled it out to be some tree branch knocking against your window due to the wind. However, the longer you ignored it the more incessant it became.

You nearly fell out of your bed when you realized it was Hawks, your boss, the #2 pro hero of Japan, tapping on your window while squatting on your fire escape.

You got up, heading towards your window and unlocking it before pushing it up.  You helped him in before sitting down on the bed and motioning for him to do the same. An awkward silence filled the air, neither of you was quite sure of what you should say.

“Hawks, what are-“ you started before being cut off by him.

“Look, Pinky, I love you so much it scares the shit out of me,” he declared. Your hair went the brightest shade of pink it had ever been at his words.

He played with the embroidered design of the throw blanket you kept in your bed. You don’t think you’ve ever seen the red-winged hero so vulnerable in all your time knowing him.

“But there’s a lot of crap that comes with my job and I could never forgive myself if I brought you into it and you got hurt. So-“ before he could finish speaking, you grabbed onto his coat’s collar with both of your hands and crashed your lips against his.

You’d waited almost an entire year for this. One thing was for certain, it was well worth the wait. You loved every single thing about him. And he loved you. That was all you needed.

After a beat, you pulled away, choosing instead to cup his cheek in an adoring manner. The two of you looked at each other with nothing short of pure unadulterated adoration.

“I love you Keigo,” you spoke his name for the first time, “as long as you’re by my side I don’t care about what happens.”

His reaction was, for lack of a better word, cute. His honey eyes were wide in shock, his face as red as his wings, and his aforementioned wings were puffed up in shock. Now you understood why he loved teasing you so much.

“So, do you wanna watch the documentary?” You asked him, walking out of your room and into the living room with a victorious smirk.

~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸~🌸

[niles-rainbow-room]

Freemod Context! (Long!!)

This is Gordon Freemod! He’s my own little AU Gordon, and I love him!

I made him based around the way I play Garry’s Mod

Cause, in Gmod, my player model is Gordon, and I literally cannot change it because whenever I go to change my model he just

He looks at me. He judges me. He’s just refusing to let me change it.

Here’s just. A bunch of things about Freemod that aren’t related.

Btw, this whole thing is me going-

*projects rapidly*

These were all taken from various moments of me info dumping to my discord friends about him, so, that’s why there’s so many that are barely related.

-

So

To get some characterization down, Freemod can go from Excited Sweet Voice at Everything to This Man is in God Mode and He is Staring You Down as You Attack Him

They’re also

very scared of Gman

It’s not even funny

-

ANYWAYS something else about Freemod, he likes starting all out fights between people, but he’s very polite too so like

Someone says hi to him and he gives this big ol smile, next thing you know, he’s spawning headcrabs that could wipe out an army

-

He also has no idea what to do with bodies like sometimes he just Sweet Voice cocoons them, and other times he just beats them rapidly if it was a combine or something

-

Another thing! He doesn’t like making eye contact 100% of the time! If he gets too excited as well, he’ll despawn whatever was making him excited until he calms down.

-

He’s also really fast when it comes to no-clipping.

He’ll shoot up into the air and fling himself from place to place, just absolutely soaring and loving that feeling of flying through the air

-

He definitely makes Catboy Calhoun jokes but like

He’s also really nervous around Calhoun sometimes like he’s constantly checking in on them after making them fight a ton of headcrabs.

-

He doesn’t really like using the majority of the guns. He just typically uses the quieter/less frantic weapons like the magnum or the crossbow.

-

He’s like

Magnetically drawn to mirrors. He likes watching himself do the Sweet Voice and will do it for hours when he’s in the right mood if someone doesn’t stop him

-

He’s very giggly and smiley when it comes to hearing other characters talk. But he also can be very mean and cutting to the people he doesn’t like. Especially combine.

-

Freemod really likes Houndeyes.

*Really* likes them.

He spawned in a group of 8 and just watched them for a while, and then he spawns a MP Combine. It proceeds to stun stick every one of them. And they all die in one hit. They don’t even fight back.

What Freemod does next is basically the equivalent of “die a very painful death” and just beats the shit out of them while alive and dead.

They have to erase everything because they can’t stand the sight of the bodies of Houndeyes.

-

Hi! Sorry to take you out of the immersion of reading my brain goo, or the annoyed scrolling of “Oh my god will she just shut up already” but!

Another thing I decided to do with him, I gave him a little plot. A hint of his own character rather than just being me but an AU Gordon.

So here that is!

-

I feel like the only true way to contain Freemod and keep him from destroying the world is by keeping him in gm_construct

He likes it there sure, but like

If someone let him into Black Mesa let’s just say that the Resonance Cascade would’ve been way sooner and way more intense.

All he really does is fly around in there. Just. That’s it.

It’s his own personal Bug Bucket.

I don’t even think he realizes he’s trapped to be fair?

-

Another thing with Freemod, I’m not exactly sure how he’d react to... say, the HLVRAI characters showing up in gm_construct one day, idk Benrey takes the gang on a trip to there out of nowhere and they find Freemod just vibing by himself, flying through the air on a capture point from TF2. I don’t know if he’d:

A: Summon a bunch of things to attack the HLVRAI crew for the fun of it

B: Immediately try to befriend all of them desperately

C: Possess a creature and disregard them

D: All of the above

Cause with all this “He’s trapped/alone” sorta thing, I don’t know if I’m making him into a villain or am I just making him very touch starved and sad?

Cause like, earlier I did say that if he was let out of gm_construct, the resonance cascade would’ve been sooner and more intense

Basically what I was thinking is that he doesn’t really limit how crazy his thoughts experiments can be that often, so like, he spawns a bunch of things all at once to see what would happen.

But he’s not like that all the time, like I said, he’s also very polite, he’s just got a thin coating of God Mode on and he’s very lonely.

-

I was trying to figure out the thing with Freemod’s voice actually. I’m trying to think what they’d be like on the Gordon Scale.™️

I’d say he’s able to speak, but he doesn’t do it often. Because typically he’s only around NPCs and they can’t respond to him the way he wants, so why actually talk to them?

But he definitely talks to enemies as sort of a “I am the last thing you’ll ever hear” kind of thing.

But if he were to meet a different Gordon or someone with sentience he can talk to, he’d speak. Totally.

He talks to some of the alien/animal NPCs, cause like!!! Come on!!! That Houndeye over there needs to know that he’s a good boy!!!

-

So, maybe when Freemod is upset or something, he spawns the biggest thing he can possibly think of and posses it, and goes on an absolute rampage until he’s better

So I can just imagine.

Freemod, not feeling great and tense:

Feetman: Mod, hey. Don’t do it...

Freemod: *spawns and possesses a Gene Worm, and roars*

Feetman: FREEMOD NO GET OUT OF THE GIANT MONSTER-

Or like. He just possesses something and just. Flies away.

He just has moments where he’s too out of his head and he needs to just escape.

Something he’s been doing recently is possessing a Stukabat and flying up on top of a roof of a really high building and just. Viewing everything.

This man is SAD please hug him :((

-

Ooh, another thing,

He doesn’t like that dark room at all. In gm_construct? He will not go in there for more than a minute. That place scares him so much. Not even the fact that it’s dark, he just hates that he can’t see anything and while he knows he’s alone in the world he’s in, and he controls what can exist there or not, but, he just refuses to go there, even with a flashlight.

-

Aaaaaand that’s all the content I’ve made for them so far! Now that y’all know the context for him, I’ll post the comic of him meeting the HLVRAI characters, as well as some other drawings!

[patchofsunlight]

Stand You | Bakugou Katsuki x Fem!Reader

SUMMARY: Bakugou insists he can’t stand stupid Y/N, even while he changes his entire routine to fit her in it.

WORD COUNT: 5.1k

WARNINGS: if this doesn’t show up on tags for the fifth time i will simply give up on it, cursing, bakugou is a lil bitch but he’s also a softie, there’s a nosebleed at one point but nothing concerning tbh, aizawa and recovery girl find young love amusing, shouto is baby

Y/N wasn’t sure of exactly when she started thinking of Bakugou Katsuki as a friend. Maybe it had been during their first year, after the first time he allowed her to join his study group alongside Kirishima, Kaminari, Sero, and Mina; or maybe it had been a bit later, when she hugged him tight in the middle of a crowd, almost as if she could squeeze the pain being kidnapped by the League of Villains had brought him, and he let her — while All Might fought his last battle and all of Japan feared for its future, Bakugou let her hold him.

She was deeply aware of the fact he tolerated her at best, as he made that abundantly clear every chance he got. He didn’t exactly hate her presence, but she was on thin fucking ice, and, even though Y/N knew this, she still managed to somehow develop a crush on the angry ash blond, like the stupid idiot she was.

It was ridiculous, to be honest, especially considering how there was no way he would ever feel the same. She would go as far as saying he didn’t even know her name — “Stupid,” he called her (how enchanting!) —, so, yeah, there was absolutely no possibility of her feelings being reciprocated in any way, and the dumb hug they shared was nothing but a coincidence. He was a bit shaken, a bit shocked, and those few warm minutes didn’t really mean anything.

Y/N didn’t mind. She was okay being Bakugou’s friend, satisfied with study group meetings and the occasional sparring. That way, at least, she could be sort of close to him, and that was pretty much enough.

Katsuki wasn’t sure of exactly when he had stopped thinking of Y/N L/N as another stupid extra. Maybe it had been when he found himself walking a little slower while she accompanied him towards class, or maybe it had been a bit earlier, when she hugged him tight in the middle of a crowd, almost as if she could squeeze the pain being kidnapped by the League of Villains had brought him, and he let her — while All Might fought his last battle and all of Japan feared for its future, Bakugou let her hold him.

He didn’t particularly like her. She talked too much, too fast, too loud; she insisted on walking him to and from the dorms everyday; and she was weak, stupid, useless. To be completely fair, Bakugou would say he despised her.

And yet, he found himself around her way more often than necessary.

“Hey, Bakugou, wait up! Let’s walk together!”

He groaned loudly at the sound of her voice, having been hopelessly hoping she wouldn’t be able to catch up. 

“Fuck, no. Get out of my way, Stupid!”

He slowed down nonetheless, soon walking by her side. Her smile was bright and excited as she kept on blabbering about something Kirishima had done when they were paired up on training that day.

He couldn’t fucking stand her.

“— and then he threw me off the training mat so easily! Who taught him how to do that? I wanna do that!”

“I don’t give a fuck, Stupid.”

“— but I won the second time we sparred, so I guess we’re even. It was fun.”

Y/N never seemed bothered by his harsh words. In fact, she usually either ignored them altogether, unfaltering and patient, or laughed and added some opinion of her own to his rage. It was maddening — she couldn’t take a hint.

Moments like this were common, almost routine. If Bakugou didn’t know better, he would’ve thought the girl had taken quite a liking to him. It was an obvious conclusion, considering she was always around him in some way or another, trying to spark up friendly conversation and letting him know how her day went.

(It was so, so calming to have her here like this. He would never admit it, but hearing Y/N’s endless rants brought him a sense of security he had never really felt before. She talked too much, that was for sure, yet he didn’t really care. It was okay if it was her.)

He couldn’t fucking stand her.

“Come on, try again. We’ve gone through this already.”

“I can’t, Bakugou. I—I’m sorry.”

The ash blond sighed, running a hand through his hair. The bite to his tone had disappeared after a couple of hours, red gaze intensely attentive to the frustrated tears gathering in the girl’s eyes. Every other student had gone back to their dorms, and the librarian seemed very intent on shooting the duo angry looks as if to tell them to hurry up and leave already, finally allowing their long afternoon shift to end.

“Yes, you can. I know you can. Try again, you’re almost fucking there.”

Katsuki had never been good at positive reinforcement. He was better at screaming and cursing and insulting, and, yes, he had tried that with Y/N a thousand times before, but he could see how hard she was trying. He noticed how disappointed and tired she was, and he couldn’t find it in himself to be anything less than what he recognized as incredibly soft. He was glad they were the only ones in the library — he wouldn’t know how to explain himself if anyone saw him like this, watching this random girl who he refused to call a friend mess up her homework in various different ways, talking quietly to stop her from crying.

“We don’t have all fucking day, Stupid. You can do this, go on.”

Yeah, definitely not good at positive reinforcement.

“Okay,” she inhaled deeply, pencil moving slowly through the paper, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. 

There was a slight crease between her brows as she worked, and Bakugou felt the sudden urge to rub it away, which he rejected immediately. That was ridiculous! There was no reason for things like this to plague his mind — L/N Y/N was an idiot, and he didn’t deliberately think about her in any way, form, or universe. She wasn’t worthy of his thoughts.

“Is this it?”

His attention immediately returned to the equations and messy notes on her notebook while he looked it over, a surprised glint taking his eyes.

“Yeah, that’s basically it. It could be better, but you got it right.”

“I did?”

“You did. I told you you could do it, Stupid.”

Katsuki choked on his own air when the girl jumped towards his place on the table, hugging him tightly by the neck while spouting a great variety of thank you’s and praise, disrupting the angry librarian. Bakugou could feel his cheeks heat up under the worker’s glare, both with irritation born from their silent attitude and from the weird warmth growing in his chest at Y/N’s attention. 

It was the first time she hugged him since the kidnapping accident, and it felt different. It wasn’t a comfort hug like last time, no — it was almost like she had been so happy she couldn’t stop herself from touching him, and that thought alone was enough to send sirens flaring inside his head. Every single inch where her skin touched his seemed to tingle, a calming sensation flowing through his body.

He instantly decided he hated the feeling, pushing her off harshly but still a tad more carefully than he would’ve if it was anyone else.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, no need to freak out. Let’s just get done with this already and go back to the dorms.”

She smiled widely as she picked her things up, shoving them inside her backpack and patiently waiting for him to do the same. Strangely, the explosion boy couldn’t find it in himself to meet her eyes, avoiding the light blush he feared would coat his features when he saw her staring at him like that, with that pretty — no, not pretty, no, he didn’t think she was pretty in anyway — with that stupid smile on her face.

“I’m glad we can walk back together,” the girl declared cheerfully the moment they left the big and lonely library, strolling through the empty path side by side, the sun nowhere to be seen. “It’s late already.”

“Whatever,” he groaned back, refusing to look at her yet still maintaining a pace he was sure she could keep up with.

He couldn’t fucking stand her.

Bakugou felt hyper-aware of every movement beside him. For a few days now, his heart would pump a bit faster whenever she smiled, and his skin would crawl with what he could only describe as the craving to have her hold him again.

It made him weak, and he wouldn’t have it. Bakugou Katsuki was a lot of things, but he refused to be weak.

Specially because of someone like Stupid.

“What grade did you guys get on last week’s math test?”

They always sat next to each other during lunch. It wouldn’t be that bad if it wasn’t for how her knee touched his ever so softly, her body too close for comfort because of Kaminari’s presence on her other side, pressing onto her enthusiastically each time he spoke. Kirishima had asked her once if she wanted him to exchange places with the electric boy, but she simply laughed it off — Kaminari’s manners were endearing, in a way. For some reason, those words gave Katsuki the urge to break Kaminari’s nose.

“I got an 87,” Y/N declared, delight dripping from her words while she played with the food on her plate.

“Y/N!” Mina’s smile was so big it almost didn’t fit on her face. “That’s almost 30 marks higher than you got on our last test!”

“I know!” Bakugou scowled at her excitement before she turned her head to look at him, a sunny grin directed entirely to him, stealing all the air from his lungs. “Bakugou is an amazing tutor!”

“Damn right I am,” he managed to rasp out, clearing his throat loudly before shoving a bunch of spicy noodles in his mouth. Kirishima and Sero exchanged a look.

He would never admit it, the raw pride that consumed his chest at her happiness. He knew how hard she had worked for that test, and was glad to see it went even better than she expected. 

“Maybe now you could tutor me, Y/N,” Kaminari wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, causing a laugh to escape the girl’s lips while she turned away from Katsuki to stare at him.

“I would love to, but I’m pretty sure I would make your grades even worse.”

“Hey,” Bakugou barked angrily, fighting off the blush creeping up his ears, “don’t sell yourself short, Stupid. You’re not that much of a dumbass.”

A heavy silence fell down on the group, surprised stares pointed to the ash blond. He could feel his stomach twist in anger at the unwanted attention, yet something about the way her smile widened at his words caused his irritation to decrease exponentially.

“What are you idiots staring at?” he lashed out despite the calm settling inside his heart at the sight of her, rolling his eyes at the bunch of morons he called his friends.

“No, nothing,” Kaminari’s voice was high-pitched in obvious lying that brought out snickers from everyone else on the table but Bakugou himself. “Nothing.”

“It better be nothing, Dunce Face, or I’ll kill you.”

“Of course,” Kirishima bit down on his lip to contain his laughter, “don’t worry about it, Bakubro.”

The day went by slowly and way more often than not Bakugou found himself stealing glances towards where he knew Y/N’s seat was. There was a weird whispering in the back of his head, reminding him of how her arms felt around him when they hugged in the library the week before, reminding him of the warmth that invaded his skin and implanted itself in his brain, reminding him of how bright her smiles were and how nice her laughter sounded.

Oh, there was something wrong. Did she have some sort of secondary quirk guilty of making him feel like this? Never before had he ever given her much thought, even though he had to admit his mind wandered to her sometimes and he did try to somehow be nicer to her, but it wasn’t because he cared for her or anything, right? Of course not! He just thought she wouldn’t be able to take his usual self and he didn’t want to deal with her crying or whatever. It wasn’t because he cared about what she thought of him, hell no! Bakugou didn’t waste his time worrying about others, that wasn’t like him at all.

Bakugou Katsuki didn’t think about L/N Y/N, he didn’t, he wouldn’t.

The ash blond forced his gaze away from her once more, trying to make sense of what should’ve been neat notes instead of the mess of scribbles staring right back at him. He snarled to himself, immediately considering his disorganization as entirely her fault. How dare she play with him like this? How dare she think herself worthy of his time like this?

He couldn’t stand her.

And yet, less than two hours later, there he was, listening to her rant about this one movie she desperately wanted to watch while they walked beside each other after class. It would be so easy for Bakugou to pick up his pace and leave her alone, but his body refused to obey his mind’s wishes, and so he kept himself slow enough for her to stay with him.

He couldn’t fucking stand her.

His whole body was sore, barely able to move his arms after overusing his quirk all evening. Bakugou knew he shouldn’t push himself this hard, but he refused to falter, refused to stay behind and risk being weak again. He needed to get stronger, smarter, and, for better or for worse, that involved long training hours. 

The path back to the dorms was strangely lonely without a certain girl keeping him company — not that Katsuki minded, he obviously didn’t. Some loneliness was very much appreciated after the last couple of weeks, which were filled with study group sessions and stupid walks. 

He sighed heavily when the 2-A dorm finally came into his range of vision, causing his tired figure to relax. He was almost there — he would soon be able to eat something, take a nice shower, and then fall straight into bed. He would soon be able to rest, and that was the only thing in his mind.

The ash blond kicked his shoes away the moment he reached the door, tossing them aside without a second thought. 

He would’ve liked to say he bee-lined to the kitchen.

He didn’t.

“Stupid, what the fuck are you doing?”

Y/N looked up from the common room coffee table, startled by the sudden interruption. She studied him for a second before answering, “I’m just looking over some homework. Why? Did something happen?”

He grunted in distaste, unable to stop himself from sitting down next to her on the couch. Every single one of his muscles felt like it was on fire from overexertion.

“It’s fucking late. Didn’t we study yesterday? Did you even have dinner yet?”

She tensed slightly at his angry questions, returning her stare towards the papers in front of them. “Yeah, but I just thought it’d be good to go over everything once more. I’ll just eat some crackers for dinner, it’s fine,” she shrugged nonchalantly, missing the way his eyebrows furrowed at her words, “where were you anyway?”

Katsuki simply rolled his eyes, arms crossed. “It’s none of your fucking business, Stupid. And you can’t have crackers for dinner, that’s not a proper meal.”

“What are you gonna do about it, Bakugou? Will you cook me dinner?” Her tone was teasing, joking, but he stood up immediately, snatching all the papers and notes from her and walking to the kitchen without a second of hesitation. “Hey, what the fuck!”

“Come with me already, you dumbass,” he snarled angrily, a tint of red covering his cheeks, “what do you want to eat?”

Her voice suddenly went soft, “Bakugou, I was kidding. You don’t need to get me dinner, I can just heat up some ramen or—”

“Shut the fuck up, Stupid. I was already going to cook dinner for myself anyway.”

He wasn’t, actually. He planned on eating leftovers from lunch, but he knew there wouldn’t be enough leftovers for both of them, and it was good to prepare some lunch for the next day, anyway. It wasn’t like he was doing it for her, of course not! It was just… Mutually beneficial. Yeah, it was mutually beneficial, not—not special treatment. He didn’t care about Stupid, he didn’t.

“Can I help with anything?” she asked nervously, face flushed from bashfulness and hands fidgety. Katsuki shook his head, ignoring the twitching pain on his forearms as he stirred the pot.

“Just sit down and wait.”

“Are you sure?” Y/N bit her lower lip with furrowed brows. “You seem tired, I don’t want you to do everything by yourself.”

An angry remark sat on the top of his tongue, but the ash blond hesitated. Well, if she helped with the simpler things this would be done faster, and he could go back to his room and rest earlier. Besides, the idea of cooking and spending time with Y/N in the kitchen caused some type of warmth to take over his chest — a warmth that wasn’t exactly insufferable.

It felt strangely soothing, hearing her hum while slicing vegetables and waiting for the noodles to cook through. It felt even more strangely soothing to sit before her on the kitchen table, staring anxiously while she took the first bite of his food. The worst, however, was the way her smile brightened up the room when she started rambling about how good it tasted and how much of a good cook he was and how he now had to cook for her more often. He disagreed loudly, the tip of his ears burning with embarrassment, saying he didn’t cook for her — he cooked for him, and she just happened to be there too. She cackled, and his heart seemed to burn.

He couldn’t fucking stand her.

Seventeen minutes. Y/N was seventeen minutes late.

Had she forgotten about it? God, she was the one who brought it up in the first place, and now she was the one making him wait. Katsuki felt incredibly stupid sitting in his dorm floor, a bunch of her favorite snacks neatly organized next to the nightstand and pillows on the ground for them to sit on. It was supposed to be a study date or whatever, even though he repeatedly refused to call it that (“it’s not a date, Stupid, it’s just one of our homework sessions like always!”). 

They had been spending a lot of time together between studying at the library, walking to the dorms, and cooking and eating dinner, and Bakugou had to admit he didn’t absolutely hate it. Don’t get him wrong, Y/N was still annoying and stupid and insufferable but—but something about her made him come back every single time, ignoring the knowing looks from his friends and the snickers from his classmates.

Despite his anger, a bit of worry started to blossom inside the boy’s chest. Stupid Y/N (and he hated how affectionate the mean nickname sounded to himself at this point) was rarely late — he had been seeing her after school hours enough to know. The girl was always on time and, when she wasn’t, she made sure to let others know why.

There was no text from her, though, and it made his fingers twitch uncomfortably with the urge to make a phone call and check if everything was alright.

Not that he cared if she was alright or not, because he didn’t. She was just—just some girl who decided to invade his life with no permission whatsoever and then stayed. He didn’t care about her.

And yet— 

“Hello?”

“IcyHot? What are you doing with Y/N’s phone? Where the fuck is she?”

Bakugou couldn’t muster any reason for why Todoroki would’ve been the one to pick up the call instead of her. They weren’t even friends! Yes, they knew each other and he was vaguely aware of the fact the two had sparring sessions every once in a while, but not enough so for Todoroki to feel comfortable using her phone or for Y/N to bail on their study date.

“Oh, Bakugou,” Shouto’s tone was as casual as always, almost as if this was a common occurrence (which it wasn’t), “hey. Y/N is with Recovery Girl right now. She got into a fight, but she is okay, just a few cuts and bruises. I was the one to stop the fight, so Aizawa asked me to wait around while she gets checked up on. Do you want me to tell her anything?”

Bakugou had been out the door when he heard the words “Recovery Girl”, speed walking to the nurse’s office while Todoroki rambled. He could feel his heart picking up its pace. Why would Y/N get into a fight? God, this wasn’t like her, and the prospect of someone purposely picking a fight with her filled him with the most raw type of anger possible.

“What the fuck did she get into a fight for?” he voiced his concerns, and he was pretty sure Todoroki just shrugged.

“These two boys were saying things about—”

“Todoroki? Who are you talking to?”

“Miss L/N, I’m still not done with you—”

Katsuki furrowed his brows at the commotion heard from the other end. He could easily recognize her voice, even though it sounded raspy and tired, but the next bit of conversation was too muffled for him to understand. The future hero could already see Recovery Girl’s office a few meters away, and it made him walk a bit faster.

“Give me the phone, Todoroki.”

“Miss L/N, you are still bleeding—”

The door opened violently. Y/N met Bakugou’s glare and felt a bad shiver go down her spine.

Shit, they were supposed to have that study date today. God, did he come all the way over there just to scold her? 

Heavy silence fell over the small group of people. Aizawa and Recovery Girl exchanged a quick look, the small lady’s arm still extended towards the girl in a failed attempt to grab her and drag her back to the hospital bed, even though she was definitely not as hurt as they made her out to be. Yes, she had a bunch of nasty bruises after throwing hands with two random guys from the year above her, and, yes, her nose hadn’t stopped bleeding yet, but she was mainly okay. Todoroki had gotten there pretty quickly and stopped her from making things worse, so she was fine.

“What the fuck did you do, Stupid?”

Yeah, he definitely went all the way there to scold her.

“Uh. Now, that’s a good question!” She consciously chose to ignore the smirk on Aizawa’s face, pulling her phone from Todoroki’s grip a bit more violently than necessary. “You see, I’m sorry for my tardiness, I know we had plans, we still can—”

“I asked you what the fuck you did, Stupid. I’m waiting for my answer.”

“Miss L/N picked a fight with two third years after hearing them talk about one of her colleagues in public. Thankfully, Mr. Todoroki intervened,” their teacher cut in, crossing his arms and staring as the girl cleaned up a stray drop of blood on her lips with the back of her hand. “She’ll be getting a written warning and will hopefully stay out of trouble.”

“Yes, sir,” she muttered, frowning when Recovery Girl started fussing over her again, sticking band-aids all over the small cuts on her face. Y/N had refused to accept Recovery Girl’s quirk treatment, aware that she was very busy and that it wasn’t necessary for the school nurse to tire herself out for just a few bruises. She was so intent on glaring at her elders that she didn’t notice the worry swimming in Bakugou’s red gaze.

“Good. Can you two get her back to the dorms?”

“Yes, I—”

“Fuck off, IcyHot, I’m taking her back by myself. Find something to freeze or whatever.”

Katsuki grabbed her by the arm, dragging her out of Recovery Girl’s office without a second’s worth of hesitation. He wouldn’t even look at her, fuming the whole way to the dorms. Still, he walked slow enough for her to not struggle to keep up.

“Are you mad?”

He snickered humorlessly, “of course I am, Stupid. How the fuck did you get yourself into this? And you fucking left me waiting, too, you idiot.”

Usually, Y/N didn’t care about his harsh words. Y/N didn’t mind his angry remarks. This time, however, she felt tired, and she had just gotten into a fight because of him, so she refused to take it. She had tried so hard to get close to him, to make him like her. The girl could feel tears gathering in her eyes from fury and sadness — how stupid was she to actually believe he would ever like her, be it as a friend or more? She should’ve known better. Dinner and studying and walking together meant nothing to him. She was just a bother, and she should’ve noticed earlier.

Y/N halted, pulling her arm away from his hand with rage and deception coating her every feature, “shut the fuck up, Bakugou. I don’t have to give you any explanations, you piece of shit. If you’re so pissed about it, why don’t you just leave me alone, huh? I’m done keeping up with your bullshit. I always try to be a good friend to you and you just keep doing this! You keep pushing me away and treating me like an idiot, and I deserve more than that!”

The explosion boy had a crease on his forehead, a cold feeling going through his body. The angry look in her eyes was something he didn’t recognize, and suddenly she felt so unreachable, so far away. He quickly decided he hated it.

Why did he hate it, though? They had nothing to do with each other. They were barely friends. Wasn’t this what he wanted? He couldn’t fucking stand her, he didn’t care about her. This was what he had wanted for months now — for her to tell him to leave, for her to not stand him too. Why did it feel so wrong, then? Why did he feel the urge to collect her in his arms like she loved to do with him? Why did he just want to hold her and tell her he was worried and that he couldn’t wait to spend more time with her, that he couldn’t wait for their stupid study date? And, yeah, it could be a date if she wanted it to. God, he’d accept any name or title she gave their meetings if only they could go on forever.

How long had this been going on? When did she make him so attached to her? Why hadn’t he noticed it before?

“Fuck you, Bakugou,” she muttered, slightly out of breath after her short outburst, face dark with frustration, “those idiots were talking about you and about how you should be a villain or whatever, and I got mad. That’s how I fucking got myself into this, because I care about you. Thanks for caring, asshole.”

The girl turned to walk away, and panic bloomed in the boy’s chest. He didn’t know why exactly, but he knew he couldn’t let her leave. He couldn’t let her leave him, couldn’t let her think he didn’t care, because he was just now seeing he did — so, so much. Of course he cared about her and all her silly manners that made their way into his heart and stayed there, on the edge of conditioning him to feel better whenever she was around. Of course he cared about her and the study dates and the sparring sessions and all the stories she loved to tell, of course he fucking did. Of course.

Katsuki was quick to grab her arm again, pulling her so close to him their chests bumped. Y/N furrowed her brows in confusion.

“Bakugou, what the fuck are you—”

“I like you. I really—I really do,” he shook his head, trying to gather his own feelings. “A lot. I was worried. I’m sorry.”

Y/N blinked.

“You were worried? About me?”

“Yes,” he scratched the back of his neck, looking away to hide his blushed cheeks, which didn’t go unnoticed by her attentive eyes. A smile played on the corners of her mouth, and Y/N let herself enjoy the rapid bumping of her heart, the flustered sight of the one boy she had fallen for. Flustered because of her. She could feel a rush of confidence building inside her chest. “I guess… I guess I care about you, too. Even if you’re absolutely insufferable,” he added clumsily, causing her smile to widen considerably, “I can’t fucking stand you, to be honest. You annoy me to no end.”

“Now do I?” she took a step closer, so close that he could feel her breath on his face and it made his head spin. “You don’t seem very annoyed to me, Bakugou.”

“Katsuki,” he corrected thoughtlessly, feeling his face warm up even more when he took notice of his own words.

“Right,” Y/N nodded, smirk on her face, “Katsuki, then.”

He opened his mouth to make a mean remark that would push her away enough to give him space to breathe, but he was suddenly interrupted by her lips on his. Before he could register it, she was gone, speed walking back to the dorms. After a few shocked seconds, he started running after her, calling her name angrily and trying to conceal the dark red on his face, neck, and ears.

“Hey, come back here, Stupid! What the fuck was that?”

Bakugou couldn’t have ignored the way his heart fluttered at the sound of her laugh even if he tried, a lazy smile taking over his lips immediately.

“I can’t stand you either, Katsuki.”

��Oh, shut up.”

[ofmythsandmadness]

prompts & requests.

SO...I never meant to delay this for so long, I’m so sorry for this, but I’m excited to rejuvenate this page -- I’m quite bad with tumblr, but I just hit 350 followers and I figured I’d put in a second dime for trying to make this little account work. People seem to like my little writings (which surprises me tbh, but I appreciate the love) and I’ve gotten a lot of questions about requests, so here’s the masterpost of all that for here!

PLEASE NOTE: I don’t use Tumblr too regularly, I’m trying to be more active but because of life & stuff, I’m not always active to write. Plus, just because you request something, doesn’t mean I will automatically be able to give that! It takes time, inspiration, and often the ability to form a sentence, which weirdly I struggle with. Way too often.

ALSO! please feel free to check out the kofi link in my bio (can’t link it here bc tumblr doesn’t like links and this won’t show up at all) and buy me a coffee if you feel like it! please don’t if you can’t and i’m not trying to force, guilt or forcibly nudge anyone to do it, it’s just if you can and want to support me, that’d be real sweet. :)

WHO I WRITE FOR...most people look at this acc for tua writings, which i’ve got an abundance of! I’m quite fine with any requests of any characters, except for five (unless like it’s some aged up version of him; I don’t feel comfy writing about him and I just don’t care to). I also will write for a lot of other fandoms if you ask for them: those including marvel, stranger things (those of age, i’m not writing stories about minors), harry potter and a couple others. Just ask me, I’ll let you know if I write for the fandom & we can move from there, darling. :)

HOW TO REQUEST...I prefer not too many details in a request, just so I still feel inspired to write the piece. So, if you’re asking based on a prompt below, tell me the number(s), the character you’re looking for, and any details you feel necessary to add! Remember, nothing too specific, like don’t give me the entire plot but things like genre, atmosphere, details on the reader are okay. I usually write either genderless or female reader (I try to stick with the former to be accommodating) but you can ask for a specifically gender-neutral or female/male reader too. This also applies to fics you want garnered to a specific section of the LGBTQIA+ community (for example, if you wanted a lesbian reader with Vanya Hargreeves). I try not to add any details to appearance to the story so that everyone can enjoy the fic, but again you can ask for any specific and I will try my best to accomodate for you lovelies.

REQUEST EXAMPLE - “Can you write something with prompt number 3 and 17? Preferably with a gender-neutral reader, and with Allison Hargreeves? I’d like it to be a happy fic, please, and for the reader to not have any powers. Also, they’re a cat person! Thanks!”

Obviously, I know most people know what’s up and are respectful. But just in case you wanted an example, there you go. :)

PROMPTS LIST

(these were made by me and to my knowledge, they’re not used elsewhere, only some were taken off my last requests list. also, feel free to mix + match and ask for as many as you want)

Quote Based Prompts:

1. ‘I think I’m falling for you,’ clumsy character. 2. ‘C’mon, this is definitely safe!’ 3. ‘Do you believe in ghosts?’ + ‘Why, is there something you want to tell me?’ 4. ‘Shut up about your black coffee aesthetic and try my (insert here) drink.’ 5. ‘I’m only asking for a hug because I forgot my coat and you’re like a human furnace...don’t get any ideas.’ 6. ‘Just five more minutes.’ 7. ‘And you’re sure this isn’t illegal?’ 8. ‘Wanna go get married?’ 9. ‘I love you” “don’t lie to me’ 10. ‘I hate you’ + ‘no, you don’t.’ 11. ‘let’s dance to taylor swift and forget about reality for a moment, please.’ 12. ‘why don’t you trust me?’ 13. ‘promise me, we’ll make it out of this alive.’ 14. ‘we can’t just pushing each other away and expecting things are going to change.’ 15. ‘why are you helping me?’ 16. ‘tell me a secret.’ 17. ‘you can’t friend-zone me, we’re married!’ 18. ‘is this the end?’ 19. ‘I let you win.’ 20. ‘go away’ + ‘no, not until I know you’re okay’ 21. ‘we were supposed to be forever.’ 22. ‘nothing’s fair in love and war.’ 23. ‘I want to be here for the good and the bad.’ 24. ‘So...what happened this time?’ 25. ‘I just really wanted to see you.’ 26. ‘Uh, that’s the whole point?!’ 27. ‘You cut your hair?’ + ‘I just needed a change.’ 28. ‘I can’t lose you too, dammit!’ 29. ‘Don’t lie, you’re a hopeless romantic at heart.’ 30. ‘Can we keep it?!’ 31. ‘Why can’t this happen like it does in the movies?!’ 32. ‘Can you come with me? It’s just to get gum, but I don’t want to be alone.’ 33. ‘I made muffins!’ + ‘You can bake?!’ 34. ‘I can’t sleep.’ + ‘We can share.’ 35. ‘It used to be so simple...’ 36. ‘STOP SINGING THAT SONG OR-’ + ‘-or what?’ 37. ‘I just wanted to tell you...you look really nice tonight.’ 38. ‘Ooh, show me, show me!’ 39. ‘I really wish I could paint, because you’re the perfect muse right now.’ 40. ‘Where’d you learn how to do that?’ 41. ‘Hey, it’s okay...you’re safe now.’ 42. ‘Am I in heaven?’ + ‘Aw, you think I’m your idea of heaven?’ 43. ‘I’m not crying!’ + ‘Oh, so it’s normal for your eyes to leak like that?’ 44. ‘Why wouldn’t you tell me that sooner?!’ 45. ‘What do you think of kids?’ 46. ‘Do you think I’m a good person?’ 47. ‘Don’t look down.’ + ‘You’re only telling me that now?!’ 48. ‘It’s okay...it’s going to be okay...’ 49. ‘I didn’t think it would hurt so much to do this.’ 50. ‘Nerd.’ + ‘Loser.’ 51. ‘Wait, you actually came?’ 52. ‘You didn’t notice the one bed before?!’ + ‘It didn’t say on the website!’ 53. ‘I’m in the hospital, but don’t worry--’ + ‘Don’t worry?!’ 54. ‘Yeah, I was jealous. So what?’ 55. ‘Did you know you talk when you sleep?’ 56. ‘Of course I kept it. Why wouldn’t I?’ 57. ‘I can’t get you out of my head...’ 58. ‘I made you it because I love you, duh.’ 59. ‘I trust you.’ 60. ‘How am I supposed to trust you?!’ 61. ‘You have to start getting better excuses.’ 62. ‘I think they like you!’ 63. ‘I swear if you sing baby it’s cold outside ONE MORE TIME--’ 64. ‘You’re telling me you don’t know all the words to Promiscuous? Who are you?!’ 65. ‘I only went along with it for your sake, you know I hate (insert here).’ 66. ‘Hold my hand but only so we don’t get lost. I don’t need you getting any ideas about us.’ 67. ‘Loosen up, jackass, and give in to evil a little more!’ 68. ‘You didn’t respond to any of my texts, so I assumed you were either dying or crying. I brought answers to both situations.’ 69. ‘That’s it. I’m officially convinced that you’re actually three years old.’

Situation Based Prompts: 1. Person A refuses to dress for the cold and gets sick; Person B is stuck taking care of them afterwards. 2. Person A finds a stray and wants to take it home, but Person B isn’t so interested. 3. Coffee Shop AU; Person A shows up every Saturday to work, and Person B becomes infatuated with the mysterious person. 4. Person A wants to watch a scary movie. Person B accepts, too chicken to admit they’re terrified of horror movies. 5. Person A falls asleep, and Person B plays with their hair. 6. Person A and B wake up hungover and realise that they got married last night. 7. ‘Oh...you love them’, where Person A realises that their real feelings for Person B. 8. Person A is a Christmas enthusiast, but Person B hates the holiday season. 9. (School Based Prompt); Person A doesn’t know how to talk to Person B, and decides to pretend to need help in a subject they definitely don’t need help with. 10. Person A decides to confess their feelings to Person B through a series of anonymous gifts...only they aren’t who B suspects behind it all... 11. Person A and B have a Catwoman/Batman type relationship, dancing around one another and ignoring their obvious feelings. 12. Younger!Person A and B shared their first kiss with each other -- not because of feelings, JUST to get it over with. It never meant anything, right? 13. There’s only a little bit of time left for Person A...will they make it to B, in time? 14. (Flower Shop AU) Person A comes in every day to purchase the same single flower every time, and Person B has no clue why. 15. (Villain/Hero AU) Person A goes home to find B in their bed, bleeding and fast asleep. 16. Person A has a fear of driving. Person B finally asks why. 17. (School Based AU) Person A and B get paired together to complete a project worth a lot of their grade. The only problem? They hate each other. 18. (Coffee Shop AU) Person A comes in every day with a different name and sunglasses on, ordering the same thing every time. And Person B is obsessed. 19. Person A has a hard day at work. Person B doesn’t know what they should do to help. 20. Person A finally finds out about Person B’s big secret -- only, it doesn’t come from Person B. 21. Person A is the most oblivious person in the world. Person B is slowly losing their mind over it. 22. Everyone thinks that Person A and C are meant to be together, and it’s only A and B who really, really don’t see it. 23. And they were roommates (oh my god, they were roommates...) 24. Person A’s roommate’s boyfriend is over again, and they escape to Person B’s for peace of mind. 25. Person A finds a random bag and is determined to return it to the owner -- only, all the clues she has for who the person really is, is in the contents of the bag. 26. (Party Based Prompt) Person A and B really, really didn’t want to go to the party. But maybe meeting one another makes it worth it. 27. Person A and B go laser-tagging for some stress relief. 28. There’s a Halloween party and neither A or B knows who the other is going as. But the (insert costume) standing in the corner is looking rather suspicious... 29. (Apocalypse AU) Person A and B have been struggling for months alone, and finally reach something that gives them hope.  30. Person A and B both head to the roof for some escape. They definitely didn’t expect to see someone in their special place... 31. Person A works really late shifts downtown; Person B always makes sure they’re there to give them a ride, no matter how inconvenient it is. 32. Person A forgets about changing their emergency contact, and this backfires when they end up in the hospital... 33. (Soulmate AU) In a world where people don’t age past 21 until they meet their soulmate, Person A is surprised to learn that the partner they’ve been with for four years hasn’t aged a day -- but they have. 34. (Airport AU) Everything shuts down in a last-minute snowstorm, leaving two strangers stranded. 35. (School AU) Everyone ships Teacher A and B together, and scheme to finally set them up. 36. Person A and B ride the train together every day. 37. (Doctor AU) Person A has to take Person C to the doctors. Much to both surprise, Person A falls quickly for the Doctor who comes in (Person B) -- and Person C takes it upon themselves to let B know. 38. (Neighbours AU) Person A is tired of hearing Person B being so loud so late at night -- especially when they have to get up super early. They finally decide to confront them on it. 39. (Soulmate AU) Everyone has the same cuts, bruises and scars as their soulmate, which really freaks out Person A, who becomes determined to find their soulmate to make them stop getting hurt. 40. Person A and B are hiding their relationship from everyone. They’re not very good at it. 41. Person A finally trusts Person B to meet their (insert here); the last step in their relationship. 42. Person A sends their text to the LAST person they wanted to send it to: Person B. 43. (Delivery Person AU) Person A somehow always manages to be the one to sign for the office packages...does Person B have anything to do with it? (Also, why does A keep buying so much stuff?!) 44. (Arranged Marriage) Person A is being forced into a marriage to Person C neither they or Person B wants. But B might just have a plan out... 45. (Bodyguard AU) Person A always knew that Person C was rich, but never rich enough to need a legit bodyguard. But when C’s father’s company is threatened, they call in the big dogs -- and they’re cute, too. Aka...A makes a point to catch the attention of Person B at any time possible, much to their upset. 46. (University AU) Person A needs a model. Person B needs a way to occupy their afternoon. Thus, a deal is struck. 47. Person A is a private detective hired to work the case on a mysterious murder (that strangely, Person C doesn’t want getting out). Person B is C’s lead suspect, but A can’t help but feel like they’re not the real culprit... 48. Person A drags Person B along onto a roadtrip across the country to go visit their oddball grandparents. But things go south quickly. 49. Person A gets robbed, and has no one to call when they can’t shake the nightmares but Person B. 50. Person A can manipulate time, but only by an hour. Person B doesn’t know this, but gets suspicious when they see A do something very, very weird... (you can supply more details for this one) 51. (Neighbours AU) Person A and B have the thinnest walls ever, which would suck, but they both oddly have the exact same taste in music. It’s nice; if only they got to meet. 52. (Store AU) Person A and B get locked into their work’s freezer for the night. 53. (Coffee Shop AU) Person B has never met Person A; they always miss them by only a minute. They do, however, manage to sit at the exact same table every day and pick up the piece of art they leave for the next customer. 54. Person A has loved Person B their entire life. Too bad they’ll never get to tell them. 55. (Diner AU) Person A meets Person B at three in the morning when they stumble in soaked. They’re surprised, when they show up again...and again...at the exact same time. 56. (5+1) Five times Person A told Person B they loved them, and the one time Person B finally said it back. 57. (5+1) The five times Person A surprises Person B, and the one time Person B surprises A. 58. (5+1) The five times Person A broke Person B’s heart, and the one time they didn’t.  59. (5+1) The five times Person A saved Person B...and the one time Person B couldn’t save A. 60. (5+1) The five times A and B almost meet, and the first time they finally do. 61. (5+1) The five times Person A lies to Person B, and the one time they finally tell the truth. 62. Person B is like, super allergic to dogs. But Person A doesn’t need to know that. 63. Person A has no clue how to tell Person B how they feel. So, they make a playlist. 64. Person A and B accidentally switch luggage at the airport.

Happy requesting, darlings.

[cursed-and-quirkless]

Chapter 1 - The Curse

Hello all! Welcome to my first MHA fic! This is the first part of a series about if Izuku was a quirkless vigilante, because I really love that trope.

TW: This fic, the first part especially, has some themes of injury, death/being on the verge of death, and ideas of suicide. No suicide is attempted, however. If these ideas bother you, please be cautious. To skip the first part, do not read until the first “~” symbol. There is also weird church stuff (that’ll make sense when you read), so if that makes you uncomfortable please be cautious. Thank you, hope you enjoy!

Ao3: queenofliterature

They say before you die, your life flashes before your eyes. Izuku never thought that was accurate until now.

There had been plenty of times he had almost died. When a shot rang and the muzzle of a gun flashed, the only thing Izuku thought was run, dodge, never anything about who he was, or how he got here.

Now though, now he understood.

Izuku blinked his tired eyes, focusing on the grey sky. The city was surprisingly peaceful, though maybe that was the falling snow coating the sounds of the bustling life under him. Or the ringing in his ears.

Eyes swollen with exhaustion refused to close for too long. If he fell asleep now, he would never wake up. And as much as he lied to himself, Izuku wasn’t ready for that, not yet.

Hypothermia was settling quickly into his bones, his shallow breaths obvious against the cold night. But the gentle flakes tickled his nose, and all he felt was relief when they touched his fevered skin. Besides, he wouldn’t be dying of the cold tonight, the pools of blood gathering steadily underneath him was a testament to that.

Maybe if Izuku tried hard enough, he could roll off the edge. The rooftop had no railing, and if he stretched his arm just enough, he could dangle his hand over the streets below. But that wouldn’t do, he wanted to see the sky when his body finally let go, and his eyes closed and never reopened. Besides, Izuku could barely even move his fingers, let alone roll his entire body. No… he was stuck here.

It wouldn’t be long now.

Perhaps it was the fact that his blood was sluggishly trailing out of his body this time instead of the threat of instant death but…

His mind began to drift.

~

He was happy.

The middle class apartment he lived in with his mother and father always had the drapes thrown open, rays of sun keeping the apartment a comfortable temperature and bathing the bright green house plants.

His mother would playfully yell and scream, the damsel in distress. His father and him were the heroes.

He doesn’t remember much of his father, but he remembers the warm feeling of his chest, of the hot and smoky breath that would tickle his ears and ruffle his hair.

His father’s hands would hold him in the air as he flew to rescue his mother from the villains that had taken her.

Most of his peers probably wouldn’t want to spend their 5th birthday in the doctor’s office, but to Izuku it was the best present his parents could give him. He should have had a quirk by now, Kaccan said so. But if it was taking this long, it should have been cool and powerful! Just like Kaccan’s!

Izuku buzzed in excitement as the doctor read his file and looked at the x-rays they had taken in the big machine they put him in. Maybe he’d get telepathy, or fire, or a combination! Kaccan and him would grow up and be an unstoppable team and they’d share the rank for Number One hero (no matter what Kaccan said) and they’d save people and fight villains and-

“Quirkless.”

And just like that Izuku’s world shattered. The doctor’s uncaring drawl barely pierced his mind as his stomach lurched.

“W-what?” His mother questioned tearfully. His father simply sat there, eyes clouded with something Izuku would never understand. Sure 20% of the world was quirkless, but most were old and that number was dying out everyday. Only .01% of Japan’s population remained quirkless. And Izuku was now one of them.

When Izuku awoke the next day, his father was gone, and his mother wasn’t surprised.

There was no explosion, no shouted words, no hits or screams. His father was simply gone, any traces of him lingered like a ghost. Sometimes Izuku thought he had made up his father, the only proof he had that the man existed were the pictures Mom had kept in the trunk beside her bed.

It was raining the night he got diagnosed, as if the heavens were weeping for the shattered dream of a crushed child. He sat for hours watching the video of All Might saving all those people at the factory, hitting the replay button until his fingers hurt.

“Because I am here! Because I am here! Because I am here!”

Izuku heard the door creek softly behind him, but he didn’t turn around, he didn’t need to. “S-see that Mom?” Izuku’s tiny voice cracked, and he finally turned around. His mother already had tears springing to her eyes, and Izuku would realize later that’s the moment he would never see his father again.

“He always has a smile on his face, no matter how bad things get.” Izuku’s voice was slowly breaking down along with the little boy. “Even when things seem impossible, he never gives up.” Izuku will never forget the look on his mother’s face, the pain and the sorrow.

“Do you think… I could be a hero too?” Izuku already knew the answer to that question, he saw the answer in his mother’s eyes. His mother rushed forward, gripping him tightly and nuzzling into his hair, murmuring apology after apology. Her touch burned and the ache in his chest choked him, but Izuku didn’t bother to fight her off.

Izuku doesn’t even remember his father’s last words to him.

~

Izuku and his mother went to church the next day.

His mother was aching for a sense of normalcy, and some foolish part of Izuku believed his father would be there waiting for them.

His father was half japanese, but he never told Izuku what his other half was. Hisashi’s parents and siblings chose to follow the Christian faith, though what branch Izuku also didn’t know, he never paid attention. There was a small church half an hour away from the Midoriya apartment, and Hisashi thought it would be good for the small family to have a sense of community.

His mother must have opened up that day to the pastor before Sunday Service, because that was the first time Izuku was called a curse to humanity.

The little boy sat in the pew, hunching over as every word the pastor said pierced his heart.

“The quirkless are a scourge, a curse, a remnant of the days of old. They are a reminder of the sins of man!” Izuku’s eyes pricked at the cheers coming from around him. “We must stay strong in the face of adversity!” The cheers were stronger this time. Whatever his mother told the pastor must have sunk deep into the man’s skin, because they spent the next hour listening to the talks of plagues and scourge and punishment that were the quirkless population, all while he looked at the little green-haired boy.

After the service, all Izuku wanted to do was disappear. Going home would mean facing the unnatural quiet that now suffocated the once bright household, and staying here meant facing the lingering glares and whispers. His mother was in the restroom preparing for the semi-long trip back when Izuku heard footsteps approaching.

“Hello, Izuku.” The pastor greeted with a soft smile. He supposed it should be comforting, but all Izuku felt was fear.

“H-hello.” A meek voice greeted back.

“Your mother told me of your condition. I just wanted you to know I meant every word I said. But I can help.” The pastor offered, and despite the dangerous glint in the man’s eyes, Izuku perked up.

“You can?” Izuku asked cautiously. Maybe this would make Dad come back! And he could make Mom happy again! Izuku’s heart clenched when a hand grabbed his wrist.

“Come, child, it's not your fault. The children of God are innocent, you are being punished for the misgivings of your ancestors.” The gentle words of the pastor did nothing to ease the bile growing in Izuku’s throat. The more Izuku fought, the tighter the bruising grips became.

“W-wait.” Izuku protested as he was dragged away from the restroom. “My Mom! She’ll wonder where I am!”

“It will be a nice surprise for her, don’t you think?” The pastor ignored the protests and continued dragging the boy through the church.

“What-what’s gonna happen?”

“Simple, child. We’ll get the Devil out of you. It may hurt but I promise you’ll be better for it.” The pastor reassured. Thi wasn’t right. Mom and Dad said never go with strangers! But… the pastor wasn’t a stranger, he said he could help?

“Can we ask my Mom, p-please?” Izuku gave a powerful tug, and that seemed to be the last straw.

“Foolish child! Your mother does not understand what needs to be done! I do!” The others in the church startled at the noise, but turned away when they saw what was happening.

Izuku didn’t know what was happening, but he didn’t like it! In a last attempt, Izuku lashed out and bit the man’s hand, pulling away with a gasp when the pastor yanked his hand back.

“You evil child!” The pastor screamed as Izuku ran as fast as his little legs could carry him. He remembered the way to the restrooms, he just hoped his mother would be there. He wanted to go home! He wanted to play hero and be held by his dad and be tucked in by his mom when he fell asleep on the couch!

“Mom!” Izuku screamed when he spotted green hair. The woman quickly turned around from the couple she seemed to be frantically talking too. Izuku’s own eyes matched the tears that were streaming down his mother’s face.

“Izuku!” Inko yelled in relief as her little boy crashed into her. “Baby, where were you? I was worried sick!” Inko cried.

“M-mom, the p-pastor, h-he, a-and-” Izuku couldn’t get any of the story through the spasming of his little lungs. Through hiccuping sobs, Izuku heard the frantic footsteps of the pastor approach him, and he buried himself further into his mother’s neck.

“Pastor? What-what happened?” Inko hesitated at the teeth marks on the hand of the pastor. Her little boy wouldn;t do that for anything.

“H-he said.” Izuku’s little sobs broke her heart.

“Said what, Baby?” Inko coaxed, ignoring the man above them.

“G-gonna get the Devil out.” Inko’s heart dropped, knowing the implication.

“You were gonna beat him?” The horrified whisper reached the poster’s ears and he scoffed.

“Not him, the scourge. The boy may feel pain, but it would make him better.” The pastor declared. Perhaps if Inko hadn’t already been in pieces, she would have yelled at him. Perhaps if her husband hadn’t left and her son wasn’t falling apart she would have defended her son, but for now she had enough.

“Izuku, we’re leaving.” She said to the pastor just as much as her son, and Izuku saw the glance towards his blackened wrist.

It was the first time his mother ignored a bruise, but it would not be the last.

The drive home was quiet, and Izuku didn’t think he would ever get used to the silence that now permeated his new life.

“Mom?” Izuku spoke up, his timid voice uncomfortable with breaking pure silence. “Everything is going to be okay, right?” He just needed to hear those words as his world was crumbling beneath him, ‘It will be okay’.

“Izuku, my baby, there will be many more like him. From now on I want you to walk to and from school with Katsuki. No detours, nothing.” Izuku nodded at his mom’s serious voice. “We’re gonna get you a phone, I want you to text me everyday at lunch, and before and after school, and when you get home.” Izuku nodded again, and kept doing so as more rules were given to him.

When they got home that afternoon, his mother shut down. From afternoon till night, Inko Midoriya held an empty tea cup, not having the energy to fill it. She sat at the table, and tried to remember the deep voice of her husband that floated around the kitchen like embers, and the light and airy voice of her child that bounced against the walls.

Now all she heard was the stone cold silence of a shattered household.

Meanwhile, Izuku sat at the computer. Mom didn't bother to enforce computer time. So he watched the video, over and over again until it somehow pierced the unfeeling void that was beginning to set in. It never did.

“Because I am here! Because I am here! Because I am here!”

He realized that night with a bitter numbness he was already forgetting what his father’s laugh sounded like.

~

Izuku was finally beginning to understand, he knew he was a plague on his mother and father’s life, an infestation in his own skin.

He knew he was a curse.

~~~

Disclaimer: Nothing against any religion. Just as long as you don’t use it to hurt others I don’t care what religion you are/aren’t, this specific church, however, was very radical and was based loosely on unfortunate experiences I had in churches with some personal issues of mine. I just thought it would be interesting to explore how radical groups like this would see quirklessness.

I don't usually do this, but each chapter is gonna have a song I think that fits it!

Chapter Song: i can't breathe by Bea Miller

I have a Discord, and this fic has a channel! Same with Tumblr

Discord: https://discord.gg/UpWvDzKC5R Tumblr: cursed-and-quirkless

[sweetness47]

Undeniable Fatality

Pairings: Alpha! Sam x Serial killer! Reader, Alpha! Castiel x Serial killer! Reader

@deanandsambingo​ – serial killer AU

@spnkinkbingo​ – dom/sub

@spnabobingo​ – growling/whining

WARNINGS: MATURE 18+ READERS ONLY!!! POSSIBLE TRIGGERS, DARK THEMES…serial killer, smut, fingering, murderous themes, language, attempted murder, abo themes, character deaths

Detective Dean Winchester looked at the large folder on his desk, a huge sigh escaping his lips as he scanned the contents inside. The “Temptress”, an elusive serial killer, presumably female, one that had managed to so far to elude capture. She was good at avoiding cameras, and had been leaving a trail of bodies for 3 years now. She’d earned her name after noting all the victims had sex right before they died.

No motive had been established. None of the victims had anything in common. It was frustrating as hell for Dean, who’d earned the rank of Detective early in his career. His brother Sam, a firefighter, wanted to save lives in a different way. He loved the thrill that came with the danger, and he was also a hero to many he’d saved over the years. He was supposed to get promoted to Fire chief this week, and had sent invites to Dean, and to Cas, their life long friend and room mate.

Cas, a mechanic by trade, now the owner of a successful auto body shop, was taking the day off. He was at the local bar, having a noon cocktail. He was currently at a hotel room with a woman he’d met there, and they were getting naked faster than gale force winds. He growled, smelling her Omega scent, the enticing fragrance luring him to her, the need to consume her overriding all other senses. She whined, whimpering at his strength, his dominance of her, the way he took her to the bed, drove his hard cock into her.

He crushed her lips with his own, fucking her hard into the soft mattress. His cries of release mirrored hers as he knotted her, his load filling the condom he’d sheathed his cock with. Her body shook with the aftershocks of the orgasm that had swept through, leaving her purring and happily sated.

He rolled off her finally, holding her close. He never felt the needle pierce his skin, the tiny metal piece too small to be noticed. It was on her bracelet, the one she’d worn during the whole afternoon. He fell into a deep slumber, and that’s when she got up, wiping off his mouth and his fingers, his nails, and taking the condom. Every single piece of evidence that could even remotely be linked to her was removed with precision and skill.

The hotel clerk would later tell the police the woman was medium height, dark hair, bright lipstick, expensive taste in clothing. The woman who left the hotel shortly after her victim slept was blonde, wore no make up, regular clothing, hat, sunglasses. She smiled to herself as she walked outside into the sunlight. The nickname the media had given her was awesome. She sounded like a super villain. She supposed in a way she was. She never really knew why she was like this, why she liked to seduce men then kill them. She supposed it was the same reason that had her liking horror and suspense films, studying law and crimes. Maybe she thought of it as a game, like Clue, or more cat and mouse, and the thought of being hunted thrilled her to no end.

~~

Sam called Dean first. He’d gotten a call from the hospital, as Sam was listed as Castiel’s emergency contact. Dean dropped everything and met Sam at the emergency entrance. Castiel had been admitted in critical condition, his life fading fast. His breathing was shallow, his skin pale, clammy. Doctors worked around the clock trying to figure out was wrong, sending blood panels and tests, hoping to find a cure for whatever ailed their friend.

Castiel James Novak died at 12:37am, not 6 hours after being admitted. Hotel staff found his body, barely alive, and had called 911. He was naked, and the coroner confirmed he’d had sex right before his death.

Dean was furious. “Son of a bitch. I swear I will find this killer, and I will make her pay Sam. She won’t get away from me again. Not this time.”

Sam hugged his brother. “I know Dean. I know.”

They cried and hugged. They grieved and planned the wake. They were still in shock the day of the life celebration. Their friend had been murdered. And the bitch who did it was still in the city, probably planning her next kill. Did she even plan? Or was it random choosing, letting fate decide who she would poison next.

Sam left early. He was distraught. He went to the tavern next door. His plan was to drink himself into oblivion. He was about three beers and three tequila shots in when she came to sit down beside him. He found himself pouring his heart out to her, she listened as he talked about the friend he’d lost. She comforted him, bought him another round. By the time round four finished, she had him laughing, and for a small time, forgetting about the funeral, about Cas.

She helped him to a hotel room, giving him a place to sleep the alcohol off, to rest. He asked her to stay, and she did, giving him a different kind of comfort. When he growled, the strong Alpha that made her weak, she whined, submitting to her nature. He slept content after, and she quietly left, applying some heavy make up, a pink wig, and a beige trench coat. Nothing at all like the petite blonde who’d taken pity on a drunk and helped him.

The bartender went up to check on him not three hours later and found him alone, and unresponsive. Dean got the call at 3 am. His brother had been admitted to emergency, with the exact same symptoms as Cas.

She’d gotten to Sam.

Whether by accident or on purpose, he wasn’t sure. What he did know was she had made the final mistake of her ‘career’. He knew Sam had gone to the tavern next door, and Dean knew the bartender. They’d shared many a happy hour together over the years. Upon questioning him, Dean got the description of the woman who had gone with Sam. He went to the room, found the wig she’d somehow left behind, the first clue that actually might help with something.

He was given access to the security footage. She managed to avoid the security cameras, well all the ones she knew about. The bartender had installed a secret camera to keep a better eye on the liquor. In one brief frame, he caught a blonde, petite, walking over to Sam. Zooming in, he saw her face, plastered with makeup, but basic facial structure.

He knew what she looked like, well enough to narrow down the field considerably.

Watching the footage for any women exiting, the only one that really stood out was a woman with pink hair, trench coat, and different make up.

He put out a silent APB on the female. Then he went out himself. She would have to be staying close by, easy escape from the cops. There was also a possibility of her having more than one escape location. By god, he would find her tonight, and he would put an end to her body count.

And he would get the antidote from her.

She had to have one. Just in case, for whatever reason, she sticks herself with the poison, she would carry a cure. And he would get it. For Sam.

The BOLO came over the radio, a woman matching the description had been spotted near the airport. The bitch was making a run for it.

He laughed at the idea that she thought she could get away from him this time.

He made record time, pulling up to the departure section 15 minutes after getting the tip. All flights had been grounded, citing mechanical issues. It was enough. She tried to leave by the emergency exits, and walked right into Dean’s arms.

“Where is it? Where’s the fucking antidote bitch?”

She smiled. “No where you have access to dick head.”

Dean frowned. She was way too cocky. Then it struck him. “Your blood. You’re immune to the poison. Don’t know how, but it’s in your blood. So then your blood has the cure too.”

Quicker than lightning, he cuffed her and dragged her to his car. Pushing his vehicle past safety regulation, he got to the hospital, dragging her in with him. “Sam Winchester, poison, her blood has the cure.”

Doctors took her and grabbed blood samples. They injected Sam with it, studied the effects even as labs worked furiously to get it separated, analyzed.

YN was sent to maximum security women’s prison. Sam stayed in the hospital for two days following the injection. Dean was decorated a hero. It was finally over, the river of terror, Temptress was finished. Forever.

[ohgoddard]

Fist of Fire.4.

A couple hours after the combat lesson, a request for a meeting was sent to the Hero combat Teacher. And very soon, Reverse had a very long meeting with the Academy dean.  He sat in front of a long oak desk, covered in papers and a very ancient computer. The room was depressing at best, and pathetic at worst. It was very apparent the funding went into the classrooms and facilities of this academy instead of the administration. Behind the desk, sitting down in a very large and ornate office chair, sat a toad. Well, he had the fat and large head of a toad, and he was not very tall. But what he lacked in physical ability and demeanor was filled with a sense of authority and power. Reverse gulped. The toadman took off his overly large pair of glasses and started cleaning them. “Mr. Ellington, yesterday you sent five children to the infirmary and several more back to their dorms bruised. Normally, I do not care for this.” Reverse had been expecting this. Even though he had brought it past the Dean, and had gotten his permission to run the ‘quirk assessment’ lesson, he knew this was going to happen. Reverse went to reply, opening his mouth and raising a finger, but a quick look from the Dean shut that down. “Normally,” the toad man replied in a rumbling voice, “this would not be an issue. But yesterday you punched the Mayor’s daughter in the gut.” He put on his glasses and leaned forward.

Reverse had fought many villains before. Monsters too. Beings of extreme power and anger, that had given him many an injury and pain. He was reminded of that power right now, as the Dean stared at him from behind the desk. If the toadman could shoot death from his eyes, there is doubt he would have in that moment. The dean straightens his tie before continuing. “Now, the Mayor knows what he signed when his daughter decided to go here. Truth be told, she should not even be here. I have strong suspicion some on the admissions staff allowed her in with false hopes and empty promises of rewards.” He takes out a stack of paper, taking a breath. “We see where that gets us now. The Mayor is very mad with us, and is threatening an investigation among a whole deal of things.” The Dean shoves the pile towards Reverse, and as he picked them up he saw that they were letters from the office of the Mayor concerning the teaching practices of the Hero Combat Teacher.“I’m going to ignore that pompous bastard and all the shit he spews.”

Reverse looked up with astonishment. His mouth agape, he tried to make a sentence but a raised hand from the Dean silenced him. “If we are to release heroes from this school, or if we fill the ranks of those private organizations we will do so with real people and success. The Mayor cannot touch us, we are beyond him. But, I am going to give you a warning.”

Reverse had been filled with too much different emotions, and was bracing himself for the next impact. “You cannot openly assault our students. Atleast, during class time. The A.H.A has spent a good deal of time out of the news, atleast a few weeks now which is not common for us. I do not want to hear about anymore poor conduct from you involving the students here. However, if you were to make an after school club, then we would be free of any issues.” The Dean pulled out a separate paper, with what looked like an already signed signature on a dotted line.

“Let's discuss the operation of the new ‘A.H.A Combat Team’ , if you will.”

After a few more hours of work, Reverse left the Dean’s office as the new sponsor of the Combat Team. There were a number of schools in the US that competed in Combat events, and the Atlanta Hero Academy had not participated since the founding years of the school ( Sometime in the 2090s). Reverse was muttering to himself, walking down the hallways down to his classroom/office, when he passed the nurse’s office. He paused, standing still outside the door. Maybe, he thought,  I should check up on the kids in there. He walked in, pushing the door and leaving it open. The nurse was at his desk, writing a report on today’s influx of visits. He turned to see the visitor and laughed. “Come to grab a trophy from your recent hunt?” The nurse was a short,stocky, old black man, with a head full of silver hair. He was wearing green scrubs,and had several scars up and down his arms. “See, usually when kids come in here they just want an excuse out of class. But this time? You really gave me a test of my abilities. I’ll be honest, it’s been a while since I got to use my quirk to its fullest.” He grabs an apple from his desk and walks over to Reverse, and gives him a look. “Nasty burn scar you got there.”

Reverse put his hand over his forehead, and winces. “Yeah,” he said with a chuckle, “one of the students got a lick on me. Gave a good sting too.” The nurse put his hand on Reverse’s arm and all of the sudden the apple in his other hand turned to dust. “Your scar should heal up soon.”

Reverse was taken aback a small amount. “That’s quite the quirk you have there.” 

“Yes, it takes the life energy from one object and gives it to another. Good thing i’m a nurse right?” He laughs. Reverse gives him a weary chuckle in reply. Going to need to keep a note of that. The nurse regained his composure then continued. “Hey can I ask something of you? My wife has been attacking me all week about getting home earlier than I usually do. Can you do me a favor? Can you stay here for just about 1 more hour?” The nurse was speaking incredibly fast, as he was putting on his coat and walking towards the door Reverse was standing at. “Really thank you for all of this, you only need to look after one kid. The rest are staying for the night. Make sure the heat fans are plugged in. Thank you so much bye!” And with that the nurse had left the room, leaving a very confused Reverse standing wondering what just happened.

What just happened? He thought to himself. Did I just get hit with extra stuff? Man, I need to be more cautious of this place better. Reverse took a deep sigh and looked around at the students in the bed. He observed one in a giant block of ice, which made him giggle when he saw it. “Aw man, Snow-throne you outdid yourself.” He walked around, looking at the other beds. He saw the one student still conducting electricity, courtesies of BreakerX2 , and then his two students. He looked at Riley and felt something. He thinks it was respect, but he is not certain, as he had never respected a teenager before. But, he thought,  if anyone deserved it 'd be her. She was the only one to dodge one of his attacks today and at the same time was grateful to be hit. She liked to learn, and from the looks of it had gotten to this school the hard way instead of the silver spoon morons he had to deal with. He would keep a close eye on her.

That left the last bed then,the one close to the window. Laying in it, and looking quite knocked out, he saw Jade Laurens. Reverse sat down at the end of Riley’s bed, and looked on over at Jade. I cannot believe out of all the schools, she’d be in this one.  Reverse put his head in his hands and the memories came flooding back. He tried his best to forget that day and move on, as the pain it caused him still left scars, but try as he can he could never. He could not forget seeing the Washington Monument on fire and falling down, not running away from the tornado of molten magma  while holding the President’s daughter, and certainly not forget the tears he felt as he saw Victor Laurens lose his fight with that monster that dared try to pass as man.

Reverse sighed,but let a small smile creep through. “Victor Laurens, you mad man. Here I thought I would never get to repay you for taking me off the streets.” Jade’s body began to stir, before settling again. A nightmare no doubt. Reverse reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet, then slipped out a picture. It was of thirteen or so people with the caption at the bottom, “Laurens SHS.” Reverse smiled as he looked over the faces, and was happy he got to see some of them today. It was not often they got back together with each other. A group of misfits under their strong leader. His eyes strayed away from his friends and down to a face that was scribbled over. I wish I could say I missed all of us. As he was putting his picture back into his wallet, he noticed a pair of trimming scissors over on the desk of the nurse. After a few glances at it, then at Jade, Reverse retrieved the Scissors before getting to work.

“This” snip “is for” snip snip “your own” snip “good.”

Red swatches of hair began to slowly trickle down. Reverse was no hair stylist, but he was fairly good at copying. He began to look around for a reference until he saw Riley. He thought,”Good enough I supposed.”

After he was done, he sat down on the bed and waited. And when she awoke...

“Nice to see you awake.”

------------------------------------

Three days after the nurse’s office, Jade Laurens was getting dressed for her ‘extracurricular activity’. While she was trying to play it off like she didn’t want to go, and was only doing so because she wanted to gain better control of herself, she was excited. So it was when she got there that she was a bit confused. In the classroom, which would now be the clubroom once school ended, there were only five people. Turns out, not many wanted to excel at being a hero.

The desks were filled with the likes of John,a tall gangly dude she remembered is named Ricardo, Emily for some reason, and a very quiet girl she has never met before. Jade turned to also see Riley, who once she saw Jade’s new haircut gave a huge smile and a small laugh. “Didn’t know I made such an impact with my passing out next to you.” Jade’s face turned red and she quickly took a seat. Reverse was sitting on his desk, talking to the school nurse. They were talking about a bet or something it sounded like, the words “sandwich” and “you owe me”. 

The tall kid walked over to where Jade sat down, and did his best to introduce himself. “Hi, I don’t believe we’ve met before, but i’m Ricardo and I can shoot bullets from my fingers.”

Jade’s eyes shone. “THAT’S SO COOL!” Ricardo was not expecting that response. “Really? No one ever says that! Whenever I tell them what I do, they always scoff at me and say ‘don’t go around the police’ or ‘bet that's how you got past the border’. Wow, I found one of the few non-racist people in this school!”  Jade was about to respond back to him when Reverse coughed. “I believe this is all we are going to get today, so i’m going to begin. This class is going to be about getting stronger in your own abilities and growing to be 110%. I was originally going to have a cool slogan like ‘Go Beyond Plus Ultra’ but it turns out some school in Japan have copyright on that everywhere. Anyways, in order for me to teach you how to get stronger I have to do it via this ‘Combat for Sport’ kinda thing. So, the game plan is we’re going to win, we’re going to get strong, and we’re not going to sue the school or me because you all signed those waivers before coming here. Let’s begin, shall we?”

[vividlybnha]

The Beat of The Music

Warning: Fluff and Just Dance

Word Count: 2390

Relationship: Iida x Reader

Author’s Note: Similar to my All Might story this one is in also for @michelledixart! Go check out their blog and comic (I am in love with them)! They also have commissions going!! <3 <3 <3   http://michelledixart.tumblr.com/post/183454237438/iida-b4

You let your hips sway to the beat of the music. Mimicking the girl on the screen, raising your Wii remote when she did. You softly bounced your hip against Mina’s, snorting when she enthusiastically bumped you back (almost knocking you over). You could faintly hear some of the other girls cheering behind you over the music. You smiled, flipping your hand to wipe the sweat out of your eyes and pushed your body to the music.

It was (almost) entirely Mina’s fault that the common room had been turned to an impromptu party. The games and different events going on throughout the room was practically all her idea, with your brilliant help of course.

All it was supposed to be was a small Just Dance battle when you had questioned her honor in dancing and Mina, being the diva she was made it into a whole competition with rounds and an audience. Not that you minded of course.

But what you did mind was the fierce eyes on you. Usually, as you danced you’d basked in the attention, flipping your hair and letting the atmosphere fuel you and yet it was different this time. You could basically feel Iida’s gaze on you from his spot near the couch. It was piercing and silent, he tracked your body with an intensity you weren’t unknown to. You knew the boy wasn’t especially fond of you but it wasn’t that he held absolute disdain for you. You and Mina were chaotic enough to catch his attention that was for sure. Because yes, sitting on desks and talking just tad (okay, more than a tad) bit too much during class was so devilish and terrible that it got you on his radar. He always found himself next to you, hand chopping away at the air next to you exclaiming how disrespectful you to were towards the school. You would roll your eyes and depending on your mood would end up provoking him or going to your seat. You were happy to say most of the time it was provoked him.

You loved the way he snorted, scrunching up his nose and scooting closer, proclaiming that this was unhealthy behavior for a UA student. You could never hide your giggle as you turned your head, sharing a glance with Mina. “Well, I feel like it’s unhealthy behavior of a UA student to yell at their classmates.” That would always give him a run for his money as he rushed to explain his behavior.

This wasn’t one of those moments. Dancing wasn’t against the rules, was it? And you weren’t doing anything especially dirty, just following the PG-13 moves with the same vigor as always. You found yourself raking your brain for anything you could be doing wrong.

Nothing.

You were clean, golden and yet as you fell into a spin as the woman on the screen did you saw his gaze was still on you. It wasn’t his usual annoyed glance he gave you. It was something Iida had never looked at you with and that unnerved you.

“Looks like someone is losing to the marvelous Alien Queen!” She bounced against your hip again, winking at you as she laughed.

You bumped back and gave her a knowing look, “He’s still looking.” You whispered under your breath. She returned you with an absolutely gaudy look, eyebrows raised high and an accusing look in her eyes. You immediately shook your head. You knew that look, she has given many people that look. She had already thought you two would look cute together. “The strict and handsome class president and the hot and rebellious student,” as she put it. But then again she said a lot of things. Like how she’d seen him looking at you when you weren’t doing anything bad (which you declared was absolutely impossible) and that she swore you liked him too (which wasn’t entirely a lie, he was cute, you could admit that) but this was Mina and she was the romantic of the girls who declared anything a hint at a “blossoming class romance!” But this was anything but that. It had to be anything but that.

You could hear the music fading into the background, mixing with the cheers of your classmates. You and Mina turned and bowed before she hurriedly tugged you to the side, away from any prying ears.

“Is he still looking?” You grabbed one of the water bottles from the table, pushing yourself up to sit on it. Mina gave one quick glance and was smiling all over again. “Oh honey, you can’t even tell me I’m just making it up at this point. He hasn’t taken his eyes off of you yet.” You slightly shoved her over, turning your head to gulp down some water. If she saw the blush coating your face it would be all over.

“Well, I am sitting on the table.” You mock.

Mina gave you an unamused look before snatching the water bottle from your hands taking a swig. “Besides knowing him maybe he just thought that Just Dance was to Rated R for UA.” You started to slowly kick your legs, you could still feel his eyes. She set the water bottle down, leaning closer a devious look in her eyes. “Oh really, maybe he is coming this way to say just that.”

You could feel the anxiety pooling in your stomach, the static filling your veins. You turn to Mina glaring, “You better act natural.”

She snorted, “I should be telling you that.”

You can hear Iida call your name and you as casually as you can, timidly turn your head and smile innocently.

“Hello, Iida! Did we happen to do something wrong again?”

Iida stood rigid beside you, a neutral look on his face, “Well you are sitting on the tables again but that is beside the point!” He gave you a small bow and you couldn’t stop the shock from filling your face. “I’d like to thank you and Mina for bringing the class together for a small event! I think this will enrich our social bonds with each other and bring us closer together as classmates!” You could see just the faint hint of a smile on his face and couldn’t help but swoon. “Well, I- uh, y-” Mina set a soft hand on your knee and smiled, almost too sweet.

“I know how you can show us your welcome!”

Iida seemed to lit up at the prospect of getting a chance to show you his appreciation. “How so?”

“You have a dance with my dear friend here!”

Oh, you little shit.

You let one of your swinging feet kick her thigh and all she could do was smile sickenly back.

“A dance? Well, that seems hardly a way I’ve ever had to welcome someone but…-” He turned to look at you, almost hesitantly and smiled. “-If that is what you wish!” He turned back to the TV which held another battle between Kirishima and Kaminari (who were both dancing to their own accord). Mina smiled politely and began to move toward the group announcing dibs on next to play. “I’ll pick the perfect song for you both!” You never had such an intense urge to hurt someone before.

Iida smiled back at you, giving a soft wave before turning to walk back to his friends, “I’ll come to you for the next dance. I wish a good friendly competition!”

As soon as he left you were hissing as Mina, punching her arms as she cackled. “I’ve never seen you blush like that! And here I was thinking you truly didn’t like him! You can’t get anything like that past the Romance Queen! I know everything!” She looked far too smug for your own taste but there was nothing you can say that would prove her wrong. You simply placed your face into your palms and screamed.

“You're terrible you know that? I thought you were a good friend but you might as well be a villain. More like the Evil Queen.”

She could only cackle louder and drape an arm around you, “If that's what it takes for some sweet classroom romance I’ll be the Evil Queen all day long.” When she started making kissy faces you placed your hand on her face and shoved.

You could hear the cheers of the ending battle and the return of static rushing through you. From across the room, you could see Iida giving you a smile. You were not ready whatsoever for this. Maybe a meteor would hit the dorms? Or maybe you would spontaneously fall ill and be rushed to the Nurses? Each step closer to the TV was just reassuring you of your fate. You never thought Just Dance would be how you died.

Arriving at the TV you could already feel the sweat clinging to your back. Iida pushed his palm out, “To a friendly competition!” You politely shook it before taking the Wii remote into your hand.

“Ah! I’m sorry to interrupt but how exactly do you play?”

While you explained in the corner of your eye you could see the malicious smile on Mina’s face while she picked the song. She knew them well, the number of times you and her play in the comfort of her room would have been embarrassing had it not been for the fun you had. What song was she so excited about? No song was as embarrassing as this dance was going to be, that was for sure.

Then you heard the chorus of ‘ohh’s and snapped your head to the TV. No, oh dear God no. The grin Mina gave you could only be described as pure villainy. You could only glare at her as she blew you a kiss and wished you luck on your dance.

You gave one sheepish grin to Iida and wished him good luck. He simply smiled and returned the gesture.

The music started off slow, the guitar strings slowly ringing through the speakers mingling with the soft chords of the piano. The starting dance moves weren’t as sudden and fast as you were used to. You swayed slowly to the music drawing your arms up and down. You couldn’t help but glance over at Iida whose robotic movements were certainly not getting him any points.

“Stop being so rigid with your movements, you gotta go along with the music. Be softer. Let your body relax.” It was barely over a whisper, you almost hope he didn’t hear you but the thankful glance he shot you was more than telling. You could see the walls of his seriousness slowly succumbing to the music, his arms moving simply to the music. He looked almost elegant.

The moves quickened from elongated frays to quick fast movements. Following the girl, on the screen, you reached out. The girl on the screen was holding his hand while she twirled and yet when his hand touched yours you couldn’t help the gasp of shock leave your mouth. His grip was soft, as was the look he gave you. You hadn’t seen him look like this before. You could feel your heart flutter along with the beats of the music as he twirled you. You almost went to stop him, tell him that he didn’t really have to touch you but he held you so close and tenderly you couldn’t help but rest your head on his shoulder as you both swayed to move with the music.

He wasn’t amazing at it, better than you expected for sure but he wasn’t terrible at it and the way he held you when the characters on the screen came together made up for all of it. You couldn’t manage to pull any snarky comments or jousting remarks. You just wanted to stay in this moment. With his twirling you and pulling you close.

It almost hurt to hear the song was coming to an end, the chords growing slower and more seldom. You held in the breath you didn’t know you were holding just to notice the last move. You couldn’t prepare yourself for this one, nothing would. So when he pulled into one last twist smiling broadly and then draping you over his arm, leaning so close to you that you could feel his warmth. You could only stare.

His eyes pulled you closer, the supple flesh of his lips, the light sheen of sweat coating his face. He looked beautiful. You wanted to get closer. Feel his chest against yours, his hands digging into your hips. How would his lips feel? How would he kiss you? You found your eyes slowly making their way to his lips. You couldn’t help but lick yours.

The cheers that interrupted your moment covered your shocked yelp yet Iida didn’t seem perturbed simply pulling you to a stand and bowing.

“That was a wonderful dance, maybe we can do it again sometime?”

“I, uh-yeah! Definitely.”

“Maybe next time you can show me a few new moves.” He certainly didn’t mean it was flirtatious intent but your heart fluttered at his words nonetheless. Before you could get another word out Mina was pulling you off again, this time accompanied by more of the girls bombarding you with questions.  

“Oh my god! That was so romantic!”

“You have to teach me to dance like that!”

“How did you feel when he held you close like that?”

There was a plethora of winks, gestures and comments that you’d rather ignore. And you did. In favor of sharing one last glance with Iida. His usually perfectly laid hair was fluffed up and shined with a little sweat, you could see the droplets sliding down his face. His ragged breathing had calmed down and he was now still. He had drawn his hand over his face, covering his mouth but you could see the red reaching up past his palm. The hint of a smile. You smiled back. No taunting or teasing.

Then you were both bombarded again with questions and your attention was drawn back to the large group of girls before you.

You couldn’t stop smiling. Mina would be sure to call you out on that later but that wasn’t your concern right now because-

You could still feel his gaze.

[offansandflames]

October 25 - Haunted House

Halloween had taken entirely too long to round the corner. The two waited impatiently until this blessed Halloween, knowing that Itachi would be occuppied at a college party. Thus, they’d have the house to themselves, to do as they pleased.

They waited until it was dark, and they turned off Sasuke’s bedroom lights. They’d made popcorn for the movie and placed it in a huge bowl by the bedstand.

“Uh… Is it really necessary to turn all the lights out?”

“That’s how you watch horror movies,” Sasuke said in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.

“Yeah, but what if we need to find the remote?”

They’d both sat on the edge of the bed, looking at Sasuke’s computer screen.

“I’m putting it on the bed stand.”

“And the popcorn?”

“The screen will give us enough light.”

“Oh,” Naruto answered with a forced laugh. “That’s perfect.”

But Sasuke sat right next to Naruto, just so he could feel even the slightest flinch, their arms pressing together. The movie began with a bang, causing Naruto to startle. Sasuke smirked.

“That was a cheap jump scare,” Naruto scowled.

As the movie continued, Naruto grew increasingly horrible at concealing his reactions, now occasionally hiding behind Sasuke’s shoulder as inconspicuously as he possibly could. He was not inconspicuous. Finally, he shot up in the air a good six inches with a yelp, scattering popcorn on Sasuke’s lap.

“Is this that high tolerance you were talking about?” Sasuke asked snidely.

“Fuck you!” Naruto shot back.

“You’re terrified of these things.”

Naruto pouted, eating a single piece of popcorn without responding.

“Am not.”

Sasuke looked over at Naruto incredulously.

“Fine,” Naruto sighed. “But as long as I get to snuggle up to you, maybe cop a feel… I’ll be fine.”

Naruto bundled up next to Sasuke, who placed his arm over Naruto’s shoulder. Naruto smiled for just a moment.

"Oh god oh god ohgodohgod. She shouldn't go in there... Why would she go in there?"

The female character walked into an empty room, where surely the villain hid.

"Are you going to shut up, or should I just turn on the subtitles?"

Naruto completely ignored him.

"Oh no... She's...she's gonna open that door."

Naruto lifted his hands to his mouth. Sasuke rolled his eyes as Naruto clawed into Sasuke’s forearm in suspense. A loud clash sounded as a picture frame fell over. Naruto jolted, spilling popcorn into their laps yet again.

"Fuck! I hate it when they do that. False alarm. Just to get you on the edge of your...EEE! Oh SHIT."

A malignant specter appeared, beheading the unfortunate character. Naruto emitted a high-pitched squeal, suddenly jumping about a foot to the left into Sasuke's lap. After that, Naruto watched the rest of the movie peeking through his fingers. And finally it was over.

Naruto cleaned up the popcorn he'd spilled, while Sasuke flicked off the television and turned the lights back on. It was getting a little late, just one minute to midnight. Sasuke glanced over at the clock, noticing that midnight had hit.

Only seconds later, the air began to take on a strong chill. It started off mild, but seemed to worsen by the second.

"Shit..." Naruto shivered, sticking his arms underneath his shirt, "What happened to the temperature in here?"

Sasuke shrugged.

"Maybe the thermostat's busted."

Naruto laughed nervously, "Isn't a weird coincidence this all happened at midnight?"

The air was growing still colder. Goosebumps prickled Sasuke's upper body, Naruto huddling into him for warmth.

"You're reading too much into it."

"But... Has this happened before? I mean, it's really cold."

"No," Sasuke responded, "But does it really matter?"

Naruto silenced himself, his body tense as his eyes darted around the room.

"Besides, it's just the thermostat. It's not like the whole house is on the fritz."

It was horribly ironic that the lights began to flicker, a sickly glow illuminating the house before all fell to darkness.

"Sasuke... This... This is really weird. What's going on?"

Naruto was clinging to Sasuke's arm now, looking over his shoulders quickly, only to see darkness.

"Well, this is convenient,” Sasuke griped. “Pick up the phone. I'll look for the number for the power company."

Blond locks flung as Naruto shook his head.

"No, I think I wanna stay next to you."

"Too scared?" Sasuke taunted.

"Hell no!"

"Then pick up the phone."

Naruto grumbled, his groping hand finally stumbling upon the phone. Naruto picked it up...

"Sasuke... The line is dead."

Sasuke grunted, rummaging his bedstand for his cell phone and attempting to start it up.

"Great. It won't even turn on. That’s…a little fishy."

Naruto let out a faint whine, which he believed Sasuke would not hear. He did.

"This is...really weird. Why is all of this stuff happening at once?"

Sasuke shrugged, sitting next to Naruto.

"Stranger things have happened."

The older of the two tugged on Sasuke's sleeve tentatively.

"Sasuke... Has anything ever happened to make you think maybe your house is...haunted?"

Sasuke snickered.

"Are you trying to say there's a ghost in here?"

Naruto stammered, "Uh... Ghost, maybe ghosts. I don't know! The phones, the power, and the room temperature are freaking out on us within minutes of each other. Explain that!"

"Don't be an idiot," Sasuke chided. "There's no such thing as ghosts."

The smaller pointed at the other male frantically.

"Ah! Ah! See, you can't explain it!"

"I can't believe we're even having this conversation... What are you doing?"

Naruto had placed Sasuke in front of him, hiding behind his shoulders and head.

"I don't wanna look. What if something pops out at me?!"

"For fuck's sake..."

Loudly, from the bottom floor, static crackled in the air. Opera music played, glitching from some sort of interference from time to time. Naruto screamed, sounding a bit younger and more feminine than was flattering. Sasuke flinched as well.

"Ohmygodohmygodohmygoood... This is so, so creepy."

Sasuke frowned, allowing Naruto to shrink behind him.

"It is a little creepy," Sasuke admitted, looking around his bedroom.

Naruto's jaw dropped. Even Sasuke was admitting it!

"But there has to be an explanation."

The music continued to blare beneath them, echoing throughout the dark and frigid house.

"Yes, Sasuke. Ghosts! That's the explanation!"

Sasuke groaned, warming his biceps with his hands, "Fucking freezing in here..."

"See! See!"

"Are you even listening to yourself? This is ridiculous."

Naruto whimpered, "This is scary..."

"Listen, dumbass..."

Sasuke placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder before continuing, "I'm going to go downstairs and figure things out. Then you'll feel like a total idiot for all of this, and I'll laugh at you."

Naruto's reflexes worked faster than a steel trap, his hand clamping down on Sasuke's forearm.

"Nooo, no, no. You can't leave me in this dark, creepyass room all alone."

"What would you do without me?"

"We are not splitting up,” Naruto said, shaking his head emphatically. “That is like...the number one thing not to do in this situation!"

Naruto could not see Sasuke roll his eyes through the heavy black, but it was more than evident in his voice.

"This isn't some B-grade horror flick. This is real life, and I'm not freezing my ass off in the dark because you're scared of the boogeyman."

Sasuke yanked his arm out of Naruto's vice grip.

"Nooonononononooooooo!"

And with that, Sasuke was gone, leaving the door slightly ajar as his footsteps bounced down the hall.

Well, this was it. Naruto had lived a full life, all sixteen years of it. Still, it was a shame he was going to die tonight. But there were good times. He looked back and encountered a myriad of good memories, almost all of which involved food. Ah, yes, that macaroni had been out of this world. His hands fumbled as he backed himself into the wall, covering his backside so that he would be ready for any...unwelcome intruders.

With a wicked smirk on his face, Sasuke used his flashlight to sift through the downstairs coat closet. Perfect, there it is. Tonight hadn't been that difficult, really. He assumed that Naruto would know nothing of timed thermostats or power breakers. He knew how those lights flickered when finally extinguishing; even he thought they were a little eerie. And the radio alarm clock? Of course, he hadn't expected Naruto to notice that it had a battery reserve.

And Naruto bought it all, hook, line, and sinker. For a prank this elaborate, things had been going even more smoothly than he had hoped. And why? Why would he do this, to the wide-eyed, skittish blond? With those flirty texts Naruto had sent their female classmates from Sasuke’s phone, Naruto had dug his own grave.

The idiot knew he had it coming, sooner or later. But the short and sweet version? No one pranks Uchiha Sasuke.

Pushing the hangers to the other side, Sasuke pulled out his brother's long trench coat in the very back. The coat draped over Sasuke's entire frame, the Uchiha popping the collar to obscure his face. He picked a fedora off the top shelf and carefully placed it on his head. If not properly concealed, his hairstyle would give him away in a heartbeat. He stood in front of the window, the street lights casting a faint illumination behind him.

He took a deep inhale. Sometimes Sasuke believed he had the emotional capacity of a watermelon. He would be a horrible actor he mused. Sasuke focused. What made him scared? Why did he have to be so damned fearless? Wait... Plant roots. Plant roots were creepy as hell.

"NARUTO!"

He made his best attempt at fear and desperation. That hadn't been so bad. Whatever the case, he must've been believable enough, as Naruto's feet clomped down the stairway so fast that it sounded like he'd rolled down a hill. He froze in his tracks as he saw the silhouette of a coated figure, standing tall and eerie behind the dimly lit window.

Sasuke did not believe that there were words in the English language to describe the shriek that projected out of Naruto's mouth. The closest he could come was to say that it sounded like some god-awful mixture of a pterodactyl, that Kocoum guy from Pocahontas, and a duck being asphyxiated.

Sasuke snickered, just about to laugh when Naruto closed the space between the two of them faster than a lightning bolt, all the while emitting his ungodly battle cry. No, this was...not supposed to happen. Naruto grabbed a flowerpot on the way, violently chucking it at Sasuke's head. Luckily, Sasuke ducked, taking the collision on his left shoulder blade. Sasuke coughed.

"Fuck!" Sasuke swore.

Naruto continued to punch the mysterious figure, catching its back and arms as it protected its head.

"Where's Sasuke?! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH SASUKE?!"

"Stop it! I'm Sasuke!"

But Naruto could not hear him over his own hysteria. In the scuffle, the fedora flew off of Sasuke's head.

"Where is he, you bastard?!"

"It's me, you moron!" Sasuke shouted as loudly as he could muster.

Naruto’s jaw dropped, staring at the coated figure and pointing frantically.

"Possessed!"

Sasuke groaned. He'd done too good of a job, perhaps.

"Would you fucking listen? Considered yourself paid back in full."

Naruto squinted his eyes suspiciously.

"Payback?"

"Yes," Sasuke sighed. "After all the shenanigans you caused with my cell phone, I told you I'd get you back."

A pause. What was Sasuke talking about?

"You!"

Naruto gave Sasuke one last emphatic point before his hands plummeted to his sides.

"You fucking...assdickshitfuckstick...douche canoe!"

Ink black brows rose as Sasuke took a moment to appreciate the originality of this newly discovered expletive.

“Payback’s a bitch.”

Still catching his breath, Naruto erupted into laughter.

"You scared the shit outta me!"

"Yes, that was the idea."

"That..." Naruto panted. "Okay, I admit. That was good."        

"But why the hell would you attack an intruder in the house? You're supposed to run."

Naruto laughed, ruffling the hair at the back of his head.

"Sorry, man. Fight or flight. Sometimes adrenaline makes the choice for you."

So, perhaps not everything had gone to plan. The bruise on Sasuke's shoulder probably wouldn't disappear for at least a couple weeks. Still, remembering the impressive scream that Naruto gave at the night's climax, Sasuke knew that it had been worth it.

"Learn your lesson yet?"

Naruto chuckled.

"Oh, I learned my lesson alright."

Sasuke smirked triumphantly.

"That is...you look damned sexy in a trenchcoat."

[etherealellaelf]

So I just saw Cats 2019 and here are my thoughts:

(I’mma talk about the good and bad things) So I went into this movie both worried about the cursed design and also as a longtime fan of Cats: the Musical. I first watched the 1998 filmed stage production on PBS when I was a little girl, and then I revisited it when I was older and became a fan of all the colorful characters, the haunting music, and the great dance performances. It’s based on the Poetry book by T.S. Elliot “Old Possum’s book of Practical Cats”. Since it’s a poetry book, there is a problem: each poem about the cats doesn’t flow very well into a cohesive plot. So the new movie fixed that. Here are some other good things about the 2019 Cats movie: *spoilers*

(And before I start I was sitting beside an old woman who told me that she saw the very first stage production of Cats in London many years ago and she said to me in a very concerned voice after the movie was over, “It wasn’t THAT bad, was it?” I looked her in the eye and shook my head and I told her it wasn’t that bad. I didn’t lie. It was just a little bad. But my heart went out to her nostalgia.)

-Victoria is the main character now, so the audience is seeing the cats through her eyes. She’s our vehicle. That makes the songs that the cats sing introduction songs; they’re introducing themselves to us and Victoria.

-Like I said before, the plot is a lot more cohesive. The new script explains what jellicle cats are, the purpose of the jellicle ball, and who macavity is. They also added a ton of stuff, like Macavity kidnapping the other contenders to become the “Jellicle choice”, the cat that the leader will choose to be reborn(like, cats have 9 lives? It’s a bit weird, just go with it), because he wants to be chosen. Macavity didn’t really do this in the old one, this cements him as the villain. Also other cats like mungojerry and rumpleteazer and bombalurina are helping macavity. 

-I have mixed feelings that Grizabella is being shunned because she used to work for Macavity. It does give the other cats a better reason to hate her, but they don’t hate mungojerry and stuff. I’ll talk about that later.

-These new additions to the story made it a lot more palatable, but at the same time I like the old version as well. They’re both good. This one is just a lot more cohesive.

-All of the ballerinas, dancers, and singers were really good, and the acting was pretty good too, for people pretending to be cats. I thought taylor swift’s rendition of “macavity” was really good, and they brought a new facet to her character and the odious nature of the song, as it’s now a villain song and she is a villain.

-Tom Hooper as director. I really liked his style in Les Mis, and I guess it kind of worked here.  (Also I love you so much Tom Hooper I feel bad that this movie did so badly because I want you to succeed, you have a great style and vision and it really worked for Les Mis.)

-They left out that awkward *scene*. You know the one. The o-r-g-y scene. Good on them. Thank you. I read somewhere that it was there, but when I watched the movie, it was not there. I’m confused by some reviews saying it was there. It wasn’t there?!?!?!

Now let’s talk about what I didn’t like.

-The “cursed” design. Clearly everyone agrees with me about this. I forgot about it within the first ten minutes of watching. I really liked the look of Old Deuterotomy, who was a very fluffy, long-haired cat. That’s what made the old designs from the musical so memorable: the wigs were really big and poofy and the leg and arm warmers looked like fuzzy cat legs. The floofiness gave them character. Making all the cats shorthaired just made them look pretty naked, and I know they did this to accentuate the line of dance(it’s why dancers wear tight clothes), but they should have had fluffier cheeks, fluffier heads, and fluffier limbs. That would’ve prevented all the naked-looking cats. I understand the animators wanted to try something new, but they should’ve taken a page out of Sonic the Hedgehog movie’s book and redesigned.

-They totally changed Mungojerry and rumpleteazer’s song! It used to be a vaudeville production and it was so mischievous and fun. Now it just doesn’t have much tune. 

-They cut the Pekes and the Pollicles, the song where the cats are making fun of how clumsy dogs are. But I suppose it’s probably for the best. Lots of people like dogs nowadays. 

-Grizabella getting shunned because she used to work for Macavity??? The integral part of her character is just that she’s old. They should have made the Jennifer Hudson cat look a lot older, with greying fur and hair and stuff. The other cats shun Grizabella because she’s a reminder that they will die one day and she used to be beautiful and wonderful like them, once. It’s a big part of their character and despite them trying to explain and gloss over why everyone hates her, my friend who’s never seen cats was still confused. I wish they hadn’t said she worked for Macavity, but at this point it’s canon so who am I to question it.

-They totally cut Munkustrap and Macavity’s fight. 

-Although they cut out the weird scene, there was a really strange scene where all the cat’s tails quivered in the moonlight and they started just acting so strange. Then suddenly everyone started dancing! I could’ve done without the tail quivering.

-The cockroaches and at times, the mice, with their human faces, were a bit weird. Especially when Rebel Wilson ate some of the cockroaches. Also a bit weird was when she unzipped her skin, but it’s fine, she did that in the stage version, too.

-The Rum Tum Tugger did not need to catch Victoria’s foot the way he did, as it was really close to his mouth and it was just a really weird decision. 

-I’m sorry, but when the Cats rubbed their heads against each other’s heads, it was a bit weird. In the stage production, head rubbing is done very fast. It’s over with. It’s done. In this one they lingered and stared a lot. I guess real cats do that. But anyway. It’s whatever.

-Some cats wore clothes and took them off at points as well while other cats did not wear clothes. I think it actually was good that the train cat wore suspenders and the fat cat, Bustopher Jones, wore a top hat and evening jacket. It was charming for them. I don’t think Idris Elba’s fedora and trench coat needed to come off of his body at all. He should’ve kept them on. Just make his ears poke out of his hat or something. He totally looked naked.

-”Jellicle” is a weird word. There is a jiggly sound associated with it.

-The opening orchestral music is, at times, hit or miss. I personally like it because it sounds eerie and strange, sinuous and slithery, like how a cat do. It can come across as creepy though, especially during the song “The Naming of Cats”. In the stage production I can’t really watch because those cats all, as one, look at the audience, staring into my soul, and chant the song in one voice, and then they advance on the audience and it’s creepy but I guess it’s interesting. Idk how to convey in words. I am glad they cut that particular element about that song from the movie. 

Okay, now I’m going to address people who won’t give it a shot:

-Give it a shot. You forget about how they look like ten minutes into the movie. If you think about it as an arthouse film about dancers pretending to be cats, then it is enjoyable. 

-There was a lot of time, money, talent, and effort put into this production. All the ballerinas and other dancers are very passionate about their performance and it shows. 

-The animators for this movie were only given 7 months to model and do special effects for every single character on this movie, and there are hundreds of cats. Toy Story worked on its movie for 4 years. So I guess it’s easy to accuse the animators, but they were just doing their jobs; they weren’t given a lot of time to make the designs look fantastic, and they couldn’t deviate from what their art directors told them to do. I’m sure that some of them wanted to do the stage makeup and hair and whatnot, but you have to remember; the actors and director had no idea what the finished product would look like. Don’t blame them.

-Let’s just face it: Cats is a really weird concept to begin with. Andrew Lloyd Weber had some good ideas, like Phantom of the Opera, and he had kind of strange ideas, like Cats. It was really popular in the 70′s because the play has music that is very 50′s themed(note the malt shoppe that is a milk bar in the movie and Rum Tum Tugger is supposed to be like an Elvis character) and 20′s themed(the vaudeville Mungojerry, Rumpleteazer, and Macavity themes), so in its time, this show was a lot like Stranger Things for us. It was a nostalgia trip. And even amongst theater fans, there is a tiny niche who love Cats. This is not a huge fanbase. I liked it by accident, stumbling upon it by coincidence. I don’t understand why they put so much money into it knowing this. They should’ve cast much smaller celebrities and advertised much smaller, but we all know that Andrew Lloyd Weber is Mr. Moneybags and Mr. Outlandish, so of course he wanted to attract a younger fanbase to keep the spirit going for years to come. I, as a dance and musical fan, liked the stage production. I think if you’re willing to overlook the cringe, how a lot of the cats wear clothes and others don’t, and Idris Elba’s neon green contacts, you could like it. I don’t know. I’m not you. I just think this movie was made for certain people who like the old version of Cats, and they should’ve marketed it to them, and the reason why they tanked so hard is because they didn’t. They should’ve put them in stage costume and makeup and only CGI’ed some things.

-Maybe it would’ve worked better as an animated movie, where the designs for the cats was simply a cat who does ballet. It worked for the stage production because we used our imagination and we thought they were cats with emotions, personalities, attitudes. I think if you squint you can imagine this on this movie as well. But the thing is there was just too much backlash and nobody wanted to see it. Fame is dictated by social media these days, and if they meme you, you’re done. There’s really nothing you can do.

-The moral of the story is maybe see it, but if you don’t want to, don’t. But keep in mind Cats isn’t for everyone. It’s only for people who liked the Cats musical. So if you did, great, if you don’t, then you don’t have to see it.

[firefairyfates]

Shinsou AU: You Were Born to be a Villain *Updated*

*IMPORTANT* This is the same story I’ve posted earlier, but I finished it, so it’s not as weird or clunky anymore, just thought I’d post this version too, enjoy!

You Were Born to be a Villain

   “This was just a waste of my time.” Shinsou sunk down onto the bench with a deep sigh escaping his lips. The mall was buzzing with people, from every store to every lunch place to cafe. “The hero course attract a crap ton of people, that’s for sure. Though I guess that isn’t news to anyone.” he looked over to the right seeing the set stage set up at the far end off the first floor with colorful lights and massive speakers pointing onto it. It was a yearly “Meet the Heroes” event where many of the U.A. students met with their first gen fans, usually gained from the sports festival. A typical way of letting them taste the life of a celebrity early on.

   “I didn’t ever care to see this stuff.. But those guys from class made me to anyway. Idiots.” he buried his face into his hands, staring down into the floor. “All this just makes me depressed.” he hissed and pushed himself up again with his hands on his knees. He looked around, for the closest exit around. The place was so crowded, it was almost impossible to see. With a deep sigh he hugged the wall and slowly started to make his way towards what he thought was an exit. Hearing the voice of Bakugo yell his stupid speech behind him.

  *It should have been me up there.*

The thought slipped through his mind but he didn’t dwell on it. It had haunted him from the moment he was born and didn’t bother him in the slightest anymore. A hero born with the quirk of a villain, just another unlucky fate in this world filled with injustice. *Maybe they should be happy I’m on their side.* his eyes by chance traveled up, paying notice to a sign above him pointing up a staircase. A tea shop. His mom did like tea… He sighed.

   “Guess I can make this trip worth something.” he slid past some people into the almost empty staircase, or at the very least, it had some room to breath. He pulled up his wallet and looked through what he had, quietly counting to himself how much he had as he walked up the staircase. Without paying it much mind at first, in the corner of his eye someone rushed past him, bumping into his shoulder as they ran past him. The wallet was thrown out of his hand spinning down onto the step ahead. Shinsou’s eyes traveled after him, they were wearing a black coat, and had long black hair (kk) and they didn’t even throw an eye back at him. “Hmph..” Shinsou then scoffed and bent down to pick up his wallet. *What was he in such a rush for? It’s not like the second floor is as cramped as the first. And there are hours left before any stores will close. Or..* he stopped his train of thought and pushed back the wallet into his pocket with an empty expression. *Who cares. This place is filled with heroes anyway.*

He reached the much more spacious floor lit with clear white lights. The stores covered the edges of the entire oval shape, and in the center part was a dimly lit cafe, with a quiet fountain in the middle, and tables all around it. He looked for the dark green tea shop sign with a stylized black dragon. It was just to his right. But as he turned from the top of the staircase, his eyes scanned through the entire area almost subconsciously. *Security cameras, patrolling heroes, around 40 people, but..* the man from before was nowhere to be seen. He took a long blink, relaxing again, as he walked into the red lit shop, with a black haired woman standing at the counter sorting bags just at the side. She threw an eye at Shinsou as he entered the store.

    “Welcome!” she smirked. Shinsou gave her a very short smirk before he started looking through the shelves.

- just a few minutes later -

   “Thanks.” Shinsou grabbed the bag off the counter.

   “Thanks a lot too!” the woman smiled as she grabbed the money. *You’d be my slave now if I were a villain.*

   “Thanks.” Shinsou said plainly,

   “Happy to help. Hope you have a nice day!” she bowed. *You’re all so arrogant.*  Shinsou walked out of the store and tucked his wallet back into his pocket. He took another step forward and suddenly froze up. The surroundings, something was different, something was off. His eyes traveled through the hall in a glance. *The cameras were still on, people were still walking around but-* his thoughts stopped. The heroes were gone. He swallowed, biting his lip. *The hell..* he looked around again, now more obviously. Were people, gathering? To his right, it seemed as though if there were more people on that side. Reasons? What caused it? Was there something going on? For what purpose would- *No.. No way..* He threw a quick glance back at the tea lady, she was standing still now.

   Being fast on his feet he tried to make it for the stairs he had just come up. Holding the paper bag tightly in his hand. It was hard not to look over there again, to see more of what was going on, but he did his best to look down into the ground without as much as an expression on his face. He hadn’t seen a thing. This way he could get down to the heroes downstairs, he could find out what was going on. But the frustration was still boiling within him. *Damn it.. Why aren't there any heroes up here. right now!? How have no one noticed what was going on?*

   “Hey, you there.”

  *Are you kidding me? Just my luck..*

  “Sorry, but staircase’s closed right now, kid.” a man's voice spoke up from behind him. Shinsou stopped himself as he was just about to take a step down into the now completely empty staircase. “Cleaning you know. We wouldn’t want you to slip and get hurt.” he threw an eye over his shoulder where the first impression became the gun pointed at him. But there was no doubt about it. It was the guy who had just ran past him in the staircase. “We advise you to take another way, like, over there.” he nodded with his eyes and the gun towards the mob of a few dozen people behind him. “And we’re gonna have to investigate that bag too, then please put your hands over your head too. You know, for safety’s sake.” he rose his eyebrows and held out his other hand to take the bag while pushing the gun forward a nod.

   “How righteous of you to be concerned.” Shinsou left over the bag, who he quickly snagged from his hands. Shinsou then moved his hands up and around his head, and started to walk.*Of course it’s villains. I knew something was going on.. But isn’t this place supposed to be cramped with heroes right now?* He forced his feet away from the staircase and walked towards the others with straight and obvious footsteps to make sure his threatener wouldn’t take any rash actions. He cut of the staircase with a chain while keeping his gun and eyes peeled at Shinsou. He threw a glance downstairs where two people clothed in guard outfits nodded back at him. They were alone on the second floor now, both of the staircases had gotten locked by fake security. And since the cameras were still on, Shinsou was left under the impression this was a heist taking place in a much bigger scale than only on this floor. Did they have the entire building locked down? What were they planning? Shinsou stopped at the mob, holding his arms up like the rest and slowly turned back looking at someone who approached them.

   “I welcome you citizens to witness a great moment in history.” he threw out his arms and walked up to the crowd. Long black hair, tired purple eyes, a rugged beard and a long black coat a few sizes too big for him. He held two long knives in both of his hands. Now it became apparent there wasn’t just a few of them either, the floor crawled with them, getting the full view of the floor, revealed that every store was being taken control off, everyone was taken to the same corner as them. Shinsou looked over at the blank eyed tea lady as she entered the crowd too, she didn’t seem to be feeling anything at the moment. Shinsou swallowed and then looked around the room. He estimated they were well over 20, all seemed to be armed with at least one firearm. Shinsou quickly tried to make an estimate in his head.

   *They must have had infiltrated the entire building to have gotten this far on an attack. Maybe the first floor is the only part they haven’t taken control of yet. But to take on all of those heroes by themselves..? They’d have to be a special kind of stupid to try that. Unless.. Maybe they’re part of that league of villains? Then this could be bad.. Damn it..* Shinsou stopped his thoughts as the man started to talk again. “My name is Hans the Grandeur. Today, I’ll show how much you really should fear us, the people that you rejected from your made up society.” Shinsou looked around again, there was something different about this guy from the rest. The others were laughing at us right now, at the children clinging to their parents, at the crying and the afraid in the crowd. Shinsou looked back at he who called himself Hans. *No.. These are just some rugged street villains that he rounded up. Him though, he might be bad news…* Hans eyes traveled quickly between the crowd and his men posing an irritated and intense look before he smiled again and took some steps forward.

   “You are all aware that the next generation is currently debuting downstairs, with their prepared speeches and quirk showcases. It’s a fun time for the entire family, am I right?” he bent his head backwards, so his long hair fell back over his head, as his eyes pulsated with his voice. “So I thought we’d blow it all up.”

   “You can’t be serious?! They’re just ki-” the dull sound of a sound-killer arm fired. And the man that had spoken fell to the ground. .

    “Sorry. We don’t tolerate any loudmouths in the today’s crowd. We like the more “quiet” types.” Hans said and looked back at them. “But don’t worry. He’ll wake up sooner or later. When he’s buried under the rubble of this entire building.” he let out a short chuckle, then gained some control again as his head twisted to the side in a jerking motion as he stopped laughing abruptly. *Ugh.. This guy gives me the creeps.*

   “Y-you killed him!! You killed my husband!” yelled a red haired woman on her knees just over the stum body.

   “We used tranquilizers you dumb wench, listen when I talk to you!” he hissed taking a few quick steps towards her, his eyes burying into hers. “But don’t start messing around, we have the real deal too, and we won't hesitate to pick you off when we need to. But for now they have hundreds of unique quirks downstairs, if any of them can sense blood or death we’d be done for. So shut your fucking trap you stupid-” he almost hit her with the back of his palm, stopping inches from her face with a twitching expression. He twisted around, making his cape spiral behind him, as he made distance between him and the crowd again, Shinsou followed his movements closely. *Tranquilizers huh? That won’t help me much. Unless.. He seems easily triggered, perhaps I could make him answer to me… But.. What should I ask..? Should I show empathy? Curiosity? Maybe I could-*

   “Then why not just send us all to sleep?” someone else asked. *Damn it. That would have been perfect..* he slit his teeth quietly as he threw an eye at the young woman who asked.

   “Now that would be an excellent idea if it wasn’t for the fact we need some people who look alive.” he licked his lips. Shinsou smirked in his mind raising an eyebrow. *This guy is too obvious.* “So don’t worry your pretty little heads, we won’t get interrupted by some heroes this time…” Shinsou who stood at the front of the crowd was only a couple feet away from him now. If he wanted to say something, now would be the perfect time. The intensity of him standing so close could make him answer rashly, he wouldn’t have time to think something was off. Shinsou took a deep breath through his nostrils. “So you’ll just be good duckies now and sit tight while we rig up the last of the bombs on this floor, to send the entire building crashing down upon your precious heroes. I bet not even All Might’s love children would be able to take the weight of a 20 floored building falling on their pretty little faces.” Shinsou chuckled in his thoughts. *You’re underestimating those bastards by a landslide… Todoroki,  that Bakugo.. Even Midoriya. They’d all protect them. But still..* he shut his eyes and collected his courage.

   “That’s a pretty decent plan you’ve got there,  I’ve gotta say I’m impressed. But tell me .. What is it you really want?” *I’ll be a hero too.* he moved his right leg forward along with his right hand. A harmless gesture, that closed the distance even further between them. Hans’s eyes twisted to Shinsou, he glared through him. Shinsou held his face, but could feel his pressure weighing him down. *C’mon.. Just say something damn it…* Shinsou felt a drip of sweat run down his cheek.

   “Don’t answer him boss! I saw that brat in the sports festival. He can take over your head if you answer to his questions or something.” Shinsou swallowed.

   “Oh is that so?” asked Hans and looked away from Shinsou for just a second before he turned back, and stared up and back into his eyes. “Dirty trick, for someone who’d call themselves one of them.” he said but got no answer, he laughed and spun away from him. “If your quirk only works when someone answers you, then staying silent won’t do you much, hero scum.” he moved away.

    “Should we tranquilize him boss?” asked one of the men pointing up his gun towards Shinsou, making the people behind him look worried, while Shinsou stood still in the same pose. *Damn it all… I was useless. This is it for me..” he shut his eyes and prepared for the worst.*

   “No.” Hans stopped him. Shinsou widened his eyes in shock, as he looked back up. And he wasn’t the only one confused. Everyone in the room looked at Hans. “I kinda like him.” frustration, anger and fear lit up within Shinsou at that moment, and he felt how his body tensed up. “He kinda reminds me of myself when I was younger.” he had a calm smile as he looked down into his hands covered in scars. Before he shut them swiftly and turned around with a snarky grin. “Either way, he’ll die like the rest. Pathetic and weak. Buried under rubble and his own failures.” he walked backwards a few steps before turning around once again. “No one speak to this purple haired freak and we’ll be fine, wouldn’t wanna mess this up, would we?” there were some chanted laughter. “I’ll kill any of you without hesitation, just so you know.” he said, and the laughed stopped. “Line em up against the wall, arms on their heads, and legs to the wall, empty their pockets and then get them on their knees.” he said as he walked away towards a couple of his men messing with something beneath a pillar.

    Shinsou was trembling, looking down on his hands. *I-is this.. Fear?* The armed men closed in, starting to push one person after another up onto the wall until they were all pinned against the wall. Apart from one. Shinsou was left, standing with a blank stare and his hand reached out twitching gently in the air. One of them pushed the gun into his back and told him something. But to him to was just unhearable rubble. *No.* he closed his fist.

    “Hey brainwash rat get moving or I’ll blast you down into the floor.” hissed the woman pinning him down with the gun. “Hey can’t you hear what I’m-”

    “I hear you loud and clear, loudmouths.” hissed Shinsou and laid his hands around the back of his head and walked back to the wall like the rest, feeling how those around him looked on, the woman from the tea shop looked at him longer than the others still seemingly emotionless. Shinsou took a deep breath through his nostrils again closing his eyes for a short moment. The woman holding the gun scoffed back at him and walked away. He’d built up some irritation again. *Calm down you idiot. Focus. This isn’t over. I’ll show him I can be a hero too even if he thinks I’m like him.*

  A man who quickly had become familiar to Shinsou approached him from the side, emptying pockets as he went from person to person. It was him from the stairs earlier, who had bumped his wallet out of his hand and taken the tea bag from him which he was still holding. He was just done confiscating the person next to him. Now. It was time to take his second chance.

   “Hey there, I think you might owe me an apology from earlier.” the man's eyes were blood coated, and looked way more tired and intense this close up. But of course he didn’t say a word to his question, Shinsou had figured as much. “You ran into me in the stairs just before, and you made me drop something really important.” this time he scoffed, most likely in disbelief, as he started to look through Shinsou’s pockets. “I had my mom’s necklace in there. It was her favorite you see.” no response. “I bet your mom had something that precious too, right? Something important to her?” silence. “Or did she leave you in the dumps where she thought you belonged?” the man pulled up a knife from his sleeve and it’s cold blade chilled against his neck. It slit gently, and it left blood after it’s cut. He gritted his teeth, but bit his lip and held it together. The man was just about to move on to the next person when Shinsou opened his mouth again. “Or maybe your mom was as much a failure as you.”

   “You’re dead kid.” the man hissed and the knife blade flew towards him . But Shinsou wore a grin on his face as the knife stopped an inch away from him.

   “So pathetic.”

~~~

   “Aren't you done soon slouches? It’s starting to feel quiet here without the hundreds of fireworks blowing up throughout the building.” asked Hans and smirked at his coworker who stood bent over the mechanism.

   “Almost there boss, just a couple minutes and we’ll have it all wired up. It just needs to link together with those hidden on the third floor vents, and we’re all set.”

   “Hmph. What a bore. I was so excited to hear the screams of dying heroes right about now.” he shrugged and was about to turn towards the crowd, when suddenly.

   “Put all of your weapons on the ground.” a gun clicked, and suddenly every eye turned towards the Hans, who had just had a gun click pointed straight at his head. A black hooded man with blood coated eyes stood there, but his expression was as blank as that of a dead man. Hans smirked and rolled his eyes.

   “No way, is it a betrayal?” asked one of the more burly villains.

   “Put all of your weapons on the ground.” the voice repeated, coming from two places, and most eyes turned away from Hans this time.

    “Well played. Mr brainwash.” Hans looked towards the wall, where Shinsou stood with his arms around his head and against the wall like the others. “I didn’t think little ol Roger here would be so stupid as to fall for your japes.” he sighed and nodded back towards him. Shinsou pushed away from the wall, and let his arms fall to his sides. He took a deep breath again. *I’m counting on you.*

   “Boss, what should we do?” one of the men asked as they reluctantly rose their gun towards him named Roger. Hans chuckled and glanced over towards Shinsou again now walking slowly through the hall towards them.

   “Don’t ask me, that’s the man in charge right now.”

   “I want everyone to drop their weapons. Kick them away from you and get down on your knees.” Shinsou kept his composure together. “And turn off whatever that is.” he added and looked at the man in front of the machine at the pillar. Shinsou concentrated on breathing at the moment, while trying to keep it as unnoticeable as possible. He had to stay calm and look to be in control. “C’mon, get to it.” he hissed impassionately. After they all had exchanged a few glances, everyone started doing as he said, but just as Shinsou took another step closer into Hans radius, he suddenly started laughing. Shinsou froze up. “Mind telling me what’s so funny?” hissed Shinsou.

   “Your quirk’s pretty damn amazing kid, I’ll give you that. But there’s one thing you didn’t account for.” *W-wait..? He just answered to me!? Was it on purpose or did he forget? Either way I can’t let my guard down. Especially not now.. She might be in-* “We all have pretty cool quirks.” he vanished from the spot in a blurry pixelated mess and Rogers gun suddenly pointed at nothing.

   “What in the..!” once again he was cut off, this time by a cold machete blade wrapping around Shinsou's already cut throat, while a hand rocked Shinsou’s head back and laid the arm around his forehead limiting all his movement. “Typical hero, overwhelmed with self confidence.” he grinned. “Shoot her down guys.” he nodded towards the side of the hall. Shinsou froze up for a short second. Where now all glances turned. There the black haired woman from the tea shop was walking, her eyes were as blank as before, but that wasn’t because she was emotionless.

   “No! Stop! She hasn’t done a thing!” yelled Shinsou, feeling the blade tighten to him.

   “Kill her.” hissed Hans and licked his lips. “Kill his puppet!” guns rose up from all around the room, pinning towards the girl. Shinsou gritted his teeth, and shut his eyes. One of the sound-killers fired with a dove sound and the bullet hit its mark. She fell against the wall and crashed down onto the marble floor. Her eyes staring emptily into the locale.

   “NO!” yelled Shinsou and reached out his hand. But he was also wearing a silent grin.

   “YES!” laughed Hans. “What a wonderful fall! Seeing a hero get one of those he was trying to protect killed! What a wonderful story for the news! You’ll be all over the first page, boy!”

   “You talk big for someone who just lost!” hissed Shinsou as he concentrated all he had on his quirk and Hans. *He’s answered to me a plethora of times now, I’ll take him over and end this quickly!* But his quirk broke the connection as soon as he tried to make it. *What!? It’s like he’s disappearing from existence when I try to brainwash him.. What’s this guy’s quirk?*

   “Confused, mr civilian killer? Well you see my quirk is something called frequency. I tap in and out of reality on a regular basis you runt, quirks like yours are what I eat for breakfast.”*Does that mean I’m outmatched then? This good for nothing quirk continues to be my curse.* “Release Roger here, or I’ll make you bleed to death here on the spot. Shinsou let out a hiss, as the man he had under his control fell down onto the ground, someone rushed over, but he just struck their hand away and took himself for his head, he looked at Shinsou with disgust and anger, Shinsou greeted him back with an empty expression.

   “But boss, what if someone notices we’ve killed her, then..?” asked one of the others in confusion.

   “Who gives a damn. This place is going boom all over in a minute. Before they’ve figured out something’s going on we’ve have killed all the ones we wanted! It’s too late to stop us now.” he laughed maniacally.

    “Then why not just kill him boss, one less hostage won’t matter.”

    “He’s a real nuisance for sure, maybe I should have taken action earlier after all.” he smirked and bent back Shinsou’s head further making him groan in pain as Hans stared down at him from above. “But he’s just so much fun. I can sense how much darkness there’s in him.”

    “People like you are trash. Worthless rats crawling our cities with your prideful ideals that mean nothing more than to make the world better for yourself.” Shinsou manage to hiss out between his teeth.

    “I suppose that’s true.” smiled Hans, his head jerked closer, and inch away from Shinsou’s face right below his. “But that makes heroes the same as us.” Shinsou jerked back, his breath smelled foul, and he was forced to look away.

   “I almost admire you, you’re all so bloated with loneliness and hate that you’d take your own lives for nothing.”

    “You pompous brat! You know nothing of the heartaches we fought for to get here! You were born on a pedestal! You never had to fight through the pain we lived through! We did all we could to accomplish something greater than what society ever thought we could do! YOU COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND!” a familiar voice cried out.

    “You idiot Roger! He’ll take you over again!” yelled Hans as Shinsou broke free from his grip and made a quick gap in distance between them.

   “Shoot this guy.” Shinsou pointed at Hans, and the command came through, Rogers eyes went blank again and he followed through on the command. Hans was forced to vanish on the spot again, he tried to attack Shinsou again, but this time he dodged taking a quick step forward. Rogers gun fired at that moment again, hitting straight into Hans’s arm. He yelled out and took himself over the wound.

    “Boss!” someone yelled, as the situation returned to a stasis as Hans started to take steps backwards, holding his hand over the scrape the bullet had made on his arm. His balance was lost, and he wavered back and forth with a drowsy look on his face. Shinsou smirked. *Your movements might have seemed unpredictable, but I can see right through them. Your blades limit your movement and you always try to strike from behind because of the nature of your quirk. And that hit was all I needed, even though I knew you might dodge it partially.*

   “H-huh..?” Hans’s eyes started to twitch as he looked down onto the wound with his blurry vision. “T-tranquilizers..?” he gritted his teeth together. His head swiftly turned to the tea shop girl laying on the ground. “Y-you didn’t..” *Figured me out, did you?* She was slowly pushing herself off the ground again. “K-kill her-” his voice was muffled by his drowsiness as he tried to point towards her, but it seemed no one got what he meant. Her eyes opened, still with a blank stare. “N-no… H-how could I loose...” he started to fall forward. Shinsou smirked at the corner of his lip. *Go, get us help. Sorry I shot you with that tranquilizer though,* the girl swiftly got up and ran into her store where she slammed her hand onto a button signaling a red flashing siren in the building, initiating panic. Roger’s eyes flashed back to normal and suddenly he almost fell forward catching himself on one leg. He slowly rose his head beneath his hair and stared at Shinsou with a pulsating expression.

   “Shit! What do we do now!” someone yelled.

   “The heroes will be here in any second!” another one cried.

   “N-no! Not after all we’ve done!” another one broke apart and fell on his knees.

   “Abandon mission, kill the hostages and get outta here as quickly as possible!” the person who had fixed with the bomb yelled out and moved his hand towards the hostages lined up against the wall. Shinsou immediately froze up slowly turning towards the people behind him. *No.. I can’t save them in time, they’re too many.*

   “Leave the people be.” someone said behind him. Everyone turned around, including Shinsou. *So you snapped out of my quirk again?* Roger was with slow steps walking towards him. “Killing them isn’t what Hans wanted us to do. It’s the heroes we want. That’s why we used tranquilizers in the first place.” he hissed tightening his hand around his pocket knife. “Him. He’s the pest that crawls over our streets. He.. He’s a hero..” his voice was screeching and his eyes filled with anger and hate. “HE’S THE ONE WHO COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND OUR PAIN!”

    “Idiot.” Shinsou let out a short chuckle and looked up. “You all really are just a bunch of idiots aren't you?”

   “Call us whatever you want, but don’t dare claim to understand us..”

   “Trust me.. I understand better than anyone else.” he made a fist. “The feeling of being left behind, of being thrown away. Torn and shattered at every step you take. When all you really want.. Is just to help somebody.” a feeling of frustration and dread filled him.

   “YOU COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND!” he threw the knife towards him and it bolted through the air.

   “Sometimes... I just wanna give up too. To just throw my life away on something… Because really, what difference does it make.” the knife was still flying through the air, heading straight for his head. *But..” with a single move Shinsou struck the knife out of it’s course and it crashed into the ground and spun across the floor. “Then I get that feeling, that feeling that somewhere out there somebody needs help.” Blood ran down his hand. “And that’s the difference between you and me. Because I chose to answer that call, and be a hero.” his expression was plain, almost emotionless, and Roger stared on in confusion.

   “Utter nonsense…”

   An explosion was heard just beyond the staircase to the first floor and suddenly police bolted up the stairs..

   “No way!? They’re already here!” yelled one of the men, and started to back away.

    “You idiots! Kill the hostages before the heroes-”

   “LISTEN TO THESE BEATS YOU VILLAINOUS SCUMS!” it was President Mic’s voice, as he flew up from the staircase, and just behind him another familiar pro hero, Eraserhead. At the moment Mic landed, he activated his ear shattering quirk. It sent everyone in front of him down on their knees holding for their ears. Shinsou being one of them, but through the pain he forced himself to look up. First he noticed Eraserhead with his quirk activated running through the room. He had to have had earplugs. Shinsou looked down for a short second, thinking it would be fine after this, when something moved past him on the right side of his vision, and he looked up after it. Someone took an escape up through the staircase just ahead. *I can’t let that guy get away..* the sound stopped, and Shinsou threw himself back onto his feet with the scream still echoing through his head like drums set on repeat. He was wobbly at first, but shook it off as fast as he could, as he made his way into the staircase and ran upwards. While his head was still throbbing in pain from President Mic’s attack. He had an understanding of why he’d done it. Using the commotion to his advantage to get everyone immobilized without any time to take cover. Even if that included the hostages themselves, but since the quirk wasn’t deadly, it had worked perfectly. Eraserhead’s power had worked perfectly along with it to, with everyone immobilised, he could easily erase all the quirks he wanted and with all that settled they had been made defenceless almost effortlessly.

But this guy, had somehow avoided Mic’s attack. And maybe Aizawa’s too.. *Frequency huh? I can see how that could make him avoid both of those quirks. If he wasn’t there when Aizawa activated his quirk, he would have missed him, and Mic’s too… He wouldn’t get rocked by the soundwaves if he wasn’t there.* Shinsou tried to collect his thought as fast as possible as he rushed up the curved staircase. *So that Hans wasn’t down for the count yet, huh?*

   “Don’t move a muscle kid!” Shinsou was just about to exit the staircase onto the third floor when he saw that the staircase was also chained off at the top, two guards pointed their guns down at him. Behind the chain stood a plethora of people in panic from the siren. He could see heroes trying to calm the situation. Further away on the floor, he could see Hans running through the crowd. He was gonna get away. Shinsou took a deep breath.

   “Oh fine, you got me. Nice job.” he smiled. *Real guards or not, you’re in my way.*

   “Don’t try to-” he didn’t let him get any further in that sentence before Shinsou had him throw himself over his companion. Shinsou set off in a run again, jumping over the chain and into the confused masses. But people were in panic, and getting through was harder than it might seem. Shinsou looked ahead in the room again. He could see Hans but... He was too far away, almost at the other side of the entire room. If Shinsou was to make it past through that crowd he’d never get there in time. *Suppose this is what I get for not getting the physical training I need. I can’t catch him on my own… But heh.. I’m not alone am I?* Shinsou stopped and looked around. He took a jump and up on a black bench sighted at the central area, where some people threw a glance at him instantly. He spread his arms wide so people would see him. Some heroes also noticed him.

    “Everyone!” Shinsou yelled as loud as he could. “Let’s show the villains that we’re not afraid! Let’s say it like the man himself… All is fine because-” yelled Shinsou and anxiously awaited an answer. *My choice of sentence could use some work, but it doesn’t matter, as long as somebody responds…*  The response was fast from multiple in the room, both those angry and those enthusiastically answering the question. *Now all I need to do is find one in that area and-*

Hans fell over at the end of the hall tumbling in through a glass window of a cafe. Just behind him stood a man with his leg held out. Her eyes were blank. Without hesitation Shinsou jumped down from the bench and pushed his way through the confused crowd, he heard heroes yelling after him from behind. *Damn it.. It was harder than I thought to pin a single person down with my quirk than I thought with so many open links at once.. But I managed to trip him.* he smirked for himself.

   “You’re the real deal, eh kid?.” Hans crawled back up from the floor and ran into the cafe now without any other options. The cafe was closed and empty of people. Hans crashed through the tables and chairs as he made his way to the glass wall out to a balcony. Hans ran straight up and tried to knock the door down  but to now success. His vision was still blurry and he started fumbling with the handle. Shinsou entered the cafe through the window and caught Hans trying desperately to kick the door open despite still being affected by the tranquilizer.

   “Run all you’d like, but heroes aren't known for leaving business unfinished. They’ll catch you sooner or later.”

   “All we want is freedom. To not live in a world bound by these so called hero ideals. So I’ll run away till the day I can make that world come true.”

        “So somebody like you can do the same to that world too? It’s like you say, you’re the same as them.” asked Shinsou.

   “Don’t try to play mind games with me kid. Or did you forget already, that your quirk won’t work on me.” he hissed and didn’t even bother to look at Shinsou anymore as he finally broke apart the window. “It’s true heroes and villains are all the same. But you...”    “Huh?

   “You were going on about what makes you a hero earlier. But I see right through you. It’s all just a facade! You were born to be a villain kid.” A weight fell over Shinsou, and he could feel that familiar darkness spread inside him. “With a quirk as devious and evil as yours. You’re destined to end up stronger than even me one day and change this world. Who knows, you might even surpass him.” he stepped out through the glass. “Despite you being the hero today, I know that sooner or later you’ll realise that this world wasn’t built for people like you and me..” he smirked and let out a chuckle and smirked at Shinsou. “But you know.. I’d welcome you. I see your strength for what it is. I won’t throw you away like they did.” he reached out his hand through the broken glass, just like the gesture Shinsou had given him a earlier but with a much different goal, or perhaps it was the same… Manipulation. Shinsou stood there with a blank stare, unknowing of what to do for a moment. *He’s desperate.* “I’ll show you how to become stronger. How to become a villain.”

   “I.. What you’re saying can’t be true, can it..?” Shinsou laid his hands towards his eyes, hiding his face..

   “Yes, all of it! You’ll surpass me! I will make you realise your true potential, I’ll make you show everyone just how great you really are!” *Pathetic.* his movements froze, and eyes blanked out in whiteness.

   Shinsou moved away his hands again with an expressionless face.. “Like I’d be one of you. All you villains are all such stupid idiots.” he said and walked over towards Hans, who stood at the other side of the glass wall. “Eraserhead got you too, didn’t he?” Hans twitched. “Why else would you have ran through the crowd, and broken the door down. When you could have warped yourself through? Not to mention trying to talk me over, you knew I could do this to you at any time, so you thought it best to keep talking not to make me suspicious.” Shinsou shrugged and leant up against the glass, feeling how Hans was staring at him in furious anger behind his mind control. “That just proved you were faking it.” he smirked.

   “But thanks I guess.. For calling me the hero of the day. Makes me happy to know at least one villain scum said that about me.”

~~~

Back outside the mall a while later, we find Shinsou with his hands buried deep within his pockets, walking away from the chaos of police cars and heroes behind him at the shopping center.

- just a moment earlier -

   “You did a good job catching this guy, Shinsou. He’d gotten away if you hadn’t been here today. And we might never have found out about the danger just above us either before it was too late.” Aizawa said as he let over the tied up Hans to the police just outside of the cafe. “It was our oversight. They took control of the security cameras, and had the entire building in their control. You did a good thing today, bet even some people would like a word you.” he glanced over where the dozens of media reporters were talking with President Mic.

   “No.” sighed Shinsou. “I didn’t do a thing.” he had his eyes peeled down scratching the back of his neck where his scar was. “All I did was put people in danger and use them.” he thought back at the tea shop girl, Roger and then the woman who he made trip Hans. He couldn’t look Aizawa in the eyes anymore, and instead stared down onto his own feet. “President Mic disabled all of them at once, and I wouldn’t have been able to beat this guy if you hadn’t gotten him with your quirk just before.” his fist tightened. “I wasn’t a hero.. Just a some guy who happened to be around, not to mention put others at risk. It would have been fine, even if I wasn’t there.” Aizawa looked down at him as he then sighed.

   “You don’t understand. This is also the specific reason we haven’t moved you onto the hero course yet.”

   “I know my quirk is useless, you don’t need to-”    “We all saw what your quirk could do today. And don’t think us at U.A. haven’t noticed that too.”    “Wait w-what..?”

   “It’s your attitude which could use some work. A hero shouldn’t doubt in themselves or their quirk, no matter what it is they have, it’s pointless.”

   “But I want to be a hero! I’ll surpass everyone, I know I will! But my quirk… It’s always held me back. It’s what makes me like them.. It’s what makes me a villa-” Aizawa laid a hand on his shoulder.

   “Prove to me you want to be more than just the best hero then. Show me the extent of your quirk, and stop limiting yourself.” Aizawa said. “Now when I think about it. You’re very similar to one of my own students. Arrogant and gutsy, but with an overwhelming way of not realising their true potential.”

~~~

   “Hey Shinsou, is that you?” a voice yelled out behind him. *Hm. That voice? That’s.. Unmistakable.* “Are you okay? I was so worried you’d gotten hurt!” Midoriya yelled as he ran up behind him. With him followed Ururka and Iida.

   “U-um.. I’m fine. But why do you ask, how do you know I was in there? I thought you all were caught up in your introductions.”

   “Oh yeah but we all heard what happened! It sounded insane!” yelled Uraraka and punched in the air. “You really got those guys, didn’t you!” she laughed.

    “Yes! It was an excellent strategy to use a fellow citizen to help you start the alarm! Definitely a well versed strategy!” said Iida doing his wild hand gestures.

    “Yeah Shinsou, it sounded like you were a real hero up there! So thanks for saving us!” smiled Midoriya.

    “And I wish to thank you too, as the representation of class 1A, we are all greatly humbled!”

    “Yeah! Thanks a bunch!” Uraraka grinned. Shinsou swallowed a well of tears.

~~~

    “I’m like Midoriya!? How so?” asked Shinsou furiously and looked up at Aizawa as they walked through the building.

    “Don’t look too much into it. But both of you have quirks that’s not the usual bread and butter hero power. Yet, you set your eyes on the same price.”  

    “But his quirk is nothing like mine, it’s strong and powerful. It’s the perfect quirk for a hero!” yelled Shinsou.

    “How so? Then why were you the hero today and not him?” he asked and looked intensly at Shinsou over his shoulder. Shinsou was almost taken aback by the question. “The only difference is that he chooses to change, while you insist that your quirk is holding you back. In fact I’d say, you’re the one holding your quirk back.”

~~~

   “H-hey Shinsou..? A-are you crying..?” Uraraka asked and tilted her head.

   “Oh you just shut up and leave me alone.” he hissed between his teeth and spun around and started to walk away.

   “But Shinsou, we-”

   “Don’t speak to me again, Midoriya. I’ll take your place in the hero course if you let your guard down again. I’m gonna surpass you, and become the greatest hero.” he had a smile on his lips even though he was crying.. Midoriya smiled too.

   “I’ll do my best too!” he smiled back. When his eyes and mind suddenly went blank.

   “... You idiot.”

[punk-in-docs]

You Were Always Mine, Chapter 19

AU Tom Hiddleston - Romantic, Historical Romance, Victorian Fic. Based off the imagine; ‘Thomas spying on you after your divorce and doing anything to get you back. Including threatening your new beau.’ Prompt found on ​this blog. Link to the imagine here…. Chapter number: Chapter 19 Author: punk-in-docs (Masterlist for more chapters…) Triggers/warnings: Angst. More Violence. After the next chap, no more violence! I promise! Wakeman is a BASTARD! you’ve been warned!

He slid from the coach, quickly paying the driver, and bounding across the street. The gait of a man with no time to waste. The Foundry was directly ahead, he scurried fast across the street, his strong, long legs carried him quickly, his mind set to the dire consequence of the damages this incident may have caused to his workers, and his machinery. He wets his lips as he treads through the yard, seeing it was unusually empty. They must’ve cleared everyone. He thinks. His foreman, Thompkins, his able, right hand, probably sent everyone home with a day’s pay whilst he sorted out the catastrophe. He headed for the main factory floor, pushing open the heavy, solid sliding door, reveals a bustle of people, he can see, thronging in his office. Through the misty, murky windows, he sees a gaggle of men, stood, most likely awaiting him.

Breathless from his scurrying from the cab, and the tug of his straining, tired muscles from pulling open the heavy door. He proceeds forwards. Through the swathing path that cut through the bulking, heavy machinery, now, it was silent. When it should have been roaring. That settles a certain something in him, something stirs, becoming uneasy. It was just before five at night, they weren’t scheduled to stop yet. And he saw no signs of any machine being damaged from an explosion. The place was as spotless as usual. He slows, coming to a stop. Realising. He shut his eyes, and cursed under his breath. Especially when he heard feet shuffle behind him. The clang of the door behind him, makes him turn, and he sees two, scruffy, brawny men stood behind him. Smirking as if they knew their pockets were soon to be lined. They didn’t advance on him though. They stayed stood in front of the door, guarding it. Shielding him from an easy escape. He turns back around, seeing more strangers now opened the door to his private office, and two men now flanked the door, but Thomas can make out another one, sat down, comfortably. At his desk.

His fists, and his jaw, clenched. He narrowed his eyes into the room ahead. Prepared to face this monstrosity, if this was how it would come to a nasty head… then maybe this way, he could sever it, and he and Vianne would be left alone, for good.

“He who hides behind numerous faces to cause his harm, must be the worst sort of coward. St. Clair.” Thomas calls into the office before him. As he stalks slowly, coming to the door, he glares coldly at the two men stood there, until they both part, backing away, allowing him to enter his own office.

And when he does, he is startled to see that he wasn’t addressing Henry St. Clair, as he’d thought. But instead, he was instead talking to a man he’d never seen before. And he certainly didn’t look threatening, but his behaviour, and company, suggested otherwise. He looked like a stout, genteel old lawyer. Gleaming gold spectacles, a balding head, and a figure that wasn’t deprived of culinary extravagance. His rows of flabby chins disappeared behind his stiff collar, becoming one with his neck, the flabbiness well hidden behind a neat tie. His face was podgy, and his belly was rotundas, barely contained by a stiff, proper waistcoat and fine coated dress. A man of money, and wealthy, judging by the cut of his clothes, and the width of his waistline. In any other space, Thomas thought, the man would look no more threatening than that of a fluffy teddy-bear. But in here, sat at his desk, his flabby, thick-as-sausages fingers enclosed around his private possession, the silver photo frame, made Thomas realise the coldness of his grey, dead eyes behind his spectacles. Almost unseeing, unfeeling. Cold, and devoid of any feeling. Those eyes made Thomas think briefly, fleetingly, of Lucille’s. Calculative, sharp and piercing. Because maybe this man, wasn’t scary, maybe he did have to outsource thugs to carry out violence in his stead. But there was a manipulative, and deviously cunning breed of hatred in his eyes that made Thomas’s blood turn to ice. This man was not threatening, but he was, most certainly, not, to be perceived as stupid, or unintelligent.

“Do you know, it’s funny, I expected you to look more monstrous. As it is, Mr. Sharpe, my first, overall impression is one of…deflation on my part. I expected a monster. A cad, a scoundrel. You look like none of those things. You look like a feeble villain conjured from a female mind, living in the pages of some drippy, bodice-ripping, novelette. I expected the man who committed such atrocities as the ones I know you have, to be….” He paused to sigh. “Just. Well…..more.” The stranger explained. Slamming down a thick folder atop Thomas’s desk. Seeing the man didn’t even flinch at the movement. He relaxed back in the man’s study chair, hearing it creak and crack under his new weight, the shift of his position. He folded his arms to rest on his gigantic belly, his thumbs twiddling as he relaxed back in the office that wasn’t his.

Thomas walked closer, though his brain was shouting at him not too, and on the desk, he sees that the thick paperwork, was in fact a paper folder, emblazoned with his name. Written in indifferent typewriter font. Sharpe, comma, Thomas. Ex-Husband. He smiled, wryly, lifting the cover and seeing a black and white photograph of a sight he never thought he’d lay eyes on again. All the more intimidated by the fact that someone had been keeping a sick form of highly detailed surveillance on him. He let the folder shut, lifting his hand away, and smirking at the man opposite. It was both amazing and anti-climactic to see a folder, containing, and listing all the paper minutia of his life, bound together. It was flimsy, and unbelievable, in an odd sort of way.

“You’re very well acquainted with me. Sir. But I am afraid I don’t return the happy favour…” Thomas spoke snidely. His humour made the man chuckle, and those grey eyes, gleam coldly behind the pane of glass that separated them from the world.

“I’m very intimately acquainted with one of your, cherished, confrère’s, Shall we say…” He explained, reaching to his side, and slapping down another set of photograph’s. Thomas baulked at their contents, though he didn’t show it. They all contained images, black, white and grainy, of him, and Vianne. And they were not pictures of delicate content. There was one, dark, but recognisable, them at the opera house, entwined, to make Henry jealous. Both their hands roaming one another’s bodies. The second one, was a snapshot of later that night, of them embracing on the street. When they’d donned their coats to leave, Thomas had tucked her lithe form into his coat with him, enclosing his arms, and his jacket about them as they kissed. The third, was a lurid shot, through Vianne’s bedroom window, it showed the pair of them, consummating, their reunion, after the Opera that night. The first time in two years that they’d had lustful contact with one another, naked, pleasured and writhing together in ecstasy in her bed. The shot had clearly been taken from far away, but he could make out the form of her, below him as he loved her. He could see the wide flare of his broad back and shoulders, and her curves, spread under him. He tried not to shake with rage, and disgust.

“Vianne.” He whispers harshly. Looking at the pictures. Before his raging eyes snapped back up to the slithering, wretched stranger opposite.

“I’m her Uncle. Hector Wakeman. Pleasure to meet you. At last, Mr. Sharpe. I can’t say I’m pleased. To finally meet the absent bastard who, in her ill judgement, my niece decides to, fuck, instead of staying true to her engaged vows.” He snaps across to Thomas. His face contorted to spit the curse word out foully.

“Oh, believe me, Sir, it’s a hell of a lot more than just, fucking.”  Thomas promises just as vulgarly as he had. His eyes were lethal, and ice in their gaze to this ‘supposed relative’ of hers he’d never heard a word of.

He laughed. He barked out a short, staccato burst of laughter that made Thomas’s body tense, wanting to plant his fist violently into the side of the man’s face.

“You believe she can love a man such as you? My, but you are both romantic, blind, naive fools if you believe that for even a second. To think, the pair of you could ever dream of having a future together? It’s laughable…” He commented, chuckling. “You trust her, though, don’t you?” He asks. Thomas makes no effort to reply to the man who was making his stomach turn.

He shook his head. Grinning. Amused by the sheer idea of them being anything more than bed-mates. “You really shouldn’t.” He adds.

“She’s lying to you. And I have a sneaky feeling you haven’t told her all about those big, preying skeletons gathering dust in your closet, either.” He remarks.

Thomas can’t speak. He is too angry. Too livid. If he opens his mouth, he wonders what would happen to him.

“Me and Vianne have no secrets.” He tries to insist in the calmest voice he can muster.

“Yes you do.” Wakeman replies, annoyed, at the idiot opposite him trying to put up a façade of a healthy relationship between he, and his niece.

“Why do you think she left you Thomas? How do you think she managed it so easily? I helped her arrange, everything. The money, the train ticket. The divorce papers. I helped her gather, and sort out the miserable scraps of her ruined marriage match to you…. You know, for a while there, I was truly gutted. The pair of you swanning off, sneaking away to Gretna Green to say your vows. Disappearing under the very eyes of society, to so laughably, aspire to what the pair of you, so hopelessly, daned to call a marriage match. Though, I take my hat off to your tenacious sister. I really do. I thought her clever poisoning methods would truly finish Vianne off. But, no…” he sighs. “My niece was too canny, even for that. I’m surprised you sanctioned such a thing. Really, I am.That’s the mark of a truly, cold, man. Even for me to say so….“ He remarks.

"Don’t you dare degrade me and align your actionswith mine.” Thomas sneered.

Wakeman continued, unfazed.“Even your cold hearted, killerof a sister couldn’t cause her noticeable harm. I really curse my niece for that sometimes, you know. Her penchant, for being so affable, charming, caring. She’s such a skilled nurse. It really is a bother. She wrote to me she could taste the strychnine Lucille snuck into her food. Shame. Mores the pity, after that, Vianne really tricked her into letting her guard down. I think, actually, your twin developed a keen tendre for her. Her thoughts of harm, instead turned to ones of kinship. Exactly what I didn’t bloody need.But then again…” He tuts “Women. We can expect no more of them than the usual fickleness of their sex.” He scoffs in disappointment. Thomas remained silent.

“But… I digress. I am being a trifle, unfair, I have to say, I must thank you. Were it not for yours and Lucille’s disgusting, dark love for each other, it never would have driven her back to London, and back to me… Oh, how she ran to escape from you, Sharpe. So scared, so feeble.” He mutters.

“Stop it.” Thomas growls in a reedy voice. The man’s obnoxiousness making his head spin.

“Stop what? Telling you what kind of man you are?” Hector chortles.

“I’m not that man anymore.” Thomas insists.

“What, the kind who fucks his sister, or the kind who can’t even keep a wife for a year?” He asks cruelly.

“SHUT IT!” Thomas snaps loudly. Wakeman looks at Thomas coldly. Coolly surveying his outburst of anger. And then he calmly sneers. “Sore spot?” He coos nastily.

Thomas would have leapt over the desk and slit his throat right there and then, were he not hopelessly outnumbered and unarmed.

“I’ll tell you why I don’t want to do that. It’s because that man, that sick, incestuous, bastard, is standing in front of me now. But he’s so eaten up by his secrets, all he can do is blindly give me some claptrap about how he and her are so in love. They don’t know what love is. And they certainly won’t hold such a feeling when they finally learn the others darkest secret.” He explains calmly. He looks outside the door to see the two stood, and he nods at them. Summoning them in.

“Why did you call me here? Merely to insult me?” Thomas asks in a thunderous voice. Wary of the two thugs behind him now moving into the room, his back was too them. But he could hear them. The whine of the doors, the rustle of their clothes, the clunking tread of their heavy boots underfoot.

“No. The purpose for your invitation here was twofold…” Hector explained as if he had grown bored, he reached across, idly rifling through Thomas’s desk drawers. The man was a vermin, Thomas had decided.

“First…” Wakeman began, looking blandly up to the men stood behind him. By the time Thomas turns to look, it was too late. One had seized his arm, hoisting his shoulder up, holding him in place. The next minute, he felt a searing pain slash across his right thigh. He cries out, slipping to his knees, the pain doubling, screaming like fire through his veins as his hands clutched round his upper thigh. When he looks down, shuddering, he can see a large, fairly deep slash marring through his black breeches, oozing ruby-black blood down his thigh, as he clutches he can see  the crimson of his blood staining his hands, dribbling fast down his leg. He hissed and cursed through the pain. He hated blood. The smell of it, the feel, the taste, all of it repulses him. He mumbles something under his breath. “Right handed…” He gasped. Wakeman ignored him, but eyed him shrewdly.

“Second…” Wakeman continues on. Barely having batted an eyelid. Not even changing a shade at the fact that he had just mortally wounded a man, two paces across from him. He was still flipping through Thomas’s work documents with a fascination that was morbid in its serenity. It was then that Thomas noticed something. Something that Wakeman did, as he had picked up Thomas’s own ink pen, and that sent his heart pumping full of rage, as he tried to ignore the pain coursing through his body. With every beat of his heart, there came more agony.

“The reason, I am so, unforgiving, of your recent presence in Vianne’s life. Is that you drove away the man I had been trying to set her to marry, for almost a year and a half. They’d only been engaged for a mere month when you swanned back into her life. I needed her, to marry St. Clair, before you could seize hold of what was rightfully yours by marriage. Luckily, my existence, Vianne had kept a secret from you and your murdering sister, probably for fear of my safety, the dear sweet idiot, she is. I couldn’t risk it being lost to me a second time…”

“It?” Thomas panted. “What it?” He grit out.

“Money.” Hector explained. “Lots, and lots of money. She’s an heiress, after all. She didn’t tell you just how rich she was, did she? No. She’d rather give her money to grubby little orphanages, like St.- cursed bloody - Anthony’s, and fritter it away donating to hospitals,  Nun’s orders, and homes devoted to helping the poor.” He spewed with disdain.

Thomas was speechless. He grunted through the pain of the cut, feeling panic start to flood his veins. But he fought not to let it. He thought what Vianne would say, Panic can kill you faster. Remain calm, retain rationality, and try and stem the danger, if at all possible… It was as if he could hear her voice so distinctly, as if she was there, cooing her soft voice into his ear from those rosebud coloured lips. Her breath tickling his ear. He could hear it all so clearly.

“How does her, marrying that…” He hissed in pain. Sucking in breath harshly. “Bastard, St. Clair get, you, her fortune?” Thomas asks.

 “It’s a confidential family matter.” Wakeman defended. “Besides which. He’s my godson. And thus far, he has made an utter pigs ear of trying to get her back, on good terms.” He growled, upset.

“Vianne’s too clever for a… “ Once again, he panted. “abusive, thug, like him. He’s so self-absorbed in his own arrogance, I’m surprised he had it in him to notice another person enough to be engaged to them, when he’s so busy bedding other women and crowing about how fantastic-a doctor he is…” Thomas seethed. Wakeman looked behind Thomas’s head once more. Sharpe braced himself for the sting of whatever would happen to him next. He almost bit his tongue when a booted foot is brought down sharply on his wounded thigh from behind. He screamed aloud. Puffing breath, fighting the blackness of pain that threatened to cut him off from this reality entirely. He grit his teeth, soldiering on, though he wanted to sob and scream. He wouldn’t give this sick bastard the satisfaction. He winced, and he met Hector’s eyes again.

Wakeman watched him, threatening to slump on to the floor. But he straightens his back, and through panting, remains upright, glaring at him. Sweating, bruised, and battered. But defiant. He hated that.

“You didn’t cut too deep? Now did you, Phil?” We’ve been burned by that before. Have we not?”  Wakeman asks, Pointing a glare at the left of Thomas’s shoulder.

“…In order for the plan to work. We need him alive…. Which he won’t be if you’d have cut his femoral artery any deeper. You damned, bloody fool. Now find the man a tourniquet, and let’s move it out of this… dank place. Shall we?” Wakeman ordered civilly.

“You lay one filthy hand on her, Wakeman, and I will rip your spine out through your teeth, I give you my word on that, you foul bastard…” Thomas seethes. Wakeman merely smirks.

“Pathetic…” He sneers down at the man as he comes to a stand, barely looming over him. When he stood, Thomas could see the true extent of the man before him. He was fat, short, and a poor picture of a man to be scared by. He could see that now. “Truly pathetic…” He grimaced.

“You think that it would be any strain on my behalf to have you killed? It’d be like swatting away a flea.”  Wakeman growled. “Just wait til your hear this. Me and Henry drew straws. I get to summon you, and he is in charge of bringing Vianne to our agreed, little meeting place. He’s waiting for her as we speak. Best not to imagine what he’ll do to her when he gets her alone…. It’s unsavoury though, I bet. Usually is with him. He does so enjoy, violently, exerting his dominance over women. They are such darling, weak little things when it comes down to it…” He explained pettily.

“Not. Vianne.” Thomas pledged simply. Because she was strong. She was a survivor through and through. For hell’s sake, she’d survived Allerdale Hall, and the wrath of Lucille Sharpe. And not with violence, or intimidation. But with geniality. She really had killed her enemy with kindness, she could survive the tenacity of his formidable relative, she could surely survive the scrutiny, and betrayal of her own. He had to believe that. He had too. It was, his only hope. Otherwise he’d perish from the worry, right here on his office floor…

Even though he wanted to wring the man’s neck ten times over for knowing that he’d sent St. Clair to prey on her, to lie in wait, as they spoke. It made his heart twist, and turn, and his stomach churn with icy dread. If he could have had his way, he’d run the miles away to Great Russell street, even with a cut leg, to go and save her from harm. St. Clair was a vicious bastard, and he would harm her. That much he believed.

“”Do you know all I’ve had to do to get my hands on that money? It was bad enough thinking that you and your rotten sister had got your grubby hands all over it. So when I learnt she was leaving you, and returning home. It was like a second coming. I had my chance, at last, at the money I’ve been denied all my life. Do you know how much is safely in that trust fund that I can’t touch? Almost half a million. And my stupid, oaf, of a brother, Artmeis. Left it all to her, in his will, Wasted on his snivelling, little red-headed brat. They left her in my care, too. All I had to do, was raise her, without issue, and wed her to an amenable man. Then, in her marriage, that money could, finally, be mine. I thought Henry was so right for her. He’s, arrogant and, his gambling debts I believe you saw the nasty end of, and I knew his temper ran hot, but I thought he could make a decent job of it. But, unsurprisingly, he too failed me. And now… you.  You, are my most recent annoyance.”  He clarified.

“I’m glad to have been an inconvenience.” Thomas spat. For which he received a solid kick to the ribs. Winding him in an instant. As if someone snuck in and stole the very breath from his body.

“Better you had stayed in Cumbria, with your lover. Than get involved with me, Henry, and Vianne.” He seethed. “What’s more. I’ll let you in on my dirty little secret, one more for you to carry, can’t hurt.”  He told. Leaning down now, He stayed close to Thomas’s ear, and began to whisper.

“The way I finally get my hands on that money? I slit her worthless throat, and when you are framed for the crime. I get, her money, that she’ll leave me in the will I’m going to have drawn up.” He explained. “She dies, tonight. At my hand, Sharpe. And you’ll rot in prison for it.”

Thomas lunged for him. Despite the pain in his leg. He kicked, he thrashed, he wanted to scream his lungs right out. But he is restrained, on his knees. And a pinching tourniquet is tied around his wounded thigh.

“You’re a rotten, worthless, reprobate.” Wakeman snarled.

“The feeling’s utterly mutual.” Thomas rumbled back. “I may have a dark past, yes. I’ve never admitted I hadn’t. And I’m ashamed. I’m so ashamed, it kills me, It kills me thinking of every single minute I didn’t love that woman properly, like she deserved. I thought I was a monster, but you… you. steal the biscuit...” Thomas shook his head in disbelief.

“To raise your brothers child you so clearly hated, just so, years later, you could get her fortune after….” He felt sick even thinking the word ‘kill.’ “…Rearing your own niece, like…like-like a prized lamb for slaughter. That sweet, wonderful girl, whose only ever helped, cared and nourished people. How fucking could you?” Thomas spits. Tears clouding his eyes. He tried to squirm again, but he is held tight. Braced back by strong arms behind him.

Wakeman shrugged. Thomas knew in that moment the man was a pure, sociopath.

“Boo-hoo. I’m a bad man. Congratulations on working it out. Now. We really had best be leaving. Or we’ll miss our dear, dear Vianne. And the remaining hours of her life, she has left. Now, before we get to opening the champagne to her unfortunate demise, may I ask… DO you know her dirty secret?” He enquires.

Thomas glares. Wakeman chuckles.

“I’ll let her explain, then. Oh, it’s so damn obvious, when you think about it. However, of course, It’s a good one, you’ll be floored. You really will.”  He predicted. “I can’t stand the grubby little things. But I’m sure we have our differences towards them..” He told. Thomas doesn’t ask anything more.

“One thing…” Thomas speaks up.

Wakeman seems irritated by his interjection. He turns and exhales angrily, glaring down at Thomas.

“You’re an obvious, despicable, showman. And you’ve overplayed your hand saying that it was, entirely Henry, who messed up with Rose. You’d happily lead me and Vianne to believe that it was St. Clair who’d killed her last night…. But it wasn’t, was it, Wakeman?”

The first hints of something, akin, to panic crossed those bland, grey eyes. And his mouth twitched in nervous anger. His brow started to prickle with sweat and panic. Thomas gestured with a nod of his chin to his desk.

“Couldn’t help but notice… You hold the pen with your left hand.” Thomas snarled. “I won’t be rotting anywhere if the police seize such information…” He threatens. Fighting back.

It was Wakeman who attacked first, one shuddering blow to the side of his head, and Thomas can feel the dripping, warm substance that could have only been blood, dripping down the side of his face. The next ones leaves his lungs empty, his face ringing, and one name on his lips before blackness takes him.

“Vianne.”

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