#because Kate always hits his arm when he calls Marie little Kate

[10millionotters]

Pickup time at Ms Kate’s Daycare

[silverhallow]

Could we see a little extra scene/drabble of either that showdown between Sophie & Tessa or when Violet comes back on Monday (aka the family finds out Benophie are dating)?

Okay so it’s morphed into a second chapter…

You can read it here

Or below the line

They fucked twice more that night before they eventually fell asleep spent and exhausted, Benedict having fulfilled two wishes, the first to cum on Sophie’s perfect perk tits and then Sophie’s by cumming on her face after they had 69’d.

It had been the most incredible night of his life.

From the initial shock, devastation and subsequent frustration of finding out Tessa had been cheating on him, (something he was now sure he had known all along but had been so focused on just getting his first time that he’d been willing not to see it) to the shock of Sophie offering herself to him then him finally saw Sophie in a whole new light… It had been a world altering, life changing night.

Benedict had never been more grateful to his brother for calling him to tell him about Tessa and realised how much he owed his brother.

They’d spent time talking, opening up to one another and Sophie confessed as they lay there in the haze of their second round of the night, that she kept herself covered over because she felt self-conscious about her appearance. Because she was quite petite, she had wanted people to like her for her… the only person she had ever wanted to see her in another light had been him. He had been the only person she had wanted to show herself off too… but she assumed he’d only ever seen her as a friend and that was what she was going to dress as… a friend…

She knew she didn’t have the same figure as the rest of the girls in their year, she’d always been a bit slower in developing and whilst she had her tattoo, the little fairy which was incidentally something Benedict had once sketched out for her years ago, she confessed that her statements about it being used as a bullseye… had been to make him jealous… he was actually the first person to see her fully naked… with Jake and Chris… she’d always kept some part of herself covered.

Sophie explained, when Benedict had asked, that she had been in love with him since she was 10. When she had come back into school that first day after her mother had died and Mary and Miles had taken her in, she had been so scared at the way people would react to her but he had missed her so much in the three weeks she was off school that he ran across the school yard and wrapped his arms around her and hugged her.

She had explained that she had always thought perhaps as they got older he would start to see her the same way but when he started sniffing around girls like Tessa she had realised that he would not see her in the same light… that was when she started dating Jake then Chris… she had thought maybe he’d get jealous but he never did and Kate just encouraged her to move on, that Benedict would catch up eventually…

But when he started seeing Tessa and Sophie knew what she was like, knew that Benedict was being used, she couldn’t even pretend to like her. It was why she had been so horrible about her. She was jealous that she had the one person Sophie wanted and loved most in the world.

Benedict had been her constant, her anchor to reality when her life around her crumbled.

Benedict felt his jaw drop, not for the first time that night as he realised that Tessa had been right all along… that he had been so stupid not to realise. That they could have shared this years ago… if he had just taken time to think with his head and heart and not his bloody cock.

He knew in his heart that he had always compared the personalities of the girls to Sophie, he wanted that connection but as time had gone on, he had wanted to have sex… he had heard all his friends talking about their experiences, even Sophie talking about hers… he had always felt sick when Sophie talked about hers and he had never realised why… and now he realised why…

It had hit him like a thunderbolt… he had been jealous.

His most deprived sex dreams had always been about Sophie, never Tessa, never Lucy or any other girl who had shown interest in him… it was always after his dirty dreams and thoughts about Sophie that he’d wake up with wet sheets.

Sophie had been thrilled to hear that and she’d coaxed the confession out of him, despite his bright red cheeks, the nature of those dreams and promised that they’d act out all of those fantasies and Benedict had been instantly hard again.

It had been an incredible night. Sophie had stayed the night and they curled up in each other’s arms and just held one another as they slept.

It was around 11am when they woke up and they made their way into Benedict’s mum’s kitchen and they made breakfast together, something they had done a million times together, working effortlessly before sitting next to one another at the table feeding one another, grinning like idiots as they talked about their plans for the day.

Sophie promised to go home and get some spare clothes and come back and they could spend the day watching the crappy horror films and making out and if he wasn’t too worn out, fucking some more…

Benedict had been enthusiastic and kissed her passionately before she left to go get her clothes and some more snacks.

Benedict felt like he was on cloud nine as he changed the sheets on his bed and put more candles out and forgot all about his phone and cancelling his plans with Tessa…

Since Sophie had taken her coat off and he saw her… actually saw her properly for the first time, it was like a lightbulb had switched on in his head and all thoughts of any one else, of ever being with another girl left his mind…

Sophie was his other half, the perfect compliment to him, the ying to his yang and she loved all the same things as him. They were going to the same University in September… It was like fate had been planning this for him and he was just slow to catch up.

He was like a kid at Christmas when he heard Sophie’s car pull back up and he opened the garage, they had the whole day and Monday to be together before his mother and siblings got home and as they had no plans to leave the house, it was safer for the car to be in the garage.

He ran around to the kitchen door, having showered he was just in a pair of shorts and when he saw Sophie get out of the car, in a vest top and shorts that were so short they might as well have been knickers… he’d tossed her on top of her car bonnet and had to have her there and then.

After their interlude on the bonnet of the car, Benedict had asked her how come she wasn’t in her usual jeans and a baggy t-shirt, explaining he wasn’t complaining as he loved seeing her like this but she didn’t have to dress like this to impress him. Sophie admitted that it was because she felt comfortable around him, that she didn’t feel the need to hide herself away anymore because she had him and having his love had given her the confidence boost she needed and this was how she dressed at home when she was just around Mary, Miles, Kate and Edwina.

Benedict was surprised he didn’t burst with the way that made him feel.

She did warn him that next time Kate saw him, she was going to give him the big-sister riot act and Benedict just laughed as he set the popcorn off in the microwave, explaining he didn’t expect anything else from Kate.

They managed half of their film before they’d ended up starting to fool around on the sofa, but given that it was the family space, Sophie dragged Benedict back to his room and she was just tugging on his rugby shirt, the one he used when he played for the college team when the doorbell went.

Benedict smiled “that’ll be lunch” he grinned having ordered a domino's pizza a little earlier for them as they hadn’t eaten since lunch and his stomach had been grumbling.

“Ohhh i’ll get it” she grinned and not bothered to put her shorts on, as Benedict’s shirt was long enough, Sophie made her way to the front door.

It was, however, not pizza.

It was Tessa, “right let’s… what the fuck are you doing here?!” she screeched when she realised who had opened the door

“I think I should be asking you that” Sophie asked, her defences and hackles going up and the urge to punch the taller girl in front of her was almost overwhelming.

“This is my boyfriend’s house” Tessa preened

“Oh honey, you lost that right after you fucked Rob and god knows who else yesterday, and offered his fucking brother of all people a go as well” Sophie shot back with a smirk as she leaned against the door, her bare legs on show.

“Fee?” Benedict called as he was tugging on his shorts “is something wrong with… what the fuck are you doing here?” Benedict asked, fastening his shorts up as he came around and saw Tessa standing there.

“I told you I was coming around this afternoon…”

“You lost that right when you offered my fucking brother a hook up if he didn’t say anything about you fucking Rob and any other fucking man yesterday? After telling everyone you’d throw me a bone?” Benedict asked coldly.

“I… I never said such a thing, they’re all lying to you” Tessa said, batting her eyelashes and crossing her arms under her chest and pushing her huge tits up “they’re just trying to pull us apart…”

“If that’s the case… where is that hickey from?” Sophie asked pointing at Tessa’s collarbone, it hadn’t been visible to start with but when she had pushed her tits up it had moved her jumper and revealed it.

“I… Ben gave me it…” Tessa said “last week”

“That's maybe… an hour or so old… see” Sophie grinned as she tugged her collar to one side to show the hickey on her shoulder that Benedict had left not quite an hour ago “that’s the colour they are right Babe?” Sophie grinned winking at Benedict who flushed.

Tessa’s face turned a bright shade of scarlet “you thought he was such a push over… that he’d welcome you with open arms even after you’ve been with someone not that long ago. I was right about you…” Sophie sneered.

“Maybe but I was right about you” Tessa preened looking furious “you’re nothing but a slut… giving yourself away to him because he was so fucking desperate to be loved, to be fucked… he’d have any skank”

“Tessa FUCK off” Benedict said as Sophie burst out cackling

“Oh princess… you’re not looking in a mirror… Benedict is fucking special, he’s the best thing that would have ever happened to you and you dipped out because you can’t keep your legs crossed… two men is nothing compared to your… what… 20? Or was that just last night…”

“Fee!” Benedict yelled at her, seeing the warning signs in his new girlfriend’s face… the way her hands were balling into a fist, the way she was shaking with rage.

“She’s not even worth it… Tessa, we’re fucking done. You aren’t coming in, you aren’t throwing me a bone, nothing… I don’t need you… I surely as hell don’t want you especially knowing where the fuck you’ve been… you lied to me, you used me… so I suggest you go crawling back to Rob, or George or whoever else was next on your list… as I am just a one woman kind of man and i’ve got all the woman I need right here” he grinned wrapping an arm around Sophie’s waist.

“You boyfriend… stealing… fucking…” Tessa raged as she balled her hands into a fist as though to strike Sophie

“Ahh ahhh ahhh sweetheart…” Sophie grinned, reaching a hand out in a “stop” motion, “i might have no knickers on underneath his shirt but it won’t stop me kicking the shit out of you… and i’m the College’s reiging kickboxing champion so if you wanna fight… fucking bring it… but i’m warning you… i will rip those implants from your hair and tits… so you lost… face it and fuck off…”

Tessa went red, then white as she heard Sophie’s threat “I fucking knew you wanted him… i fucking knew it!” she seethed

“You were right… I did… i’ve loved Ben for a long time but I’d never have made a move if it wasn’t for your fucking stupidity… so really I should be thanking you because you’ve missed out. Not only on the sweetest man alive, but the best fuck you’d have ever had as well so… your loss” Sophie beamed as she slammed the door in Tessa’s face.

Benedict stared at her with wide eyes amazement “that was the sexiest thing i’ve ever seen…” he whispered in a husky tone as he leaned down and kissed her passionately.

Sophie pulled his top over her head, “fuck me… right here… right now…” she gasped. Benedict didn’t need telling twice and he picked Sophie up and fucked her right against the door, neither caring to keep the volume down.

Tessa stormed away after 5 minutes of banging on the door screaming until she heard them through the door and stalked off determined that she’d get her own back somehow…

The poor Domino’s man however… Benedict had to give him quite a substantial tip after he had heard a lot more that he had bargained for when he turned up 5 minutes after Tessa departed and heard the conclusion and Benedict’s passionate yells from behind the door…

Benedict decided after they had finished watching their film to at least update his brother on what had happened, Anthony wasn’t due back until Monday night like the rest of the family and when he had called, he said he was already aware having bumped into Kate whilst he was out with Simon that afternoon.

Anthony had been thrilled, having suspected that both of them had feelings for one another but had never said anything as he vowed he’d not get involved in his siblings' love lives, no matter how much of a blind dumbass his brother was… “Sophie’s a much better girl for you Ben… you need someone to keep you in line and keep you on your toes…”

Benedict had agreed, it had been a muffled agreement as Sophie had just plonked herself down between his legs and had started sucking his cock. Anthony had yelled at his brother and Sophie had laughed at Anthony’s complaints and Sophie had just mumbled something about “payback being a bitch…”

Benedict had been too lost in pleasure at the time but it was after that Sophie explained that Kate and Anthony had been fucking one another for the last 3 months whilst away at Oxford.

Benedict was exhausted by the time they went to bed on the Sunday night, he had been sure if they had any more sex his cock might fall off but Sophie had just giggled and cuddled into him saying they were just making up for lost time.

“We’ve got the rest of our lives Fee… and a lot more fantasies to live out yet… let’s not break my cock on day two” he grinned. Sophie gave both him and his cock a gentle kiss before they fell asleep, wrapped in one another’s arms.

Benedict had decided not to tell his mother yet wanting it to be a surprise and Sophie had messaged Mary to say she was stopping over at Benedict’s again and asked that she not mention anything about her and Benedict to Violet.

Mary had agreed but only because she knew how excited her friend would be about the news so she had stayed silent.

Sophie and Benedict spent Monday doing some Exam revision, cooking and playing video games, it was like nothing had changed between them other than the fact Sophie was wearing Benedict’s rugby shirt, shorts and was sitting between his legs as they paired up and played on Call of Duty together, winning several rounds of Duos.

Benedict had said his mum was due back around 8pm with the kids and Sophie had said they’d make dinner for the family rather than them having to order a takeaway and Benedict had told his mother that he’d take care of dinner. She’d been surprised as she knew that Benedict only ever cooked with one person and she really hoped that Tessa wasn’t taking that away from Sophie as well.

Violet hadn’t liked Tessa, not because she wasn’t pretty or anything but she’d heard about her reputation Anthony and Kate and Violet could tell that she was driving a wedge between Benedict and Sophie and turning her son into someone he wasn’t, he would take far too long on a morning on his appearance for school and had been talking about changing his car.

The car he had was the one his father had picked out for him, the same type that he’d had when he was 17 and it had been similar to Anthony’s car but Tessa had refused to get into it and it had been part of the reason Benedict had been thinking about changing it.

But Benedict had been happy, or seemed to be so Violet stayed quiet, kept her mouth shut but she didn’t like that Benedict had agreed to help Tessa with her earth day rubbish collection when she wasn’t going to be helping.

Violet had heard the conversation when Tessa had said she was going to the Cove with friends to tidy up down there, when it was part of the council land and was cleaned regularly and Benedict was going to the private park by himself…

She had hoped perhaps that by giving Benedict the time alone with Tessa, by going to Somerset to see Reginal and Ronald with Poppy and Andrew and the kids that perhaps Benedict would finally see sense about Sophie and Tessa…

So when she drove into the street and didn’t see a car on the drive, neither Tessa or Sophie’s… she wondered what was going on. The kids were all tired from the drive and as she had luggage to unpack from the car, Violet pulled into the drive, just as Anthony pulled up.

“Hey Mum!” Anthony beamed, knowing full well what awaited them when they got in

“Good weekend sweetheart?”

“Yeah it was decent. Went to a party at the Cove on Saturday night, hung out with Simon and a friend yesterday and today…” he grinned “I wanted to give Ben some space with his girlfriend, he text to say they were making dinner for us”

“Oh that was nice of you” Violet said, a small strained smile and a sinking feeling in her stomach.

“Come on, i’ll bring these in after…” Anthony smiled “Hy looks like she’s going to pass back out again” he grinned picking up his 4 year old sister who had just woken up.

Violet gave her son the side eye as she picked up Gregory and yelled at the other four to get in the house.

Anthony unlocked the door and they made their way in.

Benedict and Sophie had dinner under control, Sophie had suggested a big family roast as a surprise and Colin’s nose was going nuts as he walked into the house.

Benedict and Sophie were on the sofa watching the Rugby highlights as Violet called through the house “Ben sweetheart? We’re home…” she had wanted to give him warning and hoped beyond hope she wasn’t about to witness her son in the middle of any sort of sex act with Tessa…

“In the living room mum!” he called back and Violet let out a sigh.

Eloise, Francesca and Daphne made there way into the front room and let out a gasp as they saw Benedict and Sophie cuddled up on the sofa together.

“What… what… what…” stammered the three girls looking confused.

Violet blinked and walked in about to yell at her second son for defiling the family area and yelling that they were in there if they were naked, however, out of all the things she’d expected to see… it wasn’t Sophie settled between Benedict’s legs, in his rugby shirt and some shorts, her blonde hair in a side plait, with Benedict’s arms tightly around her holding him to her…

Violet’s mouth fell open “Surprise…” Benedict grinned at his mum.

“But… but…”

“Hey Soph” Anthony grinned “Hey little bro…” he smiled and headed off to put Hyacinth in her bed.

“Wait… you knew?!” Violet said to her oldest son.

“Of course I did… Ben told me yesterday…”

“I… I don’t understand” Violet stammered

“What happened to the pretentious snot?” Eloise asked looking positively delighted

“ELOISE! DO not call her that!” Violet admonished as Sophie laughed, not feeling at all bad that she’d been the influence on Eloise.

“Oh mum she’s well within her right to call her that… but you might want to take a seat… it’s a bit of a story…” Benedict grinned as Sophie moved and got up.

“I best go check the beef…” she grinned and kissed Benedict’s lips softly before dashing out of the room.

Benedict blushed as his sisters and Colin just stared.

“Colin, you will not go after Sophie…” Violet said as she read her third son’s mind and took a seat.

Benedict filled his mother in on what had happened… not the full ins and outs because his mum didn’t need to know just how much he and Sophie had actually had sex over the weekend but explaining about how Anthony had called him to explain what was happening with Tessa, but used language that would not offend his mother, nor his three younger sisters and brother. Greg had fallen asleep on his mother.

He explained how he had called Sophie upset and she’d come over and they’d talked and he explained that she confessed how she felt about him and that he realised just how much Sophie meant to him and so she spent the night and that she was now his girlfriend, that he realised he loved her more than life itself and he and Tessa were 100% done.

“Oh thank god” Violet exclaimed as Sophie came back into the room, she’d changed out of her shorts and into leggings now his family were home but still had Benedict’s shirt on “I mean… I had long suspected… but thank god” she grinned

Eloise beamed “Edwina owes me £10!” she exclaimed happily as the entire family hugged Sophie.

Sophie had been a feature of their family since she and Benedict had become friends but this… as Benedict’s girlfriend meant so much more to the rest of the family and Benedict was thrilled.

“We’ve made a roast dinner for everyone,” Benedict said “we thought a little celebration since the pair of us have managed to get our heads together but you’ve got time to get changed and what not before dinner”

Once everyone filed off to their rooms to change and Colin tried to sneak into the kitchen only for Sophie to catch him, Violet turned to her son “are you happy Ben?” she asked

“Mum, i’ve never been happier in my life… you were right… someone special… makes it all the better… it made me realise what everyone else knew… what i’d been so slow in catching up with… that I love her… that she’s the person I want to spend the rest of my life with… everything you and dad always talked about… I feel that with Sophie so… yeah… i’m really happy” he grinned as he kissed his mum on her cheek

“I’m so pleased Ben… I didn’t want to intervene but… I'd thought for a long time… long suspected…” Violet smiled

“I know. I just never opened my eyes to see what has been right in front of me all this time… It’s just the right timing for us now… I think I was just too young and immature but now… I see my whole future with her… us going to Uni together… everything… it’s just Fate” Benedict smiled happily as he watched Sophie chasing Colin around after he tried to steal a carrot.

“I’m so pleased, Ben. truly…” Violet smiled

“And to think, it wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t gone away… but just so you know… she’s sleeping in my room from now on, not the spare… oh and we’re going to get a flat together when we go to Cambridge” he grinned and walked off to help his girlfriend leaving his mother stunned and a little in shock.

However, when she saw Benedict wrap an arm around Sophie and the smiles on their faces she knew she would be powerless to stop it… and she knew at that moment that it was them forever now…

It was the reason she’d insisted he waited, she’d wanted each of her kids to experience the same love she had with Edmund and seeing her son, who looked so much like his father, experiencing that now… it was more than she could ever wish for…

But she was going to have to have a word with Mary and Benedict… she was much too young to be a grandmother…

But it wasn’t Benedict and Sophie she had to worry about…

Because, not much more than 2 years later… both she and Mary would become grandmother for the first time…

[newtonsheffield]

Hey Molly. Loving the Little Women AU. Do you plan on writing a few more chapters?

I plan on writing one more at least...

Part 1 Part 2

"Yes. Tell me you want me to love you, and I promise, Kate, I'll do it for the rest of my life."

Kate couldn't breathe. Surely there was no air left in the room, none in the entire world but that which left his chest and went into hers. Anthony was standing pressed against her, his hands resting lightly on her waist, his forehead pressed against hers, and she couldn't breathe.

She hadn't thought to find him in the library, when she'd snuck away as she always did to pluck a book from the shelves to get lost in later. In fact: she'd been trying her level best to avoid him since she'd stood in front of the entire county with two men staring at her, expecting and answer. How could she face him, truly, when she hadn't even expected her own answer?

Mary had stared at her, in shock that evening sat in their drawing room, her embroidery held in front of her, Edwina reading in her room while Kate just sat. Half in shock herself.

"I'm sorry, Mama. I know I ought to have said yes but I-"

Mary had shaken her head, "My Darling I never would have pressed you in his direction if I did not think you returned his interest. I am the last person who should want you to marry for obligation."

And it had welled in her chest just like the tears in her eyes, "I wanted to- I told Anthony that I would but then he was looking at me and I-"

"You love him." Mary said gently, a look of understanding etched on her face, her arms wrapping gently around her.

And Kate spoke it aloud for the first time, "I love Anthony. And it will do no good."

But here he was now, his eyes begging her to tell him to love her, and she couldn't say anything.

"You would love me Because I asked it of you?"

Anthony shook his head fiercely, his eyes still pressed closed "I would love you, all my life because it is what I will do anyway." His eyes flew to hers, Her lips parted in surprise struggling for words but He shook his head. "Please, Kate. Please just listen and then I will never speak another word on the matter if it is not what you want."

Anthony took a shuddering breath, as though steeling himself for the moment to come, standing so close his lips brushed hers with every word. "I have loved you, Kate, long before I knew what love was and I will love you long after I am able. Our mother's believed I held affection for your sister but I only ever felt it with regards to how her happiness reflected your own. I tried, I tried to forget my own feelings as I was sure they were not returned but I can do so no longer." He took her hand in his intertwining their fingers and pressing it over his heart, the steady rhythm in time with her own.

"You have admonished me, and lectured me, and I deserve every scornful word you've ever spoken. I have not been a great man, Kate, but I will be. I can offer you comfort, security for your family, but most of all I offer myself. It is not much but everything I have and am, everything I ever will be will be: is yours."

Tears were stinging at her eyes as silence swelled around them, her mind screaming at her as Anthony's lips ticked upwards in that smirk that had always set her heart racing.

"This is where you accept my proposal, or hit me over the head."

Incredulous laughter broke free of her chest, her heart pounding just for him as they stayed pressed together, her body shuffling closer of its own accord. "Was that a proposal? You've asked me no questions."

Anthony looked incredulous, rolling his eyes. "Must you be vexatious, even now?"

"Yes."

His eyes were shining at her, his arms holding her impossibly closer, "Marry me, Kate. Elope with me. Runaway with me, and then we'll come back here and I'll be a man you could be proud to call your husband. I can't spend any longer without you as my wife, for in my heart you are already."

"That still wasn't a question." Kate gasped but she leaned forward anyway, her lips finding his in a swirl of heady emotion, moving together desperately, tears mingling on their cheeks, heart pounding together, gripping one another so tightly, Kate could never tell where he ended and she began.

"And that wasn't an answer."

"Kate, Mama wants-Oh!" The door flew open, Edwina's voice carrying through with the noise from their family outside, cutting off in a sharp gasp at the sight of the two of them, locked together. Kate planted her hands on his chest, attempting to scurry away but Anthony held firm, looking towards her younger sister, his charming grin etched on his face.

"Edwina! Lovely! Please inform your mother that my bride and I are leaving for Scotland in about... twenty minutes. That should be enough time to prepare the carriage."

[artxyra]

Healing Gotham | Part 1

Prologue 

Tim was having an off day. At first he had thought it was due to him surviving off of weeks’ worth of caffeine, but that was not it—not it at all. When Tim had first arrived at Wayne Enterprise, all of its employees were having a rush. Paperwork was thrown around, gather, shredded within seconds of each other. The young co-CEO couldn’t find it in him to care enough until it was lunchtime. An older employee was going around collecting NDA’s from all the new employees—like that wasn’t an everyday experience. Tim had half the brain capacity to contact Bruce for information, and yet he doesn’t do it.

Then Tim returns to the manor, cars from his extended siblings, and family members parked within the gates. Once again, this was not an unusual sight for the coffee addict. Well, it wasn’t an unusual sight until he stepped into the manor.

On one of the couches sat Steph, Cass, and Damian all looking to the people on the other side of the room. Kate stands leaning against the window waiting for the shoe to drop. Tim didn’t know where to sit. He only had two options: sit beside the mess of his older brothers or sit where there was the least amount of space next to his other siblings.

Finally taking in his environment, he notices something scary. Jason and Dick weren’t in their usual moods aka brooding and dramatic but on the verge of a massive mental breakdown. Jason was clutching his hair staring down at his lap repeating the words, “She’s going to kill me” as if it was the end of the world. Dick was mimicking the words with “Not if she kills me first, I’m too young to die”. This was such a shock, that Tim had to take a long sip of coffee to make sure it was true, and even then he had to pinch himself as a reminder that he was awake.

“Master Tim, the amount of caffeine you are consuming is terrible. Perhaps taking a rest would help.” Alfred offers with little room to negotiate, but Tim swears he is fine to which the family butler did not believe. “Uh-huh…” Taking the thermos out of Tim’s hand, the young co-CEO is left with nothing.

“You’re seeing this too, right? Tim asks his siblings that weren’t in the Wayne family as long as the older two. Steph is simply recording the nature of their situation—probably blackmail material for her and Barbara. Cass simply examines her older siblings wondering what has gotten into their heads. She was sure that Bruce was internally panicking based on his fingers tapping against his suit jacket and constant inching to the couch. Looking beside her, it was obvious that Damian hates being out of the loop and was moments away from exploding. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to sit beside Damian for this family meeting.

“What has gotten you three so worked up?” Kate asks from the safety of her position. Watching the three break down may be fun and all, but she had a life to live also outside of her cousin’s BS.

“Master Bruce now would be the best time to explain our situation,” Alfred suggests coming back into the room with a tray of teacups and a pot of tea. The butler knows the family is going to need it after dropping a bomb like this to the newest Waynes.

As much as Alfred was right, Bruce knew he couldn’t keep this hidden. He can already tell that Damian was seconds away from stabbing Dick or Jason for being in such an off-putting mood. Tim would be forever confused until he gets a good rest, Cass may like having someone other then him to talk to, and Steph—well Steph will just be Steph.

Bruce was so deep in thought that he didn’t acknowledge the peak of Jason’s and Dick’s mental break down.

“She’s going to kill me…I would rather face the Joker than be on the receiving end of her anger.” Jason finally speaks something than the mantra he has been chanting for the past hour.

“Here’s how she’ll do it, kill Bruce, then me, and then you. Alfred’s safe because it’s Alfred.” Dick adds pointing to each person he has mentioned, furthering the family’s confusion.  Kate, on the other hand, received the message loud and clear and end up bursting into laughter.

“Good to know you find humor in our incoming deaths, Katie,” Dick says pouting with arms crossed against his chest.

“What is Kane laughing about, Father?” Damian asks with a dangerous intent beneath his words.

“In just a couple of days, the Manor Wayne is welcoming an old visitor…my sister… your aunt.” Bruce finally speaks with a heavy sigh. It was if he was preparing for the mental battle this family is about to go through.

“Sister?” “Aunt?” “What?” Various amounts of reactions echo across the room. Every one of his children that had no clue about the oldest Wayne’s sister was just given a wake-up call.

“Yes, I have a sister. She’s my younger sister, and she’ll be staying at the Manor until she finds herself her own place, and this is if she decides to move to Gotham permanently.” Bruce then adds.

“You mean she’s staying here?” Damian cries out, he already hates the fact that most his siblings typically stay in and out of the manor, but to have a new resident just screams trouble.

“Yes, which also means we all need to keep our nightly activities on the down-low. Marin Etta has no idea that I am Batman or that Dick and Jason were Robin, and I like to keep it that way. This means Jason, no bringing anything related to the Gotham Underground, Dick you do what you’ve always done. The rest you better be on your best behavior.”

“Well this is the best news; I haven’t seen Mars since the wedding and that was five years ago.” Kate pushes herself off the wall and goes to hug Bruce. “Call me when she arrives, it will be nice to have a girls’ trip or something.”

“Katie…” Bruce sighs but the look on his cousin’s face says otherwise and it was best to leave this alone. “I will.”

Once Kate was out of the room, Damian loudly growls. “I don’t like this.”

“For once I agree with the Demon Spawn,” Tim says, though in Tim’s mind he wasn’t sure what was happening. His brain acknowledges Kate leaving but the moments before seem like a dazed.

“Tim, you okay?” Steph asks as the person in question sway. “Better yet when was the last time you slept?” She receives no answer from the in and out of the conscious male.

“Why are we just now hearing about this so-called sister.” Damian questions as if he was the only person sane in the household—which he’s not. It’s not like he’s trying to gain as much information about this aunt of his so that he could look her up and do a background check. That is totally what he will be doing.

Bruce, seeming to ignore Damian’s underlying intent, sighs and reply with, “She and I had a fall out when Jason died, and we barely speak. This is the first time in a while that she’ll be back.”

“Sounds like a you problem.” Cass murmurs under her breath evading all the glances her way. It’ll be nice to have seen someone other than her adopted family, but at the same time just how will this new person fit into their family.

“Better yet why do Grayson and Todd know about her while the rest of us don’t?” Damian asks gesturing to his other siblings. “You have no photos of the woman, so why must I believe that you have a sister.” From this Bruce could feel a migraine coming in the longer this goes on.

“Look, Little D, Mari is like a sister or a mother figure to Jason and I. There are reasons outside of this room as to why she is so well hidden. You know that room that Bruce forbids anyone from going into?” Dick replies instead of Bruce. Both he and Jason need to wrap up this conversation to prep for their incoming deaths by Mari. He was definitely sure that Bruce was about to do the same and Mari-proof the manor’s access to the Batcave.

“Na’am,” Damian says begrudgingly.

“That’s Mari’s room and will forever be her wing until she no longer needs it.” Dick finishes off his statement, which clearly did not do anything for the youngest Wayne. He then turns to Jason who was in less of a panic but in more of a defensive planning stage. “C’mon Jaybird, we have lots of pre-death planning before Sunshine returns to the Gotham.”

“Once again, I rather die by the Joker than by her, B-man you owe us so much for this,” Jason states before walking out the living room with Dick following behind.

Bruce sighs heavily and returns to his remaining children, well those that are still awake. Tim had passed out and will most likely be for the time being.

“Father…”

“Not now Damian. I will answer the rest of your questions later. I have a sister-proofing mission to handle.” With that Bruce takes his leave.

“This family can never be normal could it?” Steph wonders as she picks up Tim and places him over her shoulder.

“I agree with you on that. Need a hand?” Cass responds looking at the failing form of Steph’s body as she lugs Tim over to the entranceway.

“Nope, I’m fine,” Steph replies before she and Tim disappear into the shadows of the manor.

“I still think this is a bad idea,” Damian states crossing his arms and taking his leave also.

Cass stares at the leaving figure of her younger brother and shakes her head. She knows that Damian would not leave this alone until he hits rock bottom. Let that be her mysterious aunt herself or Bruce making his word-final.

A couple days later at the Gotham City Airport, a woman with a concave bob hairstyle stands outside the pickup area with her three suitcases next to her. Bing. She looks down to see the name Alfred popping up against the screen.

“Yes Alfred, I’m here… I’m still at the airport. No, you don’t need to give me a—” She pauses allowing the Wayne family butler to reply. “Alright, I’ll see you in a few.”  With that, she ends the conversation and places the phone in her back pocket.

This person is nonother than Marin Etta Martha Wayne or as the people in Paris, France calls her Marinette Martha Dupain-Cheng Couffaine.

Part 2 >>

Tag List: *View my Tagging System guidelines for how to to be properly tagged or removed.

Permanent Tag List: @vixen-uchiha | @i-is-mysterious | @kuroko26 | @maribat-is-lifeblood | @marinettepotterandplagg | @loveswifi | @ladybug-182 | @novaloptr | @elijahcrevan | @rebecarojas07 | @nanakeid | @mystery-5-5 | @sparkle9510 | @aestheticnpoetic | @toodaloo-kangaroo | @more-or-less-human-i-guess | @crazylittlemunchkin | @softlysobbingpostendgame | @purplesundaze | @fantasyloversblog | @susiej1118 | @chocolateherringtacofan | @tog84 | @thequeenofpotatoeunicornss | @slytherinhquinn | @i-wanna-be-a-ninja | @abrx2002 | @agumon1123 | @throneoffirebreathingbitchqueen

Unspecific Tag List: @g-arya | @jardimazul | @jeminiikrystal | @zalladane | @bluerosette23 | @dast218 | @midnighttreesgaming | @myazael | @pepelachanel | @storyecho | @thezestywalru |

Specific Tag List: @nach0ava | @moonlightstar64 | @pirats-pizzacanninibles | @elmokingkong |

[themidnight-ghost]

I should tell you

“Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey, are you dating Joanne Davidson?”

“Boss, I honestly don’t see an issue...” Kate trailed off as Ted massaged his temples.

“You don’t see an issue? She swears at her superiors, has affairs with her staff, shot an officer twice in the chest, set up a plot to kill you and replied with ‘no comment’ to almost every bloody question.”

The euphoria Kate Fleming felt around Joanne Davidson was extravagant. Even now, when they lie in bed together trying to come down from their high, Kate still felt energised. The DI rolled over to face her girlfriend, with the bedsheets pulled up to her neck and subtly smiled.

Kate ran her left hand through Jo’s hair and cupped her cheek with the other, “Morning, boss.”

Jo opened her eyes and grinned when she met Kate’s, “You don’t have to keep calling me that.”

“I want to,” Kate replied honestly.

“You look beautiful, by the way.” Jo simply said as she moved forward to kiss her girlfriend tenderly. No one would have expected that Kate Fleming and Jo Davidson would become a thing. Especially after Jo’s arrest. Heck, they didn’t even know if Jo would survive prison! Jo paused their kiss, and Kate looked unexpectedly at the DI, “You should probably tell Steve and Ted.”

The moment was ruined.

Kate tensed as she sat up, pulling the duvet with her and laughing when she pulled too hard, so Jo was left bare, “What?”

“I said-'' Davidson smirked as she deliberately rolled onto Kate’s chest, making her blush, “You should tell Steve and Ted. You may not be related, but they’re your friends.”

“What if I don’t want to tell Steve?” Kate challenged with a whisper, not looking away from Jo's eyes.

“You can look at my tits, Kate. I don't mind.”

“JO!” Kate profusely blushed and shoved her ex-boss to the side,

Jo snickered and leant back into the DI for a cuddle, “It isn’t like you haven’t seen them before.”

“But seriously,” Kate hummed when she went back to being serious, “Steve will support it; I know he will. But Ted? I don’t want to tell. He might not like it.”

“But he threw confetti at that proposing gay couple?”

“That’s different. Not only am I his colleague, but I’m also dating a woman who committed multiple offences to the law and it’ll be awkward, especially in a work setting.”

“Yeah, I still feel a little guilty for that,” Jo confessed.

“You shouldn’t. It was shitty, but you did it because Pilkinton had a gun to your head and somehow made things right, but,” Kate hesitated and wrapped an arm around Jo’s torso, “that still doesn’t change what happened.”

“Steve’s your best friend, and from what I can tell, you’ve known Ted for a good while.” Jo gently kissed Kate’s jaw before shuffling away, allowing the DI to go downstairs.

“I might.” Kate smiled as she grabbed her underwear and a towel from the floor, “I love you.”

“I love you too, Kate.”

Both women had been dating for a significant amount of time. Their story started when Jo broke up with Farida, and the two started getting close. After that, there had been a series of unofficial dates, secret glances, handholding, confessions and a memorable car getaway. Kate was embarrassed that it took her so long to come to terms with her feelings.

The night when Kate shot Pilkinton was definitely memorable but for all the wrong reasons. Kate couldn’t care less that she’d shot an officer; the only thing she cared about was saving Jo and getting them far away from town. She was looking forward to a life of peace without bent coppers lurking around corners and getting married to the woman she loved. That being said, Kate didn’t confess her love until Jo was in prison.

Finally arriving at work, Kate scanned her ID and headed straight for Ted’s office.

“Morning, Kate.” Hastings didn’t look up from his computer.

Tapping her on the shoulder, Steve approached with two cups of coffee from behind, “The Gaffer thinks he’s found something worth looking at.”

Kate raised an eyebrow, “Oh yeah? What’s it relating to?”

“Our friend, Jo Davidson.”

Kate’s heart dropped to the floor. Was it bad? Who was she kidding? Of course, it was going to be bad.

“I don’t want to make any sudden moves,” Ted admired his coffee, “Let’s just wait it out.”

Steve knew that Kate had some sort of soft spot for Jo. He didn’t know the details of their relationship but was aware they were close,

“Has she mentioned anything to you since she was released?”

Kate shook her head.

“Strange.” Hastings began, “I was quite hoping we’d seen the last of her. The poor girl’s been through enough as it is.”

Kate picked her fingernails, and her stomach churned over, “Can I confess something?”

“Of course…” Hastings folded his arms and leaned across the desk, gesturing for Kate to take a seat.

“Do you want me out?” DI Arnott hesitated.

“It’s alright, Steve. I need to tell both of you anyway.”

“I’ve been seeing someone,” A beat, “romantically.”

The confession slipped out, and jumping the first hurdle was surprisingly easy, but unfortunately, it wasn’t as straightforward as that.

The Gaffer corrected his posture, and Steve cocked his head, “Oh? For how long?”

“About 4 months.”

Steve looked slightly hurt, “And you never told me?”

“I didn’t think it was necessary,” Kate replied sheepishly.

Steve and Ted weren’t blood-related, but Kate still viewed them as her family. One of Kate’s strongest memories was when Steve slept on her sofa bed every night after her husband left.

“What’s his name?”

Another hurdle appeared that Kate had to somehow jump over - the gay hurdle. Until she met Jo, Kate never imagined herself to be bisexual. The haircut had always been misleading until now.

“He’s a she.” Kate wouldn’t say she was scared of her boss, but she certainly valued his approval and Catholic beliefs.

Ted paused to think this over before leaning back in his chair, closing his eyes, and smiling. The smile grew, and a flower of hope blossomed in the DI’s chest. Steve was grinning at both reactions and patted Kate reassuringly on the shoulder.

“I’m happy you felt comfortable enough to tell us,” Steve spoke for them.

“Does this mean you’re okay with this?” Kate didn’t know why she needed an answer, but she would feel even better with confirmation.

“It’s your life, of course, we are! Now, who is she?”

“Okay, okay”, Kate could burst with excitement! Even though they didn’t know it was Jo, Kate could still describe her lover in perfect detail. “She has short, dark brown hair, which has a subtle wave at the end. She is pretty pale, so in the sun, her freckles come out, but you won’t see them unless you’re super close! Her cheeks are always red because she is somehow always blushing!” Kate continued to gush, “Her eyes are brown, and her favourite colour is blue! She was also a police officer-”

“You told them yet?” Jo Davidson leaned in the doorway with a giant grin plastered on her face, “or are you just going to keep describing my facial features?”

Silence.

Jo stopped as she realised what she’d said.

Kate looked between Jo, Steve and Ted. She loved her ex-boss, but she really needs to learn to read a situation.

Steve and Ted simultaneously looked between Kate and Jo. Their brains slowly put the puzzle together in an organised fashion. The hair, the skin, the blush, the eyes and finally, the favourite colour.

The history hurdle.

The grinding of Ted’s chair against the floor wasn’t enough to pierce the tension between the group. Kate ushered her girlfriend into the office, closing the door, taking her hand and cautiously walking over to Steve and Ted.

“Jo, this is Steve. Steve, this is Jo.” Kate introduced them, and Jo waved shily. “Jo, this is Ted, Ted this is-”

“I know who Jo Davidson is.” Ted’s voice was a deadly monotone. “How did you even get in?”

“I walked through the door.” The awkwardness had obviously got to the former SIO, who proceeded to bite her lip as she glanced around the room, eyeing the wall with great curiosity.

“Davidson.” Jo’s head snapped back to the situation as Hastings addressed her. “Are you dating one of my officers?”

“Well-” Jo didn’t know what to say, and thankfully, Ted didn’t want to hear it.

“Katherine Laura Fleming.” Kate flinched at the use of her full name.

“Your middle name is Laura?” Jo tentatively asked before Ted shut her off. “Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey, are you dating Joanne Davidson?”

“Boss, I honestly don’t see an issue...” Kate trailed off as the Gaffer rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“You don’t see an issue?” Ted tried hard to keep his composure, “She swears at her superiors, has affairs with her staff, shot an officer twice in the chest, set up a plot to kill you and replied with ‘no comment’ to almost every bloody question.”

“She also commanded multiple armed officers, is super observant, tactically agile, Scottish and be honest: we all know I was the one who shot Ryan Pilkinton.”

Steve sniggered. “I just can’t believe you both.”

“After everything, she's done? I don’t know if I should be impressed or appalled.” Ted corrected.

“You’re not mad?” Kate pushed,

“I'm not mad, but I’m seriously debating whether I should fire you for stupidity. You said it’s been going on for 2 or 3 months, but when did it even start?”

“Jo and I have been shagging on the sly for months.” Jo snickered at Kate’s comment, “But for me, it started in the getaway car and when Jo went to prison. I always felt different about her, but it only hit me when I thought I’d lose her for good.”

Kate’s sentence pulled on Jo’s heartstrings as she remembered the recent events. Throughout her short time in prison and working on Operation Lighthouse, Kate had been her friend and colleague. She cared for Jo more than anyone else in her life and Kate was the only person to make an effort and ask about her day. Overwhelmed, the smaller woman buried her head in Kate’s shoulder, forgetting all about the angry Ted Hastings. Kate kissed Jo’s forehead and smiled fondly down at her.

Both Steve and Ted thought they knew exactly how Jo Davidson worked, especially after interviewing Farida they pictured her as a manipulative, self-centred psychopath. The recent interview didn’t exactly change their opinions either. But this was different. It wasn’t normal for anyone to see Jo vulnerable, but it looked easy when she was with Kate. Jo relaxed, her shoulders dropped, breathing steady, eyes shut with a gentle smile. And in the years Steve had known Kate, he had never seen her blush as much as she did now or look at someone with so much compassion and… love?

“Just so you know, we don’t care that you’re gay, mate. And we shouldn’t care who you date either. I think it was just a shock for Hastings here.” Steve patted his boss on the back.

“It was a shock to me too.” Jo finally addressed the room, “I thought I was done. Mentally, physically and romantically.”

“I should apologise for my words,” Ted replied sheepishly, “I have nothing against anyone, but as you can tell, I’m still a little prickly.”

Jo awkwardly picked down the skin on her fingers, “I don’t blame you, sir.” It was still a little awkward between the trio, and Ted was determined to settle things, “I didn’t get a chance to mention it, but I’m impressed with your knowledge of the law, especially in that interview.”

Kate proudly squeezed Jo’s arm, “Thank you.”

“Unfortunately,” Ted continued, “I can’t let you back on the force-”

“Oh, don’t worry about that: I’m done with police work altogether.” Jo looked fondly at Kate, “I just want to focus on my life and what I have left.”

“Wise words.” Steve nodded, “Can I get anyone another coffee?”

“Tea, please.”

“Same here.”

Steve headed towards the door, gesturing Kate to follow.

“Is it wise to leave them there alone?” Kate jogged after her colleague.

Steve grinned, “Let them talk about rules for a while; I’d rather know all about this new development!” he playfully nudged Kate’s arm and jumped for joy when they were at the coffee machine and out of sight.

“You gonna calm down now?” Kate chucked before looking serious, “By the way, what did you find out about Jo? Should I be worried?”

“Go no! There was a small break in around your apartment. We checked the security cameras and noticed Jo Davidson walking past and holding hands with…” Steve dragged out the answer before pointing to DI Fleming, “you.” Kate turned pale as Steve continued, “I had my suspicions, and we intended to mention it today, see if we could get a reaction. Guess I didn’t even have to try, mate.”

☁️ First ever Flemson fic, fist time watching Line of Duty - that ending was NOT IT (expect a 4000 word alternate ending fic soon) if you read this, thank you x ☁️

[1962dude420-blog]

Today we remember the passing of Nina Simone who Died: April 21, 2003 in Carry-le-Rouet, France

Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), known professionally as Nina Simone, was an American singer, songwriter, musician, arranger, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned a broad range of musical styles including classical, jazz, blues, folk, R&B, gospel, and pop.

The sixth of eight children born to a poor family in Tryon, North Carolina, Simone initially aspired to be a concert pianist. With the help of a few supporters in her hometown, she enrolled in the Juilliard School of Music in New York City. She then applied for a scholarship to study at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where she was denied admission despite a well-received audition, which she attributed to racial discrimination. In 2003, just days before her death, the Institute awarded her an honorary degree.

To make a living, Simone started playing piano at a nightclub in Atlantic City. She changed her name to "Nina Simone" to disguise herself from family members, having chosen to play "the devil's music" or so-called "cocktail piano". She was told in the nightclub that she would have to sing to her own accompaniment, which effectively launched her career as a jazz vocalist. She went on to record more than 40 albums between 1958 and 1974, making her debut with Little Girl Blue. She had a hit single in the United States in 1958 with "I Loves You, Porgy". Her musical style fused gospel and pop with classical music, in particular Johann Sebastian Bach, and accompanied expressive, jazz-like singing in her contralto voice.

The sixth of eight children in a poor family, she began playing piano at the age of three or four; the first song she learned was "God Be With You, Till We Meet Again". Demonstrating a talent with the piano, she performed at her local church. Her concert debut, a classical recital, was given when she was 12. Simone later said that during this performance, her parents, who had taken seats in the front row, were forced to move to the back of the hall to make way for white people. She said that she refused to play until her parents were moved back to the front, and that the incident contributed to her later involvement in the civil rights movement. Simone's mother, Mary Kate Waymon (née Irvin, November 20, 1901 – April 30, 2001), was a Methodist minister and a housemaid. Her father, Rev. John Devan Waymon (June 24, 1898 – October 23, 1972), was a handyman who at one time owned a dry-cleaning business, but also suffered bouts of ill health. Simone's music teacher helped establish a special fund to pay for her education. Subsequently, a local fund was set up to assist her continued education. With the help of this scholarship money, she was able to attend Allen High School for Girls in Asheville, North Carolina.

In order to fund her private lessons, Simone performed at the Midtown Bar & Grill on Pacific Avenue in Atlantic City, New Jersey, whose owner insisted that she sing as well as play the piano, which increased her income to $90 a week. In 1954, she adopted the stage name "Nina Simone". "Nina", derived from niña, was a nickname given to her by a boyfriend named Chico, and "Simone" was taken from the French actress Simone Signoret, whom she had seen in the 1952 movie Casque d'Or. Knowing her mother would not approve of playing "the Devil's music", she used her new stage name to remain undetected. Simone's mixture of jazz, blues, and classical music in her performances at the bar earned her a small but loyal fan base.

After the success of Little Girl Blue, Simone signed a contract with Colpix Records and recorded a multitude of studio and live albums. Colpix relinquished all creative control to her, including the choice of material that would be recorded, in exchange for her signing the contract with them. After the release of her live album Nina Simone at Town Hall, Simone became a favorite performer in Greenwich Village. By this time, Simone performed pop music only to make money to continue her classical music studies, and was indifferent about having a recording contract. She kept this attitude toward the record industry for most of her career.

Simone married a New York police detective, Andrew Stroud, in December, 1961. In few years he became her manager and the father of her daughter Lisa, but later he abused Simone psychologically and physically.

In 1964, Simone changed record distributors from Colpix, an American company, to the Dutch Philips Records, which meant a change in the content of her recordings. She had always included songs in her repertoire that drew on her African-American heritage, such as "Brown Baby" by Oscar Brown and "Zungo" by Michael Olatunji on her album Nina at the Village Gate in 1962. On her debut album for Philips, Nina Simone in Concert (1964), for the first time she addressed racial inequality in the United States in the song "Mississippi Goddam". This was her response to the June 12, 1963, murder of Medgar Evers and the September 15, 1963, bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, that killed four young black girls and partly blinded a fifth. She said that the song was "like throwing ten bullets back at them", becoming one of many other protest songs written by Simone. The song was released as a single, and it was boycotted in some southern states.  Promotional copies were smashed by a Carolina radio station and returned to Philips. She later recalled how "Mississippi Goddam" was her "first civil rights song" and that the song came to her "in a rush of fury, hatred and determination". The song challenged the belief that race relations could change gradually and called for more immediate developments: "me and my people are just about due". It was a key moment in her path to Civil Rights activism. "Old Jim Crow", on the same album, addressed the Jim Crow laws. After "Mississippi Goddam", a civil rights message was the norm in Simone's recordings and became part of her concerts. As her political activism rose, the rate of release of her music slowed.

Simone performed and spoke at civil rights meetings, such as at the Selma to Montgomery marches. Like Malcolm X, her neighbor in Mount Vernon, New York, she supported black nationalism and advocated violent revolution rather than Martin Luther King Jr.'s non-violent approach. She hoped that African Americans could use armed combat to form a separate state, though she wrote in her autobiography that she and her family regarded all races as equal.

In 1967, Simone moved from Philips to RCA Victor. She sang "Backlash Blues" written by her friend, Harlem Renaissance leader Langston Hughes, on her first RCA album, Nina Simone Sings the Blues (1967). On Silk & Soul (1967), she recorded Billy Taylor's "I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free" and "Turning Point". The album 'Nuff Said! (1968) contained live recordings from the Westbury Music Fair of April 7, 1968, three days after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. She dedicated the performance to him and sang "Why? (The King of Love Is Dead)", a song written by her bass player, Gene Taylor. In 1969, she performed at the Harlem Cultural Festival in Harlem's Mount Morris Park.

Simone and Weldon Irvine turned the unfinished play To Be Young, Gifted and Black by Lorraine Hansberry into a civil rights song of the same name. She credited her friend Hansberry with cultivating her social and political consciousness. She performed the song live on the album Black Gold (1970). A studio recording was released as a single, and renditions of the song have been recorded by Aretha Franklin (on her 1972 album Young, Gifted and Black) and Donny Hathaway. When reflecting on this period, she wrote in her autobiography, "I felt more alive then than I feel now because I was needed, and I could sing something to help my people".

In an interview for Jet magazine, Simone stated that her controversial song "Mississippi Goddam" harmed her career. She claimed that the music industry punished her by boycotting her records. Hurt and disappointed, Simone left the US in September 1970, flying to Barbados and expecting her husband and manager (Andrew Stroud) to communicate with her when she had to perform again. However, Stroud interpreted Simone's sudden disappearance, and the fact that she had left behind her wedding ring, as an indication of her desire for a divorce. As her manager, Stroud was in charge of Simone's income.

In 1993, she settled near Aix-en-Provence in southern France (Bouches-du-Rhône). In the same year, her final album, A Single Woman, was released. She variously contended that she married or had a love affair with a Tunisian around this time, but that their relationship ended because, "His family didn't want him to move to France, and France didn't want him because he's a North African." During a 1998 performance in Newark, she announced, "If you're going to come see me again, you've got to come to France, because I am not coming back." She suffered from breast cancer for several years before she died in her sleep at her home in Carry-le-Rouet (Bouches-du-Rhône), on April 21, 2003. Her funeral service was attended by singers Miriam Makeba and Patti LaBelle, poet Sonia Sanchez, actors Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, and hundreds of others. Simone's ashes were scattered in several African countries. She is survived by her daughter, Lisa Celeste Stroud, an actress and singer, who took the stage name Simone, and who has appeared on Broadway in Aida.

[samiii-p]

miss temptation (I don’t think you know) 1/?

aka The Maryan Roommate AU no one asked for 🙃 ao3

“You need a home address by next week or I’m writing you up.”

Fuck

Scratching an 'X' over another available apartment listing in the newspaper, Ryan grunts, blacking it out in her frustration. This one was her last true option within her price range and it was about the size of a walk-in closet with a communal bathroom to boot.

And no, just no. God no.

At least the last one had a view. It was a brick wall of the neighboring apartment but one nonetheless.

“You know for someone who needed this job, you sure don’t look the part.”

Sucking her teeth, Ryan glances up from her troubles, spots Luke in his custom three piece suit, grumbles and glances back at the paper where the only options left cost an arm and a leg to stay. Gotham wasn’t cheap by any stretch of the imagination, but selling her organs on a monthly basis just to get by didn’t seem all that appealing either.

“What do you want, Luke?”

“Can’t a guy just stop by?”

“Sure.” Ryan says, flipping the newspaper to the next page, maybe she could find something outside of town. The commute would be hell, but at least she’d have an address and her parole officer would finally get off her back. “I take it that’s not what you’re here for though.”

She hears him harrumph and nothing else. He does it a second later, again … and again.

“Okay, how can I help you?” She asks, sliding her current issues down the counter. Another 18 months in jail won’t hurt, let alone leaving the city in shambles when Batwoman disappears again .

Luke tilts his chin, hard line forming between his brows, a look Ryan has grown accustomed to over the past few weeks. Even though he’s apologized and promised to give her a chance until Kate’s return, there's still a tiny bit of friction lying beneath the surface no matter how much they both try to ignore it.

Reaching into his breast pocket he unearths a photo and slides it across the bar into Ryan’s line of vision. A picture of a black mask, outlined like a skeleton, stares up at her with cold hard eyes. In the corner a coiled snake is drawn with Luke’s handwriting underneath.

Snakebite - fear toxin/mushrooms

“Um, who or what am I looking at?”

He thumps the photo twice. “I was hoping you could tell me. You said you run in similar circles-”

“- ran.”

“As Victor Zsasz, I was hoping you could tell me a little about our friend here.”

“Sorry to tell you this but, no.” She pushes off the bar with a huff, nodding at the photo. “Whoever this person is, is new in town. At least to me.”

“Yeah, well his snakebite is hitting the streets like a plague and no one knows its source. There’s only this photo as a possible supplier but there’s no name, no facial recognition, no origin or leaks, no nothing.”

“So what do we do?”

“You suit up.”

Heat signature enabled, Ryan takes a look around the abandoned building noting two low level street hands Luke identifies as TJ Pillar: 1 to 3 strike for armed robbery and Curtis Armstrong: out on parole for possession.

“Come on, dude.”

She totally gets how uneasy it is to get back on your feet after spending a little over a year incarcerated but at least try to do better.

“What?” Luke asks through the coms, Ryan ignores him, scouting more of the building. It’s been over an hour and nothing. They wouldn’t be here if no one was coming but it’s growing closer to midnight and she has to be back at work at nine.

“Can’t I just bring them in? It’s late.”

“I mean you could, but it’ll be a waste of time. The guys on the street don’t know anything except to wait for the drop here.”

“And we couldn’t call in Gotham PD or the Crows for surveillance because..?”

“Hey, you wanted the job, this is what it entails.”

Behind the mask, Ryan’s eyes roll, mocking this is what the job entails meh meh, like she's a child grounded for the night, which, all things considered…

“Besides, it’s not like you have anything better to do.”

“Okay! Okay!” Over the coms, Ryan hears hushed voices arguing, a muffled ‘no’ then the sound of chairs being switched, Luke’s voice replaced by Mary’s, “heeey, girl. How ya’ doing?”

She smirks, attitude vanishing the moment the heiress speaks. Call it a general preference to all things sans-Luke based but she’d one hundred present rather talk to Mary until the butt crack of dawn instead of Mr. Kate would do it like this and Kate would do it like that. For starters Mary’s a lot nicer. Calmer. Funnier, I mean the girl’s one liners are top tier, bone tickling funny.

And well, she was a hell of a lot prettier too.

“Oh, you know, just pulling an all-nighter right before my day shift.”

A hiss sounds dramatically over the intercoms, the image of Mary’s twisted face pops up and Ryan can almost see the apple of her cheeks bunching and her eyes closing in that cute ass scrunchy face she makes when she’s thinking hard or embarrassed clear as day.

“Don’t worry about it, you can always come in later.”

“You enable her by making exceptions.”

“Luke!”

“What!?”

More muffled noises, a bang and yelp later Mary comes back on. “What I was getting at is that if you want to come in a little bit late, it’s totally fine or we can even change your schedule to mid-day, as your boss and fellow bat accomplice, I would totally understand.”

The corner of Ryan lips quirks up, “you don’t have to do that.”

“I do. We don’t know for sure how long you’ll be out tonight. Coming in afterwards is going to be draining-”

“It’ll be draining for all of us.” Luke yells.

“Shh!”

Unfortunately, Luke has a point. It's not fair on the team if she’s the only one taking the easy way out when they all have lives and responsibilities outside of the cave to adhere to, and a mid-day shift would never work anyway. Mid-day is Officer Steven’s favorite time of day to intrude on Ryan’s life.

“No that’s okay,” Ryan says, “Luke’s right. I have to put on my big girl panties and suck it up like everyone else, besides, I’m going to be too busy selling body parts for an overpriced cardboard box in the foreseeable future or it's a one way ticket back to Black Gate-”

“Wait, what-?”

“Oh, hold up.” An engine alerts Ryan to an incoming vehicle speeding into the warehouse disrupting their conversation. “We got action.”

Censors pick up on a lone body inside, facial recognition scanners kick on and work to identify the driver’s profile as well as the car’s make, model design, vehicle number and license plate number are all shot over to home base for further analysis. She twitches them off once complete just in time to see a window roll down and a hand throw two duffle bags out the window before speeding off.

“Did we get anything?”

A beat passes before Mary’s back on, “Not yet. Gotham PD and the Crows database has no facial identification, Luke’s expanding the search but the car is unmarked, plates false, even the tires vin numbers have been scrubbed. Whoever this person is, really doesn’t want to be found.”

From Ryan’s personal experience, news like that is never good. Someone that deep undercover either has a checkbook large enough to make themselves disappear or an iron grip so ruthless the utter mention of their name is probable cause for permanent removal. This was going to be harder than any of them expected.

“Keep me posted.”

Kicking off the beam she leaps down sticking another perfect grand entrance; hoping the acclaimed symbol printed on her chest will be enough to scare off the bad guys for once.

She is really tired after all.

Unfortunately, Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dumb both reach for guns, shooting before she can warn them to stand down. And there goes her ‘early’ night. Figures.

“Ya’ll know I’m fucking bullet proof, right?”

Another bullet ricochets off the suit as she takes a step forward. Idiots. Surprisingly they keep at it until the clip clinks, empty, and Ryan comes face to face with Curtis who tries throwing a punch she easily ducks, coming back up to head butt him so hard his knees crumple. His coworker steps up and he’s a bit more of a challenge throwing blow for blow with her until she ducks up under him and comes back with a roundhouse kick to his Adams apple. He clutches his windpipe, now down on one knee she delivers the final blow to the bridge of his nose.

She picks up the bags and hightails it out of there, latching onto a high beam for an easy escape, and heads towards G.C.P.D where she drops the contraband with a note attached of where they can find the assailants tied up and ready for arrest.

“Why didn’t you tell me you’re homeless!?”

Ryan wonders if disrupting her day as a civilian was going to become normal protocol for Luke and Mary going forward and on a recurring basis.

“I wouldn’t say homeless.”

“How else would you classify living out of your van down by the docks?”

“Surviving on wheels – ow!” Ryan giggles, rubbing her shoulder and doesn’t know whether to cower or soothe the frustrating scowl rapidly spreading across her friend’s face. “How’d you find out?”

“I had Luke track you after you left last night.”

“Wow, talk about invasion of privacy.”

“And for good reason, why didn’t you say anything?”

Ryan flips an empty glass, dries it out before placing it on the rack and considers how to move the conversation forward, possibly far, far away from this topic all together. The best she comes up with is, “it’s handled.”

Handled ends up being a 200 square feet one room apartment Mary demands to see. The bedroom, kitchen and living room are all one in the same but at least she has her own bathroom. The walls are paper thin, she’s pretty certain the constant dripping sound is coming from the kitchen, one she can easily fix after a YouTube tutorial or two, and a hotter than hell furnace the landlord warns her not to touch when the temperature is anywhere over 60 F unless she enjoys suffocating.

She watches Mary take in the room, the petite brunette moving in a slow swirl on her heels, lip turned down and Ryan just knows it’s not good when they make eye contact.

“Nu-uh.”

“What do you mean nu-uh?” Confused, Ryan watches Mary storm past her and out the door. “Mary! Mary, what does that mean? Mary!?”

Mary breaks her housing contract. When Ryan tries to object she quickly learns that all 5’2 of Mary Hamilton-Kane is nothing to play against and a powerhouse forced to be reckoned with.

… It kind of gets Ryan hot under the collar watching Mary tell her landlord exactly what’s about to happen, and cutting a check like it's nothing in the process.

Assertive has always kinda been her type.

“You’ll be staying here.”

Mary says, showing Ryan around her penthouse in the upper echelon of Gotham City. The apartment is just shy the size of a department store, the lounge being big enough to take up most of the square footage, built in with four bedrooms, one now officially hers, one for guests and another used for office space and three huge bathrooms big enough to house a football team.

“Jesus,” the name slips under her breath as she takes it all in. This place is – is. It’s too much. “I can’t afford this.”

The carpet under her feet probably cost more money than she'll ever see in her lifetime.

“Well, it’s a good thing I’m not asking you to pay anything.” Ryan quickly gets shut down as Mary carries on, “until you can save enough money to get back on your feet. It’s the least I can do. Being this city’s vigilante is hard work. The last thing you need to worry about is where you’re going to lay your head at night.”

It makes sense, but still. “I’m not comfortable asking you - I won’t use you.”

“You’re not.” The med student emphasizes. Mary takes the box out of her hands and places it on a dresser. “My home is yours now, bestie. Stay as long as you want to.” And before Ryan can prepare herself, Mary’s arms are snug around her waist and her cover girl smile is beaming up at her.

This is going to be terrible.

It’s worse.

Far worse than Ryan could have ever predicted. Not only is Mary super considerate of her new roommate, but she makes her resources Ryan’s own. She’s never slept so good, ate so well or drank water so delicious for that matter. Until recently she thought water was just water but Mary’s fridge is full of this alkaline stuff straight from the mountains, and Ryan swears she can never look back.

“You want pickles?”

Ryan visibly gulps, sitting on the couch, eyes focused on anything other than Mary prancing around the kitchen in her underwear. Mary’s always been super comfortable in her skin but especially at home when she’s surrounded by her things in her place of peace and why shouldn’t she be, this is her home. Ryan wants her to go about as she normally would, actually prefers if Mary pretended Ryan wasn't there altogether. The last thing she wants is to intrude or take up space but she can only take so much. It’s been nearly a month of coming home to Mary asking how her day was, waking up to Mary smiling at her over homemade breakfast or passing out on the couch cuddled together after another failed movie night. There’s only so much she can take.

What they’re doing is borderline domestic. And Ryan’s too gay for this.

“…pickles?”

“Hmm – what?”

“I asked if you want pickles on your sandwich?”

"Uh, sure."

Handing her a plate, Mary plops down on the couch leaving no space between the two and licks the pad of her thumb, humming pleasantly at the taste.

Ryan bites the inside of her cheek. “So, what are we watching?”

Hopefully something gory, and bloody staring a cis-het white male. Anything to take Ryan’s mind off of Mary Hamilton.

Mary chooses Its Okay Not to be Okay on Netflix and by the end of episode 2 both girls are huddled together, simping hard for all the three leading actors. Mary is obsessed with Kim Soo-Hyun's entire face and Ryan’s pretty sure if Seo Ye-Ji stomped on her in six inch heels and dragged her through the mud, she’d thank her.

At least they can agree Oh Jung-se is a freaking king and is killing his role as Moon Sang Tae.

It's nearly midnight before they start to turn in, cleaning up the little mess they made, Ryan shuts off the lights and walks Mary to her room; the first door to the right.

“Night.”

It kind of feels like a date, which is absurd. She knows. But can you blame her when pillow soft lips press against her cheek and Mary breathes, “sleep tight, Ryan” in her ear. Its stupid. She’s being stupid, and seeing things that arent there. Or maybe she needs to get laid. Whatever she needs to do, Mary can’t be a part of it.

After weeks of failed interrogations the team finally manages to catch a break. A source looking to get out and start over leaks the warehouse location where a scheduled supply of ingredients are due to be shipped in at any day now. Niko of course makes Batwoman promise to protect him at all cost and that means working with the Crows.

“Where’s the shipment being dropped?” Sophie asks.

“Unimportant.”

The lieutenant cocks her head to the side, unsurprised at how this conversation is going. The Bat has never worked well with authority in this town, no matter who dons the emblem.

“The only thing I need is for you to make sure Niko is somewhere safe, undetected.”

“Is he at least willing to stand trial in the event you manage to catch this guy?”

“I think that all depends on if your team can keep him alive. Crow.”

The alley is dark, damp and the chill fogs Sophie’s breath as she sighs. “You're going to get yourself killed. I know you have something against my badge and everything it stands for, but it can do some good if you let it. Now, tell me where the shipment is and I can have my team there as back up in seconds. We can get this drug and these thugs off the street.”

That word makes Ryan's jaw tingle. Thug. Of course a Crow wouldn't understand that sometimes people do bad things to make ends meet, but it doesn't make them bad people. To a Crow they’re all the same and need to be locked away never to see the light of day again. Including her.

“Focus on our informant. If I need you for anything else I know how to find you.” And she’s gone, vanished in a cloud of fog.

“Nice job pissing off potential allies.” Ryan switches her coms off.

The warehouse is guarded heavily by six men up top, double the number at the bottom not including the others unloading trucks full of supplies. Photo analysis identifies them and sends the information to Gotham P.D. before she strikes.

“Hope you’re ready for this. If we’re lucky this can all be over tonight.”

“Don’t I know it.”

Taking it as his cue, Luke hits the lights covering the warehouse in complete darkness. Motion sensors switch on and Batwoman moves into action. The training her team insists she go through pans out as she’s able to take out four guys twice her size in fast compact moves. One guy goes over the railing after she cracks him in the nuts with the steel toe of her boot. His strangled whimper is heard all the way down, but hey, no one ever said this was going to be a fair fight.

The team at the bottom catches on and gun fire immediately follows, running across the bridge Ryan spreads her arms and flies through the air, her red and black cape bellows behind her as she sticks another perfect superhero landing. All at once it seems like twenty people are coming at her from all different angles but as always she's quick on her feet tying a handful of them up by their ankles and running through the rest with a non lethal taser, just enough to subdue until she can contain everyone before she starts asking questions.

“We ain’t telling you shit!”

Another guy spits on her shoe, the red of his blood splattering against her boot and she rolls her eyes. There’s no need to be nasty.

“Look, I’m trying to help you guys out here.” Spotting a pair of boobs in the corner, she course corrects, “and girls - theys? Whatever! I’m trying to help you all out here. This thing,” she holds up a box of snakebite, “is killing the community and while it may bring you all brief satisfaction, financially, what’s it going to do for your futures when you get caught, to your families?”

“Who knew the new edition of the Bat came with such a bleeding heart?”

“Well, she does. So if anyone here is willing to tell me anything that’ll point me in the right direction of your boss, I promise I can protect you, get you somewhere safe.”

From the little the authorities have been able to dig up about this gang, anyone willing to betray their leader either winds up dead or living their last days in a vegetative state. That’s why it’s so important to have Niko, no matter the length it takes to protect him, it was for the sake of Gotham.

“I said-!”

“I heard you the first time,” Ryan says, cutting him off, “And I don’t know what you’re used to but I’m only going to tell you how this is played once. I ask the questions and you give me the answers, if you don’t, have fun rotting in jail or better yet … I can let the little I do know out onto the streets.” She bends down right in front of the man and lifts his rabbit mask, exposing his face. In seconds she knows his name. “I’m sure your boss would love to know who’s ratting him out, huh, Robert Michael Humprey?”

The terror in his eyes says it all.

[unmaskedagain]

Worse than the Devil

Hey Everyone, I got really inspired by the amazing response to my first fic Queen Of Mean. I decided to write a follow up. Its to Selena Gomez’s version of Cruella De Vil. I loved it when it first came out and it sent shivers when I realized it was perfect for my follow up.

Looking back the missing pigtails in the bluenette’s hair when she walked into class Monday morning, dressed like she just got off the runaway, flanked by Chloe at her side, should’ve been the first warning sign.

But in the class’s defense, it had been a crazy weekend. The fireworks that came with Ladybug’s video, Alya’s meltdown, and Lila being outted as a liar didn’t die down after class ended that day.  No. The weekend had been filled out a never-ending stream of group texts, complaining of hurt feelings, nasty little liars, and why, or why wasn’t Marinette replying to their texts? Answering her phone? Didn’t she know they were sorry? Didn’t she know they needed their everyday Ladybug now more than ever? Alya in particular.

Alya, who had spent the entire weekend, nearly 24/7, trying to save her blog; defend her life’s work against the avalanche of criticism that had come it’s way; even the most loyal fans screamed of betrayal. She had released a dozen video explaining what happened and begging her viewers to understand that people make mistakes. Calling Marinette with no answer, texting her best friend for help only to get no reply. Texting Marinette that Lila was a dirty, rotten, liar in over a hundred different way, in over a hundred different texts; only to never get a reply; which Alya never understood. Marinette was right. Lila was a liar. Alya and Marinette should be teaming up to bring her down like their brought down Chloe; stand together like best friends do.

As Alya sat patiently at her desk, with Nino holding her hand in support, waiting for Marinette to arrive so she could find comfort in her bestie, never once did an apology cross her mind. Alya was too indignant, too self-righteous, convinced the Ladybug was victim-blaming. It wasn’t Alya’s fault. Her boyfriend agreed. Her entire class agreed. She just knew, soon, all of Paris would agree.

           When Marinette casually strolled in, talking animatedly with Chloe about their week, she left the other students stunned. Gone was the pintails. Gone was the easy-going, simple, practically trademarked pink pants and grey flower decorated shirt. Gone was the happy smile that the students had always remembered was there to greet them and bring them cheer on a sour Monday, like the day was.

           Instead, Marinette’s hair was down and flowing down her shoulders, longer than they could ever remember it being (though granted they hadn’t paid much attention to their once friend in last few months, except for giving her a few quick glares and sneers) and was perfectly coiffed with strands pullback in braids that would’ve made Daenerys Targaryen take notes. She was dressed in all black; a cropped leather jacket, a sparkly black halter top that tied around her neck in a pretty bow, her jeans black and skin tight, and killer high heels that would make most girls envious. The only color Marinette wore was the sliver bracelets adorning her arms and the classic movie star red lips she sported. Marinette looked a supermodel.

           And if Marinette’s new look didn’t stunned them. Then the look on her face when she glanced at them sure did. Move over Hawkmoth, because if Marinette didn’t scare you, no evil thing could.

It was like the entire classroom went colder. Maybe it was because of the ice in Marinette’s stare, her curved red-stained smirk that screamed: beware. The way everything about her just screamed predator, alpha, top of the food chain. Queen.

           Alya blinked hard. Nino blinked hard. Adrien blinked hard. Too stunned at the sight to even remember to badger the bluenette.  She and Chloe, also dressed like a runaway model, flounced to the back of the class without a hello, a smile, a wave; anything friendly. It was like they were too insignificant for the girls to notice. If they had an ounce of luck still in their lives, that would’ve been so.

           Unfortunately for them that wasn’t the case.

           The girls were painfully aware of their existence; of every move they made over the week, every stupid text they sent, every false apology uttered. Because the downfall of the Ladyblog was just a taste of what was to come. At this point, Marinette and Chloe was just Spiders waiting for the kill.

“Girl, you don’t have to sit with Chloe,” Alya exclaimed.  “We’ll make room, right?” Nino nodded quickly, eager to give his childhood friend an olive branch.

“Why wouldn’t I want to sit with Chloe?” Marinette asked nonchalantly. “She’s my best friend.”

           What happened next was similar to what, Marinette, thought happened in movie; where the main character says something shocking at a dance, there’s a sound of a record scratch, and silence as all eyes turn to the speaker.

           The smirk the spread over Chloe’s face, the glow that filled her, the thought of the havoc she was about to help commence practically made her purr.

“Best friend?” Alix asked, her pink hair pulled back and her face skeptical. “Last I checked, you were mortal enemies.”

“Last time you check was not long after Lie-La came to class,” Marinette retorted.

“Which is the last time you’re opinion matter to us,” Chloe added. “Or well to Mari here. I never paid you peasant any mind.”

“You can’t be best friends,” Alya jumped up. “You shouldn’t even be friends. I can’t believe it? After what she did to you?”

           The other students nodded.

“She stole your design.” Rose put in.

“Bullied you for years,” Max said.

“Ruined your present for teach!” Kim added.

           Alya nodded smugly at the class backing her up, and gave Marinette a bright smile and an expectant look that always used to work on cowing the other girl.

“Bygones,” Marinette sighed. “I forgave her. And we bonded over how stupid you were at believing Lie-La.” Marinette leaned back in her seat. “Besides it’s not like she ever called me a jealous bitch? Told me to check my sources? Ditched me a million times. Whispered mean words about me right in front of me. And even crueler words behind my back. Chloe would never do that.”

“You know who would?” Chloe grinned. ‘You.” She pointed at Alya. “And you.” She pointed at Alix. “And you!” At Nino “And you, you, you, you. And well everyone here really.”

“Chloe maybe be mean; in fact the greatest mean girl Sharpay,” Marinette smiled lovingly at the blond who preened at the praise.

“But at least I’m not a bad friend,” Chloe snipped viciously.

“Now Chloe that would imply I’m still friends with them at all.”

           At the statement, students wilted into themselves. Their misdeeds weighed heavily on them. They had been so upset at Lila for lying to them, at themselves for believing her, kicking themselves for not listening to Marinette, they never once considered how Marinette felt about the whole mess. But now they knew, she wasn’t happy.

           Little did they know just how furious the once sweet girl was.

           The two girls turned their attention to each other.

“Wasn’t this week just amaz!” Chloe said easily. “Fashion shows are always just so spectacular.”

“Your mom is, like, the best,” Marinette nodded eagerly. “I still can’t believe we got to model.”

           Chloe side-eyed the students, pretending they weren’t listening. “And why not? They were short. And just look at us. We’re beautiful. We deserved to be on that runway.”

“Runaway?” Mylène asked, awed. “You were in a fashion show.”

           Marinette nodded, kindly, though inwardly smirking. “There are pictures from the show online. They’re trending.” So was Marinette’s social media accounts. “We got to model with Kate Upton and Bella and Gigi Hadid.”

“We’re all the rage!” Chloe stated. “Mommy’s thinking of making us the faces of her new line. We’ll be in next week’s issue of Teen Vogue.”

“I posted a few photos on my Insta,” Marinette shrugged. “You can look if you want, I guess.” It was said with a faux unsure, insecure, unassuming voice; a voice that even the most terrifying vampire bat could have even the smartest of victims dancing to it.

           With that the girls went back to their conversation. Pretending they didn’t notice their classmates whipping out their phones to verify.

“WOW,” Rose beamed. “They do have pics with the Hadid sisters. Oh you look so pretty Marinette.”

“Dude is that Kendall Jenner?” Kim asked.

“Beyoncé!” Alya yelled. “Beyoncé was there. You met Beyoncé.”

“Chill,” Chloe snapped. “We didn’t meet her. We just waved. Jay-Z was there too btw.”

“Jay-Z,” Nino whispered in awe.

Before befriending Marinette, Chloe was have gladly lied and said they met the goddess, that was Queen Beyoncé. But Marinette wouldn't suffer liars. And hated anyone who lied about her. Chloe was smart enough to know losing Marinette as a friend would be costly to her; both personally and professionally.

           The blond refused to toss away the blessing that was Marinette’s friendship. Not the like fools before her. They didn’t know what they lost. But Chloe would make sure they did.

           It had taken weeks of slowly inching her way to being Marinette’s friend. The girl had been untrusting the blonde’s actions at first. But eventually, Chloe won her over, proved she could be a good friend, if not the best friend Marinette ever had.

           And the best part? Chloe didn’t have to change. Granted she had to dull unsavory traits like lying and stealing but it was worth it.

“Tony. Stark.” Max gulped like he was just told Santa was in fact real. “You are in a picture with Tony Stark; Iron Man.”

“Pepper Potts wanted a vacation,” Marinette said. “Peter, their son, is a friend of mine. We met last summer when he was visiting England with his class. I was there with my grandma. We hit it off. He knew I was nervous about going on stage so he got his mom to come here so he could support me. It was just supposed to be the two of them. Until Mr. Tony realized and followed along. Swore up and down they were trying to ditch him,” Marinette laughed.

“Oh please,” Chloe huffed. “He was proud that his kid was hanging out with a gorgeous French model.”

“Two gorgeous French models,” Marinette corrected. “The three of us got ice cream afterwards, remember? I can’t wait for this summer. Peter said we can spend of three weeks at Stark Tower; interning. PR for you. You’ll be amazing at it. God knows I could do, though.” She said glumly. Though her internship was going to be assisting the Pepper Potts on her day to day life.

“Ridiculous!” Chloe snapped. “Utterly Ridiculous. You know you can’t wait to get your hands on Thor’s cape to find out what material Alien princes use. Not to mention the plans I saw for a potential Captain America supersuit.”

Marinette crossed her arms, and huffed. “Hey that man is walking around dressed like America’s drunk prom date. Someone has to step in.”

“It’s a classic look,” Nathanial told them.

“It’s a crime against fashion,” Marinette hissed.

           With that, the girls went back to talking about their weekend and bickering over summer plans. Or at least they tried to.

“You could’ve invited us,” Alya snapped. “Or at least told us.”

“Why?” Marinette asked. “We’re not friends. Why don’t you ask Lila how it was? I’m sure, she’ll happily spin you a yarn about how amazing everything was. And promise you’ll meet them next time.”

           It was like a slap to the face. The entire class quieted back down; wishing the bell would ring already. And wondering where Miss Bustier was.

           Unfortunately for the teacher, quite a few concerned parents and staff members had taken issue with how Bustier had been running her class. Bullying, students being constantly turned into Akumas, why Lila could miss so much school without it being a major issue.

“Don’t you think you’re being harsh?” Adrien asked. “They’re sorry.”

No, Marinette thought darkly. They weren’t. Not yet. But they would be soon.

“Okay,” Marinette shrugged, carelessly, inhumanly. “I don’t see why that matters. I accept their apology but it changes nothing. Sorry doesn’t fix anything. It doesn’t magically make every alright again. It’s no Ladybug charm. Let it go.” She warned.

           While Marinette did have plans to bring down Adrien, they were for a later time. And when she did, it would be painful. And it would break him. Like he helped break her.

           For months Adrien had stood by, remained silent as Marinette was made into an outcast, bullied, lost all her friends… when he knew. Knew Lila was lying, knew Marinette was just trying to help. After he promised, vowed to have her back. Instead, Adrien let them deface her sketchbook after Lila accuse Marinette of yet another bullying incident; destroying all of Marinette’s hard work. Despite knowing Marinette couldn’t have possible done what Lila said she had. He just let it happen, too afraid to stand up and tell the truth.

           Adrien didn’t take the hint. Or didn’t recognize a warning when he heard it.

“Their hurting too!” The blond boy defended, outraged at how his everyday Ladybug

“How?” Marinette asked curiously, innocently reminiscent of the girl who had been their friend who had existed when the world was still a wholesome place. “You said it yourself it’s not like Lila was hurting anybody. At least that’s what you told me, remember? You knew Lila was lying since like forever and you’re just fine.”

           It went silent again. Adrien paled. Marinette could barely stop the smile from slipping onto her face. If she wasn’t careful, they might combined their collective ten brain cells and catch on. See that she was a monster that should’ve never been released.

“You knew?” Nino asked in horrified disbelief.

           Dozens of hurt filled eyes trained on Adrien. It was at that moment Ms. Mendeleiev walked into class. “Students, I’ll be filling in today and possibly for the rest of the week. Everyone in their seats. Class is about to begin.”

           It was the smoothest devastation Chloe had ever witnessed and grew up with her mother and Gabriel Agreste as role models.

           In few years, the blonde knew there would be few would who hesitate to call Marinette, or herself, the devil. Too stunned to realize just how much worse either girl was.

           Chloe glanced at the girl who had become her best friend, and fellow mean-girl-in-arms. Marinette had her bluebell eyes trained on the chaos she had just unleashed, once again, on her fellow classmates.

           A lessor man, woman would’ve shivered. Chloe had shivered and had nightmares the first time that gaze rested on her.

           However, when time wore off the shock; Chloe realize she’d only see those type of eyes watching from underneath a rock.

           If you weren’t scared of the New Marinette, then you hadn’t met her yet.

Look out world, Chloe thought. Long Live the Queen.

[queenmylovely]

Good Company

Summary: Gwilym lee x fem!reader. Your family’s annual ski trip with the Lees is the first time in a while you’re seeing your childhood best friend Gwilym. 

Word Count: 6.3k

Warnings: cussing, fluff, smut light (18+!! marked with ***)

A/N: This is my entry for @laedymoon​ 1k follower celebration! This is only my second Gwil fic and it was actually really nice to write. I got some definite inspo from @sweet-ladyy​ MOTH ch. 5, this is a bit of a switcheroo on that, but if you know you know ;) Thank you to @coffeewritingwine​ for beta-reading! Any feedback including likes, replies, reblogs and asks are greatly appreciated! Especially replies, messages, and asks are super helpful for my writing ‘cause I get to hear what you think!

Masterlist

(gif by @mazzelloplots​; ugh he’s so hot) 

🎿🎿🎿

Every March, for so long that it had become tradition, your family and one other would go on a ski trip. This trip started before the two pairs of parents were even married, and continued until now, when their kids were all grown up and had kids of their own.

This year, by some miracle, all kids, spouses, and now grandchildren were able to come. So it was you; your brother, Nick; your sister, Kate, her wife, Jen, their daughter Ella; and your parents Julia and James. On the other side was the Lees: the parents, Tom and Ceinwen; their son Geraint, his wife Mary, kids Siân and Aled; another son Owen; their daughter Rhiannon, her husband Elwyn, their son Tomos; and finally, their third son who was your age and your childhood best friend, Gwilym.

There was no way the 18 of you would fit into one house, so you were divided into two that were next door to each other. The people with small children were in one house (affectionately dubbed the “chaos house” by you) and the rest of you were in the other. The houses were identical, two four-bedroom cabins with just enough room to house you all but not enough so that anyone could avoid each other. It was all by design because good old T, C, and double J wanted to make the most out of having all their kids and grandkids together at once.

Each couple had their own room, the kids were in one, Nick and Owen were sharing one (as they were also best friends), and you and Gwilym were sharing the other.

Which was fine. The two of you had had countless sleepovers since you were little, going all the way through until the summer before university, so you were totally comfortable in each other’s presence.

Now that you were grown up, you were still close. Since you were both living in London, you did try to see each other at least once a month, but it was difficult with how busy Gwilym was with shooting and such. So when the trip came around, and you hadn’t actually seen each other in over three months since the annual Christmas Eve eve party that your parents had, you were super excited for a week with him and both families.

_____

Your flight had been delayed so you knew you were the last one arriving. The cabins you had rented were at the ski resort, and you took the ski shuttle to them, your luggage in tow. Luckily, you would be renting the actual skis. Getting off at the main building you had a bit of a trek to the cabins. By the time you reached them, you were out of breath, your hat was about to fall off your head, and you were sure that sweat had plastered your fly-aways to your forehead, but you were too excited to see everyone to care.

Knocking three times, you only had to wait a second before the door was flying open. Owen was standing there, beaming at you, and although he had seen you only two weeks before at Nick’s birthday drinks, he pulled you into a big hug and squeezed you too hard with a laugh. You got much gentler hugs from the others, except Nick who just pulled your hat down over your eyes before giving you a quick side hug. Then the kids seemed to realize you were there and a ten and eight year old, Siân and Ella, respectively, came running over, yelling your name. You hugged them both and kissed the tops of their heads.

Then the two two-year-olds, Tomos and Aled, toddled over, curious as to what was causing the commotion. When they recognized you (both were very smart two-year-olds), they garbled out your name. With a grunt, you managed to pick both of them up at the same time, giving them big kisses on the cheek that they laughed at and then returned, no doubt getting whatever they had last been eating on your face.

The only person who hadn’t greeted you yet was Gwilym. Your mom saw you looking around for him and said, “Gwilym’s just down the hall in your room getting the bed ready.”

“Okay. Better go say hi and put this in there,” you replied, grabbing the handle of your suitcase.

The two of you were in the only downstairs bedroom, so you walked down the hallway past the kitchen and a bathroom, finding the door slightly ajar all the way at the end.

You knocked lightly before pushing it all the way open, “Knock-knock, is the movie-star decent?”

Gwilym was just finishing making the bed, placing the little throw pillows perfectly when he looked up and saw you. He grinned and walked around the side of the bed, rolling his eyes before pulling you into a tight hug.

“Sorry, no movie stars here, love. Just me, hope that’ll do,” he said into your hair and you let out a little contented sigh. No one gave hugs quite like Gwil.

“As if,” you said, pushing on his upper arms to look at him. Your hands stayed there and his stayed on your waist. “You cannot play a member of Queen in a big Hollywood movie and then refuse to be called a moviestar. We’ve been over this.”

“We’ve also been over that I’m the same exact person I’ve always been,” Gwil said, a little sternly.

“Well I know that,” you said, hitting his arm lightly and then letting go. He did the same. “No amount of fame could knock the dork out of you. Or let me forget what a nerdy little kid you were and still are.”

Gwil laughed at that, relieved that you still saw him the same. In the year and a couple months since Bohemian Rhapsody had come out, you had only seen each other a handful of times, and for no longer than three hours. He had been a bit worried that you could have come to think of him differently and just hid it well around others. But your teasing definitely assuaged that worry.

“So I made up the bed for us. There’s an electric blanket under the comforter so we don’t get cold. I don’t think this cabin has the greatest insulation,” he pointed out, looking at the walls distrustingly.

“Thank you for that, you know how much I hate making beds,” you told him and he smiled. “Another thing I would appreciate is if you let me sleep on that side of the bed.”

You pointed to the one furthest from you, and Gwil looked at it then you.

“Is this your thing about not sleeping the closest to the door?” he asked, squinting at you.

“I know, it’s irrational or whatever, but I’d just feel safer if I didn’t sleep closest to it,” you replied. You had just a bit of a fear that murderers or something would break in and attack everyone during the night.

“I guess I can. But I don’t know how good of protection I’d be. I’m no self-defense expert,” Gwil admitted, smiling.

“Even if you aren’t they’d kill you before me, so maybe I’d be able to run away,” you said matter-of-factly.

Gwil’s face turned into one of shock and he exclaimed, “So I’m just a killing buffer to you? You’d run away while I was being brutally murdered? Good to know I’m disposable.”

He crossed his arms and frowned harshly, but you knew he was just pretending to try to make you feel guilty. Nevertheless, you hugged him around his crossed arms, resting your chin on his chest and looking up at him.

“Aw, Gwilly, you know that’s not true. You’re much more than that. You’re my smart, handsome, funny, dorky, best, best friend in the whole wide world,” you laid it on thick, trying to flatter him into not being “upset,” though nothing you said was a lie. When he didn’t budge, you started tickling his sides until he broke and started laughing, uncrossing his arms and grabbing yours to stop you.

He wrapped his arms around you again, resting his chin on your head that you had turned to the side and laid against his chest. “Okay, I’ll sleep closest to the door. You’ll be safe. As long as the murderers don’t come in through the window.”

Eyes widening, you looked straight at the big window that was next to your side of the bed. Your arms tightened around Gwil, genuine fear creeping into your voice, “Don’t even joke about that.”

_____

Since it was mid-afternoon when you got there, there was to be no skiing that day. Instead, the whole group made dinner together (well, really it was the grandparents with a little help from the other parents peeling vegetables and setting the tables). You and Gwilym were in charge of the kids while Owen and Nick were sent to buy wine, beer, and juice boxes. Siân and Ella were doing their own thing, playing some kind of spy game that had them giggling and using a pair of walkie-talkies.

Aled and Tomos were content to sit on your laps. You and Aled were playing patty cake while Tomos was playing with Gwil’s short beard. Tomos was having a good time, but every so often, he pulled a little hard and Gwil winced in pain, reminding him to “be gentle.”

Once dinner was ready, you picked up your respective kid and called to Ella and Siân. They dutifully followed you to the tables, and you plopped the toddlers into their high chairs next to where their parents would sit.

Dinner was good, a chicken alfredo with homemade sauce that was sure to please everyone, including the picky eaters. There were also roasted carrots that even Ella, who hated vegetables, could stomach.

That was followed by a movie, but everyone talked over it.

“Has Aled bitten anyone? Tomos has done it like once, but I’m hoping he doesn’t enter a phase.”

“The target is in place, get ready for attack, over.”

“Aaah! Stop hitting me! Why are those pillows so hard?”

“I see the girls are enjoying their walkie-talkies, you’re welcome, by the way.”

“Do you have any podcast recommendations that aren’t true crime? I just worry about Siân hearing since she would actually understand what they’re saying.”

“Y/N, Michael’s the cousin that lives in California, right?”

“No, that’s Mark,” you half-yelled back to Nick, who was talking to Owen and Tom. Then you turned back to Gwil, “Wait, you already wrapped? I thought you were shooting until May.”

“No, that’s when it comes out,” he corrected you.

“Oh… Does that mean you’ve been in London for weeks and you haven’t tried to make plans with me? Where were you for Nick’s birthday?” you asked, in a teasing tone but you were also a little bit mad.

“I’ve been travelling some. But I was at a Fashion Week thing,” he admitted sheepishly.

“Whatever, moviestar,” you said with a huff. Then you adjusted how you were sitting so you were against the back of the couch instead of facing Gwilym.

“Y/N…” Gwilym started, but trailed off because he knew you would probably interrupt him.

“Nope, don’t talk to me right now. I want to be able to sleep in the same bed as you without strangling your pretentious ass. Just let me cool off,” you told him. You were being a little over-dramatic, but you knew that in ten minutes you’d be done being annoyed. Both of you knew you weren’t really all that angry because you were still sitting with your thigh and arm pressed to his. When you were really mad, you didn’t even want to be in the same room as him.

_____

Once everyone was making their way to bed, you and Gwil took turns in the bathroom to get ready for bed.

“You’d better go first, I have my whole skincare routine,” you let him know, slight anger long having faded away.

“How do you know I don’t have one?” he shot back and you just rolled your eyes to his laughter.

As he was brushing his teeth, you changed into your pajamas. Just an old uni shirt that was too ratty to wear outside of the house anymore and a pair of cotton running shorts. But it was soft, oversized, and very comfy, so it was perfect for sleep.

“All yours,” he told you, walking into the room just as you pulled your shirt over your head. You were facing away from him, so at most he had seen your back, but you didn’t really think about it, grabbing your stuff, giving him a quick smile, and heading into the bathroom.

As you walked away, Gwil took in a big breath. After not seeing you very much over the past year and a half, Gwil was feeling different seeing you now. You had always been beautiful, but Gwil could’ve sworn your beauty had increased tenfold over that time. That, or he had just been taking it for granted since he used to see you constantly. Whatever it was, everytime you guys hugged, or when you sat close to him on the couch, or just now when he had gotten a glimpse of your lower back as you dressed, Gwil’s cheeks heated up uncontrollably and he had to fight to act normal.

Since the two of you were so comfortable physically around each other, he couldn’t pull away because then you would know something was up and ask him about it. He had no idea how you would react and he didn’t want to risk the years of your friendship and the bond between your families over a crush.

You walked into the room with a fresh face and moisturizer, ready for bed. Gwil was sitting on the bed, looking deep in thought.

“Can I turn off the big light?” you asked, hand over the switch.

“What? Oh yeah, let me just get the lamp,” he told you, getting up and turning on the lamp.

As you switched off the light and then walked to your side of the bed, you took another look at his pensive face, “What’s got you thinking so hard?”

Gwil looked at you, pausing for a moment before answering, “Just thinking about which side of the mountain I should go on first. I don’t know if I’m too rusty to hit the backside right away.”

“Oh, you should definitely do the frontside the first day so we can ski together. Otherwise, I’ll be left alone with the kids on the bunny hill. I need your guidance,” you said with a goofy smile, climbing under the covers.

Guidance, Gwil thought for just a moment before recovering and getting under the covers himself, “Okay, sounds good, I’ll join you on the front side.”

“Thank you!” you said, beaming at him. Then you leaned over and pecked his cheek, “We’d better get to sleep. Early morning and all.”

“You’re right,” he said, turning off the lamp, glad that the darkness would hide his red cheeks at your kiss. “Goodnight, Y/N.”

“Sweet dreams, Gwil.”

_____

The next morning, the musical sound from your alarm woke you up. You groaned, opening your eyes slowly and lifting an arm to turn it off. Except the arm wouldn’t lift. Looking down, you realized you were tangled up with Gwil.

Your cheeks heated up in embarrassment for a second, but then you thought again and realized it was Gwil and he would not care at all that the two of you had ended up cuddling. The two of you tended to cuddle whenever you got tipsy anyway.  

So you slipped your arm from underneath Gwil’s and were able to turn just enough to reach your phone and turn the alarm off. Your movement made Gwil stir and he blinked his eyes heavily. Then they opened wide when he realized how you were situated.

You giggled at his look and said, “Morning, Gwil.”

Relaxed by your laughter, he let out a chuckle too, “Morning, love.”

Neither of you moved from each other’s grasp, happy to be lazy and warm in each other’s arms for the moment.

“I feel like I just got the best sleep I have for months,” you told him, playing with the collar of the shirt he was wearing.

“Mm, me too,” Gwil agreed, squeezing you in his arms a bit.

“Maybe we should always sleep in the same bed,” you joked.

“Haha, yeah,” Gwil replied kind of awkwardly, but when your phone went off again, you were distracted.

“That’s my ‘you better be awake by now’ alarm, so we better get up,” you said, patting his chest before disentangling yourself from him.

Gwil let you go and got up himself. Realizing the family was going to head to the mountain in less than an hour, the two of you rushed to get ready and eat breakfast, not having time to chat very much.

_____

“I am in dire need of hot chocolate. I’m sooo cold,” you announced, your teeth chattering as you removed your snow-soaked jacket and hat.

“Same, I’ll go put the order in,” Gwil said, having removed his wet clothes faster than you.

“And some fries,” you called after him and he waved over his shoulder in acknowledgement. “And chicken strips!”

Gwil just shook his head, but you knew he would get you them anyway. He was always so good to you. Sometimes it made you wonder whether there was anything between you, but neither of you ever made a move, and it never seemed like the time to talk about it. You loved Gwil, sure, but loving him as your best friend and being in love with him were two different things. Sometimes that line became a bit blurred, especially when you noticed how good he looked on this trip, his hair and beard having grown out. But these feelings had popped up before, and had gone away in a couple weeks, so who’s to say that this time would be any different?

“Alright, here we go, you mooch,” Gwil said, somehow managing to balance two cups of steaming hot chocolate, and a giant basket of chicken strips and fries.

“Let me take this,” you said, grabbing the basket from him so he wouldn’t accidentally spill. You grabbed a couple fries and shoved them in your mouth. “Thank you!”

“Hasn’t anyone ever told you not to talk with your mouth full?” Gwil asked sarcastically, as the two of you sat down.

“Actually, you’re the first,” you replied in an equally sarcastic fashion.

“Whatever, give me some of those fries.”

The two of you ate, mostly silent because you were very hungry. The ski lodge’s stereo system was playing the radio at a medium volume, so you were content listening to that. Then “Bohemian Rhapsody” came on and you looked at Gwil with wide eyes.

“It’s your song!” you said excitedly, immediately swaying to the music.

Gwil threw his head back in slight exasperation but laughed all the same, humming the rhythm of the guitar and doing some light air guitar that made you break out in laughter.

The whole situation brought him back to a time probably two years ago when he had finally been able to tell you about the project that was Bohemian Rhapsody.

_

“You what?!” you exclaimed. “You’re playing Brian fucking May?! What the actual fuck, that’s so exciting!!”

Then you tackled him in a hug that actually knocked the wind out of him.

He coughed and then replied with a grin, “Yeah, it really, really is.”

You pulled back at him and smiled, “Okay, tell me everything. Even the stuff you’re not supposed to.”

Gwil chuckled and smiled back, “There’s not a ton to tell. Serious. But I can show you a mockup they did of the Greatest Hits album.”

He pulled out his phone and pulled up a picture of the four actors’ faces superimposed onto the album cover next to the original. It took you a second to tell them apart. Multiple seconds in fact. What gave it away was the actors that were playing Roger Taylor and Freddie Mercury. Then you looked back and forth between Brian May and Gwil’s version.

“You literally look like a carbon copy of him, what the hell? Oh my gosh, I cannot wait to see you in a wig,” you gushed, laughing as you continued to stare at the two pictures.

Gwil looked at you, smiling and you caught his eye when you looked up, rushing forward to hug him again.

“I’m so proud.”

Over the course of filming, he had you on set a couple of times, and you had met the rest of the cast. They were a great bunch and you loved how happy Gwil was around them. Part of you was a little jealous that they got to see so much of him, but it was his career, and overall you always stayed supportive.

He had invited you to the premiere too, but you had sat with his family to watch it, as he sat with the rest of the cast. The popularity of the movie meant he had been busier and busier, and it was hard to see him consistently. That’s why you were so happy for this week’s vacation; a chance to reconnect.

_____

Ever since the movie had been announced, everyone from both families had taken to listening to Queen much more than they had previously, both to be supportive, but also because it just reminded them how good their music was.

So, that night when you were hanging out with Rhiannon, Kate, and Jen in the kitchen of the chaos house making cookies while everyone else was making dinner, you were playing Queen in the background. Soon, the conversation turned from family gossip to a debate about the members while looking at pictures of them as the cookies baked.

“Listen, I will concede that Roger does have a certain appeal as a blonde, but Deaky just has something else,” Rhiannon stated.

“Hmmm, I can’t really relate about his looks, but I definitely think Deaky wrote some of their best songs,” Kate pointed out.

“I gotta say that there’s something about Brian’s voice, though, that makes me feel something, like, in the depths of my soul. His voice is just so melancholy and soft,” Jen said dreamily as she pointed at him in a picture. All three of you turned to look at her, pulling faces and then everyone cracked up.

Gwil walked into the house, looking for the four of you to tell you that dinner was ready when he heard loud laughter coming from the kitchen. He smiled to himself, wondering what you were laughing about and then he overheard you talking.

“Don’t get me started on Brian. He looks…” Gwil was sure that you were about to say “Just like Gwil” but instead you finished “So hot in this picture.”

Gwil’s eyes widened at the implication as he connected the dots; if you thought he looked exactly like Brian and Brian was hot, did that mean that you thought he was hot? Gwil didn’t want to jump to conclusions, but he didn’t know how else to interpret what you said. Maybe there was something there. Maybe his crush wasn’t one-sided. Maybe he should talk to you about it? Maybe.

For now, he just walked up to the swinging kitchen door, knocking lightly before he walked in.

“Dinner’s ready. You all better get over there before it gets cold,” he warned with a smile, ignoring the way you rushed to take your phone off the counter and that you hardly looked at him.

Kate, Jen, and Rhiannon looked at each other quickly; they had seen the looks both of you gave each other when you thought no one was looking and had actually talked to each other about it when they were on the ski lift. Gwil was easy to read and they were certain that he was practically in love with you, but you had been a little harder to understand. But then you went and said what you thought of Brian and that was the final nail in the coffin.

“Yeah, we’d better get over there so the guys don’t take all the food,” Kate said with a smile.

“Oh, but the cookies aren’t done,” you pointed out.

“You’re right. Gwil, why don’t you stay with Y/N and help her out and we’ll save you guys some food?” Jen asked, though it seemed more like a direction than a suggestion.

“Yeah, you don’t mind,” Rhiannon said, looking at you and then Gwil pointedly.

“Uh, okay sure,” you said, a little confused as to why they were acting strange.

“That’s fine,” Gwil answered at the same time, making eye contact with his sister and nodding ever so slightly, but you missed it.

The three of them walked out of the room and then out of the house to the other one, whispering and giggling all the way.

You shot Gwil a confused look but he just shrugged.

“So what type of cookies are they? They smell good,” he asked pleasantly, walking to stand next to you.

“Oatmeal chocolate chip. Mom’s specialty, although now she’s passed that off on me and Kate,” you responded with a closed-lip smile.

He groaned appreciatively, “Those are my favorite.”

“I know,” you said, smile growing, “That’s why I suggested them.”

“You’re literally the best,” he said, pulling you into a hug that you accepted happily.

“I know,” you said, resting your cheek against his chest and wrapping your arms around his waist. His rested over your shoulders and he chuckled in response.

You were tired from the day of skiing, and it felt nice to be in Gwil’s arms, so you relaxed there, closing your eyes. After a minute, Gwil decided he did want to talk to you and pulled away slightly. Looking up at him, you waited for him to speak, but he just stared at you for a moment. You found yourself unable to look away from his intense eyes, and they were getting closer and closer, though who was moving you didn’t know. You got so close you could see little flecks of green and hazel in his blue eyes and feel his gentle breath on your face.

The air felt charged with possibility, and you were just about convinced to lean up the two inches more and connect your lips. You were two more seconds away from closing that gap, now needing to know what kissing Gwil would be like. You were sure that once you started you wouldn’t be able to stop.

Then the timer on the oven went off and both of your heads whipped to the side to see where the noise was coming from. You broke away from Gwil to turn off the timer and then opened the oven door and took out the cookie trays with oven mitts. As you were placing the trays on the heat proof pads on the counter, Gwil turned off the oven.

“They can just cool here until everyone’s done with dinner,” you said too quickly, and Gwil nodded.

Then the two of you took off for the other house, Gwil about five steps behind you. It wasn’t until you were in the other house and surrounded by a bunch of loud family members that you felt you could breathe normally.

_____

That night, after getting ready for bed, turning off the lights, and climbing under the covers, you patted the part of the bed next to you and reached your arms out to Gwil.

He paused for a second so you said, “Come on, if we’re just going to wake up like this anyway, we might as well save sleeping us the trouble.”

“You make a good point,” Gwil conceded, scooting closer to you, again grateful the lights were off. He wrapped an arm around your shoulders and you cuddled into his side, bringing one of your legs over his closest one.

Once both of you were settled, you patted his chest and wished him a good night, him doing the same with a squeeze of your hip.

As you were dozing off, Gwil thought that at least the almost kiss or whatever it was hadn’t made things so uncomfortable that you couldn’t sleep next to each other. That was a good sign.

_____

***

Once again in the kitchen, you found yourself in his arms. But this time, instead of anything interrupting you, your lips crashed together. The kiss was hot and intense, and before you knew it, you were seated on the counter with Gwil standing between your legs.

Hands were everywhere; yours were running through his hair and tugging on it as his roamed across your breasts, hips and ass. Then you were unbuttoning his pants and he was pushing them down along with his boxers revealing his hard cock. You hopped off the counter, turning around and laying over top of it, and Gwil pulled your panties off, throwing them to the side. With a few swipes through your wet folds, Gwil pushed into you, a gasp of pleasure escaping you as he did.

***

_

Gwil opened his eyes blearily, having been woken up by you moving and then your loud gasp.

“Y/N?” Gwil asked softly, but when you didn’t answer, he looked at your face and saw your eyes were still closed. The two of you were now in a more typical spooning position, having migrated to it throughout the night. By the low amount of light that was in the room, Gwil assumed it must be early morning.

Then you squirmed again, this time practically grinding into his cock, and Gwil froze in shock. You let out the most wanton moan Gwil had ever heard in real life and he had to clap his hand over his mouth to keep from gasping himself.

Just when Gwil thought he couldn’t have been more surprised, you said, “Yes, Gwil, right there,” and Gwil almost moaned. His cock was definitely getting hard, and he didn’t know what to do so he moved his hips back away from yours so you wouldn’t be able to feel it.

He tried to remove his arm from around your waist, but you were holding it to you even in your sleep, and he feared that if he moved you too much you would wake up and know that he heard you. And see his hard-on.

Then you squeezed his hand and whined, “Fuck me harder, please Gwil,” and he didn’t have the choice but to wrench his hand away from you. Getting out of bed and out of the room as quickly as possible, he headed to the bathroom to take a cold shower. As hot as it was that you were having a sex dream about him, he felt it would be wrong to bear witness to it and give himself any pleasure because of it. It did further confirm the idea that you had feelings, or at least a subconscious attraction, to him though, so that was a plus.

Gwil’s sudden movements had pulled you from your dream, and as your body slumped in the bed you only just saw him before he left the room. But you saw his boner and your eyes widened as you remembered your dream. There’s no way he could have known what you were dreaming about, right? The boner was just morning wood, right? Then you shifted so you were sitting up and felt that your underwear were a mess. Maybe it had been kinda obvious. Fuck.

You got ready before Gwil was done with his shower, going to the kitchen to help with breakfast. When he came down the hallway and the two of you made awkward eye contact, you felt your cheeks heat up to a dangerous degree and ran into your mom who was carrying a stack of pancakes.

At breakfast you and Gwil sat next to each other like usual and when his leg brushed against yours you knocked over your glass of water. As the two of you were wiping up that mess, you kept bumping into each other and your hands kept touching and your breath caught every time. By the time breakfast was done you were dizzy with all of the blood that was rushing to your cheeks and lower stomach as each brush and accidental touch reminded you of your dream.

“You know, I didn’t get very good sleep last night and I’m feeling kind of off. I’m gonna stay here and take a nap, maybe join in the afternoon,” you told those around you.

“Gwil’s not kicking you in his sleep is he? He used to do that to me all the time when we were kids,” Geraint said with a laugh.

You laughed lightly in response, “No, nothing like that. Just a restless night. Have fun you guys.”

Then you went to your room and laid down on the made bed, staring at the ceiling as you waited for everyone to leave. When you heard the door close and no more footsteps followed, you walked into the living room and flopped on the couch.

“Can we talk?”

You just about jumped out of your skin and looked around, realizing you hadn’t noticed that Gwil was sitting in the armchair across from the couch. You sat up and hid your face in your hands and heard Gwil walk over and sit by you.

Then you looked up at him painfully, “Can we actually just never ever talk about it?”

Gwil got worried; he had wanted to talk to you about your feelings for each other, but he didn’t know what to do if you were just going to shut him down.

“Why?” was all he could think to say, trying to get some explanation.

“Because it’s so embarrassing,” you replied, looking away from him.

Gwil got a bit peeved that you would say that and scoffed, “Embarrassing?”

Now you were confused. He should understand why you were embarrassed. Then it dawned on you that you might be talking about two different things. “Wait, what did you want to talk about?”

“That’s what I’m trying to tell you,” he said with a huff. Then he took in a deep breath, “What I wanted to talk to you about is that I have feelings for you. I wasn’t sure to trust them at first because we’re so close and I worried about transference or whatever, but it’s not that, it’s you.”

You felt the embarrassment completely drain from your body, replaced with happiness at his words. Although you were a little surprised, you were more than relieved that he felt the same as you. Smiling, you took Gwil’s hand in yours and told him, “Me too. It’s you, my feelings are all for you.”

Returning your smile, and with nothing to stop him or interrupt him this time, he leaned in and kissed you. It was much slower and more delicate than the one in your dream, but it was also infinitely better with the real Gwil.

Moving your free hand to cup his cheek, you deepened the kiss softly, teasing your tongue along his lower lip. He opened his mouth, moving his tongue with yours. Even though it was gentle, it was a deep kiss and still took your breath away.

You pulled away after a minute and breathed, “Wow.”

Gwil smiled, pressing his forehead to yours and repeated, “Wow.”

Then your lips connected again and Gwil’s hands moved one to your hair and one to your back, keeping you close to him. You couldn’t believe in how long you had known each other you had never done this. It was quite possibly the best feeling in the world, Gwil’s lips pressed to yours, the drag of his tongue, his strong hands on you, and you didn’t want to stop. That is, until Gwil pulled away. You followed his lips and he gave you a quick peck but pulled the rest of the way away after.

You looked at him, waiting for him to talk so he said a little awkwardly, “So what are we?”

Nervous laughter from you followed his question and you gave him a look.

“Well, I just think it would be good to answer that before anything else happens,” he defended.

“No, you’re right, you’re right, I was just surprised. Normally I have this conversation after something else happens,” you joked and then took a deep breath. “I, for one, want it all. I want to date you, to be your girlfriend, to kiss you, everything else. I want everything with you.”

Gwil breathed out a sigh of relief, “I want everything with you too.”

“Good,” you smiled, leaning back in for a kiss. Gwil indulged you for a few seconds but pulled away again.

You frowned and pouted, “What now? Haven’t we talked about everything?”

“Well, there was one more thing. As your boyfriend now,” he said with a cheeky smile, “I’d like to know about the dream you had this morning. A dream, it seemed, that was about me.”

You facepalmed and felt your cheeks get warm again, “This is exactly what I didn’t want to talk about, it’s so embarrassing.”

“Well I was thinking that as your boyfriend I could maybe try to help you recreate it,” he said with a wink and you felt heat pool in your lower stomach.

“Okay,” you said breathlessly. Then you thought for a second, “But probably not in the kitchen.”

“It was in the kitchen?” Gwil asked, surprised and you nodded sheepishly. “No, maybe not in there. I do know of a nice big bed that we could use though.”

You smiled in excitement, standing up and pulling Gwil with you, saying flirtily, “Show me this bed.”

“As you wish,” Gwil said, grabbing your waist and picking you up. You squealed but wrapped your legs around his waist as his arms supported your thighs. Then he carried you down the hallway, your mixed laughter bouncing off the walls as you exchanged messy kisses on the way.

🎿🎿🎿

Permanent Taglist: @riseetothesun​ @caborhapch​ @drowseoftaylor​​ @queenlover05​ @johndeaconshands​​ @supersonicfreddie​​

If you would like to be added to a taglist, just send me a message or ask!

[tabloidtoc]

National Examiner, April 12

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Mark Harmon quitting NCIS

Page 2: Stars Who Rock Around the Clock -- they believe in the healing power of crystals -- Naomi Campbell, Shirley MacLaine, Adele, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Uma Thurman

Page 3: Debra Messing, Goldie Hawn and Kate Hudson, Megan Fox, Katy Perry, Gisele Bundchen

Page 4: Eddie Murphy's roles and costumes

Page 6: George Clooney is turning 60 in May, and he says being an older dad to toddlers has its benefits -- his son isn't ever going to feel competitive with him and he'll be gumming his bread by the time he'd feel competitive with him, jokes the Oscar-winning actor, whose twins Ella and Alexander turn 4 in June -- George is well aware that growing up with two highly accomplished parents (his wife Amal Clooney is a successful human rights lawyer) can put a lot of pressure on a kid and that's why the couple is already guiding Ella and Alexander with strong values and kind hearts because George says it's their job to make sure that they care about people and that they challenge people in power and look out for people who don't have power and those are the things he was raised with -- the known prankster is also passing the practical joke tradition down to the next generation and he taught Alexander to take a piece of banana, chew it up and then spit it into a napkin, then stand next to him mom, pretend to blow his nose into it and look down until Mama looks at it, then eat it

Page 7: Partridge Family star Shirley Jones turned 87, and she's brimming over with gratitude for her wonderful life that's been chock-full of extraordinary experiences -- she says you have to have a good time and enjoy life to the fullest and before you know it you'll be 87 -- Shirley has three sons (her stepson David Cassidy died in 2017) and 13 grandchildren

Page 8: Take your etiquette test for tea with Queen Elizabeth

Page 9: Brain foods that may help prevent dementia

* Study says new drug slows Alzheimer's

Page 10: Jennifer Garner recently opened up about her real feelings on her body -- she's 48 and single and has three children with ex-husband Ben Affleck: daughters Violet and Seraphina and son Samuel -- in a recent interview, she admitted that her body has changed a lot since having three kids and she doesn't mind one little bit, even though she was hurt when a friend hinted she may be expecting again, saying there are some women whose bodies just, no matter how many babies they have, they bounce right back to that slim-hipped, no stomach and she has so many girlfriends who have that physique and she's so happy for them, but she's not one of them and she can work really hard and she can be really fit and she will still look like a woman who's had three babies and she always will

Page 11: 6 stomach symptoms you should never ignore -- catch problems before the become deadly

Page 12: After more than two decades, James Brolin says he's discovered the way to keep his marriage to Barbra Streisand going strong: negotiation -- it's taken two marriages and 22 years for him to figure it out and he and his wife have gotten so close being locked down together -- his mother was the sweetest person so he never really learned to negotiate with women but now he knows if you sit down and talk about a situation, you can work it out

Page 14: Dear Tony, America's Top Psychic Healer -- don't make snap judgments; you may lose the perfect mate -- Tony predicts a very hot summer coming and a lot more street crime

Page 15: Folks getting their COVID-19 vaccinations at the Berkshire Community College in Massachusetts got a shocking treat: a mini-concert from world-famous cellist Yo-Yo Ma -- while waiting out his 15-minute observation period, the musician sat down to play a socially distant symphony for his fellow inoculees

Page 16: Duchess Kate is never seen without a purse, but what exactly does she keep inside it? There's quite a history between royal women and their handbags: Princess Diana used her clutch bag to cover her cleavage from prying photographers, Queen Elizabeth moves her handbag from one arm to the other to signal to her staff when she's bored of chatting with someone, and Kate carries her bag in her left hand so she can keep her right hand free to greet and shake hands with guests and she holds her bag in front of her when shaking hands might be awkward -- according to royal protocol pre-pandemic, Kate must extend her hand first for another person to shake hands with her, so if she prefers to just smile instead of touching other folks, she uses her clutch to do that -- author Marcia Moody who wrote Kate: A Biography, says the duchess always carries four must-have items: in her small clutch, she carries a compact mirror, a handkerchief, blotting paper and lip balm and every now and then, if she's going to attend a tennis match, for example, Kate will carry a pair of sunglasses -- unlike Queen Elizabeth, whose purses come from a company called Launer, the duchess favors different brands, but mostly a company called Mulberry -- nowadays with three small children, the mom gravitates toward midsize bags with handles because she's got to take more items with her like a handy bunch of tissues, good for wiping little noses and faces, and also takes her camera along

Page 18: William Shatner confesses that when he starred in Star Trek during the mid-60s, he had no idea it would become a worldwide phenomenon still popular today -- Shatner, who turned 90 in March, says it's unimaginable and it's all beyond anybody's imagination or ability to repeat and the greatest thing about being the captain of the Enterprise for three years was his relationship with the cast and the roles were written so well

Page 19: Brandy is a one-in-a million cat because those are the odds she'd ever be found again after she went missing 15 years ago -- when Charles got the phone call from a California animal shelter that his missing pet has been found, he could scarcely believe his ears and the Los Angeles man was skeptical and thought it must be a mistake but he had made sure the two-month-old kitten had a microchip and sure enough, the malnourished stray they found was his Brandy -- Charles did break down and cry because he thought about all of the years he lost from her and when he picked her up, she started to purr and it was very emotional

Page 20: Mark Harmon finally lured wife Pam Dawber out of retirement to star alongside him on NCIS, but the pairing will be short-lived because he's leaving the show after 18 hit seasons -- the 69-year-old star is finally fed up with the backbreaking hours, endless rehearsals, and feuds with cast and crew, and plans to ride off into the sunset with Pam and retire to the couple's Montana Ranch -- Mark's contract is up after season 18, and he's agonized over whether to sign a new one and he's being offered the moon and the stars to come back for a few more seasons, but he says his heart just isn't in it and Mark has faced problems on the set over the past few years and he feels his age, he just doesn't need the aggravation anymore -- NCIS recently teased a possible departure of his character Leroy Gibbs when the special agent commander was suspended for assaulting and nearly killing a suspect but despite that, Harmon insists Gibbs not be killed off so he can leave the door open for a possible return

Page 22: Legendary actor Michael Caine just turned 88 and he's still going strong, starring in an upcoming comedy Best Sellers and says he knows he's old but he doesn't feel old, not in his head, where it matters

Page 24: They say money doesn't buy happiness, but what do people spend their money on that can buy happiness? You don't need millions of dollars to afford the things that happy people buy to stay that way and studies show that anything over $75,000 a year in income is gravy, which means yachts, jewels, second homes and art collections are not at all required -- the best thing to drop your cash on is experiences and doing is better than having and in other words, an object you own will never give you the consistent pleasure of an experience that creates good memories that live on forever -- also the best experiences are the ones that involve other people like having a picnic with family, going rafting with pals, or even just walking and talking with an exercise buddy

Page 25: Freshen Your Fridge -- make a clean start with this 5-step plan

Page 26: Tony's Mystic World -- may the force be with you -- the life force can be drained out of you by fear or worry

Page 28: Sensational Snaps From Around the World -- photo contest captures amazing sights

Page 31: When to trash it -- the useful lifespan of refrigerated food

Page 32: It's been 40 years since Marilu Henner starred on the hit sitcom Taxi, but the great memories and wonderful co-stars are always on her mind because she's still pals with them -- they always stayed in touch with each other and never lost touch and do a Taxi Zoom every two months and they're all very current with each other and they have a text chain as well and they're in contact every week -- Marilu is close with cast members Tony Danza, Judd Hirsch, Danny DeVito, Christopher Lloyd and Carol Kane

Page 33: Garth Brooks is overjoyed wife Trisha Yearwood has finally bounced back from her bout with COVID-19 -- she seems to be 100 percent, according to Garth, and at the end there during fatigue she got real impatient, really kind of mean and sassy and he thought well, she's back to herself -- after announcing in February that Trisha had the coronavirus and Garth said he had tested negative

Page 40: The grass is always greener when you use these simple gardening tips

* Avoid cat-astrophe -- the right way to add a stray

Page 42: 10 things you never knew about Glenn Close -- the wildly successful actress turned 74 in March

Page 44: Eyes on the Stars -- Sylvester Stallone and wife Jennifer Flavin leave a Florida hotel (picture), Jane Seymour is still looking on the bright side even as the world continues to weather the pandemic, one year after the death of Kenny Rogers his family thanked fans as they honored his life, Sharon Stone is dishing dirt about her Hollywood past in her recently released memoir like one moviemaker who told her to have sex with a male co-star to improve their on-screen chemistry, 28-year-old twins Lady Amelia and Lady Eliza Spencer who are the nieces of Princess Diana recently stepped out in South Africa as bridesmaids for fellow high society girl Leila Osato, director Christopher Columbus pooh-poohed internet rumors about the existence of an NC-17 cut of Mrs. Doubtfire but he did confirm there's an unreleased R-rated version

Page 45: Good Morning America co-host Cecilia Vega mugs it up for the camera on the morning show (picture), Gretta Monahan gets out of a car (picture), longtime GMA veteran Robin Roberts displays her ever-present sunny side on the set (picture), the Hollywood Hills home of Johnny Depp recently had some uninvited guests when a man was spotted loitering by the property's pool but ran off after being confronted by a neighbor and not much later Johnny's security team called police about another unwanted visitor who had taken a shower and helped himself to the actor's booze, Elsa Pataky has been married to Chris Hemsworth for 10 years and says patience and communication and understanding are what help their relationship be successful

Page 46: A Texas man has helped thousands of people by donating his blood platelets a staggering 962 times over the past 37 years

Page 47: Celebrity Weddings Gone Wrong -- Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively, Cameron Diaz and Benji Madden, Nicky Hilton and James Rothschild, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend, Jessica Simpson and Eric Johnson, Freddie Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar, Katherine Heigl and Josh Kelley

[fredcilier]

winter wonderland → fredco

TAGGING → Freddie Facilier & Marco A. Dale (@marcoalandale)

TIMELINE → Christmas Break 2020

SETTING →  Sherwood Forest

SUMMARY → While home with Marco for the holidays, Freddie gets to see what a snowy paradise Sherwood Forest can sometimes be.

"Keep your eyes closed just a liiiiitle longer," Marco nearly sang, holding Freddie's hand as he guided her as gently as he could towards their destination. "We're almost there, I promise!" He wasn't usually the kind of guy who got nervous about anything, but being so close to Freddie was enough to make him a little jumpy. It was mostly in a good way though, with only a little bit of fear that he'd accidentally guide her into a tree or something worse and she'd regret coming home with him to Nottingham for the holidays. As he spotted the frozen river that cut through the Sherwood Forest in front of him with fluffy snow on the banks, though, those worries entirely floated away from his head like balloons that weren't tied to anything. There was no way the sight of all this wouldn't make her feel happy to be there. "Okay, okay, and nooooooooooow --" he held out the word as he stopped in his tracks, holding her hand still as they faced the prettiest part of the winter wonderland in the woods "-- open them!" Instead of looking out at the icy scene with her, Marco opted to look at her face instead, wanting to take in the look when she saw how gorgeous the area around them was. "Ta-da! As your Sherwood tour guide, it's my job to show you all the best parts of being here, and the frozen river? Is something I've always loved. It looks amazing AND the snow by here is the cleanest and best for snow angels or building snowmen. Or having snowball fights," he prattled on before nudging her with his elbow.

When Freddie had lied and said she'd been invited elsewhere this Christmas as a way of avoiding spending another year pining in the Bayou, she hadn't expected Marco to actually turn her lie into a truth by volunteering his home to her for the holidays. She wasn't complaining, though. His family was just as welcoming as the Dubois' had always been, and having a cute boy falling over himself to make sure she had a good time wasn't so bad, either. Still, she'd been staying a little aloof, not the type to trust people easily in the first place and definitely not wanting to go and open her heart to someone else just 'cause he was willing to take her in and make her feel special. Today was an exception, though. Closing her eyes, letting Marco lead her god knows where... it was the least she could do, and when he finally told her it was time to open her eyes, Freddie wasn't disappointed. "Damn," she breathed, glancing around at the frozen river and the fluffy white snowbanks surrounding it. "You sure this place is real and you didn't sell your soul to some witch to magic it into existence?" she asked him, arching an eyebrow. She vaguely processed that he'd said something about snowballs, and snow angels, and snowmen, but those things could wait. For now, Freddie just drank in the sight of it, eyes wide and lips slightly parted in awe.

Marco's smile grew even wider as he watched Freddie take in the view. He loved what he saw; there was something extra special about showing someone he cared so much about a place he cared so much about too. It was incredible in the first place that she was here at all, because truth be told, Marco had always had a soft spot for Freddie. She was so impressive, but more than that, she saw potential in other people too. She was cool and kind and smart and nice and when her smile met her eyes it felt like warm butter sliding down the toast of his heart. And right now, her eyes were full of wonder and it made him want to hug her and hold her and spin her around in the winter wonderland, but he hugged his arms around himself to hold back. "I'm pretty sure!" Marco laughed. "But heck, even if I did, this place is worth it, isn't it? It's like heaven on earth! I try to come down here every winter, sometimes just to sit here and look at it all. And the river is really fun to skate on too, if you dare!" He was talking about all the wonderful things there but all he could look at was Freddie.

After several years in Auradon, it always caught Freddie off guard, the way things could still surprise her. As she continued to gaze at the snowy wonderland before them, she couldn't help but think that she'd never seen anything like this before, and she appreciated that Marco had probably known that when he'd chosen to show it to her. "You right, can't imagine my friends on the other side making anything this pretty or peaceful. Think if you sold your soul for it, there'd be a few more strings attached," Freddie agreed, turning her attention from the snow to the guy beside her instead. He was a surprise to her, too. So sweet, and always seeming to want what was best for her. There was no hurdle she tossed at him that he didn't seem willing to jump, and she kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, for him to decide she wasn't worth all of that after all. It wasn't fair to him, really, the way she teased him and tested him, but after years of being hung up on Liam... She guessed she didn't even know what else to do with a genuinely nice guy, one who seemed like he might be the real deal. Freddie kept him at more of an arm's length than she should, and instead of letting that bother him, he still did things like this for her. "Skating, huh? Think I might like to try that, long as you don't mind me being too good at it," she joked, having to look away from his blinding smile before it made her feel too much. Instead, she stooped down and scooped up a ball of snow, deciding there was so much to do, but that patting it together and gently lobbing it at his chest was a good place to start. "Losing a skating race might hurt less than me whooping you at a snowball fight though," she laughed wickedly, already scooping up a second ball to hit him with.

Marco had never really thought about the friends on the other side that the Faciliers talked about -- how could he, when the friends he had on this side were so amazing? He wasn't sure he wanted to know about that other stuff anyway, it sounded almost scary. Still, he laughed at her comment and when she finally turned to look at him, he swore his heart jumped a whole beat. She was so pretty. So pretty and so funny and so here. Just seeing her in Sherwood was enough to make him feel melty all the time. "I love that you're good at things," Marco blurted when Freddie mentioned skating, and it was true. Thankfully, she hit him in the chest with a snowball before a full list of things he loved about Freddie spilled out of his mouth like a waterfall. He burst out laughing at the contact, his eyes widening in surprise. "Bring it on!" he giggled, scooping down to get his own snowball made. He padded as big a snowball as he could, and he ducked so that he could have a better chance of hitting her with it before getting hit again. He yelled out "For Sherwood!" as he tossed it at her, getting started on forming some more balls to lob at her. Snowball fights were one of the best parts of winter, and sharing it with Freddie was something he knew he'd never forget.

Sometimes, Freddie laughed off the way Marco talked to her like he was just joking, just being over the top as some kind of game. Other times, though, he looked at her like this, like she was something completely magnificent and like he really did think the world of her, and it stopped her completely in her tracks. How could someone so genuinely good and nice really be so into her ? It didn't compute, but damn, it didn't have to make sense to start doing things to her heart. "Nah, not just good, great," she retorted, her usual brash confidence hiding the fact that being around him when he was like this really did catch her off guard. "Wow, you taking me down for your whole home?" Freddie laughed, ducking out of the way of his onslaught. "I'mma beat you just for me," she shot back, eyeing his giant snowball with trepidation. If that shit hit her she'd end up cold, and she'd never been great at the cold thing... but it would be worth it, if she could catch him unaware. Leaving all but one of the small pile of snowballs she'd started accumulating lying on the ground, Freddie decided to take him by surprise, racing forward and trying to tackle him so that she could make damn sure to give him a face full of snow.

Marco had no doubt that Freddie would be great at snowball fights, because duh, she was good at everything, but he wasn't a slouch at this either. It was fun to laugh and tease each other but he wanted to put up a good fight; maybe then she would realize he was like one of those manly men she liked so much, and even if she didn't, a snowball fight was too much fun to half-ass. Still, even as he told himself to go hard on her, he packed the snowballs more loosely than if he was going against Cassie or Rachel or Robbie or Mary Kate or anyone else he'd grown up with. Freddie was just different. She always had been, and he'd known it since he met her and hadn't been able to look away. He'd expected her to start throwing her small pile of snowballs from a distance so when she raced at it, he was genuinely startled and an "ooph!" escaped him as he fell back, tripping on the snow and falling on his back. He giggled, despite being covered in snow and Freddie. "Truce, true," Marco laughed, looking up at her. "Are you okay?"

Freddie hadn't expected to actually manage to topple Marco over with her attack, but she grinned wickedly in her triumph, relishing in it for a moment until he started talking again, calling for a truce. "Wow, you gonna give up that easy?" she teased, trying to ignore the way that even though layers of snow-friendly clothes, she liked the way his body felt pressed up against hers like this. Was that all it was, though? Just his body? She didn't know, and it didn't seem fair to follow some kinda urge knowing that her stupid, traitorous heart was still hung up somewhere it didn't belong. "I'm more than good, I just won my first snowball fight'a the trip," Freddie taunted him, still not in any particular hurry to move. "You for real about that truce thing, or am I gonna get up just to get tossed right back down into the snow?" As she said it, a lightbulb went off in Freddie's head, and she said, "Actually..." as she rolled reluctantly off of Marco, flopping into the snow beside him and starting to wave her arms and legs around to make an angel.

Marco's face was lit up, both with adrenaline and with a blush that came from being so close to Freddie. He hadn't been expecting it, and it was so nice feeling someone on him and seeing her face just inches from his. He probably could've laid there like that for hours, until his body heat melted the snow beneath him and his jacket got all wet and useless and he got so chilly that he had a cold, and it would've all been worth it just to be so close to her and her smile. "I hadn't even thought about faking the truce," Marco admitted with a grin, "but thanks for the idea. I think we're good though, for now." He added that last part with a chuckle and then, sadly, she was off of him. A lump in his throat formed as the closeness was cut off but it was okay, because she was making snow angels and it looked too fun not to join in with; his arms and legs started going too, but his head stayed looking at her. "Your form is great! You never told me you were an expert snow angel maker," he smiled.

"'Course you didn't," Freddie laughed, shaking her head. Was there an ounce of badness in this boy's body? Or was everything about him just sweet and kind all the time? She'd never met anybody like him; even the supposed 'nice folks' of Auradon had their dark sides, their judgmental tendencies or their insecurities that made them lash out. And everybody on the Isle knew how to be mean, whether they were all the time or not. Marco was a breed of his own, though, and it made her wish that she could feel that tug towards him, that inescapable pull of her heart that had been drawing her to Liam for years now. She wanted it so bad, but she just wasn't there yet, and Freddie had to wonder if she ever would be. In the meantime, though, he was a hell of a friend, and he'd be fun to corrupt a little. Not now, though. Not in this snowy wonderland where everything felt so beautiful and peaceful. "And boy, you're not the only angel around here. I was born for this," Freddie laughed, spreading her wings gracefully again. She snuck a peek over at Marco, though, his smile infectious as he made a snow angel of his own. This might not be the guaranteed 'get over someone else quick' trip she'd hoped it would be, but it was making her feel safe, and appreciated, and welcomed, at a time of year when nobody should be alone. She could have stayed like this all break, but she knew there was more to do and more to see, so she flashed him another wicked grin and asked, "So you gonna keep letting me be better at alla this snow stuff than you, or is there something we're gonna do today that you're better at than me?" she quipped, knowing that whatever lay ahead was sure to be just as good.

[loverholland]

april 10, 1912. pp

summary: they said she was unsinkable. they said being on a ship that a prayer wasn’t set for was worrisome. maybe they were right.  words: 1.9k warning: none?? talk of religion, but its the 1910′s so... a/n: this is the beginning of a series. both gabi and soph read it for me and i spoke about it a little bit!  masterlist | upcoming | next chapter | teaser

Today’s the day. You were to board the fastest, largest, and unsinkable ship to ever lay on the earth. It was something extraordinary and you would be on it. You would be one of the first people to ever experience it.

You parents had spent 7 pounds sterling on your ticket, explaining that it was their gift to you for your birthday. You thanked them, of course, you did, why wouldn’t you? You didn’t want to live in Ireland anymore, but your whole family had heard how great America was and… You would be damned if you didn’t get to America and find a better life for yourself.

So, there you stood, in front of the Titanic, your luggage was in hand and your ticket sat between your fingers as you admired the ship. She was beautiful. Absolutely stunning, if you did say so yourself. She would take you to America and give you a new life, she would give you something you couldn’t get in Ireland.

“Third class passengers, board the ship now.” A man hollered from the top of the bow. You took a deep breath, bent at the knees and picked up the small luggage before taking a deep breath and turning to go towards where many others were standing.

You stood in line, bobbing up and down as you waited. You hummed a church tune as you watched as a few girls got their ticket checked before boarding the ship. They were giddy and you wondered if they were friends. You didn’t have any friends. At least not here. You were planning on writing each one of your friends a letter while on this ship and then sending it off as soon as you set foot in America.

“Ticket ma’am,” the man standing behind a railing said and you looked over at him, your eyes wide as you nodded quickly. You handed over the ticket and he looked over it before roughly stamping something on the ticket. You smiled and took it back, bowing your head slightly.

“Thank you! Thank you so much,” you thanked, and he waved his hand. You watched as some of the railings were pulled back to allow you access and you smiled at the young boy before stepping on. You looked around and couldn’t help but squeal to yourself out of excitement.

It was real. This was real and you would be leaving home. You really were leaving and now was no turning back because… here you were. On the greatest ship in the world.

You had spent a few hours in your cabin, becoming situated a bit with those who were rooming with you and where you all should put your things. They were all very nice. You were sharing with the room with two teen girls, they looked no older than 14 if anyone asked you, but they both were coming from Ireland as well. They both had pretty long red hair and dimpled cheeks. They talked a lot, mostly about how excited they were to come to America, but they would miss their family. And who wouldn’t?

Most Irish families you know have many children. Yours has 8 and another on the way, and from how the twins spoke, they had 9. Not counting them, of course.

The two also spoke about their religion, one that you related to. You often wore a Virgin Mary pendant around your neck and always carried one of your rosaries in your pocket that sat on the inside of your dress. It was very rare for you to even leave your home without those two things, and even as you packed your luggage, you threw in a few more rosaries and your bible that was blessed by the Father who preached at your church.

It made you feel safe.

You had three other mates who slept in the same room. They were all different shades of blonde and had freckles that were spread along their nose and cheeks. Two were Swedish and the other was Belgian. They seemed to be friends because they just whispered to one another, but they did tell you their names. Kate, Katelynn, and Katie. All K’s and all the same variations.

The twins were still speaking when you interrupted them.

“I’m sorry, girls.” You interrupted. “But what’s your name? You two never really told me.” You laughed and tilted your head to the side.

“Oh!” One of them squeaked. “I’m Mary!” The girl smiled and stood, putting her hand out for you to shake. And you did. She wore a tan dress with blue ribbons on it. “And that’s Helen!”

Helen waved with a large smile as Mary went and sat next to her. They both began to speak again, and you took a deep breath, pushing yourself back into the bed and grabbing the book you had laid on your pillow.

Before you had left, your sister found a way to get you a new book to read. It was Harriet, the Moses of Her People and from the first few pages, you knew it would be wonderful. You’re not sure how she got the book, she refused to tell you, so you wondered if perhaps she had stolen it.

You didn’t push for an answer, however. You just prayed that she would ask God for forgiveness.

You took a deep breath as the Triple K’s, as you called them, walked up to the end of your bed, looking at you. They were looking over the green book that sat in your hand, one of the girls said something aloud, but you didn’t say anything back.

“What’s that book?” One of them asked and you titled the book down so only your eyes showed. You raised your brows at them before speaking.

“Harriet, the Moses of Her People.”

“Oh,” another said, her voice was higher than the other and she had darker blonde hair. “We should’ve known that.” She said and looked over the girls.

“We would’ve known if we had proper schooling.” The brighter blonde said with an eye roll. “Up to year 3 did nothing for me. I’d be unstoppable if I had full schooling.”

Your eyebrows knitted and the medium blonde chuckled and shook her head, some hair falling in her eyes. “We wouldn’t have been able to even if we wanted to.”

“Why?” You asked and closed the book, sitting up and crossing your legs.

Each one of them looked at each other and then to you, and then at the twins who were in their own world. The darker haired girl spoke.

“My mother and father got ill and I dropped to help care for my family. We had a baby and I was the eldest, so it was my duty to help out and take care of the farm and provide.”

Then it was the medium haired girl.

“I was forced to leave my home, so I just never got back into school. There was an offer from family to get me back, but I never went.”

And then the bright-haired girl spoke up.

“My story is much or less the same as theirs. I was neighbors with Katie when her parents fell ill and so I dropped out to help her. The small one-room school wasn’t much of an ideal place to be for only a few hours. I preferred helping on the farm anyway.”

You nodded in understanding before leaning forward.

“I’m sorry for all of that. I can’t imagine having to do that. I hope all three of your families are doing better.” You smiled and tilted your head downward for a moment. You wiggled your nose a bit and looked back at them. “I don’t want to change the subject, but do you think there’s a dining hall for us? Because we should go ad see!”

The girls looked at one another as a large grin filled their cheeks. They nodded and you quickly got off of the bed before going to the two twins, kneeling in front of them.

“Get your best dresses, girls! We’re going on an adventure.” You giggled and grabbed your suitcase, opening and taking out a plaid skirt. You took off the top skirt, twisting it above your head as everyone quickly changed. You replaced the topper with the new skirt before buttoning the turtleneck lace top all the way up and pulling the pendant to sit in plain sight.

The twins were the first ones ready and then the other girls were ready. You six walked out of the room, Mary and Helen leading you down the hallway where they heard some people speaking about a dining hall.

“Have you three ever had plumbing?” You asked the Triple K’s and they shook their head. “What about heat? Oh, it’s wonderful isn’t it?” You questioned with a giggle and the three nodded in agreement.

“It’s wonderful to not be freezing!” Katie enthused. “Do you think they have that in America?” She asked in a gasp and you only giggled and took a few steps forward ad out of the square you had formed.

“If they don’t, I’ll be disappointed because it’s the land where dreams are made of!” You hummed and twirled a bit, keeping your back to the hall as you looked at the girls. “We’re all going to be rich women and we’ll rule the world!” you laughed before gasping when you ran into a figure.

You stumbled slightly before turning and looking at who you bumped into. The figure was a he and he was beautiful. He looked around your age and he was in an expensive suit. You only are guessing because you had never seen anything like that. Your lips parted as he looked down at your with his brown eyes, and his hand went to the cufflinks before smiling.

“Excuse me,” he said, and your eyebrows lifted.

“I-No! Excuse me, I bumped into you! I’m so sorry, sir!” You apologized and he shook his head, brown curls bouncing slightly.

“It’s quite alri-” he began but someone sat their hand on his shoulder, sighing as he looked over you and the other girls.

“Why don’t we go to the card room, Peter? We shouldn’t be in the presence of peasant girls.” The gray-haired, older man said. Peter looked conflicted before nodding and bowing his head before turning on his heels and leaving.

“Peasant?!” One of the girls, Katelynn, said. “What in the bloody fuck does that mean?” She asked with a curse.

“Language!” Kate responded and hit her arm.

“It means poor.” You explained, still mesmerized by the man you had just met. “It’s a sort of calling someone poor or farmer without saying the words. Someone called me it one day in class.” You explained and took a step forward, your arms sitting on top of your chest.

There was silence between you and the girls before the twins came back.

“We lost you guys!” Helen spoke in a puff.

“But we found the dining hall!” Mary laughed and took Helen's hand before running back towards the dinning hall. The Triple K’s laughed and squealed before rushing past you. You stood in your spot, looking at the figure that was about to disappear around a corner.

The girls had gone quite a way before finally noticing you weren’t following.

“Come on, Y/N!” Katie shouted and you looked at her, smiling and nodding before walking towards her, but you couldn’t help but think of Peter throughout the rest of the night.

[seven-oomen]

Ranch Lune Argentée | Chapter one

As a special little birthday treat to everyone who follows me on here, I will post this chapter here and I will probably update Once upon a time when I wake up in 8 hours or so. I’ve hit a point in both chapters that I can put both of these up for my birthday celebration. Once I finished this outlaw au I will start writing the Chris/Noah/Peter one unless this one doesn’t do well. I might start writing that one first. But for now, Enjoy and let me know if you enjoy this!

“Christopher, dinner’s ready!” He wiped the sweat of his brow and looked up to where his lovely wife was calling out to him from the homestead.

All-day long he’d been putting down more of the fence surrounding their land, expanding upon ranch lune argentée, and it showed. He was sweaty, dirty, and slightly sunburned from the hard work. But it would pay off in the end, it always did.

He stored the wooden beams underneath the canvas tarp that he kept around to keep them dry and headed over to the house, making sure to stop by the water basin to clean himself up before he went inside.

“Smells lovely, darling.” He pressed a kiss to Victoria’s cheek as he walked past her and took a seat at the dinner table.  

They had a decent life together, him and Vic. And a large part of that was because of her cunning mind and his family’s ranch. They had all they needed and with Victoria’s insights and investments they even had some spared for the future ahead. His father had called her a downright mastermind. He was inclined to agree.

“Thank you, dear, I see you managed to clean yourself up a little. Good. Wouldn’t do for you to smell like a pig at the dinner table.” Victoria said sharply, though he noticed the way her lips curled up just a little. Indicating her amusement.

“I’m glad to see you find my suffering amusing, darling.” He smiled, patiently waiting for her to help herself to the chicken and potato roast before making himself a plate.

“As if I don’t suffer every day with your little ideas and schemes. I told you to let the fences stay put. We don’t have enough farmhands to handle the daily chores right now, let alone to expand the ranch. But you don’t listen to me, now do you?” Victoria sighed, she was a tough woman, his wife. And she wouldn’t ever let him forget it.

Not that he wanted her to, he quite enjoyed her banter. “It’s going to pay off in the end, we’ll get more horses, more cows, a couple of chickens, geese, and sheep. We can really make something of this place.”

“Gonna have to get the hands first, don’t we? Or did you plan to get all that done by your lonesome?” She gave him a pointed look and dug into her food. “Never listens, heaven forbid.”

“I’ve been doing alright, so far. Made great progress.” He said, quieting down when he saw his wife’s glare. He dug back into his food with a soft, “Yes darling.”

Dinner went by in a quiet affair until he heard his wife get up whilst he was in the middle of assaulting his vegetables. She must have seen the way he pushed his carrots around his plate and how he hung his head. For he heard her sigh, pulling his chair back a little so she could sit on his lap and cup his face with her hand. “It’s not a terrible idea for the long run but for now it’s not what we need. We should focus on what we have and running that well before we expand. Get some more farmhands for the land too. It’s tough living already.”

He tilted his head back a little so he could look upon her fair complexion. Her stunning blue eyes stern but kind and her beautiful strong features framed by her short, flaming red hair gave her a stunning appearance that put fear in the hearts of all men. It was unusual for a woman to cut her hair that short in these times, but he quite liked it that way and there was no man or woman alive that dared to confront Victoria on anything. Let alone her wardrobe or hair choices. Not unless you had no wishes left for life.

“Why do you have to be so wise and reasonable?” He wondered what he would ever do without her, most likely he wouldn’t survive a single season. She kept him on the straight and narrow after all.

“Because one of us has to be.” She smiled, warm and loving before capturing his lips in a kiss. He hummed appreciatively and leaned into her, pulling her closer so he could roam his hands over her hidden muscles. She was a strong woman, both in mind and body. But she was also soft and sweet in his arms and melted into his touch.

He deepened their kiss, growling playfully as she nipped at his lips and moved her hand down his chest, over his abdomen, and slipped it into the waistband of his pants.

A heavy knock on the front door made her still her hand. His growl turning from playful to frustrated. “Goddammit… Think they’ll go away?”

Another hard knock answered that question. Vic slowly pulled her hand from him and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Better go see what they want before they break down that door.”

She stood up, went to the front door, and opened it just as he made himself presentable. A surprised “Gerard? Kate?” Sounded from the doorway and Vic beckoned him over.

He walked over, wrapping an arm around Victoria’s shoulders as he stood beside her. His father and sister stood on the other side of the door, some men behind them who were holding ropes tightly in their hands. “What’s going on? Who did you get?”

His father didn’t visit much, only when he caught another supernatural being that needed to be disposed of. That’s why he’d build the ranch originally. As a cover for what his family naturally did anyway for the last 120 years. Marie-Jeanne may have started their profession but his father was dead set on finishing it.

“One of the originals.” His father smiled, “A true-born, trying to escape the trap we laid for them. There’s a few more out there who escaped capture for now, but we’ll get them.”

“You bastard!” The beast snarled, half transformed due to the mistletoe oil-soaked ropes, “You murdered them! All of them including children! I’ll make you pay. I swear my vengeance will be sweet when I am freed.”

The beast’s words shocked him and as he glanced at his wife he could see her wide eyes and grim expression as well. The code forbids them from murdering the innocent, children, humans in a pack. We only hunt those that hunt us. And if his father and sister broke that code… The tribunal would not be merciful.

“What does that mean? Father, what did you do?” He met his father’s eyes in a long, hard stare, jaws set and eyes battling for dominance.

“What had to be done to exterminate them. We’ll get the last little ones too, don’t you worry.” Gerard gave his son and his daughter-in-law a hard stare before he acknowledged Victoria. “Make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid, sweetheart.”

He turned to the hunters behind him. “Lock it in the barn cage, I want him to watch as we hunt down his last family and kill them.”

Chris looked at his wife in shock, though he noticed she was thinking thoroughly about something. Judging by the little crow's feet in the corner of her eyes and the way her brows furrowed. She gave him the tiniest of nods after a moment or two and looked back to his father. “When you capture the little ones, bring them to me first. As Matriarch, I decide what shall be done.”

The other hunters paused and waited for his father and wife to come to a decision. They may listen to his father as the oldest living Argent, but his wife wasn’t wrong. She was the Argent Matriarch through marriage, after his mother had died two years prior, command of the Argent hunters had naturally gone to Victoria.

He saw the anger in his father’s eyes, the knowledge that he couldn’t openly defy Victoria or risk a tribunal for ignoring the chain of command. Though he did wonder what his wife’s game plan was here, his father had just openly admitted to breaking the code.

“Fine. We’ll bring them to you first.” His father finally conceded, knowing a losing battle when he was faced with one. He nodded to the beast they captured. “What about this one?”

“The cage in the barn will be sufficient to hold him,” Victoria said, sharing a brief look with him that said; We need to find out what happened to the wolf.

The hunters obliged, putting the snarling beast in the barn’s special cage before cutting him free of his ropes. Once the mistletoe wore off, the beast’s features changed back to those of a handsome young man. His brown hair was slightly singed and his soft curls a tangled mess. His eyes changed from Alpha red to stunning blue, certain anger and sadness apparent in them. What had they done to this young man and what had this man done to deserve his father’s treatment? Who had he killed?

His father then turned to Victoria, his eyes betraying the internal anger he felt but his expression and tone were pleasant enough. “This to your satisfaction, my dear?”

“It is. Thank you.” Victoria led them out, leaving him alone with the man in the cage.

[newtonsheffield]

Which of the four kids would most likely get in a fight at school, and how are Kathony at disciplining the kids?

Oooo I like this idea!

Surprisingly, given the level of dull chaos that Kate and Anthony’s house is always engulfed in, their children are actually very well behaved at school. Edmund is charming, and everyone loves him, teachers and students alike. Miles is quiet and a little shy outside of the company of his family. Mary is sharp as a tack, but so kind. Charlotte is known for being incredibly cheeky, she has an answers for absolutely everything, though she never causes any real problems until... the incident.

Anthony was having a very trying day already. He’d spilled his coffee, Einstein had ruined another of his shoes, he’d had a flat tyre, and he’d had to skip lunch. And then he got the phone call Mr Bridgerton I’m afraid there’s been an incident. The school’s receptionist had said. Anthony had been out of his office before the phone had even really been hung up tearing down the hallway yelling KAAAATE! He and Kate sat in the car in virtual silence. She’s really gone too far this time Kate. Were we too indulgent with her? Kate had sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, We don’t even know all the facts yet Anthony. Let’s just wait and see. They’d arrived at the school and found their 13 year old daughter sitting in the hall her legs dangling from the seat. Anthony had put on his firmest voice Charlotte Edwina Bridgerton, how dare you hit another child? I am so disappointed in you- Kate had put up her hand to silence him and the tears in her daughters eyes. Honey, we just want to know what happened. Charlotte’s eyes swam with tears again, she took a deep shuddering breath and wrapped her arms around her mother her voice muffled as she spoke There was this boy and he kept saying horrible things about Katie and then he touched her and the next thing I knew his nose was broken. Anthony felt rage flare in his chest. you broke a boys nose because he assaulted your cousin? Charlotte looked up nodding. Anthony wrapped his arms around his wife and daughter whispering, I have never been prouder of you. By the time the Bridgertons leave the Principal’s office the only person in tears is Mrs Frederickson.

Anthony thinks he is the firmer parent, and he usually is. But he’s also the first to cave most of the time, and honestly he falls into the role because he’s better at pretending to be stern. When their children are playing pranks, and getting into childhood squabbles Kate can barely keep it together. She has to bite her lip to keep from laughing while Anthony puts on his stern voice tossing his wife an exasperate voice Honestly Katharine. But when the children leave the room they know they’re not really in trouble because they can hear both their parent’s laughter echoing down the hall.

Thanks for dropping by!

[lovemesomerafael]

No One Else Chapter 7:  Into The Light

Source:  @dailypeterscanavino​

Chapters 1-6      Read it on AO3

“Go for help!”  Sonny shouts at Fin at the same time he reaches down to feel for a carotid pulse. Fin wastes no time; all but ignoring the potential hazards on the floor of the tunnel, he turns and sprints for the entrance, too far away to be more than a hazy gray spot in the distance.   The beam of his flashlight can be seen, bouncing with his stride and becoming smaller and dimmer as he runs back down the tunnel toward the emergency vehicles he knows are there.  At least one of them is an ambulance.

Sonny notices immediately that Kate is warm.  She’s alive.  Her pulse is slow, but it’s strong and steady.  He lowers his head to put his ear next to her mouth, and can hear her breathing and see her chest rise and fall slowly in the dusty light from his flashlight.

“Katie?  Baby, I need you to wake up.  Can you wake up for me?”

He can’t resist putting an arm behind her and pulling her to a semi-sitting position, her head resting on the crook of his elbow so that he can cradle her to him. He knows he probably shouldn’t be moving her, but he needs to hold her.  He needs to weep into her hair, and kiss her forehead, her cheek, her lips. She’s not responding, which he desperately wants her to do, but she’s alive.  He realizes he is smearing her blood all over his shirt and jacket as he clasps her to his chest, his lips pressed hard against her forehead and tears falling into her hair, rocking her and muttering a tearful prayer of thanks, and a further plea for her to be all right.  Later, he will laugh at himself for thinking of sex at this moment, but what he’s thinking is that he knows they’ve been committing adultery, and he promises God that he will marry Kate as soon as he possibly can.  In the privacy of his mind is the idea that this is somewhat of a negotiation – if God will save Kate, Sonny will stop sinning and enter into Holy Matrimony with her – and that Sonny really wins on both sides. He doesn’t worry about that.  God likes when lost lambs come back into the fold, so Sonny thinks He will be OK with the deal.

Besides which, Kate utters a tiny moan at that moment.  Sonny smooths a palm over her cheek and very lightly taps it with his fingers.  

“Kate?  Sweetheart, can you hear me?  Can you wake up for me?  Katie? Please, Baby.  I love you.  I love you so much.  I need you to wake up…”

He continues calling her as he cradles her in his arms, rocking her slightly and telling her how much he loves her, for what feels like forever.  In the distance, he sees a pair of headlights enter the tunnel, small but bright.  He can soon tell that it’s an ambulance, because it’s outlined in lights.  

“See that, Baby?  Help is coming.  I got you. You’re gonna be OK.  All right?  I love you. I got you.”

It seems to take hours for the lights to approach, the flashers making dizzying patterns on the walls of the tunnel.  He’s blinded by the headlights as it approaches, so he looks down at Kate and shields her eyes, although they are closed.  The ambulance drives just past them, and two paramedics, a man and a woman, jump out and begin to pull out equipment.  The rear doors open and Fin jumps out, then assists the female paramedic to pull the gurney from the back.  

Sonny stands, bending to keep his left arm behind Kate’s head and shoulders, and slides his other arm under her knees, lifting her in his arms to set her, as gently as he can, onto the gurney.  He doesn’t want to let her go, but the paramedics nudge him out of the way and begin to examine her.  There are bright lights on the rear of the ambulance for exactly this purpose, and they illuminate Kate’s dirty face and the blood smeared on the right side of her head and neck.  The male paramedic quickly slides a C-collar onto her neck, examining her head as he does.

“How bad is it?”  Sonny is practically hopping up and down with impatience and fear.

“I can’t see dick back here,” he says to his partner.  “Let’s get her inside where there’s better light.”

He and his partner secure Kate to the gurney with straps, moving with a rapidity born of frequent repetition.  While they do, Sonny removes the folding knife he always carries from his pocket and slits the zip ties on Kate’s wrists and ankles.  The others pretend not to hear what he mutters about Mary Duderon under his breath as he does.  It’s not very flattering.

The four of them quickly collapse the gurney and lift it into place in the back of the ambulance.  The male paramedic vaults in and sits beside Kate, speedily taking a set of vital signs and neurological checks, shining a light in and out of her eyes to check her pupil reflex.

“Vitals are a little low, but good.  Pupils are dilated, but reactive, so I’d say she’s got some heavy narcs on board.”

“Narcan?”  The female paramedic suggests.

“Not until I know what’s going on with that head wound.”  

“Sounds like she’s stable enough to transport, and it’s gonna take forever to back this thing outta here.  Why don’t you do your assessment and see what you can do for her while these officers guide us out?”

“Let’s do it.”

“I’m goin’ with her to the hospital,” Sonny says.  “That’s not negotiable.”

“Yeah, whatever,” the male paramedic shrugs, pulling the doors shut.  “We’ll pick you up once we’re clear of the tunnel.”

Sonny tries to be patient as he and Fin, walking on either side of the tunnel several feet behind the ambulance, use their flashlights and hand signals to guide the driver in backing out of the long, dark kiln.  The tunnel is wide enough that there’s a fair amount of room on either side, so that she can go faster than Sonny expected, but it’s still the pace of a slow walk, and to Sonny it feels like a crawl.  He reminds himself, time and again, that Kate is stable and is now getting medical help.  Since they’ve now found the woman they’re looking for, the other first responders come to the tunnel with their own flashlights and line the walls at intervals, which speeds up the process, but it still takes many minutes.

At long last, the ambulance clears the entrance to the tunnel kiln and turns around, stopping just long enough for Sonny to climb in and take a seat on the bench next to the male paramedic before driving out of the brickworks property. Once they reach the street, the siren starts and Sonny is relieved to feel them speeding toward the hospital and whatever help Kate needs.

 **************

Sonny objects when the ER staff stop him at the door of the treatment room into which they wheel Kate.  They’re used to the protests of loved ones in this situation, however, and he recognizes a hard no when he hears it.  So he’s pacing the waiting room when Fin arrives twenty minutes later.  

Fin’s clothes are smudged and smeared with dirt.  Sonny’s are, too, and he’s got a fair amount of blood on him, but he was on the ground with Kate.  He doesn’t understand why Fin’s so dirty.  

“What happened to you?”  Sonny asks, waving a hand to indicate Fin’s clothes.

Fin looks down at himself, the flashes Sonny an embarrassed grin.  “I, uh, got goin’ too fast when I was runnin’ out to get the bus.  Tripped over somethin’ and took a header.  Got me a nice souvenir.”  He points to a bloody, dirty scrape on his forehead that Sonny has been too preoccupied to notice until now.  “Your girlfriend better buy me a drink after this.”

His smile is reassuring, and Sonny manages a grin.  “Hell, I’ll buy you two.  Thanks, man.”

He claps Fin on the shoulder.  “So how much trouble am I in with whoever that white-shirt was back at the scene?”

Fin smiles wider.  “Let’s just say you’re lucky you don’t work for the NYPD anymore.  And you better hope your boss is a romantic, cuz he was already on the phone to her when I left.”

It’s another half hour before an Indian man in scrubs holds open one of the double doors to the treatment area and looks out.  He sees Fin’s shield around his neck and motions to him and Sonny. Sonny practically runs to him.  

“You here with Kate Kinsella?”  The doctor asks.

“Yeah.  Yeah, we are,” Sonny answers breathlessly.  In his eagerness to get information, he is standing a bit inside the doctor’s personal space, but the doctor is well used to that by now.  

“I’d have called your name, but I think she’s still a little muddled from the drugs.  She called you something like Greasy Homicide?”

Sonny laughs way too loud, while tears spring to his eyes.  He knows it would take too long to explain, and he doesn’t want to waste a second.  “She’s awake!”

“She is.  I’m Dr. Chowdhury, by the way.  She’s actually in pretty good shape.  Whoever abducted her tased her good, gave her a bit of a burn on the side of her chest, but it’ll be fine.  She’s also got a laceration on the back of her head, but however that happened, it wasn’t a hard enough hit to do any damage.  Head lacs bleed like crazy, so they often look worse than they are, and that’s the case here.”

“But she was unconscious!”

“She was, but not from the blow to the head.  She was drugged.  Toxicology’s not back yet, but if I was a betting man I’d say she got a heavy dose of Refliceine.”

“Which is?”  Fin asks.

“It’s a long-acting injectable narcotic.  You get a shot of that, you can be out for days.  Illegal as hell, for exactly that reason.  But it responds to narcotic antagonist medication.  I gave her a shot of Narcan, and she woke right up.”

“Can we see her?”

“Sure.  She’s been asking for you.  Right this way.”

Kate is sitting up on the gurney when Sonny and Fin reach the door of her treatment room.  Someone has toweled the worst of the blood from her hair, and her face and hands have been washed clean of the dirt from the tunnel.  The short sleeves of her hospital gown don’t cover the raw, red marks from the zip ties that had held her wrists, and a square white bandage shows low down on the right side of her head, but otherwise she looks unharmed. She breaks into a wide, bright smile as soon as she sees them.

“Hey, guys!”  She calls cheerfully.

Sonny rushes to her, leaning over the railings of the gurney to grasp her tightly. “Katie, it’s so good to see you awake! You have no idea.  I was so scared…  I love you so much…”

She puts her arms around him and pats him on the back.  “I love you, too, and I’m fine, Sonny.  I’m good.”

He sniffles as he squeezes her.  

“Hey,” she says, pushing on his arms a little.  “Look at me.”

He doesn’t let her go, but he loosens his arms enough that he can look into her face.

“I’m good,” she says with finality, smiling into his eyes.  “I can’t believe I let that fuckin’ troll get the drop on me, but other than that, I’m good.”

Sonny smiles through tears, but seems to be having trouble speaking.  

“OK?” Kate asks, tilting her head a bit as she peers at Sonny, willing him to understand that the danger is past.

“OK,” he chokes, standing up to wipe his eyes.  

Kate turns to Fin and holds out her arms.  “Hi, Fin.  I guess you must be my hero, huh?”

Fin hugs Kate as Sonny lets out a wounded, “Hey!”

Kate and Fin laugh and Kate keeps Fin’s hand in hers as she turns to Sonny and takes his hand, too.  

“Honestly?  I have almost no idea what happened.  I know the very beginning and the very end, and the doc tells me there’s a day in between, which I’m guessing musta sucked for you.  But I got nothin’.”

“Well, tell us the beginning, ‘cuz that’s the part we don’t know,” Fin says as he pulls a chair from against the wall to sit next to Kate’s gurney.  

“I got a pretty good idea,” Sonny growls, doing the same on the other side.

Kate scowls.  “Hensler dropped me off at my place.  I wanted to pick up a few things, and then I started walking toward your apartment,” she looks at Sonny.  “You know that alley between the pizza place and the grocery?  Where we found those kittens that time?  A kid comes out of that alley and tells me there’s some lady hurt in a car.  So I’m an idiot, I just walk right behind him toward this car parked a ways down the alley.  We get almost to the car, and I get zapped from behind.  Never even saw her.  The kid goes running, and there I am, laying there.  I can’t move, and I see Mary – well, her feet – and she leans over and pokes me with something.  I don’t know what it was, but I started to chill even before the taser wore off.  Then she just drags me over to her car and stuffs me in the back seat.  Bitch is stronger than she looks.  Anyway, she starts driving, and I was out.  That’s it.  That’s all I know, until I woke up here.”  

Sonny and Fin spend the next hour telling Kate everything that happened from the time Sonny realized she was missing until the time she awoke here in the ER.  Fin takes every opportunity to give her shit about sleeping through all the excitement, but Sonny’s not ready to make jokes yet.  Every once in a while, a nurse comes in to take Kate’s vitals and do neurological checks, but Kate insists she feels fine and begins to ask when she can go home.

After an hour, Fin says he has to go, gives Kate another hug, and heads for the door.

“Hey,” Sonny calls, standing up from his chair next to Kate’s gurney and going to Fin.  “Thank you. For everything.  I owe you bigtime.”  

They clasp hands and give eachother a one-armed hug, and Sonny’s expression makes clear how truly grateful he is.  

“Yeah, well don’t think you’re gettin’ out of buyin’ me those drinks. I’mma collect on that, believe me.” He points back at Kate.  “And you owe me, too.”

“Proud to.  Thanks again, Fin.”  Kate smiles at him as he leaves.  

Sonny returns to Kate’s bedside, and takes her hands into his.  He sighs deeply as he gazes at her.  “You scared me, Katie.”

“I know,” she replies softly.  “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.  It’s not that.  It’s just… It was hard.”

“I know, Sweetheart.  I’d have been a wreck if it was you.”  She pulls his hand to her lips and kisses it.  “Thank you for everything you did for me.  Thank you for holding it together.  I don’t think I could have.  Besides which, I gotta tell you, for a lawyer, you’re a hell of a detective.”

But Sonny is still not ready for jokes.  He’s also clearly going somewhere with this.  “Kate, you’re the best thing in my life.  I don’t think you know how much I love you.”

“You just gave me a pretty good demonstration.  And I love you, too.  I feel exactly the same way.”

“The thing is, I want us to be together.  I don’t wanna just date anymore.  I been thinkin’ for a while now that we should move in together.”

“We should.  Let’s,” Kate agrees happily.

Sonny’s a little frustrated.  Kate’s saying exactly what he wants to hear, that’s not the problem.  The problem is that this isn’t what he meant to say, or how he meant to say it, and he doesn’t know how to make Kate understand the enormity, or importance of his feelings.  

“No!” He blurts out.  “That’s not good enough.  Katie, I want to marry you.  Or, I want you to marry me.  I want us to get married.”

Sonny notices that Kate gives a little start before breaking into the widest and most beautiful smile Sonny has ever seen on her face, although he can see tears form in her eyes.  “I want to marry you, too,” she whispers.  

For a moment, they simply lock eyes and smile.  

“I’m gonna need a way better proposal than this, though,” Kate smirks.

Sonny’s radiant smile lights his face and the crinkles Kate so loves frame his blue, blue eyes.  “I can definitely manage a more romantic setting,” he laughs, then his voice takes on a more serious tone.  “As long as I know you’re gonna say yes.”

“I’m definitely gonna say yes,” Kate responds with equal sincerity.  

They are still kissing when Dr. Chowdhury comes in many minutes later, clearing his throat loudly.

“If you’re going to behave like that, I’m going to have to send you home,” he cracks.

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

Sonny is kneeling on the bathmat next to his tub, shampooing Kate’s hair as she sits in a hot bath.  It feels wonderful.  Sonny lives in an older building, with real porcelain bathtubs deep enough to soak in, and an apparently inexhaustible supply of hot water, and this is the second time he’s washed her hair.  He thinks he’ll get all the dirt and blood out this time, but he’s kind of enjoying this. He likes the feeling of taking care of Kate.  

Amanda Rollins is on speaker, explaining her questioning of Mary Duderon, and her reaction to Kate’s rescue.  

“She was actually having a hard time deciding whether to be proud of Carisi for finding her or being mad that she’d been found.  She eventually decided to just cry.  It’s kinda sad, actually.”

“No, it isn’t,” Sonny grumbles, scooping up water with a plastic beer pitcher and pouring it over Kate’s head to rinse her hair.  “It’s sick and it’s twisted.  She’s too smart to be sad.  She arranged it so Kate didn’t have a chance, and she could just drag her in the car and dump her out again.  That fuckin’ kiln, there’s no way Kate coulda gotten out, and she coulda screamed ‘til kingdom come and no one woulda ever heard her.”

“I wanna know where she got a hold of Refliceine,” Amanda comments.

“It’s not that hard,” Kate says, rubbing soapy water from her eyes.  “There’s a black market for any drug you want. That’s why I’ll always have a job.”

“Well, I’m just glad you’re OK,” Amanda says.

“Thanks to you.  I appreciate everything you did so much, Amanda.”

Sonny squirts a handful of conditioner from a bottle and begins to run his fingers through Kate’s hair.  She closes her eyes and smiles as he asks Amanda, “Hey, who caught this case for the DA?”

“Hadid recused herself, so Stone took it.  Which could prove interesting, given Mary’s propensity to go gaga over men who pay her the slightest bit of attention.”

Sonny’s laugh is slightly evil.  “Yeah, if he plays his cards right, she’ll plead to life without parole just to make him happy.”

“She’s looking at that anyway.  He’s throwin’ the book at her.  Apparently, he’s a fan of yours.”

“Yeah,” Sonny grins.  “We get along OK.”

“Is that Peter Stone?”  Kate asks.

“Yeah, you know him?”  Amanda answers.

“Seen him.  Seems like poetic justice, Mary getting prosecuted by man candy.”

“All right, well, I’m gonna get goin’ home, you guys,” Amanda says.  “Glad you’re safe and well, Kate.”

“Thank you again.  I owe you.”

Amanda hangs up and Sonny begins rinsing Kate’s hair again.  

“MMmmmm.  This is so nice, Sonny.  But you still have some of my blood on you.  Maybe you should come in here with me.”

“Nope.  Now that you’re clean, you’re getting out and I’m gonna dry your hair.  And then I’m gonna wrap you up in a blanket and put you in my bed.  After that, I’ll take a shower.”

“Sounds wonderful.  And then what?”

“And then I’m gonna unwrap you.”

[justanoutlawfic]

Life Unexpected: Chapt. 8

Summary: Emma’s side of the story of what happened that night with Bill and Katie is revealed. It brings up a triggering memory for one of her parents.

Trigger warning: Mentions of several forms of abuse in this chapter.

Also on AO3

3 Years Ago

 Emma stood in the kitchen, slicing the apples, while Max was picking the movie and Zack was on the phone with a friend. Katie had stepped out and would be back with the popcorn in a bit. It was quiet, for once. She didn’t necessarily like that, it was leaving her alone with her thoughts. Her social worker had told her that Katie and Bill had plans to adopt her. That was the last thing she wanted, but she knew that if she told the truth, it’d be another mark on her record. Emma learned a long time ago that telling about abuse reflected more on the foster child, than it did the foster parent. No one wanted to take in a girl that would squeal on them for their “punishments”.

 Besides, Katie was really great. She was the closest thing that Emma had to a mom in a long time. She did her hair and took her on little day trips. She had helped her get caught up in school and did all she could to make sure that she succeeded. Even Bill wasn’t so bad when he wasn’t physically touching Emma. He’d do anything she asked. To most, it looked like he was wrapped around her finger.

 No one knew that six weeks prior, he had climbed into her bed for the first time. She had one foster father that had been a bit handsy before, but it had mostly been lingering hugs or touching her cheek, which made her feel uncomfortable. Bill, on the other hand, said he wanted to take care of Emma. She was becoming a woman, she needed to know what men looked for.

 A chill ran down her spine. She had tried to put up a fight, but he had told her that no one would believe her. So, it kept happening. She thought if she picked fights in front of Katie, that it’d stop, but it never did. Instead, it seemed to only get worse and he was a lot rougher.

 Bill’s voice caused her to jump. “A nice healthy snack for the movie, eh?”

Emma stiffened a little, grabbing the second apple to chop. “Katie wanted it, since there’s going to be popcorn.”

He was walking closer, she could tell by his footsteps. “You know, you really should start calling us Mom and Dad. Betsy says that the adoption shouldn’t take too long to formalize.”

 His hands wrapped around her waist and Emma swallowed, hard, her hand shaking.

“The boys are in the other room,” she whispered, meekly.

“There’s never a wrong time for a lesson.” His cold hand started playing with the strings on her sweatpants. “Come on, Em. We all know you like it.”

“Stop it,” she said, unsure of where the firmness in the voice was coming. Maybe it was because she knew that he couldn’t hit her with the boys so close, but she was finally finding her voice. “I want you to leave me alone.”

“Oh, is that right?” He grabbed hold of her hair and put a hand over her mouth so she wouldn’t scream out in pain. “So, you need to be reminded of who the adult around here is, do you?”

 He turned her around by her hair and the next few moments were all a blur for Emma. She thrusted the knife forward and due to their height difference, it ended up in his stomach. He toppled backwards and Emma’s eyes widened, realizing what she had just done. He looked at her with wide eyes of his own, clearly unsure of what to say or do. He collapsed into a chair and Emma ran towards him, pulling the knife out.

 Two gasps came from the kitchen and she spun around to find her foster brothers standing there. Max started screaming and bolted from the room. Zack stared at Emma, looking at her as if he had seen a ghost.

 “What did you do?” He asked.

“I…I didn’t…”

“Call 9-1-1!” Bill barked at his son. “Make sure they know that Emma did it!”

 Emma wanted to argue, but she couldn’t. She had stabbed him. It all happened so fast, but she had indeed stabbed him. What if he died? Oh my God, forget finding a forever family, she was never going to see the light of day again.

 Zack disappeared from the room and Max’s screams could still be heard from the den. Emma just stood there, awestruck. Eventually, the front door opened and shut. Bill was doubled over in pain, the blood seeping through his grey polo. Katie walked in and looked between the two of them. Emma realized the knife was still in her hand and that blood was on her fingers.

 Bill’s blood.

 “Katie,” she whispered.

 But Katie wouldn’t look at her. She grabbed paper towels and began applying pressure to the wound. Bill filled her in on the situation, completing changing the story. It would be the same one he’d tell the police and the judge. He had come in the kitchen and asked Emma if she needed help with snacks. She flipped out on him and they got into a verbal altercation. When he grounded her, she stabbed him.

 Emma found herself unable to say a thing. She had dropped the knife, but stood in shock. It was as if she were watching a movie, everything was happening to her, rather than her doing anything about it. Another few minutes later, the sounds of sirens replaced Max’s screams. She heard footsteps and the wheeling of something. The paramedics assessed Bill before whisking him away. Katie chased after them, leaving Emma alone.

 That didn’t last very long. Before she could blink, an officer was in the room. “Emma Swan?” She asked.

Emma slowly nodded. “Yes.”

“Your foster brother told us that it was you that stabbed your foster father.”

“I…I…”

The officer looked at her blood stained hands and the matching knife nearby. “I’m going to advise that you wait for a court appointed attorney to show up. Miss Swan, please turn around.”

 The next few weeks were a total blur for Emma. She could barely remember being escorted to the squad car with all the neighbors watching. There was something vague about being brought to an interrogation room and another cop coming in. At one point, she asked about the attorney the first officer had promised her, but that was ignored. Eventually, she was signing a piece of paper that she didn’t quite understand. She had explained what she had done and why, but no one seemed to care about the latter. She was processed and brought to juvenile hall.

 It was cold, loud. There was a strip search that she did her best to block out. The food tasted disgusting and the girls made fun of her for being the youngest. A lot of it wouldn’t be what she’d remember for years to come. No, that was the trial. She sat before a judge and explained her side of the story. The true side. Bill and Kate stood, telling a bunch of lies. They said she was wild, constantly sneaking out and breaking curfew. Kate added that she had gotten physical with them in the past and they knew it was a matter of time.

 Just as Bill had once threatened, no one believed her.

 Emma was sentenced to 2 years in juvenile hall. She took the advice of her counselor and kept her head down. She didn’t talk to anyone unless absolutely necessary. She did her chores and went to her group therapy. The other girls teased her for being a kiss ass, but she avoided them, even if it got her beaten. It was almost as if she was desentized to all of it. She was going to serve her time and get out of it.

 One day as she walked the yard during the rec period, she heard the frantic sound of someone from behind her. She paused and found a frizzy haired brunette racing behind her, juggling a bunch of files.

 “Yes?” She asked.

“You’re Emma Swan, right?”

Emma gestured to her badge. “Yeah.”

“Astrid Rosa,” she stuck out her hand, nearly dropping her files in the process.

Emma hesitantly shook hands with her. “Are you my new counselor?”

“No, your new social worker. Your file came across my desk this morning and I was looking things over. I think we can get you out of here.”

“I still have another year and a half.”

“You’re supposed to, but it seems like they messed up when they were interviewing you. I read the transcripts of your interrogation and you ask for an attorney several times, but the officer dodged it.”

Emma shrugged. “So?”

“So, that’s illegal, Emma. You had every right to have legal counsel when you spoke to them. You’re also a minor, you cannot sign anything without an adult present, which I see they also had you do.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“All of this means that your case will be thrown out by a judge. The justice system unfortunately isn’t always perfect, but it does mean that you’re going to be out of here. I’m going to be lining up a new foster home for you within the coming weeks.”

 Emma stared at this woman as if she were her fairy godmother. Before, Betsy had made it seem like she’d transition from juvie to a high security group home. Here, Astrid was promising her a new foster home, a way out of this place. It took all she had not to throw her arms around her.

 Present Day

 Astrid was the first social worker that Emma could see actually try to fight for her. She knew others in the past had been overworked and done their best, but Betsy had barely done her due diligence when it came to finding her good homes. Astrid listened to Emma, she believed in her. She never lied to Emma and made sure she was aware that with her record, it’d be a challenge, but she always did her best. She even got Emma into counselling for what had been done to her. It wasn’t a magical fix, but it was a start to trying to forget everything.

 Then Mary Margaret just had to find out about her past.

 Emma wasn’t surprised that Katie had lied to Mary Margaret. If she had lied in front of a judge, why wouldn’t she before Emma’s mother? It wasn’t that, it was the fact that Mary Margaret had believed all of it without talking to her first. How had they even found out about her past? Astrid had promised to leave that out when she spoke to them.

 She knew that she could go to Lily or Elsa’s, but then she’d have to explain what happened and she didn’t want to talk about it. There was no doubt that Mary Margaret had told David, so he was out. In Boston, if Emma wanted to run away, it was easy. There were so many places to hide out. She knew the city very well.

 Storybrooke was smaller and yet, she knew nothing about it.

David pulled up in front of Mary Margaret’s apartment building, texting her that he was there. She raced out of the door just moments later, almost as if she had been waiting in the lobby. Mary Margaret slid into the passenger seat, practically slamming the door behind her.

 “She said she was going to Lily’s, so I called Mal Page, but she said she wasn’t there,” Mary Margaret explained, her voice sounding frantic. “I don’t know where else she would go.”

“I told Killian to text me if she shows up at my place. Maybe we should check my moms’?”

“That’d be a good idea.” Mary Margaret ran her fingers through her hair as David pulled away. “God, I was so fucking stupid.”

“Deep breaths. Just explain to me what happened a little better. You found out she has a record?”

“She spent 6 months in juvie for simple assault.”

David arched an eyebrow. That didn’t sound like Emma at all, but then again, he didn’t know her very well. “That doesn’t make much sense. Emma doesn’t seem violent.”

“I know. So I went to the victim’s house…”

“You did what?!?”

“I just needed answers. The woman there says that she and her husband fostered Emma for 6 months. One night, Emma stabbed the husband.”

“Did you try to talk to Emma about it?”

“Yes, but I didn’t go about it the right way. I was just so upset about her not coming to us about it and I flipped out a little.”

“And you didn’t think to call me about this?”

Mary Margaret looked over at him, her mouth dropping a bit. “David…”

“I’m her parent too, Mary Margaret. You don’t think I’d want to review the files and try to look into things? I’m a lawyer, I have more access to this stuff than you do,” he felt his body tensing up a bit. “I know you planned on being a single mom when you were pregnant, but you’re not. You can’t just find this stuff out and only call me when the shit hits the fan.”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to do that. My boss did a background check on her and I just went into Mama Bear mode, I didn’t even think to call you.” She cleared her throat, raising her voice a bit. “I should’ve though, I am so sorry.”

 An apology sounded weird coming from Mary Margaret. Heaven knew that David owed her enough of those for how he handled her pregnancy. She hadn’t done anything to hurt him. This was probably the first time he could think of her really screwing up. Sure, that probably wasn’t true, but it was a new side to her. A new, human side.

 “I understand,” he said, softening a bit. “I don’t know how I would’ve handled the whole thing either.”

“You seem to have better ideas than I do.” She was quiet for a minute. “The foster family seemed to be really close with Emma. She wrote them cards saying she loved them, there were so many family photos.”

“Those can be deceiving.” He remembered his own forced ones back before his father died. Robert screaming at them until they got the exact right pose in the Sears photo studio.

“True.” From the look on her face, Mary Margaret was thinking about her own past.

“Look, we don’t know where Emma went, but there’s not exactly a lot of trouble she could get into right now. How about I call her and tell her to meet us at my office? While we wait, I’ll look into this some more.”

“That’s not a bad idea.”

“You sound surprised.”

“I guess I’m still not used to this responsible David Nolan.”

 David winced, but didn’t say anything in response. A part of him knew he deserved that.

 A few minutes later, he pulled up in front of Spencer Law. He took his phone out and dialed Emma’s number. David wasn’t at all surprised when he got her voicemail after just two rings.

 “Emma, it’s David. Look, I know you’re upset right now, but you need to know that we’re not mad at you. We love you so much and we just want to talk it out. Please call us back and I’ll come get you or you can come to me. I’m at my office, Spencer Law. On the corner of Mansel and Redwood. Please, just call me back.”

 He hung up and lead Mary Margaret up the stairs to his office. Luckily, his uncle was away on business and there was no chance of running into him. He still hadn’t quite explained the Emma situation to him. Not because he was ashamed, but because he tried to tell Albert as little as possible about his personal life. Robert had been an abusive drunk, Albert was a controlling functional alcoholic. David longed for the day he could switch to a new firm, but at the moment, it was the job that was going to give him the most money. Considering he had a teenager to think of, there was no way he could quit then.

 David opened the door to his office and Mary Margaret followed him inside, pulling a chair besides his own so they could both look at the computer. She spotted a picture of Emma on the desk and softly smiled.

 “I already have one in my dressing room, too,” she said.

“It just seems like the parent thing to do,” David replied as he logged in.

 He went through his different resources and soon was able to obtain the transcripts from Emma’s trial. He read through Bill and Katie’s statements first, before moving onto Emma’s. The story she laid out made both his stomach turn and his muscles tighten. He didn’t even notice Mary Margaret’s reaction, he was just so sick to his stomach at the thought of what Bill had done to his little girl.

 “That man doesn’t deserve to be alive, let alone walking free,” he growled.

 A part of him wanted to ask Mary Margaret for the address and track this SOB down, but the lawyer in him told him that it wasn’t going to help Emma. He knew that even if Emma had been found guilty, that at the very least, Bill wouldn’t be permitted to foster anymore. At the very least, he wouldn’t be able to hurt another foster child. It was just a shame that he had his biological children in his custody. David didn’t know if he abused them too, but if Katie was willing to lie for him over Emma, there was a chance that she’d never stand up for her own children. He also knew that she was potentially a victim of domestic violence herself.

 How could he not have stuck by Mary Margaret’s side? Then Emma never would’ve ended up in such a situation. Rationally, he knew that it wasn’t his fault. He hadn’t been the one to hurt her and most foster parents were good people. Bill should’ve known better. Even so, as her father, David felt the urge to protect her and he had ultimately failed.

 He looked down at Mary Margaret and saw the tears that were streaming down her face, her hand was clapped over her mouth. David touched her arm and she pulled away, jumping up. She ran to the corner of the room, hyperventilating. It took a minute for him to realize that she was having a panic attack. James had them occasionally after the accident. His therapist had taught David and Ruth how to help him through them. David knew that every person was different, but it was worth a shot.

 David didn’t touch her, instead, he stood next to her. “Mary Margaret, I need you to start doing jumping jacks.” She looked up at him as if he were on drugs. “I know it sounds crazy, just do it.” Her hyperventilating continued and he shook his head. “Just trust me.”

 Eventually, Mary Margaret started doing them. She looked so confused in the beginning, then slowly but surely her breathing became even again. She lowered herself down the wall and he crouched in front of her.

 “How did you learn that?” She asked, tears still falling.

“My mom and I learned to help my brother. He has PTSD from an accident.” David waved that off, this wasn’t about James. “Clearly there’s something going on with you.”

“I just found out my daughter was assaulted.”

“So did I, and it didn’t make me have a panic attack. There’s more going on there, Mare.”

“I didn’t realize you became a therapist.”

“No, but I’m a lawyer. It’s my job to read people.”

Mary Margaret tipped her head back. “I put her with a family that wasn’t supposed to hurt her. They were good people. No record. They weren’t going to hurt her.”

“And they didn’t. You couldn’t predict what they’d do, nor that she’d end up with that asshole.”

“She wasn’t supposed to end up like me!”

 David’s eyes widened. Was she saying…no. Leopold was an asshole and he had hurt Mary Margaret when she got pregnant, but he just assumed it was in the heat of the moment. She hadn’t…no…

 “What is that supposed to mean?” He asked, softly.

Mary Margaret’s lips trembled. “My dad would beat me and Regina. It was really, really bad. When she left, he got mad, because I had helped her. He told me…he told me that I had to make up for that…” She covered her face with her hands.

 David’s muscles hadn’t untensed from when he read about Emma, but now they felt as though they were going to pop out of his sockets. He sunk completely to the floor and he pulled her into his arms. She collapsed, allowing herself to sob into his shoulder. He cradled the back of her head, kissing the top of her head.

“You didn’t deserve that, Mary Margaret,” he whispered. “You definitely didn’t.”

 She didn’t respond, she just clung to him. David rest his chin atop her dark pixie cut. As his glassy eyes looked out to his office, he saw Emma standing there. Her backpack was dropped to the ground by her feet and she looked as shocked as he felt.

 This probably wasn’t how Mary Margaret had expected Emma to find out about this.