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thirdwifeofriversong · 11 months

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going back through some old notes on my phone and found my unfiltered original reactions to volumes 1 & 2 of stranger things 4… (spoilers below the break)

VOL 1

- HOLY FUCK EPISODE SEVEN

- did NOT see that reveal coming

- The ends of eps 4 and 7 are fucking amazing

- NANCY!!! Not sure how she’ll fare, not looking good obvs, (and I did originally think she’d die, but I hope not ofc) but I love the callback to the pool and Barb

- This is Dustin’s season lol

- Joyce Hop and Murray better fucking get out of that prison- their reunion was heartbreaking, but I also was like RUN don’t do another bob

- About Vecna/001/Creel son… so his powers/the killings weren’t related to the upside down until El imprisoned him there… so the upside down existed already but El opened the gate to put 001 through and that was the beginning of the contact with our world?… also how did Brenner try to replicate 001? Heard some disturbing theories about sperm donation but that’s super fucked up so I’m not sure how but I hope they explain? Also how did he get his powers in the first place? Finally what amazing casting

- Never thought I’d be rooting for Steve and Nancy lol but I guess maturity happens

- Erica is the fucking best

- The 001 reveal was fantastic. Jaw on the floor.

- Why does 001 care for 011 more than the others? Seen theories that she’s his kid but???

- Relationship between 001 and the mind flayer?

- MAX omg that scene was AMAZING on all levels and her ACTING

- Also why was Brenner using 001 as a guard?? Doesn’t make sense?

- Cool how they synced Nancy and El understanding 001’s story

- I only want good things for Hopper

- Also Murray’s karate is 10/10. Comic gold

- I’m a bit done with the torture. I like my characters problems to be fictional thanks.

- Look forward to seeing the CA gang appear again

- Also Joyce and Murray have no fucking idea what’s going on… and like Joyce just leaves her kids?

- Okay El needs nice things and WHAT THE FUCK OWENS WORKING WITH BRENNER REALLY?!! El didn’t need that. She needs so much love and friends and therapy and trauma informed everything bc OMG.

- Not a fan of Archie and the jock vigilantes

- Rude to prey on people with trauma. Guess Vecna is just a psychopath?

- AHHHHHH

- again how did the kids get their powers and how did they take it from 001 and how did 001 get it in the first place?

- Nice that 001 and the mind flayer got along so well

- Also can will get some fucking character development? Please? Like I know he has a crush on mike but more than that pls because it’s been since s2 that he had a true arc (except that great acting scene in s3)

- Suzie is everyone’s Queen. Bow before her

- Eddie and argyle are great new characters

- El needs so much love

- You can’t let anything happen to Hop or Joyce or Murray

- Wait also I forgot about the time travel thing

- WAIT A SECOND the painting Will’s painting it’s got to be of Mike because he LOVES HIM

VOL 2

- ALDHRKWHDLDHAKDHSJSJHSJAJAH

- My BABY EDDIE NOOOOO

- MAX?!?!?!!! No MAX !!!!!! Like I assume they would’ve just killed her if she wasn’t going to come back, but she seems brain dead and the duffers said she was? So? I hope they do bring her back bc it would’ve made sense to fully kill her if she wasn’t? Also El has fucking Lazarus powers too?! Damn girl

- My BABY GAY WILL you need a HUG and I’m so glad you got one but you also need to talk about shit and just say it out loud

- Good job Jonathan you aren’t completely useless

- WHAT A FUCKING ENDING

- EL AND HOP MY HEART

- DAMN that was a good ending- saw it coming but they did it really well

- And they really did seem like they’d just kill off everyone for a minute

- Murray, Yuri, and Antonov?? My bois? Where they at?

- Still gotta resolve Owens

- Also the fucking Russian and US governments are looking for them wtf

- Not looking good

- BUT AT LEAST THEYRE TOGETHER

- love the Hawkins at the center of it all

- FOUR GATES HOLY FUCK

- the vecna el max scene holy SHIT

- also did we not finish the Jason plot line?! Wtf happened after that? Somebody gotta keep this man in line bc he went full murder there (edit apparently he did die whoops I was distracted)

- And poor Lucas!! My baby is gonna have so much trauma!!

- And Dustin… sweet little confident dude gonna be so sad

- Fucking will ending the season touching the back of his neck I CAN FEEL HIM of course you fucking can will

- The LINE

- Hop and Joyce!!! Finally!!!

- Also like please let Karen be an actual character with agency she’s been here for four seasons on the sidelines but like please… my dude…. Please write her some character development… and fuck Ted

- The fucking love triangle with Nancy isn’t resolved

- We love Steve (in general)

- Robin and band girl seem nice…. Like a z plot but at least she might get a nice thing? Would be nice if we knew more about band girl

- Want to know if Henry/vecna is El’s father? More about that connection? Also how he got his powers to begin with? Is the upside down just an accidental bump into our universe bc El or is it related to the powers? Would it have kept going?

- Also fucking Odyssey with Henry

- the FUCKING METAL CONCERT WITH THE DEMOBATS THAT WAS THE BEST SHIT EVER

- and hop with the sword?!

- The soviets rlly did just go this seems like a good idea let’s BREED FUCKING DEMOGORGONS fuckers

- Glad they’re out of the ussr

- That ending shot wow

- I CRIED with Dustin and mr munson omg that was so fucking sad

- Also where was max’s mom in the hospital??

- Max omg baby needs nice things

- Aghhhhh

- The CAPTIONS

#if anyone wants to read my unfiltered thoughts like 20 seconds after finishing episodes 7 and 9 #stranger things #stranger things 4 #stranger things spoilers #stranger things season 4 #stranger things 4 spoilers

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meganlpie · 2 years

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Hi! I'm Atlas and I would like a ship please, if that's okay.

Fandoms: Hobbit/LotR, Once Upon a Time, Ouran (platonic Ouran only pls I am ancient and they are in high school lol)

I'm 21, a 5'4" non-binary cosmologist (that means I do hair, and can do nails/facials/any above the shoulders hygiene or spa things/nails; it’s not the study of the cosmos haha I get asked that so much you wouldn’t believe). Hobbies are poetry, painting, reading, and learning both psychology and languages. I have short dark green bob with an undercut that I cut and dye myself, I'm a Libra, INFJ, and enneagram 4. Love language is quality time/Physical Touch. I have and Adore my 1 year old puppy. I also love to cook, especially spicy food. I’m omnisexual so any gender is good to ship me with (you don’t have to pick both a male and a female for every fandom tho).

Also-not related to the ship thing but I absolutely love your writing! Your writing style is really lovely and you've been the writer of Several of my comfort fics (which is a lot because I have less than 10, across every site I read on). I hope you and your family are doing well! I’ve always really admired you. Blessings from my home to yours💙

Thank you so much, Atlas! This was super sweet to read!

(Ancient, you say?? Stares in almost 32 😂)

I ship you with:

Arwen! Arwen is bada$$ and we love her for it! She's the extrovert(as extroverted as elves can be) to your introvert. And of course, being an elf, Arwen has had time to pursue many different hobbies such as art and music as well as swordfighting. She absolutely encourages your hobbies and will listen to your poetry for hours on end. While most of her kind aren't big on physical touch, Arwen will do whatever is necessary to make you feel loved.

I ship you with:

Archie Hopper/Jiminy! Jiminy will be there for you, no matter your needs. He understands how the mind works and sort of just...knows when you need time together or when you simply need him to hold your hand. He loves that Pongo has a new companion in your puppy and the two of you often take the dogs on walks together.

I ship you with (platonically):

Tamaki Suoh! This guy is your very best friend. Tamaki is a generous guy who bends over backwards for the people he cares about. He's also the most overly dramatic young man you've ever met, but that's part of the reason you get along so well. Tamaki has the ability to see past any guard you put up and knows when it's okay for him to be out there and when he needs to be more subdued for you. Also, he knows EVERYBODY and will happily encourage(see: use his puppy dog eyes) his clients to become clients for your business.

#shippingmondays #arwen #archie hopper #tamaki suoh

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ghostofbambifanfiction · 2 years

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Would you say ur ST character ranking has changed after volume 2?

Yea indeedy!

1) Steve

2) Max

3) Dustin

4) Lucas

5) Robin

6) Nancy

7) Eleven

8) Hopper

9) Joyce

10) Erica

11) Eddie

12) Murray

13) Argyle

14) Mike

15) Will

16) Karen Wheeler

17) Dr Owens

HUGE GAP here between characters I like and characters I can't fucking stand

18) Vecna

19) Brenner

20) Jonathan

21) Youth Pastor Archie Andrews

22) Mike's Dad

23) ANGELA

#Sarah talks Stranger Things

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undercaffinatednightmare · 3 years

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Death on the Nile

Part 1 of The Great Detective

https://archiveofourown.org/works/37010083

In a London flat, two people danced, pressed as tightly as they could get to each other. Late summer rain brought blessed relief from the oppressive heat outside, but the heat between the couple was just starting to ignite.

“You’re engaged?” Eloise tried to prevent her disappointment showing. Emma Nolan was one of her oldest friends. “That’s wonderful news, darling! We should celebrate.”

Emma pulled her hand back with a wistful smile. “Simon is such a dear, but terribly old fashioned, you know. We would be married now if it weren’t for him. He lost his job as a reporter and simply refuses to have the ceremony until he has a job again.”

“I’m sure it’s out of care for you.” She consoled. Emma was too proud to ask for help. Even in school, she wanted to do everything herself. “Tell you what, I’m looking for an estate manager. Bring your Simon around and we’ll see if he’s up for the job.”

“El, you can’t be serious?” Emma took a step back. “That’s too much. You must promise you’ll sack him if he doesn’t do well. I couldn’t bear to put you out.”

Eloise laughed at her friend’s dramatics. “If I don’t like the look of him, I won’t even offer the position. You worry too much, darling. I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t mean it.”

Archie Hopper descended the stairs to the restaurant. Glittering people danced around the ballroom in the center as people seated around the edges leaned into one another to give their judgements upon the couples. Marco’s was one of his favorite restaurants in London. The food could not be matched.

“Archibald!” An elderly man embraced him tightly. “So glad you could come tonight. I have your favorite table ready. Come, come.” He led him around the swirling couples to a table. “You’re not here to arrest one of my customers are you?”

He laughed and patted his friend on the arm. “No no no. Tonight I’m here for the pleasure of your menu, I promise. As of tonight, I’m on holiday.”

Marco’s son August had been involved in a murder investigation years back. Archie’s work with Scotland Yard was the only reason the young man had been found innocent. The only thing August was guilty of was poor judgement and theft. Still, the case brought him a friend in Marco.

“For you, my friend.” Marco gestured to the table. “I have a few people to greet and I’ll be back to ask about your holiday.”

Archie glanced up at a young couple dancing. The young woman’s face was glowing with love and happiness. As they turned, he saw the gentleman’s face was just as enraptured with her. It made him happy to see a couple so equal in their adoration of one another. Too often he saw one party more attached to another. This couple however was the essence of love itself.

“Ah, the lovely Emma Nolan. Stunning, yes?” Marco smiled. His friend as quite the romantic. He was certain if Marco was 10 years younger, he’d give that young man a run for his money.

“And very much in love.” He smiled. The world was so full of darkness, he enjoyed seeing something so pure.

“Look, there’s the famous detective.” Someone whispered to his left. “What is his name?”

“Archibald Hopper.” Her companion replied.

The couple at the next table was an unlikely pair. The woman sat in a cloud of smoke and entitlement as her companion, a far younger man offered her more champagne. The man’s eyes stayed focused on the pearls dripping from her. Such a contrast to the couple dancing with nothing but love in their eyes.

A rich voice began singing A Kiss to Build a Dream on and his attention shifted to the stage. Not only did Marco serve the finest food in London, but he also attracted the talent of the world’s finest musicians. Ursula Otterbourne was the best jazz singer of the day. Though he’d known her back before her marriage. Ursula Mariner was no less enchanting in their youth.

Her dark eyes sparkled when she caught him watching her. Archie felt his face burn under her gaze. Her green dress flowed smoothly around her as she moved about the stage.

As dinner continued, he took note of the couples seated nearby. The woman with the pearls was dancing with a different man, the one he assumed was an assistant. Although Archie could see how attached he was to her. The young couple were ignoring the world around them as young lovers often did. Another voice broke through his reverie.

“Mr. Hopper?” A woman stopped at his table and rested her hands on her jeweled walking stick. He rose quickly from his seat and watched a little perplexed as her assistant brought a chair and she sat down. “I’m Maleficent Van Schuyler.”

“Oh, won’t you please join-“ he began.

“Miss French is my nurse. She’ll sit over there.” Mrs. Van Schuyler waved vaguely behind her. “And make sure that silly man brings my order over here. I can’t stand when my food gets cold.”

Miss French nodded and murmured a quiet affirmation before hurrying back the direction they’d come from. “Sweet girl. Completely dependent on me, of course. Her parents died of that awful influenza outbreak. Belle needed an occupation until she can find a suitable husband and I agreed. No knowledge of anything not in a book though.”

“Then it’s quite fortunate she found you, ma’am.” He acknowledged with a polite smile. Mrs. Van Schuyler was of the belief that class and money made your benevolence worthy of such polite noises. Personally, he hoped Belle found someone who didn’t feel threatened by her intelligence.

The room seemed to still as a new young woman entered. She was wearing a gold silk dress that seemed made for American film stars. “Eloise Gardner.” His dinner companion said in a low voice. She just inherited quite the fortune. Her father was one of those American millionaires. Nouveau riche as my mother would say.”

“Eloise!” The happy young woman rushed to greet her. “My dearest El, you must meet Simon.” She gushed and took her friend’s hand.

Miss Gardner made the right noises of protest, but Archie could tell she wasn’t opposed to the scheme at all. Especially when she gazed at the man standing to greet her. He bowed over her hand and kissed her knuckles.

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Emma speaks very highly of you.” Simon said as he scratched behind his ear nervously. Archie noticed the tips of his ears going red as he blushed.

“The pleasure is mine, Mr. Doyle.” Eloise Gardner smiled at him. “And congratulations are in order. Emma is such a dear. You’re quite lucky.”

Simon smiled brighter and kissed Emma’s knuckles. “The luckiest.”

A new song began and Simon tried to convince his fiancée to dance with him. “Darling, please…” He pled.

“Why don’t I dance with you?” Miss Gardner suggested in an innocent tone. “After all, I hate to leave you on the dance floor alone. And anyway, Emma never did get the hang of this one,

For one moment, Simon Doyle’s jaw clenched and something besides innocence and love flashed in his blue eyes. But in a blink it was gone as if it never happened. “Oh, Simon, it’s alright. Eloise is such a beautiful dancer, I’m sure I should only make a fool of myself.”

Before Simon could agree or disagree, Miss Gardner swept him off to the dance floor with her. Whispers erupted about how lovely they looked together. No one in the room that night could miss the electricity that seemed to come alive as the pair danced.

Archie felt a terrible storm was about to send hearts shattering across the rocks.

—————

Tag list:

@kmomof4 @teamhook @ilovemesomekillianjones @earanemith

#captain swan au

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intothewickedwood · 4 years

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hiiii! top 5 ouat characters + top 5 ouat seasons :) 💫✨🧡🤗

Thank you for the asks! I’m not sure if you got my last ask about your fave seasons and episodes but let me know if you didn’t recieve it and I can send again if you would like :D!

Top 20 Ouat Characters

Did this recently, so gonna do top 10 for funsies xD! And also I got very carried away. Explanations for top 5: https://intothewickedwood.tumblr.com/post/634530746567180288/13-who-are-your-top-five-favorite-characters

1. Alice Jones / Tilly

2. Zelena

3. Snow White / Mary Margaret Blanchard

4. Prince Charming / David Nolan

5. Emma Swan

6. Henry Mills

He’s an awesome kid. I especially likes him in season one where he had a bit of a cheeky side and I loved his boundless belief and felt so sorry for him. I love his relationships with all his family

7. Princess Abigail / Kathryn Nolan

I just love her to bits. She deserved so much better and I just want her to be happy dammit! She’s so sweet and went out of her way to help David find his true love in the EF and to try to let them know that they had her blessing in SB. Loved her friendship with David and Regina/ It still breaks my heart that Regina betrayed her! I wish we got more of her!

8. The Mad Hatter / Jefferson

I love how creepy and twisted he is in his introductory episode. He gave me the shivers and I felt so scared for Emma and MM. He’s a unique take on the Mad Hatter and I have to say my favourite. I love that he’s a single dad who’s primary motivations are to be back with and care for his daughter. Warms my heart!

9. Princess Anna

What can I say? I love Frozen and surprisingly I prefer Anna to Elsa in Ouat, which is strange because it’s the opposite for the Frozen movies. I just love her quirkiness. I love that she just blurts out whatever’s on her mind. I love how much she loves and cares for her sister and I think she’s adorable.

10. Robin Mills / Margot

I love her. She’s one half of my second favourite ship and I think she’s awesome. I love how much she loves and cares for Alice /Tilly and I love her relationships with her mum and auntie. I only wish we got more of her

11. Red Riding Hood / Ruby Lucas

The twist in Red-Handed will forever be my favourite of the show! I love that she’s a wolf person/ werewolf?/ lycan? I think it’s so cool learning about the lore of her people and I love stories in which a character can’t control their powers. You can than X-Men for that. I just love her in general! Her friendship with Sow is so great! They would do anything for eachother! She has a big heart and just wants the best for her family and friends that she sees as family

12. Cora Mills

I love her messed up relationships with her daughters. I think she’s a great villain both in the past and present. She’s so wonderfully manipulative. I think she’s amazing and I’m glad she’s not my mum.

13. Peter Pan

He was such a great, unique take on the character. He was creepy as hell and evil for the sake of being evil. Loved the twist that he was Rumple’s Dad. It was a great arc. He was terrifying. I would not want to be in his presence.

14. Pinocchio / August W. Booth

I love him. I know he has shady ways and has done some bad things but I love how mysterious he is, especially in season one. I love his friendship with Emma and I think he’s very wise. Wooden Swan battles to be my otp for Emma.

15. Graham Humbert

Okay, I have a huge crush but also I love how much of a dork he is. He was so important to Emma’s story. I miss him. Gremma is probably my otp. I wish we got more of him.

16. Jiminy Cricket / Archie Hopper

He’s just so kind and caring. I want him to be my therapist! He always wants the best for people, no matter what they’ve done. I love his friendship with Henry and I just wanna wrap Archie up and put him in my bag. Basically I wanna kidnap him.

17. Aurora

I love her development. I’m a big fan of the movie ‘Sleeping Beauty’ and was so happy when she joined the show. Her relationships with Mulan and Phillip were amazing and they will forever be my number one ot3! She became so brave and was so unbelievably helpful to complete strangers! She has a great heart.

18. Wish Realm Captain Hook / Rogers

He’s a freaking great father and deserved so much better. He deserved to be their to watch his daughter, who is his entire world, grow up. He would do anything, even die for her and it makes my wanna cry. Knightrook is my favourite familial relationship on the show. Even when cursed, he knew he had to protect her.

19. Mother Gothel / Eloise Gardener

I’m gonna get killed for this but I just think she’s a great villain. She makes me genuinely hate her, which I can’t say for many other villains in the show. But she is so irredemably evil in the show and an amazing villain in fics. She hurt my favourite character Alice so deeply but it makes for amazing angst. And I love a character who plays mind games.

20. Elsa

Again, big fan of Frozen. I love how gay she is for Emma and I love her sisterly bond with Anna so freaking much. They would do anthing for eachother. Her magic is so cool to watch! I love her!

Top 5 Ouat Seasons

1. Season One

2. Season Three

3. Season Seven

4. Season Four

5. Season Two

Explanations here: https://intothewickedwood.tumblr.com/post/627077185253048320/ouat-40-day-challenge

#ouat #once upon a time #henry mills #jefferson #elsa #peter pan #princess anna #ruby lucas #asks #emmaswcns #long post #flash warning #ask game #am*

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me-myself-and-my-fos · 4 years

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Kids and Cookies

Pairing: Archie Hopper x Nicole Blake

Word Count: 2.3k

Summary: Nic throws a cookie decorating event at the bakery and Archie volunteers to assist her, but unexpected feelings rise that make her think twice about her best friend

A/N: This takes place during the dark curse but before Emma arrives. Special thanks to K and my best friend @the-hufflepuff-dramatist for helping me with this

Tags: @astralshipper @widogastsbf @heavenshipped @dancing-with-skeletons

The front door to the bakery opened and closed, the bell dinging to signal that someone walked in. Nic poked her head out of the kitchen, smiling when she saw Archie enter. She came out of the kitchen, tray of sugar cookies in hand. The bakery had tables and chairs set up, an unusual sight for her place which normally was bare of the sort. She placed the tray on the counter and walked over to Archie, smiling wide.

“Archie! I’m glad you made it!” She hugged him.

“I wouldn’t miss this, I promised to help,” he told her, hugging back. Nic pulled away and grabbed the spare apron she had sitting on a table. It was a simple white apron with “Blake Bakery” written on the front in dark blue calligraphy.

“But first you need to get rid of the jacket,” she said, tugging on the blue sleeve of his suit jacket. Archie pulled off the jacket with a laugh as Nic continued. “And the tie,” she said, handing the apron to Archie. Carefully she started to undo his tie, glancing up at him as she pulled it over his head. Their eyes met and deep blushes covered both of their faces. Archie looked away and cleared his throat, grip on the apron tightening. “Put on the apron and we can uh… start to set up.”

“Will do,” he nodded and pulled on the apron, tying behind him. Nic took his jacket and tie to the back where her office was before getting piping bags of icing and bowls of sprinkles.

As she set the bowls and piping bags and containers of edible glitter on the tables that were covered in cloths, Archie took some more trays of sugar cookies. He put plates of cookies at the center of the four tables and helped get the rest of the cookie decorations. Nic started to melt some chocolate, putting food coloring in the white chocolate to make different colors for the children to dip the cookies in as Archie put the sign out to show the cookie decorating workshop was occurring. As the time grew closer to 10 am, when the bakery was opening specifically for the workshop, Nic bounced on her heels as she put together the finishing touches.

“You’re excited.” Archie observed with a chuckle, taking as much of a drink from his cup of water as he could before the impending assault of divided attention for the next five hours.

“I’ve been planning this for months, of course I’m excited!” Nic said, changing the sign to say ‘open’.

While they waited for children to arrive with parents, Nic slipped back into the kitchen to put a new tray of sugar cookies into the oven. The door opened as the sound of children squealing with excitement and parents greeting Dr. Hopper filled the air, and Nic entered into the front. The children’s faces lit up when they saw Nic. She loved giving a free cookie out to little ones whose families that come into the bakery or simply just talking to the kids as she filled the order. Decorating cookies made the children even more excited to see her.

“Who’s ready to decorate some cookies?” Nic asked, and the room of kids erupted in cheers. After getting the children to settle down a bit, she explained the different things the children could do to decorate their cookies. The kids took their seats at the various tables, parents kneeling beside them or standing behind as they watched and in some ways assisted their children with the decorating.

Nic was thankful she put down tablecloths because it wasn’t long before the tables became sticky messes from icing and edible glitter scattered everywhere, some kids picking up the edible markers to draw on cookies. She and Archie went from table to table, helping the kids with decorating, complimenting their decorations, or just talking to them. Every once in a while when Archie wasn’t looking, Nic would sneak a glance at him and a soft smile would appear on her face. She loved seeing Archie interact with the kids, she loved how great he was with them.

As these thoughts entered her mind while she was knelt next to a table, helping a 5 year old with the edible glitter, a voice called her from across the room. She was lucky to have heard it, and she stood, walking towards the source: the mother of a 6 year old who sat in her chair shyly. Nic smiled as she walked over.

“Hi, how’s everything going?” Nic asked, looking over 2 of the 3 cookies that had already been decorated. One was covered in white icing and pink glitter with yellow star sprinkles, while the second has a poorly drawn flower on it with the markers, but Nic thought it was perfect work from the young child.

“Everything is great, thank you for this.” The mother smiled. She put her hand on the dark hair of her daughter and ruffled it a bit. “Hazel wanted to dip her cookie in some of that colored chocolate you mentioned earlier?”

“Oh!” Nic nodded, grinning widely. “That is very doable! We’ll need the cookie, of course.” She smiled at Hazel. “Come on, let’s go to the chocolate.” Hazel looked back at her mother who nodded, and she stood from her seat to follow Nic to the counter. There was a small heater on the counter accompanied with bowls of different colored chocolate. “So what color do you want your cookie to be?”

“Um…” Hazel thought for a moment. “Blue!”

“Blue? Okay!” Nic put the bowl of blue chocolate on the heater, making sure it was melted enough to dip the cookie in. “That’s an amazing choice. Is blue your favorite color?” Hazel nodded excitedly. “Blue is my favorite color too,” Nic told her.

As she asked Hazel how she wanted her cookie dipped into the chocolate, Archie couldn’t help but let his eyes drift to Nic. He smiled, admiring how much the kids loved her as a few started lining up to get their cookies dipped in chocolate as well. Hazel watched as her cookie was gently dipped face down in the blue chocolate, the excess dripping before Nic handed it to her. Hazel rushed off back to her mother to decorate the cookie before the chocolate hardened. Archie watched for a few moments as Nic helped dip the cookies of the excited children into various colors of chocolate.

This was how the next few hours went. Children left with their box of 3 decorated cookies, the space was cleaned a bit, and a new family came in. Nic and Archie saw all sorts of creative decorations from kids, no two cookies looking the same. One child had drawn the sun and sky on their cookie, another child attempting to make a dragon on their cookie. It was endearing, and Nic was happy to see all of the kids having fun. Every so often she’d rush into the back to get more chocolate or glitter or icing, sometimes to pull a tray of sugar cookies from the oven and put a new one in. Archie continued to remind Nic that he was there to help her, and it wasn’t long before he would be going off to the back to get things for the children as well.

Nic and Archie waved as the last of the children left with their parents, clutching their boxes of cookies excitedly. Some families even bought goodies from the bakery, not that Nic minded since it was her income. The kids left, and Nic quickly flipped the sign to say ‘closed’. She let out a sigh, happy to finally have a moment of quiet. It was early in the afternoon, only 3:30pm. The bakery was opened only for the 6 hours the kids would be decorating cookies, so she was closing up shop early. Archie smiled at her, and Nic let out a small laugh at the mess that was her bakery.

“I better start cleaning up. Thank you for helping, Archie.” She smiled, beginning to pick up piping bags of icing and capping the glitter and collecting bowls of sprinkles.

“I wanted to help, this was fun,” he told her softly. “And I’ll stay to help clean up. It’s not a problem.”

Nic collected a few bowls of sprinkles in her arms and smiled. “Thank you, though. I appreciate this.”

Any spare sugar cookies were going to be sold the next day, and the rest of the dough put in the fridge for Nic to bake. The tables were relatively clean because of the table cloths, but the chairs and floors were not. The next hour or so, Nic and Archie cleaned icing, glitter, chocolate, etc. off the floors and chairs. Many plastic knives were thrown away, and Nic smiled as she scrubbed away the chocolate that was hardened on her counter. She couldn’t stop thinking about how wonderful Archie was with the kids. How happy he looked encouraging them and hearing their little rambles.

“You were really great with the kids,” she told him quietly. Archie opened his mouth to respond when she blurted out: “You’d make a great father.”

A deep blush began to creep up Archie’s neck and cheeks when she said that. The broom he held in his hands went clattering to the floor as he dropped it, quickly picking it up. “Um, thank you. That’s–That’s really sweet of you to say.” He cleared his throat, almost avoiding eye contact with her. “It’s really sweet that you did this for the kids. I know they love it.”

She smiled at him and shrugged a little. “I just thought it would be nice to do. I wanted to make the kids happy. I like seeing them happy.”

A soft smile was stuck on his features as she spoke. She looked so happy to be doing this with and for the kids. “You’re really good with them too. I can tell the kids love you and what you do for them.”

Nic blushed slightly at his comment and shrugged it off. “The kids are great. I just want them to be happy.” It was now that she finally realized how close Archie had gotten to the counter, and that she was scrubbing a clean counter.

“It’s so sweet you care about them so much.” He told her. “You’ll be great when you have your own.”

She laughed a little, hiding her blush with her hair as she looked down for a moment. “Thank you. It would be nice to have some once I find the right person.”

“I hope you find them some day.” He said.

She wiped her hands off and cleaned them, Archie following suit. They removed their aprons, and Archie went to the office to retrieve his jacket and tie. He pulled on his jacket as he walked into the front of the bakery. Nic stood there with a box in her hands as she put cookies into the box. Not just any cookies, though. They were his favorite; white chocolate chip oatmeal cookies. She handed the box to him and it took a moment for Archie to find his words.

“Oh Nic, you don’t have to do this.” He told her.

“I wanted to thank you for your work today. I appreciate everything you did,” she smiled.

Archie shook his head and laughed. Nic was stubborn, and he loved her baking. How could he say no? “Alright, thank you for the cookies.” Nic followed him to the door.

“Again, thank you for everything, cupcake.” She leaned up and pressed a kiss to his cheek. Both of their faces were bright red, but neither seemed to notice the other’s blush. “Have a nice night, Archie.”

He gave her a bashful smile. “You too, Nic. Have a good night.” He said. Archie lingered for a moment, not wanting to leave just yet. He wanted to spend more time with her, even though they were both exhausted. Then he got an idea. “Um, Nic?” He called.

She paused on her way to the kitchen, looking back at Archie. “Yes?”

“Would you mind if I walked you out?” He asked, almost afraid she’d say no.

The deepest blush Nic has ever had was suddenly on her cheeks. She stumbled over her words. “Oh, uh… you–you can walk me to my car. But only if you want to!”

“I’d love to walk you to your car,” he told her. He waited by the door as Nic rushed to her office, grabbing the things she needed to bring home, including the dirty aprons. When she had grabbed everything, she met Archie back at the front door and they left. After she locked the bakery, Archie held out an arm for her. Without hesitation she took it, and the pair walked in silence to where her car was parked.

When they arrived at the car, Archie felt a little sad as she let go of his arm, knowing this meant he wouldn’t get to see her until the next day. She gave him a wide smile. “Thank you for everything. You did more than enough today.”

He grinned. “It was my pleasure. I’m more than happy to spend time with you and help you when you need it.”

She took a deep breath. “Night, Archie.”

“Goodnight, Nic.” He said, heading towards his own car down the street by his office.

Nic quickly unlocked the door and got into her car, and once the door was shut she let out a squeal. She hid her face in her hands for a moment, the events of the afternoon and Archie’s words ringing in her head. She peeked over to the side and watched as he walked away.

#my conscience #otp: happily ever after #mywriting #self insert community #self ship #self shipping #self insert #self insert fic #self shipping community #self ship community #tw long post #long post tw #long post #queue and me forever

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peacehopeandrats · 4 years

Text

Awake - Chapter 10

Fandom: Once Upon a Time (TV), Awake (TV)

Rating: Mature

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Belle/Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold

Additional Tags: Awake (TV) - Freeform, Angst, Grief/Mourning, Family, Crime, Storybrooke (Once Upon a Time), Hyperion Heights (Once Upon a Time)

Summary: Detective Weaver works for the Seattle P.D and lives with his son, Gideon. Together the two are slowly coming to terms with the loss of Belle, Weaver's wife and Gideon's mother. In therapy Weaver confesses to experiencing some strange sleeping patterns. He goes to bed at night and closes his eyes, but opens them to find himself in a different home... one he shares with Belle.

Mister Gold owns a pawn shop and lives with his wife, Belle. Together the two are slowly coming to terms with the loss of their son, Gideon. In therapy Gold confesses to experiencing some strange sleeping patterns. He goes to bed at night and closes his eyes, but opens them to find himself in a different home... one he shares with Gideon.

This story borrows the plot concept from the TV show Awake (staring Jason Isaacs) and adapts it to Once Upon a Time, but is NOT a crossover. (More on this in the notes.)

Chapter 10

The moment the ice pack touched Gold’s bare skin he released a hiss that rivaled the escape of air from a tire.

“Sorry,” Belle almost whimpered at him. Her fingers tenderly eased the cold lump onto his chest, then trailed a lingering touch over the opposite half of his body. He watched her eyes drift slowly downward and knew they were following the path of her caresses.

Gold didn’t need to look at where she touched him to understand what she was doing. He’d seen the beginnings of the red splotches on his skin, knew how large they were and what a rainbow of color they would be producing in a matter of days. There wasn’t any point in denying his pain, so he chose to embrace it. Putting on his most cocky grin, he allowed a tiny chuckle to get her attention. “You know, when I heard I was getting home care from my own private nurse, I did envision her dress code to be a bit more…” He pretended to play around with vocabulary, then gestured at his exposed chest with a raised eyebrow. “Equal to my own.”

“Mister Gold!” His wife let out a giggle as she tried to escape his outstretched hand, nearly falling backwards onto the living room floor in the process. “What is it about this situation that has you so fixated on intimacy?”

“There is something very sensual about being cared for,” he told her, voice soft and suggestive.

Read more on AO3

Read previous chapters on AO3

#Rumbelle #Angst #grief/mourning #family #crime #storybrooke #hyperion heights

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crisisoninfintefandoms · 3 years

Text

FANFIC FIRST LINES MEME

Oh boy, I was tagged by @cosmictuesdays, and I suck at linking usernames with writing and knowing who hasn’t or hasn’t done a meme yet, so if you see this on your dash and you haven’t done this yet CONSIDER YOURSELF TAGGED!!

OPENING LINES: List the first lines of your last 8 stories (if you have less than 8, just list them all!). See if there are any patterns. Choose your favorite opening line. Then tag 10 authors! or whatever!

I wasn’t sure whether to count a “series” of fic as all one thing, or a bunch of separate things, but ultimately decided with the former cause I think it gives a little more variety in the fics, and also makes the first lines actual absolute first lines, as opposed to anything picking up form where something else left off, if that makes sense, idk.

(on another note, I haven’t written or posted anything in a long as while, and it’s been a hot minute since I’ve even looked at my old stuff either, so this is gonna be interesting since I can’t really remember anything about anything lmao)

1: from Torment of Tantalus, Hannibal, Hannigram, rated E for Explicit

“Hannibal hadn’t touched him since they’d dragged themselves out of the ocean and into Chiyoh’s boat.”

2: from The Kiss, Hannibal, Hannigram, rated T for Teen

““You once claimed to have changed me.””

3: from Dormire et Excitare/”The Infinitives Series”, Hannibal, Hannigram, rated E for Explicit

“Lately, Will had started thinking about sex with Hannibal.”

4: from You Are My Heart (Else I Would Cut You Out), hooboy I’d practically forgotten about this one Hannibal, Hannigram, rated E for Explicit like really no srsly read the warning on this one before reading

“There was no music but the clinking of cutlery.”

5: from Hands and Feet/“The Hands and Feet Verse”, Thor (movies), Loki/Thor, rated M for mature and E for Explicit this is another heavy warning one

““Get my belt and bring it here.””

6: from I'll Show You Mine, You Show Me Yours, Once Upon A Time, Archie Hopper/Mr Gold, rated E for Explicit

““I’m not…quite sure I understand what you’re proposing,” Gold said, brow creasing.”

7: from Camping, Star Trek TOS, Kirk/Spock, rated E for Explicit this one is actually probably one of my oldest fics from back in the day that I later uploaded to AO3, but I’m going in by order of posting there so here it is

““Camping?””

8: from Pushing Your Luck, Stargate Universe, Rush/Young, rated E for Explicit

“It didn’t start with dreams.”

AAAND the other part of this is supposed to be looking for patterns which, hoo boy, asking me to look at my own work without tearing it apart is a near Herculean task, but I’ll do my best.

One thing I notice is there’s a bit of a tendency to jump right into things--a good number of them just start with dialogue, others are very quick mood/scene setters, and even the more “reflexive” or past oriented ones are kinda, idk, “this is what’s happening/this is what the character is thinking about RIGHT NOW (and what the story is gonna be about)” kinda deals. A lot of them feel actually kinda weird or abrupt to me, especially taken out of context? And, being generous, I think it’s cause I tend to put something very abrupt or that might not make much sense at first right up top, and then later in the next few paragraphs or pages back track a bit and give a bit more context. But I don’t really like to set up that context FIRST cause, idk, without that first bit it feels boring to me? Or maybe I’m just impatient, lol.

Actually, now that I really think about it, while some of these might not show this on their own out of context, looking at them all together, and knowing what comes after, I’m realizing that nearly all of these are straight up Stating the Problem. Hannibal won’t touch Will and Will is bothered by this. Hannibal and Will have to come to terms with the profundity of how they have affected each other and what that means. Will is plagued by thoughts of Sexy Lecter and Sex With Sexy Lecter and has Complicated Feelings about this. Will and Hannibal aren’t talking at dinner because Reasons. Thor and Loki’s dad is an abusive asshole. Archie is trying to do a thing and Gold is Confused and maybe a little concerned frightened. Jim wants to go camping, and Spock doesn’t because Reasons. Rush is...well Rush is having a whole bunch of issues and upsetting dreams are just the start of that whole mess. Basically, the problem is stated, or at least strongly alluded to, then initially the problem is elaborated and/or expanded upon, and then the rest of the fic is resolving and/or making the problem worse. Basically. (And that makes it sound kinda fancy but let’s be real, a lot of the time the “problem” is “a person has complicated feelings and hangups about sex they wanna have” and “resolving the problem” is “they get over it and just fuck”, so let’s not have any pretentions here lol)

Anyway, that’s my best stab at it, I’d of course love to hear what anyone else might have to say about it, but for now, there we are! Whatever that’s worth to ya’!

#crisis'memes #fanfic things #tag posts #now that I'm somewhat aware I think I'm gonna be tempted to try not to do this so much in the future lol #which...may or may not be a good thing? idk

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timelordthirteen · 5 years

Text

Killing Time 21/35

Detective Weaver/Belle French, Explicit

Summary: A Woven Beauty Law & Order-ish AU. Written for Writer’s Month 2019.

Chapter Summary: Belle and Weaver start working their new lead, and relationship status, with some surprising results.

Notes: This was a rough one to get out and I'm sorry it took so long. Here on out there will be two parallel plots: Belle's recovery and relationship with Weaver, and solving the murder of Eloise Gardener. Warnings in this chapter for discussion of PTSD, Belle's attack, and mention of her miscarriage.

Warnings: Miscarriage reference and discussion in some chapters. Please see AO3 for complete warnings and tags.

[AO3] Previous: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20]

The room smelled like paper and tea, a comforting and warm contrast to the steady rain that was falling outside.

Belle pressed her hands over the front of her skirt and looked around the office of Dr. Archibald Hopper. There was a leather sofa flanked by two bookcases with a set of three black and white prints in thick black frames hanging above it. The shelves were arranged with a mix of artistic pieces and leather bound volumes of medical and legal books, looking so perfectly put together that combined with the rest of the room it all had less the feel of Archie, her friend and colleague, and more last month’s Pottery Barn catalog.

“Nice office,” she said finally.

Archie smiled and took a seat in the high backed leather chair across from her. “Thanks. It beats the south wing of the hospital.”

She laughed lightly, recalling the rather dilapidated old patient rooms that had once made up a sizable bed tower and part of the original hospital where Archie had once worked. While the rest of the building was expanded and renovated over the decades, the south wing had been largely ignored and converted into office space for those who didn’t rate mid century modern credenzas and floor to ceiling glass that overlooked the bay.

“Yeah, it definitely does,” she agreed, glancing around the room. “You’ve certainly moved up in the world.”

“It was those excessive bonuses the city paid me for all the consulting hours you demanded.”

His lips curved, and Belle shook her head. “Yes, well, good to know my budget overages were well spent.”

They shared a laugh, and then Dr. Hopper shifted in his seat, mentally moving from friend and colleague to therapist with no more than an adjustment of his body and the picking up of his pen.

“I’m assuming that what brought you here wasn’t a desire to reminisce about the city's lack of funding for prosecution experts.”

Belle looked down at her hands. “How did you ever guess?”

Archie flashed her a weak smile, and let out a breath. “Belle, I know what happened to you - not the details, of course, but enough - and I know that it’s policy to have a psychological review before returning to work. However -”

“That’s not what this is,” she interrupted. “I mean, yeah, I’ll probably need you to fill out the official form at some point, but I’m already back at work.”

Hopper frowned slightly. “I see.”

Belle glanced up. “Midas knows me well enough to know that I feel better being back at work than taking two weeks of leave.”

“And how do you feel being back at work so soon?”

She gave him a look. “Fine. We’re making some progress on, um, the body that was found in the community garden.”

“Then why are you here?”

“Because -” she paused and licked her lips, spreading her hands over her thighs as her palms started to feel clammy. “Because it’s when I’m not at work that, um, that I don’t think I’m fine.”

He nodded and made some kind of mark on his pad. “What makes you think that you aren’t fine?”

Her head rolled back against the sofa as she blew out a breath between her lips. “Is this how it works? You just turn my answers into questions?”

“How else would you like it to work?”

Belle’s head lifted, her eyebrow arching. “Ha ha.”

Archie smirked and then made another mark on his notepad before setting it aside. “Look, this is like any other doctor’s appointment, right? You have to tell me your symptoms, as it were, so I know what’s going on and where to start. Right?” She nodded, and he continued, “So, what’s been going on?”

“Oh, you know, the usual,” she said, leaning forward to lean her elbows on her knees. “Got attacked by a serial killer in my own apartment, stabbed him in the leg, and now...”

“Now...what?” Hopper coaxed.

She sighed. “I can’t sleep unless my ex-husband is with me. I keep sort of - reliving what happened, but the memories are - are weird. I feel...I don’t know, like tired but jittery all the time? I only feel okay when I’m at work, when I can focus on the case, focus on doing something about what happened, you know?”

She left out that the only other times she seemed to feel normal was when she was playing house with her ex, eating, sleeping, and fucking like nothing had happened in the last two years, like they hadn’t made a mess of everything.

Archie raised his eyebrows when she mentioned Weaver, and folded his hands. “So, you and Detective Weaver are...?”

She shrugged and straightened. “I don’t know what we are. I stayed with him while my apartment was a crime season, but it’s been cleaned and released. I just haven’t gone back. I haven’t wanted to, I guess.”

“Okay, let’s, um, let’s park the relationship stuff for now,” he said. “Tell me - tell me about your memory of what happened. When does it come to you? What do you recall?”

“Usually when I’m alone,” she replied. “Day or night, doesn’t matter. It’s flashes, mostly, feelings. Cold from his - his leather jacket, pressing against my back. I was told that he’d been hiding out on the balcony, waiting until - until I got home.”

Archie swallowed and crossed his arms. “And?”

“Heat,” she continued. “Like my face is flushed, but it’s - it’s from, uh -

She lifted her hair at the front, exposing the red line where her skin was still healing even weeks later. “He hit me and it, um, made it hard to see. Everything was - was red.”

Dr. Hopper pressed his lips together, his eyes narrowing as her hair dropped back over the wound. “You said that your memories were off. Could you tell me more about that?”

She held his gaze for a long moment, as she bit her lip. His eyes softened and the corner of his mouth curved slightly as he gave her a brief nod. The room started to feel too warm, and she leaned forward to take a sip of the water he’d set out for her.

“It’s strange,” Belle said finally, sitting back against the cool leather. Her hands fidgeted with the ring on her right hand. “Remembering, I mean. It’s like - it’s like I’m outside of myself, but not - not in any kind of weird out of body experience way, more like... I don’t know. I don’t know how to describe it.”

Dr. Hopper gave her a small smile and nodded. “Try. Tell me one thing at a time, and take as long as you need.”

She sighed. “I feel - heavy. Like I can’t move my arms or legs no matter how much I want to. There's pressure too, in my head. It’s kinda like a sinus headache, but without being stuffed up at all, if that makes any sense.”

“It does.” Then he shifted in his chair and crossed his legs. “Does your heart rate increase or is it hard to breathe?”

Belle shook her head. “No, nothing like that. I just have this strange feeling, and there’s a flash of light. Then I look down and - and there’s -”

Hopper’s head tilted. “What? What do you see?”

She breathed in and out through her nose as her eyes fixed on the glint of the light as she twisted the white gold band of her ring back and forth. It was a square sapphire in a pale blue color, about a half carat in size. Weaver had given it to her for their first anniversary. She’d worn it nearly every day while they were together, but as soon as she left the divorce attorney’s office, it had been relegated to a small wooden box at the back of her dresser drawer where she kept some of her mother’s old jewelry. The first night they’d retrieved her things from her apartment, she’d grabbed it without thinking as she was rummaging for some socks.

“Belle, what do you see?” Dr. Hopper repeated.

Belle swallowed and looked up, meeting his eyes. “Blood.”

Hopper nodded, pressing his lips together again as his pen tapped against the pad next to him. It was an action she’d seen from him often when he’d consulted on a case, usually when he was thinking through his response to a question.

“Yours or - or his?”

“Both,” she said quickly, the hitch in his voice making hers waver as well.

He gave her a sympathetic look and took a breath before he asked his next question. “And, um, where is the blood?”

She breathed out again, slowly and took another swallow of water. “On my hands.” She set the drink down and looked down at her palms, blinking a few times as the image of the red, dripping stains flashed into her mind. “My blouse. The counter. The floor.”

Then she took another breath. “And sometimes it’s um -”

Dr. Hopper’s head tilted. “It’s what?”

Belle blinked hard. “Um, on my - my legs.”

“Why only sometimes?”

She shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment as she tried to force the image away. “Don’t know.”

The slight shift in Archie’s expression revealed he didn’t believe her, but he seemed willing to let it go for now, and she sighed again.

“Let’s go back to your relationship with Detective Weaver.”

She frowned. “Why?”

Dr. Hopper sat back, crossing his legs, and smiled. “I suspect some of this starts a little further back than Jack Branson.”

Belle huffed and shook her head. “It doesn’t. And you already know the story. We were married, then we got divorced.”

“And?”

“And?” She raised her eyebrows and held Archie’s gaze. “What?”

“And now you’re...?”

There was a low throb starting in her head as she pulled at her ring again, sliding it over her knuckle until it spun freely around her finger. “I told you, I don’t know what we are, not right now.”

“Can you tell me what you’d like to be?”

“No.” Then she sighed. “I let things go too far while we were working on the case, and before you ask, you know exactly what I mean by ‘too far’ Mr. I Accidentally Screwed the Waitress Who Was Also a Witness.”

Archie’s face flushed, and Belle flashed him a brief smile. His affair with Ruby had been problematic at the time, and it had forced him to step back from his role as an expert consultant. Now that they’d been together for a couple of years, it was all water under the bridge, and the switch back to private practice was overall better for everyone. She sighed. “Now everything is...I don’t know. It’s good, but it’s also temporary, so I’m trying not to get complacent or get used to anything, you know?”

Hopper shifted in his seat, his lips pursing for a moment. “Why does it have to be temporary?”

“Because we’re divorced,” she answered flatly.

“Why?”

Belle pushed her ring back on her finger and paused. “Why what? Why are we divorced?” Dr. Hopper’s head tilted again, and she gave him an annoyed glare. “I’m not dredging up our marital issues, Arch. I’ve been there, done that.”

“Have you?” he asked. “Been there, done that?”

She made a face. “Well not like this, obviously, but I think I’ve rehashed it enough in my head for ten therapists, thanks.”

Archie chuckled at that and shook his head. “Fair enough. Though I do get the impression there’s a piece I’m missing here.”

“How do you mean?” She folded her arms over her middle and mirrored Archie by crossing her legs.

He sat forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “You and Ian were good together, Belle. We all saw that. I have to admit that when I heard you two were splitting up, it was - it was quite a shock.”

Belle looked away as he spoke, clenching her jaw as she swallowed against the lump in her throat. She’d heard the same statements from others before, during, and immediately after the divorce. Everyone thought they were so perfect together, but of course none of them had to live with a reticent police detective who didn’t know how to let anyone in. She always thought he’d change, that he’d soften with time, open up more the longer they were together. The night he chose a murder over her and their baby, she’d realized she’d been wrong.

“Yeah,” she said softly. “It was to me too.”

Hopper pursed his lips again and watched her as she tugged on her ring again, slipping it over her knuckle to spin it around her fingertip. She paused to wipe at her eye, and he sat back with another heavy sigh.

“Belle -”

“I had a miscarriage.”

Archie blinked and frowned at the words she’d blurted out. “You - what?”

He licked his lips as his mind grasped for words. Confusion and shock had made him lose his usual quiet coherence, and he leaned forward again. “I’m sorry, I’m just - I’m trying to understand. Was this after - after your attack, or -?”

“No,” Belle said quickly. She met Dr. Hopper’s eyes, her stare firm in spite of the tear that was trickling over her cheek. “No, it was - before. It’s why - why we divorced.”

“Okay,” he breathed. “So -”

She felt her face heat as her vision blurred. There was a faint ringing in her ears that made her shake her head, sending a volley of tears down her face. She was vaguely aware of the tissue box sliding closer, pushed by Dr. Hopper, when she squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, and then lurched forward. Her feet stumbled over each other, her shoe coming loose as she stood and tried to walk around the coffee table that was between her and Archie. He said her name as she moved, one hand stretched out in front of her to catch the bathroom door and push it open while the other was pressed to her mouth.

Belle sniffled again, wiping at her nose with the battered tissue before tossing it in the trash can and exiting the small bathroom.

Archie stood up quickly. “Are you alright?”

She nodded and blew out a breath. “Yeah.”

She was surprised how true it felt in spite of how upset she’d been a few minutes ago. It had been a long time since she’d said the words out loud, and once she had it was like the dam had broken, flooding her body with emotions she’d kept at bay for over two years. In hindsight, the miscarriage had bled into the situation with Ian, leaving everything a jumbled mess well before her encounter with Jack.

Archie was right.

“So, Arch, how fucked up am I?” she asked, letting out a humorless laugh.

Dr. Hopper sighed and came closer, reaching out to squeeze her shoulder reassuringly. “No more so than any of the rest of us.”

She shook her head. “I doubt that.”

“Belle, what’s happening to you is normal,” he started. “You were physically attacked in your own home, by a man whose pathology I can’t even fathom right now. Having some PTSD from that is completely expected. Everything else on top of that...? I can’t imagine what all you’ve been through.”

She breathed out, feeling a strange sort of relief at his words. “Yeah.”

“I think,” Archie started, cautiously, “that it would be a good idea for you to keep talking about this.”

“With you?” She blinked up at him, her expression pulled as the steady pulse of a headache grew.

He shrugged. “With whomever you like, whoever you feel comfortable talk to. That’s the only way this is going to get better.”

Belle reached up and pushed her fingers into her hair, rubbing at her scalp. “I don’t think I’d want to talk to anyone else, if that’s okay.”

His mouth curved slightly. “Of course it is. Whatever I can do to help, Belle.”

Belle checked her makeup in the mirror one last time and ran a hand through her hair, trying to smooth it into place. She looked passable, if a bit tired, but then that had been her almost perpetual state since the case had started. Her heels thudded softly on the carpet as she made her way back to her office, her gait stuttering briefly when she spied Weaver sitting at the conference table.

Shit.

She’d been hoping he was still at the station following up on Nick Branson’s former employer in Las Vegas. When she’d made the appointment with Dr. Hopper, she’d had every intention of telling Weaver that she was going, but in the end every moment that might have been right, wasn’t. He’d be supportive, of course, he had been when she’d first mentioned it a week ago, and their history with Archie had only raised the psychologist’s esteem in his eyes. Yet she’d held back that morning when he’d asked her what she was going to get up to while he was tiring his eyes out at a computer screen.

She let out a steadying breath and pushed open the door to the office.

Weaver twisted and looked over his shoulder at her, smiling. “Hey.”

“Hey,” she said, brightly, hurrying over to her desk to set her purse down.

“I was surprised you weren’t here when I got back.”

“Oh, I ran a quick errand after lunch.” She shrugged and looked up at him, knowing full well by the way his eyes narrowed and his head tilted slightly that he didn’t quite believe her. “Find anything?”

“Couple addresses,” he replied. “Some names to follow up on. The construction company Branson worked for went out of business a couple of years ago, but I have contact information for the holding company that took over its assets.”

“Well, that’s something.”

“I guess.” Then he frowned slightly, and pushed back from the table, twisting to face her. “Are you okay?”

Belle sighed and busied herself with sorting through some papers on her desk. “Yeah, fine. Why?”

His expression was inscrutable as he stood and came to stand in front of her desk. “I don’t think we’re going to get much more done today, if you want to take off early.”

She glanced up at him. “Why would I do that?”

Weaver shrugged. “You’re tired.”

She sighed again and straightened, knowing from his flat tone that he hadn’t believed her, but he was still offering her a way out anyway. It annoyed her and she wasn’t sure why. “Well it’s been a long...month.”

He gave a slight nod as his lips pressed together. “Yeah, and we worked a lot of weekends in the last little while. You need some down time.

She shot him a look. “I’m fine, Ian.”

He gave her a look and moved around the side of the desk until he was next to her. “Belle, you look absolutely shattered.” Then he took hold of her hand and started tugging her away from her work. “Come on.”

“Ian...” She pulled her hand away and crossed her arms.

He turned on his heel and faced her. “Belle...”

They stood for a moment, staring at each other with equal exasperation, until Belle’s shoulders sagged. She was tired, that went without saying, both from her appointment with Archie and the weeks and months that had preceded it. There was a standard level of fatigue that she’d dealt with her whole career, brought on by long days in court, and longer nights of composing motion documents and briefs. But this was new. This was a less familiar bone deep weariness that weighed her whole body down, pulling her to the Earth. It didn’t feel like being grounded so much as it felt like being drowned, sucked down under the dark waves and suffocated.

Belle’s head dropped as she exhaled. “I went to talk to Archie after I left Midas’s office.”

Weaver seemed to startle a bit at her words, shifting his stance as his eyes went wide. “Okay...and?”

“And, it was... a lot.” She looked up and blinked almost dazedly.

He moved closer, taking the kind of slow steps one might when they were approaching a skittish cat. When he came within arm's length, she reached for him, all but grabbing the front of his white shirt as he closed the distance between them. She turned, falling against him as he moved to hold her, and buried her face in his chest.

"You sure you're all right?"

She inhaled and exhaled slowly, breathing in his warm, earthy scent. “Yeah,” she replied, slightly muffled. He made a grunting noise, and she looked up. “What?”

One of his eyebrows lifted slightly. “Let’s go home.” She stiffened and he squeezed her against him. “You can take a hot bath, I’ll make the scallops I picked up on my way back form the station, and -”

“You got fresh scallops?”

His lips quirked as her eyes widened hopefully. “You won’t know until you get home.”

Belle pulled back and swatted at his chest. “You don’t play fair.”

He laughed softly, and she shook her head, knowing that what he was suggesting was for her own good. They both needed a break, and the lull while they waited for courts and county clerks to process a pile of paperwork and red tape might just be the thing.

“Yeah, okay. I can write up the rest of the records requests on my laptop.”

“That’s the spirit,” he said, dryly, dropping his arms and taking a step back. “Just not in the bath this time, not after what happened with your iPad.”

She slung her purse strap over her shoulder and shot him a glare with significantly less venom than usual. “Shut up.”

Weaver pulled open the office door, still smirking, and held it for her as she stepped through into the hallway. “Yes, dear.”

#rumbelle #rumbelle fic #woven beauty #woven beauty fic #killing time #fic #my woven beauty fic #cw miscarriage

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kenology · 4 years

Note

for the character asks gladys jones and joyce byers!!! :)

i don't know how to insert a read more in an ask so im sorry if this is long 😔

joyce:

nothing but respect for my president winona ryder however i simply do not deserve her

best quality: being a GOOD MOM despite the fact that her life is a living hell and her son has like maybe died at least 3 times. she would do Anything to protect will and i just love her so much

worst quality: not taking care of herself 😔 ma'am please get therapy and don't let terrible men into your life ♥️

ship them with: therapy...stability....not cops....

brotp them with: maybe hopper but like only s1-2 hopper. also eleven

needs to stay away from: s3 hopper

misc. thoughts: she's so supportive of her two gay nightmare sons and shes the best character in the whole show. can the writers please give her a break tho

gladys:

i feel like the writers didn't do her justice and she deserves better storylines/relationships with her family sldkdjf but i do love her for diagnosing jughead and archie with gay! iconic

combination of both of these because she is definitely a milf but also i project onto jughead too much to be horny for gladys 😔

[skipped the hogwarts house question bc...i Don't know]

best quality: doing whatever the absolute fuck she wants, getting into ninja fights, going back to school to get her GED, and also being completely unbothered by falice

worst quality: .....manufacturing drugs for teenagers

ship them with: honestly any of the other riverdale moms. please give jughead more reasons to be milfphobic

brotp them with: jellybean...does that count...i just want an entire spinoff show about gladys and jellybeans lives in toledo

needs to stay away from: jingle jangle or fizzle rocks or whatever it was that she was making...i do love a walter white moment but she kinda put the serpents in danger ♥️

misc. thoughts: jughead needs to respect her more honestly

#i can objectively appreciate that they are both milfs however they also both feel like My Mom #hope the byers get to Rest in whatever town they're moving to. wish hopper would stay dead ♥️#ask #serpentlady #myrvd

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teamhook · 5 years

Text

A Chapter a Day... Savage Heart CS AU

This story will be finished by the end of the month. :)

A love story between a pirate and his savior. An innocent, beautiful, selfless woman meets a man with no manners, no formal education and not even a last name. Will Emma fall in love with Killian once she discovers that beneath his tough exterior lies a heart-wild, but a heart of gold? This is a Captain Swan AU

Beta-ed by the awesome @ilovemesomekillianjones

Cover by the amazing @xhookswenchx

|AO3| |FFN| previous chapter

|AO3| |FFN| current chapter

Chapter 10: Sapling

As August is getting prepared to visit with Archie, Milah is waiting for a chance to escape for an impromptu meeting with Killian.

Cora walks into the office and watches her son intently. August smiles, looking up from the chaos of papers littering his desk and says, "Good morning mother, I see you are up quite early today. You look better." Something in his mother's expression causes him to quickly add, "Before you start, I don't have time to argue with you. I have a lot of work to do. I have to get some things in order before I go to meet with Mr. Hopper. I don't want to overwhelm Killian when he takes over."

"I had hoped that conversation was a nightmare. You have inherited all the horrible traits from your father. You are as stubborn as a mule, and you share the same need to help that lowlife. Too bad you haven't changed your mind on the matter. I hope you know what you're doing, because mark my words son, you will live to regret it," Cora says and storms out of the room.

August stares at the door and sighs. Milah walks in right after Cora storms out.

"Good morning. Your mother is as pleasant as ever," Milah says as she kisses his cheek and adds, "she is never going to accept me."

"I love you, darling, and that is all that matters," August says, making his wife smile. "Milah, I'm hoping I will be hiring my childhood friend to take over my duties at the estate and we can finally go away and be able to take that honeymoon trip we were unable to take when we first married," August says as he reaches for Milah's hand.

"Oh, how long will we be gone and when will we leave?" Milah asks, trying to display excitement at her husband's news.

"I want to finally take an extended honeymoon trip with my beautiful bride, and to answer the second part of the question; we will leave by the end of the week if everything goes as planned. If it is possible to leave sooner we will do so," August answers.

"I prefer not to leave my aunt alone for too long. Please just remember that Emma is in the convent."

"I understand, sweetheart. You have such a loving heart. How about a month? I would love to spoil you for longer but I understand your reasons for not wanting to stay away for too long. So it is settled, we will make it a month long trip."

Milah smiles and just gently nods in agreement as she loses herself in thought. The thought of a nice lavish vacation sounds amazing but she has a feeling Killian is not going to be very happy with the news. She knows it will be hard to convince him it's for the best. She needs for August to be completely in love with her and trusting so he doesn't see the treachery coming. She must ensure he is oblivious to the fact that she is not in love with him. She can fake it as long as it takes, he's nice enough, but he isn't the man to satisfy her needs, at least not intimately. Financially he is very well equipped to satiate her desires and so far he is doing an amazing job.

"I was wondering if it is satisfactory for me to take a trip to my uncle's house today. I want to ensure everything is okay. Before you say anything I know I went out there yesterday but since we are now expecting to leave soon I need to make sure everything is in order. My Aunt Snow is still not in shape to go over there her and I need to help her in any way I can. I know I'm not as capable as Emma but I need to do my part." Milah hopes this reasoning is sufficient enough to sneak away to see Killian and let him know of her husband's plan.

"Could that possibly wait until tomorrow? On second thought, I can go to the house in your place and do whatever needs to be done. I think your presence here is needed. You need to keep your aunt company especially since we will be leaving her here alone with my mother for a month," August says in a firm voice.

Milah blinks away her frustration. She needs to get away and meet with Killian to let him know about her husband's plan for a honeymoon trip. August isn't making things easy for her and she can't afford to make him suspicious of her actions.

"Ok, I will let you take care of everything," Milah relents.

"Good, I will stop at the house on my way home from Mr. Hopper's office." August smiles and leans in to give her a kiss before taking his leave.

As August walks away Milah feels her anger rise. Now how will she be able to find time to talk to Killian?

"Emma," Mother Superior starts as she motions for Emma to sit, "I was thinking you should go see your mother to tell her about the letter Mr. Hopper delivered, and to check on her of course. I still think you could have asked to stay longer."

"I didn't want to take advantage, but I would love to go show my mother my father's letter. I think it will brighten her day." A smile lights Emma's face as she thinks about the contents of the letter.

"Emma, I have an ulterior motive. Your trial period is almost over and I want to suggest something a bit out of the ordinary. You will go show your mother the letter and stay at the Booth estate for the remainder of the trial. I think it would be good for you to confront your feelings for August. Remember that taking vows is going to be a lifelong commitment. During your extended stay, you can decide if you still want to become a nun or if it's possible you can find love in another. Oh, and before I forget, you don't need to wear the habit while you're away."

Emma stares at Mother Superior. She is about to counteroffer but thinks better of it. She could keep an eye on Milah and make sure she stays away from that pirate, at least for as long as she can.

"I will gladly take the letter and I look forward to spending some time with my mother before I take my vows, but that will not change my thoughts. I accept your generous proposal," Emma agrees with Mother Superior.

"Emma, before you leave to go see your mother I want to make something very clear to you. I want you to know I'm doing this because I like you and in all honesty, I don't want you to make a life-altering decision if there is any doubt in your heart. I want you to make sure there are no residual feelings for August. You just came back from the estate; did you feel anything for him?"

"No, I didn't," Emma answers and looks down at her hands.

"Your family has always been very generous with the convent, but that is not the reason I'm going out of my way to make certain you are not making a mistake. I need you to be sure of your commitment before you take your vows. I also know that right now you might feel like you've lost your happy ending with the marriage of August and Milah, but I want you to take my following words to heart; sometimes happy endings aren't what you think they should be. Now go get ready to depart."

As she gets up, Emma smiles softly at the wise-sounding woman. Maybe she's right, Emma thinks.

"Emma, is everything okay?" Tink asks. "I overheard the nuns talking about Mother Superior wanting to speak to you."

"Yes, everything is fine. I'm to go stay for the rest of my trial period with my mother at my cousin's husband's estate. I was really looking forward to getting to know you better, maybe one day soon," Emma says as she gently pats Tink's hand.

"It's fine, I'm hoping I won't be here too long anyway. You should steal him back. Your cousin is horrible for what she did, it would be well deserved."

That morning as the two women had gone about their chores, they had talked and had quickly shared with each other their troubles. Emma had listened intently to Tink talk about her friendship with Killian. She knows that Tink has no idea of his relationship with Milah. She had initially thought of enlightening her but didn't want to break her new friend's heart. One broken-hearted woman was enough. Emma finishes packing and is soon out the doors of the Convent.

"Hello, young Sir. Am I in the presence of young August Booth? How are you? It has been far too long," Archie rambles as he holds the door open. He had thought he was going to need to seek August out, and now the man is at his door.

"Mr. Hopper, it is so nice to finally be able to come visit you. I'm sorry I was unable to get away sooner, but I'm sure you still remember my mother. She barely lets me out of her sight," August laughs.

"Oh, I remember your mother quite well. To what do I owe the honor?" Archie asks.

"Do you remember that boy my father brought to the estate when I was young? I was hoping to offer him a job. My father's dying wish was for me to help him."

"Quite interesting," Archie murmurs. "I was going to pay you a visit at the Booth estate for that same matter. To be honest, I'm happy I didn't have to set foot there. Your mother and I did not part on good terms," Archie confesses.

"Imagine my surprise to hear that my mother left a bad impression. Regarding Killian, what did you have in mind? I want to offer him the steward position. I just hope that if he accepts he can deal with my mother. She will most likely antagonize him. She doesn't have the best opinion of him."

"That is a wonderful idea and I know he will accept gladly. I have confidence that Killian can handle your mother. To be honest, if I was in your place I would be more concerned for your mother. Killian can be quite a gentleman, but if he is pushed he will not bite his tongue. Killian will not be intimidated by her. I hope that is not a problem?"

"That will be a refreshing sight. I don't think anyone other than my father has ever been able to handle her. So then, it is settled. I hope he can start soon. I want to leave town this weekend and finally go on my honeymoon. It would be amazing if we could leave sooner."

"I believe he will be happy to hear the news. Although he is not an educated man, he is smart, and if it is okay with you I will guide him as best as I can," Archie offers.

"That sounds wonderful," August says with a smile.

"Do you think it will bother him greatly if we don't actually meet until my return? I'm just so eager to leave and have my bride all to myself," August tells Archie.

"I'm happy to say that if it pleases you, you can leave sooner. Do you have anything in particular that you would want me to review with him?" Archie asks as he looks over all the estate papers he was handed.

"Those papers are similar to a power of attorney, I'm giving him the same authority I have, in case my mother decides to make things difficult for him," August says.

Archie looks at the papers knowing that this could be the closest Killian will be to his birthright.

"If you don't mind I still have another stop after this and since you have said it will not be a problem for me to leave sooner, I will take you up on that offer. It is still early, I will check on the Nolan house then go home and prepare to leave tonight," August says excitedly.

"Oh, then don't let me hold you up any longer. Go on and take care of your business."

Even in death, Brennan tried to help Killian.

August arrives shortly at the Nolan house and everything is as it should be. He quickly leaves and is back home telling Milah to get everything ready. They will be leaving sooner, in the early morning the following day. By the time August arrives, Emma is already there and is soon helping Milah prepare for the trip at August's request. Emma has a small smile on her lovely face because she knows that for now, Milah will not be able to do anything inappropriate.

Milah exudes frustration, knowing she is out of time. She will not be able to warn Killian.

The following morning, not long after August and Milah leave on their honeymoon, there is a hard knock on the front door. Emma heads to the door and opens it. Facing her is one Killian Jones, dressed as a gentleman should, with a nice pair of trousers, vest, and coat that bring out his eyes.

Killian just stands there staring at her. Emma stands tall, looking every bit the angel she is. She is not wearing her habit, and he notices that fact.

"Mr. Jones, how may I be of assistance?" Emma asks.

Killian blinks and responds, "Good morning lass, I'm here to see August."

The color drains from Emma's face.

Before she says anything Killian assures her, "I'm not here to cause any trouble. He is an old friend and has generously offered me a job."

"You are the old friend?" Emma asks in disbelief.

"Aye, I met him when I was a young lad. I have decided to become an honorable man and he has chosen to see past my long list of bad actions." Killian looks at her intently as he speaks.

"Oh, you just missed them, they will not be back for a month," Emma informs Killian.

Killian's jaw clenches "I thought they were set to leave upon the weekend."

"Well, it seems that he trusts you enough to leave without meeting with you. He did mention an old friend would be stopping by and to make sure that he was welcomed. To be honest, I'm very surprised to find that the old friend he mentioned is you."

"I see." Killian ponders this information, trying to quell the frustration he's feeling.

"Would you like some tea?"

"Is Saint Emma actually going to be cordial?" he asks teasingly.

Emma smiles and just starts walking to the dining room. She stops and turns to see if he is following her. "Well?"

Killian cannot help the smile that escapes him. She seems different. "I accept, lovely Emma."

Tagging:

@hookedonapirate @kmomof4 @searchingwardrobes @seriouslyhooked @profdanglaisstuff @let-it-raines @revanmeetra87 @snowbellewells @hollyethecurious @kymbersmith-90 @branlovestowrite @thejollyroger-writer @shireness-says @ilovemesomekillianjones @thisonesatellite @thesschesthair @winterbythesea @stahlop @resident-of-storybrooke @superchocovian @lfh1226-linda @artistic-writer @thislassishooked @shardminds @winterbaby89 @xhookswenchx @ultraluckycatnd @gingerchangeling @laschatzi @wellhellotragic @xemmaloveskillianx @courtorderedcake @pirateherokillian @optomisticgirl @darkcolinodonorgasm @sherlockianwhovian @andiirivera @djlbg @nikkiemms @jennjenn615 @scientificapricot @officerrogers @imlaxdris71 @therealstartraveller776

#Captain Swan #CS Crew #teamhook SavageHeart #cs ff #CS Mafia

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eirian-houpe · 5 years

Text

The Library Beneath the Clock Tower - Chapter 11

Fandom: Once Upon a Time (TV)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Belle/Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold, Belle/Gaston (Once Upon a Time)

Additional Tags: Bookshop On the Corner, slightly AU, Cursed Storybrooke (Once Upon a Time), Alternate Universe - In Storybrooke | Cursed (Once Upon a Time), Eventual Smut

Summary: Storybrooke has no library, and neither does Belle, not since the library where she worked in Boston discovered her past as an inpatient at a mental hospital. Taking her future into her own hands, Belle travels to Storybrooke where her intention is to open up the town library, but all does not go according to her plan. Obstacles and false starts, and diversion along very wrong pathways interrupt her journey toward fulfilling her dream, as well as taking her rightful place and becoming a part of the Storybrooke community.

Read on AO3

[Chapter 1] [Chapter 2] [Chapter 3] [Chapter 4] [Chapter 5] [Chapter 6] [Chapter 7] [Chapter 8] [Chapter 9] [Chapter 10]

Chapter 11 - Accidental Meeting

Her scream could only last but so long, and as short on breath as she had been in the first place, with the surprise of the deer first, and then the impending collision, it wasn’t that long of a time until silence descended. A strange silence, an eerie silence and dark, with hardly a hint of light to sneak beneath her tightly shut eyelids. What was this…? Was she dead, and this some kind of bizarre afterlife experience?

She felt no pain, could hear nothing, nor truly see anything but the occasional imagined flash of light beneath her eyelids. She often liked to fancy they were the reflection of her synapses firing, except now she had no activity in her brain whatsoever that wasn’t, ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod!

Even before she opened her eyes, she reached out again for the door. This time her hand almost immediately found the handle and pulled, opening the door, and after clumsily releasing the seat belt, she all but fell out of the little van, stumbled to the side of the road, and vomited what remained of the dinner she had enjoyed at Granny’s just before leaving. She stumbled back to the car, pulled the bottle of water out of the cup holder, and swilled out the sour taste from her mouth, before taking a proper drink, her hand shaking so badly that she almost spilled water all down her front. She leaned down again then, fishing around in the footwell of the passenger side to try and find her phone; a pointless exercise, since when she did, she discovered she had no signal.

She was just straightening up, and trying to avoid hitting her head on the door frame, when the sound of a much larger door slamming closed, followed by the scuff of feet reached her, shortly followed by a man’s angry voice.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing, woman!”

She found herself confronted by an overweight, ruddy faced man with dark hair that was swept back off his face, who was wearing a rather flamboyant, almost fluorescently bright, reddish orange quilted vest, whose sleeves, from what looked like a well worn sweatshirt - so well worn that they had completely lost their shape - flapped at her as he jabbed his finger almost in her face. He was so overwhelming as to be intimidating, and in her already fragile emotional state, she backed away, finding herself closer to tears.

“There… it was…” she stammered, her voice a hoarse whisper, “A deer. There was a deer.”

“Oh,” he half turned away as he muttered, “Fuck’s sake,” then turned back to continue his rant, “Fancy that… a deer coming out of the woods onto the road! Never heard of that before! Have you any idea what it takes to stop one of these big rigs! Any at all…?”

“No, I--” “No, of course not,” he continued with his rant. “You could have killed us all stopping in the middle of the road like that, just sitting there…”

Belle barely heard the sound of the truck’s door opening and closing again, and evidently, through the noise of his angry diatribe, neither did the man that was not even letting her get a word in edgewise.

“...as if you’re out for a fucking Sunday picnic. You--!”

“Now, Karrl,” a new voice, deep and strong, she would almost describe it as warm, cut across the ranting man, “I’m sure there’s little need to speak to the lady in that way,” He gave Belle a bit of a nod, as his hand came down onto Karrl’s shoulder. “You were magnificent there. You saved all of us, and the cargo is none the worse for wear.”

He gestured back towards the still open door to the truck, and Belle followed the direction of the gesture to see the spacious, high tech cab, with its glowing lights, and the curtained off area in the rear.

“Control want to speak with you,” the newcomer told Karrl. “They need your incident statement, before we can straighten the truck out.”

“Terrific,” Karrl muttered as he turned away and began to stalk toward the truck. “Just great! Now we’re in trouble for sure - nearly crashing like this. There will be investigations, and police, and…”

His voice faded off as he climbed up into the truck, and Belle brought her attention back to the other man in front of her. He was muscular, and tall. His face was handsome beneath a swath of dark hair, with blue eyes that shone, almost sparkled as he leaned toward Belle and said, as if confidentially, “Please, forgive Karrl. He’s a bit of a fool when it comes to situations like this, not to mention speaking with the fairer sex.”

Belle couldn’t help but shiver, though whether with the chill in the air, or because of the deep, smooth tones of his voice, kindly and concerned, she wasn’t sure and it seemed the other man noticed, because he suddenly slipped off the thick, plaid, woolen jacket he wore, and draped it over her shoulders.

“Where are my manners?” he said by way of an apology. “You’re shivering with cold. Are you all right?” Then as if he had just remembered, added, “My name is Hunter, Hunter Guest.” He offered her a polite handshake.

“Belle,” she said and slipped her hand into his, “Marchland,” she added. Then felt herself momentarily warmer as a blush covered her face when he closed his other hand over hers. “I’m fine,” she tried to tell him, blue eyes meeting blue. “Just a little shaken, that’s all.”

“No,” he crooned softly. “You’re perished.” He gestured to the cab and added, “Come up, we’ll have some tea. Help to warm you.”

“But… your friend.”

“Ah, don’t worry about Karrl,” Hunter said. “He’s harmless.” He leaned closer again, to whisper, “Just a little scared.”

Belle followed him, though she had little choice really, given that he kept hold of her hand, to the truck, and then accepted his help to climb the steps to the warmth of the cab. He followed her close behind, and drew aside the curtain, so that she could perch on the edge of the sleeping space, while he rummaged in a bag to draw out a large thermos, from which he poured steaming hot tea.

“Here,” he said and handed her the cup, closing his hands around hers until she wasn’t going to spill the hot liquid all over herself. Part of her was grateful for that, but as she sipped the tea, the weight of all that had happened swept over her, and she couldn’t stop the tears from falling.

She saw Karrl roll his eyes, but Hunter turned a cold stare his way, and then moved to perch beside her on the narrow cot, and rubbed her back with his large hand, murmuring soothing nothings until she began to calm; at least she calmed until the blue and red lights could be seen coming closer and closer, eventually heralding the arrival of the Sheriff, and the EMTs.

While the EMTs checked Belle over, Sheriff Humbert spoke with Hunter and Karrl, no doubt taking their statements and their particulars, and once the EMTs were finished with Belle, he came to her and with an almost apologetic smile, asked for her licence and registration.

They walked together back to her van so that she could retrieve them both, and she sat dejectedly, sideways, with her legs hanging out into the cold of the night as he took them to run them through his computer system. This was the last thing she needed. If Mayor Mills got hold of this, it would not make it any easier to convince the mayor that she was the right woman for the job of librarian.

While such negative thoughts were swirling in her mind, the Sheriff returned, and handing back her documents, said, almost as if he felt awkward asking, “I have to ask, Ms. Marchland, have you had anything to drink this evening?”

“What?” Belle stammered, and then quickly, “No! Nothing alcoholic anyway.”

“Well,” the sheriff gave her a definitely apologetic look, and held out the breathalyzer. “Procedure, you understand.”

Belle blushed scarlet, and couldn’t help but glance over to the truck once more, before looking at the Sheriff.

“But I’ve not been drinking,” she said.

“And I believe you,” Sheriff Humbert assured her, “but for the record, the report…”

Belle sighed, fresh tears welling in her eyes. “All right,” she whispered, and mortified, allowed the sheriff to administer the test to prove what she had told him was the truth.

“There, see,” he said as the numbers came back showing zero alcohol in her breath. “Now, let’s get your van moved off the road, and then we’ll get you home.”

“What?” Belle stiffened and shook her head, “Thank you, Sheriff, but that won’t be necessary. I have to continue on my way.”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “There’s no chance of that.”

“But I have to get to Boston!”

She hadn’t realised she’d raised her voice quite so much until she saw the sheriff stiffen, and from the corner of her eye, noticed Hunter moving closer to the two of them.

“I’m sorry,” the sheriff said again, “but you’re in no fit state to drive, Ms Marchland, not tonight.”

“But I… I…” she brushed angrily at a few rebellious tears that spilled onto her face, “I must!” she insisted. “It’s important, my job…”

She trailed off, covering her face with her hands, and then jumped as the weight and warmth of someone’s else’s settled onto her shoulder.

“Belle,” she heard Hunter’s voice, soft and close beside her, “We… after we have delivered our goods to the docks, and picked up our cargo from the cannery, Karrl and I are heading back to Boston. We could take you.”

She uncovered her face, and looked around at Hunter, hope flickering in her watery eyes,

“Is that even allowed?” she asked softly, and Hunter shrugged, looking at the sheriff, who echoed the movement with a shrug of his own.

“It’s the least we can do,” Hunter added, and reached out with his free hand to wipe away some of the tears from her cheeks.

#rumbelle #fic #angst #eventual smut #bookshop on the corner #au

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