#but after burning away his ego and his past self

[pinkthrone445]

-Let it burn to the ground- Part 3

Part 1 Part 2

Pairing:Melissa Schemmenti x Reader

Gender:fluf, soft, love

Warnings:Mention about past trauma, fires, boring but useful explanation of CPR

Summary:Melissa lets the fire of love consume her when she meets the new chief of the fire station.

After the amazing night of sex, you both have to deal with the consequences.

Mel ate breakfast in silence, glancing from time to time at her cell phone to see if you responded to her good morning message, but no notification came, you didn't even had opened her message, what made the redhead sigh sad

-"Soooo..."-Her housemate couldn't stand the silence any longer and started talking-"Last night was that good or did you scream like a wild animal on purpose to boost the chief's ego and interrupt my beauty sleep?"- Jacob asked as he ate his cereal, staring at her

-"My body hurts in parts that I didn't even knew existed, so yeah, she was that good" - The redhead replied without much emotion in her voice

-"So why do you look so sad?" - He asked, confused, and Mel sighed again

-"Because she left without saying goodbye... And now she doesn't even read my messages..."- She murmured sadly. Mel wasn't a self-doubting person, she was usually very confident in who she was and how she looked. But she couldn't help but wonder what had made you leave just like that, maybe you hadn't liked her body, she usually turned off the lights, but last night she was so desperate that she completely forgot about it. Or maybe you didn't like that the night focused only on her pleasure and not on you too... Maybe you'd reconsidered that she'd been with one of your subordinates in that same bed and you didn't like it...

-"Maybe she had an emergency at work and had to run away, she's the chief after all, her day off only lasted until 12 o'clock yesterday, if she was called after that time for an emergency, she would have had to run to help..."-Her friend commented and Mel nodded thinking about that possibility, it was something that could have definitely happened, which calmed her down a bit.

But two more days passed without you giving any signs, your son continued to go to school, but in none of those days that had passed had you gone to take him to school or pick him up. She even saw that your son was picked up by one of your sisters who looked a lot like you and the redhead thought about going to talk to her to find out something about you, but she didn't want to look so desperate so she didn't do it.

On the other hand, Jacob was upset to see his housemate so sad, and he wasn't a person who sat idly by when he saw one of his friends in pain, so he decided to do what the redhead would never do, visit you at the station to see what was going on and get answers.

When he arrived at the station he was surprised to see all the firetrucks outside being washed and cleaned so thoroughly he could see his reflection in the red metallic paint

-"Excuse me, hi" - Jacob spoke up to get the attention of the firefighters who were cleaning-"Does anyone know where I can find the station chief?"-He asked with his best smile

-"She is in her office, but I wouldn't recommend you to see her, lately she has been more bitch than usual..."-One of the annoyed firefighters commented-"Be careful, maybe you'll go see her and she'll get you cleaning up too" - He joked making the others laugh and Jacob rolled his eyes going to the entrence desk asking to see you.

You were reading some reports with a very deep frown when Jacob entered your office

-"Excuse me chief..."-Jacob spoke in a soft tone, your angry face did caused him a little fear

-"I told them that nobody could interrupt..."- You began to speak annoyantly, but relaxed your gaze at the sight of the scrawny young man at your door-"Hello Jacob, what are you doing here?" - You consulted and he looked at you confused

-"You know my name? Wow..."-The young man was proud of that for some reason

-"Yes, you are the boyfriend of one of my younger firefighters, besides Melissa told me some really funny anecdotes about you... Can I help you with something? I'm a little bit busy" - You asked seriously looking at your paperwork again

-"He is not, we are not... Did he said something to you?... Nevermind, that's not why I'm here for, I'm here for Melissa..."-Jacob spoke, smiling a little as he saw your interest return to him at the slightest mention of the redhead, you put your papers aside and looked at it with complete attention

-"What happened to Melissa? It she ok?" - Your voice sounded really worried

-"She is not, she is sad because you didn't call her again and you run away in the middle of the night after interrupting my beauty sleep with those screams... Why haven't you call her again?" - He asked with a frown, approaching you more confidently

-"Because I can't..."-You whispered without looking at him

-"WHY!?" - He yelled at you slamming your desk, but his anger and confidence quickly disappeared when you stood up from your desk with a frown and crossing arms facing him, sudently he felt small and had to take a few steps back-"Why ma'am? If you care to tell me, please" - He asked again but softer this time

-"Because I can't do casual, no with her at least... Melissa wants casual sex, no a relationship right now, and I can't do it... Have you seen her? We had this amazing connection, amazing chats, amazing dancing, funny moments and amazing sex and she is amazing... Do you know how often that happens in a first date? Never... Even my first date with my husband was worse and I end up marring him... I can't do casual sex after that, I can't when I feel that kind of connection with her... And if I keep seeing her I won't be able to say no everytime she asks me to come, and that would only destroy me more because I will keep my hopes up even if I know it's a dead end... I got scared of getting hurt okey?"-You sighed a little, embarrassed to admit that out loud while almost a complete stranger listened to you. Jacob, on the other hand, didn't know what excuse for your behavior he was waiting for, but it certainly wasn't that.

-"I... Didn't knew, sorry... But at least you own her an explanation, you can't vanish like that, she is sad and it scares me when she is sad... Please talk to her" - His friend whispered and you sighed

-"I'll talk to her... Later, I need to work right now..."-You whispered going back to your desk and he nodded opening the door

-"Thank you..."-He answered

-"By the way cupid, make a move on your friend, he will say yes, he is always checking his phone at work for your messages, God knows how many times I gave him a warning for being with that phone talking to you at work..."-You whispered without looking at him, but you could feel the way he smiled at your comment when he closed the door.

Hours later, you went to pick up your son from school, arriving a little bit earlier, trying to see Mel and talk a little before your son finished his classes.

After introducing yourself at the entrance, you made your way to Melissa's classroom to find it empty, confused you walked down the hallway until you heard her familiar tone of voice

-"Fudge! How is possible that he keeps winning?!" - The redhead spoke annoyed, looking at her phone while sitting in the teacher's room. You approached carefully and knocked on the door gently to get her attention, when her gaze fell on your face she raised her eyebrows in surprise, but quickly her face changed to seriousness and she looked back at her phone

-"Hi Melissa..."-You whispered but she didn't even look at you, you sighed and moved a little closer carefully-"How are you?..."-You gave her a little smile

-"Fine"-It was all the answer she gave you

-"Look... I can see you are mad at me and you are in all your right... I'm sorry for not answering your texts this few days" - You whispered and she just shrugged her shoulders

-"I don't care..."-She replied curtly again and you walked closer to her

-"I am really sorry, I didn't wanted to hurt you... I just got scared of how fast everything went and didn't find the strength to answer..."-You whispered looking at her-"Do you think I could have another chance? I know you felt our connection too, maybe it's worth another try? I promise not to disappear again" - You muttered and she looked at you over the edge of her glasses

-"I can't, I'm busy, I have a date with someone tonight" - She replied seriously and you sighed, on one hand you were afraid of the anger in her eyes and on the other hand this was exactly what you feared, she didn't want something serious and the fact that she already had another date after 3 days of being with you confirmed it even more

-"Oh, Okey, sorry for bother you"-You whispered walking to the door-"And sorry for ignoring you..."-You left the room heading to the exit to wait for your kid. For some reason the redhead's response had hurt you more than you'd like to admit, though maybe the fact that you ignored her had pushed her to that, you thought maybe you'd get another chance. Maybe you'd have to get used to mediocre dates since no other could match the connection you'd had with her in the first one.

After being lost in thought, your son ran out of school towards you with his small backpack on his back, smiling a lot when he saw that you were the one who went to pick him up

-"Mommy!" - The little one hugged you tight and you hugged him too, needing those hugs more than he knew. When he stepped back a little and saw your face, he frowned-"Why are you crying mom?"-Your son took your face with his little hands and you sighed, you didn't even realize that a tear had escaped your eye

-"It's just that I missed you so much" - You whispered and hugged him again-"Do you want to go for ice cream?" - You asked and he smiled and nodded excitedly.

Another week passed and your station had returned to Abbot to take the CPR trainer test to the teachers who had not been present the past time and again to a few who didn't do it correctly, although you did not want to go, the other firefighters had training exercises and you were one of the few who was free, so you had to attend along with Jacob's "friend", Avi.

Gregory, Melissa, Ava,Janine, Jacob and another teachers had to take it again, so there was no scape of seeing the redhead.

When you arrived, you prepared the room with the practice dummies, placing some on the floor and others on tables. When everything was ready, the teachers came in. Melissa frowned as she walked in and saw you, but you just decided to keep greeting them as if nothing happened.

As the exercises began you leat Avi lead the way and you stood on a corner in silence with a very rigid posture, you could quickly saw why Melissa had failed her previous test, she had terrible posture and her compressions were very weak, Jacob was there because he wanted, Janine was doing it again because she hadn't taken the proper time to do it last time and Ava and Gregory had to do it because they hadn't been certified because they hadn't been present the time before.

-"I want to clarify a couple of things... Since the previous instructor didn't explain everything that was needed... Before we start compressions, you need to check that you don't have anything around that could cause further harm to you or the victim, like fire around or something that could fall on you. Second, you need to check first if the person is conscious, to start CPR, you need to have 3 missing things, no breathing, no movement and no response on someone, at that point you need to ask someone to call 911 while you start the compressions, if there is no one around, you call it first and then start the compression. The person has to be on a hard and flat surface, we are going to find the center of the chest, place one hand on top of the other and interlace the fingers, pressing mostly with our palm. We bend over the victim, our elbows locked and arms straight. They have to be at least 2 inches deep and at least 100 times per minute, it's more than one per second so they have to be fast and consistent"-As you explained each step, you only looked your eyes at the doll or the others avoiding the redhead, even though you knew her gaze was fixed on you-"Every 30 compressions, keep count, give 2 breaths to the victim... If you start to get tired, it is preferable to have someone else continue the compressions for you while you rest, because if you are tired your compressions will not be as deep as they were at the beginning nor will they be very effective... Here at school they have masks to give mouth-to-mouth breathing, they cover the nose and the mouth and they are only one way air pass, it is preferable that you use them as this way we avoid contaminating ourselves with viruses, budy fluids or contagious deseases. If we don't have a breathing shield to do it and we are not sure if we should touch the other person's mouth, remember that CPR without mouth to mouth interaction is also effective and can provide the effect that we need in a safer way. Now! Pay attention, it's different for children till the age of 15 depending how big they are. You still have to control the same thing as at the beginning, check if they breathe, move or have reactions. Check that the environment is safe and call the 911. But when we start compressions, you will do it with one hand only, no both because children chest are more fragile and we can broke a bone... After 30 compressions, you breath twice on their mouth using the face shield or breathing mask and then keep with the compressions until the ambulance arrives... Any questions?"-You finished your explanation and asked as everyone shook their heads-"Okey, then, if everyone payed attention, dived yourself into couples and start your compressions, if everything goes as we instructed, you will have your certificate at the end of the class"-You commented and watched as everyone worked.

Melissa was annoyed with the lack of attention you were paying to her, but it started to bother her more when her name started coming out of your mouth non stop

-"Melissa you didn't check your surroundings" "Melissa you need do deeper compressions" "Melissa arms straight" "Melissa, faster" "Melissa use the face shield" "Melissa, Melissa, Melissa" - she was tired of hearing you complain about her all the time, even tho in reality you were checking everyone's movements.

The redhead put the doll aside and stood in front of you with her arms crossed and her brow furrowed

-"Can we talk in the next room?"-She asked and you looked at her with a frown too

-"Avi, keep checking them, I'll be back in a minute" - You commented by following the redhead to another classroom

-"What was all of that?! You were being a bitch to me!" - The redhead whispered/screamed

-"I just was correcting what was needed to be corrected, it's my job, you need to do the things right to get your certificate" - You muttered authoritatively and she scoffed

-"Admit it you were only trying to make me embarrassed! You are only mad at me because I didn't accept another date after you vanish for three days!" - The redhead tapped your shoulder trying to push you but she didn't move you an inch, on the contrary, you got closer to her coming face to face

-"I'm not mad at you for that! I'm mad at myself because I run away because it scared me how casual everything is with you!" - You replied with a frown

-"I didn't wanted casual with you! I wanted a million more dates! You think I didn't felt that connection with you?!" - Melissa commented annoyed

-"Then why you went out dating again so soon?" - This time your tone of voice was calmer and softer, but little hurt

-"I didn't had a date, I just wanted you to feel hurt like I felt..."-she confessed and you sighed

-"I hate you" - You whispered laughing softly - "I hate that that worked" - You confessed and she smiled arrogantly

-"I hate you too" - She said and tried to give you a little peck, but you grabbed her waist and pulled her closer to you kissing her deeper, grabbing her jacket with force and making her moan a little bit when you pull apart biting softly her lip- Can we have another date tomorrow?" - She whispered over your lips

-"Chris has a football game and I promise to be there" - You whispered and she signed-"But you are invited if you want... He will be happy to have more people cheering him" - You commented and she smiled

-"I will love it..."-she answered and walked away toward the door

-"The kiss doesn't mean that you don't need to be better at the test, if you don't improve I won't give you the certificate" - You confessed and she rolled her eyes

-"I hate you!" - She replied and you laughed walking behind her.

[legobiwan]

"What if Stanley somehow manages to destroy the portal just like he destroyed my perpetual motion machine?"

Holy shit, Stanford, you just spent the last few pages of your Journal outlining in horrifying detail how Bill took your body on a criminal joyride and forced you to forget your own name while pulling your bones from their very sockets in a hallucinatory nightmare void. You woke up weeping on your living room floor.

And yet, you have the absolute fucking gall to be concerned your brother, if you summon him to Gravity Falls, might destroy the Portal???? You mean the one piece of leverage you have over Bill? The main reason he's stalking you? The machine that will literally end the world if activated?

Between this, Ford refusing to burn his journals, and the fact he fully intends on continuing his work on the Portal once he's solved the Bill problem -

This is the picture of a man at the apex of both megalomania and a mental breakdown.

Could you imagine if Ford had found a way to beat back Bill and keep the Portal? Just how much would his ego have inflated even more? (Probably large enough that he wouldn't fit out the door). I feel like it's a timeline where Ford becomes the Big Bad, not because of Bill (well, a little bit because of Bill), but because he sees himself as transcending godhood and what little is left of his moral compass he casts into a black hole. ("He may be a god, but I am scientist.")

The juxtaposition between this and Stan's sacrifice during Weirdmageddon is insane. Ford, who steadfastly refused to give up his life's work to save world and Stan, who gave up everything he was to save the world. There's got to be a part of Stan that reads these pages and wonders just who his brother is, when he turned unto a supervillain, and if it would ever happen again. Stan may not want to acknowledge it, but deep down, I think he's legitimately pissed at Ford for being such narcissistic bonehead. I think it is something that haunts him in the odd hours of the night, his brother sleeping soundly in the bunk next to him on the Stan O'War II while Stan ponders if he's sharing quarters with Lex Luthor. You could have ended it, Poindexter. You could have ended so long ago.

The past is the past and as his mother would say, you can't unshit a turd. (Something Stan has more experience with than he'd like, regret trailing him his whole life like a vengeful shadow). Ford is here now, they're alive, the bastard triangle is gone. But God, does he want to sit his brother down, tie him to a chair, and scream at him, to shake him and demand to know just what hell he had been thinking, why he had allowed himself to become this kind of...this kind of monster.

Stan will never, ever do this. He has his brother, has his awkward affection, has almost everything he's ever wanted. The answers are not worth it. (In Stan's experience, the answers are almost never worth it.)

And as for Ford? Somewhere in his subconscious, a shrill, too-familiar voice likes to remind him of who he is and what he can still become. The same grating voice that tells him they're not so different, after all, that there's still time, there's always time to fix the past, to create the future. You're a scientist, after all. You're more than a god.

That's the voice Ford papers over with contrition, with guilt and self-abnegation and a near-manic dedication to the small boat bobbing along in the Arctic, not even holding a speck of relevance compared to the vast and might ocean, forget to the multiverse at large. That's the voice Ford drinks away in secret on the worst nights, the one that tells him a stone statue in the forest is as much him as it is the monster whose shape it embodies.

[inupibaldspot]

Curse Me If You Must

Character: Geto Suguru x Reader

Note: Angst! With also major spoilers. I was about to write a Yuta fluff but then I just saw a Geto edit and led me to write this.

You nervously stared at Gojo who was standing confidently with a smile on your face while you held a combination of stationaries; Pens,erasers,a book and a compass while Shoko stared with an amused yet curious look.

“Ready?” You asked but then you didn’t wait for a confirmation from Gojo as you threw them at him; a real battle field would be so much less merciful and you guys learned it the hard way after the star plasma, Amanai Riko was killed. That definitely left a hole in everyone’s heart, everyone who had a heart to care at least.

You let out a sigh of relief as the eraser was the only one who was able to reach Gojo and the other which was much sharper was held at a distance. Shoko let out a impressed whistle. “Me next but then I won’t be telling you when I’m gonna throw ‘em at you.”

“Go for it!” Gojo smirks.

You took a step back and another one before you finally completely turn away and walk towards a figure who was sitting in a bench a distance away. A person who , in the past at least ,always had a ego centric sharp look yet would speak with a teasing tone, a person who you would do everything for. “Suguru, you good?”

Geto finally looks up as if he had been called from a trance. He gives you a small smile as he raises his hand and reaches out for your as he ever so gently he takes your hand and gives your hand a kiss. “Just…” His voice was low as if all the energy was drawn from him. “Thinking…”

You hum. “Gojo seems as if he has mastered his technique. Quite impressive.” You wait for a reply but then it never comes as you peer over to Geto. The last mission seemed as if it took a huge chunk of damage to especially Geto; ever since the failed mission he seemed so distant, his head seemed to be jumbled with thoughts he’d never share to any of them…even you.

“Say Suguru… What does a curse taste like?”

Geto’s posture straightens as he looks at you, his tired eyes widened before a smile from you manages to let the tension leave his shoulders. “It’s fucking disgusting…” he lets out a laugh. “As if a rag had been used to clean up vomit; I have to eat it over and over and over again…”

You look away.

Geto wonders if what he said made you disgusted with him but in truth you were guilty . You said you loved Geto but it took an embarrassing long time to notice how whenever Geto were to swallow a curse call he would hesitate and when he did swallow would have his eyes shut.

When you did notice it , you were scared to ask him as if you were scared that you’d be stepping far too deep into his comfort zone. “Did you swallow one in the morning mission you had to go on?”

“I did…”

You look at Shoko was now fed up on trying to throw things at Gojo and now blatantly trying to break his limitless barrier with the compass; the duo completely distracted. You turn swiftly as you place your hands on either side of Geto as it rests on the bench as you let your lips rest on his. As you back away, he lets in a sharp inhale. “Would this help?”

Geto felt his eye burn as his heart seems to surrender its self; he tastes bit of the lip balm you used on his lips. “It does…” It doesn’t, the disgusting taste was so far deep down that the taste and stench seemed to have made itself home. “Thank you, my love.”

“I’m worried,Suguru…” You intertwine your pinky with his which was resting on the bench. “You’re simply just too kind so I’m worried your filled with guilt and regret. The incident wasn’t your fault, remember that.”

It was though. He thinks. Riko was with him yet she was killed in-front of his eyes not even a step away from him.

“You don’t have to give anything back, Suguru.” Your voice seemed weak and unsure, you were treating him like a ticking time bomb. “Use me, Suguru. If you think I can do anything for you, use me; suck me dry for every part of me is yours…it doesn’t matter if I get hurt in the process or if what you want is something simple as a kiss after you eat a curse.”

Geto almost trembles as he looks at you but you were still looking away,no… you were looking up at the sky but the way your eyes were glistening with tears was obvious. “Let me love you if you must…curse me if you must but please… don’t leave me alone…”

Don’t leave me alone you said. Geto thinks but then now here he stand unmoving; a strong stench of the morgue overcomes his senses but he pays no heed. A mission you had been sent to was a mistake, a curse which should have been to taken down a measly second grade curses escalated into a special grade unregistered curse.

His eyes remains focused on you who now rest unmoving on the morgue, your eyes closed mouth slightly open with the rest of your body covered in a white fabric. Behind him he feels the stare of Gojo and Shoko waiting for a reaction but he gives none. Geto Suguru was simply too tired. I should have also told you weren’t allowed to leave me. A binding vow should have been made. Another drop of regret falls into a bucket which was already too full which makes a ripple.

It was then and there Geto makes a choice; a choice which stirs the jujutsu world for years to come.

[snezario]

Catch Me I'm Falling (Part 1); Vo/x

this is an adaptation of a vanilla fic i had been working on and there's definitely going to be some divergence from the original. i've been so hesistant to post this but i finally decided that i just don't care. i'm very much at rock-bottom and this ship manages to be the only thing that still provides me some happiness.

i know a majority of the fandom/shippers like one-sided radi/osta/tic, but i'm tired of acting like i wouldn't sell my soul for a ca/trado/ra ending for them. if you don't like it, don't read it :~)

it's supposed to be slow burn and there isn't a lot of Stuff yet but i'm throwing this out into our little community and maybe someone will enjoy it

part 2 / part 3

It all happened so fast. One minute he was preparing for tonight’s broadcast and the next Vox found himself struggling to pick himself up off the filthy streets of Pentagram City. Lightly pressing a hand to his throbbing head, he could see his reflection in a nearby puddle. He craned his neck to get a better view, doing his best to suppress a frown as he took in his appearance–he was sporting a crack that ran down the left side of his screen, a visibly torn suit, and a heavily bruised ego.

Vox staggered to his feet before brushing himself off. He self-consciously straightened his bowtie as sinners stared curiously at the VoxTek CEO, or ex-CEO now, but they didn’t need to know that just yet. He tried to keep his head high, shoulders square, and his attention forward as he plodded down the sidewalk, giving any passerby who looked at him for a millisecond too long a menacing glare.

It was more of a threat really, he couldn’t be bothered to use his hypnosis on anyone right now nor is he sure it would be successful.

As he marched further and further away from the tower, the television demon’s screen became clouded, a flurry of thoughts swirled in his mind. Sure the relationship with Val was never meant to last or turn into anything more than casual sex between business partners. But Vox did not see any of this coming, and in hindsight he really should have.

Valentino’s legendary temper had not shown any sign of letting up and if anything had gotten worse over the years, the fact that he tore up one of Velvette’s best models over Angel moving out should have set off the alarm bells in his head. He always thought he had been the glue that held the Vees together, the mastermind behind it all. Valentino was more conniving than he thought and Vox had been played like a fiddle.

It was all so textbook too. Valentino approached him after Alastor publicly humiliated him all those years ago. He was the one to suggest bringing Velvette on as a business partner. He was the one that initiated the volatile on-again-off-again relationship that they had shared for the better part of the past 7 years. Some nights Vox had wondered whether they could be just more than fuck buddies, but every time he brought it up Val would shoot him down.

And so Vox gave up on that idea and told himself he was happy to just have something between the two of them. A part of him was clinging onto the hope that Val would see reason and take him back. Maybe if he could just talk to Velvette, she’d get him to consider meeting with Vox, hearing his side of things.

Looking up he realized that he had been so lost in thought that he actually wound up further from the city than he would have anticipated and was now standing at the bottom of the hill to the Hazbin Hotel. His screen glitched and he ran a hand down the crack in his screen which came as a result of Val bashing his head into the wall. It was starting to interfere with his vision too, everything was a bit fuzzy. He looked longingly over his shoulder, back at V-Tower–despite how far away the hotel is, the neon sign could be seen twinkling in the distance.

Pulling a face, he trudged up the hill. Now standing directly in front of the hotel, he realized how gaudy it looks up close. Like a Vegas casino hotel, he snorted softly at the comparison. He moved towards the front door and stared at the stained glass windows. Vox hesitated, his raised fist precariously hovering an inch above the wooden door frame. Was he really about to stoop so low that he was going to his rival?

Long buried memories of Alastor started to resurface, as well as the burning hatred he had been harboring towards the radio demon flared in his chest. His screen chose that moment to glitch again, temporarily extinguishing his anger towards the smiling freak, as well as the pesky memories. He gritted his teeth and relented with a weary sigh. Vox raised his hand again before rapping three times on the door. What did he have to lose at this point, really?

He pulled out his phone to see if there was already any news on his spat with Valentino, he was almost certain that the moth demon was going to start a smear campaign against him. Before he could unlock his phone the door swung open to reveal Charlie, who was bouncing up and down slightly, clearly trying to keep her excitement contained. “Welcome to–” she began to say before her jaw nearly dropped to the floor.

While she had never met the other two Vees in person, she was familiar with them and what they looked like. This had to be the television Overlord, Vox. Although, he looked a little worse for wear, especially for an Overlord. She quickly reestablished her sunny demeanor and started again.

“Welcome to the Hazbin Hotel!”

It was almost too much for Vox when the Princess of Hell greets him at the door. He almost expected his knock to go unanswered, but now that he’s face to face with Charlie he has half a mind to turn on his heel and run back to V-Tower with his tail between his legs back to Val and beg forgiveness, not unlike the way Alastor escaped the fight with Adam.

Vox gave his head a slight shake as he pushed down the impulse, even though it was so very tempting, planted his feet to the ground. He looked Charlie up and down, taking in her appearance. She was almost his height, to his surprise, much taller than she seemed based on her interview with the news anchor Katie Killjoy some months back. Which was ever so slightly intimidating for him, but no matter.

“Your royal highness,” he bowed his head in reverence to her before raising it again, fixating a sharp grin on her, “I don’t believe we have been properly introduced. My name is Vox–” Charlie was unable to keep her enthusiasm in check and interrupted him with a squeal.

“Mr. Vox, I have heard of you and I am so excited to finally meet you! We haven’t gotten as many guests as I would have hoped. Please come in! Come in!”

Without another word, she grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him into the hotel. Despite his aversion to touch, especially when he didn’t initiate it, Vox allowed himself to be dragged past the threshold of the front door.

He gazed around, privately impressed–the interior was actually nicer than he would have expected. During this time he realized this was actually the first time he had stepped foot in the building, well the newly rebuilt version of it anyways. It was not nearly as hi-tech as his VoxTek building, but it was most likely due to that radio bastard’s influence.

He turned his attention back to Little Miss Bleeding Heart and continued, “Right, so I hear the hotel is still looking for recruits and what better way to sell your hotel than to have another Overlord’s endorsement?” The media mogul maintained his grin as he spoke but faltered when he felt an uncomfortable increase in static pressure around him, which signaled the arrival of a certain pompous old-timey prick of a demon.

“Endorsement from you? I hardly think that’s something we could use here,” Alastor’s staticky radio voice grated against Vox’s audio input sensors and he couldn’t help but flinch before making the necessary adjustments. The radio demon’s narrowed gaze pierced through him, and Vox knew that the former was silently taking in his appearance, judging him. His fanged grin remained steadfast as ever, although he raised a brow as his eyes lingered on the crack in Vox’s screen. Much to Vox’s surprise, he chose not to pass comment.

“Alastor,” Vox curtly acknowledged his rival, “I’m just here as a professional courtesy.”

Vox shifted his weight as his last statement hung in the air between the three of them. Why did he lie? Didn’t they take anyone here? After all, they accepted Pentious without batting an eye. With his cracked screen and disheveled appearance, it wasn’t like he even looked like the all-powerful Overlord image he was used to exuding. He was positively exhausted, but he just couldn’t bring himself to tell the truth yet, especially with Alastor hovering around.

It was bad enough that he showed up on the hotel doorstep looking like a kicked puppy. At this point, he doubted his ego could take anymore of a beating today. He hoped that at least Princess Morningstar would accept his pathetic attempt of an excuse and not ask any follow-up questions.

Just as Charlie opened her mouth to respond, Angel’s voice cut her off. They all turned their attention to the pink fluffy spider sinner lounging on the couch by the bar.

“Yo, get a LOAD of this! Val and Velvette kicked Vox out of the Vees and have started a smear campaign against him. I’ll bet Val’s going to have me working extra this weekend.”Angel trailed off as he noticed how silent the hotel had become. Alastor and Charlie both slowly turned to look at Vox, his pupils constricted but his eyes were now as large as dinner platters. The sheer horror on his screen was undeniable–well now he was royally fucked.

Vox felt a flush creeping up his screen as the hotel occupants’ eyes bore into him. Angel’s exclamation had invited the curiosity of a few other members of the hotel–the television demon now commanded the attention of the former exorcist angel and cat bartender. And normally he lived for attention, but not like this.

His gaze flitted over each of their faces, most of which seem to be of bemusement. Although there was genuine concern in Charlie’s eyes, which almost made Vox sick to his stomach. Alastor’s expression on the other hand hadn’t changed at all. However, he was the first to break the silence.

“Care to explain yourself, old pal?”

Vox’s mouth opened and his lips moved but no sound came out. His screen flickered as he tried to manually override his audio interface. He was slightly alarmed as his backup fans whirled loudly and liquid cooling kicked in. Hopefully his soundboard hadn’t short circuited. 

“Why don’t we sit down and talk?” Charlie suggested, seeing the distress on Vox’s face. She placed a steady hand on Vox’s shoulder and guided him towards the parlor.

“Mr. Vox, I know you just got here but you’re welcome to stay here while you sort things out. Everyone is wel–”

“HA! Him? Stay here?” Angel interjected, tossing his head back as he laughed. “Pentious was one thing but this is one of the Vees. I’ll bet this is all just another ploy to infiltrate the hotel.”

The pornstar’s mention of Val and the Vees sent a sharp pain in his chest. His claws dug into his palm, but other than that Vox maintained his composure.

Charlie looked contemplative as she considered Angel’s words. She spoke slowly as she worked to process everything.

“Even if he was trying to undermine our efforts… Why did he come here himself? What do the Vees hope to gain from sending the face of their trio to us?”

“Don’t ask me!” Angel threw up all four of his arms in exasperation. “It’s not like I try to understand anything that goes on in Val’s fucked up mind. I’m sure he’s not much different.”

Charlie opened her mouth to speak but promptly closed it, looking reminiscent of a goldfish when she did it.

“Plus did you see the look on Smiles’ face when this guy showed up?” Angel jabbed a thumb towards Alastor. “I’m sure he wouldn’t hesitate to go full demon mode and tear Vox limb from limb.”

Charlie frowned at the imagery. She turned her attention to Alastor leaning on his staff-microphone stand in the corner of the room. Despite his initial question, he’d been eerily silent. The radio demon met her gaze before looking down his hands. She looked between him and Vox. When neither party offered up anything, she pursed her lips together.

“Well the offer still stands, Mr. Vox.” Charlie said definitively. She momentarily put a hand on his shoulder and he could feel her compassion radiating off her. Her angelic girlfriend who also hadn’t said a word the entire time, still leaned up against the wall. As Vox makes eye contact with her she scowled, although her expression softened as Charlie approached her and took her hand in her own. 

She looked over her shoulder and addressed him one last time, “I’m sure Alastor or Niffty can show you to a vacant room, should you choose to stay. Have a good night!”

Angel stretched his arms above his head and yawned loudly.

“Well this has been all sorts’a fun ain’t it? Imma turn in as well. See ya later, Whiskers,” Angel waved genially at the bartender before disappearing down a hallway.

There was an uncomfortable silence now that only Alastor and Vox were left in the parlor. Again, Alastor was the first to break that silence, much to Vox’s chagrin.

“When you first showed up on our doorstep, I was ready to throw you out. You’re quite lucky Charlie intervened and is showing you a kindness that I could never possess,” Alastor tapped his gloved fingers along his chin thoughtfully as he paused, “You know, this actually might not be so bad. It’ll be like old times–”

Vox was lost in thought but managed to catch Alastor’s last sentence. Thankfully, it seemed like his audio issue had resolved itself. He rasped, “Yeah well, you can forget that. I’m not planning on hiding here for the rest of my existence.”

He winced when the radio demon looked at him keenly, he had hoped that Alastor hadn’t also picked up on the hoarseness in his voice. Pressing a couple fingers to his throat, he frowned. Perhaps the audio issue wasn’t as resolved as he thought. 

“Suit yourself.”

Alastor threw up his hands indifferently, adjusting his lapels as he stood to leave.

“Alastor, wait– I didn’t mean… I just–” Vox’s voice wavered as he struggled to find the words, burying his head in his hands when he didn’t quite get there. A couple of tense moments passed and he was sure that Alastor had probably just shadow teleported away by now. But when he peeked between his fingers, he could see a figure still by the fireplace. Although Alastor’s back was turned to him now.

Just as Vox opened his mouth to speak, Alastor’s head snapped around–a decidedly horrifying sound that made Vox cringe. The radio demon’s grin widened in a way that caused Vox’s stomach to churn with anxiety. That’s never a good sign is it? 

“Let’s take this conversation to my room, hmm?”

The heavy radio static in the space between them made Vox recoil. Oh how he hated when Alastor did that. It always made his systems go haywire or well, it used to at least–with his upgraded components he was less prone to Alastor’s radio interference. He watched as Alastor melted into the shadows, his yellow cheshire grin being the last bit of him to disappear into the darkness.

“Do I have much of a choice?” Vox muttered under his breath before focusing his mind to channel his electrical teleportation abilities and follow his rival. He stopped in front of Alastor’s door wondering what horrors awaited him inside. As he stared anxiously at the ornately decorated door, he noticed that it was cracked open. He pondered his next move… Alastor did invite him in.

With a deep inhale, he pushed open the door. The room was dimly lit and Vox had to adjust his screen’s brightness to see much of anything. In his peripheral vision he noticed Alastor sitting in an armchair on the far side of the room. 

“I’m sure you’re dying to snoop around. I will permit you a few minutes to get it out of your system before we begin.”

He looked around Alastor’s bedroom. Huh. Creepy. It appeared to be a hybrid of rustic 1930’s cabin and a Louisiana bayou that stretched past what Vox could presently see. Despite the swamp-like environment, it was surprisingly cool in the room, which was good for Vox because humid climates tended to mess with his components. He idly rubbed a hand down his cracked screen as a fleeting fuzzy sensation skittered through the circuitry in his head.

The radio demon stayed in his armchair, simply observing Vox’s movements. He strolled around the room, picking up various trinkets. Some of them appeared to be remnants of his human life, while the presence of some others puzzled him because of their seemingly ordinary nature. He never really considered Alastor to be a particularly sentimental person but the objects in his room indicated otherwise. Perhaps he didn’t know the other Overlord quite as well as he once thought.

As he turned away from one of the cabinets, his gaze caught a glint of a metal picture frame on a high shelf. Despite the multitude of items, he realized that there are no photographs, let alone framed ones. He reached up to grab it but Alastor’s shadow slid up from behind him and snatched the picture frame before he could get a better look. Startled, Vox spun around to look at the radio demon.

“I think that is quite enough,” Alastor said, motioning for Vox to sit in the armchair across from himself. He waited for the television demon to settle into the chair opposite of him before speaking.

“As you may know, the hotel is a bit lacking in residents following the extermination. I dismissed the idea before, but it could be useful to have the endorsement of other Overlords. Therefore, I have a proposition for you: I help you get back into good graces with your former colleagues and you–”

Vox snorted, before letting out a derisive laugh, “You really think I’m stupid enough to make a deal with you?”

Alastor’s ears flicked back irritably and he rolled his eyes, “Not for your soul, although it would be lovely to own another former Overlord’s soul,” his eyes briefly sparkled mischievously as the thought delighted him. Vox clenched his jaw when Alastor implied he might lose his coveted Overlord status.

“No, my dear. Just an itty-bitty favor. It’s nothing really.”

“Uh-huh… and what favor would that be?” Vox now had his arms crossed in front of his chest as he raised a skeptical brow at Alastor, unconvinced.

“I will reveal more in due time, old pal,” Alastor said cryptically. The finality of his tone indicated to Vox that pressing the issue wouldn’t be in his best interests. He retracted his hand as Vox continued to cast a doubtful gaze upon him.

“Oooor, you become the laughingstock of the Pride Ring, lose your Overlord status, and worst of all what you’ve always feared–”

“Okay! Okay, I get it…” Vox cut off Alastor, which earned him a glare from the other demon.

“So, do we have a deal?” The radio demon leaned towards him, extending his hand again and smiling all the while. What Vox wouldn’t give to wipe that infernal grin off his face.

Vox narrowed his eyes and searched the radio demon’s smile for a sign that he’s lying, going to double-cross him, or worse. The possibilities were endless. Damn, the bastard was always good at masking his true intentions and beyond his usual mischievous grin, it seemed like a relatively normal deal. Well, as normal as deals in Hell went. And with Alastor no less.

And yet, something in the radio demon’s voice tempted him.

Vox stared contemplatively at Alastor’s outstretched hand. As a fellow Overlord, he was no stranger to deals, nor does Alastor’s notoriety for being THE dealmaker go over his head. Sure, it’s not like he was bargaining with his soul but still, deals held a lot of weight in Hell.

This is a mistake. Every fiber in his being was screaming at him to turn back–hightail it out of the hotel and never look back, to grovel at Val’s feet to take him back, that he’s sorry for every argument, every disagreement they had ever had, no matter how small, even if he wasn’t to blame. Before today the thought of begging on his hands and knees would have disgusted him.

There was something that Alastor said earlier in the parlor that brought his spiraling thoughts to a full stop. It’ll be like old times.

Before he had a chance to overthink it, Vox clasped his hand around Alastor’s.

“Deal.”

Alastor’s smile broadened ever so slightly when their hands connected. A brilliant emerald light cloaked the entire room as the two demons shook hands, along with a shrill radio frequency that threatened to overload Vox’s motherboard. Not ominous at all. Alastor’s pupils transformed into radio dials and his antlers expanded both in height and length tenfold. Huh, it had been some time since Vox had seen Alastor’s demon form. This wasn’t even a full transformation–his full demon form was truly a sight to behold, lesser sinners would have cowered in its presence.

Vox shielded his face with his free hand until the light faded. The radio demon released his hand, which he let drop almost lifelessly to his side. His heart was pounding in his chest. What did he just do? Before he could dwell on his actions Alastor piped up.

"Now that that's out of the way, let's say we patch up your screen, shall we?" Alastor brushed off his coat as he stood, one hand clasping his staff as he waited for Vox to respond.

Vox frowned. His scree–? Oh! Raising a hand to trace the crack, he clenched his jaw as he’s reminded of Val’s parting gift to him. He had been so wound up that he’d nearly forgotten about the damage. His attention was momentarily diverted when he felt the unusual fuzzy sensation flit along his screen. Although, apparently that was just the beginning of his problems because as soon as the sensation passed, he completely lost vision on his left side.

“Fuck! Give me a sec, I’m just going to reinitialize my visual system.” Vox’s screen went dark briefly. Upon reboot his face reappeared, but not before it’s covered by an error code indicating that his visual I/O ports are damaged and a warning to cease usage until they are replaced or repaired. He manually overrode the warnings and to his luck, his vision was partially restored not to its usual 4K quality but it would do for now.

Alastor rifled through a cabinet drawer, returning to his chair with a small tube of fast-drying glue. He presented the tube to Vox. “Think this will help?”

“Couldn’t hurt, I suppose,” Vox responded with a half-shrug. He shifted his weight to take the glue from Alastor, but was surprised to see the other demon unscrewing the cap.

“Might be best if I apply it,” Alastor said quietly. Vox simply nodded, still a bit stunned that Alastor had not only offered to help but was actually initiating physical contact. He inched towards the radio demon so that the latter didn’t have to reach as far.

“You know, when you rejected my offer all those years ago I thought you were joking,” Vox paused, gazing at a point past the radio demon’s shoulders at the foreboding darkness of the swamp. It was so quiet the sounds of their breathing seemed to overpower the ambient noises of the bayou. Alastor remained quiet, focused on applying the glue to the crack in his screen but Vox can tell he’s captured the other’s attention with the way his ears twitched.

That was until the dull flickering in the back of his screen that he’d been trying to ignore, decided enough was enough. He only barely registered the sensation when his breath hitched urgently. He angled as far away from Alastor as possible as the tickle crested.

“ihh–ih’DZZTSSHhhuh!”

Alastor blinked at him in surprise. Vox’s screen felt unusually warm as he cleared his throat and tried to breeze over the interruption by continuing from his previous statement. “I thought you’d come around eventually. We both had the highest numbers either of us had ever seen and people’s tastes change so quickly here, I just felt that we needed to stay up with the times. But I guess some things never change, eh?”

Alastor opened his mouth to address the intrusion, only for his teeth to clamp down as he let out a pained hiss. He dropped the tube of glue as he jerked away from Vox to cradle his chest.

“Hey, are you okay?” Vox tilted his head. He couldn’t help but ask, even though he knows that Alastor would probably rather get his ass handed to him by Adam again than admit anything to him. Although he's not the only one to be loath to admit weakness of any kind, it seems like nearly everyone in Hell has the emotional intelligence of a teaspoon, barring a select few. Perhaps that was part of the “being in Hell” package, keep them at each other’s throats so they wouldn’t amount to anything.

Despite the minor incursion, Alastor’s smile hadn’t wavered in the slightest. He addressed Vox coolly, “I’m fine, don’t worry your noisy picture box of a head about it.”

However, the wince following his statement indicated he’s in more pain than he was letting on. Vox stretched a hand towards him but Alastor flinched away. He bristled, baring his teeth at the startled television Overlord, “It’s none your concern.”

“For once, will you stop being a pompous ass, and just let me take a look?” Vox snapped irritably at him.

As the lights flickered dangerously, Vox pressed up against the armchair fearing that he pushed too far. Alastor’s full demon form began to loom over him and Vox would be helpless to do anything. To his surprise, he shrank back down, his black eyes reverting to their usual crimson sclera, and his antlers returned to their normal size. He made a non-committal sound and motioned for Vox to move in closer.

Vox peeled back the soiled bandages and examined the wound, careful not to aggravate it. He’d never been the squeamish type but still had to swallow the urge to make a face. Not that he’d ever admit it, but he was surprised when he caught wind that Alastor had not been missing for that long and had already returned to the hotel. From what Vox had seen through his drones, the radio Overlord had taken much more pure angelic power to the face than most demons would be able to handle, let alone live to tell the tale.

“A parting gift from the first man,” Alastor said bitterly, jolting him from his musings. He felt a bit exposed, not having realized that the other demon had been watching for his reaction.

Turning his attention back to the injury, Vox inspected it further. He’s no doctor, quite far from it, but it seemed to be healing, albeit slowly. Probably would hurt like a bitch for a good long while, and no doubt would leave a nasty scar.

“You should probably change the dressings more often,” Vox advised, to which Alastor gave him a withering look. Typical. He rolled his eyes and shrugged, “Unless you want it to get infected.”

Alastor hummed, returning back to the cabinet that Vox saw him sifting through earlier. He pulled out a pack of gauze, ointment, and a roll of medical tape placing it on the table between them. If Vox had to guess, he’d probably been taking care of it himself, and was not being attentive enough from the looks of it. Before Alastor had a chance to object, Vox picked up all the items and removed the old bandages swiftly.

“Hold still,” Vox mumbled with the tube of antibiotic ointment between his teeth. He squeezed a thin but more than adequate layer on the gauze before pressing it against the wound, hesitating at the hiss that escaped Alastor clenched teeth. Powering through, he secured the dressing with medical tape, so that it was snug against the wound but breathable to encourage it to heal a bit faster. “There.”

The radio demon blinked at the fresh dressing but said nothing. Vox didn’t expect him to express any gratitude and just a little acknowledgement would have been nice, but he wasn’t about to hold his breath for it either. Against his better judgment, he circled back to their previous conversation.

“I know things weren’t always perfect between us but there were moments where I thought you genuinely enjoyed parts of it at least. And now, I just… Knowing that all this time you cared so little for our partnership,” Vox deflated into the armchair with the last sentence and dragged a hand down his screen. Behind the charismatic businessman persona he put on for the press, he’s tired of it all and being around Alastor again was messing with his head.

“That’s not entirely true,” Alastor murmured, staring pensively down at his hands folded over one another on his lap.

Vox did a double-take, did he hear that correctly? Alastor had spoken so quietly he had to turn up his volume to max, only to barely catch what he said. Did his audio system get fused together because he could have sworn that Alastor just debunked his theory. He alternated between letting the comment pass by or bringing attention to it. Fuck it. He decided to probe, just a little.

“Oh? Care to elaborate, old pal?” Vox smirked as he threw Alastor’s nickname back at him. He passed a hand along the back of his vents, which seemed to be a bit sensitive at the moment.

Alastor scoffed, looking up at the ceiling as he started to relay his thoughts, “We had a good thing going. When you first brought up the idea I wanted nothing to do with it, but you were persistent. You started to wear me down and I thought, maybe the idea wasn’t so far-fetched, maybe I was just being stubborn.” Vox was completely enraptured as Alastor recounted his version of the past.

“Ultimately, it felt like your proposal was inviting too many cooks to the kitchen. I have always worked best alone and our partnership was very much an outlier. After that last night, well…” Vox braced himself to relive the painful memory as the radio demon mentions the night, the night that everything fell apart. But Alastor merely trailed off.

His expression warped into something unrecognizable as he continued, “I thought about apologizing and the next morning I went to your apartment but you were already gone. Within the hour, your alliance with Velvette and Valentino was announced.”

Vox’s eyes widened, he had never heard about any of this before. “I-I had no idea. I–” His words got caught on the lump in his throat as he imagined Alastor at his doorstep.

Alastor shook his head, “Of course not. I left for my seven year “sabbatical” shortly after.” Vox angled his head slightly to see a wistful expression written on the radio demon’s features. Caught up in the moment, he asked the question that’s been on his mind since Valentino first alerted him to Alastor’s return.

“Where did you go all those years?” As soon as the words left Vox’s mouth, there was a sharp uptick in static interference around them.

“You never did know when to keep your nose out of matters that don’t concern you,” Alastor sneered. And just like that, the moment evaporated, gone. Alastor’s mask slid back up, shutting Vox out again. In turn, he shoved down whatever feelings had started to bubble up, back into the furthest recesses of his heart.

“The crack is sealed but I doubt it’s fixed. I’m no electronics expert,” Alastor’s tone was matter-of-fact and he pointedly avoided looking at Vox. Instead, he picked up a book left on the table and began to flip through it.

“Figured as much,” Vox sighed wearily. He craned his neck to examine the drying glue in a mirror on a nearby shelf–hmm, Alastor didn’t do half bad. “I’ll have to visit the electronics store tomoro–hihh’IZZZSHuhh!”

Vox barely managed to curl into his elbow as the sneeze sent him pitching forward. The unexpected outburst caused Alastor to jump and Vox was stunned as well. When he straightened up, Alastor was staring at him with an odd expression on his face.

“Uhh… sorry again,” Vox apologized, rubbing his arm sheepishly before turning to leave. With his hand on the doorknob, he tilted his head back slightly, “Thanks for… this I guess.”

Without another word, he slipped out of Alastor’s room. His screen is warm with embarrassment, having sneezed not once but twice in front of Alastor. As humiliating as it was to lay out his feelings in front of him, this was so much worse.

Wandering the halls aimlessly, Vox found himself thinking about the moth Overlord. Vox was never enough, he could never satisfy him. Reflecting their relationship made his chest ache and tears pricked at the edge of his screen. He stopped in his tracks, choking back a sob, as the emotions threatened to tumble out. Which turned out to be a mistake as he found himself leaning up against a wall when he doubled over with a harsh fit of dry, ticklish coughs.

When it finally subsided he heaved himself off the floor and went to find a place to curl up for the night. He was too humiliated to find the small cyclops maid demon and ask for a room so he settled for a chaise in the lobby. He shivered violently before laying his makeshift bed.  As Vox brought his knees to his chest, the events of the day replayed in his mind. How fast his whole world has come crashing down. One moment he had it all–a company with his name plastered on it, the status and title of being an Overlord with several hundred, if not thousands of souls to boot (he never really kept track), and a so-so situationship, the next he was at rock bottom–stuck at this tacky hotel for redemption, of all things. Redemption. The ridiculousness of it.

He squeezed his eyes shut as his head throbbed. God, he really needed to get his screen fixed.Although… the idea of righting one’s wrongs did have some appeal. His fingers grazed the patched up crack, the crack that Alastor helped patch up. They had a long way to go but maybe, just maybe, things between him and Alastor could follow suit.

[cherry-pop-elf]

Weasley Siblings As Firebender Types

In honor of returning to a convention again, after so many health issues stopped me, let's get self-indulgent!

For the sake lore wise, lets say this is in a modern setting

William 'Bill'

Obviously, mans will have that burned up face situation. Given, but in a setting wise he would be up the ladder and given the designated duty to study the history of the past. One of the few people who are trying to recover the airbending culture, and in charge of helping with items tampered with by bad karama/spirites. Meaning he is very close to the spiritual side, and more than likely using his bending as a means to mend things. Such as heating broken metal. An almost pacifist life style, which could have been influnced by how much hes learned through trying to help recover ancient history. Almost, A Pacifistic lifestyle. Recover what was lost. It would even be seen in his bending style, as he would be more intuned with air and water. Connected to the spirits, and it’ll show. You mess with him, well. Be careful next full moon buddy. Wouldn’t be a surprise if he pulled a Blue Spirit to steal back stolen artifacts

Charlie

He is the reason why the dragons have not gone extinct . He was specially chosen by the very dragons to help protect them. Running a special santuary on a island to keep them away, as to repair their nature. By this manner, he would have rainbow sparks in his flames. A sign that he is intuned with the dragons. Rasied by them, eats with them, he is much dragon as he is a bender. Having any visitors is esentially impossible, unless absolutly needed. Well, the weasley family would be allowed. Kin to their kin after all. He also would be extremely warm to the touch. Like I mean you throw a snow ball at him, it’s gonna start steaming. Mans a dragon. That would also mean he’s connected rather close to the spirit world. Not like Bill, but to say they haven’t been able to communicate through such a way is a lie. Just because he’s built like a jock doesn’t mean he’s dumber than a brick. Boy will he use that underestimation to his advantage in battle

Percy

Sorry guys, we know its true. He would climb the ranks, and get a bit intense. He will take pride in his nation, and need to have his family bring him back to earth alot. He would even be able to learn how to produce blue flames, in order to show his strength and determination to show the pride of his nation. Keep a close eye on him. He may be soon joining the Ozai Cult! A high ranking man he would be. Not in the military setting, but certainly working close to whatever lord is at attention at the time. Perhaps in charge of strategies for war, or works as a royal advisor. He’s important, but his own ego will cause some rifts. His connection to the spirit world is very weak, and that will be his down fall

Fred and George

They would have mastered combustion, and lighting bending. What do they do with such extreme skills? Cause mischief. They would more so run a fire work shop, and show you the beauty that fire can offer. Obviously they gotta be a dynamic of red and blue as well. Duh. They are always inventing, and would certainly be friends with everyone they can. Probs have Ty Lee genes in there somewhere even, and that’s how they are so charismatic. They can literally see your vibe, and know how to match it. As stereotypical as it is, they would have an extremely strong connection to the spirit world. As being identical twins. Which was perhaps how they were able to tap into such deep potential so young. They certainly are people you go to for advice. Be lucky they have that Ty Lee energy and are vibing. instead of being the next Azula

Ron

100% knows how to Lava bend. ((And of course the cliché that he would be teaching the next Avatar Fire bending/Helping master the element because duh)) But genuinely, he has a very earth bender personality. It would translate in his bending style, and a beautiful way to show he’s not like his siblings. He is just as much special, and different. He can handle his own, and out right manipulate a middle ground element. Earth benders better look out, he’s going to show you why you don’t mess with Weasleys. As for his spiritual connection, it’s faulty. Until he bonds with Hermione, and gets grounded again. He’s no where close like his older siblings, but his will to learn is what gives the realm a special place in their hearts for him. He’s trying, and that’s all that matters. In the end

Ginny

10000% Takes it to the levels of sportsmanship. Along with Jet Projection, and can manipulate her fire to help her fly. That sure startles her opponents. Though, but proxy it means she isn’t as spiritually connected as she should be. Hey, that’s what Luna is for anyway. She knows how to kick ass, even with out her fire bending. She wanted to know how to defend herself after all. Wouldn’t be a surprise if she had a Kyoshi Fan in her back pocket. She loves to learn any way to fight, and certainly learned different elements fighting styles. Able to keep her opponents on their toes, and understand how they move and work. She is proud of her power, but her connection to the spirits needs work. But, that’s where family comes in. Luna, and her brothers, will always have her back. And she will have theirs. You can count on it, that’s for sure

[wolfxplush]

Embers Of Love

Got really bored and wrote a one shot of the derby and Lovette breakup after math so uh…. Enjoy!

(Warnings: Uhhh Very sad, talks of self hate.)

Lovette stood outside, leaning against the cold metal wall of the old Autoshop, a cigarette dangling from her chilled fingers. The evening air was crisp, biting at her exposed skin, but she welcomed the freeze. It matched the coldness she felt inside her body, a coldness that had settled in her heart since the breakup. She took a drag of the cigarette, letting the smoke fill her lungs before exhaling slowly, watching as it dissipated into the night like a ghost.

She had never been a huge smoker before, Vance having introduced her to the habit one night during a party the greasers threw in the auto-shop for Johnnys birthday. It always left a bad taste in her mouth, she found herself craving one before and after her shifts. But tonight, it felt right. It felt like the kind of thing a girl who didn’t give a shit about herself would do. And right now, she wanted to be that bitch. The one who didn’t care, who wasn’t still reeling from the end of a relationship that had turned out to be nothing more than a mistake.

As she stood there, she could see the lights of the town in the distance, the glow from the street lamps casting long shadows on the cobblestone streets. Townies riding past on their bikes yelling and hollering at each other and a few cops that chased them down. Besides that, It was a peaceful night, the kind that usually made Lovette feel calm, centered even. But tonight, there was no peace to be found, only a deep, simmering anger that had been building inside her all week.

She took another drag from the cigarette, her hand trembling slightly as she brought it to her lips. “Derby Harrington,” she muttered under her breath, the name tasting bitter on her tongue. “What a joke. What a pathetic, spoiled boy.” She scoffed

Lovette’s voice was sharp, each word laced with venom as she let her thoughts spill out into the quiet night. “All he ever cared about was himself. His image, his stupid reputation. He didn’t care about me. I was just another trophy to him, something to show off at his stupid parties and his even stupider friends.” Lovette pushed away from the auto shops wall, taking a glance at a near by crowbar that someone has left out.

She flicked the ash from her cigarette, watching as it fluttered to the ground. Placing it in her mouth to free up her hands, scooping the crow bar up she gave it a few swings. “He’s nothing but a rich, shallow, arrogant bastard. All that money, all that privilege, and he’s still empty inside. He’s just a hollow shell, a pretty face with nothing behind it.” She grumbled, it sounding muffled from the cancer stick in her lips.

The words came easily now, her anger giving them life. It felt good to say them out loud, to let them escape from the prison of her mind where they had been festering, growing more toxic by the day. “And what does he have now?” she continued, her voice rising. She took a few steps back to a nearby barrel of oil. “A bunch of Incest loving friends and an ego already bigger than when we started dating. That’s all he’ll ever have. He’ll never know what it’s like to be loved for who he is because there’s nothing there to love!” She raised the crow bar with a swift *Woosh!* aiming it as she struck it down upon the barrel. A large crack sounded through the air as the black substance inside drained out of the metal container. Lovettes chest heaved with rage as she glared down at the sight in front of her. Her grip on the crowbar turning her knuckles white.

She took another drag, but this time, the smoke burned her throat, making her cough. The anger that had fueled her tirade was starting to wane, leaving behind a hollow emptiness. Lovette’s shoulders slumped as the cigarette slipped from her fingers, falling to the ground and smoldering at her feet. Her shakey hands releasing the crow bar as it slowly sank into the puddle of oil on the ground.

The fight drained out of her, replaced by a heavy sadness that settled over her like a shroud. She had wanted so badly to be strong, to convince herself that she didn’t care, that she was better off without him. But as the night grew darker and the cold air bit deeper, Lovette couldn’t keep up the façade any longer.

She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to stave off the chill, but it wasn’t just the cold that made her shiver. It was the realization that no amount of anger, no amount of bitter words, could change the fact that she was heartbroken.

“It was never going to work..,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “

Her vision blurred as tears welled up in her eyes, and she blinked furiously, trying to hold them back. But it was no use. The tears came anyway, spilling down her cheeks in hot, stinging streams. She sniffled.

“I thought I loved him,” she said, her voice breaking. “I thought he loved me.”

Lovette’s breath hitched as she sank to the ground, her back pressed against the cold stone wall. The night felt too big, too empty, and she felt so small, so alone. She had spent so much time trying to be perfect for Derby, trying to fit into the mold he had created for her, like a lost lamb and its shepherd, she had lost sight of who she really was.

The sobs came then, tearing through her with a force that left her gasping for air. She hugged her knees to her chest, burying her face in her arms as she cried. The anger was gone, replaced by an overwhelming grief that threatened to consume her.

“I hate him,” she choked out between sobs, but even as she said the words, she knew they weren’t true. She didn’t hate him—not really. What she hated was the way he had made her feel, the way he had made her doubt herself, the way he had made her believe that she was only worth something if she was with him.

The tears flowed freely now, each one a release of the pain she had been holding inside. Lovette cried for the girl she had been before Derby, the girl who had believed she was more than what her mother wished for her to be, who had believed in herself. She cried for the future she had imagined with him, a future that would never be. And she cried for the loneliness that had settled in her heart, a loneliness that felt like it would never go away.

For a long time, Lovette sat there, her body wracked with sobs, her tears soaking the ground beneath her. And as she cried, she let her heart break open completely, knowing that the girl she had once been was gone, and all that remained was a shattered reflection of the love she had lost, flickering like the last ember of her dying cigarette.

((This was not checked over so sorry for any spelling mistakes!))

[sepublic]

Acknowledging that I may be missing the point by trying to figure out the in-universe explanation and logistics, rather than focusing on the metaphor and symbolism behind Emesis Blue;

I think the Plague Doctor might be Fritz Ludwig from the future, possessed and/or under control of his alter ego (Hence the uncharacteristic act). There’s the obvious fact that Jeremy treats Fritz with hostility and fear, and Fritz’s own hallucination of killing Jeremy’s mom. He has the gouged-out eyes and smile, which Fritz receives at the end of the film after crashing.

At the end of the film, Fritz is brought back in the respawn machine, amidst a bunch of fire. In Archibald’s PSA to newly-respawned mercenaries, there’s an inexplicable fire that enters the room just offscreen, so I think there’s a deliberate connection. The only other possibility is that Fritz respawns as the Conagher Slaughterhouse burns down near the end of the movie (note that this would require someone to perform the manual input on the respawn machine, possibly the Plague Doctor). The abrupt fire at the end of the PSA feels too deliberate of a detail to otherwise ignore. Note that right after the video ends with fire, we cut to some photos taken presumably around that time, including of a burning Fritz…

Likewise, we have an example of time travel being an actual thing, and not just a Diazepam-induced hallucination (note Soldier claiming to have never taken any of the pills, only to later interact with his future self). This would explain how Fritz is in two places at once, which he needs to be, given we see him drive past Soldier in his ambulance, followed by the Plague Doctor’s hearse arriving just moments afterwards.

Now Fritz normally would have no reason to kill Jeremy’s mom, but that’s assuming it’s him in control; More than likely, it’s his alter-ego. Now I’ve watched TheWhat Show’s video on Emesis Blue, so I’m inspired by a lot of what he suggested here. But if we go with the idea that Fritz is being possessed by the spirit of the Tenth Class, this may explain a bit...

Dell’s Bar seems to be the limbo, the purgatory, the waiting room that the mercs and others who go through respawn wait in. And we know the respawn machine creates a fresh duplicate of one’s body, meaning respawned mercenaries can interact with their previous corpses; Hence the motherload of identical dead bodies all over the place. 

There’s also the hallucination Fritz has, where he’s trapped in a casket inside the church, while the Plague Doctor watches; Foreshadowing both the church he kills Pyro in, and later his own funeral assassination. But it could also symbolize Fritz’s mind/soul being locked away in his body, or perhaps in a briefcase/limbo, while the Plague Doctor takes over...

If we go by the theory that the Plague Doctor is the vengeful ghost of the Tenth Class who has possessed Fritz, I think things begin to come together. After crashing at the end of Emesis Blue, Fritz’s soul is stuck in limbo, awaiting his next respawn. Due to time loop shenanigans, he is respawned in the past as Archibald records his PSA, possibly with only the Tenth Class’ soul inside; Fritz’s soul may have been left behind in limbo, which may be located within the briefcase. Either way, the Tenth Class in total control now.

The fire is an interesting detail; Did the respawn machine malfunction? And this malfunction caused both the flame and the retrieval of future Fritz, instead of his current self? Or maybe, and this is a bit out there but I just want to say it; Maybe the Tenth Class’ soul was plucked straight from Hell, and in doing so brought some hellfire with him that burned the Conagher Slaughterhouse, the first time. We see an apparition of the Tenth Class when Soldier is about to jump over the chasm leading to ‘Hell’, after all; Maybe the Tenth Class went there.

Something I find interesting is that the Plague Doctor seems to be working with BLU Heavy, Pyro, and Zed and Maynard Conagher. Somebody else was holding up Mama Scout’s head when Pyro kidnapped Jeremy, and it appears BLU Heavy was supposed to pass the briefcase to the Plague Doctor near the start of the film. The Plague Doctor’s hearse is a convenient vehicle to transport BLU Heavy’s body to the Conagher Slaughterhouse, to later be revived by RED Medic into a Mr. X reference.

We know Maynard was the one to lock up Jeremy, “according to specification” as he tells Zed. And the Plague Doctor’s hearse is seen right outside the Conagher Slaughterhouse, burning just as its driver did when he first arrived in the past... Obviously the Plague Doctor isn’t being totally honest with the Conagher brothers, since he presumably gave the key to Jeremy’s casket to Fritz; Zed is confused as to how Jeremy escaped.

If the Plague Doctor is a possessed/evil Fritz from the future, that could explain how he has the key; That, or there's a second copy of the same key that Zed and Maynard don’t know about. Maybe there’s only one key and they threw it out, only for the Plague Doctor to retrieve it behind their backs... OR, Fritz held onto the key after freeing Jeremy, bringing it with him all the way to the film’s end; So when he respawns in the past, he has the key with him. And he slides it under his past self’s door near the start of the film.

What puzzles me is what the Plague Doctor’s goal and motive is; Did the Emesis Diazepam lead to memory loss, meaning he doesn’t realize he’s reliving the same events, just from a different role? Is he trying to end the cycle? Set up Soldier to arrive at the Conagher Slaughterhouse, learn the truth, and kill Redmond and Blutarch, breaking free? How did he convince BLU Heavy, Pyro, the Conagher brothers, and presumably RED Sniper into working with him? Is Archibald aware of and working with these guys? Being led to believe they’re helping him lay low, when in reality he’s just bait for Fritz, BLU Soldier, and BLU Spy? 

RED Sniper asks Soldier if he wants to die for something worth dying for, after deriding Archibald; Indicating he’s knowingly a part of some plan to end the Gravel Wars. But why try to kill Soldier at the start? Was that just Plan A, and Plan B was to inspire him to end it? Is BLU Heavy even collaborating with the others after being revived, or has his undead state turned him into an uncontrollable monster on nobody’s side? 

[scamarcio]

Thinking about when Chad Stahelski said that Santino is the direct reflection of John, his mirror (that’s why we had the mirror sequence in the movie at all, it was their second to last confrontation), he understands him fully and thoroughly and even better than John himself; And it’s like- Santino did all of those things because he both grieved the power he lost AND he was grieving the passing of his father, it gave him no right to go after Gianna the way he did, but in the context of his grief, the only way this italian freak noodle could live with himself was to take the position of power that was “intended” for him by his own dad - literally, just the pure vengeance. And then we have John, who was given a puppy, an intended gift by his late wife Helen, who was taken away and here John shows his own vengeance by taking out Bratva. The whole theme of John Wick Chapter 2 was to show the sentiments we fight for and the hypocrisy we stand for to nurture our ego. Santino’s character was there to show John Wick’s hypocrisy: his grief vs. Santino’s, John taking out Bratva vs Santino burning down John’s house, living through past sentiments we desperately need to move from ie. Santino needing to secure a position of power vs. John taking out organized crime units he was a part of. We desperately root for the main character, but are we in the right to not see the faults of him as well? Just as Santino died of self destruction, so did John.

[supa-suckers]

Break-up Headcanons:

El Matador:

"Noo how could you do this to mee?!"

Gonna say this right off the bat wheter or not his s/o showed signs of wanting to split beforehand is irrelevant because he simply wouldn't notice, being his usual self the less savoury parts of the relationship are lost to him and he brushes any arguments under the rug before making sure the problems that led to them in the first place are properly solved.

It's not that he dosen't care or dosen't take his s/o seriously it's just that his ego won't let him belive that a relationship with him in it could ever have flaws, so expect some disbelif and attempts at brushing the whole ordeal away might even try to play it off as a joke, his inability to handle rejection really comes through.

The first few months of the break-up are quite painfull, he's the type to try to win them back with gifts and grand gestures before realising it's either useless or he's making himself look pathetic also because s/o is Nanny Garcia level importanat to him he never thought he'd lose them so he's unequiped to handle the loss.

The team will most likely suffer greatly as he sulks both on and off the pitch the other guys might have to drag him away from interwievs so he dosen't bad mouth s/o and his performance will most likely see a short-lived dip. He's also not the type to have good faith in his heart for his past s/o/s/os, he most definiatly has love for them but staying friends with them or getting back togeather at a later date is not in the cards.

Shakes:

"Oh well i understand."

Similar to El Matador he'll try to act surprised by the initial question he's more observant yes but Skarra's betrayal has and his dad's droppibg off the face of the earth left him doubting any and all relationship he has. He can't ever shake off the feeling that he's the fool, the one who loves too much so he tries his best to push down the constant nagging of his brain.

He's just paranoid they just had a bad day, they weren't scowling it was the lighting, they aren't acting cold or distant they won't leave him like Skarra (or Dad) they aren't like that. He can't just call Spenza Pİ into his relationship, it's rude to over-step (nevermind that he's done that before in diffrent circumsnatces he's just scared of the inevitable truth.).

S/o won't see any if thag fear though just a nod and that he hoped they can stay friends beyond this, he tries not to go cold turkey on the relationship but the check-ins and the how-you-doins dry up soon enough.

Tries his best to not let the team know (three whole people have left him what does that say about him?) but when they inevitably find out he just says he'll get through it he always does and get through it he does but not without needing some support from the guys and Spenza who most likely moves in after you leave.

Skarra:

"Funny one, really."

Straight up laughs, who'd be stupid enough to leave a guy like him? Soccer star top of his game, best player İ.U has seen in ages of course he's noticed the signs who do you think he is? He just thought you were better at controllibg your emotions he didn't think you were the type to make stupid little decisions like this.

Fucking terrified, he should've known this would happen again, he should've known better, should've kept s/o at an arms distance at all times (provided we're thinking of a scenario where he didn't which isnt very likely imo) he should've never let anyone close enough to hurt him again.

Will try to brush it off and when that dosen't work he'll blow up and start a fight, never forgets the fear and anger so any good memory that s/o might hold on to he burns in his memory (or literally watch s/o watch your back).

His game improves for a bit though which is good for İ.U albeit a bit bad for Dingaan and the rest of the S.L who get the nasty end of his sharp tounge and bad temper, will play more agresively and foul more often i can tottaly see a plotline of Vince sneaking s/o or somone who likes look them of the front rows of The Vice jus to get a more 'organic preformance'. Might try to spread nasty rumors about the s/o or any number or malicous attempts at revenge if s/o has a fav team other than İ.U will try and foul them more badly/often.

Ja Nein:

"...well that's, that."

Knew it was coming before you did, horribly good at observation and reading people the lip-biting and the exaparrated sighs aren't lost on him, he knows too much about how people work to not know what they mean and pried himself too much on his intelligence to ignore them so he'll approach the situation proffsinaly it might even be painfull to see how dry he is about it.

His confidence takes a great blow though, his insecuritys are fed quite well by this and it will most likely show in his game Von Pushup might sub him for a few games and pull some shit to make him 'man-up'.

The rest of İron Tank respect him enough to not meddle most of the time this might not be one of those times, he probably won't make any attempts at revenge himself (unless he does check your playlist s/o, is the back door locked? Do they have the funds to skil town for a while if need be??).

Will act comfortable around his ex-s/o if they're still in the same friend group but don't be surprised if they suddenly go a bit cold on them or start inviting them out less and less, he would try his best not to date in the team but if s/o is by chance an Iron Tanker than well that team can be petty as all hell.

Riano:

"Well than what are you doing here?"

The few days before the break-up are tense like cut it with a knife kind of tense, he knows it's coming and he isn't the type of guy to beg them to stay, he'd rather hold it agaisnt them that they haven't yet, he's quite immature about the whole thing.

Won't bad mouth his s/o to the public or his friends but it'll take a while for his disdain for them to subside i see him as the sort of gut to eventually get over the shame of being the stupid one of course no one could keep up with him that long what was he thinking?

Will always have a bit of hate for s/o though and will hold onto it without realizing might try to serial date afterwards to 'get the bad taste off his tounge' will have a tiny glimmer of love in his heart for them despite it will never show but it's important that it's there i guess.

Won't let it affect his game at all and won't let his team know he likes to keep private matters out of his work life (the team are painfully aware of the break-up but don't bring it up in, he once snapped and went for his corach and once the ref, s/o is banned from the stadium for life).

North Shaw:

"Tottaly cool dude, you up for tomorrow doe, right?"

Honsetly sort of saw it coming he's not the long term relationship sort of guy, his life is made up of high highs and short lived lows he dosen't like to sit in discomfort not even to like reflect on the situation or think things through unless he's forced to.

To him it's entierly expected and accepted, is woeufully unaware of the emotinaly turmoil that s/o might have gone thourgh, to him it's just an end to the relationship not to their friendship. Will still invite them to hang out ,even if it's just them, and keep them updated on his life expecting to be updated on theirs as well might even introduce you to his new 'bae' since their friends now.

İf s/o dosen't handle his way too cool approach to the situation and try to block him off or cut him out of their life than he might react badly, he'll think it's a mistake or a joke at first but when explained he'll just tell them that's silly so what if they didn't work out romantically they were having a blast before that, no need to throw that away dude!

The team will tottaly side with s/o on this one with a few expections unless they don't like them, if it's a nasty break-up than s/o and North will still stay on talking/jabbing insults at eachother terms who knows maybe they'll score Liquido with that but i wouldn't bet on a relationship built on that.

Dooma:

"Oh so you've just upped and fucking deci-"

Call a fucking ambulance, no no forget that arrange your own funureal it'd save him the trouble. In all serousness though yeah wheter or not he saw it coming he's not taking it well by principal he dosen't date people phisically weaker than him and i'd love to think that he wouldn't pick an actuall fight over it but he did shove a ref's whistle up his nose and ate a red card on natinaly televison.

Honsetly s/o's best bet is to have the convo and book it outta there hope they packed their belongins beforehand or he'll most likely burn them if you leave shampoo, perfume etc. At his place he'll most likely put bleach in it he isn't the type for detailed well thought out revenge but he'll do his best in small little gestures like the middle finger in the midst of a match for example.

After a while he'll be over it and if he's still in contact with s/o he'll talk about his 'little temper tantrum' like a fond little memory if s/o dosen't play along he'll just brush off their concern or valid criticsm with an air of superiority he handles break-ups well or you wouldn't be here would you.

The team will most likely call s/o and ask you to come sort things out with him as their the ones paying for your little 'lover's quarrel' his game will improve somewhat during this time but so will his tendency to batter up anyone on the pitch.

A.N:im biased

[koficlouds]

Restless Nights (Witch Doctor Fluff Fic)

Fandom: JSE Egos

Ship: WitchDoctor (Marvin x Henrik)

Characters: Marvin the Magnificent, Dr Henrik Von Schneeplestein, Anti (mentioned), Chase Brody (mentioned), Jackieboy-Man (mentioned), Sean (mentioned), Jameson Jackson (mentioned)

Trigger Warnings!! Self Harm, toxic thinking, extremely bad habits

(If anyone ignores the warnings that I put, I am not responsible for anything that happens. If I missed something, please let me know and I will get back as soon as I can)

The clock struck three AM on a Sunday morning, he could already hear the birds chirping away with their aggravating song. It was almost as comparable to the overbearing sound of nails scraping on chalkboards. Running on barely even a few hours of sleep, two, maybe even three pots of coffee and more than enough anxiety to send a man to the nut house, Henrik trudged outside the household for a smoke. He moved silently through the halls, his feet barely auditing a creak as he made his way to the door. The tired German sat on the first step leading to the doorway, and breathed a heavy sigh as he reached into his pocket. He knew he shouldn't be smoking, his asthma couldn't take it, but his body was full of so much anxiety..he was literally shaking like a leaf; a leaf struggling to remove itself from a twig during the harsh blows of wind. Seconds felt like hours, minutes like days, hours like years. Everything moved slow, he felt like time just kept moving on, with or without him.

Taking a drag from the cigarette in the young doctors mouth, he felt the anxieties and stresses from his past few nights begin to slowly but surely fade. As he continued to smoke through the cigarette, he failed to notice a certain young magician had found him sitting outside by himself at such an unfathomable hour.

"Henrik..? What are you doing up at this hour darling? Why aren't you in bed..?" The magician yawned, as if the sudden disappearance of his boyfriend was enough to wake him.

Henrik practically jumped upon hearing the sound of his boyfriends voice so abruptly that the cigarette that was once in his hand dropped to the concrete step he sat on. "Marvin, I didn't think you'd be awake so soon...Ah, uhm..." He began to fumble through words to form some sort of excuse, but the only thing he could muster were noises until he finally spoke up once more, "I..couldn't sleep. And I needed some fresh air, and a smoke to cool my nerves." His voice automatically gave it away to Marvin, his boyfriend hadn't been sleeping recently, and he was determined to fix it no matter what.

"Would you like to talk about it darling?" The magician closed the screen door and seated himself next to the tired German.

"J-Ja.." Henrik sighed heavily, his shoulders slumping over as he hung his head. "That..would make me feel a lot better.."

"Begin whenever you feel comfortable to do so." Marvin gave Henrik a soft, patient smile and made direct eye contact with the doctor. Henrik took a deep breath and looked down at the steps and his hands. He began by rolling his sleeve up to reveal some irritated scratch marks, some having left blood behind, thus scarring. Marvin's eyes widened as he thought of this situation already.

"I-I...I had an anxiety attack earlier, in the bathroom. I couldn't stop shaking.." Henrik couldn't bring himself to look Marvin in the eyes while speaking, his voice cracked and strained itself as he tried so hard not to break down in front of Marvin. "I couldn't breathe, and I didn't want to wake you up so all I could do was sit there scratching at my arms until it was over."

"Oh darling.."

"I couldn't go to sleep after that..I-I didn't want to worry you...and I-I.." Henrik's voice broke and he stopped talking, letting out a quiet short whimper as his eyes burned with tears, brimming the surface and threatening a flood.

"Shh.." Marvin was quick to react, swooping Henrik up onto his lap as he held his partner close to him. He gently rests his head onto his chest as he began to speak slowly, and softly in a reassuring manner. "Don't worry sweetheart...don't get so worked up, I'm not mad..I'm concerned...you're exhausting yourself aren't you..?"

"I'm sorry..I just..I couldn't stop thinking about what happened to everyone else...Chase, Sean, Jackie, Jameson..even Anti I can't stop worrying about...What if they got hurt..what if we'll never see anyone again..? W-What...what if.."

"Let me stop you there sweetie. We'll see them again, I can assure you they are fine...pinky swear...but for now, you need to get some sleep, and this time mister, I won't take no for an answer." Marvin stood, holding Henrik in his arms bridal style back inside and used his magic to shut and lock the door. Turning off all the lights Marvin went right to bed with Henrik. "And you are staying home from work tomorrow..you need a break."

Editors note!

I apologize for the extremely long break I took. I will be trying to post more often

[inesosorino]

— people like to tell you what you're gonna be

{ ZION MORENO, 21, TRANS WOMAN, SHE/HER } Is that INÉS OSORIO? A JUNIOR originally from SAN DIEGO, CA, they decided to come to Ogden College to study PRE-LAW on a FINANCIAL SCHOLARSHIP. They’re THE PRODIGY on campus, but even they could get blamed for Greer’s disappearance.

CHARACTER STATS. 

FULL NAME: inés yesenia osorio cruz GENDER IDENTITY & PRONOUNS: trans woman & she/her BIRTHDATE: september 5th, 2001 (virgo sun, leo moon, sagittarius rising) BIRTHPLACE: mérida, mexico NATIONALITY: mexican-american RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION: athiest LANGUAGES: spanish (fluent), english (fluent), latin (fluent), can speak the other romance languages conversationally, currently studying cantonese

MORAL ALIGNMENT: true evil neutral MYERS-BRIGGS: estj TEMPERAMENT: melancholic VICES: icy, egotistical, self serving, workaholic, controlling VIRTUES: confident, poised, resourceful, studious, sharp SKILLS: hand sewing, knows how to interpret and use body language, public speaking CHARACTER INSPIRATION: michaela pratt (how to get away with murder), lydia martin (teen wolf), harper spiller (white lotus), spencer hastings (pretty little liars), drea torres (do revenge)

PERSONALITY. 

inés is a type a personality through and through. not only is she academically gifted, she’s quick witted, accomplished, capable, and not to mention incredibly humble. it’s hard to let go of a massive ego when you’ve been told all your life how much you’re going to achieve. while such praise may have caused others to burn out, her drive became her super power. no feat was too large for inés osorio to face. it just come from being conceited however, ever since she was a child she has had to fight for the things she wants and she’s carried that spirit with her into adulthood. she’s had to bare her teeth a few times to have her way and she’ll do it again. while that may make her come across as intense and overly zealous when it comes to her studies she believes if you can’t keep up then you can get out of the way. she’s earned her right to be at the table and she won’t apologize for the things she’s had to do to get there. there is more to inés than her over achieving mean girl persona though. she’s introspective and curious and enjoys to have deep conversations. bonus points if you can actually challenge her as she is prone to growing bored rather quickly. in spite of herself the glitz and glamor of the upper class still impress her and it can be charming if she’s caught letting her guard down. still, she has high standards for herself and those she keeps around her so don’t be too shocked if she’s quick to write you off. 

THE PAST. 

inés's parents had married young after her mother had become pregnant. truth be told their relationship was fresh and they didn't know each other that well but they shared the same dreams and that had to count for something, right? he played piano and wrote songs while she was a singer. and so, ximena and mateo moved their small family to sunny california from mexico. inés was too young to remember their time in their home country but she thinks about the cramped apartment in san diego's downtown more than she would like to. it was fine, at first. mateo worked two jobs to keep the household afloat while ximena took care of the baby. she would come home from school to her mother cooking and sundays after morning mass were full of laughter and music. the osorio household was a place for love and light.

except ximena was never able get past an audition and mateo never caught his big break. after years and years of waiting to be recognized for their talents, reality began to sink in for the couple. tensions rose as ximena refused to work but insisted they sent money to her family in mexico and mateo had to put his foot down as they barely had enough for themselves. the two fought often. they would do their best to have their arguments when inés was asleep but children pick up on more than their parent’s think. eventually they stopped hiding it. the two never left each other and inés always wondered if it was their own way of punishing the other.

when she began school, her teachers noticed how much more excelled in class than her peers. inés had an impressive memory and was incredibly well spoken for a child. her english was far more advanced than any other children her age who learned it as a second language. after her parents made the discovery they were raising a tiny genius, ximena went crazy. she pulled inés out of the public school she had been attending and used the rest of their family’s money to enroll her in a private one on the other side of town without consulting mateo. he was justifiably upset with her new treatment of their only child and ximena told him exactly where to stick it because inés was special and, more importantly, a chance out of this life they were in.

while inés’s parents were initially upset that their prodigal child was more interested in being a girl than kissing one (she would realize a few years later she didn’t mind doing that either though), they were ultimately accepting. her accomplishments in school had brought them so many gifts even if they were still making ends meet. ximena would push inés. if she failed, affection would be withdrawn to show there was no room for anything less than perfection. her daughter was going to be someone whether she wanted to or not. inés didn’t mind. she liked being the best. she liked the power that it gave her and she learned how to harness it. she was just as good as her peers who lived in big mansions— no, she was better. 

mateo left to move back to mexico inés’s sophomore year of high school. he had been talking to a woman his family had found and decided would be a “more suitable” wife and the two developed feelings for each other. ximena didn’t even look at him as he left, but later that night she crawled into bed with her daughter. instead, she focuses all of her time and energy into her daughter. she becomes overtly critical of anything inés did from what she wore to what she ate to who she spent her time with. her study sessions become longer and she signs up for more activities to excel at. there isn’t room for failure or burnout. inés to this day considers ximena to be tough but fair although from an outside perspective her parenting methods are definitely questionable. she stressed how vital it was for inés to succeed and to get a good job so the two of them could have the life “they” deserve.

THE PRESENT. 

inés settled into ogden university with ease. not long after her interview she was offered a full ride and she knew she would be a fool to turn it down. the undergraduate program was a walk in the park. she wanted to focus on buffing up her resumé before going to harvard, anyway. befriending greer and her group of friends was an added bonus. it can be hard to tell what inés’s true intentions are but she proved herself to be loyal to the golden girl so it didn’t matter what the rest of them thought. with her dear friend gone, inés stays skeptical as things are most definitely not what they seem. she can’t stop the world from turning though and even if she could she wouldn’t want it to. 

HEADCANONS.

extracurricular activities (oh boy): captain of the rowing team and currently filling in as coxswain, cheerleading team (co captain), undergraduate student council, pre law association, and mock trial.

cw: drugs. the type to say no to a cigarette because smoking is bad for you then immediately do a line of coke.

hates animals!! dogs have too much energy and she’s allergic to cats and she isn’t fond of anything with scales. if she isn’t interacting with something that is bipedal and can talk she’s getting out of there as soon as possible.

it isn’t that inés doesn’t appreciate the arts, it’s more after watching her mother and father’s lives fall apart due to the dream they were chasing she feels contempt for them. she learned from a young age only certain people were allowed to succeed in the field.

she’s the kind of person you would want around during a crisis. inés is very good at remaining calm and talking people down before any hysteria hits. 

was very much a regina george type in high school. prom queen, top of her class, and casually cruel. that hasn’t changed much. 

inés doesn’t actually like rich people but she likes and believes she deserves their lifestyle. after being surrounded by them for much of her life she’s come to the conclusion they’re not very bright and most of the time not worthy of her respect.

EXTRA. 

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[ashrillvenheim]

Awakening Past

Chapter 8 (part II)(divided in 2 because it was too long for Tumblr XD)

Quick note: The songs I use on this chapter and will use in future ones might not be set chronologically with the Fic's story date, but don't mind it, please

pairing: Ashley Graham x Leon S Kennedy.

Content: (+18) romance, angst, gore, erotic/suggestive themes at some point, slow burn, violence, action, self-harm, death talk,

If you're a MINOR or feel uncomfortable with any of these genres or ships, please DON'T keep reading, thank you.

Archive of our own / WORK LIST / Awakening Past Masterlist

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The warm breeze ruffled Ashley's blonde hair. She looked up with saucer-like eyes at the agent, who slid the keys into the bike. The woman looked at the machine, a Yamaha, a model that within the modern possessed classic features.

Ashley gave him a puzzled look.

“ But when…”

Leon held out his helmet and swung his leg over the seat. He sat down gently and the way the bike slowly gave way under his weight almost seemed...sensual.

" Ashley Graham focus for God's sake."

“ I already had it purchased, but after moving here I couldn't go pick it up and asked for it to be brought to a nearby dealership.”

“ That was your errand the other day?”

The smile widened on her full lips.

“ Yep.”

Ashley stood with the helmet in her hands, still staring in disbelief, staring at the powerful machine and its driver, hopelessly.

“ Hey” Ashley raised her eyes, snapping out of her thoughts, but unable to help but notice how the T-shirt tightened around Leon's chest. “ Are you going to get on, or are you going to stare at me all night?”

Her cheeks turned red with embarrassment.

“ I wasn't looking at you.”

The way Leon cocked his head to one side with that seductive smile was something her heart wasn't prepared for and a violent shiver ran through her entire body.

" Damn you Kennedy, you and your fucking smile." she thought, looking away and focusing on unbuckling the helmet.

“ One of these days your ego is going to eat you up.” Ashley mumbled tucking her hair behind her ears. Leon snorted a chuckle, still with that mischievous twinkle in his eye.

“ Well, that's what I have you for, isn't it?”  the mocking tone in his words made her raise her amber eyes at him.

“ To tell you that you're a jerk?”

“ To hit me if I go too far.”

This time it was Ashley who gave him the same mocking gesture on her lips.

“ You'd enjoy it too much if I did.”

They both laughed and Ashley put on her helmet and then pulled the footrests out of the back. Leon adjusted his and held the handlebars. He felt her hand on his shoulder and how she subtly leaned in so she could climb on. His grip tightened for a second as he felt her body against his, being embraced by her legs and the warmth of her torso. 

 It's a good thing he was wearing a helmet because he was sure his ears were red.

“ Have you ever been on a motorcycle before?" the agent asked, warming up the engine and removing the leg that held it.

“ Yes, but I don't see where I can gra-”

The bike jerked and Ashley screamed, clinging tightly to the body between her legs.

“ LEON!!!” she heard the muffled laughter of the agent and slapped him on the chest in protest. She settled into the seat before they pulled out onto the general road and then clung to him tightly. She slipped her arms around his waist and her heart raced slightly. She had a sense of déjà vu.

“ No water this time if you fall, so hold on tight.” She heard Leon's head cocked toward her. Ashley was silent for a few seconds, remembering that path in the middle of the sea when she thought she wouldn't make it out of there.

“ Ash, are you all right? “ Leon's concerned tone reached her, aware that she hadn't responded.

“ As long as you're not driving like an animal, that's good enough for me.”

“ And I thought you liked strong emotions.”

The soft chuckle reached Leon like a caress.

“ What I like is to stay in one piece.”

“ No promises.” he laughed, turning the corner.

For a good while they said nothing, just enjoyed the night breeze, but deep down neither of them was able to focus.

Leon sighed as he felt Ashley's hands shift at his waist, sometimes running her fingers up his torso to get his jacket just right.

He could feel her chest against his back, warm and... soft. A part of him was fighting against all this closeness that he shouldn't have, but he wanted to stop caring so much. He was at ease after all and it all made him feel calm, that was enough for him.

The rest of the feelings...

“ It's that exit.” Ashley's sudden voice made his blue eyes focus on the road sign. He slowed down and took the turnoff. Ashley squeezed her legs together and followed Leon's body as he leaned the bike into a sharp turn.

Ashley's head was still at home the moment Leon lifted his eyes from her dogs to look at her. She saw his lips part subtly in surprise as his eyelids fluttered open wider. The way he looked her up and down,...how he had slid his pupils up her legs, analyzing her bare belly and lingering a few seconds on her top. The black fabric that made her chest transparent formed a V below her sternum, softly drawing the shadow of her breasts. 

And she knew that Leon had looked at them because she saw his irises pass from right to left slowly as if he had tried to memorize the curves of her body.

It had been the first time he had ever looked at her like that. 

She reconsidered for a few seconds.

No, it wasn't the first time.

She had seen that expression in his eyes before, years ago, when they had escaped from the first Garrador... when they had locked themselves in that tiny room. Would Leon remember it too? Had he decided to keep the memories of their times together to appease his nightmares just as she did?

Ashley may not have known, but the answer was yes, and those memories for Leon had only been magnified since his accident a year and a half ago in Spain. When he'd been found delirious from fever and dehydration. Leon remembered dreaming of her, in her voice softly humming a song, as she had done in quarantine. He dreamed that she encouraged him not to give up, that it wasn't his time, that he still had a promise to keep.

He was sure those dreams helped keep him from flagging so soon.

They took a route with less traffic and pulled out onto an empty road. Leon wiggled his fingers on the handlebars and gave a throttle. Ashley exclaimed, holding on tight and watching the trees speed past. The wind was hitting her body and she felt a tingle run through her entire body. She couldn't help it and a giggle started to come out of her. She lifted her head over Leon's shoulder and laughed.

Leon did the same with her as he returned to a moderate speed.

“ We could have more bike rides!”  she exclaimed into the wind.

“ Anytime you want and as many as you want princess!” he replied with his heart racing with adrenaline.

How he had missed that feeling, the thrill of life. 

Speeding down an empty road, screaming into the wind, throwing himself into the water from a height, running in the rain...feeling alive. 

The laughter behind him made him feel all that and for a moment, an instant, he wished it would never end, that time would stop and they would both get lost on the road.

He wanted to enjoy that night as Leon, not as Agent Kennedy.

“ By the way.”  the soft voice brought him out of his thoughts and he braked at a red light. “Only Emily knows about what really happened in Spain. She's working her way into Human Resources at the DSO as a psychologist.”

“ Following in her mother's footsteps, huh?” Leon let go of the handlebars to stand up straight and stretch his back. Ashley pulled away so he could do so and they both felt cold all at once.

“ She was the one who helped me in Boston.” Ashley added, looking around.

There wasn't a soul around and it was starting to get dark. Her body tensed unconsciously and she subtly lifted the helmet screen to smell her surroundings. She almost jumped when she felt a hand on her thigh.

“ Are you all right?” she could see that Leon was also looking at his surroundings, and had unconsciously brought his palm to her leg. She smiled and rested her fingers on the back of his gloved hand.

“ Yes, I guess some habits just won't go away, won't they?"

Leon smiled and couldn't help but give her leg a squeeze before pulling away again. Who knows, maybe they could talk about more today. 

**

Emily had to look underground to have found that place. Ashley had to call Casey and follow her directions in order to find the club. They entered through several alleys heading towards the river until they came to an interior courtyard. 

The facade was wooden, typical of an English pub, but with the addition of a cafe. The two approached the entrance, listening to the soft music inside. Ashley turned to Leon with a worried look and he smiled at her.

“ I'll be fine, besides, I could ask you the same thing, all the smells come together here.”

Ashley gently pushed the agent's shoulder.

“ I'm tougher than you think.”

Leon made that characteristic grimace of his and opened the door chivalrously.

“ I won't keep Her Majesty waiting then.”

She rolled her eyes unable to contain a giggle and entered.

The small hall led to the main bar with a few small tables near the entrance glass, then extended to the back, to a room with more reserved spaces and a small stage to one side. It seemed that they held karaoke sessions or competitions in which they encouraged customers to take part. Leon watched the whole place as he walked past Ashley. She smiled seeing his "agent mode" activated and let him lead her to the back room, where voices called out to them.

Emily, Sergio, John and Casey were sitting in a corner with their circular couch.

Leon relaxed and let Ashley pass. The four of them moved a little to the side, but Casey stopped the blonde before she sat down.

“ Well, well, that's not bad.” She motioned for her to take off her jacket and do a turn around on herself. Ashley sighed and did as she asked.

Leon tried to look away, but his eyes escaped to that bare waist for an instant.

“ You look amazing.” Sergio then said.

Leon turned around surprised to hear him speak in Spanish.

“ Thank you very much, I didn't know if it would still fit.”  Ashley replied.

The agent laughed helplessly, drawing Graham's attention.

“ And you know Spanish too?”

Ashley smiled and sat down.

“ I had studied it in high school, but I didn't have anyone to speak it with and when I came back from Europe I met Sergio, who is from Spain. I really like languages.”

The news surprised Leon anyway. He looked back one last time before taking off his jacket under the watchful eye of caramel eyes.

Emily watched the agent and the blonde, whom she saw glancingly sniffing at blue eyes.

Leon's muscles tensed as he pulled the jacket aside and made sure the small gun remained hidden in the holster on the inside of his garment.

He slid in beside Ashley and rested his strong forearms on the table, being followed by folded hands in front of him.

“ So you are Leon Kennedy.” the man looked at the young woman.

“ And you will be the famous Emily, Catherine Connors' daughter.”

Emily arched an eyebrow.

“ Do you know my mother?”

Leon denied.

“ I've only heard her name at the office.”

“ Do you work at the same place?” Casey looked curious.

"Only Emily knows about DSO and Spain" she recalled Ashley's words.

“ No, but she has provided services to my company.”

Casey leaned across the table.

“ And what is your line of work?”

“ Security.”

“ Do you work for the president?”

Ashley looked at Leon but the man's calm face let her know that he had done this at least a million times.

“ I'm hired for security for people who have contact with the president, in this case as a bodyguard.”

“ I see.”  Casey nodded, satisfied with the answer.

“ What kind of trouble has she gotten you into already?”  Sergio smiled at Leon, referring to Ashley. The man let out a soft chuckle.

“ I think I'm giving her more trouble than I'm giving her solutions.” He turned to look at Ashley, who sighed.

“ He's got half the university licking the ground he walks on. Even Carla made him one of her "offers".”

Leon watched as the four of them grunted at the name.

“ Really Ashi, I don't know how you haven't punched her already. “ Casey mumbled, looking at the bar's drink list.

Graham pinched the bridge of her nose.

“ I almost did, but all I need is for her father to accuse mine of having a violent daughter in one of his speeches.”

“ I can always be the one to make her disappear.” Leon joked, grabbing another menu. “ I have to admit that you and your father have enormous patience.”

“ Are you usually with William?” Jonh spoke up for the first time in the entire conversation.

“ My colleagues and I usually attend some meetings so that there are no altercations.”

“ Have there ever been?”  Casey asked.

Leon denied.

“ As I said, he has infinite patience and sometimes I've had to restrain myself from hitting some idiot who insulted him.”

“ My mother has mentioned to me on an occasion that he seems too nice.” Emily said, earning a laugh from Ashley.

“ I still remember what Catherine said to me in one of our first sessions, quote, William and Ashley Graham, you say you are different, but you are two sides of the same coin.”

“ Until you see that Mr. Graham's pulling people's legs is worse.”

Ashley turned to Leon and Emily laughed.

“ Has he played any of his bad jokes on you?”

Leon sighed, running his fingers through his silky hair.

“ One day he woke up wanting to pull that one of the glass of water over the door on Patrick and me.”

Ashley looked at him, unable to believe her father had done that to her.

“ What happened?”  the blonde whispered curiously. He smiled at her.

“ Clearly Patrick fell for it, you have to do better than that to get me.”

The four of them laughed as they saw Ashley's face turn red with embarrassment and sink into her hands. Leon watched them all subtly.

They seemed like good people, they treated Ashley normally even though she was the president's daughter. He glanced sideways at his protégé, who seemed to enjoy their company.

If Ashley trusted them, so could he.

“ Let me see.”  fingers touched the edge of his menu and a delicious cherry and lemon fragrance came to him. Leon moved his arm out of the way between them, so Ashley could keep an eye on the menu.

“ I wonder if they'll make burnt meatballs?” she whispered just for Leon, accompanied by a tiny playful giggle. He gave her a puzzled look.

“ How much longer are you going to keep that up?”

“ Until you make some decent ones, third time's the charm, right? I know you've burned them again.”

The man's blue eyes looked at her in astonishment, then sighed in exasperation.

This time the urge to challenge her took control of his reasoning. He leaned back slightly on the couch, stretching his arm behind Ashley's seat. He cocked his head to one side with one of those smiles, one of the most devilish ones he'd sketched so far and Ashley's alarms went off. She leaned in softly and leaned closer to hear what he was saying.

“ Well, if we have those, next time you watch a movie that's a little too spicy, remember to turn the volume down.”

It took Ashley a while to process what she had just heard, but when she did her muscles tensed and her face began to burn. Her heart picked up its pace and pounded against her chest causing a nervous exhale to escape from between her lips. Suddenly she stopped hearing the music with the rumbling of her heartbeat.

Every time she had seen a movie with sexual scenes he had heard it? Why hadn't he told her about it before, she thought, she turned the volume down just enough so she wouldn't disturb him and she could hear the dialogue. She turned to him silently and when she saw that devilish smile still on his lips she simply could not. Those sapphire eyes twinkled mischievously, darkened by the atmosphere.  

They looked more dangerous.

Once. Only once she had seen that expression. 

Two and a half years ago, when they'd been locked in a cellar and he'd wiped the blood from her face.

When he put his fingers on her lips.

When he looked at her like a hungry wolf.

She averted his eyes and violently pulled her cell phone out of her pocket.

“ What are you having for dinner? I'll take care of the ordering.”

The four of them turned to look at her and began to write down. Ashley stared at the screen as if her life depended on it. She tried to calm her heartbeat, but it was impossible. 

She didn't want to raise her head, not if she wanted to avoid meeting his eyes. Why was that happening to her? Why did he manage to break her composure so easily? Her nerves made her feel his cologne and his warmth even more intensely next to her.

" Calm down Ashley, it was just a joke, calm down."

She took a deep breath in a new attempt to calm down.

“ For me the classic, this one right here.” the deep voice of the agent sounded next to her pointing to a number on the menu and shocking the woman. Ashley focused as best she could jotting down the last orders and got up. Leon stepped out from around the corner to let her pass, but didn't join her, he watched her reach the edge of the bar where she began talking to the bartender.

“ Well, well.”  An amused tone of voice caught his attention, turning to his interlocutor's caramel eyes. “ So, Ashley's bodyguard.”

Leon leaned back on the couch with a little more seriousness.

“ Are you worried?”  he asked with a faint smile.

“ It depends, should I?”  her eyes bored into his oceans. “ You seem very familiar with her.

“ We've met before, of course I'm familiar.” he glanced over to the bar again, where Ashley was still talking to the bartender.

Emily rested her chin on the back of her hand and Leon felt a strange sensation as if analyzing him.

“ A lot she has to trust you to give you her bracelet, then.”

Leon didn't blink. He felt the weight of the metal on his wrist more accentuated, but he didn't hesitate.

“ Can I assume you don't trust me? - he asked calmly. Emily didn't flinch.”

“ Let's just say that as a friend I care, as a psychologist I like to know what kind of influence you bring to her.”

Casey hissed.

“ Be careful," she warned the agent. “ She's gone into hunting mode.”

Leon looked at the copper blonde for a second and then straightened up to rest his forearms on the table, staring at the woman in front of him.

“ Sounds reasonable to me, do you want to interrogate me?”  he smiled.

“ Only if you are willing to answer me.”

Leon locked his gaze and Emily held it without hesitation. He could see the fierceness in those irises, and the fact that none of the others had said anything meant they were okay with this. He took a calming breath. He sensed no hostility from them, only concern, the same concern he felt when they entered Ashley's house.

“ Okay, shoot.”

“ Age and birthday.”

Leon blinked in puzzlement and looked at them incredulously.

“ Is that relevant?”

“ Details, nothing more.” grinned Emily teasingly, eliciting a chuckle from the agent.

“ 29, December 20th.”

Emily emitted an "hmn" in affirmation and continued.

“ When did you meet her?”

Leon reminisced, trying to be as accurate as possible.

“ A little over two and a half years ago, in December 2004.”  He saw in the brunette's expression that she wanted a more detailed description. “ I was hired to accompany her to Europe for her treatment and I was with her for two months, until she returned to Boston to continue her studies.”

“ Two months and she gives you the bracelet her mother gave her?”

“ Believe me when I tell you that even I couldn't understand it, but I couldn't say no to her.

John let out a low chuckle.

“ No one can beat her for stubbornness.” He paused to look at Emily and again at Leon. “Look Mr. Kennedy.”

“ Please” Leon's raised hand stopped him “ call me Leon, I only have a few years on you.”

“ Leon," he corrected, “ Casey, Sergio and I know that Ashley hasn't told us the whole truth about Europe.”  Emily turned to him perplexed. “ Come on Ems, you are the daughter of Ashley's psychologist and you started hanging out with her to keep an eye on her, we know she told you what really happened or you have an idea. That scar on her back is a tear and not an operation scar, we know she has a lot of monsters, but she tries not to show them.” He turned again to Leon. “ We don't want you to tell us what happened, we just want to know if we can put our trust in you, just like Ashley in us.”

The agent looked at John's sky irises, so sincere and honest. So far he had proven to be a rather quiet person and for him to say those words had surprised both Leon, and Emily.

Kennedy sighed and interlaced her fingers, now ungloved, for dinner.

“ It's true that we weren't together very long, but in that period we became close. I know it's not the most appropriate relationship between a guard and it's client, but what happened in Europe meant that I had to become friends with her.” He lowered his sapphire gaze to the bracelet. “ I stood by her side when no one else could and not just because it was my job, but because I went through something similar and I didn't want her to feel alone. I guess I tend to empathize too much, but I'm glad when I see them make it through.”  He looked back toward the bar, where Ashley was finishing up. “ I'm glad to see how much she's improved and all I can do is give her my full support.”

The five of them were silent and Emily looked at the agent who turned back to them.

“ Do I look sincere enough to you?”

Ashley returned to the table and found Emily and Leon staring at each other. She arched her eyebrows.

“ Did I miss something?”

Emily took a moment, then smiled at her friend.

“ We were proposing options to Leon to get rid of Carla, but he has much more imagination than we do.”

Ashley looked at them but didn't ask. She knew it wasn't true, but she didn't want to probe, it was Emily and she had been expected to ask Leon things.

She just hoped she hadn't put him in a compromising situation.

“ Okay, I don't want to know what he told you guys.”

Leon leaned back in the seat with a smile.

“ Are you sure? I have some pretty juicy ideas.”

Ashley rolled her eyes.

“ No thanks, come on, move your ass.”  She motioned to him and Leon responded without complaint, letting her pass. The chat was pleasant, everyone laughed and Ashley felt the nerves she had been building up slowly fade away.

It had been a long time since she had been out with people, so she was getting used to being around people and Leon wasn't helping.

She felt his warmth, his smell washed over her like a wave and every time he stretched across the table to reach for something and their bodies brushed, butterflies fluttered through her stomach. Maybe it was the beer, she hadn't had a drink in a while, though she'd only had two. Leon refrained after his one drink, as he had to drive, and focused on his plate.

But even he was distracted.

The music was subtle, they didn't have to raise their voices to have a conversation. He may have had to focus a little, but he could hear the heartbeat of the woman next to him. Until he reached a point where he was no longer listening to her heart, but to her voice. 

The soft sighs, the small shy giggles that only he perceived, the tiny exhalations when he brought his body closer to her...

Everything was sharpened and he was finding it hard to focus on anything else.

You know when the brain decides to produce fleeting and inopportune thoughts...sometimes they could be images, witticisms or questions and his head, for some reason, decided to propel one at him, wondering what her panting would sound like in the room?

He coughed loudly as he choked on the water drawing the attention of the diners. Ashley was quick to pat him on the back.

“ Are you all right?”  she asked pushing away the glass he'd left on the edge of the table.

He raised his blue eyes at her, only to avert them with reddened ears.

“ Yeah relax, your sense of humor is too much for a mortal like me.” he joked slyly. Ashley tapped him indignantly on the shoulder, only to refill his glass again.

He had only had one glass of wine, why was he acting like he was drunk?

The door bell rang and his blue eyes traveled over each of the newcomers, analyzing them up and down. He saw nothing, simple college students on a Saturday night.

His muscles calmed and he relaxed in the seat, but Ashley sensed the gesture and turned to look at him with a smile.

“ Are you all right?”  her amber orbs stared at him, but when they met his azure ones, neither of them could maintain eye contact.

“ That's my line princess, are you really okay with so many people?”

She smiled.

“ Yes, I'm used to it.”  She took the last sip of her drink under the agent's watchful eye.

“ Aren't you drinking too much? I remind you that we came on a motorcycle.”

She denied, still smiling.

“ I'm fine, this is the last one, I'm not going to drink anymore.”

A sharp beep startled them and they both stood on guard like predators, something that did not go unnoticed in Emily's eyes.

“ Good evening everyone, are you ready for karaoke?”  a man on the small stage caught the attention of several enthusiasts at the tables.

“ Who's going to be the first to start the night?”

A few hands went up in the background and two guys came out on the small stage, being applauded by the rest of the tables. 

The atmosphere was pleasant, the music enveloped the place softly and laughter brightened the atmosphere. The duet laughed as they tried to coordinate the choruses. They weren't singing badly, but Ashley was sure they had a few too many drinks. She wiped her lips and pushed her plate away to sigh, feeling the tension in her shoulders soften. She laughed out loud at a joke from Sergio and heard Leon ask his friend.

“ Hey and how did you guys meet in Boston?”

Sergio set out to give a brief summary.

“ Emily and Ashley met because of the situation with her mother Catherine. John and I were already friends and we met Ashley when she started coming to college. Casey was an acquaintance from our class, so we all started hanging out and so far.”

“ That was the blandest summary I've ever heard.”  Casey sighed making Leon look at her. “Sergio jumped on Ashley when he heard her sing once and asked her to be the voice on some songs he and John wrote. Ashley at first refused so I decided to take matters into my own hands.”

“ Casey, you locked us in the audiovisual room.”  Ashley growled.

“ And how well did that go?”

The blonde rolled her eyes.

“ I almost had an anxiety attack, is that good?”

“ Well, a little hiccup, but look at you now, you have a blog with some beautiful songs.” She paused, and then her eyes fell on the presenter as he took the microphone again. “ It's been a while since I've heard you sing and rave.”

Ashley picked up on Casey's playful tone and frowned subtly.

“ Who wants to go next?”

The copper blonde's smile turned mischievous and Ashley's eyes widened.

“ Don't even thi-”

“ Here!!!” she pointed at Graham a little too enthusiastically, drawing attention to the stage. Ashley produced an inward squeal as her face reddened and she heard Leon's snicker.

“ We have another candidate!

Ashley waved her hands, but Casey jumped out of her seat to drag her away.

“ Oh! come on Ashy! For karaoke nights!”

The blonde turned to Leon.

“ Please save me.”

Aaaaaaaand that lopsided smile reappeared on his seductive lips.

“ I remember you told me that one day you would sing live for me.”

The woman's eyes couldn't open any wider, when had she...? 

Oh, during the quarantine. So when he wanted to, he did remember things.

“ Are you going to make me sing too?”  she murmured so that only he could hear her. Leon knew Ashley would say no if she really didn't want to, he could see it in her eyes, but that didn't stop him from being a little cheeky with her.

“ Would you do it for me?”

Her cheeks reddened more.

“ Promise not to laugh?” she whispered even lower.

“ You know I would never do that princess.”

And it was true. She knew that if she really didn't want to, he wouldn't make her, maybe she just needed a little push.

" Okay," she sighed.  Casey hopped on the spot, letting go and pulling out her cell phone. “What are you looking for?”

“ I want this song. “ she showed him the screen, reading "Dead Man's arms" by Bishop Briggs.”

“ But you've already heard me sing it.”

Casey shook her head.

“ You sang it with me in the car, not on stage.”  she gave her a warm smile.  “Eat up the audience.”

Ashley let out a surrendered chuckle and walked toward the small wooden stage. The bartender held out the mic and searched for the song. Ashley gripped the metal handle tightly, took a deep breath, and raised her amber eyes. 

The tables in front of the stage were full of curious stares and a tingle ran through her stomach.

Fear?

No... excitement.

Her heart was running the marathon as the music began to play in the background. She raised her eyes to her friends and the man's smile made her shiver.

It looked like it was her turn to show off.

Leon felt a shiver run down his spine when the first notes came out of Ashley's mouth. A strong, determined voice, something that contrasted with her nervous body.

The bass resonated and the rumble of the refrain soon began to echo to anyone who looked at her.

As the song became more intense, the woman's body let loose to the sound of the deep synthesizers, letting a wilder aura take possession of her body. Those closer to the stage began to feel the groove Ashley radiated. 

A pair of blue eyes could only follow the movement of her body, the way the muscles in her neck tensed as she sang and her blonde hair tousled with the movement. The light enhanced her sensual black-clad figure and made the aquamarine stone on her arm sparkle.

Everything about her shimmered and then the song broke, causing the last chorus to enter everyone.

Leon's whole body vibrated and resonated wildly like a hurricane. When she broke the melody with a raspy voice, he felt his hair stand on end and his heart racing, pounding in his chest. His pupils subtly dilated and he had to part his lips to let out an exhalation.

He watched as she let her body sway to the bass, moving her hands and shoulders to a more hip-hop beat. He sketched a smile inwardly at the sight of the president's daughter moving and singing in that memorable way. 

Everything about her stuck with him. Every gasp and exhale released.

The audience pounded the tables with the rumble and raised and lowered their heads with synchronized applause. Even he found himself tapping his foot softly on the floor and subtly cocking his head to the rhythm of the refrain.

Ashley tossed his hair back raising the notes and exclaiming into the air amidst whistles and shouts. 

A tiger on stage roaring free.

Her golden eyes glistened in the spotlight, surrounded by gorgeous cheeks flushed with excitement and perhaps from the third beer she had drunk just before.  Leon noticed himself moving his lips in the chorus, following her just as they did in the car on the way back from visiting Victor.

His shivers stopped as the song was ending and Ashley was calming down, relaxing her body and dragging out the last few notes, to a murmur in the air, followed by a brief silence.

Whistles broke and screams echoed throughout the bar. Ashley bounced for a moment, tensing up, then smiled dazzlingly and curtsied. She handed the bartender the mic and hurriedly walked to her table, receiving the occasional compliment from others.

“ Happy?”  her voice was breathy and Leon could sense her hands trembling slightly. Casey nodded euphorically and went to give him a hug when she gave her a look, causing her to rethink her action.

“ I'm going out for a bit.”  she announced grabbing her glass. Leon got up shortly after and calmly followed her.

Ashley stepped out onto the balcony overlooking the river, where the soft spring breeze ruffled her hair as she rested her forearms on the stone wall. The cool surface made her sigh for a second and she caught a pleasant scent. The aroma was accentuated next to her and a strong figure leaned his waist against the stone.

He said nothing, just let her know he was there. Ashley watched the rippling shape of the water, deep in thought, as her lips moved unconsciously.

“ There are times when I get a little overwhelmed.”  the man beside her listened attentively. “It's not at all as distressing as before, but feeling so many eyes on me, the shouting... I like to sing for people, but it's not something I usually do. Sometimes I need to be left alone on a couch, just…”

“ Listening to your own heartbeat and taking deep breaths.” the deep voice made her turn to him. It was a low tone, much more like when one was freshly awake.

Leon turned and propped his arms up like Ashley, holding his non-alcoholic drink. Their eyes met and this time they felt no shame or need to look away. Ashley lost herself in his azure irises just as he lost himself in her gold ones and wanted to return some of his teasings. 

The woman smiled and took a sip of water.

“ You know," she began in a soft, innocent voice. “ There is a person who often says these things to me.”  The agent looked at her in confusion. “ His name is Leon, he's my bodyguard, but don't tell anyone, it's a secret.”

Was she drunk?  Leon stared at her.

She might be, but she was moving normally, her voice wasn't wavering... no indication of someone intoxicated, but that look... those flushed cheeks...

Maybe she wasn't, maybe she was just playing.

But he liked to play too and fell under the spell of those full lips that whispered his name.

“ Maybe I know him.” he grinned mischievously. “ What's he like?”

Ashley gave a mischievous smile and looked straight ahead.

“ He's very handsome, he looks like a Michelangelo sculpture. He's got half the university drooling.”  Leon felt heat in his cheeks at such flattery. “ He has hair that makes me envious and a devilish smile. Sometimes I feel like slapping him in the face, he has a terrible ego and feeds on making fun of me. Sometimes he is a jerk, don't let those incredible blue eyes fool you, they are the weapons the devil gave him so I can't say NO when he looks at me with puppy eyes. At other times he is very serious and at others, he seems to have the mentality of a teenager. Many times I have felt like tying him up with a gag. That's my bodyguard.”

Leon looked at her in bewilderment, unable to believe everything she had told him while he was present, and without remedy, he let out a chuckle.

“ He looks more like a walking pain in the ass, don't you get tired of him?”

That smile left him speechless, the way her lips curved in that subtle gesture that he found so dazzling.

“ Even if he's unbearable at times, that's part of what makes him so... him. He put up with me when no one else would give a shit about me. He didn't shut me out or give me a single bad word, so I feel like all that raging is a small compensation for everything he did for me. Also, without his stupid humor, he wouldn't be Leon Kennedy, because everything I've told you is what defines him and that's why he's so loved.”

He felt his pulse violently, sensing his heart pumping blood with a force that almost hurt. Those words touched every cell of his being, feeling the appreciation in every letter she had spoken.

He was a person who didn't usually talk about himself, even with people he knew, sometimes it was hard for him, but... in those moments, those instants when someone's words reached him so sincerely, that was when he felt most vulnerable.

And he couldn't help but look at the river with a smile, as his lips uttered words that perhaps he shouldn't have.

“ Well, I know a woman. We met for the first time over two and a half years ago and I thought I'd run out of my name. She couldn't fight, had trouble running for long periods of time, was blocked in the face of fear, and cried my name when I disappeared for too long.” He looked sideways at the blonde, who seemed to be embarrassed by those statements. “ but today I saw her up on stage, singing.”  he let the words come out without thinking. “ Did you see her? Because I saw a new woman. I could never have imagined that she could change so much. She's become a beautiful girl, she's not running from fear anymore and she's not going to let them walk all over her and you don't know how proud I am. Just seeing her in there has let me know that all the hardships we went through were worth it. That what I do is worth it.”

He turned his blue eyes towards her and saw her face flush up to her ears. Ashley felt shivers run down her spine again and every word sent shivers down her spine. 

He never spoke that way, only in his most delicate moments and so she felt his words like caresses.

She took a nervous breath and sketched a teasing smile, trying to camouflage her uneasiness.

“ I didn't know you had such a romantic way with words.” she joked, pausing, running her fingertips along the rim of her glass. “ Do you really think so?”

“ You know I wouldn't tell you something if I didn't mean it.”  He looked down at his hands, scarred by countless battles. “ No matter how many scars you have, princess, you're gorgeous and any asshole who says otherwise can go to hell.”

The sweet chuckle he heard made him tingle.

“ You're exaggerating.”

The smirk returned to the agent's lips.

“ Says the one who compared me to a Michelangelo sculpture.”

They both laughed and then looked at the water in silence. The sound of a guitar reverberated inside, a ballad. They both listened wordlessly, still internalizing what they had said to each other.

Their hearts were beating wildly, but they felt happy and comforted by each other's company. It was unconscious, but they both subtly moved toward the center, until their shoulders met. Ashley gently nudged him with her arm moving closer, just as he did.

“ Thank you.”  she said in a whisper, raising her golden orbs with the purest sincerity she could muster. “ For everything you did for me. Thank you for helping me become what I am.”

He felt weak when he was next to her, but she embraced that most vulnerable part.

He smiled back at her, brushing his knuckles over the back of her hand.

“ Thank you for trusting me and making me feel like a person again and not a tool.” He raised his drink and they toasted to them.

Leon swallowed and his orbs gazed at a distant point, thoughtfully for a few moments, then turned back to her, still with their bodies brushing against each other.

“ Hey, let's try and fulfill the promises we couldn't.”

Ashley looked at him puzzled for a moment, then laughed.

“ Well, the steak I promised you is done, now the singing too..." she thought about what else was left on the list.

“ There's still the spa and the restaurant I mentioned.”

She opened her eyes suddenly remembering.

“ I had almost forgotten about the restaurant, but wasn't it in Washington?”

“ I recently found out there are two more places in Boston and New York we can go to when you finish your exams.”

Ashley took another drink.

“ I'm going to have to train twice as hard with all the food I'm going to eat, although I'll have to pass first before I can celebrate, don't you think?”

“ Right.” the agent swirled his glass. “ What do you want to do when you're done?”

Ashley's finger stopped on the spot and drummed on the glass, her muscles betraying a sudden tension.

“ I…”

Why didn't she have a ready answer for that situation?

Just as Dr. Petrov had told her, Leon was no fool and knew when people were lying to him, more so now if he could hear the pulse racing. It took a few seconds for her brain to form a coherent and halfway believable sentence.

“ I told you I was going to focus more on research, but after traveling with Narsson I have discovered many things I would like to learn about. I want to go on expeditions and find new things.”

Leon watched her. If he didn't know her he would say she was answering him sincerely and absolutely.

But he did know her, better than she thought he did, and one thing she usually did when she wasn't telling him the whole truth was that she drummed her fingers.

And at that very moment, she was doing exactly that. 

“ Ashley”  his voice was deep, more serious than the teasing tone he had adopted so far. “ Is there something you haven't told me?”

She stood static and cursed as her heart raced.

There, Leon had heard her heartbeat perfectly, because he turned his body slightly towards her.

Should she tell him? Maybe it was for the best, but after the way he'd gotten when he'd seen the footage of the accident...maybe it wasn't the time.

She tapped her finger on her glass, feeling the man's gaze growing more and more intense.

Ashley sighed defeatedly and raised her amber eyes to him, who was watching her with a questioning gesture.

“ Would you be angry if I told you that there were other personal reasons why I decided to study what I studied?”

He arched an eyebrow.

“ It depends, we promised we would not hide anything from each other.”

A sad smile formed on her lips.

“ Many things we promised to each other.” She paused and stood up to turn to the agent, who mimicked her, but he didn't expect to feel her warm hand on his chest. It took him by surprise and he felt his composure falter.

“ Princess, is something troubling you?”

She denied.

“ No, it's just...I still have loose ends to tie up. I know I told you I wouldn't lie to you” she raised her eyes towards him and Leon felt his heart speed up under her caress “ but could I ask you to wait a little? I want to tell you, but I'd like to do it when I have the results of the exams so I can finish tying up those pending things.”

Leon felt the impulse to take her hand on his chest, but he restrained himself and just rested his palm on her arm.

“ Don't you trust me?”  his voice sounded more hurt than he would have liked, or Ashley sensed it more intensely in his eyes because without realizing it she placed both hands against his chest.

“ No! No, I would never mistrust you, Leon.”  She averted her gaze to confused, alcohol-reddened cheeks and guilt-stained eyes. And this time Leon couldn't help but raise his hand to the woman's chin to look at him. The touch of his skin made her startle for an instant, but she let him handle her, making her raise her head and lock her eyes on him. Those deep sapphires sank into her, making her flinch. 

She really was in trouble when he looked at her that way.

And she almost gave in when that broad hand rested a lock behind her ear with the softness of a feather.

“ Then why don't you tell me?”  his voice was barely a whisper, no longer firm or authoritative, just concerned and compassionate.

Ashley took a deep breath and fixed her eyes on him. She placed her hand over Leon's, wrapping it around the back of his.

“ Because it's something important to me. It's what has driven me since I decided to go down this path. I'll tell you about it, but I can't right now, can you respect my decision? Can you wait until I get the results to graduate?”

He looked at her unblinkingly, his hand held by hers resolutely and her orbs absorbing him.

And it was him who finally gave in.

“ Okay.”

Ashley smiled and gave him a squeeze to turn his attention back to her.

“ Promise?”

This time he let out a hoarse chuckle, smirking.

“ At this rate we're going to have too many promises, don't you think?”

She laughed softly.

“ If we fulfill them, they don't have to pile up.”

They both laughed softly and he stroked her cheekbone with his thumb before pulling his hand away.

“ All right, as long as you keep your promise to tell me about it when you graduate.”

She nodded.

“ Deal.”

They both stared at each other and Leon lowered his eyes to her lips as she parted them to speak.

“ There are many things I want to talk with you about.” Her face was still flushed, whether from alcohol or nerves, he didn't know. “ I've wanted to tell you all this for a long time, but I didn't know if I'd ever see you again.”

Leon stretched his arms in the air.

“ Here I am.”  He smiled and then looked at her softly. “ I... would also like to talk about when I went to Spain for the second time. I have to tell you about Chris, the captain of the BSAA unit that went there.”

Ashley arched an eyebrow, controlling her heartbeat.

“ Is he Claire's brother, the one who was at Racoon with you?”

Leon nodded.

“ If we ever meet again I'd like to introduce you to him. Meeting Claire is more difficult, she's in Eastern Europe so I don't know when she'll be back for a visit.”

Ashley laughed.

“ Who knows, maybe I'll get to take part in some expedition over there.”

They both smiled and looked at each other for a few more seconds.

“ Hey you two, are you finished?”

They both startled at the sudden voice and turned back to where they came from. Casey was looking at them with a mischievous smile on her lips.

“ You can eat each other's mouths after desserts.”

Their hearts skipped a violent beat and they looked at each other for a second in bewilderment, only to have Ashley turn even redder than she already was.

“ Casey!”  she exclaimed, embarrassed to the core. The copper blonde laughed out loud and went back inside to enjoy the desserts. Ashley wanted to die of embarrassment.

“ Don't listen to her.”  she told the man, trying to hide her uneasiness, but now that they were outside and the music was quieter, Leon could hear her heart thudding more clearly and couldn't help but laugh, catching the blonde's attention.

“ Are you embarrassed to be told that and not accused of sleeping with me?”

Ashley's pupils stretched and shrunk for a moment, then looked away.

“ It's a different context, in college, some people think I sleep with people to ask for favors.”

Leon watched her and his blue eyes darkened faintly, at the same time his voice was compounded with a mischievous smile.

“ You've asked me for a lot of favors with nothing in return.”

" Great Leon Scott Kennedy, how much of an asshole can you b-"

He heard a slap and suddenly he was looking the other way.

He blinked for a moment and turned to Ashley who was looking at him with no air and her hand outstretched.

She had just slapped him, he was beginning to feel the stinging and tingling in his cheek.

He looked at her. 

That expression was... new.

Her breathing was intermittent, as if she was trying to hold her breath, but couldn't because of nerves. Her golden eyes were like saucers, pupils dilated with surprise, perplexed. Her lower lip trembled and her face could not have been more scarlet. Leon was speechless. He heard her pulse erratic and racing restlessly, watching the veins in her neck pumping blood. Her big eyes looked at him not knowing what to do, where to escape to.

It had only been a slap, not even a very hard one, but seeing her so...confused...like this...was sending tingles throughout his body.

For some reason, his mind could only imagine, fleetingly, if she would make the same expression to him by cornering her against the wall.

Then he heard a gasp.

His blue eyes looked at those full lips, which had been unable to hold their breath.

“ Ash-”

And she left.

She averted her deer eyes and walked back into the bar.

Leon stood there, unable to move or articulate a word. He realized, then, that he too had been holding his breath and gasped. He swallowed, feeling his throat dry, and blinked several times trying to wake up.

He wanted to tear his head off.

He gritted his teeth and tangled his hands in his hair, holding back a roar of fury. 

Was he crazy?! Why had he said that to her?! 

Too softly she had hit him, she should have punched him.

He was an idiot.

A fool.

The biggest asshole of all time.

He had just made a sexual insinuation to the president's daughter, the same one who was unfairly accused of sleeping with the professors in order to graduate. What person in their right mind would utter such a barbarity?

No one but Leon Stupid Kennedy.

Why was it that when he was with her he was anything but reasonable? It was so easy for him to talk to her, to tease her, to laugh and...just be.

"You're her fucking bodyguard, behave like one." a growl sounded in his mind trying to knock some sense into him.

"Get your fucking shit together." he took a deep breath and slid his fingers through his hair. 

He exhaled heavily and walked back inside.

“ Here comes the missing man, where had you been?”  Casey caught his eye.

“ I was looking around, it's late.” he replied simply, approaching the table. Ashley subtly shifted in her seat and Leon settled in next to her.

Neither of them looked at the other.

They ate their desserts in almost total silence, responding to the occasional joke from time to time.

They were unable to look at each other, they wanted to die.

Ashley swallowed hard and finished her dessert with a smile.

“ You've definitely got this place right, Ems.” she said, glancing at the rest of the tables fleetingly.

“ We could do your birthday again, we didn't get to celebrate it this year.”

“ When is it, anyway?” Leon's voice sounded next to her, causing her to tingle again.

“ January 3rd.” Emily replied.

The agent stood still and the group continued their conversation as they asked for the receipt.

January 3rd?  That was the time when they were...

**

“ Are you sure you'll be allright?”  Ashley's voice sounded worried, but Casey and Sergio looked at her cheerfully.

“ Don't worry, we're staying at a nearby hostel and we'll be leaving first thing tomorrow morning.”

They all approached Ashley and hugged her tightly, kissing her cheeks intensely. She laughed feeling all the love they were transmitting and responding to their gesture. When they pulled apart Casey turned to Leon and pointed at him.

“ Don't let her get into any fights.”

Leon gave a smirk.

“ I'll try.”

Ashley rolled her eyes and Casey laughed waving goodbye to the two of them.

Kennedy and Graham watched them until they turned the corner, silently walking back to the parking lot.

Now, without the others beside them, they felt the awkwardness return to them.

Leon glanced sideways at her for a moment, then parted his lips.

“ I didn't know your birthday was around that time. You didn't tell me anything in the quarantine.”

He heard a subtle chuckle.

“ What about you? December 20th, what a birthday present to be sent for me.”

“ Did Emily tell you?”

She nodded.

“ Even I forgot Leon. Surviving was gift enough.”

"And for me to find you alive in that church," thought the agent.

They were silent again and soon arrived at the parking lot. 

Leon took his keys out of his pocket and unbuckled his helmet, Ashley mimicked him with her eyes on the ground.

He watched her and saw her climb into the seat with her hands resting on her own thighs. Leon opened and closed his fingers nervously. He went to grab the handlebars to get on but stopped himself.

He felt like he was going to explode and the embarrassed look Ashley gave him every time their eyes met was going to drive him crazy.

“ Hey Ash.” his voice was a sigh, unable to contain the familiarity. “ Forgive me.” he noticed her subtly twitching her fingers with her eyes still glued to the seat and continued “ what I said was outrageous and I understand that you're angry, I expect nothing less. I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't think before I opened my fucking mouth, it won't happen again.” He put on his helmet and mounted up to start.

Ashley didn't know what to reply, she could only hold onto Leon's sides still embarrassed and he felt it. He sensed that she didn't wrap her arms around his torso as she had on the way there, as if she was uncomfortable with his closeness.

Leon sighed heavily into his helmet and unfortunately, the ride was long and silent.

Neither of them said anything, they just felt the breeze against their bodies and their hearts racing.

She was... confused. Maybe the alcohol had upset her and was making her feel even more weirded out by the situation.

She finally raised her head and looked at Leon's neck. She knew he was a joker and that it was his way of expressing himself, although that didn't take away from the fact that he had gone a little over the top, but he had apologized to her.

He had swallowed his pride and apologized.

She swallowed saliva and leaned a little closer to him, wrapping her arms around his torso. She felt his muscles tense for an instant, then relax under her touch. 

She wouldn't make too much of it, it had only been a harmless joke…

**

They loosened their helmets and Leon lowered the bike's kickstand to park next to Ashley's car in the garage.

They walked up the stairs, their boots echoing against the brick walls, softly. It was two in the morning, they weren't going to stop by for the dogs, they would go tomorrow.

They reached their apartments and pulled out their respective keys.

“ Good night.” Leon whispered, turning the knob.

“ Wait,” he grabbed the man's jacket. He raised his sapphire eyes to hers, still unable to stare at her.

“ Ashley, I-”

“ I'm not mad at you Leon.”  she cut him off violently. He was perplexed and listened to her. “It's not the first time someone has said that to me, I know it's a joke, I just didn't expect you to say it to me.”

“ Still, it was totally out of line.”

“ Yeah, maybe” she paused for a moment, her cheeks still flushed. She raised her eyes and Leon tensed, “After what you told me about my scars and about me, well... let's just say it caught me off guard.”

Leon didn't know what to reply, but then he saw Ashley's expression change completely. She smirked and patted him on the chest.

“ You caught me off guard this time, I admit, next time I won't make it so easy for you. Be careful I don't learn from your tricks.”

The agent looked at her in bewilderment. The sudden change had managed to calm the tension between them in an amazing way, but he didn't know if she was saying it so he wouldn't feel bad or if it was really like that. Whatever it was, he couldn't help but smile playfully and ruffle Ashley's hair.

“ You're going to have to do it really well to catch me off guard.”

She laughed.

“ I'll get it, don't worry.”  She watched him for a few seconds and then added. “ Good night.”

“ Ashley.”  Leon's soft voice made her turn in the doorway. “ Still, is there anything I can do to make it up to you?”

She looked at him in confusion, but then looked up at the ceiling, thoughtfully, and then smiled at him.

“ Lasagna.”

Leon blinked.

“ Excuse me?”

“ I want you to make me homemade lasagna.”

“ Need I remind you that I've burned a few simple meatballs twice?”

 Ashley arched her eyebrows.

“ What were you doing while they were frying?”

“ Noth-” he suddenly shut up at the memory.

Both times he'd done them while doing the reports.

The devilish grin the woman gave him was enough to make his blood boil and his ears redden.

“ You told me you didn't have any more reports for now, so I want you to focus on making food for the two of us, okay?”

Leon grunted and took off his jacket as he opened the door.

“ Okay.”

The chuckle of happiness he heard was enough to make him give in completely.

“ Good night Leon.”  smiled the woman.

He chuckled under his breath.

“ Good night princess.”

He may have felt weakness when Ashley asked him for things, but he could no longer deny that she indulged him. She accepted a lot of his jokes and just let them slide.

She was too nice to him and he liked it.

prev/next

[eyeofprovidence]

BILL CIPHER is from GRAVITY FALLS. he is a 46 year old/immortal dream demon, physicist, and uses he/him pronouns. he has the power of mind invasion, shape-shifting, and astral projection. bill is portrayed by andrew scott and written by ALEX (est / 20 / they&she)

At a glance, most would hardly find Bill particularly intimidating, with his outward projection to those in Evermore residing somewhere between "mad scientist" and plain ridiculous. However, it's an intentional facade that he finds tends to sufficiently lower the defenses of others. Make someone underestimate you, and they'll easily spill information without even having to take the energy to delve into their mind! First impressions of him may often align with annoyance or exasperation - or, if they're a person he finds potential in, he takes effort to see that they’re charmed by the demon with his quick quips, a bigger-than-life personality, words to soothe their ego, and endless knowledge to offer that can’t help but lure their curious souls in. 

Of course, obnoxious "friend" and otherworldly yet altruistic muse are but facets of myriad sides, with his truest self being the epitome of the demon he is: cunning, sadistic, manipulative, and utterly selfish in the name of pursuing the chaotic weirdness that he finds gives existence meaning. Humans are only pawns, and even other demons and creatures like him serve simply as stepping stones to further his goals: to cause chaos in a dimension he may rule without the fear of it inevitably collapsing.

Bill won’t hesitate to lie and manipulate humans into creating doomed deals, torture and kill, or do whatever he deems necessary or even fun, according to his warped definition of such. Still, he's good at maintaining a mask - and has and will keep one up for decades if it means he's closer to achieving his goal of breaking into a new dimension to achieve his full potential. Generally, he’ll say whatever he needs to if it means getting closer to his goals or resulting in an amusing outcome, and while his words may technically hold some truth, he’ll gladly twist them to benefit none but himself.

To a being trillions of years old, reality is illusionary, utterly temporary and doomed to collapse, so why not have some fun while trapped in this new plane? Sure, he’s primarily focusing on his main goal of creating a proper portal to allow him full access to a new dimension, but some chaos and nightmares to fill open time are inevitable byproducts. Messing with mortal minds and watching them descend into anarchy is his favorite past time while waiting for them to do the dream demon's dirty work for him, after all.

As always, his own arrogance remains his very literal fatal flaw, with his constant underestimation of mortals and eagerness leading to deadly mistakes. You’d think Bill would have learned after literal children managed to thwart him multiple times, but nope! Safe to say, those patterns will continue in this world even in the presence of those who’ve outsmarted and defeated him before. Can’t teach an old demon new concepts like humility!

HEADCANONS:

"Misses home and can't return. Says he's happy. He's a liar." His obsession surrounding chaos and weirdness was initially something rather forced - a persona adopted after burning his dimension to the ground and having to deal with the guilt and loneliness accompanying losing everything and everyone. After billions of years having passed, his morality and any sense of remorse withered away, yet he still isn't happy - more existing to fulfill an ever evolving goal, perhaps too big for even someone as powerful as himself to achieve. Not that he'll ever admit that, and he’ll easily laugh at someone lamenting over their own tragic backstory while telling you how funny it was witnessing his family burn to ash. 

Even to allies who he considers somewhat useful (which, let's be real, are the closest to what you could call his "friends"), he's a compulsive liar. It doesn't matter the topic - even if it's asking what he had for breakfast or what his favorite song is, he'll lie. And potentially try to gaslight you regarding his previous answer the next week because he sucks. And sure, he may not be able to tell the kaleidoscope of possibilities that lie in your future in this dimension, yet he'd still make up a date and cause of your future death to unnerve you.

Despite his general lack of regard for life and homicidal tendencies, he loves weird little creatures like blobfish, goblin sharks, star-nosed moles, whatever. They're simple but freak people out for just being a little different - they're like a little sliver of the weird shit he wants to consume the universe! Here, he has a pet axolotl.

He's still terrible at occupying a human body. He'll simply forget to sleep until passing out at his desk, has a diet consisting of simply whatever is within arm's reach - and only showers because he realized a bad scent detracted potential "friends". He's still amazed at having two eyes all to himself! If he refers to humans as one lifespan, three-dimensional, five sense skin puppets, don’t worry about it. He’s definitely a very normal human person who has always been a normal human person!

Almost obnoxiously "friendly" most of the time - even if some of what he’s saying sounds vaguely threatening or generally concerning and is simply accompanied with a smile. Don’t worry about it; he’s just got a weird sense of humor! He’s got a large circle of… well, more acquaintances than friends, involving himself in others’ business whether they really want him to or not. After all, in a world where he's a bit less omniscient, it’s easier to observe people by simply surrounding himself with them. (To a certain degree, at least - humans stop being entertaining and become more predictable after so long.) 

As he's older than time itself and from a dimension that (he claims) has billions of genders, Bill really does not care about pronouns or human ideas of "gender". He usually defaults to he/him due to his typical appearance and name, but gender really isn’t something he concerns himself with, so any pronouns are fine! He'd likely just tell you his pronouns are [R̵̔͝E̸͋͝D̴̘̏Ã̶̎C̷̈́̽T̵̓͒E̸͌D] if you asked. The number one fan of chaos obviously tends to find any sort of categorization meaningless and needlessly tedious. 

Bill influenced human history from the beginning, and I like to think he did so on other planets than earth throughout the literal trillions of years given the 700 quintillion planets in the third dimension - but as sentient species inevitably destroyed themselves over the years, Earth has been his target for the last few millennia. He's the reason the pyramids were built, why the eye of providence watches you on the dollar bill, and why many historical figures both failed and succeeded. He'll also take credit for just about any major invention, unless it's circular.

This is canon - "Bill Cipher" is not his true name, as stating his true one aloud (or so he claims) would lead humans to evaporate upon hearing it. I mean, you can hear it, but just once!

His voice always seems… loud. Even though it's not being unnaturally distorted in his human form and he's rarely outright yelling, it seems to echo in your ears. Maybe it's simply another a side effect of Bill haunting your nightmares!

[xavierkhalil]

"Happy Face/Sad Boy"

I must ask why I experience my spells of depression. I have tried to rationalize by saying that it’s just a condition that I live with, but it is genuinely frustrating, because I am not a sonder person. I can be serious, pondering, emotional, and the occasional sad, but depressed? It is so odd for me, a person who is generally jovial about life.

Is it my past naivety or experiences of hardship. I have even tried to equate it to the possibility that I had never seen moments of happiness last long. I mean happiness did feel like a luxury growing up. It lasted for a moment, and then we were back to stressing about everything. All of it was directed towards finances, but mine is expressed because of general anxiety.

I have this fear that good things are not meant to last a long time for someone like me. It is something that I have unpacked in counseling a number of times. I have to have constant moments of self-talk to remedy the toxic thoughts I think, and I thought by now it would be easier to manage. It is not. If anything, it seems that it gets more difficult. It was easier to be ignorant and confused about these things, but living it for so long has forced me to take accountability. That shit is hard as fuck to do! I mean who wants to have irrational thoughts and spend much of their consciousness trying to rationalize their thoughts and emotions. Is something that all humans are cognizant of? Is it just a few? Or is this increasing among the younger generations? These are the questions we need answers to, folks!

The person who I love, but never been exclusive or intimate with, surprised me when they said they feel lonely a lot of the times. We go through these periods where we don’t speak, mostly on his accord, and it shocked me that he felt that way. It shocked me even more that this was the reason he “ran away” during these moments. Before knowing this, I associated his ghosting with me, and I internalized that something was wrong with me as a result. After giving him space and autonomy to express that to me, I understand that on a deeper level.

See, I have been dealing with depression and anxiety since I was 17 years old. I am 22, now, but for the first time I feel like I get where the one I love is coming from. He texted me back almost a week ago, and the entire weekend, Monday and Tuesday I read the opened message, and I didn’t know how to respond. I have been trying to challenge my ego and pride by not allowing those emotions to contradict my actions! I am also trying to let go of shame and ego and embrace Love but that is hard, too. All in all, I know how he feels in these moments. Lonely. That there is no need to reach out and be the emotional burden to someone else, especially to one you perceive as incomparable.

More than just loneliness, but war. An internal war of trying to be someone better than I was before. Trying to let the shadows of our former selves die and embrace the Light that burns within us is hard as hell! Especially in these depressing episodes, it feels like the shadows begin to get the upper hand. As if they want to be a part of me and I don’t want them to. Even when I tried to embrace them, and deal with them, it was dissatisfying. Seeing old patterns slowly repeated began to make me cringe. Knowing the names of the shadows, ego, shame and pride, I desire to let them go. I mean really let them go!

However, it feels like they don’t want to let me go, but what matters is I do! I know that I am meant to be free and love freely. I am challenged to show the Light blessed by God within me, and what’s funny is that deeply in depression, the Light shines just as bright. The fear of being free is attached to the go of safety and the shame of failure. I am tired of living like this. So no more suppressing.

[nikkiandroses]

It’s starting to feel like I can look back at what I went through and see her as someone else. Someone I never knew yet know everything about. Maybe it’s because it’s less painful to remember what happened from her point of view so my mind forces it out to where she almost seems like a child I had but didn’t. A rose with a thorn but the thorn is only a ghost. I can’t see her as me. Maybe it’s the many years in between her and I that seems to separate us as two strangers. Years that simply don’t seem to exist in my mind. And yet I know logically they are there. Trying to merge us back into one person seems to make everything more painful… as if the events are happening again at the present time but now we are both going through it. Perhaps it would’ve been better for her to let dead things rest. But for me I need to know. There a sense of remorse for not being able to understand the why from everyone who had thier share. A hatered for my family for never having acted or questioning or even raising me to understand that I should’ve talked to them. And an even deeper hatred of myself for feel that insatiable loathing towards people who didn’t receive a “child psychology for dummies” manual after leaving the hospital late February of 2002.

I feel torn and a mix of distraught and furry for her yet I can’t seem to feel the same way for me. I see her face in the mirror and old pictures but I don’t recognize that girl as what I have become. A self-loathing mess who pushed all those heinous moments away only for them to resurface once a new life was put into her hands. Only when I look into his wonder filled eyes do I see that little girl I couldn’t save. Only when I feel his fragile little body snuggle into mine for warmth in the morning do I see her begging for attention in the only way she knew how.

Whether it was ruining her pale skin on her arms or struggling to get the last two hair bands off her throat when she had actually started struggling to breath at age 9. Or weather it was lashing out and turning the things she’d been through onto others because gods know she had to put those wretched moments somewhere other than her mind. Maybe if she hadn’t been through it all I would have the faith my parents always wanted us to have. But what kind of god preaches to be thankful for trials and that someone as kind and benevolent as he would only put you through what he knew you could handle.

What kind of god decides a young girl like her could handle such things. What kind of god decides a child can handle being touched the way she was. What kind of god can watch a child make attempts of such a tragic act 12 times and still think she could take more. Part of me has always wanted to believe knowing it would make my parents happy. But I just cannot fathom out my love daughter and trust into a god who could do let such things happen to such an innocent child. She didn’t deserve that.

None of those children out there deserved what happened to them for simply trusting a family member or not being taught the reality of such things. Yet no child should HAVE to be taught these things to be safe. What kind if god would allow those wicked monsters to do anything they want to children. Why punish a child for someone else’s urges. Why let a child burn so the villains can stay warm. Some say it’s because of agency, that they have a free will. But how could you let a young being suffer because you chose to give people the option.

If the Bible was correct and Lucifer wanted to take away free will, doesn’t that mean these things wouldn’t happen. But Christ offered all the glory to you and in your thirst for your own power and ego, you chose to let good and innocent people suffer through truly wicked things. At the prospect of your own glory, you threw away every chance of keeping your “beloved children” safe.

I had never through confronting these memories of a past I cannot fathom as my own could bring up so much more than just the individual tragedy of that girls childhood. And yet here I sit tears and wrecked breathing, wondering why Why if god was real would he let this happen. Does he not love me? I know my parents love me because of the way they would do anything to protect me. So does he not love me to have let these things happen?

We are taught that in exchange for undivided faith and loyalty to one being we would receive gifts of lavish immortality and happiness without end. It simply doesn’t feel like love to me to be given these things without any real proof or evidence of the love my parents give. No protection for bad things. No safety from these people who prey on young for their own sexual gratification. No hugs goodbye or kiss goodnight. No comforting words of “you are enough”. Only an empty promise of things that have yet to be proved.

So I look down upon that little girl who loved to folded paper into complex boxes and animals. Who love to sing and dance in the kitchen to the phantom of the opera. Who loved dresses that would twirl like Cinderella’s and toy jewelry that glittered like stars in the sky. Who learned to ride a bike on her own and could read books far beyond her grade at such a young age. Who’s favorite desert was is snickerdoodle cookies and square ice cream. Who cried at the sight of her mother tears and studied her father’s face while showing him a song, craving to see any sign of enjoyment of such a simple tune. The girl who wanted to be a blacksmith and designer, painter and singer, electrician and author. The girl who used to be blonde with freckles and with crowns made of branches from the weeping willows in her grandmothers backyard. Who always seemed to be pulling up her pants because they never seemed to fit. The girl who would’ve traded $20 for a root beer flavored dum-dum without a second thought and I wonder.

What happened. Why did she change so much. How on this hell ridden planet did something so small, gentle and strong, turn into someone as bruised broken and fucked up as me?

Me who can’t stand wearing dresses or skirts in fear of being looked at wrong. Me who still yearns for verbal affirmations that my father enjoys the same things I do or thinks I’m cool but still can’t voice that need. Me who no longer folds origami or dances around the kitchen in a soft cream colored dress that had ruffles lining the skirt in layers at the prospect of looking like a fool. Me who still hurts when I see my mother cry and still searches for purchase on the feeling that It’s “not that bad” when I know it is. I no longer have freckles or blonde hair, but sometimes I wish I did. I wish I could still have every career in the world but I can’t. I still write books but they will sit in my Google docs collecting dust until the day I die. Me who still wishes I could dress like a princes and be pampered sometimes but feels in debt over simple gifts. Me who still loves snickerdoodle cookies and could eat square ice cream everyday but I live to far away now. Me who no longer seem to have the creative nature to make accessories from flowers and tree branches. Who no longer need to pull up my pants after losing the childlike figure and grown into a woman. Who now who give a lot in exchange for $5 if it meant being able to buy that little bit of extra food on the table.

I wonder what happened and yet I know what she went through. That little girl who I can’t seem to see as myself anymore.

I know what happened. But I still only wish.

[gh0stchoir]

Reader comforting Monoma when his mind wanders to dark places. For all he gloats that he's the best, his quirk is just copying someone else's and their techniques. Is the praise he hears and got in the past truly for him, or secretly for someone else? Whenever this happens, Reader let's Monoma cuddle him and reassures that they will always love him for who he is, not for what anyone else is. I'll leave it to you if the love is romantic or platonic.

“You're not your quirk.”

Neito Monoma x male reader

Warnings: intrusive thoughts, possibly triggering to some. Not proofread

A/n: HES SO FJRJDBSKEJ WHY DONT PPL LIKE HIM I GET HES ANNOYING BUT HES A PRETTY DUMB BOY

Masterlist

⚠️Female aligned= DNI or you will be blocked. (She/her, she/they, etc.)⚠️

Neito Monoma. Student at UA High, class 1-B. Most people knew of Monoma, knowing how much of a self centered gloater he was, his fault of course. Most would agree they didn’t like the blonde one bit. Mostly from him being blatantly annoying and always yelling about how he’s better than everyone, especially class 1-A. Everyone knew to ignore him and let Kendo deal with him, his threats and useless arguments going no where. It's all he did. All he knew to do to keep up his own sham of what he called 'pride'. At the end of the day, it felt like he just screamed the insults at a mirror, directed at the person he hated the most. Himself.

It was another long boring day at UA, students finally being able to relax from the day. Dorms and common rooms were seemingly quieter, especially class 1-B’s. No one had seen Monoma in the common room, and when they went to check if he was in his dorm, the door was closed and no one answered. They just assumed he was sleeping, too exhausted to continue to be a nuisance after a long day. Like he typically was, how everyone was used to. He hadn't been asleep though. Far from it. He was curled on his bed, trying to be as quiet as possible as he cried his eyes out. They were burning from how much he'd been crying, his body aching in pain from how badly he'd been shaking. His eyes were screwed shut, needing to not see the world he was so familiar with suddenly feel not real and blurry. Intrusive thoughts began flooding his mind, screaming and laughing at him, reminding him that he's nothing but a useless joke. A joke that benefits from everyone else around him. He pleaded for the loud voices to stop, which only egged them on to get louder and louder.

‘You amount to nothing, Monoma.’

‘All you do is copy other people’s quirks, then yell at them for being weak!'

‘You’ll never become what everyone else you copy from will.’

‘This is why no one loves you. You’re a selfish prick.’

‘You’re so unoriginal. It’s sad!'

He shook his head, hitting it half-heartedly to try and make it all stop. He didn't want his stupid useless ego. He didn't want everyone to hate him. He didn't want his frowned upon gift. He didn’t like it, the voices reminding him things he didn’t want to hear, things he feared. The same things he'd gotten told all his life. The things he always tried to repress down deep inside, locked away and open to no one. The things that haunted him everywhere he went. He knew that people didn’t like him or get along with him. He knew people saw him as this low life that copies other peoples quirks, too prideful to say he's any less than they are. He couldn’t just accept it though. He had to keep up this front runner of being a prideful douchebag. This facade he had put up that made him look so very very confident. But Monoma wasn’t confident at all. Far from it. He was terrified of people seeing him like this. Sobbing, curled up in a ball, with only his thoughts to fill the long silent void. If everyone saw him like this, they would call him weak, not a true hero. Just a scared and weak little boy. Like he really was.

“Sweetheart, hey hey look at me..” Neito snapped out of his thoughts, looking up to see you standing next to him with a frown as you set down his backpack. You had a deeply concerned look, your eyes dropped with evident bags under them. Were you tired because of dealing with him all the time? Was it his fault you didn’t have that much energy? Was he being too much for you? Holding you back from everything? “Bad thoughts again?” You interrupted Monoma's thoughts, reminding him he wasn’t alone. He nodded instinctively, like a trained puppy. He wouldn’t lie to you. Honestly, he didn’t know if he could lie to you. You sighed and sat down on the bed, crawling to the side and pulling Neito close. The two of you sat in silence for a minute or two, just to embrace the other.

“You know I love you right, my prince?” You asked. Monoma sniffed and closed his eyes. "You-you shouldn't.." You frowned and cupped the blondes cheeks, wiping away a tear. “How so?” You noticed Monoma didn’t spare a glance at you. Not that he didn’t want to look at you, but he was too afraid to. He hated looking people in the eye, even more when he was in such a vulnerable state as he was now. “Because, I'm nothing but a pain to have to deal with daily, just annoying and completely usele-”

“Monoma, do not finish that sentence.” You interrupted sternly, kissing his forehead softly. “You are nowhere near a pain to deal with. Nor are you useless. Do you know how amazing of a person you are? You fill in any place you go to with light and happiness, even when you're acting a fool.” You offered a reassuring smile, gently stroking his cheek with your thumb. Monoma curled against you more, crying harder. You always knew the exact words to his heart. It was like he was a book, and you had read the book countless times, too invested with the story to set aside. “All my life I just copy people and their quirks. I’m a complete asshole and I-I don’t know why I act like it..” He squeezed his eyes shut, biting his lip. “It’s why everyone hates me- I’m nothing but a piece of shit.”

You frowned and held Monoma tighter, letting his crying calm down until he was breathing normally and no more tears streamed down his cheeks. “You know, I want you to know that nobody hates you. If they do, then what are they compared to my beautiful boy here? You are so so strong, so very strong. You accept the comments and keep on going. You know how many people wish they could do that?” Neito sniffled and glanced up at you, seeing a soft smile on your face. That damn smile, that perfect smile that gave him so much motivation. The one he got warm inside just from seeing it. He loved your smile so much, wanting to see it every second of every day. "I’m sorry for all of this- I shouldn’t of dragged you into my problems..” He mumbled. You sighed and shook your head. 

“You didn’t drag me into anything Neito. I’m glad to be here to help talk to you and make sure those intrusive thoughts don’t come in. I’m your boyfriend, I love you. And I’d do anything to see you smiling and genuinely happy.” You spoke with a smile. Monoma bit his lip and rested his head in the crook of your neck, trying his best to not breakdown again. How did he deserve to have you? When his mind went into those dark places, you was always there to bring him back into the light. It felt like you were his only cure. You were the only one to make him actually feel good about something he did, and made him feel at least a little bit better about himself.

“Thank you..so much. I don’t think I say it enough.” Monoma wiped at the dried tears on his red cheeks with his sleeves. You watched him with a raised brow. “I understand you’re thankful without you needing to say it. You convey it to me on the daily dear.” You giggled into your hand. “....Really?”

You happily nodded. “Yup! You always cuddle with me and say you love me, repeating it like a parrot, it's cute. You also take time to find me to eat with me, and make sure I’m happy and have company.” You explained, thinking back to all the times in a day Monoma would go out of his way to make sure you were alright. All you wanted was for him to feel the same way. For him to believe that he deserved you, that he was the only person that ever deserved you.“Well of course I’d do those things, I love you and want to see you..” Neito muttered out. You smiled and kissed his nose, grabbing his hands and intertwining your fingers together. “That’s the same reason why I try to make you happy. Because I love you, if only you’d get that through your thick skull.” You joked, giving a gentle squeeze to Monoma’s hands. He let out a small laugh, looking into your eyes and admiring the way the lamp next to his bed glistened in your eyes. The orange hue, followed by the lighting of the setting sun coming from the window, made you looked like an angel that descended from above. You were an angel to him, his angel, the one that kept him sane.

"I love you, so much.. fuck how do I deserve you." Neito squeezed his eyes shut, holding you closer to him. You let out a sad hum. "Well, because I love you and no one else." You grabbed his face, gently holding his cheeks and smiling at him. "You're my boy, and I'm yours. And if it makes you feel better, maybe one day I'll have Monoma as my last name also." You giggle as his cheeks visibly redden, his eyes widening. You'd often thought about the future with Neito, including that of marriage. You wanted to be with him forever, no matter what. "You..you want to marry me-?" He asked, doubt in his tone. You enthusiastically nod and kiss his forehead. "Certainly! Who wouldn't marry the love of their life?" You giggle out as Monoma hugged you tighter and began littering your face in kisses. Goddamn he loves you.