#but there’s something about it that imma refrain from commenting on until i sleep on it for a few days

[agentplutonium]

I got silly goofy again with more NeXus characters. Anyway: Cher & Sherlock character study that got away from me and ended up being just over 2500 words

(the fic can also be found on ao3)

The clock ticked on the wall. There was the occasional shout of laughter from outside the apartment. Cher sat at the table, shoulders rigid, fingers tapping the wood beneath them impatiently. The wood was smooth under their arm, the back of the chair digging into their shoulder blades. They wanted to keep moving. They wanted out of here. They wanted to keep everyone safe.

Cher was dropped off at Alonzo’s and his partner’s place to be babysat, despite what Uriah told them. He said it was for their safety but they felt Uriah didn’t trust them, or that he thought they couldn’t take care of themselves. It was humiliating. Not to mention this was probably putting the lovers out of their way just to be there with them. They did not want to do that to them. Cher was not worth the amount of effort the two vampires were putting into them.

Suddenly, a mug was placed before them, snapping Cher out of their thoughts. Owl, what Cher has taken to calling Alonzo’s partner, took the seat across from them, a matching mug in their hands. They were silent, not looking at Cher. Their fingers stopped tapping. They couldn’t help but analyze the situation, Owl’s body language, the way they kept their eyes on the mug in their hands, the mug that was left suspended between the two of them. But Owl just fucking sat there.

The silence lasted for a few more moments

“It’s just hot chocolate, I’m not trying to kill you,” Owl said, those piercing eyes finally glancing at them. “Thought you might like something to do than just sitting here.”

“Where’s that boyfriend of yours,” Cher asked.

Owl opened their mouth, presumably to quip back, but stopped themselves. “Sleeping. He’s running himself ragged over this case.”

“And you’re okay with that?”

Cher knew that the case Alonzo was running after was connected to them and the magical world. It was dangerous to have him this close. Cher knew that. Uriah knew it. And they were sure Owl knew it too.

“I do what I can,” Owl said with a shrug. They took a sip out of their mug before continuing. “I keep him safe. That’s all I need. But, I came in here to check on you. Not Alonzo.”

“I don’t need to be checked on-”

“I’d beg to differ,” Owl cut them off, leaning forward and resting their elbows on the table. “You’re in a bad situation, in a stranger's house, being watched like you are some flight risk. You sat at this kitchen table the whole time because you couldn’t bring yourself to sit in the living room,” they started counting on their fingers as they continued, to prove their point, “You haven’t asked for food, or water, or even for the damn bathroom. And you’re doing this to yourself because you feel like if you get too comfortable it would put us in danger. That it would undermine the struggle and pain you put yourself and your pack through just to keep them safe. You’re ready to fight, to run, if the moment calls for it.”

The air was still between them. Cher was stunned silent, and Owl was still looking at them. How those eyes of theirs were natural would be beyond them. There was the smallest smirk on Owl’s face. A self-assured, cocky smile, as if they knew they were right before they even spoke.

“Am I close?” Owl asked, voice dipping quieter.

Cher didn’t say anything, but they did drag the steaming mug toward them.

“That’s what I thought,” Owl said, smiling.

“You’re not getting anything out of me,” Cher warned.

“Never said I wanted to,” Owl said. “However, I took the risk of assuming you wouldn’t mind some company.”

“I like being alone.”

Owl scoffed into their drink, “Sure, Cheri.”

“What is that for,” Cher demanded.

“Nothing, nothing,” Owl said, holding their hands up, “pardon me if I think that a wolf likes being alone is a little absurd.”

“It’s not uncommon.”

“I guess not. But seeing you interact with Zachary, coupled with the fact that I know you have a pack, tells me otherwise. You are a protector, Cheri, whether you like it or not.”

Cher huffed, rolling their eyes. “Say what you want. This was needed.”

“Of course it was. Someone came after you, and you didn’t want the pack getting hurt. You haven’t stopped since Washington, and I’m assuming you’re not all too pleased about how long you’ve spent here.”

“What do you know,” Cher said, annoyed.

“More than you give me credit for,” Owl shrugged, but still there was an edge to their tone and Cher could tell that Owl didn’t like their experience undermined. “When will you start accepting that we can hold our own around here?”

“What?”

“You heard me,” Owl said, sipping at their drink.

“What do you mean by that?” Cher asked, painfully clutching the mug, warmth seeping deeper into their bones.

“I mean,” Owl drawled, as if explaining it to a child, fingers messing with the rim of their cup in a bored manner, “Uriah would never have harboured you if he thought you were a genuine threat, no matter how much he says he doesn’t trust you. Whether that be you or whatever storm you’re dragging along with you.”

Cher didn’t answer, curling in on themselves. They still didn’t like being here, especially now that Owl was reading them like an open book. Was this just something that vampires could do? Or were Uriah and Owl special?

Owl sighed, relaxing back in their chair. “Listen, I’m not here to interrogate you,” they said. “I just want to talk.”

“We are talking,” Cher snipped.

“Normal talking,” Owl clarified. “Small talk.”

“Why do you want to talk with me?” Cher asked.

“Honestly? Cause you’re interesting,” Owl said genuinely. “You’re a puzzle that I can’t quite figure out. I want to know what makes you tick, Cheri.”

Cher’s mind flashed through the worst outcomes of this situation. Owl could use this against them, or get something about their pack out of them, putting them in danger. Cher wouldn’t be able to stop them from here if they were to put something together. But, a smaller part of Cher’s brain chastised them for it. What was Owl going to do? They were with Uriah, and he was proving himself to be trustworthy. If something was to go wrong, it wouldn’t be because of them.

Cher took a deep breath, “What do you want to know?”

Owl sat there for a moment, staring at the drink in their hands. “You miss home?”

Cher almost changed the subject. However, their silence drew Owl’s eyes again, and they couldn’t stay quiet with the curiosity that burned behind them. Maybe they understood why Alonzo fell in love with them.

“Greatly,” Cher whispered, “every damn day I’m gone.”

“What do you miss most?”

“My pack.”

Owl chuckled, “Naturally. I don’t know why I asked that. You got a big one?”

Cher shrugged. “One could say that, sure. I never really keep track. We’re already a few generations deep.”

“Damn, that must be hard to manage,” Owl commented.

“It is what it is,” Cher sighed, “most of them aren’t old enough to participate in the logistical side of things.”

“And I thought Zach was a handful,” Owl commented, taking a moment to take a sip of their drink.

“Do you consider him a child?” Cher asked.

“In some ways,” Owl said. “He isn’t terribly young in human years, but he is new to vampirism. I can have adult conversations with him and then have to scold him for something stupid five seconds later.”

Cher chuckled, “Fuck, don’t I know what that’s like.”

“You got ones like that?”

“More than I can count,” Cher groaned. “Love them all to death, but I question how any of them are still alive.”

“I get that.”

“You have anyone other than Zach and Uriah?” Cher asked.

“Lump Alonzo into that group and that’s all I got, in some ways,” Owl shrugged, “the rest of the people I know I wouldn’t consider family the way I do them.”

“You’ve built a nice life with them, huh,” Cher commented, not unkindly.

“I sure have.”

Cher could relate, but they didn’t say that out loud. Owl didn’t need to know their connection to their pack ran that deep. It was bad enough they knew as much as they did.

“Do you want to see some pictures?”

“Pictures?” Cher repeated, confused.

“Of me and Uriah from earlier in our lives,” Owl clarified, “I can let you look through the old photo albums while I update the current one.”

They would let Cher do that? Look at something that, they’d assume, was important to Owl? To them all? One part of Cher felt like they were overstepping something. But, how could they when they were invited to do so? Was it an invitation, or a test? Could they-

“I see smoke coming out of your ears, Cheri,” Owl teased with a chuckle. “I’m asking you if you would like to. This isn’t something you need to overthink. Just a simple yes or no will do.”

“I would like to,” Cher responded, surprising themself.

Owl smiled genuinely. “That’s what I thought. Come with me,” they stood from the table, grabbing their mug before making their way out of the kitchen. Cher hesitated for a moment before following suit.

Owl had placed a few coasters on a side table beside the couch before moving across the room to a fairly full bookshelf. “Feel free to sit anywhere,” they said over their shoulder, fingers running along the spines of the albums.

Cher looked around for a second, taking in their surroundings. There was a couch and a few armchairs that encircled a small coffee table, end tables between the pieces of furniture. Cher hesitantly perched at the edge of the couch, on the side closest to the preset coasters. If anyone looked at them they were sure they’d see the tension that was currently residing in their whole body. However, they didn’t get to think about that much, as Owl was already turning around with two albums and a small decorative box in their hands.

“This one is one of my oldest,” Owl said, holding out the more tattered album. “It’s from a couple of decades ago. It’s not the oldest, but we sure were different people back then. Younger. More naive.”

“More naive?” Cher asked, placing their mug down to take the book from Owl.

“Mhm,” Owl hummed. “You never really stop growing, even as vampires. You learn and experience things you never would have if you were human. Gives you an ongoing update on how you view life around you.”

“How old are you guys?” Cher asked.

“Aw, come on now, Cheri, it’s rude to ask people their age,” Owl teased.

Owl turned back to what they were doing, leaving Cher to slowly flip through the book open on their lap. They saw countless pictures of Owl and Uriah in different locations, smiling their widest and looking happy. The descriptions beneath each gave context as to what was going on. There were a few where one was not as happy as the other, in the wake of a prank that was less than pleasant. Seeing the two of them like this made Cher’s heart squeeze. They missed their family.

They got to a picture of Uriah, his back to the camera, at the edge of a lake. The description didn’t give much away, just revealing when the picture was taken, and Cher turned the book around to show Owl.

“What was going on here?” Cher asked, tapping the picture.

Owl glanced up from their work, smiling when they recognized what they were looking at. “There’s a whole story behind that picture,” they said. “You wanna hear?”

Cher nodded, placing the book back on their lap to pay attention.

That’s how they spent the rest of their night. Listening to Owl tell these stories, fuelled by the pictures that Cher would point out. The silence was comfortable between them in between stories as Owl worked and Cher browsed the pictures. The two of them continue to share drinks, and laughs, and Cher would even offer the occasional story about their pack.

This was comfortable, Cher realized, not sure if they were more spooked or surprised by the fact. Owl genuinely did seem to want to get to know them, despite knowing the time that they would share would be temporary. Cher wondered if Owl felt the same way, or if it was different for them.

Later in the night, when the album updating was done, Cher found themselves relaxed on the couch, enjoying the conversation that they were having with Owl. It had been hours since Uriah dropped them off, but they were okay with that. They liked being with Owl. They were nice and seemed to sense when they were getting skittish about a topic, changing the subject soon after. Cher felt like if they met under different circumstances they would have been fast friends.

There was a noise behind them and Cher tensed immediately, spinning around. Uriah stood behind them, as if he was there the whole time. Cher let out a breath, scowling at the man. “Do you not knock?” they scolded.

“This house is just as much mine as it is theirs,” Uriah said.

“You knew who you left with me, Ry,” Owl commented, the slightest edge to their voice. Cher didn’t expect the vampire to stick up for them. “It is good manners to knock.”

Uriah didn’t answer them, turning back to Cher. “Let’s go,” they said, “we need to get back.”

Cher almost talked back, but stopped themselves, biting their tongue harshly. They got up without a word, brushing past her on their way to the door.

“I will see you later,” Uriah said to Owl.

“Uriah,” Owl stopped him. Their voice dipped quieter as they continued, but Cher could still hear them. “They’re a good person, Uriah. I promise you.”

“I know that,” Uriah said.

“I’m just saying. I know how skittish you’ve been around them. Treating them like a loaded gun.”

“Would you disagree?”

“Yes.”

Cher paused, caught off guard by the sincerity behind the vampire’s voice. Did they mean that?

Uriah was also quiet for a few moments, and Cher believed there was some kind of silent conversation going on between them. “You mean that?”

“Every word,” Owl promised. “Just… just get to know them. You’ll see. You know they won't hurt us already, but they aren’t as dangerous as you make them out to be.”

“I’ll see what happens.”

There was a soft sigh from Owl, and then they said, “Thank you. Have a safe trip, Uriah.”

“I will.”

Uriah was beside them a few moments later, and he seemed to be a bit more relaxed. Uriah opened the door, stepping aside and motioning for them to go through. “After you, mon cheri.”

Cher ducked their head as they passed by, face heating up at Uriah’s eyes boring into them.

“Did you enjoy yourself?” Uriah asked when they were alone.

“Something like that,” Cher replied, not looking at him.

[kaythejay]

Big Announcement

This is Phanfiction number 2. If you haven’t read the first one, I suggest doing that first. Maddi, Imma tag you in this just to make sure you get it because you were literally the one who inspired me to write this mini series of DnP fics. Even though you didn’t write them, you deserve at least partial credit because without you, I never would have written them. 

@cherryscentedlube I hope you especially love this sequel to your fic... well the fic I wrote for you. 

And here is Big Announcement. 

“Are you sure the internet is ready for this?” Phil asked. “I mean, you saw how people reacted when we did the book and tour!” Dan smiled.

“Our Phans have been shipping and discussing Phan since 2009. Trust me, they’re ready.” Dan put his hand over top of Phil’s. “Now, you can tweet that we’re doing a live show on the gaming channel in ten minutes or so.” Dan brought Phil’s hand to his mouth and kissed it before letting Phil tweet.

“I’m going with ‘We aren’t playing a game, but we’ve got a big announcement, live show in ten minutes.’” Dan smiled.

“Perfect.” Phil pushed the button to send the tweet out into the world. There was no turning back now. They were going to announce their engagement to their entire audience. In turn, that meant the whole world. The internet will probably literally crack in half. Phil wasn’t ready for the internet to completely break. He had become quite fond of the internet.

Plus, if it broke, he kinda sorta wouldn’t have a job anymore.

•••

“Are you ready?” Phil asked, even though he, himself, wasn’t at all ready for the shitstorm that would no doubt be the live chat. And the rest of the internet. Dan looked at Phil, all of the love clearly written on his face. Dan simply nodded as a reply. “Alright in three, two,” Phil pushed the button that started the live show. “Hello Dan and Phil Games rings!” Phil greeted.

“Ooh nice one,” Dan commented. “Welcome to the show! Let’s read some chats.” Dan turned his chair so that he could better see his screen.

“What do you mean you aren’t playing a game, said Sophie,” Phil read. Phil began twisting his engagement ring around his finger.

“What a great question,” Dan said, jumping on Phil’s silence. “I mean, this is the gaming channel. If we weren’t going to actually play a game, why are we even doing this?” Dan looked over to Phil. It was the face that Dan and Phil both knew was known as “heart eyes Howell” on the internet. Also the look that the entire Phandom used as way to confirm Phan. Well, that and this live stream. “Phil, do you want to tell our audience, or do you want me to?”

“We’re going on tour!” Phil said sarcastically. Phil could feel Dan’s glare, even though he was looking at the camera.

“Yeah, we’re going on tour Phil,” Dan said, sounding uncharacteristically grumpy about the tour. Normally Dan jumps right on any link to spon the tour. Dan looked at the camera. “We still have tickets available at danandphiltour.com.” He at least faked a little bit of enthusiasm for that bit. “I’m pretty sure everyone knows about Interactive Introverts by now.” Phil gave Dan a curious look.

“That isn’t what this live show is about?”

“Are you playing stupid Phil? I really hope you aren’t playing stupid.” Phil smiled, but didn’t say anything. “The real reason we’ve decided to do this live show is-”

“We’re getting a dog!” Phil exclaimed. Dan shook his head.

“We’ve been over this. We can’t get a dog. Our landlord would never allow that.” At this point, Phil knew Dan was getting frustrated. Phil just loved frustrating Dan. “So, we have this great big, click baity title,” Dan said, not taking his eyes off of Phil to make sure he didn’t do anything stupid.

“Announcement Moose!” Phil said. “We must have the announcement moose!” Dan sighed.

“Whatever, get the moose and blow into its ass so we can just get on with this.” Phil quickly pulled the moose out from where they decided to keep it so they didn’t lose it again. He handed it to Dan.

“I want you to do the honor, Dan. You’re the reason we have this huge click baity title.” Phil took a glance at the chat just to get a feel of how confused everyone was (which, of course, is exactly what he wanted. If people didn’t believe him the first time about the engagement, no one would break the internet). Dan rolled his eyes and blew into the Announcement Moose’s butt.

“We’re getting married!” Dan said quickly, to prevent Phil from interjecting with something else. The chat didn’t instantly go crazy, so Phil figured people didn’t believe Dan.

“We haven’t picked a date yet, but this guy,” Phil pointed at Dan, “Asked the big question. He said ‘Aye, Philly, will you be my forever mate?’ I said yes.” Dan laughed.

“That is not what I said, and you know it.” Phil only giggled as a response. Dan sighed. “But yes, y'all were right, nearly all along. We’ve decided to do a live stream rather than just a video because we know y’alls will have questions and we do want to answer them. SOME of them.” Dan gave the camera a look like I-know-you-want-to-ask-weird-ones-but-we-ain’t-gonna-answer-those-you-pervs. That’s what Phil got out of it anyway.

“When did this happen?!?!?!?!?!?!?!” Phil read out. He laughed. “Do you want to take it, or do you want me to?”

“You all know the story. I stalked Phil on Twitter and sent him a bunch of messages until he paid attention to me. One day we decided to meet. Nine years later, here we are. Engaged to be married.” That, of course, wasn’t the full story, but Phil decided that Dan was probably holding back. It would take the longest time for Dan to tell the story as he wanted to. Phil knew, he’d heard Dan tell the story a million times to their friends and family. Phil always let Dan tell it because he told it so much better. “Let us see the rings, Amanda said,” Dan said, reading the chat. Dan looked at Phil. “This one’s for you.” Phil took the ring off his left hand for the first time Since Dan proposed nearly a week ago. He hadn’t even taken it off to sleep or shower. He held it up to the camera.

“It isn’t much, but it’s perfect to me,” Phil smiled at Dan as he put the ring back on, wanting so much to kiss Dan’s handsome face. He refrained because they were on camera. Dan smiled back at him.

“The rest of this is just a bunch of people randomly hitting their keyboards because they don’t know how else to express their emotions.” Dan laughed. “So yup. There it is, out in the open for the world to see and judge us on.” Dan did his face of regrets then smiled at the camera. “We’ll leave you now to process this new information.” With that, the stream ended.