#during which many Many people came to pick up ashes and that coupled with the fact that the last time we went to the emergency vet. you know

[liinos]

Gonna be real yall I think the vets office is a tad traumatizing for me 👍

[sketchyfletch]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by @feralkwe (thank you!)

How many works do you have on AO3?

11. I also have various ones scattered on ff.net, as well as lost to time on livejournal and a graveyard on my googledrive. 

What’s your total AO3 word count?

77246. In terms of fic writing output, I’m one of those little pilot fish that hangs around friendly sharks. 

What fandoms do you write for?

Mostly Dragon Age and the Arcana mobile game. I want to write more Mass Effect and I’ve done a Yasmin/Thirteen Dr Who ficlet. I used to write a lot of stuff for Naruto in my teens. 

What are your top five fics by kudos?

A Little Tender Loving Care - Arcana. Smut. Giving Nadia a massage. 

A Little Stronger You Thought - Arcana. A sparring practice with Nadia gets a bit hot and sweaty. Not actually smut this time. 

Won’t You Cleanse My Soul - Arcana. And we’re back to Smut. The bathroom scene taken to a conclusion not in the game. 

Not So Clean - Mass Effect. Smut again! Shepard and Traynor share a shower. 

Alone At Last - Dr Who. After Ryan and Graham leave the TARDIS, Yasmin and Thirteen finally push past a barrier in their friendship. 

Do you respond to comments?

Yes. I didn’t used to, but I love giving energy back to the people who took the time to write. 

What’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Back in my ff.net days, Leliana grieving after losing the Warden to the Ultimate Sacrifice. It implies Leliana dying as well. The angiest one on AO3 is Let it All Out, with Hawke spilling her guts to Leliana over everything that’s happened since they last saw each other in Lothering.

What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Probably Alone At Last. Most of my one shots have a happy ending but this in particular. 

Do you get hate on fics? 

I’ve been fortunate enough to avoid it, although I have had a couple of ‘helpful’ comments telling me what I should do with the characters next (which is a guaranteed way to make me go in the opposite direction, not least so the commenter can’t claim credit for the idea). 

Do you write smut?

Cough. See above. 

Do you write crossovers?

I sort of am between Dragon Age games as I like bringing characters from one game and putting them in the setting of another. I’ve also been picking at a ‘Shepard crash lands on the Wounded Coast’ fic which I’m not sure will ever see the light of day. 

Have you had a fic stolen?

Not as far as I know. 

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope. 

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I’ve co-written a lot of storylines on forums, some of which have sprung out into me working on fics separately, but not collaborated on a fanfic before. 

What’s your all-time favourite ship?

That’s a tough one. I adore Isabela/F Hawke, and ship Leliana very specifically with my jabby Siali Tabris, but if I was to pick one it would be Korra/Asami. When the first season of Korra came out I made a post on tumblr commenting on the chemistry between the two and really liking the idea of them together, but stating that the network would never, ever let it happen. (Child of the mid-2000’s ‘bury your gays’ wars here.) Having it come true was huge from a cultural standpoint, and I remember sitting at the computer sobbing my eyes out at the finale. It was so important to me so for that reason, I think they’ll always been my OTP even if I never write a fic for them. 

Which now I want to. Dammit. 

What’s a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

I really, really want to write more of Aliyah Hawke’s story. I love DA2 but Hawke as a protagonist never grabbed me by the brainstem in the way my Warden and Inquisitor did. I want to build her up some more. She has five chapters up on AO3 and I want to save her from the ashes. 

What are your writing strengths?

I’m told I’m good at distinctive character voices. I like to switch around POVs a lot during fics to give different perspectives on familiar scenes, and the way I write inner monologues is very specific to the character who is the focal point at that time. 

What are your writing weaknesses?

I’m not an especially funny writer. Some people have a real knack for turns of phrase that leave you rolling on the floor, and sadly I am not one of those people. 

Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I have done this a lot as Nicolette is either Orlesian or French depending on what world she’s inhabiting at the point I’m writing her, and in reference to her faceclaim also has Indian/Rivaini ancestry, so I’d sprinkle her speech with bits of whatever her mother tongue is. I’ve learned to be increasingly careful about this because a) a lot of free translation tools are absolute arse and b) context is very important. 

Favourite fic you’ve ever written?

I’m actually currently writing it. ‘I Cannot Fly, So Let Me Sing’ started as a joke of me taking my very pacifist wandering minstrel character who I have been playing for years and playing with the canon like a ball of yarn until I could justify making her Inquisitor. It has been great working her into the story and also trying to weave in other character POVs, but I am currently taking a bit of a break as I have two bridging/important infodump chapters to write before I can move onto the next bit and I am STUCK. 

Tagging @shenaniginstigations, @aithne and @zombolouge

[iamdrowninghelpme98]

Entry 2:

2023

~~~~~~~~~~

It’s been 23 days since my daughter died, and I feel completely shattered. My therapist suggested I try typing out how I feel, so I guess this will be like my anonymous online journal, a place to pour out all the things I can’t say out loud. The truth is, I’m devastated. I’m numb from the painkillers, but somehow the pain still seeps through, cutting into me like a knife. There’s no escape from it, no matter how hard I try.

I haven’t had my phone in months. My husband took it away while I was pregnant, saying it would only add to my stress, which wasn’t good for the baby. What a load of bullshit. It wasn’t about stress—it was just another way to isolate me, to make sure I had no one but him. I had to go through my entire pregnancy alone, trapped in the house with no one to talk to, no one to reach out to. He barely let me leave, and the one time I managed to sneak out for a walk, he punished me by tying me to the bed with a rope. He left me there for a week. Eventually upgrading me to a longer rope, I could reach the bathroom finally at that point. I’ve never felt so pitiful and shameful in my life. He says he doesn’t trust me and wants to keep our baby safe. 

My husband is mean. He is cruel.

He left me to deliver our daughter alone. He left me alone in the hospital surrounded by unfamiliar people, random doctors and nurses, he left me to go get high. It was agonizing, and I had no one. I was in pain the whole time, I didn’t understand what was happening, what was wrong. I had just felt my baby moving around inside only days prior, and now they’re telling me that something has happened, she is gone. When they placed her in my arms I knew that would be our first and last moment together, if there were a chance of saving her they would have rushed her off immediately to be treated by the doctors- but that’s not what happened, the room was silent, no cries from my little girl, just silence as they placed her on my chest, no quick motions to save her life, just silence. She was already gone.

I can’t remember how long I held her, it was hours. Not long enough though. 

Eventually my husband came back, he was high and silent. I couldn’t stand the silence any longer, I wanted someone to cry with me, to acknowledge the pain I was feeling, but he sat there barely looking at me, barely looking at our daughter. He had betrayed me many times before, but it was then in that silence that I knew we would never recover from this. I would never forgive him for leaving me during my worst moments, for leaving our daughter.

They kept me in the hospital for a couple days, my husband never returned to be by my side, after the first night I only saw him again when he had returned to pick me up, I left there without my baby, the only thing in hand was a death certificate and the promise of receiving her ashes eventually. 

I was out of the hospital for less than 30 minutes before I had a needle in my arm again. So yes world, I relapsed, I have given up. My husband knows, I haven’t told anyone else- honestly there’s no one left who cares anyway. My family has long since moved on without me, and my “unofficial adopted family” doesn’t like me anymore, everyone can see I’m more trouble than I’m worth.

After being off my phone for so long, it feels like the world has moved on without me. No one even bothers to message me anymore, probably assuming I’ve disappeared for good. I’m still here though, is there anyone out there? I’m stuck in this dark, lonely place, trying to find a way out but feeling like I never will. The loneliness is suffocating, and I don’t know how much more I can take.

I’ve spent the last few weeks curled into a ball on the floor of what should be my daughter’s nursery. 

I want to die. 

I want to die. 

I want to die.

[falcqns]

Hii i have this request in mind like Chris Evans x Actress! Singer! Reader like the reader and chris dated for 3y idk but they broke up but the reader always visit chris’ family bc she treated them like family aswell specialy when the reader’s parents died so she spend Christmas there or any occasions bc chris’ family invite her and when chris got a new gf the reader is kinda hurt bc she still love chris but she try to look like she doesn’t care but then she released her new song its called deja vu (by olivia rodrigo) and she release it to her bday so when the song is released the fans knew its abt chris bc of the new gf (chris’ fam doesn’t like the new gf and the fans kinda didn’t support them bc of the girl’s attitude) and chris’ family invites her over bc they want to show the reader something and when the reader got there they surprise her for her bday and congratulate her and turns out chris is there too with his new gf🤨and the reader knew chris’ new gf hated her bc of her look and scott called you all to the living room and watch the mv of the reader’s new song and when the mv ends scott and the fam congratuleted the reader and chris’ gf is giving the reader looks again and chris is noticing it and when the reader is in the kitchen alone getting something chris talk to her and congratulate her and chris’ new gf wrapped her arms around chris and chris tried to stop her to make a scene but she started a scene and scream at the reader but the reader cut her off and embarrassing her and the reader prove the new gf shes first not her (idk if that make sense lol) and the new gf leave(idk you can make her a random name so its not only “new gf”) and the reader and chris talk and they got back together, you can do wha you want at the end this is just so random bc i was listening to deja vu and advance thank you if you do my request! Stay safe! ❤️ and im so sorry if this is so long

Deja Vu

pairing: Chris Evans x singer!reader

warnings: parents death, major angst, fluff. 

a/n: thank you for the request! Hope you enjoy!

You had known Chris since college, when you had met him in your communications class. You two had grown close quickly, and became best friends. 

He brought you home every Christmas Eve, before you would go home to your parents house on Christmas Day. You had always felt like a part of the family, so when your parents passed a way, you turned to him. 

You and your parents were driving home from a Christmas Day church service, when you were hit by a semi truck. It had completely totalled the car, and your parents had died on impact. You had been sitting in the back, and only had a broken leg from where your moms seat had been pushed back into it roughly. 

You had been pulled from the car and sat in a second ambulance, while your parents were transported in another. You knew you'd never forget watching that ambulance door close and drive away, knowing that was the last time you'd ever see them. 

When the police officers asked if there was anyone you could call, you didn't know what to do. Your parents were both only children, so you had no aunts, uncles or cousins. You were an only child too, so you had no siblings, and your grandparents had passed when you were little, your other ones passing before you were born. 

So when the officer asked you, you told him the Evans’ phone number. Lisa picked up on the second ring, and you tearfully explained what had happened as the shock wore off. She immediately said she’d meet you at the hospital, and not to worry, that she and Bob would take care of you. 

You were taken to the hospital and treated for your broken leg. Less than an hour after you arrived, Lisa arrived at the hospital with Chris in tow. They comforted you, and took you home with them. You stayed in Chris’s room for the first few days, and when you were given your own room, you still had a hard time sleeping alone, so Chris ended up in your bed with you most nights, not that he minded. 

You never went back to college, and instead turned to singing as a release from all the pain you were feeling. You started out posting covers on YouTube, and gradually progressed to getting a record deal with Interscope Records, which didn't surprise anyone who knew you. You had immense talent, and your parents used to tell you that they were counting down the days before you were a celebrity. 

When Chris graduated college and told you he was moving to Los Angeles, he convinced you to come with him. Prices were high in LA, and he didn't want to be separated from you for too long, so you joined him. He got to be an actor, and you got to be a singer, which is what you both had wanted since you were younger. 

You went to every one of Chris’s movie premieres, and he attended as many of your live shows as he could. You supported him through all his relationships and his breakups, and played the middle man whenever he and Jenny would fight, up until the very end. You told yourself you did that because you just wanted what's best for him, but you both kind of knew that wasn't the reason at all. 

Throughout your time living together, you friendship grew, as did your feelings for each other. You'd be lying if you didn't have a small crush on him in college, and those feelings only grew as time went on, especially since the two of you decided to only get a one bedroom apartment. Mainly because it was cheap, but also because Chris made a decision a week after your parents death to never allow you to sleep alone because of the nightmares that would occur if he wasn't there.

So, when you won your first award for your first album, named ‘hand in hand’, he kissed you the second you came off the stage with your award in hand. It blew your mind that he felt the same, but you were happy nonetheless. You two began dating that night, and everything was perfect. 

Until, you were invited by 5 Seconds of Summer to be their opening act on their newest tour. You had agreed, and Chris let you go. You two had been dating for over 3 years, and you thought your relationship would be fine. 

You quickly realized however that that wasn't the case, when the two of you started fighting less than two weeks into the tour. The fights weren't anything major, more petty things like ‘did you change the Netflix password’ or ‘why did you take this piece of clothing, that was mine and it was my favourite.’ All around stupid fights. 

You had turned to Calum, who you were closest with, and he consoled you as much as you could. You realized however, that you couldn't be with Chris anymore when he drunk called you in the middle of the night while you were in the UK and got angry with you when you answered and told him to call you back in the morning when he was sober, to which he proceeded to brag that he slept with his co star at the time, Jessica Alba, you freaked out and ended things. 

You got a message from Jessica on instagram the next day letting you know that they did not sleep together, and that she was sorry he even said it. You assured her it was fine, and felt relief.

Relief because you got to the bottom of the situation, but also relief from your relationship. You didn't know what happened in those few weeks, but you knew the relationship was turning toxic, and you wanted to stop it before that happened. Neither you or Chris needed that. You told him you’d find a new place to live, and by the time tour ended, you bought yourself a house in Beverly Hills, and moved out of the apartment.

Chris moved out not long after, and bought his own house. He had tried to stay friends with you, but you didn't want that at that point in time. You were still hurting, and needed time to heal. 

Once you felt ready to date again, you were asked to be Calum’s date to the Peoples Choice Awards, you accepted. You knew Chris would be there, and you were hoping to talk to him, and maybe work it out. He had told you during the break up that he would always wait for you to come back, and that he still loved you, and always would. 

But you knew that wasn't the case when he showed up on the red carpet, with a new actress named Myra Woodfield. You had smiled at him, while trying not to break down inside, but he gave you a dirty look and rolled his eyes at you when Calum wrapped his arm around your waist for a picture. You furrowed your eye brows and took a good look at Myra. 

She looked almost exactly like you. Same build, same hair colour, same eye colour. The only difference is that she was slightly taller than you. You didn't know why he was replacing you, but it hurt. You pushed it out of your head however, and enjoyed the night with your best friend. 

It was a few months later when you were awoken by the constant dinging of your phone. You unlocked it, and saw you had a lot of unread messages from Luke, Ashton, Michael, Calum, and your other best friend Ashe about Chris’s new movie trailer, you sighed. 

You watched the trailer, and sighed when it looked like a recreation of a bunch of moments in your relationship with him, only Myra was in your place. 

Your fans and some of Chris’s had commented on it, and Myra immediately became aggressive with them, and insulted them. She told them that you were a nobody who could make Chris happy, which she was glad about because she made him happy how. 

Within minutes of this happening the hashtag #cancelmyrawoodfield was trending on twitter. You shamelessly went through the tweets and like and retweeted a couple. Then an idea popped in your head.

With a quick google search, you had a plan. 

You had written a new song called Deja Vu after the peoples choice awards, and it was had been recorded a few weeks ago, and you just had to decide on a date to release it, and make a decision on the music video. Her birthday was in about 3 months, which gave you enough time to get everything in place to drop on her birthday. 

Was it evil? Yes. Did you care? Not really. Besides, you inherited your pettiness from your mother and you knew she’d be proud of you. You called your manager and label, and got it planned out. 

When the new music video had been announced, Lisa called you and invited you home to watch it premiere with the family. You accepted, knowing Chris and Myra would be there, and that her birthday would get overshadowed by the release of your music video.

So, three weeks later, you were sitting with Lisa, Bob, Carly, Shanna, Scott, Chris and Myra in Lisa’s living room, waiting for the video to premiere.

Scott had picked you up at the airport earlier in the morning along with Carly and Shanna, and the four of you had a laugh about the face that no one acknowledged Myra’s birthday, not even Chris. It was mean, but no one liked her. 

Lisa absolutely hated her, but didn't want to upset Chris, so you got a call shortly after the PCA’s from her and the two of you ranted about her for a good two hours. 

You watched as the timer counted down from 10, and then the screen turned black. You took a deep breath and watched Chris out of the corner of your eye. 

You had searched for a while for a guy who looked similar to Chris, and you stumbled on Andrew Siwicki. He didn't look exactly like Chris, but it was close enough that everyone would know who the song was about if they didn't already. Andrew was a fan of Chris and hated Myra too, so he was more than glad to help you out. 

The music began to play, and you watched as the black screen faded in on two people walking along the beach, holding hands. 

“Car rides to Malibu Strawberry ice cream One spoon for two And trading jackets Laughing 'bout how small it looks on you,”

The next scene was a recreation of yours and Chris’s first date where you two had a picnic on the beach, and ended up splashing each other with the ocean water. Towards the end, everyone watched as Andrew picked you up and threw you into the water the same way Chris always did. 

You glanced at him, and could have burst into laughter at how uncomfortable Chris looked, but more importantly how angry Myra looked. 

“Watching reruns of Glee Being annoying Singing in harmony I bet she's bragging To all her friends, saying you're so unique, hmm,”

The next scene was you and Andrew (who was dressed as Ransom) on what appeared to be a recreation of the Knives Out set, running around with a dog that looked like Dodger chasing after you, the two of you laughing. The next shot was the two of you kissing behind a trailer, seemingly hiding from production. 

“So when you gonna tell her That we did that too? She thinks it's special But it's all reused That was our place, I found it first I made the jokes you tell to her when she's with you,”

The next scene was the two of you driving through Southern California, in a car that was almost identical to Chris’s. You two were laughing and singing along to the song, your hair whipping around you.

You took a deep breath, knowing this next scene would piss him right off.

“Do you get déjà vu when she's with you? Do you get déjà vu? (Ah), hmm Do you get déjà vu, huh?”

This scene was you, along with the rest of Chris’s family sitting around a living room that looked like the one you were in now, a Christmas tree full of presents in the corner. The camera panned across everyone as everyone was talking and settled on you and Andrew and the two of you recreated the scene where Chris whispered in your ear how much he loved you, and couldn't wait to start a family with you. 

“Do you call her Almost say my name? 'Cause let's be honest We kinda do sound the same,”

The screen showed you and Andrew saying goodbye at the airport, with 5 Seconds of Summer standing behind you. They weren't actually there when you left for tour, but Luke suggested it to piss Chris off, and you had agreed. 

Then there was a small montage of clips from tour, including a shot of Michael elbow dropping Ashton into a pool, which made everyone laugh, except Chris and Myra. The montage was followed up by you sitting on the floor of a dressing room and crying as you sent a text that said “I’m done.”

“Another actress I hate to think that I was just your type,”

Now you were on the red carpet, with Calum right beside you. You both were wearing the same clothes you wore on that night, you hair and makeup recreated perfectly. The camera unfocused on you as you turned and looked at Andrew and an actress named Alexa Morrison, who looked a lot like Myra, and they were recreating Chris and Myra’s actions perfectly. The camera swivelled around and came to rest pointing towards your face, as you looked in shock, and a single tear fell down your face. 

“I'll bet that she knows Billy Joel 'Cause you played her Uptown Girl You're singing it together,”

You were shown watching a movie trailer with Ashe sitting next to you, while you sobbed at what Alexa and Andrew were doing. You looked at the camera and began singing the song, while Ashe and everything else around you was frozen.

“Now I bet you even tell her How you love her In between the chorus and the verse (ooh) (I love you),”

You were sat on the bed in Chris’s red flannel that you had stolen before leaving for tour, and you were writing in the notebook aggressively with tears rolling down your face and singing.

“So when you gonna tell her That we did that too? She thinks it's special But it's all reused That was the show we talked about Played you the song she's singing now when she's with you,”

You were now being shown sitting on the couch, and watching Andrew run across the TV screen dressed as Captain America, an ice cream tub in your hand. You were wearing sweats and a t shirt, your hair in a messy bun.

“Do you get déjà vu when she's with you? Do you get déjà vu? Oh Do you get déjà vu?”

The camera circled around you before transitioning to the next scene. 

“Strawberry ice cream in Malibu Don't act like we didn't do that shit too You're trading jackets like we used to do (Yeah, everything is all reused),”

You were shown laying down in bed, and your eyes closing before an image of you and Andrew danced, dressed as Steve and Peggy in endgame, a scene Chris always told you the two of you would recreate one day. You had called Hayley and asked if it was okay, and she immediately said yes, and even came and watched you do the scene.

“Play her piano, but she doesn't know (oh, oh) That I was the one who taught you Billy Joel (oh) A different girl now, but there's nothing new (I know you get déjà vu),”

When your eyes opened, you were sitting at your piano, and playing while singing along. 

“I know you get déjà vu I know you get déjà vu,”

Suddenly, the piano disappeared, and you were left standing in an empty living room as the screen faded to black. 

The entire room burst into cheers as the video ended, except for Myra, who looked like she was going to murder you, and Chris who just clapped with a tight lipped smile. 

Later that night after all the kids had gone to bed and Lisa was driving Bob home,  Scott had pulled you into the kitchen under the pretences of ‘helping him fix a drink’, which ended up just being the two of you gossiping about Chris and Myra, and the music video.

Suddenly, Chris walked in, and nodded for Scott to leave. You cleared your throat and ignored him.

“That was a good song, and an amazing music video.” He said. “I can see you're just getting more and more talented as time-” He began, as you rolled your eyes, and looked at him. 

“What do you want?” You asked bluntly. 

“I just wanted to congratulate you.” He said, and you were about to open your mouth, when Myra came slinking in the room with an evil look on her face. 

“Nice job, Y/N. I’m glad I could inspire your music video.” She said sarcastically, and you could tell Chris was about to defend you, but you opened your mouth first. 

“Well, I’m glad I had such a snake like bitch to draw inspiration from,” You said, and heard Scott, his siblings burst into laughter in the living room. Myra’s jaw dropped and she turned to look at him. You looked up at Chris, who was leaning up against the counter, and biting back a smile.

“You’re just going to let her talk to me like that?” She asked, and Chris sighed.

“Myra, don't start. Not now.” He said, she scoffed. 

“I knew you still loved her. Only a pathetic loser could love someone as ugly and untalented as her.” She spat, and Chris growled. You felt tears welling up in your eyes, and you ran out of the room, your drink abandoned on the counter. 

You ran into your bedroom, where you shut the door, and fell onto the bed in tears. 

Back in the kitchen, Chris had gotten in Myra’s face, and was yelling.

“DON’T YOU DARE TALK TO HER LIKE THAT! SHE’S BEEN THROUGH SO MUCH SHIT IN HER LIFE, AND I WON’T ALLOW YOU TO ADD TO THAT!” He screamed, as Scott, Carly, and Shanna ran to the door, unsure of what to do. “SHE IS SO TALENTED, WAY MORE TALENTED THAN YOU! YOU’RE THE REASON PRODUCTION TOOK SO DAMN LONG, IT TOOK FOREVER TO GET A PERFORMANCE OUT OF YOU! YOU OPENLY INSULTED HER AND HER FANS HOURS AFTER YOU WERE ANNOUNCED TO BE IN THIS MOVIE, AND THEN HAD THE AUDACITY TO COME TO ME CRYING BECAUSE YOUR LITTLE FEELINGS GOT HURT!” He screamed, and Shanna ran and backed Chris away from her. 

“YOU’RE MY BOYFRIEND! AND ITS MY BIRTHDAY, YET HERE YOU ARE, CONGRATULATING HER FOR A SHITTY MUSIC VIDEO!” Myra screamed, and it was Scott’s turn to get in her face. 

“You need to leave. If you don't we’re going to call the cops.” He stated, and Myra rolled her eyes before storming out of the house. 

Scott turned back to Chris, and was shocked when he saw him in tears. 

“You need to work shit out with Y/N. It’s clear the two of you are still in love, and you need to figure it out as adults,” Scott said, his sisters nodding. Chris took a deep breath, and looked at your closed bedroom door.

Chris walked up to your bedroom door, and took a deep breath before entering the room where he used to sleep in every night.

He opened the door, and saw you curled up in a ball on the bed, your body still shaking. He smiled sadly, and walked into the room, closing the door behind him. He sat on the bed behind you, and rubbed your back gently. 

“I’m sorry. Not just for what Myra said, but for everything. For breaking your heart, and for causing you so much pain. I didn't realize how much I was missing you too until we watched that music video and I saw how truly broken you were. I never noticed that before now. And I’m sorry I didn't. If I’d have, I could have fixed this sooner, and we could be together right now.” He said.

You furrowed your brows at his last sentence and sat up.

“W-What?” You asked, and Chris moved closer. He wrapped his arms around you and pulled you into a hug. 

“I still love you. So so much.” He smiled, and a tear rolled down his face. “You're my entire world, and not having you here is slowly breaking me apart. I didn't know just how much until today, but I can't live another day without you.” He said. “I’m so sorry I hurt you baby.” He sobbed, and his head buried itself into your hair. Your body shook with sobs too, and you turned around to face him.

“I love you too.” You sobbed out. “I never should have ended things, but-” You said, but were cut off by Chris’s lips on yours, and you felt yourself melting into it.

He pulled away a few seconds later. “Don't. It was my fault, not yours. I am so sorry, and I am going to spend the rest of my life making up for it, I promise.” He said, as he stood the two of you up and led you out of the room, and to his.

“Where are we going?” You asked, and Chris pressed a kiss to your cheek.

“I have to grab something.” He said. He opened his closet, and grabbed something out of the top corner before turning to you. 

“I said I planned on spending the rest of my life making it up to you, and I plan on keeping that promise.” He said, as he got down on one knee. You gasped, as he opened the box and your dream engagement ring was inside. “I want you for the rest of my life, and the next. Will you marry me?” he asked, tears pouring down his face, just like yours.

You nodded enthusiastically, and Chris stood up. He placed the ring on your ring finger and scooped you up. “I love you,” You choked out, and Chris sobbed harder into you. 

“I love you too, and I’m never letting you go.”

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@nerdypinupcrystal @kpopgirlbtssvt

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[korra-the-red-lion]

Legends of Tomorrow and the Zarlie Incident: Is it happening again?

As many fans of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow are aware, during season 4 and 5 of the series, the ship “Zarlie”, a pairing of Zari Tomaz and Charlie, became quite popular during this time, especially during season 4.

Zari was a fan favourite character who was introduced in season 3. Throughout the season, Zari kept mostly to herself until she began to warm up to the others on the Waverider. Due to Zari’s closed off nature, she never had a LI in season 3. There were jokes about it, of course. Zari was very attractive to one Mr. Jonah Hex, and honestly. who wasn’t from the Waverider, haha? We’re told them as viewers that Zari is attracted to men. Sounds good.

Then s4 rolls around and Charlie gets introduced to the crew. Charlie takes an instant liking to Zari, affectionately calling her ‘Z.’ Maisie previously played Amaya on the previous two seasons, who was quite close with Zari as a friend, so it only makes sense that there is some chemistry between the two actors since they’ve been friends for awhile now. I wasn’t surprised when people starting shipping the two of them, thus the ship ‘Zarlie’ was born. What I wasn’t expecting was the writers to play into it. They had some pretty close scenes, and by close I mean there wasn’t enough room for two hands between their faces. And Zari made a comment about Charlie picking Amaya’s form because she was hot, implying that she thought Amaya was attractive. Thus the infamous scene happened:

No denial from Zari, just her usual annoyed look she got whenever Charlie started picking at her. Thus, the Bi Zari headcannon was born and mostly accepted by everyone in the LoT fandom. Of course, with Avalance and I believe Constangreen at this time, many people doubted it would become canon. And unfortunately, shortly after, Nate and Zari began dating, which felt sudden to me personally, and Steelhacker was born.

However, Steelhacker canon did not stop Zarlie from continuing. If anything, the writers only added more fuel to the fire so fans could have discussions. This is where I started to get annoyed, because why continue to bait the pair if you have no intention of making it canon? It felt a little dirty to me, even as I enjoyed the banter and chemistry between the two of them. Oh well, I thought at the time, it’s just shipping for fun now.

Season 4 ends with Zari being replaced by Zari Tarazi, or Zari 2.0 if you will. People still shipped Zarlie, though it was mostly from Zari 1.0. Fans were a little put off when Charlie said she slept with Behrad, but it also called attention to the fact that Behrad technically replaced Zari from the original timeline, meaning that Charlie wanted sleep with Zari, yes? Very confusing, but in a weird way, it was almost like they canonized the ship further.

Maisie had been on record several times acknowledging the chemistry between the two, and how much she wished they could have explore that more. Then of course, the news of the filmed but deleted kiss broke out and everyone from the Zarlie fandom lost their mind. There was a kiss, so in some strange way, Zarlie is canon, but only behind the scenes. From a show that does have amazing queer characters and content came a strangely bizarre queerbait that is now semi-canon, but only because the news of the kiss came to light, otherwise it would be another ship lost at sea, dragging people down with it as it lured them with its content. That should be the end of it, right?

Wrong.

Season 6 came out this season with Astra, the villain being manipulated by the Fates in season 5, being elevated to main cast. Joining her was newcomer Esperanza “Spooner” Cruz. Some people were hesitant because Astra was a bit of a polarizing character in s5, with reason. And of course, with any new character coming in, people are worried on how they will fit into the show. However, Spooner easily became a character that people enjoyed, and she somehow grounded the show, due to her very emotional character arc.

Spooner and Astra didn’t interact much until the animated sequence, when Astra turned her into a fork, much to the fans delight. Spooner actually encouraged Astra and after that, the two slowly became friends. They could have some snarky yet fun back and forth conversations and remarks to another, and the two actors played off each other well. They also connected from their lost mothers, Spooner who thought her mother had been taken by aliens and Astra who lost her mother to hell. They had a sort of emotional vulnerability between them that only they could understand.

Then the bowling episode came out and I think this is when the ship really got rolling. There was the big hug at the end of the match were a much taller Astra scoops Spooner up off her feet into a massive bear hug, smiles between the two. I know this is when I became a solid Esperastra shipper.

The pair continued to partner up after this. They partnered up again during the Clue-esc murder mystery game. Something that is very interesting about this is the pairings themselves. Ava gets killed by Sara right away (lol) and Nate dies shortly after, with Sara following behind. When Sara dies, her and Ava are shot together in a typical lovers pose in death. Makes sense, as they are engaged. Zari 2.0 is paired with Behrad and John, her brother and her lover respectively. Everyone is paired with someone they love. So...Astra and Spooner are paired up. Okay, no comment. JUST KIDDING. They die together, and this is shot in such a romantic way:

I know it’s dark, my apologies. But Spooner is leaning on Astra, and Astra is falling on top of Spooner. I’ve watched and read a lot of stuff, and this is a typical lovers in death position as well. 

Then we get to the final two episodes which see Spooner and Astra pairing up again. Spooner leans on Astra for emotional support throughout these two episodes, because she knows that Astra understands what she’s going through. Astra was devested when she thought she lost both Spooner and John at the same time. Luckily, Spooner did come back and the two shared a very emotional hug.

Now, this is where it gets a little frustrating as a fan. The writers and showrunners have stated clearly that they are Just Friends(TM). It seems like, based on some decisions from this past season, the writers are pushing for Astra/Behrad, which is like, not terrible but a little strange. However, Tala Ashe (Zari), has been on record to say that she thinks the actors have great chemistry and she ships them. So there is clearly a small divide yet again. So, if season 7 leans into this any more, is Esperastra the new Zarlie?

Of course friends can love each other, hug one another, and use each other as emotional support. However in this case, there does seem to be some underlying tension between the two that I wonder if the writers are going to explore. Is Esperastra going to stay friends, or end up becoming yet another queerbaited sapphic couple from Legends of Tomorrow? I guess only time will give us an answer on this. However, I will say, the parallels between the two ships is slightly uncanny, and perhaps even intentional. Zarlie connected by being two people who felt lost without family, and Esperastra may be doing the same thing now that John is gone, who was functionally Astra’s only family left.

Let’s hope Legends of Tomorrow doesn’t do the same thing twice.

[just-dreaming-marvel]

It’s Always Been You ~ 142

OUT OF TIME MASTERLIST

IT’S ALWAYS BEEN YOU MASTERLIST

< previous chapter

Word Count: 2,590ish

Summary: Y/N tells Tony who her choice has always been. The team starts to learn more about the Stones.

Notes: You must read Out Of Time in order to understand this. The chapter numbers continue from Out Of Time. (None of the gifs are mine.)

Previous on Out Of Time…

“Tony…” She tried to turn away, but Tony grabbed onto her arms, keeping her facing him.

“No, you don’t get to run away right now. I need an answer. If we’re going to do this, bring everyone back. I need to know the truth, once and for all. That I wasn’t the second choice, that I wasn’t just the only option so you went for it… So, tell me, would you have chosen me if Barnes was still here?”

“You’re an absolute idiot, Stark,” Y/N practically growled, trying to hold back her anger as she pulled away from him. “You think that I would marry you if I didn’t absolutely love you? That I would do that if I wasn’t choosing you? It’s always been you!! Ever since the first day we met, I just didn’t want to admit it. Too scared that this would all go wrong somehow and I would lose you forever. That day Strange showed up to get us, do you remember how I kept trying to tell you something and you kept going on about that dream you had about Morgan?”

“Yes,” Tony mumbled, trying not to make Y/N freak more than she was. He was also feeling guilty about ever doubting her, he knew better than that.

“I was trying to tell you that I had chosen you! I had made my choice that day and I was coming to tell you that you were it for me! But then… then everything happened… And people vanished… I searched Titan a thousand times over for you. Hoping and praying that the ashes that keep breezing past me, weren’t you. And when you came back alive, no one else mattered. Because I had you still, and I knew that we’d be okay. No matter what… And the fact that, after all this time, you’re doubting me… that hurts.” Tears were threatening to spill from Y/N’s eyes.

“Y/N, honey,” Tony went to hold her, but she stepped away.

“How could you doubt me? After all this time? I know that I probably confused you, but did I ever give you doubt in the last five years that I wasn’t completely devoted to you? To the family that we built?”

“You have to see it my way, Y/N. I thought that we were good back then too. And then Bucky came back into the picture, more than once.”

“And yet I still came back to you. After everything, I always found my way back to you… I love you, Tony. It’s always been you.”

“I’m so sorry, honey,” Tony slowly reached for Y/N’s hands. He was scared that she’d pull away again as he was so desperate to feel her in his arms. “I should have never doubted you.” She flinched slightly as his hands took hers, but didn’t pull away. “It’s always been you for me too.” He slowly moved closer to her. “I’m sorry I just…” He sighed. “It’s always been nagging at me. I needed to know.”

“I know… And I’m sorry I didn’t clear it up sooner.” She curled herself into his chest. “I’m terrified, Tony.”

Tony held her to his chest and held a kiss to her head. “Me too.”

“I can’t lose anyone else… especially not you or Morgan.”

“We aren’t going to lose each other or Morgan… we’re going to make it through this.” He looked down and brushed his fingers down her cheeks. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” She pulled him down for a kiss. “I’m still mad at you for doubting me.”

“I have a feeling that you’ll get back at me for it in a subtle way later.”

“Not gonna be that subtle.”

~~~

“And then Happy bought me two cheeseburgers!” Morgan exclaimed through the phone’s screen.

“Two?!” Y/N gasped, faking excitement for Morgan. 

“And I ate them both!”

“Oh my goodness! That’s crazy!”

“Just like your old man, Mo,” Tony said, making his appearance next to Y/N. 

“Tomorrow, Aunt Pepper said that we could rake the leaves and jump in them!”

“That sounds so much fun Morgan,” Y/N responded, trying to hide the shakiness of her voice. Tony, having his arm wrapped around her waist, gave her a light squeeze in understanding. “Momma misses you, Mo.”

“I miss you too. When are you coming home?”

Y/N took in a harsh breath, unable to answer. “We aren’t sure, sweetheart,” Tony responded. “But it won’t be too long. I promise.”

“Okay.”

“It’s past your bedtime, now. Good night, we love you.”

“I love you both 3000!” Then the girl hung up.

Y/N broke down into tears in Tony’s arms. She wanted to be back with Morgan. She didn’t want what she knew was coming to come. But she knew it had to. And that this was the only way for Morgan to be safe. Tony held Y/N close, whispering that it will all be okay as he periodically kissed her head. It was killing him to see her like this. He couldn’t wait for this to all be over and for them to all go home.

~~~

The next morning, they all gathered in a conference room to discuss the Stones. Y/N knew it was going to be an unpleasant day for her, since most of them knew she was tied to them. Tony, Steve, and Bruce paced in the front, while everyone else sat around the room.

“Okay, so the how works,” Steve began. “Now we gotta figure out the when and the where. Almost all of us has had an encounter with at least one of the six Infinity Stones.”

“Well I'd substitute the word encounter for damn well near been killed by one of the six Infinity Stones,” Tony said. “Or is connected with them.” Y/N shrunk slightly in her seat as people glanced her way.

“I haven’t,” Scott cut in. “I don't even know what the hell you're all talking about.” Y/N rolled her eyes.

“Regardless, we only have enough Pym Particles for one round trip each,” Bruce stated. “And these Stones have been in a lot of different places throughout history.”

“Our history,” Tony corrected. “So, not a lot of convenient spots to just drop in.”

“Which means we have to pick our targets,” Clint said.

“Correct.”

“Let’s start with the Aether,” Steve suggested. “Thor, what do you know?”

Everyone turned to look back at Thor. He was sitting on a chair, beer in hand and sunglasses on. Asleep. Y/N sighed, knowing that this probably was all going to do nothing to help Thor’s mental health.

“Is he asleep?” Natasha questioned.

“No,” Rhodey responded. “I’m pretty sure he’s dead.”

Y/N gently woke Thor up and he stumbled to stand in front of everyone. Bruce put all the known information on the Reality Stone up on the screens.

“Where to start?” Thor asked himself, clearly still out of it. “Umm... The Aether, first, is not a stone, someone called it a stone before. It's more of a... an angry sludge thing, so... someones gonna need to amend that. Here's an interesting story though, many years ago... My grandfather had to hide the stones from the Dark Elves…” He wiggled his fingers. “Woooooh, scary beings. So Jane,” an image of Jane Foster popped up on the screen. “Oh, there she is. That’s Jane… She’s… an old flame of mine… she… she stuck her hand inside a rock this one time… and then the Aether stuck itself inside her... And, she became very, very sick.” 

“So I had to take her to Asgard, which is where I'm from,” Thor continued. “And we had to try and fix her. We were dating at the time, you see. I got to introduce her to my Mother... who's dead,” everyone was trying to give their full attention to Thor as he began to look broken and rambled on, “and oh you know, Jane and I aren't even dating anymore, these things happen though you know, nothing last forever.” 

Tony went up to him, trying to guide him back to his chair. “Why don’t you come sit--”

“I'm not done yet, the only thing permanent in life is impermanence.”

“Awesome,” Tony responded, keeping a hold of him. “Eggs? Breakfast?”

“I’d like a Bloody Mary, thank you.”

Y/N took a deep breath, thankful that she couldn’t feel Thor’s thoughts at the moment. He was broken, and it was so terribly sad. Tony got him to sit back down before deciding that they all needed a break for food.

~~~

The break ended at dinner, after they all got distracted with creating suits for everyone and gathering more information. Tony and Y/N had spent the day at each others sides, not that that was not normal. But this was different, there was now a complete understanding between the couple. That it was them, together, until the end. Together, they went to pick up dinner for the group. Tony’s hand was resting on Y/N’s thigh, thumb rubbing against it. Y/N was focused on the passing world outside the window.

“What are you thinking about?” Tony asked, slightly worried for his wife.

“After this, no matter what happens, we need to retire,” Y/N said quietly. “We can’t keep doing this, especially with Morgan.” She turned to look at her husband. “One day, we might never come back. And I can’t—I won’t do that to her.”

Tony gave a light squeeze to her thigh. “Okay. We’ll retire. I’ll focus on something else, stop making suits.”

“I’ve really enjoyed the last few years of… normalcy. And I believe that we owe it to Morgan to try to keep it that way.”

“I agree… And maybe, we could possible give her a sibling?” Tony tried to make himself seem all innocent, but there was a glint of mischief behind it all.

Y/N patted the hand Tony hand on her. “Ask me after all of this is over. Okay?”

“I can do that.” Tony was silent focusing on the road, for a few moments before speaking up again. “But do you think we could practice? And cause, you know, we don’t know what will happen during the time travel.”

“Why don’t you just straight up say that you want to have sex, Tony?” She laughed.

“Okay, tonight, I want to have sex. End of story.”

Y/N laughed again. “I love you.”

Tony smirked. “You better.”

~~~

Dinner came with a large table and Rocket going over what happened with the Power Stone. Rocket was pacing on the opposite side of the table that Y/N and Tony were sitting on. Tony insisted on sitting next to Thor, worried about him.

“Quill said he stole the Power Stone from Morag,” the raccoon stated.

“Is that a person?” Scott asked.

“Morag’s a planet. Quill was a person.”

“A planet? Like in outer space?”

“Oh, look. It's like a little puppy, all happy and everything.” Rocket changed his tone to one that he was use when talking to a puppy. “Do you wanna go to space? You wanna go to space, puppy? I'll get you to space.”

“He hasn’t been a part of the team for long, Rocket,” Y/N said. “Give him some slack.”

“How are you doing Y/N?” Bruce asked, changing the subject.

“Better than yesterday. I think everything was just overwhelming me.”

“That brings up a question I have,” Rocket said. “It was mentioned that you’re connected to the Stones. How?”

“You don’t have to answer that, honey, if you don’t want to,” Tony said softly.

“No, it’s fine,” Y/N responded, giving Tony a small smile. She turned back to everyone. “In 1945, I came in physical contact with the Space Stone. It formed a bond with me, and because of that I’m able to control some of their abilities. They, um… they trained me and spoke to me.”

“She was meant to stop what happened,” Thor spoke up, surprisingly. “She was supposed to be the one that stopped him.”

“Thor,” Tony went to stop him.

“No, Tony,” Y/N stopped her husband. “It’s okay… I’m so sorry, Thor, that I couldn’t do what needed to be done then. But I was shown that that fight was not the end. And the Stones stopped me from doing what I had to… I’m so sorry.”

Thor’s chair scrapped as he stumbled up and out of there. Y/N went to follow but was stopped by Tony. 

“You don’t need to go after him,” he said.

“But I do,” Y/N replied. “Because he protected me when you and Steve doubted me. He knew what I had to do, before I even really did. I’ll be okay.”

Tony reluctantly let Y/N follow after Thor. He had grabbed another beer and wandered into the hanger, where the platform was.

“You don’t have to say anything, but I need you to listen,” Y/N began. “I saw the dust and heard the screams years before it happened. Wanda showed it to me, back when we were dealing with Ultron. I saw the gauntlet and I saw it snap. The Stones said they saved me for that moment, but they lied. When the moment came, they told me different… I…” Y/N hesitated to say anything. But Thor had lost everything and deserved to know the whole truth. “I saw a battle. More destructive than we’ve ever been a part of. I saw myself fighting Thanos, all of us fighting together fighting. And I was told that if I tried to stop what happened that day, they would stop me… and they did.”

“Thanos is dead,” Thor responded, not bothering to turn around and face Y/N. “I killed him myself.”

“I know. And I don’t know how I saw myself fighting him. But I do know that I can’t doubt the Stones. We need to be prepared for the consequences that may come from us going back in time and bringing everyone back.”

“You and Thanos?” Steve questioned, alerting Y/N to the fact that everyone had followed them. She took in a sharp breath. “You saw yourself fight him?”

Y/N slowly turned around. “I did.”

“And it was different than what happened 5 years ago?” Natasha asked.

“Yes.”

“How could you keep this a secret from us?” Steve asked.

“I had to. For the safety of everyone… I didn’t even tell Tony everything.”

“We could have spent all this time preparing.”

“It would have done us no good.”

“Y/N,” Bruce called, trying to calm the escalating tension with his tone. “Do you know when it’s going to happen?”

“At the time, I was told five years.”

“What?” A few of them exclaimed.

“And you didn’t think that was important?” Steve questioned harshly.

“I did what I thought was right,” Y/N defended. “To protect the people I care about. You all can’t possibly stand here and judge me for that. We have all made that call! And you can’t possibly understand the burden I have carried with me for years.”

“Doesn’t matter, we’re your team,” Steve motioned to everyone in the room, before motioning between himself and her. “Your family.”

“And look how well that’s done us Steve…” She looked around the room, trying not to get emotional. “I am sorry for what’s all happened. But I am not sorry for the secrets I’ve kept to protect everyone.”

Without other word, Y/N walked out.

next chapter >

I AM SO EXCITED TO SHOW YOU GUYS WHAT I HAVE PLANNED! I hope that this chapter didn’t disappoint. I was really nervous to post it.

I appreciate all likes, comments, asks, and reblogs! Thank you for all the positive support!

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@livinglikebritishroyalty​

@cspr-2​

@supernaturallover2002​

@laic2299​

@aubreeskailynn (won’t link)

@capstopavenger​

TONY:

@bispences​

@topstory21​

@supernatural-bangtanboys​

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[shinebrightlikeanarwhal]

Travis-centered plots because I Like fix it’s… (I just finished typing them all, I’m ashamed for my sinful brain oml)

- Larry and Travis having once been friends but being torn apart by Travis’ father. Larry keeping an eye on Travis for years but then turning his attention to Sal, whom in turn receives the sudden disdain of Travis.

Sal confronts Travis in the bathrooms one day and Larry listens from the door. Eventually Sal talks Travis into tears. He confesses to being jealous of Sal and not wanting Larry to stop focusing on him, even if Larry ends up hating him. How his dad would beat him if Travis and Larry ever got close again. Larry barges in and holds Travis close. They reconcile (Sal opting to let the boys talk, clearly not in the mood to see Enemies to Lovers tonguing den in the school bathroom.

They uproot and destroy the cult, blah blah blah, Happily ever after and Travis gets help for his trauma induced depression and anxiety.

- Travis has been off for a few days. He doesn’t antagonize anyone. Philip does more talking and ginger touching that Travis violently jerks away from. During class he barely responds and teachers don’t try to force him. Sal didn’t expect to find Travis sleeping on a bench one day. His worn shoes now tattered with holes at the bottom. His black eye prominent but accompanied by a busted lip and what looked to be severe damage to his legs.

Not sure how he did it, but Sal managed to convince Travis to come home with him. Introduces Travis to Henry and leads him to the bathroom where he washed off and got treated. His damage was severe and Sal really wanted to call the police but just seeing a fearful Travis weened him off the idea.

Larry was not too pleased to find Travis at Sals. He almost yelled until he noted Travis look at his raised hand and cower from him. Larry pausing and pulls Sal to the side to understand. Of course they don’t know the full story but it’s enough to have Larry texting the group for help. Most were curious about what could lead them to wanting to help Travis. Ash, however, seemed to know a lot.

They find out about Travis’ abuse, the cult. Travis helps a little. He is still terrified of them but they start to grow on him with time. He even allows contact with Sal rarely, who shows him his face during a bonding moment at the dead of night. Larry makes playlists and CDs to help Travis get accustomed to loud noises (many of which are songs Larry personally thinks Travis would enjoy.

After the gang destroys and puts the cult behind bars. No demons, no murders, and no dead friends. Sal manages to convince Travis to report his father, thankfully they kept his clothes to give to the state police, Todd refused to trust the local police after further investigating the cult and their connections.

Healing and coping, cuddling and coddling. Travis getting the love and attention he deserves! Could end with him dating someone or him just being under their care for a while.

—Salvis but Sal is a bit more aggressive with Travis. Fuck it ABO, Travis is a very spicy omega that pretends to be a Beta. Sal is a strong scented alpha, like it’s a musky and domineering scent compared to his appearance. Larry is an alpha, though his scent is murky and smoky, and he doesn’t act like the stereotypical alpha. Travis nitpicks them like usual, though sometimes they are too distracted by the nice smell seeping off of him. Larry sneers and asks if Travis mom scented him before school. Travis is upset at this. Much more emotional than usual. Sal notes the spike in scent and jabs Larry.

Uh oh, Travis is presenting in the bathroom, and beta Philip isn’t able to fight off the alphas coming to investigate the scent, thankfully Sal is here to soothe and calm the terrified Travis while his friends help fend off the other students.

Mr. Phelps is pissed about an omega son. Travis is constantly scented with distress. He isn’t allowed to talk about it but everyone can smell it. They are well aware of Travis’ fluctuating weight, fatigue and his tan skin turning pale and bruised worse than before. Larry is annoyed by this but can’t tell whether it’s the scent affecting him or his stern belief in protecting omegas from abusive alphas.

Sal hates it, he knows he felt the mate bond but Travis doesn’t seem to notice. Travis’ suffering eats away at Sal until he all but corners Travis and propositions him to save him from his father and give him sanctuary. It takes a lot to convince Travis. Heck, he has to promise Larry wouldnt hurt him (Larry later seeks Travis to reconcile their bad blood).

They get to know eachother. Sal is head over heels and watching Travis grow and blossom into his omega blood. Travis starts falling for someone else and Sal tries to be supportive (until he can’t even look at Travis without feeling heartache). But Travis notes he doesn’t love ____ And follows his heart to Sal. They bond, they love and boom, happy little family. (With three cute babies because Travis and Sal deserve happy families)

Larvis: roughly the same as the salvos ABO but Larry straight up picks up Travis and carries him home. Travis tries to fight but is swaddled and pampered until he’s fast asleep and purring in Larry’s arms.

Mr. Phelps doesn’t have much ground to stand on when he tries to take Travis back. Larry confirming that Travis is his mate and based off of Phelps’ beliefs he should reside with his mate.

Travis is surprised his father backs off so easily (because how could the pastor refute what he preaches?? Such blasphemy would be heard by the church blah blah blah). Larry and Travis talk and Larry admits that they are indeed mates, he never brought it up for Travis’ health. He was already struggling to care for himself, a mating bond would send his already feeble body and fragile mind spiraling. Larry also admits he knew they were mates ever since he presented, which wasn’t that long after entering highschool. But, Travis was so proud to be ‘normal’ and not some horny mess like the others. He also didn’t like seeing Travis harass and bully others, which probably aided in his aggressive rejection of the omega and prolonged Travis’ presentation.

Life goes on and Larry and Travis are happily married with four kids (two more in the oven, because Larry is a very affectionate husband). Cult was handled and Sal is NOT dead and very much the worlds best uncle.

-Travis having a hot girl summer.

That’s it. That’s the plot.

Thotty church twink marching about in short shorts and tank tops (sinful!) showing off his goodies to the masses. Larry shamelessly offers to partake, and gets thrown for a whirlwind when Travis’ phat ass is delightfully uncontrollable. Sal jokingly shoots his shot and winds up slumped in the back of the church from immaculate head.

Mr. Phelps is away so the thot is out to play. (Courtesy of Mama Phelps aiding and abetting her sons growth as a person. He may be throwing it back to the boys he once sneered at but at least he’s nicer to people)

-Travis being rescued from the Phelps home after a concerned report to the state police. The church closed and his father put behind bars for many accounts of child abuse and neglect and the disappearance of Travis’ mother.

Sal and gang are curious about what the new home will do to Travis after months of rehabilitation, and all damn near faint when they see Travis with long pink hair and a cute sun dress marching into the school. Directly towards them and apologizing for his horrible treatment of them, specifically Sal. They can’t believe his change at first but after weeks of watching him, he seems genuinely happier.

This new happiness starts to get unsettling to Larry, who watches Travis and Philip be closer than before. He shouldn’t care he hates Travis! But god he wished the boy would wrap his arms around his and march down the halls. He would kill to get surprise back hugs or do the hugging. He wanted to share lunch with Travis. Be hand fed meals and have his mouth cleaned whilst being scolded.

Fuck, he’s in love! He thought he nipped that in the bud when Sal started getting bullied by Travis. But no, Travis being rescued from his awful father and being a genuinely good person from then on was astounding. Hell, he even brought Sal treats as an apology for walking in on him with his mask off once. Sal said it was fine but Travis babbled ok about feeling bad because Sal looked terrified even though Travis didn’t think Sal was any less cool. (Yes, Sal cried in his room about how much it meant for someone to say that).

For fucks sake, Travis had pictures upon pictures of his new family and their pets. PETS. He had dooogs, god Larry lost his mind seeing Travis jogging around town with dogs in shorts and a sweaty, almost see through tank top!! He’s too gay for this.

He finally confesses, maybe tries to play it off as a joke, but Travis just smiles sweetly and pecks his cheek. He’s sorry but he’s already dating someone. Larry tries not to let his disappointment show, but he just can’t feel the need to go to school for a couple of days. Hides out in his tree house and just smokes. Cause, cmon.. who’d wanna date him?? All he does is smoke and play around! He hasn’t had a stable relationship in years and most he’s known for is sleeping with whoever he deems the hottest.

Sal notices his behavior and tries to comfort him, not sure why Larry is like this, by offering to introduce him to his partner. Maybe they have a friend Larry is interested in. Larry wants to be supportive but he really doesn’t care to see Sals new beau(ty). He really just wanted to camp out in the tree house and smoke away the pain. Or, he did until he sees Travis and Sal holding hands and nuzzling on the couch one day. Sals legs on Travis’ and Travis combing Sals hair. Larry felt like his world came crashing down, his best friend?? And his first and worst crush?? The crush that sent him spiraling for what could have been weeks? Sal is innocent, he didn’t know that Larry was madly in love with Travis. Didn’t know that Travis so politely rejected him and offered to cease contact if Larry felt he couldn’t be around him.

Larry wasn’t much of a romantic after that. He played around with whoever he felt needed love. His partying spiraling out of control in adult hood. Travis tried to contact him and help him find a good person, but any attempts to help Larry ended with Larry crying to him drunkenly. Asking why he wasn’t good enough, why he couldn’t have been Sal. Travis wasn’t allowed near Larry after Larry drunkenly made advances at him, he doesn’t blame Larry he’s extremely emotional, but Sal felt Larry would only get worse the more they stayed in contact, so they were kept apart.

Larry never loved anyone as much as he loved Travis Fisher.

-Last one was a sadder Onesided Larvis, this one is Larry teasing and cornering Travis so much that Travis tries to shock him by kissing him. He came home with some hickies and a very prominent limp.

They’re not saying, yet, but Wingman Sal is politely judging Travis into Larry’s arms. They are constantly alone together. Larry blowing Travis’ back out in an abandoned amusement park when the others split up to explore. “He sprained his ankle running from a shadow” Hmph, Travis smelt like axe. He HATES the smell of axe… but okay lovebirds.

Sal has 100% walked in on the secret lovers getting frisky when moms out. Later helps Travis shop for more pretty clothes, because who wouldn’t want a shopping body??? That’s almost illegal to not take the opportunity.

Larry eats ass. A lot. Travis can literally be on FaceTime shopping with Sal and Larry just slips under the covers and enjoys his fill of boyfriend cheekies~ yum!

Travis, as revenge, will give the gawk gawk 9000. Larry is NOT safe if he thinks Travis has forgotten the embarrassment of Sal chuckling and telling him he has to go walk his homework. He could be on the phone with his boss or Lisa and Travis will give the sloppiest top he’s ever had. (Praise the son for horni bratty bottoms)

[rjhpandapaws]

What We Grow from Ashes

Ch 1: First Small Steps

Tw: Alcoholism

Hank understood that things would change immediately after the revolution. Red tape issues like this usually took years. He had still expected some kind of change from Connor though. Clothes, hair, anything; but he was exactly the same. He kept his stiff posture and habit of bending every which way to do what was asked of him even when it was clear that he didn’t want to. Hank could understand. Everything he had known had been changed and clinging to his old routines was the only thing that was comfortable. He was going through the same thing with his drink. Whiskey was familiar and the withdrawal that came with being sober for too long was painful. Hank still wished that he would get rid of that fucking jacket. Even before the revolution one of the albeit many things he had disliked about androids wall all of the markings. The goal seemed like it had been to make them as human as possible. Then they had turned around and labelled them as machines with bright lights and what they were quite literally spelled out over their back. Yet, after everything, Connor had still kept the jacket. Hank couldn’t understand why for the life of him.

Connor had been working near constantly as well. Hank hadn’t seen him take a day off. It was that constant working that Gave Hank an idea. He could invite Connor over on a weekend to visit Sumo. He asked about the fur ball often enough. It was a small change that probably wouldn’t effect his schedule too much. He found it safe to assume Connor didn’t work on the weekends. “Hey Con?” He started while they were trying to tackle the ever growing pile of paperwork that built up between cases, “Do you have any plans this weekend?” Connor looked up at him and his LED cycled yellow for a couple of turns, “No, why?” “Would you like to come visit Sumo? He misses you.” Hank replied. Connor tilted his head and his LED cycled again as he thought about it, “That sounds nice actually.” “Cool.” He said with a nod, “I’ll pick up some stuff Friday after work and you’re can come  over whenever you’re ready.” “Alright.” Connor said as he got back to work and that seemed to mark the end of their conversation.

The week went by quietly which was a pleasant change of pace. The rougher days made him want to drink more than usual. The itch was always there, but the stressful days made it harder to resist. On the days they dealt with kids alive or otherwise Hank always had a glass of whiskey. The memories of Cole always disarmed him completely and the itch won out. As promised, when they got out on Friday Hank went to get supplies for the weekend. Connor seemed to enjoy sampling flavored shampoos so Hank grabbed a couple of those. One labeled as Tropical Breeze and another with a name he couldn’t pronounce. He found a brand of carbonated thirium packaged in old fashioned glass soda bottles and Hank thought Connor might like it. He picked up a six pack of light beers for himself. The justification he used was that a good host wouldn’t let their guest drink alone, and having hard liquor would have been inappropriate. He knew better though. He could have bought soda just as easily; he bought alcohol because he was an alcoholic. He was in recovery, but an alcoholic all the same. There were some days he was going to be weak.

He spent most of Saturday morning doing the cleaning he had missed during the week so his house wouldn’t be as much of a disaster. He wouldn’t be passed out this time either which was an added bonus. Connor’s scans would probably find things he had missed, but Hank felt better with his house at least being visually clean. It was around ten in the morning when he heard the doorbell buzz that was distinct to Connor. Sumo let out a howl to accompany it. Hank rolled his eyes at the dog before he moved to answer the door. There was Connor, in the same clothes as usual. Down to that fucking jacket. Hank kept the comment that crept to the tip of his tongue to himself and settled on a greeting instead as he stepped out of the way so Connor could come inside, “Hey kid.” “Hello Lieutenant.” He replied as he stepped out of his shoes. Connor held his hand out for Sumo as the big dog came over to investigate him again, “Hello Sumo.” “Call me Hank please Connor, we’re off the clock.” He remarked as he closed the front door. “There’s no reason to be so formal when it’s just us.” “Right, Hank.” Came the distracted reply.

Hank turned to find Connor seated on the floor with both of his hand buried in Sumo’s fur. The over sized fur ball in mention looked like this was the best day of his life and had pressed as much of himself against Connor as he physically could. Had the kid been anything other than an android he would have been flattened under the furry mass. The sight made Hank smile. He let them be and made his way to the kitchen to put away what he had been using to clean. His house was cleaner than he had ever remembered it being; which probably said a few things about him that weren’t all that great. “You got a lot done.” Connor’s voice came from immediately behind him and Hank nearly jumped out of his skin. “Jesus kid, I oughta put a fuckin bell on you.” Hank said dryly once he had gotten his heartbeat back under control, “But yeah, thanks.” Connor gave that odd smile of his, “You seem to be doing a lot better as well.” “Uh, yeah,” Hank cleared his throat. Of course Connor would have noticed being an investigator and all that, “I’ve been trying to cut back on my drinking.”

The conversation died after that and Hank moved to go get the shampoo bottles. The quiet was awkward and he didn’t know what else to do. When he came back Connor looked like he was deep in thought and his LED was rolling on a solid steady yellow. Hank didn’t want to interrupt so he set the bottles on the table and waited for Connor to find the words for his thoughts. “Hank?” He started with hesitation hitching his words, “What are you supposed to do when you want to change but don’t know where to start?” Right out with the hard questions then. He sighed, “That mostly depends on the change.” Hank took a moment to think, he needed to be careful with the words he chose. Eventually he decided that an example might be better. “Like getting to the point that I wanted to cut back on my drinking took getting bitch slapped by an asshole who decided to break into my apartment through the window.” That got a laugh out of Connor and Hank kept going, “But picking where to start was difficult. There are a lot of resources ranging from AA to substance abuse counseling. There have also been people who have decided to go it on their own and have done pretty well. I decided to try that out as well because I can always get help later. It just takes weighing your options against what you are capable of doing.” Connor gave a slow nod but his LED was still solidly on yellow, “So if you wanted to step out from under what other people expect you to be, what would you do?”

So that was the thing bothering him. Finding a place to start, he already knew what he wanted. Had he been talking to anyone else Hank would have suggested winging it. That wasn’t how Connor worked, he needed something structured, a plan of attack. Hank had only ever had to redefine who he was, he’d been born with agency and autonomy. He hadn’t had to build his sense of self up from scratch, but he would still try and help as best he could. “I would start small.” He suggested vaguely, “Change something that I have absolute control over. Make it clear that I don’t want to be associated with what it used to be, if at all.” Connor looked down at his arms, his jacket sleeves if Hank had to guess and there was a flash of red in his otherwise steady yellow LED. “I have to think about this.” He said mostly to himself, then to Hank, “Is it alright if I come over again next weekend too?” “Of course.” Hank agreed, “We’re friends. If you ever need me, I’m just a call away.” Connor gave another absent nod, “I think I am going to leave.” “Alright, be safe kid.” He replied as Connor made his way to the door.  He didn’t reply, but he did stop to give Sumo another round of petting before he left. Hank turned back to the shampoo bottles and sighed. They could wait till next time he supposed. He picked them up to put them away.

He was proud of Connor. This was a big thing and he could understand why he was so worried. Hank would be there with him though so he wouldn’t have to go through this alone. They could take their first small steps together.

[ladyeliot]

I promise.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes 40s x Female Reader

Summary: During the war, meetings with Bucky had been limited, and this would be the last time you would see each other.

Warnings: Fluff/Angst

Word count: 1640

A/N:  Sorry for my spelling and grammatical mistakes, English is not my native language, I am learning.

England, 1945

The waves were getting bigger and bigger as they took up more and more space on the shore. The sun was low, leaving a beautiful sunset to watch from the rocks, and the temperature was dropping slightly to the coolness of the evening on the British coast. The tranquillity of the bay meant that a peaceful stroll could be enjoyed without the need to be troubled by worries, but worries were brooding over both of them. The horizon professed a serenity over you, as you stood facing the expanse of the North Sea, and that fact fostered memories of a peaceful time to come to your mind.

Arms encircled your waist and a figure took up position just behind you. You closed your eyes, taking in the warmth of the body that was so pleasant when the cold east wind blew against your face. Lips placed a kiss on the back of your neck, causing your every muscle to relax and you let some of the weight of his body fall on him.

"What are you thinking?" whispered Bucky in your ear, wafting that scent of ash that so fascinated your senses.

"I was just reminiscing about the past," you honest to yourself as you clasped your hands with his that rested on your waist. "When the biggest worry we had was which dress to choose to go out dancing."

You felt Bucky's smile widen against the back of your neck, placing a soft kiss on it again.

"Remember when we went to Minton's Playhouse?" he asked bringing those memories to your mind. "I remember the time I went to pick you up at home, your mother had made chocolate chip biscuits and wouldn't let us leave."

"I warned you that would probably happen," you said with a chuckle. "At least Dad wasn't home."

"It wouldn't have been that big of a deal," Bucky shrugged. "He got to like me in the end."

"I wouldn't say liked, liked," you said, trying to prod him. "He just accepted you." "Well, I suppose being accepted by one of Wall Street's bigwigs is a credit," he said, offering himself importance.

You smiled and shook your head. Those memories that took you back to your past life, completely different from the one you were living at that very moment, made you homesick. At that moment you would give anything to snap your fingers and go back there.

"Do you remember the day we met?" Bucky asked again in a whisper against your ear. "God, you were the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen in my life. Your hair was tied back, except for a lock that fell across your forehead. You were wearing your dark blue dress and you were giggling with your friends. Surely I knew I had to talk to you before the night was over, or I could never forgive myself."

"But you didn't," you reminded him with a smile on your lips of pride. "It was me who came over to talk to you."

"You just beat me to it!" he complained pulling you closer to him. "But you know that made me even more attached to you."

"I miss it," you took a breath and let it out with a sigh. "We used to live life so fast, we hardly enjoyed things because we were thinking about the future. But now we must live in the present, because we don't know if there will be a tomorrow for us."

"There will be," Bucky said firmly, turning you in his arms, bringing your faces to face each other. "I will see to that."

"That's what worries me," you said, holding his gaze and resting your hands on his chest to caress his dog tag.

It had been two years since Bucky had ventured into one of the most terrible and feared wars of all time, World War II. Every day he gave his life to fight against enemy troops, facing the battlefield, not knowing what he was really up against. When he signed up to be a soldier, you made your own decision to help your country with the intention of being close to him. Every soldier who appeared before your eyes, badly wounded, exhausted and shivering with fear, reminded you of him.

You only met him a couple of times in those two years, the first time when he was sent to England after being captured by HYDRA forces, and now just before he left on his mission to board the Schnellzug EB912 with the Howling Commandos.

"It's going to be all right," his sweet breath crashed against your face. Bucky smiled expecting a smile from you. "Hey, do you have that little confidence in me?"

"It's not that," you finally smiled still contemplating his badge. "It's just... I don't want to lose you."

"That's never going to happen," he said again confident in his words. "I have a hunch. Listen, a new year has just begun, it's 1945, this year the war will be over, trust me." It was impossible for you not to get lost in his eyes, in his words. "We'll be able to go home, go dancing at the Café Society, or go for a walk along the banks of the Hudson. Those will be all our worries again."

"Promise me?" you asked, stepping into the imaginary universe your love was creating for you.

"I promise." Bucky brought his lips close to yours. "And I also promise that when we get back I will propose to you properly," his words brought a wide smile to your face, reddening it with embarrassment. "Hey, look at me. I'll buy you the shiniest ring that no one will be able to look away from, I'll take you to dinner at the Ritz, we'll go up to the roof and you'll have all of New York at your feet, then we'll dance all night and when we get tired of dancing I'll take you back to the bedroom and make love to you until we fall asleep."

Those were the most desirable words you had heard for the last few months, everything you wanted was in them. Although you would eliminate all the luxury they contained, you just wanted to be with him in any quiet place and live in peace for life. You didn't need a glittering ring, or a dinner at the Ritz to accept his hand in commitment, you'd do it right now if he asked you.

"So will you make love to me all night until we fall asleep?" you asked mischievously, averting your gaze from his face.

"All night," Bucky's tone became rougher, but he suddenly arched an amused eyebrow. "Well, only if you agree to be my wife."

"Makes sense," you said with a chuckle, wrapping your hands around his neck. "I'll accept. I will always accept."

An aura formed between you, welcoming one of the most intense, hopeful and loving kisses you had ever given each other. When you parted, you could contemplate more assuredly that those were the most beautiful eyes you had ever discovered in your life, and that you could stare into them for hour after hour without looking away. Bucky welcomed the answer you offered with a sweet smile on his face, but it would never happen, for tomorrow he was leaving for the mission that would change his whole life. Perhaps it would have been a mistake for both of you to have embarked on that war, which offered nothing but hardship, but what else would you have done?

"What time do you leave tomorrow?" you asked as Bucky gently kissed your forehead.

"At five o'clock, we want to leave before the sun goes down," he replied, gently stroking the strands of your hair.

You just looked away, not knowing what to say, for these were the last hours you were going to spend together, and no one would put their hand in the fire about the next time you would see each other again.

Finally you decided to break your closeness, beginning a walk along the shore of the beach while holding your shoes in your hands. Bucky closed his eyes with a sigh and followed you, closing the distance by positioning himself next to you and grabbing your arm to stop you.  

"I love you," he took your face in his hands. "I love you more than anything in this world, please don't walk away from me."

You wanted to say so many things, so many feelings to express and you didn't know how without bursting into tears. You had been through goodbyes too many times, you had told people you loved goodbye forever, it was unbearable, and the simple fact of having to face it again was killing you.

You shook your head, looking down at the sand your feet were sinking into, cold and white. Bucky stood in front of you, waiting for you to say something, cradling your face in his hands.

"I can't..." you said in a single whisper without looking at him. "I can't do it..."

"I promise- look at me," he demanded softly, and you obeyed. "I promise it's going to be the last time you'll have to do it. The next time we meet I'm not going to let anything or anyone separate us again. I promise."

His words seemed so true as they left his lips, and you wanted so badly to believe them that you certainly did. You let yourself go, assuming they were true, letting yourself be enveloped by the warm feeling of his embrace.

"I promise."

Taglist Open (DM)

MAIN MASTERLIST

[blackcherrykiss]

BLOOD BOUNDARIES - Enhypen OT7 Fanfic (ch.10)

[CH.1] [CH.2] [CH.3] [CH.4] [CH.5] [CH.6] [CH.7][CH.8][CH.9] previous chapters [CH.11] next chapter (unavailable on tumblr but avaliable on wattpad!)

"You'll give me your blood in exchange for theirs."

You could feel his earnest breath against the left side of your neck when he spoke. The proximity was causing you to hold your breath tightly. "Sunghoon please..." You just barely breathed out,  fearing anything you said would be the death of you.

"Afraid my love? I'm not going to hurt you unless you let me in." You felt Sunghoon's soft lower lip stroke up your neck until it met your ear, "I'll give you time to think." He pulled away to caress your face with a feathery touch as the sky grew darker and darker.

...

You rested the following day with no intentions of going to classes. You got your dormmates to tell the office about the severe headache you had; too weak to attend that day. To your surprise, one of the nurses at the school had knocked at your dorm to do a brief check-up and ensure you weren't lying.

"You must be Y/N! Sweetie, how are you feeling?" A slim young woman came in with a medium briefcase of supplies.

"It's nothing too serious right now, it's just a slight headache, I think you brought a bit much..." You held your pounding head while staring at the excessive equipment she had in hand.

"Oh, all of this? It's a standard to bring it just in case." The nurse said with a Southern Irish accent, "Now sit down, I'll take your temperature first."

You sat down on your own bed and watched as she took out a pink thermometer and put it under your arm. You yawned while waiting, getting a closer look at the woman. She had naturally fawn-blonde hair that flowed down in delicate curls. Healthy skin that was rosy at the cheekbones.

"Hun, your temperature is just slightly over normal. Is it just today you've been having headaches?" The nurse said while waving around the stick that read 38.1°C.

"I get them from time... Rarely though, I think I've been stressed lately that's all..."

"Perhaps you have low iron? Are you sure no other symptoms and potential causes?"

"Lack of sleep." You admitted, "And probably low iron... My mom has so I must too..."

"I see hun... Many girls call in sick and it's usually related to their menstrual cycles. But recently I find there is some sort of common cold going around. Yesterday this young boy fainted and when I took his temperature he had a seriously high fever." The nurse said while beginning to sterilize the thermometer with some rubbing alcohol.

"He did?!" You blurted out unintentionally, your voice making an embarrassing crack, "Sorry... He's just my friend, I was there when he fainted. Do you mind me asking how Jungwon is doing?"

"Not too well... He seems very sick but... Whenever I try phoning his parents regarding a checkup with a doctor or a record of his medical history, nobody ever picks up." The nurse looked upset and frustrated that she couldn't do much for him.

Little did the nurse know Jungwon didn't even have parents... 'Heeseung would be his guardian at best' you thought. "Oh, that's terrible..."  You felt yourself tense up knowing the reason for Jungwon's illness.

"Well, if you have no other questions I guess I will be on my way. Your name was y/n right?" She said while scratching a couple of words on a small pad of paper.

"That's correct."

"y/n... That name sounds familiar... Perhaps you are friends with Kyungeun?" The nurse put her pen and paper down on your nightstand.

"You know Kyungeun?" You rubbed the back of your neck.

"Of course! I visit her often. She's mentioned your name from time to time." She gave a healthy smile before getting up to leave, "She loves you to bits!"

You were touched Kyungeun would mention that to the nurse, it made you feel a little better knowing that.

"I'll get going now then, hun!" The nurse grabbed her case and exited your dorm after you thanked her.

When you went back to your bed you noticed the nurse had left her pad of paper. Taking the paper to go and run after her, you squint to read what was actually written on it. The paper just had blue ink notes in some wavy font about your condition and personal information. When you lifted the notepad up, you noticed a paper fell from the stack. Bending down with just your back, you saw Kyungeun's medical information swirled on the front.

"Anemia?" You read aloud before a  semi-aggressive knock was heard from behind your dorm door. You quickly stuffed the paper where it was originally attached, feeling guilty you saw what you should not have. "I was just about to chase you down!" You began speaking before the door was even completely open.

You saw the young nurse once again with a troubled face, "I'm so sorry, I'm so disorganized! Thanks, darling!" She looked relieved as you handed over the stuff she had left behind. You smiled to cover up the actual shock that shot through your veins after seeing Kyungeun's records.

Anaemia is a low blood condition and knowing Kyungeun had it still surprised you. Were you really trying to deny that Sunghoon drinks Kyungeun's blood?

...

You napped the rest of the day, catching up on the sleep you had missed over the past week. The throbbing in your head gladly helped you fall asleep in an instant, but your wishes of having a quiet sleep would not come true.

-

You found yourself in a fever dream, scenes flickering in your mind at the speed of light. You saw Jungwon's complexion glitter against a deep velvet as he drove his fangs deep into a prominent vein. The vein however on his own wrist; drinking his own blood. The amber-red liquid began streaming down his chin and into an empty wine glass in large opaque droplets. The imagery of the blood in a wine glass was one you had never thought you would see, especially in a dream. The blood was much thicker in consistency compared to alcohol and it made your stomach churn with absolute sickness as Sunoo picked up the glass to swish it around as the adults do with classic red wine. Sunoo then bit down on the heel of his palm, planting a deep bite mark. He began squeezing his hand tightly to release more blood into the glass. When the glass had filled midway, Sunoo chugged it down.  

-

"Y/N?!" You felt Nana shake both of your shoulders, waking you back conscious. You twitched while sitting up from your bed, "You're sweating like crazy. I got scared seeing your distressed face..."

"Fever dream... It's whatever..."  Surprisingly your headache hurt a lot less even after the vividly strange dream had seemingly interrupted your off day. The problem was now your stomach that felt awful over the constant blood being displayed in your head, "I think I'll be fine to go to school tomorrow after I sleep on it tonight, my headache has become a mild stomach"

"More rest? You probably just need to get up and out of your bed, it's too warm and stuffy plus you've barely moved the entire day." Nana nagged. To which you agreed, you were getting unbearably hot which might've been the trigger to the fever dream.

"Yeah, I'll go for a walk..." You stared down at your sheets while thinking about what the strange dream meant. Why did Sunoo drink Jungwon's blood? And can vampires drink each other's blood? You immediately thought of the book you had left in the woods the previous night, perhaps there were answers in it. You were just too horrified that day to pick up the book and take it with you. But it seemed it might be of use to you now.

"Have you eaten yet? Hyesun and Dahee are at the dining hall right now and I just came to check up on you."

"No, I haven't eaten the whole day... But I think I might vomit if I eat..." You fastened your eyes shut at the recollection of what you had seen, "Just go without me, I'll go for a walk in the meantime." You said with the means to go off into the forest and find that damned book.

...

You feel refreshed, with the clean autumn breeze gusting your hair back, and out of your face. It was around the time most people ate an early meal, so you weren't surprised to see few pairs of people in the courtyards. Students seemed to be taking it nice and slow under the calm weather, one on one conversations and cloud watching on the wood benches.

You strut along the same path you had gone down the other day, your mary jane shoes getting wet from a puddle on the way. The woods had looked a lot less intimidating during the early evening compared to after sunset. You just had to ensure you were taking the path Sunghoon had led you down and you'd find the book, right? It would be a quick and simple job.

But after taking the seemingly correct path, you found yourself getting more unfamiliar with where you walked. Regardless of where you ended up, the place was a lot more peaceful and pretty than your first impression of it. You skipped along, turning your journey into a leisurely hike now. The sun heavily coated one particular part of the forest, creating a mystic olive glow onto the dried grass. The section of forest, in particular, had fewer trees with a giant rock in the centre of it.  As you approached the area, you noticed someone far in the distance laying on the rock, basking in the sunlight with skin so white it looked teal under the reflection of the trees. The young boy didn't have your school's uniform but instead, a rust coloured flannel and some tatteredly torn jeans with cuts all over them. You were willing to just leave the delinquent alone, turn back and give up. That is until you noticed the boy reading.

As you came into a four-metre radius to get a better look at if the book he possessed was the one you were searching for, the boy sat up to gaze dead on at you. You probably looked worse than a deer in the headlights, surprised at his alertness. "Who are you?" The ash haired boy asked before you could.

"I'm looking for a book I dropped around here the other day." You bore your eyes at his hands.

"This wouldn't be it, would it?" The young stranger stood up to scoop the book off the rock so you could see it clearly. He was a lot taller than how he appeared while lying on his back.

"I'm pretty sure it is my book... May I have it back?" You asked politely after noticing the colour of the backing was identical to the one you picked up from the library.

"What's it to you?" He raised a brow while swirling his tongue around the inside of his cheek.

"It might answer some questions I have..." You bit your tongue as to whether or not the boy in front of you was among the vampire pack. It seemed his hesitation to give the book back was telling you undermining something.

"Ahh, so it's you who they talk about?" He nodded to himself, "Heard you were some clever girl who would eventually figure out our little secret." He dozed off into the distance at some withering pine trees. It was clear he was associated with the bunch by now, no surprises there.

"Sunghoon t-told me the other day you were all vampires... He was the one who took the book in the first place and used it to bait me here."

"Then why did you leave the book?"

"Got too shocked and sick, just wanted to escape the place after he told me you were all vampires. Thought I was going to die." You began to sweat. Recalling the situation made you realize you were in the same position once again; alone with a vampire in the woods far away from people.

"Alright? So you have questions about us that you think this silly book will answer? Why ask a book when you could ask the vampire right in front of you." He faced his palms up on either side of him.

You stood astonished by his response. Instead of forcibly taking your blood he was offering some useful information to you, "You mean you're not going to kill me?"

"I considered it... Until I found out who you were." He commented with a hint of disappointment. "Luckily you've caught me at the right time, so ask away."

"Found out who I was? What do you mean?"

"Who knows what kind of shit I'll hear from the guys if they found out I got a lick of your blood." He shut down your further questions about the matter, "Now ask the questions."

Looking around as if you were about to tell a secret, you dived right into the ideas you were given from your dreams, "Can vampires drink their own blood?" You gulped remembering Jungwon drawing blood from himself.

"They can... It helps with blood cravings but it tastes very bitter. Next." He said, treating the conversation as some speed round questionnaire.

"Okay...? Can vampires drink each other's blood?" The last scene of your dream coming to mind of Sunoo taking a swig of the wine glass filled with his blood mixed with Jungwon's.

"Who have you seen doing that? Sunoo? Jaeyun?"

"No one, it was just a dream!? Sunoo and Jaeyun actually do that?" It seemed weird hearing Sunoo's name being directly suggested. It was as if your dream was a potential reflection of reality. How could that be?

"Drinking other vampires blood tastes better than drinking your own blood but it's not often we do that." The boy tapped his head to think.

"So then what occasion would you drink each other's blood?"

"Usually when we can't get ahold of human blood. Survival purposes in short. Put it this way, drinking your own blood won't make you stronger because you're not getting any new nutrients. Drinking other vampire's blood will fulfil that it's just not as vital as half-humans or better yet, full human blood."

"Half-humans?! They exist?"

"Yeah, their blood tastes a lot better than full vampire blood but it's definitely not better than full human blood. Pretty sure Sunghoon feeds off some half-blooded girl, not that I can remember her name."

[canyouhearthelight]

The Miys, Ch. 109

Happy Spooptober, everyone!

I’ve been planning since about February to do another camping trip this month, for the season.  I was super fortunately back in May to have some stories left over to share, that I didn’t have the opportunity for last time.  So thanks go to @catolicabuena for your submission, and to @dierotenixe for the PERFECT character to add to this chapter.

As always, thanks go to @zazen-rabbit, @baelpenrose, and @charlylimph-blog for being the beta readers and cheering section I need every day, no matter what.

As a reward for the clear, focused argument Charly gave in favor of Shalt-kri’i/Ekomari hostilities being over cultural misunderstandings earned her a reward of her choice.  I don’t know what Arthur expected, but part of me expected her to ask him something like throwing the class a party, showing up to teach class in sparkly footie-pajamas.  Her response, instead, left me convinced there was a conspiracy between her, Conor, and other mysterious parties to keep track of the Terran holidays.

“It’s almost Halloween,” she immediately pointed out. 

How? How did she say that so certainly? I wasn’t even sure it was Friday.

Oblivious to my thoughts, she tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Today’s Tuesday - “ See!? “Which means Halloween is just under two weeks away? I think?”

“Your guess is probably better than mine,” I admitted. “Between the extra long days, artificial light, and consistent temperatures, I have no idea anymore.”

“She’s spot on,” Tyche confirmed, without even looking up.  We were sitting in my living room, digging into ice cream while all the guys were at work.

“How - “ I sputtered. “How are y’all keeping track of this?”

Tyche rolled her eyes, while Charly snagged my wrist and shook it. When my datapad popped up, she gave me the deadest stare I had ever seen on her face. “There is a calendar on this thing. You do know that, right?”

My face and neck burned so hot, I was surprised my hair didn’t catch on fire. “I keep it on the daily view, so I can see all my appointments.”

“Which is why she has me and Alistair,” my sister pointed out lazily before scooping up another spoonful of dessert. “By the way, this pumpkin ice cream is pretty good.”

I nodded, having had a scoop earlier.  We had been trying every flavor we could think of.  

True to form, Charly’s was a screaming purple that honestly scared me, sprinkled with gummy bears and some kind of acid-green syrup. Every time she leaned my direction, I couldn’t repress the flinch. “Pumpkin is a good point. We should go camping again, and carve pumpkins.”

I could almost feel my ears pick up. “You mean like jack-o-lanterns?”

“Duhhhhh,” she scooped up a large enough bite to convince me it probably wasn’t toxic. “I know we can’t have open flames in the lab, but we can still put emitters in them.”

“Where are we even going to get pumpkins in time?” Neither woman would look at me. “What did y’all do?”  I sighed.

“We did nothing,” Tyche insisted, chin jutting out stubbornly. “Now Sam….”

An audible smack sounded when I dropped my forehead to my palm. “How big?”

Charly gave me the widest puppy-dog eyes she could. “How big are what?”

“The pumpkins…”

“Pretty big,” Tyche smirked. “I don’t think I’ve seen even you carve any this big, honestly.”

I wasn’t a professional carver by any means, or even competitive, but I had done some pretty big ones in the past, so I was a little excited to see these.

 A couple nights later, sure enough, several of us were carrying our camping gear to the now-less-eerie clearing where our previous camping trip had taken place.  Even though Sam had decided not to join us, we were greeted by the sight of six enormous pumpkins around the edges of the space.  In awe, I approached one and ran my hand over it - I actually had to lift my hand, seeing as the thing came nearly up to my hips. “How long has he been growing these?” I asked.

“Just over three months?” Conor huffed, setting down our gear. “The things love our best guess of Von’s environment, turns out.”

“No shit,” I whispered before clearing my throat. “I don’t think we have large enough containers for the guts and everything in these.”  The deal with camping in the Lab was that we had to take out everything brought in with or for us.  While Grey agreed to allow the jack-o-lanterns to decorate the area for the next two weeks - ostensibly as a study of decomposition - if we couldn’t remove the waste from the pumpkins, we couldn’t carve them.

Something that felt like plastic beaned me in the face. While I rubbed my face, I glanced down at my feet where whatever-it-was fell. 

Maverick started apologizing before I could figure out what I was looking at. “Oh god, Sophia, I’m sorry! I meant to toss that on top of the pumpkin!”

With a joking scowl, I glanced at the vegetable between us. “How bad does your aim have to be to miss that thing?”

“Are you okay?”

“Only if you tell me what just hit me in the forehead?”  I tried leaning over to pick them up again, but Conor beat me to it.

“They’re composting bags,” Maverick admitted. “I brought them just in case. They were the only thing large enough and portable enough to at least get in here.”

“It looks like a roll of garbage bags,” Simon pointed out skeptically, poking the roll of pseudo-plastic Conor was holding.

Conor smiled and shrugged. “Pretty similar.”

Soon, we were spreading out and setting up our gear in  a familiar pattern. Just as the last bit of gear was stuffed into the tents or spread on the ground, Antoine’s head snapped up and over his shoulder. “Does anyone else hear that?”

Silence fell as we strained our ears to listen.  The others started looking around, searching for something, before I was able to actually catch what they were hearing.  Finally, I was able to hear what sounded like music, but it was in a minor key that sent shivers up my spine.  It was another minute or so before I could make out words drifting through the trees. 

“ -  a year, and then

A few weeks, doubled, and tripled again,

A fire was struck by a warrior’s band

Meant for food, warmth, and a place to stand”

“What the - “ Tyche started wandering toward the music, clearly expecting us to follow. “It’s beautiful, but so sad.”

Reluctantly, I followed, reminding myself that this was a lab, that the faerie ring we were standing in was manufactured as a prank.

 “Yet one bough too many was placed inside

The flames roared to life as they screamed and cried

Tore down the trees as the warriors fled

And only ceased by the river’s bed

 The warriors slain, charred skulls and bone

Have remained in the forest for years, alone

Yet a magic imbued in their ashen remains

That entered a child who hid in great pain”

 I glanced over my shoulder, and saw about half our group behind me, including - “Arthur, why do you have your sword?”

“Because it’s steel,” he shrugged, like that actually answered my question. “Which means it has iron in it, and we’re in space, so any fucked up space-fae might not know the difference.”

 “In order to warn those who may stay

In the trees embrace, and walk away

The girl reads the thoughts of those who stand

On the ashes of noses, bowels, and hands

 She sends them away with a haunted scream

That tears into souls with a power unseen

No one has entered who has not fled

Only to drown in the river’s bed”

 Because that line was reassuring as I realized we were getting toward the artificial lake. Totally want to hear about drowning in a river bed, on a Halloween camping trip, sang by a creepy voice I didn’t recognize.  A voice that we were steadily getting closer to, no less.

 “For what place is safer from fire and flame

Than the rushing of water, a power untamed

The danger evaded, the human is saved

As their lungs are filled with a liquid depraved

 To step foot in the forest is to invite death

For though the child has drawn their last breath…”

 Tyche came to a sudden stop, both hands abruptly on her hips.  She glanced back at me, one eyebrow arched, and twitched her head toward the lake.  The voice was incredibly close to us at this point, so I peeked past her as carefully as I could.

Even in the low light of the BioLab during simulated-night, I saw a bright gleam of silver trailing through the water, interrupted only by a thick, red-gold cable draped halfway down.

“Their soul remains as though chained to the ground,” Nixe smiled with her eyes as she wound the song to a close. “And they’ll tear you apart until you are drowned.”

“Very funny,” Tyche half-scolded. “You did that on purpose.”

A lazy flick of her tail accompanied a cool glance over the surface of the water. “Perhaps,” she replied calmly. “And perhaps not. I often swim at night. And I like to sing, it’s in my nature.”

“But a song about ghosts, and vengeance, and drowning?”

“I’m a siren, Administrator Reid.” A bright flash of teeth that my brain told me were sharper than I knew they were. “All of my songs are about love, and revenge, and how else do sirens take revenge?” Another lazy splash. “I can’t exactly burn people at a pyre.”

“I loved it!” Charly spoke up from behind me. “We’re camping for Halloween, so it was perfect!” I had to admit, at least to myself, that she had a point.

Apparently I wasn’t the only one. From over my shoulder, I heard Arthur murmur “Siren or not, you’re insane.” A brief pause. “But I love the spooky music…”

I couldn’t be certain that she heard the comment, but Nixe’s eyes suddenly snapped over my shoulder to the side where it sounded like Arthur was standing. “Iron has no effect on me, Educator,” she stated firmly, flicking her tail to make a point. “But I mean none of you any harm, so please put the blade away. One near-death experience is plenty, thank you.”

A metallic rasp told me Arthur had acquiesced. “Apologies, I didn’t know it was you.”

“Were it anyone else, you still wouldn’t need that sword.” She tilted her head. “I would be there first.”

“Okay!” I interrupted, trying to break the tension. “Nixe, we’re camping and carving pumpkins.  Did you want to join us?”

Another smile, this one less terrifying. “I appreciate the invitation, but I have plans tonight.  I do apologize for interrupting your evening.”

“We were just surprised,” Charly explained. “But it was beautiful and perfect and thank you!”

With a nod, Nixe turned her body toward the artificial lake. “I am glad the song was appreciated.  Good night.”

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[writingfortoomanyfandoms]

Please Believe Me

Pairing: (Frat Boy/University!)Ashton Irwin x Reader

Summary: She overhears something that she wasn’t supposed to

Requested: No

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of sex, people being arseholes, angst

A/N: For Day Four of the 4K Write Fest, I present you with my first full length Ashton Irwin fic!!!! I hope y’all enjoy, I love writing for Ash, and this is a fic I’ve been mulling over for a while so... Please remember to let me know what you think - comment, reblog, send asks, all that stuff to keep me motivated!!!

And if you wanna check out the other things that will be coming out for the Write Fest click here: 4K Write Fest

Y/N didn’t think there was any sight in the world as beautiful as Ashton Irwin first thing in the morning.

Sunlight streamed in through the window - having not quite pulled the curtains completely closed the previous evening - and illuminated his features, still relaxed as he slept.

Y/N watched as a tired smile pulled at Ashton’s mouth, his eyes remaining closed.

“I can feel you staring at me,” he informed her, his voice groggy.

“Can you blame me?” Y/N whispered, reaching out to run her hand through his hair, which had gotten messy and tangled during the night. “Morning, Sunshine.”

“Morning, Baby,” Y/N didn’t miss the light blush which tinted Ashton’s cheeks at the nickname she had assigned him so long ago now, at the beginning of their relationship. 

“What time’s your first class today?” Ashton asked, cracking his eyes open at last, his smile widening and he pulled her closer to nuzzle his face into her neck.

“Starts at ten,” Y/N mumbled and she could feel Ashton’s grin against her skin as he rolled them over so that he was on top of her, beaming down at him with the cheeky, mischievous smile that she had grown so used to.

“That gives us plenty of time then,” he teased, ducking down to press kisses across her face.

“Ash no,” Y/N grumbled, though a laugh escaped her as she protested, pushing him away from her.

“Why?” Ashton pouted, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

“Because I’d actually very much like to get some breakfast before going to my lecture,” Y/N informed him, rolling her eyes.

“Fine, if you insist on being a functioning human,” Ashton scoffed, rolling over and getting out of his bed, offering a hand to Y/N with a soft smile to let her know that he was only jokingly annoyed at her.

“Thank you,” Y/N whispered, allowing Ashton to pull her up. 

“Wanna borrow some clothes?” Ashton offered, looking down at her bare body with a slight smirk on his face. Instinctively, Y/N covered herself with her arms, seeing the expression on Ashton’s face soften as he picked up on the action, gently prying her arms away from her. “I meant what I told you last night, baby, you’re beautiful.” 

“Could I maybe borrow some clothes to wear for breakfast and I’ll put mine in the wash as we eat?” Y/N suggested. Ashton pecked her lips quickly.

“Fantastic idea,” he enthused, nodding his head.

That was something Y/N knew she would always be able to count on Ashton for - being overly enthusiastic and supportive of her every suggestion, no matter how mundane.

“Y/N?”

“Yeah, Ash?” Y/N questioned, pulling the shirt of his which he had thrown at her over her head and looking at him expectantly. He turned around where he stood in front of his chest of drawers, a pair of grey sweatpants in his hands and an uncertain, almost nervous expression on his face. 

“You don’t… you wanted to do that last night, right? I just… I know it’s not something you’ve done before and… and I just wanted to check that you… actually wanted to do it?” Ashton queried, finally looking up to meet her eyes, worry evident in them.

Y/N stood up from his bed and walked over to her boyfriend, her hands linking behind his neck as she smiled at him, pushing herself up to peck his lips.

“You’re the sweetest person I’ve ever met - I have no idea how you managed to get your reputation,” she informed him. “Of course I actually wanted to do what we did last night, Ash - there’s no one I would have rather had my first time with.”

Relief flooded Ashton’s face and Y/N fought the urge to kiss him again, finding it adorable that even now, the morning after he had taken her virginity, he wanted to assure her that she truly was okay with him having done as such.

“I’m glad,” was all that Ashton managed to come up with in response, handing Y/N the sweats as he smiled at her.

Ashton may have had a reputation across the university campus for being someone only caring about one night stands, but Y/N had been nothing but an exception to that rule.

He had asked her out for the first time six months ago, right at the beginning of the first term, but Y/N had turned him down as a result of being far-too aware of his aforementioned reputation. Yet, she had still turned up at the party being held by his house and Ashton had spent practically the entire evening attempting to get her attention.

Yes, maybe originally it had been because he wanted to sleep with her, he doubtless found her attractive, but the more he got to know her, the quicker his motives changed.

It took him three months to convince her to go on an actual date with him. He found out that she was a virgin a month into them officially seeing each other, and it had taken another two for her to be ready and for Ashton to convince himself that she wasn’t just doing it to make him happy.

And he was happy with her, happier than he had been when in any other relationship. So much so, that he failed to remember why he had been so fond of one night stands before she came into his life. 

“Let's get you some breakfast,” Ashton said, his arm resting over her shoulders to lead her out of his room and downstairs, grabbing her discarded clothes from the floor on his way out.

“If I make the coffee can you put my clothes in the washer?” Y/N asked hopefully, looking up at him. Ashton ducked down and kissed her.

“Of course.”

Y/N went into the kitchen of Ashton’s house, saying a good morning to Calum who was sitting at the table.

“Genuine question,” Y/N started as she made her and Ashton some coffee and turned to face Calum.

“Yeah?”

“Do you ever sleep?” Calum let out an exhausted laugh.

“What gave it away?” He asked, finally tearing himself away from the laptop screen he was staring at.

“Dude, I swear you’re like eighty percent fuelled by coffee at this point, take a fucking nap, man.”

“Only eighty percent? That’s better than Mike’s estimate,” Calum teased, leaning back on his chair with a grin. “You coming to the party tonight?”

“Shit there’s a party tonight?” Y/N asked.

“It’s a Friday, of course there’s a party,” Ashton scoffed, walking into the room and hugging Y/N from behind.

“Thought you knew the schedule by now,” Calum grinned.

“You’ll be here, right?” Ashton asked her quietly, his lips by her ear.

“I’ll definitely try to, I promise.”

///

Y/N was sitting in the library with her roommate, having just finished her lecture and decided to get some studying in before she was supposed to meet some other friends for lunch and then go to work.

“Aren’t those Ash’s friends?” Her roommate, Rachel, asked. Y/N looked up from her books and over in the direction Rachel was indicating. 

Sure enough, sitting a couple of tables away from them was Calum, Michael, Luke, Roy and some of the other people from Ashton’s house who Y/N wasn’t as well acquainted with.

“Yeah, the other guys from his house,” Y/N confirmed, going back to the text she was studying.

“Aren’t you going to say hi?” Rachel asked, knowing that Y/N was close with many of Ashton’s friends - particularly with his three best friends, who had been nothing but wonderfully welcoming to her when Ashton first introduced them all.

“Isn’t that weird?” Y/N questioned but Rachel shook her head with a laugh.

“No - you’re dating their best friend, you’re basically a part of that group by association,” Rachel informed her.

“Are you that desperate to get rid of me?” Y/N asked, raising her eyebrows at Rachel who rolled her eyes at her roommate.

“It’s just the polite thing to do!” Rachel explained. “And I know you - if you don’t say hello now you’ll be worried about the fact you didn’t say hello to them and think that they’ll think you’re being rude.”

“You scare me sometimes.”

“I pay attention and know you well,” Rachel countered.

“Alright, I’m going,” Y/N sighed, knowing her roommate was right and that she would otherwise be freaking out about Ashton’s friends thinking she was being rude and purposefully ignoring them.

Y/N pushed herself up out of the chair she was sat on, crossing the library floor to the group of male students who were sat a few tables over, while all of them had books open in front of the, none of them were actually studying, instead just messing around and laughing, gaining them dirty looks from the librarian for being too loud and disruptive for the usual quiet atmosphere found in the library.

None of the group noticed them as she approached and Y/N stopped short when there was a break in the conversation and she heard her name mentioned.

Y/N hesitated, knowing that she shouldn’t be eavesdropping but after hearing the laughter which followed the guy’s statement she knew that she had to know what it was that they were talking about.

“-I just don’t see why Ash’s keeping her around, she’s so clingy,” one of them - Josh, Y/N thought she remembered his name to be - stated.

“Maybe she’s a really good shag?” One of the others - maybe Nick? - theorised.

“Nah - she wasn’t putting out, remember? He was complaining about it.”

Y/N’s heart panged in her chest, biting her lip, feeling her face crumpling with the knowledge that Ashton had been complaining about her not ‘putting out’ as his friends so delicately put it.

“Well he got some last night, that much is for sure,” Jason, Y/N remembered Jason well, knowing that he had never liked her much, stated and mimicked the sounds of moaning, causing the rest of the table to laugh. “Probably means we won’t be seeing much of her anymore now Ash’s got what he wants.”

“It’ll be good to have him back to normal,” another one of them agreed.

Y/N swallowed heavily, tears burning in her eyes.

Her eyes moved to Luke, who she was closest to out of Ashton’s friends, but the blond man stared resolutely down at the table. Not agreeing with his friends, but also not defending her. Calum had a slight smile on his face, discomfort swimming in his eyes and Michael was laughing along with the group but shooting uncertain looks at Calum and Luke.

“I can’t wait for her to get the fuck out of our lives, honestly, I don’t know why Ash chose to play the long game with her. She’s just so clingy, I swear every time I look around our house she’s there.”

Y/N willed her three friends silently to speak in her defence, to tell the other guys to shut the fuck up. 

To give Y/N some confidence that Ashton wasn’t just using her for sex, especially not after she had given him her virginity.

She didn’t want to think of him dumping her tonight because he was finally satisfied, because he had finally gotten what he wanted out of her.

Y/N bit her lip, doing the best she could to steady her breathing, to stop herself from crying in such a public area. Just as she was about to turn away from the group, return to Rachel and make an excuse as to why she was leaving, Luke looked up from the table, as though he could feel Y/N’s eyes on him.

His eyes widened almost as though in fear upon seeing her and his lips parted just a little, almost like he was going to call out to her, perhaps apologise for what she had doubtlessly overheard.

But before he could make a sound, Y/N spun around on her heel and returned to Rachel, quickly gathering her things from the table, blurting out an unintelligible explanation to her roommate, keeping her head down so that Rachel wouldn’t see the tears swimming in her eyes, and she bolted out of the library.

///

Y/N knew without a doubt that it was Ashton who was blowing up her phone.

She hadn’t looked at her phone all evening since returning from work, but it didn’t take a genius to figure out that it was more than likely to be Ashton who was setting her phone buzzling relentlessly.

She hadn’t gone to the party.

Rachel had suggested that Y/N go and confront Ashton about what she had overheard at the library.

Y/N decided against that plan, wanting nothing more to instead call in sick to work, go home, curl up, cry, and watch reruns of Outnumbered on the TV with a tub of ice cream instead, avoiding confronting Ashton for as long as she could manage.

Now, curled up in her pyjamas, her eyes fixed lazily on the screen having stopped crying over him a few hours ago, she wondered absently whether or not Luke had informed the other guys that she had likely heard what they had been saying.

She wondered if he had passed that information onto Ashton, who was no doubt wondering why Y/N hadn’t turned up to the party as promised.

He was probably thrilled to be rid of her.

It was a bitter thought, but if Ashton really saw her as being clingy as his friends seemed to think she was, then it was probably true, that he was just waiting for an excuse to make her leave him alone.

“He’s texting me about you now!” Rachel called from her room.

“Just ignore him!” Y/N responded.

“He wants to know what’s wrong! Should I tell him he’s an arsehole?” Rachel’s voice was getting closer, evidently approaching Y/N’s room as she read Ashton’s texts inquiring about Y/N’s whereabouts.

“No… don’t do that,” Y/N sighed as Rachel entered her room.

“But he is one, you know that, right?”

“It… it didn’t come from him?” Y/N offered, hating for the little piece of hope she was maintaining that Ashton wasn’t the person his reputation would lead her to believe, the person he had spent the last three months proving to Y/N that he wasn’t.

“Y/N…” the word was filled with a mixture of sympathy and exhaustion, Rachel clearly not wanting her friend to get hurt, but also wanting to ensure that Y/N wasn’t kidding herself. “You need to…”

“I know. I was stupid to believe he actually gave a shit about me,” Y/N sighed, plucking helplessly at the blanket covering her form.

“Hey - no you weren’t. Ash… Ashton had everyone fooled, everyone thought he liked you but…”

“Can’t teach an old dog new tricks?” Y/N joked ruefully, listening to Rachel laugh a little in response. “Tell him I’m feeling sick?” She asked.

“Why?”

“I just… can’t face talking to him right now. I’ll… I’ll sort it out tomorrow,” she sighed, moving over to lay her head in Rachel’s lap.

“You don’t deserve this, Y/N/N,” Rachel responded, typing out a response on her phone before tossing it aside, dropping her hands down into Y/N’s hair, playing distractedly with the strands.

“Thanks, Rach.”

///

“Ashton? What are you doing here?” Y/N refused to open the door too much as she looked out into the hallway of her building, frowning at the presence of her boyfriend on her doorstep.

Ashton’s smile was painful for her to observe and he held up the shopping bag he had with him.

“Rach said you were feeling sick yesterday - figured I’d come and help you.” Ashton tried to move forward into her apartment but Y/N kept the door almost-closed, not missing the hurt expression which crossed his face.

“Look, I appreciate it.” Y/N stated. “But you need to go.” Ashton’s face dropped into a proper frown at her words.

“Y/N? What? Why?”

“I just… really don’t want to see you right now,” she stated honestly, trying to shut the door on his face but Ashton stuck his foot in the gap between the doorframe and the door.

“You don’t get to just say something like that and shut me out - what the fuck is going on?” He asked.

“How about you ask your friends?” Y/N hissed, realising that there was no way that she would be able to keep Ashton outside and letting go of the door, turning and stalking away from him. 

Ashton followed her into her apartment, dropping his bag of shopping on the floor and slamming the door closed behind him.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ashton asked, following her. Y/N saw Rachel peek her head out of her door into the hallway and glare at Ashton.

“The fuck are you doing here, Irwin?”

“Seeing my girlfriend? Who you told me was sick yesterday?” Ashton offered, not even bothering to make an attempt at masking his contempt.

“Hey - don’t be an arsehole to her just because we found out the fucking truth yesterday!” Y/N exclaimed, whipping around to glare at the man who, this time the previous morning, she had been completely wrapped up in.

“What truth?” Ashton demanded, running his hand through his hair and letting out an exasperated laugh. “I have no idea what the fuck you’re talking about!”

“So Luke didn’t tell you,” Y/N said, nodding her head. “Figures.”

“Didn’t tell me what?” Ashton implored her to tell him what was going on, what he had managed to do to fuck up their relationship so badly in the space of a day, despite him having not seen her since bidding her a good day the previous morning when she left his place.

“You got what you wanted, Ash, I can’t give you anymore. Please… please stop doing this,” Y/N’s eyes closed and she willed herself not to cry. She had done far too much crying already. She opened her eyes again, shaking her head.

“What did I want? What did I do?” Ashton begged, trying to take her hands but Y/N yanked them away from him.

“You already got me to sleep with you. You already convinced me to love you. There’s nothing else I can offer unless your plan is to publicly humiliate me.” Ashton gaped at her, seemingly speechless. Y/N gave a wry smile. “I heard the guys talking in the library.”

“W-What guys? Who said that?” 

“Your friends. Some of the guys who live with you.”

“Luke? Mike? Cal?” Ashton demanded incredulously.

“No,” Y/N conceded and Ashton let out a breath.

“The rest of them know fuck all about me and I don’t really give a shit what they think, they’re all arseholes.”

“Well the other three didn’t seem to disagree with anything they were saying. Apparently I’m also far too clingy,” she added, wrapping her arms around herself, trying to hold herself together against the words that had cut her to her very core the previous day. Ashton’s face softened at her words.

“Y/N-”

“It’s not new news. Everyone knows that you don’t do relationships, Ashton. I just… you knew I was a virgin. Why the fuck did you decide to make me one of your… your conquests.”

“You have never and will never be… be a conquest to me,” Ashton stated, his chin jutting out defiantly, daring her to disagree with him.

“Ashton-”

“No! Those pricks know next to nothing about me! Yes, maybe I wasn’t… a relationship person before but… but you’ve made me realise why people have them,” Ashton took an uncertain step towards her. “I love seeing you wearing my clothes,” he told her. “And I love that I get the pleasure of waking up next to you when you stay the night, and I love taking you out on dates, and that you’re always around. I hate it when you’re not around me, ask the guys, I complain to them that you’re not there,” Ashton was practically pleading with her to understand him. “Yeah, maybe you’re clingy,” he shrugged. “There are worse things to be, especially considering I’m far more clingy than you are - honestly, I’m a total attention whore.” Despite herself, Y/N laughed, causing Ashton to smile in relief.

“You were never a… a conquest to me. I never wanted you to feel that way and I’m so sorry that some dumbasses I happen to share a house with ever made you doubt how I feel about you,” Ashton reached out to cup her jaw with his hand, his hazel eyes swimming with relief and adoration when she didn’t move away from him. “I wanted to sleep with you because… because I realised I loved you and… and I’ve never loved anyone before. But I wanted to make sure you were certain first. Those other guys they just… they don’t understand what we have because… because you’re right. Everything I just said goes totally against my reputation and the reputations of most of those guys,” Ashton stepped forwards again so that they were practically chest to chest. He smiled at her, a proper smile which crinkled his eyes and left deep dimples on his cheeks. “But I think I’d rather gain a new reputation with you than maintain that one.”

Y/N pushed herself up to kiss him. It had been less than twenty-four hours since she had seen and kissed him last but she craved him, and it felt like an eternity had passed. 

“I’m sorry I... I’m sorry I listened to them,” Y/N whispered, resting her head against his shoulder. Ashton hugged her tight, kissing the top of her head.

“I’m sorry I gave you and them reasons to believe that it may be the case.”

Ashton and Y/N stood together in Y/N’s hallway, Y/N listening to and taking refuge in the comforting sound of his heartbeat thudding in his chest as she reflected on their argument, surprise overtaking her features as she remembered what Ashton had let slip.

“Wait - you love me?” She asked and Ashton laughed at her.

“I thought you already knew that?” Y/N kissed him again.

“I love you too.”

[thedeaditeslayer]

INTERVIEW: Bruce Campbell on the enduring legacy of horror classic ‘Evil Dead’.

Bruce Campbell, the multi-hyphenate actor who has had a tremendous cultural impact in the world of entertainment, has put together a résumé like no other performer. He’s known for playing the iconic character of Ash in the Evil Dead films and its spinoff TV series, Ash vs.The Evil Dead. This horror credibility is by no means exclusive; he has also acted in many other projects, including Burn Notice, Bubba Ho-Tep, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Xena: Warrior Princess and The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. Add to that a couple bestselling memoirs, and his professional life has been a full one.

Now he’s ready to talk about perhaps the best-known bullet point on that résumé: his starring turn in the original Evil Dead. On Saturday, Jan. 23, Campbell will take part in an interactive virtual watch party while the horror movie plays for an online audience. The Tobin Center for the Performing Arts in San Antonio is one of the national venues hosting the event. Tickets are $25-$50.

Recently Hollywood Soapbox spoke with Campbell about his career, about the horror movie that started it all and his new “retirement.” Here’s what he had to say …

On what fans can expect from the virtual event …

They can expect amazingness at every turn. You know what it is, it’s not your father’s commentary. Your father’s commentary was on the old DVDs, and the movie starts, and the actors sit around and shoot the shit about what they remember. But it’s real time. It’s OK, but you miss a lot of stuff. So in this case I’ve got some kind of device that’s going to allow me to stop, start, maybe even rewind because you can get a lot more detail. My problem with the old commentaries I would do: You tell a story, something, something. You look up, and you go, ‘Oh, I wish I could have told that story, but it’s already gone.’ So this is a chance to expand the experience, get a little more detail, more trivia. I can kind of tease stuff up. I can pause it and go, ‘Oh, oh, oh,’ and let the people know something [is coming], so it’s just a different type of format done in a very safe and responsible fashion in this modern era.”

On his other work during this pandemic …

My agent kind of put this together because I’ve done similar stuff. I have worked with Wizard Entertainment a lot over the years, and I’ve been doing Last Man Standing as a game show host virtually through Wizard Virtual. And we’ve done that a bunch of times, and we’ve done this sort of Hercules type of reunion sort of stuff. So we’ve danced around it, but this is a way to kind of do another version of something where you go, OK, let’s do a little sit down. You know what it is, it’s just a live performance without the theater. I would be doing essentially the same thing in a movie theater, but until those open again, this is a pretty good second opportunity because the cool thing about the broadcast is it’s open to the world.”

On his hopes for the future of this type of virtual programming …

I hope it works because there are a lot of other movies that I’d be happy to sit with and watch.

On whether he knew Evil Dead would be so legendary …

We knew it from day one. [laughs] No, we did not. Honestly, it was a struggle just to finish the movie. We were under-funded. We shot in Tennessee, but we left 12 weeks later. We were supposed to be there for four weeks, so everything fell apart. We put it back together again. It fell apart — raise a little more money, shoot a little more. So most people think it was 1981, when it came out, but you’re close. But it’s really 1979 is when we actually shot the movie, and then it took several other years just to cobble the thing together. So, no, there was no heightened sense of oh my God we’ve got Star Wars on our hands. We felt fortunate that we had just enough money to finish the damn thing.

On whether he was OK with the gore …

Going in, we knew we wanted to have no holds barred. The only scene I objected to as an individual was the vine rape scene, but it wasn’t my character they were doing it to. So my dog wasn’t really in that fight.

On how he approached the role of Ash …

Well, look the first Evil Dead is pretty straight. It’s kind of a melodrama. There’s not a lot of cracking jokes. By the second Evil Dead, he’s sort of like a veteran with a little more sardonic cracks here and there. By the time you get to Army of Darkness, he’s sort of the ugly American. He’s morphed into the full braggadocious guy — I’ve been through stuff; get out of my way. And then by Ash vs. Evil Dead, now he’s on the downslope. The guy is picking up chicks at the Last Call. He’s doing mescaline. It was fun to follow the character as he progresses and digresses.

On whether he wanted more episodes of Ash vs. Evil Dead …

You can never tell a company that’s putting up the money that they need to pay you more and finance more seasons because they have their own agenda, and they gave us three seasons, which is a fair shot. … Hey, they allowed us to do three seasons of basically unrated television, so fans certainly got their mouthful.

On whether he likes changing it up in his career …

I come from Detroit where in manufacturing they would do job rotation, like Fridays you’d work on tires, next week you’d work on fenders. This is in the factory, working in the auto factory, so it would be a way to keep the workers sort of interested. So, yeah, I love bopping in front of the camera, behind. This year I’m going to be a publisher. I’m going to publish a bunch of books later this year. I started a publishing company because there are a lot of projects that’ll never get made into movies, but doggone it, they sure can be made into novels and books and all kinds of fun stuff. … I’ve got 10 prospective books that I’ll sort of squeeze out over the next couple years. I’m just prepping each one, coming up with a cool cover. There’s tons of projects over the years that I developed. You look at it, and you go, well, no one is going to put up $10 million for this movie. But it won’t cost that much to put it out as a book because I think there’s a lot of stories that we thought were cool. I’d hate for them to wind up in a digital graveyard.

On whether he would ever play Ash again …

I’m officially retired, but I’m sure actors have said that before. I feel like I left it all out on the table for the TV show, and then beyond that, there wasn’t much I was either able or interested in lending to it. I’m going to do the voice for the video game. We’re doing an official Evil Dead game.

On whether he likes to meet fans at conventions …

I have no problem with it. It’s a fun interaction. You get to see new towns and see what folks are up to. You can do your own market research about what are they into, what are they like, what are they all about, who are they, how old are they, what do they look like, so that’s pretty fun. And staying relevant in front of a crowd is always fun, to torment the kids, so I’ll probably get that done if they’ll let us. I might do a drive-in movie tour later this summer.

On the fans who like the sequels as much as the original Evil Dead …

I just know that it was nice of them to embrace the rest of the movies, for different reasons. There are aficionados who like the straight horror of Evil Dead. There are people who like the wackiness of Evil Dead 2, which is sort of splat-stick. And there are some people who can’t really handle the gore, and they like Army of Darkness. It’s jokes; it’s talking skeletons. I mean a 12-year-old could watch Army of Darkness.

On being remembered for Ash above any other role …

You can’t predict how the viewing public will want to remember you over the years. I’m OK with it because Evil Dead got me into the film business and has given me gainful employment for years. What I found in the past is there’s no point grousing over what you think you are perceived as. Every person perceives an actor differently. If you only watch westerns, you might watch The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. and love it, but hate Evil Dead. You might love spy shows and watch Burn Notice, but you’re still not going to watch Evil Dead. So I’ve found I’m sort of known by what people watched, and that’s good. I’m OK, as long as they watch.

[misterewrites]

Underground Proper (Welcome to the Underground!)

Hello everyone! 2021! WOO! Thank god. I know it's pretty much just arbitrary signal of the passage of time but you gotta enjoy the little things. I hope you are all good, staying safe and sound in these chaotic times. Here is the new chapter which I hope you enjoy. 

It's finally time to enter the Underground proper. Abigail and company had an exciting large send off but the first steps of the journey are at hand and Abigail is quick to realize that leaving the Underground might be harder than she thought.

Reblog, enjoy stay safe tell your friends about it! Wear your masks, wash your hands, have a great week! E out!

and if you want to leave me comments or find an easier way to read it, here’s a link to it on ao3

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27814297/chapters/69919671

The longer Abigail stayed in the Underground, the more realized she was wildly getting further and further out of her depth.

She thought the little walk from the cemetery to town had properly prepared for her trek into the wilds but all it had really done was lure her into a false sense of security.

The tunnel floor was uneven, the ground straightening and sloping at random which nearly caused her to trip once or twice. The path would randomly grow and shrink as well, sometimes becoming so wide that the Swift Slivers could march side by side then without warning becoming so narrow the trio had to fall into a single file line. She jumped at noises that abruptly existed in the tunnel, signs of life or movement echoing further down the path. The air was frigid and moist, reminding Abigail of her town’s harshest winters. She tried to keep track of where the group currently was but that ultimately proved useless as the road would veer slightly left, snaked back and forth, bent at a weird angle and sometimes looped back around, rising or falling with a spiral or slope. Illumashrooms weren’t as plentiful as the town and while it wasn’t pitch dark, Abigail had to squint and focus among the dim light of the occasional mushroom found on the path.

Her dear departed brother Arthur once mentioned how he was not a fan of tight spaces. Claustrophobia the clerics called it. At the time Abigail thought him silly given that they lived in a wide open farm. Here, among the darkness and stony walls of the underground, Abigail understood what he meant more clearly.

Arthur.

Abigail could feel her heart ached terribly at the thought of her brother.

“Watch out here farm girl” Oliver’s voice called from out front.

Abigail snapped back to reality, her hand reaching out for Archibald’s shoulder as the road sloped sharply once more.

Abigail knew the other two were helping her through her first time through the tunnel and she wasn’t sure how to feel about it. She was used to being caught flat footed but never to this degree. Well except that one time during Winter’s Solstice. That was just awkward for everyone especially her.

Oliver was ahead, lightly humming the occasional song while calling out warnings about sudden shifts in the road. Archibald walked beside her when the path would allow, offering his hand then shoulder for her to brace herself with.

The boys were clearly no stranger to this way of traveling and while Abigail felt a little embarrassed at her tripping and confusion, she was grateful the two went out of her way to help her. Even Oliver hadn’t sent a pointed barb at her.

“I can see why it takes half day to a day.” Abigail sighed, steadying herself against Archibald “Is it always this rough?”

“Better and worse usually.” Oliver admitted, peering into the shifting shadows ahead “This just one path and since not many people go to West End, it’s usually uncared for here.”

He gestured to a illumashroom plucked from the ground and thrown to its side.

“But” he continued “The other paths are well worn, lot more people and lot more care put into maintaining the roads and the signs. More ways to get where you want too but also more roadblocks and unforeseen circumstances.”

“Mixed bag then.” Abigail huffed.

“Like life” Oliver replied.

Archibald nodded his head in agreement.

“How do you guys get used to it?”

Oliver motioned to himself “Born here.”

Archibald gestured to his sliver hued clothing.

“Right. Silly question.”

Archibald tiled his hand back and forth.

“Ha, thanks Archibald.”

He rose a thumb in response.

“Enough flirting back there.” Oliver shouted “It’s getting late.”

“Is it?”

“We’ve been working for about 6, 7 hours Archie?”

Archibald paused thoughtfully before wordlessly counting his fingers, holding up 7 after a moment.

Abigail glanced at them “Have we? I hadn’t noticed.”

“You will when we stop. Luckily there is a clearing up ahead.”

“Clearing? Like a field or?” Abigail glanced at Archibald who simply gestured forward.

“Clearing.” Abigail whispered in understanding.

Before them was a cavern, wide and spacious whose ceiling couldn’t been seen through the inky darkness. The walls were rough and jagged with the odd crack or smaller tunnel that led away from the beaten path. The faint of smell of ash filled the air as Abigail noticed the various imprints of tents and footsteps scattered across the floor, travelers long past persevered by dust.

“Rest stop” Oliver explained, putting his travel bag on the floor “There’s a couple of these caverns across the roads. Perfect to set up and keep an eye out when resting or sleeping. Usually there’s more people but like I said, no one comes to West End. Willingly at least.”

Abigail rose an eyebrow “You did though.”

If Oliver heard, he made no indication as he began removing things from his bag.

Archibald and Abigail followed suit, making themselves comfortable among the stony floor as they set up for the night.

______

Abigail was quick to realize what Oliver meant when he said she would notice once they stopped.

Once her little sleeping bag had been laid out and she folded up the cloak under her as a comfortable seat, she could feel the exhaustion ebb into her bones.

Abigail huffed tiredly as she took a seat “Wow, I’ve never been that winded before.”

Archibald was hard at work setting a fire pit, finding rocks around and enclosing the various logs of wood within while Oliver plucked at his lute mindlessly, sitting upon on his own pile of clothing for a seat.

“Lack of sun people say. Humans aren’t really suppose to go without it for long periods of time. Luckily a lot of food down here that helps with that.”

Abigail’s stomach rumbled hungrily at the mention of food. She briefly remembering eating snacks throughout the day but not a full meal.

Archibald fished out a piece of jerky from his pack and handed it to Abigail

Abigail smiled gratefully “Thanks.”

Archibald coughed, returning to his work as Oliver searched through his bag.

“Archie, Slimewood?”

He replied with an unhappy face.

“I picked up some Jub steak too.”

The archer nodded happily at the alternative.

“Slimewood? Jub steak?”

Oliver pulled out a carefully wrapped package, laying it to the side as he dug deeper “Food Abigail. I bought some for this road trip.”

“You bought food?? When?!” Abigail couldn’t recall seeing the bard make such a purchase.

“I snuck out after everyone fell asleep. Butcher owed me a favor so I did some midnight shopping.”

“And were you planing on sharing this information?”

“Yes” Oliver admitted “Now when it’s dinner time.”

“Surprisingly nice of you” Abigail murmured suspiciously. “Practical” Oliver corrected “We’re traveling together so the best shot to stay alive is to make sure we’re all well fed and in one peace. Especially this one.”

Oliver pointed at Archibald who beamed with pride.

“Right. Travel companions.”

“Hey you came at me with a knife.” Oliver reminded her.

“After you tried to rob me.” Abigail shot back darkly.

“Thought you were a corpse farm girl.”

Archibald looked back and forth between the two.

“Long story” Abigail offered sympathetically.

Oliver scoffed “I thought she was dead, tried to find something of worth, she came at me with a knife. Not that long of a story farm girl.”

Abigail glared openly at the bard. Oliver shrugged as Archibald finished the fire pit, flames and all.

Abigail sighed happily “Much better.”

“Oi merc, got a pan?”

Archibald nodded and pulled out an old worn frying pan. Oliver took it appreciatively and placed it upon the roaring flame, meat shortly followed after.

“Smells pretty good!”

“As opposed to?”

“I dunno. Not good? I don’t even know what this is!”

“First rule of eating food: Never asked what it’s made of.”

“I live on a farm. I’m aware of that rule.”

Archibald chuckled to himself as he eyed either tunnel entrance carefully for any sign of trouble.

The trio sat in a surprisingly peaceful silence among the crackling of the flame and sizzling of cooked meat.

“I’m surprised you know how to cook” Abigail admitted “Given that you’re a grave robber and a jerk.”

Archibald quietly nodded in agreement.

“Personality traits and old habits are not inductive of my skill set.” Oliver replied, turning the meat over.

“I don’t think I’ve seen a bard do anything besides sing and dance.

Oliver scoffed “They’re not real bards like me. I’m going to be the best and to be that, I need to be varied.”

Abigail couldn’t hide her surprise “So you’re not the best? I thought you burst into flames if you were ever honest.”

“I am honest” Oliver countered “I just decide how much honesty I need to share with people.”

Archibald snorted loudly.

“Yeah yeah” Oliver gestured threateningly with his spoon ��Keep it up merc and I’ll burn your piece extra crispy and black.

Archibald rose his hand in surrender.

Abigail chuckled, smiling at her companions. She had forgotten how nice it was to be around people.

“Watch it farm girl” Oliver teased, passing her a plate filled with a well cook steak and odd side dishes “You keep smiling like that people might think we’re friends.”

“Moment of weakness. It’s been a long day.”

Oliver snickered, offering Archibald his plate “As long as we’re on the same page.”

Abigail decided to not reply.

Oliver took a smug pride at the others faces as they bit into their first taste of the sweetish salty meat.

“Not just another bard huh?”

Abigail stuck her tongue out “I’m not going to give you the satisfaction.”

Oliver turned to Archibald “How about you merc? Gonna give me some validation?”

Archibald choked, too caught off guard by the question. He gave a friendly thumbs up before trying to clear his airway.

“No greater compliment than a man choking on your food.” Oliver beamed proudly.

Abigail gently rubbed and patted his back in an attempt to help Archibald. He let out a might cough and smiled sheepishly towards Abigail in thanks.

“You don’t talk much huh?”

He shook his head.

“Not a fan?”

A nod.

“I understand.” Abigail gave a cheery smirk.

Archibald was awfully interested in his plate all of the sudden.

“So” Abigail glanced back towards Oliver “This competition? This isn’t you picking on a bunch of kids for a talent show right? You’re actually competing against real bards in a real competition.”

“Of course.” Oliver waved off her accusatory tone “I’m morally gray, not a bully.”

“You’ve been bullying me just fine.” Abigail murmured with an unhappy edge to her tone.

“It’s how I show tolerance.”

“How about you stop being a jerk and sing for us bard?”

Oliver rubbed his fingers together.

Abigail raised an eyebrow “Seriously? You’re going to charge us?”

“No point to do something for free when you can get paid for it.” Oliver gave impish grin.

Abigail frowned before an idea formed in her head “You know Archibald doesn’t think you can sing at all. He was telling me he thinks you just talk a big game but doesn’t see it.”

Archibald froze, his fork halfway between his open mouth and his plate. His eyes darted back and forth, unsure how he got pulled into this.

Oliver pursed his lips: On one hand he knew Abigail was baiting him given how much of a conversationalist Archibald had been this far. But on the other hand, he could never resist a chance to show off.

“I’m playing” Oliver stated simply as he slid his lute off his back “But because I want to. I need practice if I want to win first place.”

“Oh right sure.” Abigail nodded mockingly

Archibald was still confused.

Notes filled the still cave air. It was a soft tune, slow and peaceful reminding Abigail of a lullaby. The bard closed his eyes, swaying back and forth as his fingers strummed across the strings almost like they were made of air.

“For the one day I have long since gone through my past.” Oliver whispered, his voice gravelly and low “Memories of a place that surely can not last. For far and wide I have long always done roam, watching and seeking where I shall call home.”

The flourish, the rises and drops in the music filled Abigail with some nostalgia she hadn’t realized she’d been carrying: He was by no means perfect given some notes did not fit with the others and she could tell this slow more determined song was not his preferred style but even she had to admit this was nice. Surrounded by people, enjoying songs long into the night.

It was nice to be around people.

______

Abigail yawned tiredly as morning came. Well according to Oliver and Archibald it was morning: In the darkness of the tunnels, it was pretty much impossible to tell what time it actually was.

As they drew closer to the capital, Abigail had a better idea of what Oliver meant by better maintained: While not perfect, the path was well worn yet smooth. The slopes weren’t as drastic or without warning. Once or twice, the road branched off to some other path that shot off in some direction Abigail couldn’t hazard a guess.

“What are these all about?” Abigail motioned to yet another crack in a wall, some smaller tunnel that led off into the darkness.

Archibald guided her away from the opening as Oliver glanced backwards.

“Stay away from those.” Oliver eyed the crack cautiously “We call them sideways because who knows where you’re going to end up.”

“I don’t get it.” Abigail was unable to keep the confusion out of her tone.

“Unexplored tunnels.” Oliver clarified “Well as far as we know. No one knows where they go and they’re very dangerous. If you’re lucky, they’ll just spit you out somewhere on the main road. But no one can really be sure and it’s best not to tempt fate.”

A shiver ran down Abigail’s back as she moved closer to the middle of the road. She was already disoriented and lost on this main road to the capital. She didn’t want to know how would it feel be hopelessly lost in the dark.

Abigail nearly crashed into Oliver, took caught up in her thoughts to realize the bard had stopped dead in the road.

“Wha?!” Abigail flailed in surprise “Oliver! What are you doing?”

“Do you hear that?”

Abigail looked about, unsure what she was supposed to be hearing.

“No, I don’t hear anything.”

“Exactly.”

A sense of dread began to fill Abigail, her breathing becoming labored. Now that she thought of it, this was the first moment in her journey that there was a tense thick silence. Even in the middle of nowhere, she could hear far off noises among the chilly air. Now the air was still with an overwhelming quiet surrounding them.

“Archie?” Abigail called only to find the archer’s eyes darting about, bow ready in his hands.

He pulled her closer, putting her in the middle of himself and Oliver.

“Guys?”

“Not now Abigail.”

Abigail felt the tension growing, some unseen danger that lurked close by, waiting for their chance to strike.

Abigail glanced about, desperately trying to find some sort of clue to what was going on when she spotted it: glowing silver gleams peering through the darkness of the crack.

Something scurried out quickly, it’s claws scraping the stone walls as its form was silhouetted against the dim glow of the tunnel. She tried to make out what exactly it was but its skin or shell or whatever was too dark in this light.

It was small which was a comfort to Abigail though its claws were sharp and dug easily into the floor. It was misshapen that even Abigail, whom was well versed with a variety of animals, couldn’t tell its features. The only that was noticeable besides its claws were its sliver eyes which were smooth and solid.

“What’s that?” Abigail tilted her head quizzically.

“What is…?” Oliver whirled around “ARCHIE!”

“what, wait?” but no sooner the words had left her mouth, the creature let out a horrible shriek. It thundered in her ears with such a volume that it made her dizzy and unsteady.

The creature stood on its hind legs, throat wide open and the shriek slowly growing louder and louder.

Silence came without warning but it was welcomed.

Abigail panted heavily, the ringing almost unbearable as her sight slowly focused.

There was an arrow where the creature once stood.

Abigail turned sideways to find Archibald, sweat on his brow, his breath heavy and uneven.

She let out a sigh of relief “Did I tell you how much I love you?”

Archibald gave a weak smile.

“Move!”

Archibald and Abigail stared back at Oliver who began pulling at their wrist.

“MOVE NOW!!” Oliver shouted, shoving them forward into a desperate run.

Abigail opened her mouth when she heard the sound of dozens of claws wildly scratching and scraping at anything and everything.

The creatures burst forth from the crack or at least Abigail thought they were creatures. She couldn’t tell where one ended and another began. It was a mass of constantly shifting shadows that took odd shapes. It was if the creatures couldn’t agree on what form they should take. The only thing that did not change was the dozens pairs of sliver smooth eyes, their gaze lifeless yet single minded.

Abigail struggled to break into a run. Her feet felt heavy like the floor was pulling her deeper and deeper into the ground. She could feel fear creeping into every inch of her body, threatening to send her into shock as she tried to keep her panic under control.

“I don’t want to die.” Abigail murmured fearfully as her hands grasped deliriously at the air “Not here. Not yet. Mom, dad. Please! Not here! NOT YET!”

She couldn’t hold in the scream, the panic and fear was too much. She could feel the tears running down her cheeks, the whirl of claws closing the distance inch by inch.

There was a quietness that came with the end. A strange sensation of peace, of acceptance. She felt it now amid the fear and panic. She could hear the soft sounds of trumpets in her ears, a familiar song playing in her mind. It took her a moment to recognize the fanfare of the king’s guard, a triumphant march of victory. She always felt safer whenever she heard the blaring of the horns far in the distance.

She took a deep calming breath. Her body no longer felt sluggish and disconnected as the fanfare played faintly in her head.

She could feel Archibald just behind her, the occasional notch of an arrow letting her know he was trying to push back the hoard but not finding much luck.

Abigail looked forward and was not surprised to find Oliver busy at work. The jet black lute glowed with previously unseen blue runes scrawled across its surface. His fingers were furiously strumming across his lute as if their lives depended on it.

They probably did. His song was the only thing keeping the fear at bay.

“Bards.” Abigail muttered under her breath before calling out “How much further to the gate?”

“Not close enough!” Oliver answered, his fingers never stopping “We’re going to have to lose them another way!”

“There is no other way!” Abigail struggled to keep the tears from spilling onto her face.

Oliver cocked his head forward “One but you’re not going to like it!”

“Why?”

“Remember how I told you never to go down sideways?”

Abigail nearly stopped in her tracks but Archibald sprinted past, clasping her hand tight and pulled her forward.

“Yeah we’re going sideways. Straight ahead, get up here Archie!”

Archibald glanced backwards, the massive wall of claws and sliver eyes just a few feet behind.

Oliver whistled to get his attention “We know what’s behind us, I need you to clear what’s ahead or else we’re not going to make it! Get up here merc!”

Archibald let out a shaky breath and pushed further, dragging Abigail close behind.

The trio spotted Oliver’s idea: A split in the path. One path curved to the side, the dimly lit main path that led to Haven’s Nest. The other was not so much a path as it was a void of darkness, a path that sloped downward into the unknown.

“Oliver!” Abigail cried.

“We can die now or we die later!” Oliver firmly answered “And at least later we might not die, now go!”

Abigail nearly let go of Archibald’s hand but the mercenary gave her a comforting squeeze. He turned to her and spoke wordlessly with a simple smile.

I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise.

She took a shaky breath but nodded in understanding.

The trio threw themselves at the opening, sailing through the air for a moment before landing with a dull thud onto the stony floor. Before any of them could react, they began sliding forward, the slope pushing them further deep into the dark.

Oliver’s lute dimly lit the tunnel the little they traveled. It must’ve been a heartbeat or two when the group found themselves tumbling across the straighten floor.

“Get up!” Oliver shouted, pulling the other two to their feet “We need to get going.”

“Where!?” Abigail cried “There’s nowhere to go!”

Archibald elbowed Oliver and pointed out a strange silhouette outlined in the darkness of the cavern.

“Is that a house?” Abigail’s voice asked with disbelief “Down here? That’s creepy.”

“And probably bad news.” Oliver admitted as he pushed the two towards the strange house cloaked in shadows “but later is later! Go go go!”

The claws echoed faintly from the tunnel but the trio had already reached the pouch of the home.

It was oddly similar to Abigail’s home though in much worse shape: Faded, splintered wood with dull peeling paint. The windows were blackened out with dust and the house creaked unhappily as they climbed the porch steps. The door swung open by itself and while that gave Abigail pause, Oliver shoved them in, shutting the door behind them and locking it.

“This is a bad idea.” Abigail panted breathlessly.

Oliver wiped the sweat off his brow “Hopefully we’ll live to regret it.”

“I doubt it.” A voice called from the shadows.

Oliver and Archibald threw themselves forward, pushing Abigail behind them in a defensive formation.

The air was thick with creak, creak, creak of heavy boots walking down some unseen stairs.

A figure appeared before them. He was taller than anyone else here with an old tattered riding cloak draping his massive figure. Brown eyes peered curiously under his hood, his thick beard black and gray. His armor was dented and worn with a faded symbol of a sun across his chest.

“You do not know where you roam children.” the stranger’s voice spoke, melodic and deep.

“At least we’re alive right?” Abigail offered hopefully.

“No you were right.” Oliver eyed the stranger’s symbol distastefully “This is was a terrible idea.”

Abigail leaned in, dropping her voice to a whisper “Is he bad news? A thief or murderer or something?”

“Worse.” Oliver glared openly “A paladin.”

[sapphic-scylla]

@the-one-and-only-blake-llewell @dimitrescuslustwine I hope you enjoy Petra’s encounter with the rogue’s gallery that is Alcina’s Castle. It’s not a great story and not perfectly well written but regardless I hope you like it.

Ch. 1: Heresy

A smell of iron and wine mixed with the spruce trees nearby. Such a odd welcome to the plane she had just appeared in. It was so different from Rexentrum too. Nature seemed at peace with the world instead of deception lurking around every corner. Even these poor hopeless souls were honest about their intentions rather than manipulating people to their will. Not that it helped them in the end but it was refreshing.

Petra sheathed her sword, pulled out some incense, and lit it with a sacred flame. Just outside the village where she’d stopped in for a drink after planeshifting here to find a new home, three men tried too hard to take advantage of her only to fall into a trap of her own make. With extreme prejudice as they tried to feel her up as she tried to walk away, she severed limb and head from body without a care, leaving them in a heap of flesh. No tolerance, no mercy.

A very large castle-like manor loomed in the distance. At least a half an hour walk from here, but she felt like she was being watched. Not by an unfriendly being, but like she was being evaluated. Ignoring it, she wanted for the spell to finish.

Without a beat missed, she heard a voice behind her. “Well, you certainly know how to make an entrance now, don’t you?”

“They attacked me first, you saw it. I don’t claim to understand the mind of men like this or why they thought it was a good idea to try and take advantage of me as such, but here we are.”

Petra’s 5’6” frame slightly shuddered from the cold. She was wearing her usual outfit. Cloth wrap around the bust with her trench duster and black pants now covered in blood, not that she of all people minded blood. She picked up a nearby wine bottle dropped by one of her attackers. It still had a little bit left.

“Such a shameful waste of good wine.” Petra said, drinking the last, enough for one mouthful.

The figure behind her started to inspect the carnage. She looked like a tall drifter who passes through town without making a fuss.

“So you had questions, my dear?” Nytoria, Petra’s patron asked.

“It’s nice to talk to you. Considering you’re my only friend. But yes, I have a few questions.” Petra responded.

“Well, my dearest champion, considering you’re my only follower and you’re faithful to the last, I can’t help but protect you, but you really should find some friends.”

“Friends are a distraction and I’ve been betrayed too many times.” Petra deadpanned.

“You’re worth all the time in the world, which we have considering you traded your ability to see your sister for immortality as my champion. Fall in love, see the world, live a little, my dear.” Nytoria smiled mournfully.

“My sister was happy. She found a girl and she settled down after we brought that spineless priest that ordered my death all those years ago to justice. Emotional bonds slow me down. It’s why I never told her I was alive.” Petra said, studying the blood red brand on her arm.

“You did the right thing. She never would have rested had she known.” Nytoria said, her 6’7” frame giving Petra a sympathetic hug.

“She deserves to rest. But not me. I still have work to do and loving someone just isn’t in the cards.” Petra said, her thoughts of the past swimming through her brain, reliving the trauma and pain she had gone through in her 21 years.

~~~~~

Petra grew up in a village a couple days travel from Rexentrum. Years before the war with Xhorhas, Petra grew up reviled by the very people she was born to. Her people worshipped a god of protection and being the chosen of a god no one had heard of with a brand on her arm didn’t make things any better. Even her parents refused to accept that their child was heretical by nature. Thankfully her sister, Neraia managed to sneak her out of the city and raise her properly. When she turned 14, she and her sister were separated by assassins sent by the priest, St. Morvarian and she spent the better part of 2 years searching for her. During that time she became renowned as the Heretic, a cryptic mercenary with abilities only the gods could grant, hemocraft, mental domination, and blood red wings. She eventually used these skills to hone her sword skills, find her sister who, to this day, believed her sister to be dead, and burn the corrupt town to ash.

~~~~~

“One question for you before you start inquiring of me. Why keep your made up name? Did Anezi Diasea not suit you?” Nytoria asked.

Petra smiled. “It was a name given to me by family. As an aasimar with divine blood that runs through my veins, I felt no love for a name that was given to me by a corrupt system. Plus, Petra Naverrian suits me much better.”

“Fair. Well, as the goddess of free will, I accept your reasoning. Now, how can I help you, dear champion?” Nytoria drifted in front of her.

“What plane did we land on?” Petra asked without hesitation.

“Oh come on, love, you know the rules.”

“Oh shit, sorry. Yes or no questions only for this spell. Is a safe haven somewhere close to here?”

Nytoria pondered. “Safe isn’t the word I would use, but knowing you, you’d probably think so.”

“Fantastic. The village where these poor bastards come from, will they be missed?” Petra asked, grimly.

Nytoria smiled with a devious grin. “Oh absolutely not, you chaotic little thing. Though once old toothless over here tried to put his hand on your arse, I knew his fate was sealed.”

Petra laughed. “He deserved everything that came his way. Had it under control this time, not like the day we met.” As she thought back to that traumatic day.

~~~~~

Petra was tired and hungry. As she searched for her sister, her brand burned like ashes on her skin.

“NERAIA, WHERE ARE YOU!” Petra called, trying to focus while ignoring her brand. Why did she have this? It had never helped her. She was only 14. Those assassins from a few days ago were still tracking her, but this persistent burning was starting to hurt.

“Ah, there you are.” Three shadows walked out from behind the trees.

Petra spun around. “No, no please don’t.” She pleaded, her arm now exuding a crimson red aura.

“What? We just have a gift for you. Be a shame not to grant you something only we can give.” As they rushed her. Right before they grabbed her, Petra felt time slow to a stop. Except she was still moving.

She took a second to catch her breath, a knife inches away from her flesh brandished by the men and women who separated her from her sister, when she heard a voice.

“It’s about time we met. I heard your pleas. I wanted to wait until you were old enough, but it seems you’re ready now.” A woman said.

“Who are you? And what is going on?” Petra stuttered, clearly at her wits end.

“I am the goddess who saved your life. You poor thing, I’ve watched you since you were a baby. You’ve seen and experienced so much. So much rage, so many traumas. Assaults, violations…” The woman answered.

“Why are you just showing yourself now?” Petra said, tears streaming down her face.

The woman smiled, hand on Petra’s face. “The gods don’t interfere with human matters unless we need to, but I couldn’t keep watching you suffer rape and attacks like you have been. The pantheon forbade me from acting until now and considering I’m fairly new to this, I’ve been trying to reach out since you were born. I am Nytoria and I’m here to grant you the power to take back your control.”

Petra cried. “How? I don’t know any magic.”

Nytoria smiled. “My dearest champion, you need only ask. You need not lift a finger. Have them destroy themselves. I promised the world free will, but that does not mean all deserve it. And so, my girl, you will be my arm of judgment. Take their freedom that they have taken from you multiple times and rend them in twain.” She said, disappearing.

As time slowly started to move again, Petra turned and with a flourish of her hand, the woman of the group of three, knife extended, slashed the throat of her comrade, then stabbed her other friend several times in the spine. Finally, when she awoke from her domination and saw her actions, screamed, and ran in the opposite direction. Petra, drenched in blood and holding a divine saber, which she had no idea how long she’d been holding, stared in awe and her own prowess and knew this might be enough to take her life back.

~~~~~

As Petra refocused after remembering that day, she had her final question. “Is there a person watching me and if so, are they friendly?” Petra asked. Nytoria thought to herself. “Because I like you, I’ll let that slide, you rulebreaker. Yes, there is someone watching. A very interesting being to be sure, but friendly is an operative word. But who knows. Knowing you, you might get along famously.” Nytoria said before disappearing with a wink.

Taking a deep breath, Petra called out. “I promise I won’t hurt you. These rats deserved it, but I promise I won’t attack unless you give me reason.” Out of the shadows strode a hooded creature. She looked human, but not human. Smiling with a creepy grin, but somehow, Petra wasn’t unsettled.

“You smell new, child. Something not of this world.” The creature spoke with a witch-like tone. “You would be correct. I am fairly new to this place and am looking for refuge. Would you know of a place like that?” Petra asked the hooded woman.

The woman smiled a creepy smile. “We may be able to help each other. We have been watching you since your arrival not long ago and my lady, intrigued by your demeanor and energy, requests an audience. My name is Daniela and if you would be so kind, I would have you follow me.” Petra, skeptical but interested, spoke after some thought. “I guess. I don’t see why not. Lead the way.” “Fantastic. Follow.” Daniela urged.

~~~~~

Petra arrived with Daniela at the huge castle, slowly feeling more and more nervous. She couldn’t help it. Something was sapping her self-confidence, but not in a bad way.

Daniela knocked on the large front door and said “You know, my lady does not take interest in many people, so feel honored that you have this chance. She is an imposing woman and will not accept impudence, so please try to make a good first impression.”

Petra nodded, unable to form words as the door swung open. As they walked in, Petra was unable to hide her amazement as the castle had an extremely refined nature to it. Tapestries, paintings, and decorations lined the walls as she walked into the room leading to the main staircase. It felt strangely warm in this castle, so without thinking, Petra removed her coat and slung it over her shoulder, revealing her usual lack of shirt and gauze-wrapped chest binder. Petra was a fighter, but hated clothes because they restricted her movement and hindered her fighting, so she preferred just to tie down her assets.

As she entered the main room, she beheld a fireplace, burning with an intense light, and several candles to keep the chamber illuminated.

As they travelled up the stairs, they heard the thudding of footsteps, but not normal footsteps. It sounded like wolf footsteps.

“Shit…” Daniela muttered, diving out of the way as a massive wolf leaped at Petra. Petra, in an instant, sidestepped the pounce and drew her saber and pointed it at the creature. The wolf snarled as it turned toward her, haunches bristled as it slowly crawled closer to Petra.

“Tyrian, no, down, this is a guest.” Daniela scolded in a way what seemed to be out of character for her. As Petra turned towards Daniela in confusion, the wolf changed forms to reveal a naked girl with markings and a long braid that looked a foot taller than Petra. Petra blushed bright red, not because she was naked, but because “Oh my god, she’s gorgeous.” Petra accidentally said out loud.

“Fucking make me, I do what I want.” The wolfgirl said, staring at Petra for whatever reason. Petra, having the biggest gay panic of her life, could not look her in the eyes in fear of giving too much away. She sheathed her sword and said, voice cracking like crazy, “Yeah uh I’m just here to see the Lady of the Castle is that you by chance wow I’m still talking how are you?” “No, of course, it’s not me.” The wolfgirl said, eyes still trained in pure confusion on Petra. Petra was having a really hard time keeping eye contact with Tyrian because the view was stunning and her mind was running wild. Tyrian continued. “Dimetrescu is just down the hall. And Daniela, go fuck yourself.” “Yeah, fuck you too, Tyrian.” Daniela sneered. “Follow me, Petra, ignore her. Petra followed, but, God, was it hard to leave a girl like that.

Daniela finally led Petra into a sitting room where a woman was sitting. She was as tall as Petra was. Sitting. As the woman turned towards her, she had pale white skin, just like her and had this air of sophistication around her that intimidated her. Petra was never good at small talk and especially in high class situations. As she turned, Petra had a heart attack. The second one tonight. She was attractive as all hell, but not in the same way. Tyrian was attractive in a feral, wild child, would probably strip Petra naked at a moments notice kind of way. This woman had an intense, powerful, enticing vibe that drew you in and made you want to follow her every word. And Petra hated being told what to do.m which made this all the more confusing.

“Petra. What a lovely name for such an adorable girl. I am Alcina Dimitrescu and I own this estate. Daniela, leave us for a moment while we talk. And bring back Tyrian, I want to talk to her.” Daniela nodded, leaving the room. Alcina continued. “So, my child, you have a touch of immortality about you. Care to explain?” Petra could not speak. The gay panic attack she was experiencing was too strong. “I know the feeling. As a vampire, death does not come easily and especially someone of your figure…” Alcina said, giving Petra a noticeable once over, “would garner some interesting attention.” Petra swallowed hard and finally spoke. “If you’re interested in the men I killed, I’m sorry they were being…” “Oh no worries at all, my dear. Have a seat, drink some wine.” Petra sat, trying hard not to fan herself from how hard she was blushing. God, this woman was a gift to the senses. “Those men definitely deserve it and you disposed of them so elegantly, I can’t help but be impressed.” The lady said, eyes trained on Petra.

Petra felt so self conscious. This is the second time in a row she’d been blatantly eye scanned by an attractive woman and the attention was getting to her.

Lady Dimetrescu, clearly sensing Petra’s emotional state, smiled lovingly. “I’ll cut straight to the chase, darling. I want you to feel at home here. I have dozens of extra rooms and I would be honored if you filled one of them. You’re just so adorably vicious and it would be a pleasure to get to know you.”

Petra, still blushing, finally spoke. “It would be my pleasure. I’m just so new here. I am a cleric, miss, and do have loyalty to my goddess, Nytoria, but it would be a pleasure to stay here and continue to craft my magic here.” Petra, stumbling over her words as she got shy and reserved.

Lady Dimetrescu smiled. As she did, Tyrian bounded in. “Ah yes, Tyrian, I need your help with something. Petra darling, stand up for me and take the binding off for me.”

Petra blushed profusely. “Yes, mistress.” She said and did as she was told. Lady Dimetrescu smiled with such a warm loving glow and Tyrian had this wild grin on her face. Petra should have felt self conscious but she felt loved and attractive. Something she hadn’t felt in a long time.

“What do you think Tyrian? Should we marry her?” “Wait what?!” Petra said, not hiding her excitement at all. “You called me in to ask me about something you already knew the answer to?” Tyrian said. Petra gushed with embarrassment. All of this was happening WAY too fast and she did not care. “Then it’s settled. Welcome to the family, Petra. We’re your new wives.”

Petra smiled and immediately sat down in Alcina’s lap as she gave a loving kiss on the forehead and Petra felt a presence. Nearby, in a place somewhere only Petra could feel, Nytoria was smiling in such a proud manner and could not be happier with her little champion.

[visenyatargaryn]

Once, she had been a wife, a mother… someone who had finally found their happily ever after. However, that all came crashing down once the bombs fell and her once beautiful life turned into ashes before her eyes. After being the only survivor from Vault 111, Evangeline made her way into what was now known as the Commonwealth with one mission in mind:

To find her son and get revenge on the bastard who murdered her husband.

With the ongoing search, Evangeline eventually found herself in one particular neighborhood where she would meet a peculiarly dressed ghoul who—unbeknownst to her, would become the one to drag her out of her ever-growing darkness and back into the light. However, will it be enough to find her son? To save him from the clutches of the Institute? Or will she forever lose the last thing that brought happiness to her?

CHAPTER THREE || Drown Your Sorrows || M || 2555 words || ao3

With the help of an old acquaintance, Evangeline and the synth detective—Nick Valentine, both uncover a clue that helped them gain a step closer in answering a long-awaited question. The location of the Institute. However, to achieve such an accomplishment, Evangeline would have to trek across an extremely dangerous area. A place where many don't survive, and if they do... they turn into ghouls—if they're lucky.

Later, Evangeline finds herself wanting to forget painful memories that had been resurfaced after delving into the memories of the infamous mercenary—Kellogg. To do just that, she ends up in the only place in Goodneighbor that has what Evangeline needs—The Third Rail.

Even with all the stimpaks, it had taken Evangeline a month to recover from her injuries. Her condition had been a lot worse than she realized, and band-aids don’t necessarily fix bullet holes—or broken bones for that matter. She had refused to take any chems to relieve the pain, afraid that it would make her addicted, but instead took it from the bottle—which, in a way, wasn’t much better.

While she was bedridden for the first week, Hancock had kept her company for the most part. He asked her an endless amount of questions about who she was and where she came from—innocent questions that she could easily answer. At some point, Evangeline felt that she could begin to trust the strange ghoul who had taken her in, so she told Hancock her secret—that she had been alive before the war. At first, he was hesitant to believe her, skeptical if she was bluffing or not, but soon realized that Evangeline was telling the truth. This led to even more questions that would need answered—things that she would have instead kept buried deep within. Still, she told him enough to pique his interest and nothing more.

Eventually, Hancock had finally sent word to her about Nick Valentine’s arrival and that she would find him waiting for her at the Memory Den. Since her leg had not fully recovered yet, she had to use a crutch to get places beyond a couple of steps. Evangeline found it quite troublesome, especially when it came to trekking down the Old State House's spiral staircase—which almost ended in disaster on multiple occasions. After meeting up with the synth detective, they talked to Doctor Amari about their situation and how they needed Kellogg's memories—to locate the Institute's location. At first, she refused while not wanting to take any part in desecrating the dead, but eventually changed her mind once Evangeline showed her the augmenter that she had found attached to Kellogg’s head—or brain to be more precise.

After Doctor Amari examined it, she then wired it into Nick’s interface with the implant in hand to find that it had been encrypted—a failsafe to protect the Institute’s secrets. After their original plan had dissolved, Amari had another idea. She told them that to decrypt the memories, it would require two minds instead of one. Without a second thought, Evangeline agreed—not once considering the potential dangers that may put her at risk. If it meant finding her son, though, then it was worth it—no matter the cost. Evangeline, along with Nick, hopped into the Memory Lounges to finally find the answer to a long-awaited question.

While she explored Kellogg’s memories, Evangeline realized that the merc was not so different from herself. They both had fathers that hardly loved them and later lost those that meant the world to them. She couldn’t help but wonder if she would have followed the same path had Shaun met the same fate as her husband. Would she, too, be a cold-blooded killer? Or would she have taken a different route entirely? In the end, it was too late to dwell on such thoughts as Kellogg was now dead, and she was the one still drawing breath.

Once they had found what they were looking for—that the Institute was using teleportation as a means to enter their facility, she headed upstairs to discuss everything with Nick. She needed to head into the Glowing Sea to find this rogue scientist—Virgil, who used to work for the Institute. It was a treacherous territory, as it was a place that produced enough radiation to either kill someone—or turn them into a ghoul. Nick offered to tag along, but Evangeline refused, knowing that his place was in Diamond City, where the people needed him more.

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

After a couple of weeks had passed since her walk through memory lane, Evangeline decided to finally explore Goodneighbor. Her curiosity about the little neighborhood getting the best of her. It seemed like nothing of importance from outside the walls, but once inside, one would never guess the two were the same. The interior of the place reminded Evangeline of a time where she still bore a hint of innocence—when she worked at the dance club in Philadelphia not long after graduation. Its neon lights, rundown atmosphere, and intoxicating smell brought back many memories. The smell itself was a mixture of sex, chems, and alcohol—an unpleasant combination, she thought.

One evening, Evangeline found herself at the Third Rail after being in a foul mood all day. It was a fine establishment, considering it was built into an old subway station. The music was beautiful, as was the woman singing it—who wore a red sequin dress and had short dark hair that came just above her shoulders. Making her way through the crowd, Evangeline could hear the patrons' whispers as she passed by them.

“That’s the woman the Mayor killed Finn for..” she heard one man say to someone.

“What makes her so special that he had to put down one of our best fighters?” another asked.

Most of the comments were about how Hancock had saved her life, while others were viler. Those ones, in particular, made her skin crawl. Finally making her way to the bar, Evangeline found an empty seat where she settled herself into.

“So what’ll it be?” a gruff voice asked.

Evangeline had not expected the bartender to be a Mr. Handy since she came by so few during her travels. It appeared to be the same make and model as Codsworth was, except that this one had a British accent and wasn’t as friendly.

“Whiskey,” she answered.

She watched as the robot poured a glass of the substance in front of her. It was one of her go-to drinks, especially when she was having a bad day. Picking up the glass, Evangeline swirled the amber liquid around before taking a sip. The beverage burned as it made its way down her throat, which then engulfed her body in a blanket of warmth.

Looking around, she noticed that most of the patrons there were ghouls—men and women alike. At first, it surprised her to see this many in one general area, but then later realized that Goodneighbor must be a sort of sanctuary for them. It was no surprise to her, given how most of the Commonwealth held a disliking towards them. In the crowd, Evangeline spotted an all-too-familiar face across the room. Hancock was sitting on a couch that had seen better years with two attractive women sitting relatively close—one of which was sitting on his lap. Enough hands were wandering to give one the idea of their intentions by the end of the night. The three of them seemed to be having a good time. She also noticed that their table was littered with empty containers of jet, mentats, and alcohol bottles.

A sinking feeling settled into the pit of her stomach as she watched them. They were all smiles and laughter, as was everyone else in the room, and here she was—sitting alone and miserable as ever. Evangeline had not felt more out of place than she did at this moment.

“You look like you could use some company,” a voice came from beside her.

Taking the empty barstool next to her was a man with handsome features. He had pale blue eyes and hair, the color of sand. Evangeline didn’t know who he was or what he wanted—which made her be even more on edge than usual.

“Go away,” Evangeline said plainly. She was in no mood for conversation and preferred to be left alone, even if he was easy on the eyes.

“C’mon now, darlin’. That’s no way to treat a friendly face,” he said, not taking heed to her words.

Admittedly, Evangeline knew that she was quick to judge. However, she had dealt with enough monsters in her lifespan to know the worst ones were always those who didn’t look the part. Sure enough, Evangeline felt him place his hand on her knee, which caused a sick feeling within her from the interaction.

She closed her eyes, wishing to be elsewhere.

Evangeline recalled being in a similar situation many years ago, about a year after being employed at the strip district's dance club. Evangeline had been sitting alone at the bar during one of her breaks, drowning herself in a bottle of whiskey, when a middle-aged man approached her. He wanted only one thing from her—as all men did, and it had terrified her. Evangeline told him no countless times, hoping it would make him go away. However, it only seemed to make him more persistent. Thankfully, before it could go any further, one of the girls of the establishment had put a stop to his unwanted advances.

“Take your fucking hand off of me,” Evangeline said slowly, with a bite of irritation in her tone.

The man beside her laughed. “Or what? Look around you, sweetheart. Ain’t nobody gonna save you. You’re just another stray Hancock has taken in, and nothing more.”

The words hit harder than Evangeline cared to admit. A stray—that was something she had always been—someone with no place to call home. Someone who had always been a poor, helpless, unfortunate soul that others looked upon with pity. Maybe he was right, she thought miserably. Maybe I am nothing more than just another stray looking for a handout. Evangeline shook her head as if to rid herself of such thoughts. Perhaps she was a stray, but she wasn’t nothing, no—she had never been nothing. Evangeline had made a name for herself before the war. She had been considered one of the greatest detectives that Boston had ever seen.

But what use was that now?

She took another drink from her glass, only to find out that it was empty. Evangeline swore under her breath. If she was to deal with this asshole, then she was going to need more whiskey. Signaling the barkeep for another drink, Evangeline looked to where she had last seen Hancock. Unfortunately, the spot he had been sitting was now empty with neither him nor his companions in sight. Evangeline didn’t necessarily need his help, but because she knew next to nobody here—it would have eased her mind a little if he were still present.

Evangeline took a swig of whiskey—emptying the glass entirely, and sat it down on the counter hard. “Listen, I don’t know who you are, nor do I fucking care. I just want to be left the fuck alone, okay?”

What patience she had was currently wearing thin as a throbbing pain began to form at her temple. Evangeline decided she should turn in for the night and sleep off the headache—and to rid herself of the unwanted company. Pushing the glass away, she stood and placed a handful of caps on the counter.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” he asked, grabbing ahold of her wrist. “We ain’t done yet.”

She whipped around and struck him, causing him to stumble off the barstool and hit the ground hard with a clash. Evangeline didn’t bother to see if he was okay—not that she cared either way, as she wanted to make herself scarce. The entire room had fallen silent, and everyone’s attention now fell upon the commotion that had just occurred. Making her way through the crowd, Evangeline could feel her heart pounding in her chest—fearing that it may actually burst from its cavity. However, she dared not show an ounce of fear because Evangeline knew a place such as Goodneighbor—would be a death sentence. She was currently a lamb that found its way inside a lion’s den and was awaiting the inevitable slaughter.

Once outside, a chill went through her as she stepped out into the crisp night air. Tugging her jacket tighter, Evangeline started off toward The Hotel Rexford to rent out a room for the night. Evangeline had a feeling that Hancock was currently entertaining his companions from earlier, and she would rather not walk in on that. Besides, it wasn’t like Evangeline had to sleep there, and she knew her absence would not go noticed anyway—as it always has.

Upon entering the old hotel, a musty odor of over-aged furniture and stale tobacco filled the air. Surveying the place, Evangeline saw pieces of faded-yellow wallpaper peeling away from years of neglect. At the front desk was a short elderly woman with dark skin who was in deep conversation with a tall, dark-haired man who wore a high-quality suit. Evangeline knew she shouldn’t interrupt the two, but she was tired and needed somewhere to cope with tonight’s events. Her footsteps echoed over the wooden floor as she made her way to the desk, which caused them both to look up.

“Umm, excuse me?” Evangeline said meekly, giving them both her best smile. “I was hoping I could get a room here…”

The dark-haired man whispered something into the woman’s ear before taking his leave, who then gave Evangeline her full attention.

“Alright, that’ll be ten caps,” she said plainly.

“Thank you,” Evangeline said as she exchanged what was left of her caps for the keys to the room.

“It’s on the second floor, the last door on the right,” the receptionist called after her as she headed towards the stairs.

Once inside her room, she closed the door behind her and leaned against it. Evangeline realized she was shaking. Whether it was from the cold or what had happened tonight, she wasn’t sure—perhaps both? It also occurred to her that she had now made an enemy here and wasn’t sure what that meant—would Hancock throw her out because she harmed one of his own? What Evangeline did know, however, was that she now had to be extra careful because she knew damned well that he would want revenge for what she had done.

In truth, she hated it here, not just in Goodneighbor but in the Commonwealth's entirety. Evangeline wanted her old life back. She was so tired of always hurting. She wanted to laugh again, to be happy once more—to not be wary of everyone she met. To be able to walk the streets of Boston without having to constantly look over her shoulder out of fear.

Letting out a shaky breath, Evangeline sluggishly made her way over to the dresser where a bottle of vodka was sitting. Taking off her jacket, she grabbed the bottle and took a long drink from it. By the time Evangeline was finished, she felt a bit woozy—enough that she had to use the dresser for support. Placing the bottle back on the dresser, she stumbled over to the bed and sat on the mattress. It creaked under her weight as she laid down—curling herself in a ball. However, there were no blankets, but Evangeline was grateful that at least the room was quite warm. While she laid there, Evangeline tried not to think about the man from the bar or her current situation as she closed her eyes, falling into a dreamless sleep.