#i am well past the point where chip's shirt gets destroyed but i am a firm believer in putting a shirt on that beast

[stygiomedusa]

one day i will stop changing my designs for these bozos every time i draw them... today is not that day <3

[id in alt, lines only version under cut]

[moemammon]

An MC that steals clothes to the point where they have more of the boys clothes than the boys do

Big Boyf hoodies

The Demon Bros react to MC Stealing their Clothes!

Lucifer

You have ten seconds before you're subjected to a vibe check

Jk, Lucifer MIGHT be okay with you wearing his clothes, depending on his mood. If he's got things to do, you'd best leave his stuff alone

Otherwise, the sight of you walking around wearing that huge fur coat of his is enough to put him in a much better mood for the rest of the day. Maybe he won't beat Mammon's ass today after all? 🤔

As long as you keep his fancy coat clean, he's happy. He might even start "accidentally" leaving things out for you to get to, and his ego inflates tenfold when he sees you've found them.

He'll tease you a little bit about it, asking "Did you miss me so much that you had to wear my clothing?"

Mammon

Bruh???? Where the hell did his jacket go-

He tossed it in the dryer and now it's gone! Time to destroy his room in the search-

And that's when he sees you walking around wearing it, like it's no big deal. You haven't even spotted him yet but boy is he staring

He doesn't even have a CHANCE to think about being mad at you, because you chose to wear his clothes specifically. His ego? Through the roof. Definitely considers buying you things to match what he wears.

Now everyone knows you're HIS human! He'd never let anyone else wear his stuff, after all! "You're the one that's been takin' my jacket?? Well.... I guess it's only natural that ya wanna wear the Great Mammon's clothes! S-so don't go takin' it off, ya hear?!"

Levi

The normie??? Is wearing HIS clothes??? Specifically the Ruri-chan shirt he sleeps in?????

The fact that you went out of your way to get them... He doesn't know if he's horrified or honored, but he's definitely somewhere in the middle considering the look on his face. And honestly he's so damn shocked that he thinks his heart might explode.

This is LITERALLY an epic gamer anime moment. When the male protagonist finds his lover/love interest wearing one of his oversized shirts.... m-moe...

He can't even look at you directly, so he has to do it through his camera lens. Did you really think he wouldn't fill up his entire phone's memory bank with photos of you? Think again. Maybe if he leaves some cosplay out, you might wear that too..?

"Wh-Huh? O-o-of course I knew you took my shirt! There's no way I wouldn't notice. B-But you don't have to take it off! I mean... you can keep it if you want... I have three more."

Satan

Satan doesn't know how to wear a coat properly anyway so it's no wonder you took it, to show him how it's done one sleeve wearing ass

It didn't take detective Satan very long to find out where it'd gone, because he soon spots you wearing it.

You're sitting in an armchair with his coat draped around you, clearly content and comfortable with your newly acquired clothing.

And he pauses, just outside of your line of sight so he can compose himself. He’d be lying if he said his heart didn't skip a beat when he saw it draped over you. It made him want to gather you up on his lap and keep you there forever.

Instead, once he's calmed down, he rounds the corner to question you about it. "If you were cold, why didn't you tell me? Here, let me sit next to you. Ah, you can keep the coat on. It suits you."

Asmo

This is literally all he's ever wanted tbh. He's not even surprised that you want to try on his clothes, because?? They're HIS.

But he's gushing about it forever. He's so quick to snap a million photos of you and posts them to devilgram, sets it as his home and lock screen, maybe prints a couple of photos to keep-

You never hear the end of it. Whether you were trying to be covert or not, he's got you and he's never letting go.

He'll literally give you the clothes he thinks will suit you best, and gushes over the say they compliment you.

"It's like having my own doll to dress up! You don't know how happy I am to put my clothes on you~! Shall we buy matching outfits? Or maybe... you prefer that they belong to me~?"

Beel

Beel can be a little forgetful, so sometimes he misplaced his jacket. He always finds it in the end, either through his brothers or his own means, so he's completely stumped when he's looked everywhere and STILL can't find it. And he's starting to get hungry again, so now he's more interested in going to the kitchen.

Then he finds you exiting your room, rubbing the sleep of your afternoon nap from your eyes. You don't seem to notice him and just quietly wander past, wearing Beel's jacket.

He doesn't even stop you, just watching you go before he's suddenly forgetting all about his hunger pains, and more interested in quietly following you like a dog.

You both end up in the kitchen, and he's still watching over you happily while you eat some chips. Don't mind him while he uhhhhh picks you up and takes him to his room so he can hold you lmao

"MC.... did you have my jacket this entire time? I was looking for it. Oh, I'm not angry or anything, I like seeing you wear it. You should do that more often."

Belphie

He realizes that you took something so fast-

Belphie may be able to sleep anywhere, but he has to be comfortable enough for it. That comfort usually comes in the form of his jacket, so when he discovers it's missing and has looked everywhere, he gets a little agitated.

Grumpy boy goes to find you to force you to take a nap with him until he feels better, and discovers that you're guilty. But his annoyance is replaced by pride when he sees how comfortable you look, napping away in his jacket.

He's not letting you keep it of course, but he's sure there's something else he can let you wear instead. Part of him is convinced you're only wearing it because it's comfortable, while the other part wonders if you're wearing it because it's his...

So he pokes your face until you wake up, and demands an answer. "You took my jacket without asking, huh? I couldn't sleep a wink because of you.....If you wanted to feel like I was with you, you should've just went to my room. Scoot over, I'm joining you."

[chocolatepancakes]

Mixer Romantic ending.

(Y/N) laid on her couch staring up at the ceiling. It was the middle of July and she was hot, bored, and sweaty. She sat up and reached for the remote, just to be caught off guard by a text notification. Selever. She opened the app. [Selever] Hey Roachy! [Selever] my friends and I are going to the mixer [Selever] come with to even out the numbers (Y/N) looked at her screen. A mixer huh? Cool beans. It’s not like she had anything to do over the summer. She typed quickly as she replied. [Y/N] cool lemme in [Selever] lmao you’re actually gonna come? [Selever] okay, well, meet at 401 Dragon Rock Ave. [Y/N] there’s a bar there?? [Selever] lol who said we’re going to a bar [Selever] we gon be going to kareoke b#### [Y/N] OK [Y/N] what time [Selever] idk, around 8. [Y/N] K see ya [Selever] ciao (Y/N) looked at the clock. 6pm. She had about two hours to get ready. She set a 50 minute timer and turned on the TV. She had time to burn. So the time came. (Y/N) ran out her house with her purse in hand. She slid into her car and started it up. Streetlights passed as she turned left and right. A call rang. She picked it up. “Hello, who is it?” She asked. “Hello, I called to talk about your car’s extended warranty,” Selever replied. Snickering could be heard. (Y/N) laughed. Why did he always start a call like that? “Hi Sel,” she said. “Where you at right now?” “I’m only like, a hundred meters from the place.” “Ha, sure you are.” “Oh hey! I see you! Okay, imma hang up!” She closed off the call and pulled her car into a parking slot. Selever stood waiting for her. He was wearing something pretty different from his normal attire. He had a magenta dress shirt on, and a black suit vest over it. A complimentary black tie and dark dress pants completed his look. “Woah I didn’t think you’d actually come,” Selever smirked. “Getting desperate?” He asked. “Ha, no. Just doing my job as the number-even-outter.” (Y/N) replied, getting out of her car. “Really? Cause you seem pretty dressed up for someone who’s just evening out the numbers.” He was right. (Y/N) had dressed up a bit for this occasion. She wore a blue one piece with a flower on the head of its belt. She wore a white cardigan, and two strands of her (H/C) hair, tied in braids, met at the back of her head. She wore knee high socks, and Mary Janes completed the outfit. “Yes really, now let’s go in! I wanna destroy everyone’s eardrums!” (Y/N) grabbed his hand and entered the building. This one seemed to be slightly different from other bars. Like a Japanese kareoke place? There was a reception area, and you’d go into a room to sing. They ran past the reception and straight to the room at the end of the hall. Selever opened up the door. “THE LAST LADY’S HERE!” He yelled. In the room were two other guys, and two other girls. Starting with the girls, there was one with blue hair, which was tied back in her pony tail. She had pink eyes and wore a grey turtleneck with a long skirt. The other girl had black hair, which covered her left eye. Red eyes. She wore a beanie, as well as a black shirt. She wore jeans, giving off a relaxed vibe. As for the two guys, a grey cat was among them. His hair? Fur? Was tied back in a ponytail. He wore a yellow hoodie over a suit, she assumed. He wore black pants and wore brown sneakers. Last one was a skull of… a goat? Moose? A demon? He wore a white dress shirt, and brown dress pants. His body and limbs seemed to be invisible, as his head and hand floated in the air. (Y/N) cautiously entered the room. “Hello…. I’m (Y/N).” The girl with blue hair waved. “Hi!! I’m Sky!” She held some cards in her hand. “Wanna play Uno with us?” “Sure,” (Y/N) said, sitting down. Selever also sat at the boys’ side. A round passed. Then two. Then an an hour, as they ate and sang. “Kay! Uhhh (Y/N!) It’s your turn!” The cat man said, taking the input pad and handing it over to her. “Sorry Kapi, I’m not too good at singing,” she denied. “You sure? You haven’t sang all hour.” “Mmm maybe one song.” She took the pad and scrolled through the songs. Bingo. She entered the code as a upbeat tune started playing. She held up the mic, slightly embarrassed she was singing this. Selever gave her a thumbs up and smiled. She took a breath and sang. The others watched her as she hit every note. When the song finished, she put down the mic and quickly returned to her seat. They clapped for a moment or two. “Woah. You’re pretty good (Y/N)!” Sky said. “I’m really not,” (Y/N) said. “Oh for f###’s sake, just accept it,” Selever rebutted. “You’re good and you know it.” Kapi stretched. “Okay, I think we’re all warmed up.” Warmed up?! That was warming up?! For what?! (Y/N) confusedly looked around the room. “Tabi, where’d you put the spinner?” Kapi asked. “It should be with the chips.” Seriously what were they bouta do?! Kapi took out a spinner. On each slice was each of their names. Tabi, Annie, Kapi, Sky, Selever, (Y/N), all of them. Kapi flicked the arrow. Landed on his name. “I GO FIRST!” He said, grabbing his phone. He fiddling with it, he got something to play on the screen. His own song. He took a deep breath and started to sing. Annie cheered him on. (Y/N) looked in shock. He was singing his own song. This probably means the others have their own too. Goddammit, no! She prayed for the wheel to never land on her, she didn’t have one yet! Kapi’s song finished, and the screen read, “Beathoven.mp4 - unknown”.  “Oh yeah! That felt great! Okay, who’s next?” He spun the wheel again. “Uh… Annie! Ya gonna go?” Annie took out her phone. “Hell yeah I am.” She took a swig of her drink and got up. After fiddling with her phone, a new song started playing. She bopped her head a few times, until she also started to sing. (Y/N) leaned over to Selever. “You know I don’t have a song! What do I do?!” She whispered. Selever leaned back. “It’s fine. I can cover you if it lands anyway. Just get one of your weeb songs to play if I can’t.” As Annie’s song finished, she spun the wheel. Sky Same routine. She got up, fiddled around, and sang. (Y/N) paid no attention to it. She was only thinking about what would happen when her turn came. What does he mean he can cover her?! What does he mean play a weeb song?! Did he mean vocaloid? Before she knew it, Sky’s turn was over. Kapi spun the spinner. Oh god damn it. “(Y/N)! It’s your turn!” He slid the pad to her. She looked at it in fear. “Um- a-” she was cut off. Selever picked up the pad. “M'kay. I’m bored. My turn motherfruskas!” Nobody stopped him. Just sighed and shook their heads. He tapped his phone. A steady beat came out of the speakers. Selever smirked at (Y/N) as he began to sing. It was upbeat. Pretty steady, until 30 seconds in. A sudden tempo change. His song was upbeat. And somewhat fast. As the song finished he put the mic back down on the table. “You had a song?? Wh- why is it so chaotic?! HOW’D YOU EVEN HIT THAT?!” Sky questioned as she, and the others clapped. Selever leaned back with his hands behind his head. “It’s was made to fit me, and me specifically. Of course it’s chaotic.” Kapi put away the wheel. “Okay, since there’s only Tabi and (Y/N) left now, I’m gonna flip a coin. Tabs, heads or tails?” He flipped it into the air. “Tails.” Tabi replied. Kapi caught, and shielded the coin from view. (Y/N) prayed it was tails. He revealed the coin to be… “Tails! ‘Kay Tabi, you’re up!” He handed the pad to the floating skull, as a new song started to play. (Y/N) let out a sigh of relief. At least now she could think of which song to sing herself. I mean, Aishite was pretty good, but dark. PoPiPo sounded too idiotic. She could sing partners in crime…. if she had a partner. “So, be honest (Y/N),” Annie said, still keeping her eyes on Tabi. “You don’t have a song, do you?” (Y/N) jumped. “I uh…” “It’s fine. I didn’t really expect someone like you to have one anyway.” Someone like me? The hell does that mean?! (Y/N)’s pettiness rose up. She still didn’t have a song, but she sure as hell knew which one she wanted to sing. Just as Tabi’s song finished, she snatched the pad and connected her phone. She looked up at the screen. Beeps played as she stood up, grabbed the mic, and waited for the first notes to come. She took a deep breath, turned to look at everyone and sang. “EVERSINCEIWASBORNFROMTHATDAYIHADKNOWNTHATIAMNOTHINGMORETHANASIMULATIONBUTI'LLKEEPLIVINGUNTILLDESTROYED, LIVINGFOREVERYESIAMAVOCALOID. IFFOREXAMPLESINGINGWASJUSTATOYTHATWOULDSINGBACKTHETUNESYOUGAVETOTHEMIDTHINKTHATWASALRIGHT, WHILEILOOKATTHESKY, BITETHISLEEK, WATCHTHESOUPPOURINGFROMMYEYES. BUTEVENSOI'LLDISAPPEARTHATIKNOWAPERSONALITYCHANGINGWITHEACHSONG, EVERYTHINGIWASBUILTONWASN'TSOSTRONG, ALLOFTHEPLACESIKNEWAREALREADYGONE, EVERYONETHATIKNEW, THEYDON'TREMEMBERME. HEARTORSOULIHAVENOTHINGLEFTINSIDEOFMEICANSEETHECENTEROFTHEVOID, YES I AM A VOCALOID!” She huffed as the intro stopped. The others looked at her wide eyed. She smiled. She may have regained a bit of confidence. As the vocals continued, she did too. Hitting every note perfectly as the song went on. At the end, she set down her mic. Selever clapped for her, and the others joined him. Tabi looked at the clock. Holy crap. 2 am. “Okay, I have to go, I have work,” he said, getting up. “Actually, we should probably all go now. The time’s almost up anyway,” Sky pointed out. (Y/N) picked up her purse. They were right. She didn’t have anything to do over the summer, but it was getting late. They all walked out to the parking lot, and said their goodbyes. Only Selever and (Y/N) was left now. “So, got anyone you put your eyes on?” Selever asked. (Y/N) sighed. “They were nice, but not really my type, ya know? Would go drink with tho 100%.” She smiled. “Besides, I don’t think any of the guys really liked me.”

“Do I not count as a guy for you then?” Selever snarked. (Y/N) looked at him with wide eyes. “You like me?” She asked. Selever flushed, being caught off guard. “What?! No! I didn’t- No! I just eurrgggggg” he buried his face in his hands and groaned. (Y/N) giggled. “Shut uuuup….” “No, it’s not that,” she replied, trying to force the giggles to stop. “It’s just funny how you like me too.” They stood in silence looking into each other. (Y/N) smiled as she left Sel for her car. “M'kay! Bye! Sel! See ya next time!” She said, as she drove off. Selever stood in front of the building. Hoooooly crap. She likes me. She… likes me? Why? What is there to like? He laughed at himself as he walked in the direction of the church. At least she liked him. That’s was all that mattered.

[renafx]

Prologue: Calm Before the Storm

It was a rainy saturday morning the day I was directed to investigate. I had launched out of bed in a hurry, my clock blinking slugglishly as if in no rush. It didn’t do the job it had been made for, and resulted in my late awakening. Somehow (I like to believe by no fault of mine), I was an hour late to clocking in and my phone was lit up with multiple missed calls from my job. This was a normal day for me, for a long time. That is, until the smell of rust leaked into my nostrils for a quick moment; then the rest of my life.

——————————

I shrugged on my dark blue blazer, grasping a brush and pulling it through my tangled locks. My long black slacks felt loose around my legs, black dress shoes clicking against the crappy wooden floor of my apartment that ran throughout it’s entirety. I rushed to the front door, grabbing my satchel and old car keys on the way out. The door slammed shut, the foundation rattling for 100th time that week. This was probably not considered normal or safe circumstances for living, but it was tolerable and all I could afford while being a detective. I was...let’s just say, living “comfortably”. I made my way to my car, shuffling down the steep metal steps towards the parking lot. I was fully prepared to head to the building per usual, but the ringing of my phone caught my attention. I pulled it out, clicking the small green button and pressing the device to my ear. “Yeah boss?”

“JACKSON!” I flinched from the loud shout, opening my silver door and sliding into the ripped seat. “Where were you!? Janice and Ax were trying to reach you hours ago! We thought something happened!” I rolled my eyes, leaning my head against the seat. “This happens almost every day Mara..I promise I’ll be okay like this. As long as you don’t fire me, that is.” I knew that despite my frequent tardiness, Mara would never fire me. She was a close family friend, and a mother figure for those at the department. She was stern but it was common knowledge within the district that she was far too nice for her own good. “Eve, hun. You know I won’t fire you, and I appreciate you calling me back. This has got to stop eventually...” Mara sounded concerned, tone softening in warning. I sigh at her tone, beginning to feel guilty. “I know, I know. I’ll try to set my alarm tonight so I wake up on time...”

“Try?”

“I will.”

“Okay, good. Well, for starters, I need you to make your way to the address I am going to send you. This is the place you will investigate for the recent disappearances of around 6 possible children. Ax will meet you there and provide more details on the case. There is not many.” Mara sent the address, my phone dinging with the sort of urgency that always ticked me off. What’s it so frantic for?

“Is that all? Will I be required to head back to the department after investigating for the day?” I hoped not, knowing I would need a hot cup of caffeine after work for pure enjoyment among dread. “No, you won’t need to. I’d like for you to visit if you can remember to, but no worries.” Mara sounded hopeful at the thought of seeing me. I smiled gently, muttering into the phone. “I will try for sure Mara, thanks for being the best. I gotta get going though.”

“Alright, good luck and be safe.” Her tone dropped again in worry, her desire for a good status quo overpowering her better judgement.

“You too...Bye.” I looked down as the line went dead, dropping my phone on the passenger seat. “God this is gonna suck...” I groaned, shoving my keys into the ignition and pulling out the barren parking lot.

The rain struck my car and pelted my window, making me switch on the windshield wipers to avoid an accident. Everything was dangerous nowadays, causing the speculation of society’s technological advances safety. I shrugged, being a bit appreciative of cars and the limited time it took to arrive at the pizzeria. My wheels screeched loudly as I pulled roughly into the parking lot that came into view. It was well lit up, with chipping lines that indicated parking spots. The restaurant itself was also something of curiousity, the kids attraction rubbing me the wrong way.

My eyes flickered over the semi-full lot, spotting Axel’s red ferrari crookedly parked. I always questioned why he was able to drive a personal vehicle of such glam for a job like a detective, and with such messiness too. Some people were granted privileges if they worked at the department long enough, like Axel and I. It sure was convenient, but maybe not for the driver that wanted to get into the next open space. I pulled into the parking spot next to him, shutting off the engine and pushing the silver door open. It was time to get to work and I couldn’t waste any more time; if I did, Axel would have my head on a stick. I clambered out of the car, snatching my note pad and phone and stuffing them in my wide pockets.

I shut the door with my hip, striding up to the attraction in slight hesitance. This place was creepy as hell. It made sense for the kids to go missing here...or maybe that was why it was creepy to begin with. Probably. My eyes were casted downards, my mind not acknowledging the greeting of the bane of every driver’s existence. “Hey hot wheels, why didn’t you answer my calls earlier?” I jumped slightly, body frozen and eyes alert. “Axel- hey! Sorry about that...I overslept.” I rubbed the back of my neck and laughed nervously. “Again?” I looked down in embarassment and sighed. “...Again.” He chuckled, thumbing my car. “You drivin around like you have insurance on that thing?” Axel mocked me cheekily, grin on his stuble covered face.

“Yeah, okay smooth man. At least I can park properly.” I crossed my arms and began to walk forward again, Axel keeping pace with me. “Ouch E, I’m wounded.” He put a hand to his chest and laughed loudly like some funny joke was said. “Some day you will be just by the way you park. You act like you stood the whole world up and just remembered ya gotta do somethin’” I snickered.

“Happened to you before?”

I glared at him and shook my head. “You are on thin fuckin ice, tracy.” He held his hands up in defense, shrugging at me. “So. This case. What you got Ax?” I questioned, not quite up to date with the events that occurred here. “There is a lot of things that happened here actually, but we are unsure of how they happened. Bite of ‘83, ‘87 leaving kids severely injured. They said machine malfunctions, but we have reason to believe that these incidents were planned. Around 5-6 children went missing here and all at once. People in the area reported a putrid smell coming from the animatronics, and it’s worrying. We have to look into this.”

He looked shaken simply by talking of the horrible past here. “I wish we weren’t assigned here though...” His eyes were wide, as he stared at me. He paused and shook himself out of it, eyes turning sorry. “Don’t worry. The feeling is mutual. This is terrible..” I looked up at the big bubble letter sign, grief passing over me for a brief second. How could someone take innocent children in a place like this? This restaurant was supposed to be for enjoyment, not terror.

“We have to find out what happened and put the fucker responsible behind bars.” I grit my teeth, hoping Axel wouldn’t try to stop me. Nothing would convince me at this point to slow down, because I knew if I went missing I’d want people to look for me. “I won’t stop you E..but you and I need to be careful. We can only get so invested. We are detectives, not genuine law enforcement.” He reasoned with me slightly, somehow calming me down. “Yeah..I suppose. Let’s do this, we’re losing light.” He nodded at me, walking ahead of me, yet I could not focus on his passing olive green shirt. I had a bad feeling about this.

It all went by so fast. The questioning. The investigating. The back room.

I had met William Afton as soon as I had entered the restaurant, and something about him made me terrified. I quivered like a leaf and pranced around his sight, attempting escape. I thought it worked, but I was sadly mistaken. I knew that when I walked into that backroom, looking over my shoulder, I woild find things I didn’t want to. When I had further investigated, the overwhelming smell of blood, mucus and rust bombarded me. It choked me, just as the sight of blood and random animatronic suits froze me in place. No, I had thought. Please no..not them.

I moved forward that day, and the sight of little bloody objects scared me to the core. Little tiny teeth, littered around the room. They were placed everywhere I could see, and I could barely see. They looked as if they had been unintentionally knocked out, which struck me all at once. OH GOD. I grabbed my notepad panicky, breath speeding up as I struggled to scribble the words on the yellow lined paper. I didn’t get to write much before the sound of the creaky metal door threw me out of my fearful stupor. OH GOD. OH GOD. OH GOD.

“Looks as if you’ve been looking where you shouldn’t have, little detective.” I gasped, going to turn but falling forward as harsh metal cracked against my head. I groaned in pain, the notepad knocked out of my hand and out of view. My eyes widened, forcing my body to turn. Pain shot through my head and the entire rest of my body, a choked scream suffocating me. I looked up the best I could at the towering shadow, beginning to plead with my eyes and voice. “PLEASE DON’T.” He winded back. “NO! PLEASE NO!” It all happened so fast, at least at the moment; but I knew my life flashed before my eyes. OH GOD.

“Lights out, little bird!” White shiny teeth glittered in the filtering light, the metal pipe thrashing through the air and destroying my vision. My head slammed against the ground, tears falling from my eyes. It hurt so much, and I was terrified to no end. No amount of begging would save me, and I hated it. I was so powerless. The smell of rust was strong, and as was the blood. But who’s was it this time? Mine? Theirs? All I knew is it made me more dizzy than I was before the second hit. My body jolted and I grunted weakly, my legs being dragged further into the room. OH GOD.

I don’t know what happened next. All I knew was that the once not so present smell of rust became stronger, enveloping me whole. My body bent and squirmed against cold metal, forceful shoves leaving scrapes that bled openly. This was disastrous. How would those kids ever get justice? How would I ever save myself if this was how I was being treated? It wasn’t fair.

I DON’T WANT TO DIE.

Wet droplets fell faster. Whether they were blood, sweat or tears didn’t matter. I don’t know how long I was in the dark, and if my eyes were even open. It was pitch black in the room just as it was behind my lids, and it was horrible. My cushion-y body was pressed into a suit, I presumed. I could not see my new appearance, yet I knew that I was dying as the time dragged on. I was suffocating on my own blood and the darkness that held me there, and pointy parts of the suit were impaled in me. My legs, my arms..my neck. I was trapped.

I knew that day I died. Death never terrified me more, especially when I thought of how those kids must of felt being locked away in old animatronic personas.

More clasps had locked on my torso by the time he had stepped back from me. He held a large head for the animatronic in his arms, his eyes looking over his long nose and judging me. I could not see yet I knew the next steps to my demise, the similarly rust coated mask being slammed over my head on to my shoulders. He laughed to himself, and I cried. All I could remember was the agony and fear I felt as he did what he pleased with my corpse. I was concious yet somehow, dead. I felt like some curse had been casted on me and left me in a wretched vessel, falling apart.

I remembered other things too. Like the note, for example.

One that nobody from the outside would see.

——————————-

Keon sat on the floor, leaned against her old mattress that rested on a rather pristine floor. She hugged a squishy pillow tight to her chest, her alarm clock ticking to 7AM and erupting loudly. Keon turned her head slowly, slamming her hand on the off button. Her eyes were barely staying open, dark bags weighing her face down. Nightmares kept her up, and her sleeping pills barely worked anymore. They were ones that caused aggression and ironically, insomnia. She became used to the dosage though and upped it, attempting to find peace and quiet. Keon knew that doing that on her own wasn’t smart, but her mind raced every night in the quiet which prevented even relaxation. She craved temporary release from the world that haunted her memories, and maybe more time on top of that.

She laughed to herself depressingly, her loneliness making way for her daily suicidal thoughts. Whatever kept Keon going was a miracle. Her laughing trailed off and stopped completely, the irony not being funny anymore. She threw the pillow off to the side, pushing herself up with one tug. Keon stumbled to the other side of the room and swung her wooden door open, eyes catching sight of a few piled up boxes leaning against the far wall. They were full of clothes and other belongings that she had not gotten the chance to unpack yet. She scratched her head, pondering when she should strew everything around the apartment. She supposed that she would do it tonight, but it was mostly a passing thought.

Keon didn’t care enough to bring them into her room, walking past the boxes and down the small set of stairs that led to her living room and kitchen combined. She slid past the wall and reached for the curtains, pushing them open and allowing light to flood in to the sad little home. She didn’t consider this place much of a home though. She wanted to live with a partner some day, even if it was in the same place. Keon craved interaction, but did not know with who. Maybe a nice man? Though, she could never admit to herself that men weren’t on her radar when she thought of loving someone, and neither could she admit that to her family. They were significantly worse than the somewhat judgemental public, causing her to shove all those feelings inside her heart. She wished that she had a nicer family, and a safe place to be.

Keon couldn’t do much about it, so she went along her way and pushed her pain down. Her feet dragged to the counter, halting her at a broken barstool. She wondered if she should of invested in a new seat, but shrugged it off with discontent. She fell on the rickety seat, stretching her arm out to grab the coffee machine and start making her beverage. She stared dead at the brewing machine after pressing the button, thinking of how she would be forced to face another tiring day of being jobless. She rested her head in her hands, closing her eyes and nearly collapsing on the wood counter. She was so tired. If she had enough money, she would of gone to the doctor’s for help, but Keon was gifted with a low income family.

Whoop-dee-fricking-doo.

The beeping of the finished coffee snapped her out of her slumber, sleepiness still sitting on the edge of her conciousness. She grasped the hot drink, pulling it to her lips and gulping the bitter liquid. Keon quite liked the bitterness, never passing up *mostly* free coffee. After a few seconds, she brought the drink down to the counter, looking over the bill littered surface. Keon had just moved and she was already making a mess, which made her roll her eyes. She looked a little closer, seeing a rolled up newspaper wrapped in a small bag. She perked up, hoping to find job openings on the daily news. She snatched the paper and stripped it of it’s covering, letting it fall to the ground. Her eyes scanned over the ink, looking for the little squares that usually presented job openings. She had to look for jobs like this a lot, being jobless a lot of the time and struggling financially.

Keon had been lucky with this move, having just enough money to pay for this new apartment. She had no idea how long that would last though, and didn’t want to confront that just yet. At least she wasn’t couchsurfing, she guessed. There were barely any opportunities presented to her, the area she lived in not having many open jobs. After what seemed like hours, she spotted small text in a little square, making her eyes widen in suprise. She had found a job hidden within the newspaper, seemingly put there with bias. Important stuff like this with bad reviews tended to be barely visible to the public, causing trouble for those desperate for work.

Two jobs were listed in the same place, making her eyebrow raise. It was always good to have a choice, so she looked closely and read the individual descriptions written.

—————————-

Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria

Job Openings

Hours: 6:30 AM-5:30 PM

Pay: $6/hour

Janitor- Required to clean the pizzeria before and after birthday parties. Bathrooms and other parts of the restaurant require cleaning.

Hours: 11:30 PM- 6 AM

Pay: $6/hour

Nightguard- Required to watch the restaurant to prevent any damages to merchandise and trespassing.

—————————-

Keon was disgusted with the times available, it either being too early or too late. She’d rather be able to work in the morning though, so the first one would have to do. She looked around for her phone, wondering where she put it. She knew to get the job, she needed to call to get an interview. She got up after not seeing anything, looking around the table again before walking back up the stairs and to her room. She probably left it in her bed, tangled in the blankets after a night of tossing and turning. Keon opened her door after passing the packed boxes once again, spotting her small phone laying on the ground undisturbed.

She picked it up, making sure it still worked after being thrown around the room. She sighed in relief when it lit up, putting her arm down and walking out of the room. She tapped the screen, beginning to type the number for the restaurant. She hopped down the steps, clicking the ‘call’ button and putting the phone to her ear. She tapped her foot against the floor as her previous movement paused, ringing going on for awhile on the other side of the line. She almost thought no one would answer, but the sudden silence echoing in the thinly built apartment indicated otherwise. A cracking voice shuddered out, almost sounding like it was struggling to breathe. “Hello?” It croaked, making her freeze in fear. Keon was never good with these social things, and especially so when the social thing was a creepy middle aged man.

“-Freddy Fazbear’s pizzeria here...”

She shook her head, realizing that the man on the line was speaking directly to her. “Hi! Uh- I was just calling to see if there was still an opening for your restaurant..” Keon trailed off after a moment of quiet, body beginning to shake like a leaf for unknown reasons. One could hear the eyebrow raise over the phone, the man seeming to wonder why someone would ever want to work in a place like his. “Well..you could come here in a few days for an interview when the schedule clears up.”

“That sound’s great- could I do that?” She questioned energetically, happy that the possibility of a job and income was nearing. A hesitant sigh came from the other side of the phone. “...Yeah. Come by Thursday and we’ll see what we can do.” He spoke tiredly, already over the interaction.

“Great! Than-“

The line went dead immeadiatly. Great. He hung up before she could even say thank you. She rolled her eyes, suspicions of the rude man ringing true. Whatever- she’d be able to make a living!

[royal-shawn]

King Of Aces || badboy!shawn

this GIF, very good

so @justanotherfangurl272 and I were talking about one of my other fics and she brought up that badboy!shawn would be so cocky about sharing a bed with the reader, and that inspired this. Enjoy!

-

Shawn Mendes, The gang leader of the Jokers, a gang sourced in downtown Toronto. 

Downtown Toronto is not only where the Jokers reside, but where I live as well, rent’s cheap, and I carry pepper spray everywhere I go. I’m not afraid of the Jokers and I’m not afraid of their rival gang, The Breed. 

The Breed are far more lethal than the Jokers, their leather jackets and face tattoos not just for show. If there’s ever murder in downtown Toronto, it’s usually a member of The Breed that gets caught. 

My nervousness about The Breed is small, mostly because I’ve gotten drunk at Ricky’s enough that the Jokers really have an eye on me, especially previously mentioned Shawn Mendes. 

I have been driven home by him on a few occasions, and the back of his motorcycle is always a rush, until now. 

Shawn arrived at my door and told me to pack everything I couldn’t live without any explanation. These essentials fit into a little drawstring bag that is currently hanging on my back as we drive through the countryside. 

The chill of the night was creeping up my back, making me shiver every once in a while, Shawn’s leather jacket not combating the chill anymore. 

Despite the cold, the night sky was very pretty, especially now since no light pollution was destroying the twinkling stars in the sky. 

“Are you cold?” Shawn asks, his voice almost lost over the whipping winds.

“Yeah!” I respond, raising my voice so mine doesn’t meet the same fate. 

“I’ll pull into the next motel, I could use some sleep.” He responds, before picking up speed. 

-

We reach a motel in a few minutes, parking and making our way to the front desk. 

“Welcome!” A lady yells before she appears running out of the back room. “Can we get you a room?” 

“One please,” Shawn says, stepping forward. “Preferably two twins.” 

“We don’t have any of those open, at the moment.” The woman responds, flipping through her notebook. “We have plenty of double beds open if that’s okay.” 

“Done and done.” Shawn grins, slapping his card on the desk. 

-

The room was decent, not disgusting but not the cleanest thing I’ve ever seen. It doesn’t bother me, I set my drawstring bag on the chair in the corner, shrugging the jacket off, setting it on the back of the swivel chair on the desk. 

I turn to see a half-naked Shawn standing next to the bed, typing something out on his phone. “I didn’t bring pj’s, I figured I could live without those.” 

Shawn stops abruptly, looking over at me and smirking.

I press my face into my hand. “You know what I mean!” 

He chuckles, pressing the send button on his phone before tossing the white t-shirt he discarded on the floor in my direction. 

I catch it, getting the hint, and going to the bathroom to change. 

In the mirror I see myself, but with windblown tangled hair, and messy makeup. 

I wash the makeup off my face with water before changing into Shawn’s shirt, his scent overpowering mine. 

I move out of the bathroom, Shawn sitting on the bed, staring at the floor, deep in thought. 

“Hey.” I murmur, moving to sit beside him. “Is there a reason we left so suddenly?” 

He nods. “I’m not going to tell you until I get you far enough out of The Breeds’ reach.” 

“Did I anger them?” I ask. “Is there something I did wrong?” 

Shawn shakes his head. “It wasn’t you.” We make eye-contact, a strong silence filling the room. “I’m tired.” 

I nod. “Me too.” 

We both get into bed, another silence settling over us before Shawn speaks up. “Are you nervous?” 

“No?” I answer. 

“I know, sharing a bed with the King of Aces, it’s a pretty big deal. Don’t lose sleep over it, darling, this is not going to be the last time.” 

I roll my eyes, then roll over to face him. “Sure, I’m very nervous.” 

He chuckles, before letting everything fade to silence. 

The thought creeps up from the depths of my brain: ‘Shawn uses a cocky persona when he’s afraid.’ 

It seems accurate. I smile at my intuition before deciding sleep would be a good idea.

-

I wake up to the smell of food and my stomach growls.

As I’m sitting up, it’s apparent that Shawn isn’t next to me, but in the small kitchenette cooking something. 

I get out of bed, moving to investigate. “Good morning, King of Aces.” I murmur, looking over his shoulder, eggs. 

He smirks. “Good morning, Y/N.” He grins, looking over his shoulder at me. “I’m making food, because we didn’t stop yesterday, and you must be starving.” 

“You must be starving too.” I poke his bicep, a small grin spreading over his features. 

“I’m fine.” He nods, looking over at me. “You’re hungrier anyways.” 

“I’m not eating unless you eat with me.” I smile mischievously, leaning against the refrigerator. 

“Set the table, please,” Shawn requests, pointing at a plastic bag on the counter. 

Inside, there’s a pack of paper plates and a bag of plastic cutlery. “I didn’t realize fine china was on this road trip’s schedule.” 

“I’m a little bit loaded.” Shawn’s tongue sticks out from behind his teeth, making his smile ten times cuter. 

I blush at the thought and set the small table in the corner. 

Shawn takes the skillet off of the stove and brings it to the table. 

He serves us up and sits across from me. 

The smell of the fresh eggs lures me in, convincing me to eat them heartily.

After Shawn and I finish eating, we sit in silence, before I pipe up. “I’m in danger, aren’t I?”

Shawn sighs. “Yeah, you are.” 

I exhale, looking at the table. “Am I going to die?” 

Shawn launches out of his seat, kneeling in front of mine. “Look at me, love.”

I turn to look down at Shawn.

He rests his hands on my bare thighs. “You will not die and I promise you that. They’ll have to go through all the Jokers and then me to get to you, and they will not be able to get through all of us.” 

“I’m scared Shawn.” I near-whisper, placing a hand on one of his. 

Shawn grabs the hand on top of mine. “You have no reason to be.” 

I open my mouth to argue but nothing comes out. I feel safe with Shawn and not even death looming over me could change that. 

Shawn’s free hand moves to my neck, rubbing my cheek with his thumb. He leans up and nearly presses his lips to mine before a knock at the door interrupts us. 

“Housekeeping!”

-

Today was grey and bleary. Nothing to look at as we rode through the countryside. 

“Where are we going!” I shout. 

He answers quickly. “There’s a group of people in Winnipeg who will shelter us for a bit.” 

“How much longer then?” 

“We’ll get there by sundown I think, then they’ll get us something to eat and drink, a change of clothes, then of course shelter,” Shawn shouts over the whipping wind. 

I squeeze his torso, resting my head on his back. 

“Go to sleep, I’ll wake you when we arrive.” Shawn soothes softly.

We pull into the driveway of a house, which was poorly kept on the outside and looked all-in-all abandoned, besides the lights on inside.

He parks the bike on the sidewalk and we go to the door, where Shawn knocks. 

My hands are shaking as I look around the sketchy house. 

The green peeling door opened to reveal a big man, whose long hair was pulled into a man bun on the top of his head. “Shawn!”

Shawn grins. “Hey Carlos, we’ve come to take up your offer.” 

“This is the girl I presume.” Carlos wonders aloud, looking over at me. 

I lift a hand and wave. 

“This is Y/N.” Shawn introduces.

I hold a shaky hand out for handshake but Carlos wraps his big arms around me.

“A long day of traveling right?” Carlos asks. 

I nod. “Very long.” 

“I’ll let you go to the women, they can help you out.” He pats my shoulder. “I’ll take care of your Shawn.” 

I nod, slipping past Carlos to look for the women. 

A woman walks out of a corridor and sees me. “You must be her!” 

“Yeah.” I nod. “I’m her.” 

She smiles before calling down the corridor again, a few other women come out to see. 

I smile awkwardly as they talk softly amongst themselves in soft tones. 

The first woman ushers me into the corridor before pressing palms to my back and pushing me into a bedroom. 

“This is where you will sleep, would you like help getting cleaned up?” She asks. 

“Could you comb my hair?” I ask.

One of them nods, leaving to find a hairbrush. 

“I will get you a change of clothes.” The oldest-looking one says before leaving also. 

The last, youngest one sits next to me on the bed. “I’m sorry that danger looms above you.” 

“It’s okay, I’m safe now.” 

-

After I’m groomed and I take a shower. I’m left alone in my room, to adjust. 

The rest of the house is near silent, footsteps quieted by the chipping door. 

I open the door of my room to look for Shawn, but he’s already there, poised to knock. 

“Hi.” I breathe, stepping aside to let him in. I close the door behind him and turned to look at him. 

“Hey.” He replies, plopping himself down on the bed. 

“Do you know these people?” I ask. 

“Sort of, they’re always putting out messages to people that might need help.”

“Why? Are you paying them to help us?” 

He shakes his head. “They like to help, which makes sense.” 

“Well, why does it make sense?” 

“They’re nuns and priests who have been ‘fired,’ if that’s the word for it.” He uses his fingers to make air quotes.

“I guess that does make sense, but since they’re a bunch of Catholics, wouldn’t they be bothered that you’re in here?” I ask, moving closer. 

Shawn shrugs. “I didn’t want to sleep in the same room as those guys, nor the girls. They keep one room open for whoever they’re helping.” 

“So I got the room?” I ask, standing before Shawn, looking down at him. 

“Yeah, they set it up like this.” He says. “I’d rather sleep with you than with some guys.” 

I close my eyes as heat rises to my cheeks. “Thanks?” 

“You know what I meant.” He chuckles. 

I move to sit next to him. “So can you tell me what happened with The Breed?”

“I guess,” Shawn says, moving to lay on the bed, his arms folded behind his head. “One of the members of The Breed attacked one of mine, so I did what any logical person would do and vandalized their vehicles and home. I slashed tires and I painted the Jokers on every wall. They retaliated by sending one of my men to me, injured and bleeding. They threatened you, which took things a step too far.” 

“Is he okay?” I ask. “Your member?” 

Shawn nods. “A few cracked ribs, but that was it.” 

“That’s scary.” I breathe. “Why did you take me? Why couldn’t one of the more minor members?” 

“I feel very strongly toward you, Y/N.” He says. “I wouldn’t be able to handle the thought of you being off with another man for so long.” 

“What do you mean by feel strongly?” I ask, folding my arms around my chest.

“Don’t play dumb.” Shawn shakes his head, eyes locked to the ceiling. “You know what I mean.” 

“I know what you mean, but-”

“But what?” He sits up suddenly. “I like you, but you’re out of my league.”

“Shawn.” I start. 

“No.” He moves quickly, closer to me. “You’re are way too good for me.” 

“You don’t get to judge that.” I murmur, touching his face. “That’s not fair.” 

“It’s so fair, I know me best.” He murmurs, reaching up and stroking my face.

“I know me best,” I repeat him. “I can handle you, Shawn, trust me.”

“I trust you but I don’t trust me,” Shawn whispers, his eyes searching mine. 

“I do.” I press my forehead to his. “Shawn, I like you too.” 

“You do?” He asks, surprised. 

“I do, and I’m sick of pining.” 

“I am too.” He sighs. 

“Then stop.” I smile. “I’m right here, kiss me.” 

He grins. “Done and done.” 

He presses his lips to mine, they’re lightly chapped but it makes the longing kiss all the better. 

My hands move effortlessly through his curls, melting to him. His arms were on either side of my face. 

Fireworks erupt through my stomach, making my fingertips tingle. 

The loud unmistakable rev of a motorcycle pulls us away from each other.  

“Stay here,” Shawn mutters, moving toward the door. 

“Shawn,” I whisper. “What’s happening?” 

He swallows. “They’re here.” 

@sillylittlemary @iliveformarvel

Hope you enjoyed :))

[devilrising]

Fallen Draco, Pt. 10

This story is following a prompt set by @mymindsmadness

Summary: AU where Draco is a fallen angel, and the way he gets his wings back is by guiding Harry in defeating Voldemort, but it all goes wrong when Draco starts falling in love with Harry.

Word Count (Part 10): 3,729

Word Count (Total): 31,581

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Mentions of abuse/torture (non-graphic)

***

17th April, 1998 (continued)

Someone is in Grimmauld Place. Someone has gotten past the wards, the locks, the ancient magic. Someone has opened Mother’s door. But who is that someone? Why would they? They wouldn’t achieve anything at all. Getting a grip on the terror coursing through me, I continue on my path of going downstairs. If they are still there, they will be expecting me to join Harry. If I walked in now, I might not leave.

“Hey Harry?!” I call to him.

“Yes?” He shouts back, his voice sounding strange through the amount of walls.

“What do I wear?”

“That’s what you’re worried about?” I can hear him laughing from the kitchen. My neck flushes as I realise how stupid that sounds out loud.

“Well, what are we doing at the Burrow?”

“I think it’s just a casual lunch, Draco.”

“Ok!” I call in response. Deciding that the black trousers and dark blue shirt I have on are fine, I continue walking down the stairs.

Grimacing at the dust and chipped paint that is still the staircase, I make it a point to redo them next. As I reach the kitchen, I take in the mess that’s covering the countertop. Harry is covered in flour, what looks like sugar, and somehow milk. There are various other ingredients strewn about, some spilled everywhere.

“What have you been doing?” I ask, trying to hide a laugh.

“Baking, obviously.”

“Are you baking yourself, or the kitchen?”

“Very funny Draco,” he rolls his eyes. “It’s the first time I’ve seen Fred and George since their birthday two weeks ago, so I thought I would bring them something.”

“How many people will be there?” I ask, suddenly nervous that there will be dozens of people hating me there.

“Just Ron and his siblings, his parents, and us.”

“Okay,” I breathe in relief. But my relief stops cold, because I remember why I’m down here.

“Hey Harry…” I murmur, not wanting to make a lot of noise.

“Yeah?” He asks, turning to me fully. When he sees my expression, concern takes over his features. “Is something wrong?”

I shush him immediately, nodding my head. “Mother’s door is ajar…”

“What do you mean? It’s open?!” He whispers fervently. I nod my quickly, desperate for him to react. “Okay, just let me clean up the kitchen, and then we can go.”

My heart clenches painfully, my blood rushing from my face. What does he mean by that? Unless… But no, Harry isn’t that smart. But then again… he is winning a war right now… My suspicions are confirmed when he draws his wand and casts various charms over both of us and the kitchen. He then pulls a silvery cloak out of his pocket and shrugs it on.

“Charms to silence our footsteps and breathing, and to clean the kitchen noisily. Come on,” he jerks his head to the stairs, turns away, and vanishes from sight. His invisibility cloak. Allowing myself to smile to his turned back, I follow him up the staircase slowly. I can somehow sense his presence in front of me, even through the spells. There must’ve been a spell he cast so we could hear each other up no one else could. He halts at the top of the stairs, which I find out by running into him. His back is solid and warm against my front, and I swiftly step away. I can’t be dealing with my attraction to him now. Not while we are trying to save my mother.

Through where I know Harry is standing, I can see the landing and all of the doors leading off of it. Mine is fully closed, of course, as is every other one on the floor. Everyone except Mother’s, which is still open ever so slightly. I sense him moving very slowly towards the door, so I draw my wand and do the same. From around one of the corners, Harry comes to a slow stop. This time I don’t run into him. My shoulder is cool where it’s pressed against the wall, and I scan my eyes over everything in sight. Nothing catches my attention at all. There is not a single thing in the area that seems off, everything just as it usually is. I reach my hand out to touch Harry in front of me, worried that this might be a trap. Everything seems too neat, too organised. It has to be professional.

My hand brushes against what I assume has to be the cloak, and I grab some of it and pull it away slightly. Harry’s face comes into view, and he is facing away from me, towards the door. There is a pensive look on his face, one that instantly drops away when cold air hits his skin. He freezes in place, before rapidly turning to me silently. Dangerously. Throwing my hands up instantly, I force myself to smile at the deadly warrior before me. Harry truly is made for this war, like it’s his destiny. I shudder at the gruesome thought, and allow myself to relax when he returns the smile hesitantly.

“What is it, Draco?” He whispers, his mouth moving nearly silently.

“What if it’s a trap?” I murmur back, gesturing to the flawless crime scene. “It’s too perfect, don’t you think?”

Harry looks around for a second, before nodding slowly. “Could be,” he agrees. “You stay here, I’ll go.”

Opening my mouth to protest, Harry shakes his head. “Draco, no. If it’s a trap, it’s me they want. You are safest here. Besides, I have training.”

“So do I,” I coolly reply. “Besides, they might want to draw you away from me to take me. They could be sent by my father.”

“Looks like we’ve hit a dead end then,” Harry says. “Fine.” He waves his wand over me again, casting a strong Disillusionment charm.

Harry smiles at me, for less than half a second, before throwing the cloak back over his head. I feel him moving away instantly, inching closer to the door. Creeping along after him, I stop behind where I know him to be. I strain my ears for any sound of movement, but hear nothing. The charms he cast are staying strong. I watch intently as the door very slowly drifts open, as if by a wind. Except there is no wind, Harry is the one pushing it silently. The door stops it’s motion for a while, waiting so as not to draw attention. And then it’s opening again, and I can suddenly see further into the room than the opposite wall. My pulse is thumping in my ears, becoming all I can hear and think about. A rush of air tells me that Harry has moved forward slightly, so I stop thinking entirely in order to enter after him.

The room looks much the same as normal. It needs a bit of redecorating, like the rest of the house, but it looks perfectly fine. Except, of course, for the empty bed and open window. My eyes widen, my heart clenching painfully. Someone has abducted Mother. Why? Why would someone do something like that? Fighting the urge to fall to my knees, I try to think critically. The first answer that comes to my mind is my father and his lord, but this seems too random. Surely they’d go after me directly? Not risk everything by trying to draw me out? But then again, they did always have an eye for the dramatic.

Harry materialises in front of me, a worried and apologetic expression shadowing his features. His arms reach out for me and he holds my shoulders. He is at arms reach from me, but his eyes are so green it hurts to look at them. Or maybe it’s just because I don’t have the nerve to right now.

“I am so sorry Draco…” he whispers. His thumbs start rubbing up and down, up and down, across my shirt-covered skin. I feel like the world is drifting away from me. Still in sight yet out of reach. My pathetic excuse of a father and his lord have destroyed my life. This is the last straw.

“We go to the Manor. Today.”

***

“Are you guys sure this will work?” Harry asks cautiously. Granger—Hermione as she insists—has been helping me ever since we found the empty room this morning. Harry ended up going to the Burrow for an hour while Hermione arrived at Grimmauld, and he told everyone there the situation. At least, as much of the situation that was possible to tell. Which ended up going something like ‘something has come up at Grimmauld, and I can’t stay long’. Apparently, everyone there knew something bigger was up, but they didn’t push it and let Harry come back as soon as possible.

“Positive,” Hermione assures him, pushing a strand of hair off her forehead. “The spell I’m going to cast on both of you will allow Draco to hear what you hear. He will still hear what’s happening around him, if faintly, but your’s won’t be compromised.

I nod along, having partially come up with the spell when at the Manor. I cast it on the House Elves sometimes when I was desperate for information, and they had no idea what was happening to them. Of course, it wasn’t anywhere near as good as this version. “It will work perfectly, as long as you can get through the wards.”

“What if I can’t?” Harry asks. “We haven’t exactly tried.”

“Well no. But you managed to when you rescued Draco, so it should be no different,” Hermione reasons.

“I’m still not used to you guys using first names…” he murmurs, so quietly I wonder if I imagined it. “Fingers crossed then.”

That’s clearly a Muggle saying, as Hermione nods along and physically places her middle finger over her index.

After a little longer of checking over plans and reassuring Harry, we all Apparate to the base of the long driveway. It’s really weird seeing the Manor from this perspective. As someone intent on bringing it down, instead of as a childhood home. But I can no longer think of it as that. Too much has happened here, and there is no going backwards. The driveway under our feet was once gravel neatly laid down. Now though, it’s an absolute mess. The small stones are kicked off the sides of the wide road, and there are patches where dirt pokes through. Hedges still line the outskirts, but there are none of the white peacocks that usually strut on the top.

As our little party arrives to the bend where the wrought-iron gates come into view, we come to a halt and duck behind a group of trees.

“Remember, the plan is for Harry to Apparate beyond the gates from here, where he will then shrink himself. Skipping the gate will prevent my father knowing of his entrance. If it doesn’t work, I try to get him. If that backfires, I activate the Portkey around my neck which will takes us back to Grimmauld.” Everyone nods as I quickly rehash the plan. It’s not the best one ever, as it was mostly fueled by anger and a lot of it is going to work by chance and luck. But it’s a plan all the same, and we get ready to initiate.

“Harry?” I ask as I turn to look at him for might be one of the last times. His hands are in balls by his sides, his face set. His mouth is pressed into a grim line of concentration, and I want to change that expression for even just a second. Taking a step closer to him, I lean in and whisper, “Thank you. For everything.” I turn my head and see that Hermione has completely turned away, giving us some privacy. On a whim, I wrap my arms around Harry and squeeze. It’s our third hug. I allow myself to rest my head next to his as his wrists lock behind my neck.

“Your welcome,” he whispers back. We stay in the hug for a little too long, but neither of us care. He is the first to step away though, and I immediately miss his body against mine. Pulling myself together, I address him properly.

“Good luck,” I say, praying that my voice doesn’t give away how scared I am for his safety. It trembles slightly, but beyond that it’s fine.

“Oh Harry,” Hermione exclaims as she turns back around. She rushes to give him a hug, her arms wound tightly around his neck. “Please be careful.” Her face buries itself in his neck, and he kisses her temple. When she pulls away, she cups his cheeks for a second before stepping back further. “If Ron knew we were doing this he’d kill me…” she anxiously laughs. “It’s a good thing he’s so preoccupied in Rivington Wo-” Harry slams his hand onto her mouth, preventing her from speaking.

“‘Mione!” He snaps. “I can’t believe you would blurt out his location here.”

I watch as she pales, blood running from her face. “Right, of course.” She rushes to draw her wand and cast some bubbles around the three of us. They glow in strong colours before she drops her wand arm, and they fade to nothing. “Rivington Wood is a very secure place, Harry. There is no way saying it out loud could put him in danger.”

“It doesn’t matter,” I press. “Harry, you need to go.”

“Right.” His eyes scan over Hermione and then me, taking his time memorising us before turning away. I wring my hands when he vanishes from view with a loud crack. Thank Merlin for the charms Hermione put up.

“Do you think he’s through?” She asks me.

“I can’t hear anything from my end, meaning he’s not activated the spell yet. So, I can’t be sure.”

She takes that as an answer for right now, and begins pulling things out of her bag. A Muggle quill is thrown out, followed by weird parchment book things and what looks to be a portable table top that sits on your legs. Hermione sees me watching and smiles. As she sits down behind the tree, and invite some to join her.

“What on earth are they?” I inquire when I see her click the end of the Muggle quill and press it to the parchment.

“This is called a pen,” she holds up the odd quill. It’s clear that she is latching on to a distraction from Harry, and I gladly allow it. “It acts as a quill, but is much more efficient. You don’t have to constantly dip it to get more ink, as it’s inside already. All you have to do is press on the end and you are good to write.” She demonstrates by clicking it again and writing her name on the weird parchment. “This is called a spiral notebook. It’s essentially thinner parchment called paper, and instead of being bound in a leather cover there are holes on the edge. A spiral is thread through the holes and holds the pages together.” Hermione rips one of the pages off easily and passes to me. It’s nearly transparent and is so light in my hand.

“Wow…” I murmur. I ask her for the pen so I can try it out, but a buzzing in my ear snaps me to attention.

“Are you okay?!” I rush to ask Harry, before remembering that he can’t hear me. There is a series of static in my ear, which I think is words. I grab my wand and sharpen the sound so I can hear Harry talking to me.

“-nything suspicious within the gates. Everything is good on my side and I will go ahead to Phase 2.” Harry’s voice is controlled, all business. He’s clearly done something like this before, and I can’t help but think he’d make a great Auror. Unless, of course, he is sick of battling dark wizards. I completely understand the sentiment, even though I’ve never done anything of the sort. I don’t want to choose a career in anything similar to this war.

“Phase 2 is complete,” he announces. “I have shrunk myself to the size of a blade of grass, and will now progress into the house and to Phase 3.”

I relay the information to Hermione, who scribes it down in neat little notes. As well as the listening charm that she created specifically for this purpose, she also tweaked a form Legillimency so that I can feed memories to Harry in order to help him. Once he says he’s completed Phase 3–which is entering through the first side door on the house’s right—he will ask me for instructions. From there, I have to either find a memory of myself going along the route, or quickly draw a sketch of the layout and send it to him mentally. Hermione is truly brilliantly clever, and it’s a wonder I haven’t seen more of her during this living-with-Harry situation. She appears to be the brain of the Golden Trio, as the only person who can actually think let alone strategise. I’m not sure what Weasley does, but Harry is clearly the field guy.

“Are you worried?” I ask Hermione as I sit back down next to her.

“How could I not be? I’ve known him for seven years and I’ve just sent him into one of the most dangerous buildings in England!” ‘Worried’ seems to be an understatement, but I don’t know how to comfort her without crossing a line. This odd understanding that’s developed between us is very fragile, so I don’t say anything for fear of breaking it. Not only would this mission become impossible, but Harry would never forgive me. If I’m going to be his friend—or even something more—I need to make an effort. Because I can feel Harry and I drawing each other in. It’s like a magnet, pulling me towards the man who saved me from my father and a lifetime of ill decisions and regrets.

“What about you?” Hermione rebounds my earlier question, drawing me from my thoughts.

It takes a while to figure out how to answer the simple question without giving away my true feelings. I stopped denying them to myself what seems like ages ago, but in reality it’s only been a day. Not that that’s the length of time I’ve been falling for him for, of course. That’s just when I stopped lying to myself about it. These feelings have been building up for nearly a month, and even before that I’ve always been weirdly obsessed with him.

“I don’t know what will happen if Harry isn’t the only one in there. I am concerned for his safety in that regard.” I decide that’s a neutral way to put it. A way that disguises my emotion by feigning nonchalance. I can see on her face that that doesn’t work.

“I’m not taking that shit, Draco,” she swears. “I know how you feel about him.”

The colour drains from my face, my heart skipping a beat. “I don’t know what you mean,” I say as I wipe my hands on my legs.

“I’m calling BS there.” Hermione sweeps her eyes over my face, as if she can read my every thought. “You know exactly what I mean.”

My answer is cut off by Harry’s voice in my ear. It’s amazing how quickly that cheered me up, and I once again jump to my feet. “Phase 3 is complete, awaiting instructions.” His voice is just as steady and emotionless as earlier, and it chills my blood to be seeing—or hearing—this side of him. Wordlessly, I send him a picture of how to get into the vents. It’s quite a task when you’re the size of a blade of grass, but it’s detailed enough in my memory that it should be enough.

“I’ve just given him the picture,” I tell Hermione, who swiftly writes it down.

“Was it a video or a picture?” She asks. I have absolutely no idea, so I just shrug in a tell-you-gesture.

“I am in the vent. Awaiting directions.” There is a pause before Harry adds, “Preferably in sketch format.”

I relay that to Hermione who rips out a page and hands it to me. It’s a copy of the layout she drew five days ago, and I send Harry a picture of it. From his end, there is a bang and swearing, before silence. He clearly hit himself on something, and I bite back a laugh.

“What’s a video?” I ask as I turn back to her.

“It’s another Muggle invention. Their photos don’t move, they’re just a moment in time where everything is frozen. Videos are more like our photos. They are essentially long photos. They have to be taken on certain devices, and can go for as long as the taker likes.” Her explanation doesn’t make much sense, but I think I get the gist of it.

“I sent him a video then, I think.”

“Okay,” she replies as she jots that down as a footnote. “Also, Draco?”

“Mhmm.”

“I fully accept your relationship with Harry.”

My cheeks heat instantaneously. “What relationship?”

Hermione rolls her dark eyes. “I know you two are dating. I’m fine with it and I want to be closer with you to show Harry that.”

“We aren’t dating…?” I feel dizzy, like my world is spinning.

“If you aren’t dating, then you are both oblivious idiots who are not-so-secretly pining over each other.”

“I don’t like him like that,” I deny.

“Yes you do,” she says on a sigh.

“Well, he doesn’t like me like that.”

“You really don’t pay any attention, do you?”

“I do! I am very observant.”

“But not to the way he feels about you.”

I groan, my hand moving to pinch the bridge of my nose. “Can we talk about this another time?”

“I guess so. But I’m telling you now, Draco. He likes you too, and you’d be foolish not to make the first move.”

“Draco,” comes Harry’s voice. This time it isn’t steady and devoid of emotion. This time, fear fills the trembling word. “I can see them. Lucius and Voldemort are both in the dining room having a feast with about thirty guests.”

***

A/N: Bit of a longer part today as an early Christmas present for you guys! Merry Christmas (if you celebrate it, of course. If not, then you just get a present 🤷‍♀️). Xx

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[jenomark]

Chapter 5- Final Chapter

○Pairing: College!Mark x Reader (Female) ○Other Members/ Characters: Renjun, Haechan, Jeno, Jaemin, Chenle, & Jisung ○Genre: fluff & a little angst ○Warnings: X ○Word count: 5,213

→Summary: A new school, no friends, and a boy who unexpectedly runs into you and changes everything.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Top ten anime betrayals.” Renjun whispered.

  Mark pushed past Renjun until his feet were firmly planted on non-moving ground. He bent over and put his hands on his knees, squeezing his eyes shut and shaking his head. You exited the elevator and walked right into Renjun’s arms. He grabbed you with a lazy arm, at first, letting it hang limply until you moved it further up your body. When he saw that you were trying hard not to cry, he used his other arm to hold you.

“Why are you crying?” Renjun asked. “Why are you here? Is everything okay? Is it your mom? Oh God, is Claire okay?”

“Yes,” you said, rubbing your eyes. “Everything is fine. She’s fine.”

  Renjun released you from his arms and took your hands in his. He shook your arms and begged you to look him in the eyes when you wouldn’t

“You don’t usually act like this.” he said.

“Yeah, well, college changed me.” 

“I see.”

  Renjun looked over at Mark, who was leaning against the wall, trying not to make any noise. You looked at Mark, too, wondering what kind of person Renjun saw when he looked at him. To you, Mark was someone who couldn’t blend in if he tried. There was something about his personality that made people want to know him. You couldn’t stop following him, couldn’t stop rifling through his things to find any morsel of information about him. To someone else, Mark might have looked unassuming, a normal college kid with a big head.

“Hi, man, “ Mark said. “My name is Mark.”

“Are you two dating?” Renjun asked.

  Renjun wasn’t talking to Mark, but was addressing you. When you went to look to Mark for help, Renjun turned your cheek so that you were looking at him. He could always tell when you were hiding something after he looked into your eyes. 

“No,” you said. “We’re not dating. Why? Are you jealous?”

“Don’t deflect the question. You like him, don’t you?”

“I do not.”

“You do.”

  Renjun let go of your cheek. You tried very hard not to look at Mark, but he was standing there looking so uncomfortable that you couldn’t help it.

“I’m sorry,” you told Mark. “He doesn’t have a filter.”

“No, I’m sorry, Mark.” Renjun said. “She thinks she has the upper hand in every aspect of her life.”

“Why are you doing this to me, Renjun?”

“Why are you lying to me?”

“Why is your voice so high, huh?”

Renjun cleared his throat. “Who is Mark?”

“I’m her Uber driver,” Mark said. “Pay me, and I’ll leave.”

“He’s my friend.” you said.

“A boyfriend?” Renjun asked.

“A boy who is a friend,” you said. “We have an interesting friendship, and I will leave it at that.”

  Renjun looked at Mark to assess him a second time. Mark hoisted his backpack up and held the straps with his hands. Mark wasn’t doing much to help the situation. He looked like a guilty kid who got caught sticking his hands in the cookie jar.

“I remember you,” Renjun said, pointing at Mark. “You’re that dork who was getting a spit bath by his mom on her first day.”

“I’m famous.” Mark said.

“How is your mom, by the way?” Renjun asked.

“She’s great. How are all of your friends?”

   At the mention of his friends, Renjun’s lips quivered. You caught the moment, but before you could say something, Renjun put his hand on the small of your back and tried whisking you back towards the elevators. He pressed the button once, looked at the light at the top, and pressed it again about eight more times.

“I can’t go on that thing again.” Mark said, shaking his head.

“The stairs,” Renjun said, as if he had forgotten they existed. “It’s only a few flights down.”

“Why don’t we stay here?” you asked. “I would love to see your dorm room, meet all your new friends.”

“They’re gone.” Renjun said, quickly. “They just left.”

  There was something odd about the way he was acting. Renjun’s body was buzzing like your mothers did when she was nervous, like they were both trying to contain themselves from a sudden outburst. You got your first full look at the way he was dressed: a blue t-shirt with holes and chip crumbs stuck to it, grey sweatpants that looked like they had been worn for a week. His brown hair was a mess on the top of his head, and it was longer than you were used to seeing him wear it. The Renjun standing in front of you was nothing like the Renjun on social media.

“Rough Saturday night?” you asked.

Renjun stopped moving. “What?”

“You were busy with your friends, remember?” you said. “Did you have fun?”

“Of course I did.”

“What did you do?”

“We can discuss it over lunch, in the cafeteria.” 

  Renjun motioned for you to follow him as he headed for the stairwell. When he realized no one was following him, he started waving at Mark to make a move. Both you and Mark stood in place, neither sure of what to do.

“Renjun,” you said. “Are you ashamed of me? Is that why you don’t want me to see your dorm?”

“No!” Renjun said. “Why would I be ashamed of you? I love you. My room is a mess. Last night, my friends were over and they destroyed the place. I’m sorry, but you can see it some other time. The cafeteria has great food, and we should go eat some. I’m starving. Are you hungry, Mark?”

“I’m not hungry.” you said.

 There was a sad feeling that made your chest feel tight. Renjun was hiding something, and it felt like it had everything to do with you. You looked around and noticed how different his floor was from the ground floor. The halls were cleaner, the doors clear of any signs that anyone occupied the room inside. You could hear people walking down the hall, their shoes squeaking on the floor, but that was it. The whole place felt like a dead zone. 

“It’s quiet here.” you said, tears welling in your eyes. 

“Yeah,” Renjun said. “It’s nice. I like it.”

  You looked down and tried to figure out what to say next. You didn’t look at Mark, but you could feel him staring holes into the back of your head. When you were finally ready, you looked up at Renjun and mustered your kindest smile.

“I missed you, Junie,” you said. 

“I missed you too, bug.” he said.

“I’ll give you your space. “ Mark said, sensing something was about to go down.

  You didn’t notice Mark slip into the stairwell, didn’t hear his feet pounding down the steps. The moment blurred together, creating a soft bubble for you to talk to your best friend. All that you saw was Renjun, the boy you had grown up with. You tried to remember how many conversations you had made about yourself, tried thinking of the right apologies to give him.

“Is he really your friend?” Renjun asked.

“Yeah,” you said. “Sort of. I-”

  Renjun waited for you to finish your sentence. You took a deep breath and decided to get back on track. You went to Renjun and linked your arm through his.

“I haven’t been the best friend I could be, “ you started. “These past few weeks, I’ve found every way imaginable to make our friendship about myself. Actually, I’m pretty sure I’ve done that for the past decade.”

“What are you talking about?” 

“I’m talking about how I know nothing about your time here,” you said. “You don’t talk about it, and I don’t ask. I’m really sorry.”

“It’s okay.” 

“Is it?” you asked. “I want to know everything. I want to meet your friends, see your living space, hear about your classes. I want to help you work through your issues and be there for you.”

“You are,” he said. “You always are.”

  There was a little frustration working its way to the front of your reasoning. You paused to regroup, but Renjun removed his arm from yours and suggested going to the cafeteria again. He opened the stairwell door widely, looking down at the stairs just waiting for footsteps. You looked down the long hallway and started walking, tearing past doors and looking for a sign that the room belonged to him.

“What are you doing?” Renjun asked. “Stop.”

“Your door has to be here somewhere.”

“Please, stop.”

  You couldn’t stop. You needed to find his door, to see what was inside. You didn’t want anything to be about you anymore, but only about him. You made it to the last door and saw a red colored R on the front. Before you could reach for the knob, Renjun spun you around by your shoulders to face him. His face was red, his eyes wide with fear.

“If you want to be a better friend,” he said. “You actually have to listen to me. Do you hear me? I don’t want you here.”

  Renjun let you go. His words stunned him more than they stunned you. As soon as they spilled from his mouth and onto the floor, it was like he tried picking them back up and shoving them back down his throat. He pulled you tightly to his body and hugged you.

“I’m sorry, “ he said. “I do want you here. I don’t know why I said that.”

“It’s okay.” you said, patting him on the back.

 Admittedly, his words hurt, but they didn’t tell you anything you already didn’t know.  

“I think you hiding things from me makes me feel like I won’t know what your next move is, “ you said. “And that scares me to death. I’m scared that one day you’ll leave me.”

 The words came out of your mouth very monotone, but there was a lot of emotion on your face. Your realization struck you hard, but it was a long time coming. Renjun played with the ring on your finger, a habit of his as much as it was yours.

“Since we’re admitting things today,” he said. “The reason I won’t let you in my room is because you’ll see how lame I really am.”

 There was a moment of silence where you looked into Renjun’s eyes and saw how sincere he was, and you burst out laughing. When you had finished, his eyes were narrow slits.

“I’m sorry,” you said. “I’m listening, I promise. It’s just that, Renjun, you’re so popular here. I’ve seen your Instagram. You have nothing to worry about.” 

“Oh, that,” he said. “Those people are in my group project. I don’t actually hang out with them. In fact, I don’t think they like me very much.”

“Why not?”

“I cried on my first day here,” he said. “I think that loses cool points.”

“What?”

“Don’t laugh at me, please.”

“I’m not laughing,” you said. “Why did you cry?”

“Because I miss you, and I miss home. I miss your moms cooking, too. Fuck, Claire really knows how to make meat. I miss our shitty neighborhood, the way the kid at the grocery store waves to you and not to me.”

“Oh, Kun?” you asked. “He doesn’t work there anymore. I hear he has a kid on the way.”

“Of course he does,” Renjun muttered.. “He’s out there getting girls, and I’m sitting here playing video games on our Saturday Nights.”

“Video games are fun.”

“Not when you’re alone,” he said. The kids on the mic make fun of me. They think I’m lying about my age.”

“Who cares what they think?” you asked. 

“Me. I do.”

“That’s valid.”

“Yeah, “ he said. “College is both nothing how I thought it would be, and everything how I thought it would be. Our phone calls are really the only thing I look forward to. You take me out of my life and transport me into yours, and suddenly we’re fifteen again, and we’re happy.”

“Were we ever happy?”

“No, but it was easier to make believe.”

  You leaned against Renjun’s door, and looked out of the window that overlooked where you and Mark had come in. The parking lot was bustling with a lot of students, most likely in the same predicament. Everyone found it difficult to make friends, but there was someone out there for everyone. There had to be.

“You’ll find friends when you least expect it,” you said.” And they’ll love you like I love you.”

“I don’t think anyone will ever love me like you love me, honestly,” he said. “You’re my best friend, bug.”

“And don’t you forget it.”

  You nudged Renjun’s shoulder and he laughed. You moved away from his door to show him that you were no longer a threat. You could respect his privacy out of respect, and you didn’t have to make it about how you felt.

“Do you have a crush on Mark?” Renjun asked.

“So suddenly? A crush on Mark? No.”

“I think he likes you.”

“He doesn’t know me.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

“Okay,” you said, biting your tongue.” I don’t know him.”

“Well,” Renjun said, resting a hand on your shoulder. “You have a lot of years to try getting to know the guy.”

                                                 --------------------

  You and Renjun made it the ground floor by using the elevator. Being with him made you feel like nothing had changed. You ended up talking for over an hour, sitting on the floor in front of his room, with him flipping through pictures on his phone and explaining how they were fake. He still laughed at your lame jokes, and you still found a way to tease him about his hobbies. There would always be room for adjustment, but there was plenty of time left. 

  When you reached Mark, he was talking to five other boys who were circled around him, listening intently to what he had to say. Watching Mark interact with someone who wasn’t you was an interesting feeling you coudln’t get used to. 

“Hey!” Mark said, calling you over. “I was just telling Haechan, Jisung, Jeno, Chenle and Jaemin how to avoid Johnny, the cult guy. You wouldn’t believe the stories I’ve heard about that dude. He’s been here for 9 years allegedly, and some say he lives in the campus basement.”

 Renjun fit into the circle perfectly, looking around at each of their faces, and giving them a small nod.

“Hi, loser.” Haechan said to Renjun “Why does your hair look like that? Is it because your arms are too short, and you can’t brush it yourself?”

 The boy named Chenle smacked Haechan on the arm and insulted his height back, making all five boys laugh in unison. Renjun tried laughing along with them, but he wasn’t quite sure if he should. You could tell he was trying hard not to go in on Haechan, could see all of the ammo Renjun was saving up for the future to shoot back with.

“Anyway,” Mark said. “It was nice talking to all of you, but I have to go.”

“We’re leaving?” you asked. “So soon?”

Mark nodded. “I have to get back home. I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright.” you said. 

“Aww, you have to leave so soon, Mark?” Chenle asked. 

“Yeah,” Jisung chimed in. “It’s sad that you don’t go to this school.”

“I’ll always be here if you need me, fellas,” Mark said. “But for now, talk to my buddy, Renjun. He’s a good guy.”

“I am?” Renjun asked.

Mark nodded. “Befriending this weirdo? You have the heart of a saint.”

“I hate you.” you told Mark.

“Do you?” Mark asked you.

“She doesn’t” Renjun said.

“Is she single?” Jaemin asked. “She’s pretty.”

“She isn’t for you, Jaemin.” Jeno said.

  You pulled Renjun aside and started saying your goodbyes. The five boys stood around, playing around with each other, hitting shoulders and making funny faces. 

“I don’t want you to leave.” Renjun said.

“Me either,” you said. “But now that the truth is out, can I visit? Saturdays are not the same without you.”

“I would love that,” 

“And who knows,” you said. “Maybe there will be five other people invited.”

  Renjun looked back at the boys and imitated throwing up into his hand. “I don’t think so.”

“You never know.”

“Yeah,” Renjun said, looking at Mark. “Maybe it will be six.”

“God, no.”

“You know,” Mark said. “I can still hear you.”

  Renjun pulled you in for a hug and kissed your cheek a million times. You felt like you would explode by how hard he held you, but it was worth it.

“Have a safe trip back.” Renjun said.

“I’ll try,” you said. “Mark almost killed me on the way here.”

“Hey, Renjun.” Haechan said. “Do you have some money I can borrow? I want to get a drink from the machine.”

“No, sorry.” Renjun said.

  Haechan shrugged and urged the boys to move away from Renjun like he was contagious. The other four turned away from Renjun, regretfully. You thought they would just keep walking, but at the last minute, Haechan turned back.

“Well, let's go to your room and get something to drink then, Renjun.” Haechan said. “I’m tired and I want to nap on your bed.”

  You knew Renjun was trying hard not to smile. He looked at you, and you could see the questions all over his face. You shrugged and told him to move along, that friends would only wait for so long.

“Except for us?” he asked.

You linked his pinky finger with yours and said, “Especially us.”

                                           -------------------------

“Your friendship is sweet,” Mark said. “It’s different. I like it.”

  You were both sitting in Mark’s car sweating your asses off. Mark opened the window and let the passing breeze cool the arm that hung out of his window. 

“Do you have a best friend?” you asked.

“Once,” he said. “He stole my crayons in the second grade and I haven’t forgiven him. Now I just have-”

“-your mother?”

  Teasing Mark felt as good as teasing Renjun, only you loved the way Mark shook his head at you, his two front teeth biting his bottom lip as he did. 

“Jokes aside, I want to thank you for driving me today,” you said. “Even though you forced me to come.”

“I wanted you to have a happy ending.”

“If only all of life worked out like that.”

“I can’t disagree.”

  Mark started the car and drove off. On the drive back, you fell asleep, the wind coming in through the window making you feel comfortable. You had kicked your shoes off and curled up into the seat, hugging your knees to your chest. You dreamed about all seven boys standing around in a circle, their laughs fitting perfectly into each other, and how only one boy couldn’t keep his eyes off of you. When you woke, Mark was sitting with his notebook against the steering wheel, scribbling onto the pages. You were parked in front of your dorm, it’s exterior looking as uninviting as ever.

“How long have we been sitting here?” you asked.

“Not too long,” he said. “I didn’t want to wake you.”

“I’m sorry I fell asleep,” you said. “I didn’t realize I was tired.”

“You should be sorry that you drooled on my seat.”

  You went to wipe your mouth, but Mark told you he was only joking. You tried gathering a retort, but everything felt groggy.

“Is it weird that I didn’t want to come back here?” you asked.

  Mark stopped writing, capped his pen and closed his notebook. He put it back into his backpack and set it in the backseat. You dipped your face into the sleeve of the hoodie you were wearing, into Mark’s hoodie. It smelled just like him, like the most intoxicating fragrance.

“You know, “ he said. “If this were a teen movie, this would be the moment we both fell in love.”

“Well, it’s not.” you snapped.

“And I’m happy for it.”

“Good.”

“Great.” 

“Fantastic.”

“Marvelous.” 

“Stop that.” you said.

“No.”

“What were you writing?”

“I was writing about my day,” he said. “ Why are you still so nosy?”

“Because I want to know you,” you said. “Oh, Mark, I can’t help myself when I’m around you. I need to know everything, daddy.”

“Disgusting, “ he said. “Stop it.”

“Fine.”

  You looked out the window and watched the campus gardener watering one of the bushes. It was already dead and brown, but you admired his optimism. 

“You’re my friend, right?” you asked.

“Yeah, I’m your friend.”

“Why do I feel like you’re going to drop me off here, and I will never see you again?” you said. “Like, this has all been a dream since I met you, and I’ll wake up as soon as this door slams shut.”

“Please don’t slam my door.”

“I’ll slam it with your big ass head in it.”

“Ouch,” he said. “Always so mean to me.”

 Mark touched his heart as if you hurt him, but his face was full of a child-like happiness. He put his hands on the steering wheel and started drumming on it.

“We’ll be friends,” he said. “Annoying and casual friends.”

“Okay.”

  With that, you got out of Mark’s car. You didn’t give him back his hoodie because he didn’t ask for it. You didn’t slam his door, just simply closed it and walked off without looking back.

                                          ---------------------------

   Over three weeks, you saw nothing of Mark. There were no new texts, no sightings, no lost notebooks with his name embossed on them. You received a few texts from Renjun, which made you feel genuinely happy for him.

Renjun: These guys are crazy! I don’t want to be friends with them anymore. Jisung keeps bumping into my stuff and breaking everything, Haechan cheats all of the time in video games, Jaemin keeps trying to kiss me like it’s a joke, and Chenle eats my food. 

You: And Jeno?

Renjun: The girls love him. They follow him around. He stays.

You: It sounds like you’re having fun! I can’t wait to hear detailed stories the next time I call you.

Renjun: I would invite you to come down sooner than the 5th, but Jaemin keeps asking me about you, and it’s making me uncomfortable.

You: haha that’s okay. I have things I need to do here.

Renjun: How is Mark?

You: I don’t know. I haven’t seen him.

Renjun: If you do, tell him I said thank you. You ever wonder if people come into your life at the exact moment you need them? Weird.

  Your roommate watched you sulk on your bed, staring at the ceiling, and making sad playlists that she refused to listen to. She had a new boyfriend, but this time, she said she was taking her time and not making any commitments. You didn’t know how she found them so fast, or why they ended just as fast, but they were all interesting people. You were trying a new thing where you didn’t judge, but just listened.

“ I don’t want him to get attached, you know?” she said. “Next thing you know, he’ll be calling me day and night. I have to study.”

“You stayed up late last night watching promotions for your kpop group.” you said.

“Yeah,” she said. “And I have to study every fancam.”

   When she was out of the room, you thought about walking around just to hopefully bump into Mark. The more time passed, the easier it was to remember how much you still didn’t know about him. You could never bring yourself to do much outside of going to class. You would pace around your dorm room, thinking of words to say if you did run into him.  You could have texted him, but you felt like you would be bothering him. You even tried writing him a letter, but felt stupid that you never finished them. You started so many of the letters, crumbling them up as soon as you got a few lines in:

Dear Mark,

       Thank you for taking me to see Renjun. I had a lot of fun with you. Please get your car fixed because it’s a hazard and I don’t want to die.

Dear Mark,

    I wouldn’t know where to mail this letter, or who to give it to, but I’m writing it to let you know that I think you’re really nice, even though I’m mean to you. Now that I think about it, you’re kind of mean to me, too.

 Dear Mark, 

   Why are you scared of elevators?

Dear Mark, 

     I sent you all of my love.... please respond.

   You balled up the last bit of paper and threw it at the wastebasket, making the shot in. At the same time, you heard a scratching sound coming from your door. You shot up from your bed and saw a shadow loom underneath the crack. Someone was trying to shove a thin notebook under your door. You went to stand by the door and the notebook stopped moving, half of it sticking out and nearly touching the tip of your toes. When the shadow disappeared, you pulled the rest of the book and brought it inside.

What is this?

  On the front of the notebook was your name embossed in pretty lettering. You smoothed your hands over the cool leather, bringing your fingers up the spine. It was brand new and unbroken, its cover free of fingerprints. You opened it up and a note nearly slipped out of it, but you caught it before it could hit the ground.

      Hey-

       This is for when you want to talk about yourself. Someone special once gave me mine, and it’s helped me a lot. I hope you’ll use it well, and that it can become an extra friend to you like you’ve been to me.         

                                                                                 -Mark

P.s. Meet me in the baseball field, on Saturday. I’ll be the boy standing on the mound, looking like an asshole. I don’t even like sports.

  You closed the book shut, still clutching the letter. Your thumb grazed over Mark’s words. As it did, you couldn’t help breaking out into a little dance.

                                                  -----------------

   On Saturday Night, you wore your regular clothes. There was something about being yourself that just felt right. Your roommate asked where you were going, but you felt that you couldn’t speak without telling her every last thing about how you were feeling. There were some things that didn’t need to be said.

“What are you doing on this beautiful Saturday night?” you asked “Are you going to see your lover?”

“Please don’t ever use that word again,” she said. “And yes, I am going to see him. What has gotten into you? Why are you smiling like an idiot?”

You shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know.”

“Weird.” 

  Before opening your door, you pulled Mark’s hoodie over your head. Since that day, it had sat in a pile of your clothes, untouched. You felt too odd walking around in his clothes, mainly because it would be too awkward to explain yourself if he caught you.

“Bye, bitch” your roommate called after you.

  You walked across campus to get to the baseball field. The field didn’t belong to the campus because they couldn’t afford one, but they were allowed to use it for home games sometimes. The walk there was uneventful, even for a Saturday night. You were too stuck in your own thoughts to notice anything going on outside, anyways. When you arrived at the field, you saw Mark sitting on one of the benches instead of the mound. He was looking down at the ground, his feet playing with dirt. He didn’t notice you approaching until you stood on first base.

“Hi,” you said when he looked up. “So, you don’t like sports?”

“Just badminton,” he said. “Is that considered a sport?”

“I think so.”

“I’m sorry I’ve been absent.”

  You weren’t expecting him to address his absence so soon. You thought he would keep up the talk of sports, and then transition into a witty conversation, like he always did.

Mark continued, “I wanted to text you, but I’ve been a little busy.”

“You don’t have to tell me what you were doing if you don’t want to.”

“I want to.”

  Mark stood up. He dusted off his pants and put his hands in his pocket. He looked terrified, eyes wider than ever, and his tongue nervously gliding across his lips.

“I’m thinking about dropping out of college,” he said. “Actually, I’ve decided to drop out. This school thing isn’t for me. I thought I could do it for my mom since my brother never went to college, but the more time I spend time in this place, I’m beginning to understand that this, for lack of a better word, isn’t my life path.”

  The image of Johnny popped into your head and transported you back in time for a moment. Mark seemed to think the same, his face not quite reaching a smile, but looking less sad than it did.

“Why don’t you seem happy?” you asked. “If you believe it’s the right decision for you, you should be happy.”

“I’m scared.”

“Of what?”

“Failure, mostly,” he said. “Making a career out of writing is hard work. I don’t know who I’m supposed to be if it doesn’t work out.”

  His words cut you so deeply that you couldn’t form any new thoughts. During the silence, Mark walked to second base, standing on the little white plate. He pretended to swing an imaginary bat. You pretended that he hit the ball, both of you watching it soar into the sky.

“Home run.” you whispered.

  You noticed his shoelaces were undone and you couldn’t stop focusing on that one thing.

“I think you’ll just be you,” you said. “Trying your best. You said that to me a few weeks ago, and it hasn’t left me since.”

“Different context.”

“But it’s true,” you said. “You can apply it to everything. You’ll leave school and chase your dreams of being a successful writer. You’ll try your best, Mark Lee. If you don’t succeed, you’ll still be one of the most wonderful people I’ve ever met.”

  You walked forward, clearing the base halfway before Mark opened his mouth again. You stopped in your tracks, your feet kicking up dirt, and waited like you were hanging onto his every word.

“Will you still be my friend if I fail?” he asked.

“I will.”

“Will you still be my friend if you know how messed up my life really is?”

“I will.”

“Will you still be my friend if don’t make it every Saturday Night?”

“I will.”

  Mark walked the rest of the way, stopping before you as you stood in the middle of first and second base. For a brief moment, you thought he might lean over and kiss you, just like a teen movie, but you felt in your heart that it wasn’t the right time. Mark meant more to you than that. You were aware that something would happen between you both someday, but for now, you were happy just being two friends hanging out on a Saturday Night.

[enchantingexile]

Bubble Wrap Me - c.b/j.w

Request: can you do one where colby and jake cheer you up on a bad day and its super cute and fluffy? i'm having a bad day 🥺

Pairing: Platonic!Colby x Platonic!Jake x Reader

NOTE: This is just plain, hanging out. Also didn’t proof read this. 

MASTERLIST

You had been sitting on your couch dodging calls from people all day, in hopes that maybe they would just leave you alone and stop calling. So far no one was getting the hint that you didn't want to be around people today.

You sat alone on your couch wrapped in a blanket with the tv on in the background as you were on your phone staring at your phone in front of you not really paying attention more so just wallowing in your sadness. 

You didn't really have a particular reason why you were sad today it just hit you when you were making breakfast. Straight away making you slump onto the floor and sit there for a bit just nose diving into your sadness. 

As you stare at the screen in your hand you hear the knocking on your door and before you could even get up to open it Colby and Jake were walking through it and into your apartment.

“Did you get amnesia and forget how to answer a phone or are you just ignoring us” Colby says as he walks to you and flops down beside you, Jake trailing along behind him. 

“I forgot how to use a phone” You shrug at them and you can see them staring at the phone in your hand, currently unlocked and on instagram. Ironically it was a post by Jake. 

“Seems like it, you haven’t even liked my photo” He reaches over and takes the phone from your hand and likes the photo for you, going on to his instagram page and making sure to go through and like all of his photos. 

“Well we need your help, hopefully you remember how to hold a camera and record.” Jake replies, your phone still in his hand. 

“I do, but I don’t really want to do anything right now, I’m not really feeling the best right now” You tell them and wrap the blanket around yourself tighter. “What are you guys going to do anyways?”

“I wanna get wrapped in bubble wrap and pushed down the stairs” Jake tells you, his face is serious and Colby just shrugs when you look over to him. “Colby is in charge of safety and you’re in charge of the camera.”

“You would rather trust Colby with safety, rather than me?” 

“Not gonna lie, you’re better at filming than Colby is.” Colby looks a little hurt but gets over it in a few seconds. 

“Fine, but I want to push you down and we are not doing it in my building. I already have enough complaints because of you two.”

“Yeah, fine. But are you gonna get ready or are you good?”

“I’m gonna get ready, but I’m not going to pretend to be happy about this.” You get up and go straight to your room, putting on minimal make on because you will be on camera for a little bit and you don’t really feel like getting ripped to shreds in the comments.

Once you are finished getting ready you take your phone from Jake’s hand and walk out the door with your keys in hand, Colby and Jake followed behind you. 

When youse get into Jake apartment there are 5 huge rolls of bubble wrap sitting on his kitchen counter. Jake pulls out his camera and hands it to you and youse begin to record the intro to his video, telling everyone about his idea of getting wrapped up. You continue to film as Colby wraps him up and they get prepared to go to the stairs, the sight of Jake waddling while in the bubble wrap makes you laugh.

“Are you not going to protect your head some how?” You hear them cuss a little knowing they had forgotten. “You have a helmet don’t you? Literally, use that.”

Jake waddles back into the apartment and Colby grabs the helmet putting it on Jakes head slapping it a little too hard, but it didn't seem to affect Jake’s mood at all.

“Okay, take two.” You say from behind the camera. 

Youse get to the staircase and hand Colby the camera so that he can film you and Jake. “I just want to say, for the record, I don’t condone this and I know this is a bad idea.” Just as you finish your sentence, you turn to Jake and he nods at you signally for you to push him and you do. 

He falls and then rolls down the stairs so Colby gives you the camera again and you follow Jake down, kicking him down the next flight of stairs. When he reaches the bottom he rolls around to try and get up but cant so Colby rushes to give him an arm so that he can get up. Jake talks to the camera to finish his video, he’ll probably add some random skit at the start of it. 

You turn the camera off and begin to walk back up with the boys following close behind you. “Can youse not stare at my ass, just once?” You turn around and they are still staring, you roll your eyes at them and wait for them to walk past you. 

“You know we like your ass, we tell you basically every time we see you.”

“So I’m just a piece of ass to you?” You joke back, finally feeling a little bit better. 

“NO! You have great boobs too.” Jake replies with a coy smile as he stands at the top of the staircase, his hands on his hips looking a little tired out. When you reach him, you shove him jokingly and walk past to his apartment. “Am I staying for a bit or are you driving me home now?” You ask Colby as he comes to stand beside you waiting for Jake to come and unlock his door. 

“I can do what ever you want, you should stay if you aren’t feeling that well. We can look after you.” His smile is radiant and even though you really wanted to be alone right now, you were already here and you knew they would buy you food if you asked nicely and I mean that you could persuade you to do practically anything.

“I’ll stay if youse don’t mind.” 

“Yeah, come on in. We can watch tv or youtube or whatever you want.” Jake puts his arm around your shoulder and leads you to his couch and flops down with you still attached to him making you fall on top of him. Your energy was so low at this point that you thought about not even getting off him but when he started using your back as an arm rest you had to get off him and move to his side. 

Colby sat down beside you and threw a blanket on top of your head as Jake turned the tv on and pulled the blanket off your head and spread it out between youse. 

“Can we get food, but like” You pause for a second, “I don’t pay for any of it.” You could see Colby already opening up the postmates app, he would always pay for you. 

“I was joking but like, if you want to pay. Im not going to stop you.” He shrugs at you and you turn to Jake who also shrugs, he never seems to know whats going on.

“Well what am I getting?” 

“Surprise me? or just get whatever is cheapest.”

“Yeah, what she said” Jake says as his attention is paid to whatever was on the tv and yours was to Colby and what he was ordering, your head was on his shoulder as he continued ordering. 

The door bell rung and Colby got up to get the food, you heard him thank the postmates person and then brought it straight back to youse and spread it out between youse and youse all sit there watching tv and sharing food. 

“So how are you feeling now?” Jake asks as he steals some chips from your meal, you smack his hand but let him take them anyways. 

“I’m feeling much better now, thanks” You smile at him and bump your shoulder into his as he takes a drink making it spill down the front of his shirt. “Whoops” 

“Wow, I try and make you feel better and you destroy my shirt.” He laughs at you.

“Go put it in the wash, it’ll come out.” He gets up and takes his shirt off and your eyes follow him as he walks away. 

“Im not a piece of ass y/n!” 

“I know, you have a nice body too.” You smile at him and he continues to walk out of the lounge room and into his. 

The day went by so quickly and soon enough it was dark and Colby was offering to drive you home and you took up his offer, I mean it was either that or ubering home and you didn’t really feel like paying to get driven just down the road. You said goodbye to Jake and then youse left and Colby drove you home, you got out of the car and said goodbye to him. 

When you got into your apartment you made dinner and sat down on the couch, this is where you had started your shitty day so its only fair that you finish the day on the couch. Before going to sleep you send Jake and Colby a text in your mini group chat. 

Thanks for the day, I had a great time :) 

also thanks for paying for my food xx 

-----------

Would be appreciated if youse would leave a comment or some criticism :)  

[unholyhelbig]

Bechloe Prompt: In a world filled with monsters and dangerous creatures, there are hunters to counter them. Beca is a skilled hunter that is hired specifically by an anonymous wealthy client to take down a legendary demon. Unknowingly to Beca, it was the legendary demon herself that hired Beca.

SEND PROMPTS HERE | READ MY WORK ON AO3 HERE. 

A/N: Okay, so I am more than aware that this is pretty bad. BUT I wrote over 2k words of my half-baked idea before giving up and didn’t feel like scrapping that much work. So I suppose, enjoy, or don’t because I don’t have an explanation for this.

Beca had shut off the engine and it bathed them in nothing but stark silence. An instant cold crept through the windows and into the cab of the car. Still, she didn’t reach for the silver keys with a little metal chain in the shape of a palm tree on it. Her fingers were wrapped around the wheel, thumb tracing over the leather grooves.

“This is an awful idea.” Emily broke the silence, breath forming in short puff of condensation.

“It’s not.”

“Then why haven’t you moved?”

The older woman pursed her lips and adjusted her hold on the wheel. Usually, there was a process for this type of thing. They would sit idly by until a call would come through on a phone they would just have to destroy later. Something Beca had picked up at a gas station with nothing more than a few bucks of recycled cash. This was a different type of connection, though. This had been through a private site and private contractors.

“They haven’t called in months, Emily. How else are we supposed to pay rent?”

“I don’t know, get a real job?”

She snorted at that, finally moving her hands from the wheel long enough to feel the heat of her palm against her jeans. She had tried normal jobs before- flipping burgers and sorting through racks of clothes until her fingers lost feeling. Even delivering food to rooms in a nursing home, but normal had never been her thing. Even now she would risk walking into this suburban nightmare instead of putting on a monochrome shirt to mop dirty floors.

Emily made a face at her own suggestion and let out a breath thick enough to cut through the ice that was collecting at the base of the windows at this point. Beca had never pried as to why her partner had given up her high paying position at a recording agency for a life like this. Maybe it was the adrenaline or the family calling that came with the last name. But that was barbaric now. It was a profession you chose now, completely optional if not secretive.

“We can’t sit in the car forever-“

“I know.”  

She didn’t wait to hear, or even see, the look of annoyance that Emily carried before she pushed the creaking door of the El Dorado. It was black like the night and stood out among the brightly colored cars that lined the street. A silver convertible for the man next door, and rose bushes waiting for spring. A yellow hummer for the woman that didn’t’ know what to do with money- her lawn just as pristine, even as snow coated every inch. Beca noticed the statues of the angles.

She slid her jacket on and grasped the leather book that rested against the edge of the door before she closed it. Emily flattened the collar of her own jacket, tucking her book under her arm with the slam of the passenger side door. They both sported ties and white button downs- looking the part, as Emily would so kindly put it. Beca wouldn’t even open the door for herself.

“This is all a little domestic, right?” She spoke when Beca joined her at the end of the walkway. They both stared up at the yellow house that stood out against the white of the snow. The shutters were painted forest green and a makeshift light pole was fashioned in the middle of the yard. It was a lawn ornament, never lit but always resting. “People tend to notice a missing housewife.”

“She’s not a housewife.” Beca pointed out. “She’s not even human. It’s just like any job we’ve ever done before.”

Emily swallowed but nodded nonetheless before taking the first steps towards the green door. And Beca half-expected the mail slot to open and ask for a password. Neither of them would know it. But she tightened her grasp on the leather book regardless.

Beca was the first to knock, her hand cold against the surface as she took a generous step back. Emily adjusted the white collar of her shirt like any of this mattered. It made Beca flush and glance down at the black tie that was up to her neck.

The door opened with a long creak and they were welcomed with the warm smell of fried apples. It reminded Beca of Cracker Barrel, or at the very least, the little shop with the overpriced cards that everyone walked through while faux southern comfort coursed through their veins. The woman who opened the door was an exact copy of a step ford wife.

Her strawberry locks were shaped with hairspray, crystal eyes popping against the snow. She wore a dress despite the cold, an apron tied around her waist. Her features were sharp and dark all at once and Beca lost her nerve to talk for nothing short of a second.

“Hi,” Emily took over, her own smile broad. “Do you have a moment to talk about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?”

The woman adjusted her hold against the door and shifted it against herself. Beca got a better look at the house. It was quaint, filled with pastel colors and potted plants that somehow caught every ray of light that the January day had to offer. There was a throw against the back of the leather couch and stairs leading up to more of the picturesque middle-class home. The scent of cinnamon tickled at the back of her throat and almost made her eyes water.

“Oh?” She pulled back and the door creaked with it. The woman eyed Beca with a certain intent. It was laden with lust and the young hunter reached up to her neck, fiddling with the knot at the top of her tie. “well… I don’t see why not. It is a bit cold out there. You two are liable to catch your death.”

Emily let out a little chuckle as the woman stepped aside, and suddenly Beca wasn’t so confident, and that was a rarity. She had slain a cockatrice in the alleys of Baltimore single-handedly- and that was something that could kill her with a single stare. But she was sure a legendary demon like Aggath wouldn’t’ go down without a fight- but Aggath also happened to live in the suburbs.

Her partner nudged her shoulder and was the first to take her steps into the house. Beca crossed the threshold and gained some confidence back- it was just like a normal living area. There was no alter dedicated to a lower power or blood dripping down the walls- in fact, there were a few family photos. This woman looked like the youngest of three sisters.

Was this something she always was? Or something she traded to become?

Either way, she was suddenly sitting on an uncomfortable leather sofa with a plate of steaming chocolate chip cookies placed in front of her. It made the pit in her stomach grow fonder. She ignored that too and politely declined the tea that was offered in its place.

“So, what church do you two work for?” She had settled herself on a patterned chair across from them. The pillows on the couch matched the deep scarlet.

“The church of… Christ?” Emily said.

“Ah, you don’t seem so sure of yourself. You can take off your jackets if you want. Make yourselves at home. It doesn’t look like the snow is slowing down anytime soon.”

Beca shifted in her seat. Large flakes had started to fall from the sky. It was cold enough for it to stick to the already coated grass. It collected at the corners of the windows and made her younger companion draw in a sharp breath. There wasn’t a chance of snow today. Cold, but clear skies.

“No thank you, we’re fine.” Beca struggled to voice. “You know, I think I will take you up on that offer for tea if it’s not too much trouble?”

Indigo eyes scanned her once more and this time Beca felt her stomach twist and heat up. They looked like they were rimmed in gold. A deep color that was usually reserved for the rich. “Of course.”

As soon as the woman was out of earshot Emily grasped hungrily at the corner of her jacket and pulled her close enough to feel the heat of her breath. “We have to get out of here. Now. I’m not comfortable with murdering her. She’s got a family. Whoever called you must have been wrong.”

“It’s all fabricated. It has to be, Em. Remember- she’s a demon? We kill them for a living and-“ She stopped, grasping the nearest photo. The woman with the icy eyes stood with a man. His arms were around her and she looked a bit younger than she did now. They were in front of a waterfall. “I’m not about to get swayed by a few portraits.”

“Niagara Falls, 2014.”

Both women snapped their heads up. She stood, leaning against the doorframe- She was holding a tin tray with two mismatched mugs and a little cup of sugar. There was steam rising into the air.

“That’s my brother, actually. He’s in the service now, been on tour for the second time in the past five years.” She smiled fondly and placed the tea down in front of them. “He’s got a lot of faith though and I think that’s what gets him through- either of you take sugar?”

“Please,” Emily said. Beca nodded.

They watched transfixed as she tilted the kettle and two streams of hot water filled the mugs before she placed darkened bags of herbs. The strings hung over the side.

“That day was nice; it was pretty cold. But we stood close enough to the edge of the railing to actually feel the mist and it was… I don’t know, once you see something like that it’s hard to forget. You just kind of have to feel it. To live it.” She let out a breath “He told us that night that he enlisted.”

Beca stared at the photo, squinting at the way they looked so happy. Thinking about how he hid it so well- the anxiety of talking to his family about something so utterly life-changing. She thumbed the gold picture frame before placing it back on the side table where it belonged. Emily squeezed her leg, one brow lifted.

“You know, we’re just trying to meet a quota here,” Beca said, glancing back up at the woman. “I feel like you have enough faith to last a lifetime- you don’t need to hear what we have to say.”

The demon, the thing that was supposed to be a demon anyway, was staring at them curiously. The hunter had heard tales of this before: regular people catching wind of what they did only to hire them as some hack job hitman instead of a trained professional who dealt with so much worse. But that didn’t make them hero’s- it made them killers. Hired killers.

“We should really get going,” Emily said, “Thank you for your hospitality….”

“Chloe,” The woman said finally. “It’s still snowing pretty hard. You won’t be able to see a damn thing.”

Beca stretched over the back of the couch again. All she could see was pure white. Her back ached from the chill that seeped through the window. Though she would personally feel better waiting in the car with her fingers hovering over the heater, they certainly didn’t’ have the gas to spare. The darkened liquid had dripped through the tea bag in a splayed mess. It colored the water thickly and lapped at the edge of the mug.

“What about the two of you, any siblings?”

“I have a little sister,” Emily said cautiously. “She actually just started kindergarten in the fall. Absolutely hates it. She begs us to put her back in preschool at every family dinner.”

Beca listened to her partners’ story fondly and wondered once more why she would choose this life over the one she had culminated for herself. She reached forward out of habit- and maybe even courtesy and took three even gulps of the sugary tea that was offered to her moments ago. It was floral and reminded her of her grandmother’s house. Tasting like the daisies plastered on the white walls.

“She’ll get used to it though. I never liked school when I was a kid either and she’s got this infectious personality. No trouble making friends at all…”

Emily’s voice began to fade away from her as she leaned forward and placed the half-empty mug back on the metal tray- her fingertips drifted along the cooling edge of the leather couch as she blinked away the fuzzy feeling in her mind.

“What about you, Beca?” The woman was suddenly asking her, and she shifted her gaze up. Trying, and trying to focus on the way her lips moved and the way her blue eyes darkened. “Do you have a brother? A sister?”

“An older sister- I’m sorry, but what kind of tea is this?”

“Herbal.” Chloe waved her off. “A mix of jasmine and honey, I think. Tends to mix the ketamine well. Don’t you think?”

Beca straightened up and glanced over at Emily. The hunter was leaning against the back of the sofa, her eyes glossy and her chest moving up and down in a rapid motion. She was staring past their host. Beca felt drowsy. Then she felt nothing at all.

She awoke to a heat. It clung to every inch of her, making it hard to breathe, hard to pull an inch of air into shaking lungs. A thick layer of sweat coated every inch of her body, soaking through the stained white button down that hugged her figure. The book she had clutched so strongly to her chest was just barely out of reach of twitching fingers.

Beca was on a hardwood floor that reminded her of a sleepover. More splintered and rotted through. The dull orange hue from a flickering streetlamp streamed through a dusty window. The outline of a cross was molded into the faded wallpaper.

There was no furniture aside from a broken rocking chair in the corner, aptly covered in a shifted white sheet that was as stained as her attire. A tin tray was coated in rust, shattered mugs scattered around it with a simple metal spoon perfect for sugar.

She let out a groan as she sat up, eyes flicking back to the window. No snow- just heat, the sound of crickets chirping and the black El Dorado sitting idly by. Crimson roses decorated the once vacant bushes, clipped like the wings of a bird.

“Illusion is the first of all pleasures.”

Beca turned quickly to face the voice. The woman who had so kindly offered them a drink. The one that had pictures scattered across the walls of her family. Niagara Falls and a brother who served. She looked different- still pristine and clean, still sporting a nice patterned dress. Beca settled on the fact that it was her eyes. Darker. Meaner.

“L'illusion est le premier Plaisir” Beca scoffed “They made us read The Maid of New Orleans my junior year of high school.”

She turned completely, listening to the way the floor threatened to buckle underneath her. Chloe, Aggath, whatever it was, stared at her fondly. Just like the smile she had pushed earlier. Beca felt like a toy, something to be played with.

“That’s quite a dark choice for an intermediate English program.” She walked closer, dragging her finger over the end table, collecting dust. The paint was peeling and the photos that were once there simply weren’t. “Do you know who hired you to kill me? Or at least had you make a feeble attempt.”

“It was anonymous.” She found herself saying glancing around the room as the summer heat bit at every inch of her. Her temple ached. Burned as her skin pinched around dried blood. “They didn’t’ say much. Just an address, just a name.”

Chloe was close now, and she still smelled of cinnamon. The only thing from the illusion that hung in the air morosely. Beca had questions- so many questions that she knew would go unanswered. Her partner. The absence of snow. The heat the built up in the pit of her stomach like rolling lava.

“This is the part where you beg for something.” The demon said, smile dark. “Your life would be the main compensation, but I’ve heard everything at this point. Anything to keep me from mutilating a young hunter such as yourself.”

“If you’re going to kill me, you would have done it by now.”

“What makes you so sure?”

Beca lifted her chin, felt a bead of sweat drip down the center of her back. Her tie hung low and her breath was shallow, yet she didn’t’ back away. Not from this. “You hired me yourself, didn’t you? Like a twisted game shrouded in illusion. A witch in a candy house.”

Chloe laughed loudly then, and it was nothing short of angelic. “Grimm’s Fairy Tales is a far cry from Voltaire.”

“I’m well versed.”

“So, it seems.” She glanced around once more. “I thought you would put up more of a fight. Your companion did.”

Beca swallowed thickly. L'illusion est le premier Plaisir. “Emily had more to fight for, I’m afraid.”

[sam-i-am-27]

Scraps

I got inspired by @fangirltothefullest ‘s Steampunk AU. Go check it out cause it’s awesome.

Thomas around at the small organized mess and sighed. 

Months ago, he, Joan and Talyn had stumbled across the burning remains of what appeared to be a joint human-automaton community that was only days old, all cleanup and rebuilding needs ignored by the government. Being the curious people they were, had decided to go searching through it for potentially yielding results. 

They had begun searching this area of the destruction and had surprisingly found quite a lot. A few mechanical legs, a few fingers that still twitched to rejoin their full bodies, and half of an automaton that had an intact but broken voice box stuck on repeat. He hated that they were selling parts of a once-living being, but to live, they had to do what they needed.

However, even after being polished, taken apart and oiled, none of it had sold for more than a few bits, scarcely more than what Thomas was paid already.

Joan had given up two days into searching after they had found a mostly-intact duffle bag chock full of notebooks and pencils. To them, that was rewarding enough.

Talyn had left simply because they saw no more reason to look when there seemed to be nothing left to find. They wanted to focus on their own life rather than this side-adventure.

But Thomas was determined to find something- anything that could help him succeed in this world. He knew it was probably pointless to keep looking, but he didn’t have anything more to lose if he did.

Thomas clambered over the stone, picking up a few pieces of aluminum and stuffing them into his bag. Once he found a leg that might have belonged to a dog next to a hand still holding a leather collar labeled ‘Poppy’. That he left, not wanting to disrupt the dead any more than he already was. He used an old piece of rebar to help him turn over pieces of metal that were still smoking or chunks of rusty barb wire that would have forced him to sell his house for medical care. It would have been beautiful without the orange-gray skies of smoke and a sense of death in the air.

He flipped his pack over his shoulder and began to count his earnings when something suddenly caught his eye. A mostly-intact house less than a mile from where he currently was. Sure, it was smoking a little bit, but there were four mostly clear walls and half a roof; most of the others in the area were missing the entire roof, so for this one to survive meant there must be something special about it. Maybe there were tools in there that he could use for work.

A smile crept across his face as he realized just how much Joan and Talyn were missing out now.

Thomas stopped in front of the door, using his metal stick to try and gently push it open only for it to completely fall over.

“Oops.”

“Hello?! Is someone there?!”

He froze, looking around for the voice. It had been male, slightly mechanic- most likely another broken android.

“Please?! Is anyone there?!” The same voice- somewhat cheery and hopeful, with a childlike innocence laced in the plea- but a different phrase. Whatever was there had an intact voice box, probably worth more than Thomas’ house.

“Yeah! I’m coming, don’t worry! Just keep talking!”

“Okay! Uh…”

“Need you to keep talking! You’re an automaton right?” Nothing in the kitchen.

“We are.” A different voice, very robotic for, well, a robot.

“Can you tell me what happened here?” No sign of life in the bedroom.

“Our maker abandoned us during the fire. We have been trapped here ever since.”

“I’m… sorry. I truly am.”

“Thank you for your sympathy, but it will not change anything. What has happened is in the past, and none of us can change that.”

Thomas turned a corner and saw a closed door with a chair jammed under the handle. He approached and knocked on the door.

“Are you in here?”

“Yes, we are. The chair is keeping us from leaving.”

“Easy fix.” He kicked the chair out of the way and opened the door. The sudden light sent the five beings inside of the room scrambling back, one of them sheltering them with his arms. Thomas didn’t move, taking in the sight before him.

The room was tiny, barely enough for one person, let alone five broken automatons.

The one closest to him had dark skin with curly red-brown hair and eyes just a little brighter. He wore a singed white tail-coat over a black, long-sleeved shirt with a high collar and puffy sleeves. His hands were covered with black leather gloves and he wore boots the same color with pants that were probably bought with the coat. He had retained all of his limbs but the left side of his face was slightly cracked and his mouth was moving, but producing a low grumble and occasional whine.

The ones behind him were in even worse shape than him.

The one wearing yellow and black with brown haired dyed yellow at the ends was missing the entire left side of his face, exposing the iris and inner workings to the world. His right leg had also been destroyed, leaving him lying in the heaps of one of the others. As Thomas observed him, he shot him an untrusting glare with his yellow-brown eye.

This one looked like the first voice belonged to him. He had large brown eyes with curly hair dyed blue at the ends and wore a pair of large round spectacles. His outfit was composed of what looked like a blue and gray sweatshirt, but it was mostly hidden by the brown mechanics apron around his neck, a red heart stamped onto the front and multiple tools spilling out of the pocket.

The other two to the left were a little better off.

The one looking at him seemed completely undamaged, other than the fact that his right arm was missing and many of his gears were showing (although Thomas was debating as to whether or not it was a design choice or damage). Similar to the previous, he wore rectangular glasses over his blue eyes and had black hair dyed dark blue at the tips. He had a simple blue and silver vest, the rest of his outfit composed of black clothing.

But the last automaton was what scared and excited Thomas the most.

This one was completely intact, no dents, no chips, no missing limbs, but he wasn’t moving, his purple eyes blank and unmoving. His brown-purple hair was dull from lack of sunlight and his patchwork clothing was frayed from time.

“Come on, let me help you,” Thomas said, holding out his hand.

“Why should we trust you?” the Half-Face hissed. “The last human we trusted left us to rot here. Are you a scavenger looking for parts?”

“Dylan,” the Mechanic scolded. “He’s offering help.”

“He’s a human, Patton! Humans can’t be trusted!” Dylan said.

“I am not going to harm you… yes, it is true that I am a scavenger, but I only take what I need! Scraps and such! I am not going to do anything to you,” Thomas promised softly.

The one with the broken voice box tapped the one missing his arm and then pointed to the shut down one. They exchanged a few hand gestures, engaging the others a few times before looking at Thomas. The one without an arm spoke first, his voice matching that of that had thanked him earlier. “Our friend here… he is an older model; he runs on a wind-up mechanism but the key was destroyed… Would you be able to help him?”

“With the right tools, of course, I could. I’m a horologist- I make clocks and most of those are also wind-up mechanisms. I will help him and all of you. I’ll find a way to make you... mostly mobile again, find a way to fix your voice box, as many things as I can.” 

The others looked at each other before Arm stood as much as he could in the small space. “Thank you. It means so much to us that you will help us. I am Logan. The one here,” he pointed to the Broken Voice, “is Roman. You know Patton and Dylan. Our friend here is Virgil…”

“It’s nice to meet you all. I’m Thomas. Now let’s get you out of this mess.”

[chocolatepancakes]

Mixer.

I’m just thinkin bout it, I’m not gonna do it.

I did it

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Selever x Fem Reader

CENSORED CUSSING. Time taken: Idek all I know is i don’t sleep anymore

friending

There’s two endings. This post shows up until the turning point.

romanting

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Y/N) laid on her couch staring up at the ceiling. It was the middle of July and she was hot, bored, and sweaty. She sat up and reached for the remote, just to be caught off guard by a text notification. Selever. She opened the app.

[Selever] Hey Roachy!

[Selever] my friends and I are going to the mixer

[Selever] come with to even out the numbers

(Y/N) looked at her screen. A mixer huh? Cool beans. It's not like she had anything to do over the summer. She typed quickly as she replied.

[Y/N] cool lemme in

[Selever] lmao you're actually gonna come?

[Selever] okay, well, meet at 401 Dragon Rock Ave.

[Y/N] there's a bar there??

[Selever] lol who said we're going to a bar

[Selever] we gon be going to kareoke b####

[Y/N] OK

[Y/N] what time

[Selever] idk, around 8.

[Y/N] K see ya

[Selever] ciao

(Y/N) looked at the clock. 6pm. She had about two hours to get ready. She set a 50 minute timer and turned on the TV. She had time to burn.

So the time came. (Y/N) ran out her house with her purse in hand. She slid into her car and started it up. Streetlights passed as she turned left and right. A call rang. She picked it up. "Hello, who is it?" She asked.

"Hello, I called to talk about your car's extended warranty," Selever replied. Snickering could be heard. (Y/N) laughed. Why did he always start a call like that?

"Hi Sel," she said.

"Where you at right now?"

"I'm only like, a hundred meters from the place."

"Ha, sure you are."

"Oh hey! I see you! Okay, imma hang up!" She closed off the call and pulled her car into a parking slot. Selever stood waiting for her. He was wearing something pretty different from his normal attire. He had a magenta dress shirt on, and a black suit vest over it. A complimentary black tie and dark dress pants completed his look.

"Woah I didn't think you'd actually come," Selever smirked. "Getting desperate?" He asked.

"Ha, no. Just doing my job as the number-even-outter." (Y/N) replied, getting out of her car.

"Really? Cause you seem pretty dressed up for someone who's just evening out the numbers." He was right. (Y/N) had dressed up a bit for this occasion. She wore a blue one piece with a flower on the head of its belt. She wore a white cardigan, and two strands of her (H/C) hair, tied in braids, met at the back of her head. She wore knee high socks, and Mary Janes completed the outfit.

"Yes really, now let's go in! I wanna destroy everyone's eardrums!" (Y/N) grabbed his hand and entered the building. This one seemed to be slightly different from other bars. Like a Japanese kareoke place? There was a reception area, and you'd go into a room to sing. They ran past the reception and straight to the room at the end of the hall.

Selever opened up the door. "THE LAST LADY'S HERE!" He yelled. In the room were two other guys, and two other girls. Starting with the girls, there was one with blue hair, which was tied back in her pony tail. She had pink eyes and wore a grey turtleneck with a long skirt. The other girl had black hair, which covered her left eye. Red eyes. She wore a beanie, as well as a black shirt. She wore jeans, giving off a relaxed vibe. As for the two guys, a grey cat was among them. His hair? Fur? Was tied back in a ponytail. He wore a yellow hoodie over a suit, she assumed. He wore black pants and wore brown sneakers. Last one was a skull of... a goat? Moose? A demon? He wore a white dress shirt, and brown dress pants. His body and limbs seemed to be invisible, as his head and hand floated in the air.

(Y/N) cautiously entered the room. "Hello.... I'm (Y/N)." The girl with blue hair waved.

"Hi!! I'm Sky!" She held some cards in her hand. "Wanna play Uno with us?"

"Sure," (Y/N) said, sitting down. Selever also sat at the boys' side. A round passed. Then two. Then an an hour, as they ate and sang.

"Kay! Uhhh (Y/N!) It's your turn!" The cat man said, taking the input pad and handing it over to her.

"Sorry Kapi, I'm not too good at singing," she denied.

"You sure? You haven't sang all hour."

"Mmm maybe one song." She took the pad and

scrolled through the songs. Bingo. She entered the code as a upbeat tune started playing. She held up the mic, slightly embarrassed she was singing this. Selever gave her a thumbs up and smiled. She took a breath and sang. The others watched her as she hit every note. When the song finished, she put down the mic and quickly returned to her seat. They clapped for a moment or two. "Woah. You're pretty good (Y/N)!" Sky said. "I'm really not," (Y/N) said. "Oh for f###'s sake, just accept it," Selever rebutted. "You're good and you know it." Kapi stretched. "Okay, I think we're all warmed up." Warmed up?! That was warming up?! For what?! (Y/N) confusedly looked around the room. "Tabi, where'd you put the spinner?" Kapi asked. "It should be with the chips." Seriously what were they bouta do?! Kapi took out a spinner. On each slice was each of their names. Tabi, Annie, Kapi, Sky, Selever, (Y/N), all of them. Kapi flicked the arrow. Landed on his name. "I GO FIRST!" He said, grabbing his phone. He fiddling with it, he got something to play on the screen. His own song. He took a deep breath and started to sing. Annie cheered him on. (Y/N) looked in shock. He was singing his own song. This probably means the others have their own too. Goddammit, no! She prayed for the wheel to never land on her, she didn't have one yet! Kapi's song finished, and the screen read, "Beathoven.mp4 - unknown". "Oh yeah! That felt great! Okay, who's next?" He spun the wheel again. "Uh... Annie! Ya gonna go?" Annie took out her phone. "Hell yeah I am." She took a swig of her drink and got up. After fiddling with her phone, a new song started playing. She bopped her head a few times, until she also started to sing. (Y/N) leaned over to Selever. "You know I don't have a song! What do I do?!" She whispered. Selever leaned back. "It's fine. I can cover you if it lands anyway. Just get one of your weeb songs to play if I can't." As Annie's song finished, she spun the wheel. Sky Same routine. She got up, fiddled around, and sang. (Y/N) paid no attention to it. She was only thinking about what would happen when her turn came. What does he mean he can cover her?! What does he mean play a weeb song?! Did he mean vocaloid? Before she knew it, Sky's turn was over. Kapi spun the spinner. Oh god damn it. "(Y/N)! It's your turn!" He slid the pad to her. She looked at it in fear. "Um- a-" she was cut off. Selever picked up the pad. "M'kay. I'm bored. My turn motherfruskas!" Nobody stopped him. Just sighed and shook their heads. He tapped his phone. A steady beat came out of the speakers. Selever smirked at (Y/N) as he began to sing. It was upbeat. Pretty steady, until 30 seconds in. A sudden tempo change. His song was upbeat. And somewhat fast. As the song finished he put the mic back down on the table. "You had a song?? Wh- why is it so chaotic?! HOW'D YOU EVEN HIT THAT?!" Sky questioned as she, and the others clapped. Selever leaned back with his hands behind his head. "It's was made to fit me, and me specifically. Of course it's chaotic." Kapi put away the wheel. "Okay, since there's only Tabi and (Y/N) left now, I'm gonna flip a coin. Tabs, heads or tails?" He flipped it into the air. "Tails." Tabi replied. Kapi caught, and shielded the coin from view. (Y/N) prayed it was tails. He revealed the coin to be... "Tails! 'Kay Tabi, you're up!" He handed the pad to the floating skull, as a new song started to play. (Y/N) let out a sigh of relief. At least now she could think of which song to sing herself. I mean, Aishite was pretty good, but dark. PoPiPo sounded too idiotic. She could sing partners in crime.... if she had a partner. "So, be honest (Y/N)," Annie said, still keeping her eyes on Tabi. "You don't have a song, do you?" (Y/N) jumped. "I uh..." "It's fine. I didn't really expect someone like you to have one anyway." Someone like me? The hell does that mean?! (Y/N)'s pettiness rose up. She still didn't have a song, but she sure as hell knew which one she wanted to sing. Just as Tabi's song finished,

she snatched the pad and connected her phone. She looked up at the screen. Beeps played as she stood up, grabbed the mic, and waited for the first notes to come. She took a deep breath, turned to look at everyone and sang. "EVERSINCEIWASBORNFROMTHATDAYIHADKNOWNTHATIAMNOTHINGMORETHANASIMULATIONBUTI'LLKEEPLIVINGUNTILLDESTROYED, LIVINGFOREVERYESIAMAVOCALOID. IFFOREXAMPLESINGINGWASJUSTATOYTHATWOULDSINGBACKTHETUNESYOUGAVETOTHEMIDTHINKTHATWASALRIGHT, WHILEILOOKATTHESKY, BITETHISLEEK, WATCHTHESOUPPOURINGFROMMYEYES. BUTEVENSOI'LLDISAPPEARTHATIKNOWAPERSONALITYCHANGINGWITHEACHSONG, EVERYTHINGIWASBUILTONWASN'TSOSTRONG, ALLOFTHEPLACESIKNEWAREALREADYGONE, EVERYONETHATIKNEW, THEYDON'TREMEMBERME. HEARTORSOULIHAVENOTHINGLEFTINSIDEOFMEICANSEETHECENTEROFTHEVOID, YES I AM A VOCALOID!" She huffed as the intro stopped. The others looked at her wide eyed. She smiled. She may have regained a bit of confidence. As the vocals continued, she did too. Hitting every note perfectly as the song went on. At the end, she set down her mic. Selever clapped for her, and the others joined him. Tabi looked at the clock. Holy crap. 2 am. "Okay, I have to go, I have work," he said, getting up. "Actually, we should probably all go now. The time's almost up anyway," Sky pointed out. (Y/N) picked up her purse. They were right. She didn't have anything to do over the summer, but it was getting late. They all walked out to the parking lot, and said their goodbyes. Only Selever and (Y/N) was left now. "So, got anyone you put your eyes on?" Selever asked. (Y/N) sighed. "They were nice, but not really my type, ya know? Would go drink with tho 100%." She smiled. "Besides, I don't think any of the guys really liked me."

[psychosistr]

Don’t Cost a Thing- Part 5

Summary: Domino wakes up after his little “outburst” and looks for his partner. And then tries to figure out why said partner’s lying face down on the floor...

Notes: Some more blood and death in this chapter, but not as much as the last one.

-First Part-

Dominic stood in the middle of the bar, panting heavily as he finally began to register the finer details around him again. Blurred colors and hazy blobs began to focus into broken tables and dead or nearly dead bodies at his feet. One hand was still clenched in a fist while the other gripped one of his guns, his entire body tense and sore and positively exhausted from the flurry of movement he’d been in since he woke up.

Looking down at his hands, he made a disgusted and annoyed expression at the sight of the red liquid staining his feathers. He could feel similar stains and smears on other parts of his body and already knew he would need a LONG shower when he got home tonight.

Looking past his hands to his attire, he was even more displeased to see the current state of his clothes. The soot, dirt, and bloodstains were unpleasant, but he was used to dealing with those due to his line of work. The far more irritating part was the condition his coat was in- it was practically in tatters. Taking it off to examine it properly, he found that one sleeve was barely hanging on by a thread, one of his iconic dominos had been snapped off and the other was chipped, the buckle was bent, and there was a knife still stabbed through the bottom of it alongside some rather nasty gashes.

Well, wasn’t that just great? Steelbeak would probably make some paltry joke about how sloppy he got when he fought or something.

Wait..

Where was the loud-mouthed fowl?

Dominic looked around the bar for any sign of his partner. The last time he’d seen him, he’d gone into the kitchen to investigate an opened trap door when Dominic had felt something stab him in the neck and everything went black before he had a chance to warn the other bird. When he started to wake up, the only thing he registered was someone touching him. He shuddered briefly at the all-too-fresh memory of it, as well as the memory of others trying to do the same. Everything after that for a while was a blind drug-influenced and rage-induced blur of fury and adrenaline as he destroyed anything he came in contact with. Whatever he’d been shot with was long gone from his system now thanks to how quickly his blood had been pumping, and his earlier anger had cooled now that he was alone-

He froze when he saw something among the piles of bodies strewn about the room.

It couldn’t be…

Dominic’s coat fell to the floor, forgotten as he walked over to make sure what he saw was real and not just a trick of the light. His breath caught in his throat at the sight of an all-too familiar figure lying face down on the ground beneath the body of a pit bull.

After pulling the other body aside by the back of its coat, his fears were confirmed. There was no mistaking that combination:

Light feathers on the body with green tail feathers and a large red comb.

A designer suit with custom fitted shoes.

And a normally pristine white jacket…currently soaked with blood that was distinctly darker in three particular spots along his back.

Even without seeing the prosthetic that was his namesake, there was no mistaking it- this was Steelbeak.

The longer that Dominic stared, the more he felt a horrible, creeping sense of nostalgia consuming him. His mind kept flashing back and forth between the current bar he was standing in and a cold F.O.W.L. headquarters up north. Instead of the bodies of his enemies surrounding him, they were his fellow officers and his eggmen.

Then, for the briefest of moments, the body in front of him with deep pools of blood in his back was that of an overly affectionate but loving dog with dark fur and a bright smile instead of an arrogant but clever rooster with off-white feathers and a smug smirk.

He remembered the time he’d spent after his last partner’s death, isolated and alone with his grief for three days before being dragged back into the line of duty by high command. The hassle of relocating, moving miles away from his past and the life he’d built with his former partner. The uneasy introductions that ruffled both birds’ feathers despite how well they ended up working together-

Dominic shook his head to chase away his spiraling thoughts. He’d have to call F.O.W.L. high command, tell them what happened………wait, what DID happen?

Steelbeak had been in the kitchen before Dominic blacked out, why had he left? Had he come out to grab him or was he forced out by the enemy? Was he in the room during Dominic’s blind fit of rage? He would’ve known to stay away, but-

A dark thought crept into the loon’s mind when he caught the gleam of the over-head lights off of the pistol still clutched in his hand:

Was…Was he the one who shot Steelbeak…?

His hands shook as he scrambled to check his gun. It was loaded with the lead bullets, but how many had he fired? Had he reloaded during the fight? Darn it, he couldn’t remember, everything was too blurry! It was bad enough losing another partner he cared about, but to think that he may have been the one responsible for it was-

Movement.

It was subtle, almost imperceptible to the untrained eye, but Dominic’s eyes were very well-trained after years of sharp-shooting, and he KNEW he saw the other bird’s back move just now.

“Steelbeak…?” He questioned, having to swallow down the lump that had caught in his throat just to get the simple word out properly.

“Hm..?” There was a grunted reply before the other man’s head turned slightly to glance at him with one eye. “Dom?” Seeing his partner stare down at him, Steelbeak, much to Domino’s combined relief and surprise, began to sit up with no more difficulty than popping a few stiff joints once he was seated upright on the stained hard-wood floor. “About time you woke up. Done blowin’ your stack there, short fuse?”

“You’re…You’re alive…?” Dominic was relieved by this revelation, of course, but his mind was also still caught in its natural state of cautious disbelief.

“Gee, don’t sound so happy about it or I might start cryin’ over here.” Steelbeak rolled his eyes, his tone dripping with sarcasm as he began to unbutton and remove his jacket.

Once it was off, Dominic could see that the blood stains were deep, having thoroughly soaked through the white material, but there were no notable holes in the fabric. “So..the blood isn’t yours?” He assumed, looking to the dead pit bull he’d pulled off of his partner’s body earlier to see three deep wounds on its own back that, now that he was calm enough to think about it, lined up perfectly with the spots on Steelbeak’s coat from when it had been on top of him.

“Nah, I ain’t that sloppy.” Steelbeak stood up, his red shirt not showing the bloodstains as noticeably as his coat had. “You started hittin’, so I hit the deck- figured playin’ dead would be the safest bet ‘til ya calmed down.”

Dominic fought back the smile that threatened to turn up the corner of his beak. “Not a bad idea.” He admitted before his legs gave out from underneath him and he joined his partner in a seated position on the floor, all of the earlier soreness and fatigue returning ten-fold now that the panicked adrenaline had left him.

“Woah, ya good there, Dee?” Steelbeak asked with a cocked brow, kneeling down and giving the loon a quick glance over to check for any visible injuries. “ ‘Cause, y’know, if ya broke a leg or somethin’, I am NOT carryin’ your butt back to the car.”

“Wouldn’t ask you to, even if my leg was on the other side of the room.” Dominic sighed, leaning back against a nearby table that had been flipped over in the earlier chaos. “I’m just…tired. I’ll be good to go in a few minutes.”

“Alright.” Steelbeak stood back up, grabbing the C4 explosives and detonators from his jacket. “I’mma go plant these- keep an eye on the place, would ya?”

Dominic attempted to stand up. “I’ll come with yo-”

“YOU can stay here and take five.” Steelbeak insisted, dropping his coat by Dominic as if he were trying to make a point.

The loon glared up at his partner. “I can handle-”

“You already ‘handled’ your half of the work.” The rooster insisted while gesturing to the numerous bodies around them. He looked back down at the other bird once he felt his point had been made. “Now lemme go handle mine.” Dominic was about to refute the other bird’s statement, to insist that he could handle planting a few explosives. But, the next words out of the larger bird’s beak actually surprised him a little. “We’re partners, right? That means we share. We share the praise, we share the pay, we share the work. So quit tryin’ t’ be a one-man army and share for once, got it?”

For someone who was normally so self-centered, and for someone who was not a fan of dirtying his hands with hard work any more than he absolutely had to, the statement carried quite a bit of weight to it.

So, despite his reservations, Dominic sighed, settled back down against the table, and closed his eyes. “Fine. You get five minutes. After that, I’m hotwiring your car and going home- with or without you.”

He couldn’t see it on the lighter bird’s face, but he could certainly hear the amusement in his voice. “Buddy, you take my baby on a joyride without me, partner or not, gettin’ home’s gonna be the least of your problems.”

Dominic gave a tired chuckle and waved the other bird off. “Then get to work for both our sakes- you’ve got four and a half minutes left.”

“Hmph. Wise guy.” Steelbeak chuckled himself before Dominic heard the tell-tale clack of his shoes on the hard wood floor heading into the kitchen to plant the explosives deeper down within the facility and steal anything the deceased agents may have left behind.

Once he was certain his partner was far away from the main room, Dominic opened his eyes again and cast a tired gaze to the carnage around the bar. He’d certainly done a number on the place, that’s for sure. It had been quite a while since he’d lost control like that- though the drugs that had been coursing through his veins probably didn’t help matters any…

Glancing down at the stained white jacket beside him, he allowed his fingers to trail over the back, skimming just shy of the blood stains. Though the adrenaline of the situation had long left him, he could still feel remnants of the cold-terror that had stabbed him at the thought of losing his partner- that terror multiplied by the thought that he could’ve been the one to end his fellow agent’s life and not even realized it.

Dominic closed his eyes again and slumped further against the table, absentmindedly gripping the sleeve of the jacket as he took a few deep breaths to calm himself down.

The thought of losing Steelbeak, despite his loud-mouthed, smug, flashy nature…it hurt. It hurt in a way he hadn’t felt in several months. What that meant on a subconscious level, he wasn’t fully ready to face just yet, but it at least made one thing clear to him:

He cared about his partner. He genuinely, without a doubt, had come to care for the taller bird. Whether that type of care would shift into something similar to what he had with his previous partner remained to be seen, but he at least knew now that he cared for the other bird and didn’t want to lose him.

And to think, just the other day his main thoughts regarding his partner were how he tried too hard to buy his attention and that he wouldn’t let it work on him. What a night this was turning out to be…

Right at the four minute mark, he heard the door to the kitchen open and let go of the sleeve he’d been holding. He moved his hand back over to rest casually on his extended legs before cracking one eye open as he heard the other bird’s steps getting closer. “Finally finished?” He questioned the fowl when he came into view in front of the table.

“Yep.” Steelbeak said while planting two more bombs in the main room itself. “This place is set to go off like a theme park on the Fourth of July.” He finished setting up the bombs and glanced over to his partner, taking his condition in once again. “……” Without saying anything, he walked over to where he’d left his minigun and picked it up before making his way over to the loon still sitting on the floor. “I gotta plant a couple more things in here. How’s about you take this out t’ the car and I’ll meet ya there in a sec.” He extended the large gun towards the loon so that the handle was facing him.

Dominic rolled his eyes slightly, recognizing the gesture for what it was but accepting it nonetheless. “Fine, I’ll do the heavy lifting for a change.” He grabbed the offered handle and, with Steelbeak bracing the other end of the gun, pulled himself up to his feet. Once he was stable, he took the gun from the other’s grasp, compensated for the weight, and began walking towards the door. “You’ve got one minute left before I leave you.”

“Believe me, I know.” Steelbeak grabbed his jacket off of the ground and reached into the pocket to fish out his car keys. “Just don’t go bleedin’ out in there- I just had her detailed.”

Dominic easily caught the keys that were tossed to him from across the room. “It won’t be my blood on the seats.” He paused briefly along his path to glance down at his own coat on the ground. He debated about taking it with him, but, he decided, it was far too damaged to be reparable at that point. “It’ll just burn up, anyway..” He muttered to himself before continuing out towards the car.

With his back to the other bird, he didn’t catch Steelbeak glancing over to his tattered coat as well, giving it a thoughtful expression before walking around the bar to finish his work.

___________________________________________________________

True to his word, about a minute after Dominic had loaded the minigun into the trunk and gotten comfortable in the front seat, Steelbeak exited the bar with his stained jacket balled up under his arm. He tossed the ball of fabric into the trunk with the gun and joined his partner up front.

After driving a few miles down the street to make sure they’d reached a safe viewing distance, Steelbeak presented a remote detonator to Dominic. “Care t’ do the honors, Deedee?” He quirked a brow at the loon with a smirk.

“I thought you’d never ask.” Dominic’s smirk matched his partner’s when he reached over to press the red button.

Within less than a second the bar that had just been the sight of a rather brutal and bloody battle was decimated by an earth-shaking explosion. What remained of the building was quickly engulfed in flames, destroying any remaining evidence and bodies (be they dead or somehow still semi-alive). It was flashy and more than a bit over the top but, honestly, after the day they’d had, such a sight was extremely gratifying.

____________________________________________________________

The car ride home was sparse on conversation, but pleasant, nonetheless. They’d both had a long day and were rightfully exhausted. After calling high command to inform them of a successful mission without any major incidents, the pair were relieved to find out that they could wait until tomorrow afternoon to give their full report in person at HQ- a gift that neither of them would question given how tired and in need of some well-earned rest and relaxation they were.

Which was why Dominic was surprised and more than a little confused as to why Steelbeak merely dropped him off at the secret underground F.O.W.L. entrance to their apartment complex (handy on nights like this when agents returned home covered in blood and/or carrying less than legal items), instead of simply parking the car and joining him in the elevator.

“A little late for a joyride, isn’t it?” Dominic questioned the other bird while getting out of the car.

Steelbeak’s answer was a simple shrug. “I got a few things t’ take care of. You just go on up and get your beauty sleep- you need it more than I do.”

Dominic rolled his eyes and shut the car door behind himself. “You’re lucky I’m too tired to shoot you right now.”

“Wow, I am SO lucky- must be my birthday or somethin’.” The rooster chuckled with a sarcastic tone and gave Dominic a two-fingered salute. “Catch ya later, Dee.”

And with that, he drove out of the garage, barely giving Dominic time for a brief wave of his own. He still couldn’t imagine what on Earth his partner would want to do (or even had the energy to do) so late at night after such a draining mission, but, he supposed, once they were off the clock, their business was their own. Besides, at that moment the need to clean himself up and get some rest far outweighed his curiosity over what his partner was doing, so he spent the rest of the night doing just that- taking a nice long shower to clean the blood, soot, dust, and alcohol off before sleeping a very much needed eight hours.

<-Previous Part Next Part->

End Notes: Alright, that’s it on the death and destruction for the story, hope everyone enjoyed it ^^

Getting into the home stretch now with two parts left!

[epickendall]

Possible 10 chapter 2

After a two day drive from Ohio to California, Team 10 arrive in the town of Middleton they went to a hotel that grandpa Max booked them a room for the following days that they are going to stay at Middleton for the lookout of the third alien that escaped. As the trio settles in their place with Ben laying down on the couch, Kevin turns on the room TV, and Gwen looking over the files of the other two escape aliens, and she informs Ben and Kevin about them what she gathered.

"So the first alien is a teenage girl name Liane Torte she from the planet Xeriate and she a thief," Kevin got spooked when Gwen told the name of the first alien, and she notices his reaction "Kevin do you know this alien?"

"Sort of," Kevin rubbed the back of his head a bit nervous

"What do you mean sort of," Gwen put her hands on her waist getting serious

"We briefly dated,"

"Oh boy," said Ben

"So she is your Ex and how long were you two were dating?"

"Gwen she and I dated about a month nothing serious happen between us I swear," Kevin trying his best not get Gwen upset on this

"Alright then," Kevin relieved that he and Gwen did not get into a fight "any way she has Cryokinesis power and well trained in hand to hand combat,"

"Why was she in the Null Void Gwen?" said Ben

"On her last heist where she tried to rob Fort Knox, she killed about two plumbers, four security guards, and injured one civilian,"

"I guess Kevin dodge a bullet with her,"

"Shut it, Ben," said Kevin

"Next alien is XT7 from the junkyard planet of Aikuta he is a defective robot that wants to be the perfect life form in the universe,"

"What his powers?"

"He can rebuild himself into a large mech from anything technology on any planet, and he went to the Null Void for destroying two alien cities, blew up a moon, and went havoc in Detroit,"

Ben sit up from the couch "sounds like we got our handful here with two dangerous aliens on the loose and one that we don't know about how about we search for any signs of that alien,"

"I agree with Ben, ready to go to Kevin?"

"Yep let's hit the town,"

Team 10 look around Middleton for any signs of unusual activist that could lead toward the third alien and they get familiar with the town. So far they found no trace of the escaped alien in the city. The three go to the town shopping mall to check it out and maybe do a little shopping along the way. Kevin went to an auto parts store to get a new muffler for his car, Ben goes looking for the nearest smoothie bar, and Gwen checks out a clothing store display window of newly design red dresses from Paris.

"I think I can pull that dress off," Gwen thought.

Then an obnoxious voice comes behind Gwen back "oh look Kim is looking at a dress she couldn't afford in her lifetime," then another person laughing

Gwen turns around to see a tan girl with teal eyes and brown hair, with blonde hair and with the blue eye colors as her.

"Okay first off I am not this Kim you're talking about, and second that was rude making fun of a person who doesn't have enough money," said Gwen not liking this girl one bit already

"Oh please, Kim you cannot fool me with that nerd disguise of yours,"

"For the second time I'm not Kim, and my name is Gwen,"

The brunette looked closely at the girl to see she was not Kim "oh then your just a girl in some nerdy clothes,"

Gwen was about mere seconds away tell the brunette off until she hears "Hey Gwen is anything alright," Gwen looked to see Ben coming up to her sipping on a smoothie

"everything fine Ben,"

Ben Looked at the brunette girl and the blonde girl, "and who are you two?"

"Kidding right what are you guys new here,"

"Yes me, my boyfriend and my cousin here," Gwen points at Ben "are staying in Middleton for a couple of days," said Gwen

"Then let me inform both of you I'm Bonnie Rockwell the Queen of Middleton High School and this my friend Tara, I'll let this little incident slide for now. come on; Tara let's get away from these losers" Bonnie and Tara walked past them.

"I don't like her," said Ben now in a sour mood

"Me neither Ben she maybe worse then Charmcaster by a close second and I just met her in five minutes,"

"You want me to turn Ghost Freak and scare the hell out of her?"

"No Ben she not worth you using your Omnitrix out in public,"

Kevin comes back to Ben and Gwen with a bag that had a muffler in it he sees the two tick off expression on their face "what happen to you two?"

Three left the mall and went to the local town restaurant called Bueno Nacho for lunch as Ben and Gwen explain about what happened at the mall with Bonnie and also talk about the search for the third alien so far.

"Then she still calls my clothes nerdy after she finds out that I'm not the girl she wanted to insult," said Gwen

"Wow she sounds like a total bitch I feel sorry for that Kim if she had gone to school with her," said Kevin

"Let's forget about her and focus on the escaped alien Gwen," said Ben

"Good idea Ben, so anything that could lead to the alien being here?"

"Nope, the alien must not arrive yet to the town there no signs of unusual activities in town,"

"Maybe we can find an alien or alien technology that might be in the town that the alien is looking for," said Kevin

"That could help,"

Then three orders come to their table, Gwen orders a salad, Kevin order a stuffed burrito, and Ben order spicy nachos. Gwen enjoyed her salad, Kevin ate half of his burrito not liking one bit of it and Ben eating a large amount of his nachos.

"These nachos are pretty good," said Ben

"You like this stuff, Ben? I couldn't take another bite of this burrito," said Kevin

"Kevin, Ben got a weird obscene with chili fries and smoothies, so nachos are like chili fries expect if you replace french fries with nacho chips,"

"Whatever you two," said Ben throwing a cheese nacho chip in his mouth

The trio pays for their food and walks out of the Bueno Nacho they stand out front not knowing two goons dressed in red jumpsuits and black goggles were watching them, especially Gwen from two rooftops away.

"You think that's her?" said goon one

"Let me see," Goon looked at a picture of Kim Possible and looked at Gwen again "Pretty sure she is just wearing something different, and hairstyle changed that's all,"

"Then let's get her,"

Ben, Kevin, and Gwen were walking back to Kevin's car as Gwen felt something was missing from her pocket.

"Oh crap I left my wallet at Bueno Nacho," said Gwen

"You can go get it Gwen we'll be waiting at the car," said Kevin

"Thanks be right back guys,"

Gwen head back to the Bueno Nacho before suddenly getting knocked out and get stuffed in a bag in an alleyway then put in a black van. For Ben and Kevin waited about 15 minutes before getting worried about her.

"She should be back by now," said Kevin

"I'll call her," Ben takes out his phone and calls Gwen but suddenly went to voicemail "she didn't pick up,"

"Then we have to search for her maybe the alien taken her,"

"Let's slow down there Kevin let just find Gwen and hope she not in any trouble,"

Ben searches around for Gwen hoping that Kevin isn't right about the third alien taking her.

"Gwen, where are you," Ben, thought

Turning around a corner was Monique texting Kim about the newest line of designer jeans with Ben and her not looking forward they bump into each other Monique fall to the ground.

"I'm so sorry I was looking for someone and didn't see you," said Ben helping Monique up

"No problem I was not looking where I was going as well," said Monique she gets a good look of Ben and thought "wow he is a total cutie,"

"Okay Ben try not to make things any more awkward with this gorgeous girl you bump into," Ben thought

"So what's your name?"

"My name is Ben, Ben Tennyson, and your name,"

"Monique Riverdale honey, so are you new in town?"

"Yes me, my cousin and my friends are staying here for a few days speaking of my cousin have you seen her she a redhead girl with a ponytail and she wearing a red collar shirt with black vest black pants and black shoes?"

"No sorry I haven't seen your cousin," Monique look down at Ben watch "sweet watch you got there Ben,"

"Thanks had this since I was ten it's sentimental to me,"

Kevin comes up to Ben holding a plumber badge and interrupting Ben's conversation with Monique.

"Hey Ben I hate interrupts your conversation but I got something you like to here," said Kevin

"Sorry Monique this is Kevin him, and I are looking for a cousin so I hope we can talk again,"

"So do I Ben see you around" Monique giving Ben a wink causing him to blush before walking away.

"What you got Kevin,"

"Well, I got an idea to use the Plumber badge to track Gwen badge to see where she is, and right now she is moving so we need to head back to my car,"

"Alright,"

"And by the way looks like you had a nice chat with Monique huh Ben," Kevin smile and elbow Ben in the arm

Ben blushed a little "Kevin we just talk after we bump into each other,"

"Sure whatever you say, Ben,"

Kevin and Ben hurry back to Kevin's car to find Gwen as quickly as possible.

[lazygeisha]

A Little Less Conversation. Perfect.

@weilongfu and @andwebegin, this is what I have, will probably never finish and wasn’t going to post anyway. I dunno, I think I’ve lost my mind. @somewhatavidreader read all of this before - I haven’t corrected anything you suggested yet, I am still so grateful you read it 💗, I’m just brain dead. @fkyb read this when it was RAW RAW RAW, not that this is better, but whatever. It’s not finished. I know how it’s supposed to finish, I can see it. but I just can’t get it done. As in get it from my head to the keys, the tone keeps changing on me.

Chu Shu Zhi liked being Guo Chang Cheng’s boyfriend, liked it so much it was perilously close to being called ‘love’. He’d been in a couple of relationships in the past, nothing that ever felt like this, never where he’d been content to finish the night the way his dates now ended. At the beginning of their romance he definitely loved the shared glances, the soft touches, the heady feel of spending all night only kissing and touching. Gradually, though, he’d wanted to take their relationship further, sharing more satisfaction than mind blowing-kisses and exploring hands gave them. And conversation. God, they had a lot of conversation, not that he minded conversation, conversation was great; he’d learned about his K-pop addiction, which drama actor were his favourites, who were his celebrity crushes (and that one he wished he could un-know), how he preferred cats over dogs. It’s only that… He wanted to bite Xiao Guo, taste his skin, run his tongue over every inch of him those loose clothes covered. Wanted to feel himself enveloped in his heat and tightness, wanted to worship at the altar of Guo Chang Cheng. Simply… wanted. Period. And he knew exactly what the obstacle was: his boyfriend. Well, more precisely, what was inside his boyfriend’s head.

Over one dinner, Chang Cheng told him about his first crush, how he’d mocked his ‘scrawny, puny’ body in gym class. “I guess he had a point. I mean, I’m not athletic, like you or him, not built to save a world or anything. I completely understand why he wouldn’t have been interested in me. I mean, who would…” He’d absently pulled his sweater closer over his chest as if attempting to camouflage his body from view. Shu Zhi wanted nothing more at that moment than to track down Xiao Guo’s school crush and destroy him. Since that wasn’t an option, he’d merely raised an eyebrow at the phrase ‘who would’ and pointed a finger at himself. “Me?” There was something like sadness colouring the sigh that escaped his boyfriend, along with an uncertain “Yeah…” Needless to say, the night, and several more after that one, had ended with no more than kisses.

Plan forming in his head, he had no intention of letting the person he cared for most in the world do this to himself, to them, any longer.

~~~

Guo Chang Cheng knew he was on dating on borrowed time. Either way, he was one hundred percent sure his relationship would be ending; whether Chu Ge would dump him because he was tired of solely kisses, or that his boyfriend would be disappointed with what he found when his clothes were off, it would still end. And it would hurt so much more than almost anything else he had ever experienced in his whole life except the death of his parents. It would be the death of his soul, of all the little fantasies he had of their future. Because he wasn’t enough. Again.

When he closed his eyes and thought about what might happen if they’d go that far, he could almost see the look of distaste on Chu Ge’s face; probably similar to the one the boy he’d liked had when he’d seen him in his swim trunks. “Scrawny, puny weakling.” It had hurt when he’d heard it all those years ago, it would shatter him to pieces now.

Worse would be kindness, his Chu Ge being kind to him through his dissatisfaction, trying to fake pleasure and attraction. It had been some weird sort of relief when he’d told him about that gym class, like now they both knew that he knew he wasn’t sexually attractive. So that ‘me?’ comment hurt a little more than maybe it should have, given him a taste of the feeling that would devastate him if he were kind. God, he hated thinking like this, maybe he needed a cookie. A cookie and some time with kittens.

~~~

He was on his fourth cookie - a chocolate chip peanut butter coconut cookie that shouldn’t have tasted good but really, really did – playing with three of the kittens currently working in the café when the text came.

<3ChuGe<3: Tonight, 6pm, my place, dinner. Ok? *heart emoji* <3ChuGe<3: Please?

Here it comes, the ‘thank you and goodbye’ talk. He nearly sent back a message saying he was busy, but what could he possibly have been busy with? He’d know it was a lie, and really it was probably best to get it over with so he could go home and die in the shower, then go to work the next day as if nothing had happened. Sucking it up, he texted back:

 Yep. See you then!

A couple of seconds later, another text:

<3ChuGe<3: What’s wrong?

Frustrated, he texted back

Nothing. Everything is fine.

Thus began what could only be described as a ‘polite argument’ through texts.

<3ChuGe<3: Everything is *not* fine, what’s wrong? You’re at the cat café eating cookies again, aren’t you? Xiao Guo: Yes, but everything is fine. <3ChuGe<3: Now I know everything is not fine because 1) you didn’t send back an emoji and you emoji EVERY text 2) You only go to the café alone when you’re upset. TELL ME. Xiao Guo: Nothing is wrong. I’m fine. I wanted a cookie and a cuddle. <3ChuGe<3: I would have cuddled you I keep cookies in my desk now. For you. Come here and I’ll cuddle and cookie you.

Reading the last text, the pressure in his chest receded somewhat. His boyfriend wouldn’t have offered him his precious stock of cookies and affection if he were going to break it off with him tonight. That would be cruel, right? He wasn’t cruel, he wouldn’t be in love someone cruel. Totally, completely and insecurely in love with not-cruel Chu Shu Zhi.

He sent a final text:

*heart eyes emoji* I’ll see you tonight for dinner. *heart emoji* *heart emoji* *heart emoji* I’m really fine. *blowing kiss emoji* I have kittens to cuddle. *pusheen heart emoji*

He wasn’t all surprised to receive an answer a minute later.

<3ChuGe<3: I call overuse of emojis. *laugh emoji* See you tonight. *heart emoji* *heart emoji* *heart emoji*

~~~

The door opened in the middle of Guo’s second knock, the hand poised to rap again snatched to pull him inside. Chu Ge’s warm, gentle smile was enhanced by the soft glow of candlelight lighting the apartment; so many candles were lit, he'd have suspected a power failure if he hadn't seen the hall light working perfectly. His boyfriend’s outfit was different than the usual clothing he wore; snugger if that were possible, the not-quite-buttoned button up shirt showing off more of his chest than the normal tank top.

“Hi.” The word was spoken softly, seductively, prequel to a lingering kiss which left them both a little dazed, despite several months of dating and innumerable kisses. “Mmmm.. Are you hungry?” When it was spoken in a provocative growl against his lips, it felt like there was more to that question than was asked, the breathy “uh huh” an answer to the underlying question.

“Confess, how many cookies did you eat?” Chu seemed to enjoy the flush creeping over his boyfriend’s face. “Two.” When the silence lingered, he sighed and admitted, “Five.” Guo Chang Cheng found himself pulled into an affectionate hug, a joy-filled kiss pressed to his hair with words that sounded very much like “God, I love you” said so quietly he almost missed them. Startled, he pulled back enough to search Chu Ge’s face for any sign of sarcasm or joking. All he found was a pair of mocha eyes gazing back at him with adoration, sort of goofy tilt to his expressive lips. “Yeah, I do”, a hint of surprise in his voice.

~~~

He’d not meant to confess, he didn’t realise he’d slipped into love until his boyfriend tried to lie, badly, about his cookie intake. He’d never felt love for anyone before except his brother, hadn’t ever had the intensity of feeling like this, the urge to protect, to possess someone entirely, to make someone else happy no matter what it took to do it. There was something in Guo Chang Cheng that triggered a homing instinct in his soul, that instant he knew without hesitation that there would never be anyone more perfect for him, never be anyone who with a simple glance of those cinnamon eyes could reduce him to a mass of quivering want. He knew that his words were unexpected when disbelief shown on his boyfriend’s face, in a way that slightly hurt. He’d tried so hard to show him that he was loved, cared for, and yet he hadn’t seen it. Had fled to his safe, happy place to eat cookies and play with kittens, alone. “So, next time you’re hurt, come to me. Or take me with you. I like cookies and kittens too. But I love you.”

Xiao Guo moved his mouth to reply, nothing came out. Those gorgeous cinnamon eyes glittered with tears, some of which overflowed and slid down his face. Shu Zhi cupped his jaw with careful hands, brushing his thumbs to wipe away the moisture before pulling him in for another kiss. After a moment, he felt more than heard “I love you too” against his lips and hands slide up to pull him deeper. Tongues teased languidly as if they had all the time in the world, small sounds of passion slipped out and echoed in the apartment, caresses exchanged; all of this wasn’t new, now, however, there was deeper emotion behind it.

Before it got out of hand, he kissed his way along his boyfriend's jawline to lightly lick his ear. “I promised I’d feed you, so we need to stop.” Snorting at Xiao Guo’s grumble of dissatisfaction, he stepped out of his arms to pull him towards the sofa. “Luckily you’ve eaten five cookies so you won’t be starving. This isn’t actually really dinner, more of a demonstration.” He picked up a black piece of cloth off the sofa and held it up. “You need to wear this over your eyes.” Those cinnamon coloured eyes widened in outright shock. “Um, what?” Chu repeated himself. “You. Need. To. Wear. This. Trust me, okay?” He cajoled, “Please?” when Chang Cheng paused, then given a hesitant nod of the head.

He removed the ever-present shoulder bag, dropped it next to the sofa and turned him around. “Let me know if it’s too tight. I don’t want you to be able to see, okay?” Slipping the cloth over his eyes, he tied a firm knot. “Good?” A quick nod in response. “Okay, sit here for a moment, don’t touch the blindfold.” Chang Cheng was gently placed on the floor, back to the sofa. “I’ll be right back.”

~~~

He heard Chu Ge move off to do whatever, feeling a little weird with a black cloth covering half his face. Tonight was both wonderful and slightly strange. He was still buzzing with the confession, nerves thrumming with both the aftereffects of the kiss and the fact that he was sitting on the floor in literal blind trust while his boyfriend prepared him for something. All of that overlaid with a feeling of being home, wanted. Maybe he could finally work up the courage to take his clothes off.

The sound of returning footsteps alerted him to whatever was going to happen next, the thunk of plates being placed on the low table in front of him sounding louder in the silent room than it should.

“Okay, scootch up a bit.” Hands pushed him a little forward, he felt Chu Ge slip in and sit behind him, his legs bracketing his own body. “Comfy?” Comfy? Try turned on? Excited? Nervous? “Um.. yeah.”

Whispers in his ear, accompanied by the touch of a bristly chin sent shivers over his skin. “Good. Now, taste this.” He felt something cool and damp against his lips, scented lightly like peach. He opened them up to let his boyfriend slip it in, feeling a thumb brush against his closed lips. “Chew and swallow, please.” The finger continued to caress his lips as he did as requested. “Try this.” Another cool, moist piece of peach was placed in his mouth, this one more fragrant, again asked to chew and swallow. “Which one was better, Xiao Guo? First or second?”

Trying to speak was proving difficult. “Um, the second one. It was sweeter.” He felt arms come around him and hug him quickly. “Good, good. Now try this.” A small, round object was placed against his lips. “Open.” Blueberry. Again another round object was placed against his lips, smaller this time, again was requested to taste it. “Which one did you like more? One or two?” Chu Ge seemed very happy that his answer was two, it earned him a kiss on the temple.

And so it went for the next few minutes; asparagus, shrimp, strawberries, raspberries. Each time a request for Xiao Guo to tell him which tasted better, each time a reward for the ‘right’ answer. Finally, the blindfold was removed and Chang Cheng blinked against the soft candlelight, re-accustoming his eyes to the light. In front of him on the low table were all the things he’d sampled, two of each kind, one larger than the other. He turned questioning eyes on his boyfriend, saw a slow smile steal across his lips. “Every single time, Xiao Guo, you chose the smaller one. You said the smaller one tasted better. Do you understand now that bigger isn’t always better?” Chu Shi Zhi stood up, pulled him to his feet, wrapped his arms around his boyfriend, mocha eyes gazing into cinnamon ones. “Smaller things are as good, if not often better, love, than larger things. That idiot in gym class couldn’t appreciate you for you. It sucks for him and I’m sorry he hurt you, but I’m happy for me that I grabbed you and he didn’t.”

Xiao Guo gave up even trying to hold back the tears. Unable to express his overwhelming emotions, he simply clung to his boyfriend like he was the only thing keeping him alive and let them flow. Soothing hands swept up and down his spine, calming, reassuring; utterances of love and comfort washing over him, easing the storm. Finally, he relaxed against Chu Ge, mumbling quiet apologies into his shoulder. “I am so sorry, I didn’t mean to turn into a mess.”

He felt a small kiss on his forehead. “It’s fine, don’t be upset. You know I had an ulterior motive for this, right?” His boyfriend wiggled his eyebrows in what was supposed to be a provocative way. “Ugh, please don’t do that, you look like Chief Zhao when you do that and it kinda kills the mood.” He did not want to think about his boss when he was contemplating getting naked with his boyfriend.

“Oh, god, sorry, no!”

Xiao Guo tightened his arms around his Chu Ge, now definitely his Chu Ge, hitched up onto his body and wrapped his legs around an apparently surprised boyfriend. He felt hands on his bottom, supporting his weight and maybe copping a bit of a feel. “There is one thing, though, that being bigger is much better at than being small…” As he breathed the words his lips caressed Shu Zhi’s ear. “You can carry me into the bedroom so much easier than I can carry you.”

~~~

It wouldn't surprise him if his heart’d stopped. He turned to examine Chang Cheng’s face for signs of hesitation, reluctance or anything that would have prevented him from going further. “Are you sure? Because we don’t have to…” He sighed and closed his eyes, seeking the right way to say what he felt. “This wasn’t about me wanting to get into your pants.” At a quirk of an eyebrow, he blushed a bit and admitted, “Okay, maybe a little.” He swooped in for a quick kiss. “I need you to be aware though, that it’s you, I want to be with you because it’s you. How you look, or think you look, isn’t important. But, by the way, you're really stunning, just so you know.” Another quick kiss. “Don’t let some ass’s opinion from all those years ago stay in your head, make you think that you’re not good enough. I may be your first relationship, but for me you’re the relationship, do you understand? There is no one else I would ever want, you fill all my empty spaces.”

His heart was clearly working because it twisted when he caught the watery smile of utter joy on his boyfriend’s face, provoking protective urges more than romantic ones. “Please stop crying or I may start? Please?” He kissed the top of Xiao Guo’s head. “I’m not sure whether to take you to the bedroom or take you home.” He let out a long sigh. “I’ll take you ho-”

“Bedroom. Please?” There was a firmness, a certainty he hadn’t heard before when he spoke.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, as sure as I’ll ever be for something I’ve never done.” A warm face buried itself in the space between his shoulder and neck as if to hide, unexpected tiny kisses pressed to Chu’s skin.

He carried him slowly to the bedroom, his lips explored the exposed surface of Chang Cheng's throat, soothing the small bites he left with flicks of his tongue. If his boyfriend kept arching against him like that and whimpering, though, this wouldn’t last long.

In the moonlit bedroom, as Xiao Guo slid down off his waist he held him close so he could find balance. His face was flushed, either with embarrassment or excitement, Chu wasn’t sure. “You okay? Do you want to stop?” His boyfriend’s head shook slightly, “No. I just… I don’t know what to do.” The scarlet flush crept higher.

“You don’t have to do anything, Xiao Guo. Relax and everything will flow, I promise.” He brushed soft hands over his jawline, nibbling the smooth skin behind his ear. “I’ve been wanting to worship you for weeks, let me?”

~~~

His ability to think crashed and burned. “You want to worship me?” In his whole existence no one had ever wanted to do anything that was remotely like worshiping him. The nibbling continued, leaving trails of sparks, tantalizing. “MMMhmmm.” Teeth nipping his earlobe, fingers skimming his skin, all he could seem to do is feel at this point. “I have been yearning to worship you for weeks. It’s been so hard,” his boyfriend teased his arousal against a hip, “no pun intended, to stop at only kissing you.” Hands slid down his back, over his bottom, pulling him hard up against an even harder body. “You can tell me to stop any time you need to and I will, I promise.” Now there was licking involved and it was doing wondrous things to his body; in a daze, he wondered if it were possible to die from sheer pleasure.

He slid his own hands up, over Chu Ge’s jaw and eagerly pulled those luscious lips back to his, frantically trying to show him how much he wanted to not stop, not ever stop. Please don’t stop. Licking inexpertly against his boyfriend’s mouth, he felt him smile into the kiss, foreheads meet. “Shhh, we have all night, Xiao Guo. No rush, let me make it the best for you I can, okay?”

~~~

Deft fingers undid buttons and zippers, pulled off clothing until he stood bare under a stunned gaze. Chu Shu Zhi couldn’t stop staring. Xiao Guo was… Perfect. When he said it aloud, told him exactly how beautiful, how flawless he was, the flush blooming on his smooth, slim, delicious chest flowed up over his features sparked a craving to follow it’s course with his mouth. He grabbed the hands he’d tried to cover himself with, embarrassment clearly visible in the movements. “Please, don’t. I’m honestly… Wow. I can’t tell you enough how perfect you are. I keep saying that, don’t I? But you are, you’re perfect.” He knew he was babbling like an idiot, so much not like the 'suave seduction expert' he was going for.

He was in a daze, taking in the slim, delicious torso, the porcelain skin almost glowing like mother of pearl in the light shining through the uncovered windows, contrasting with the patch of hair below his waist. There was not an inch of him he didn’t want to touch, taste, tease. He didn’t know what he’d done in a previous life, but he was sure he didn’t deserve this.

“Can you- can you please not make me the only naked person here?” Awkward tugging on his shirtfront snapped him out of it, quickly pulling off his own clothes until there was nothing left between them but air and moonlight.

~~~

He was certain he must have saved the world in a previous life. There was no other way to explain why this.. this.. staggeringly glorious magnificent person wanted him. He was ordinary, unremarkable, absolutely not built like a mythical god like the man standing nude in front of him, for him.  Self-doubt must have shown on his face because he was suddenly pulled into a fierce embrace, fingers under his chin, forcing his eyes to meet Chu Ge’s. “Stop. You’re doing it again, questioning yourself. You’re everything I want, everything I’ve ever wanted. You pull me in like the tide, Xiao Guo.”

[diinofayce]

Shadows on the Horizon - 3

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x OFC! Layne Hardin | Word Count: 3k | Warnings: Swearing, mentions of past alcohol abuse, light mentions of sexy time (18+ below the cut to be safe) | Authors Note: This is a sequel to my series Like A Whisper in the Night | Shadows on the Horizon Masterlist

Layne leaned against the kitchen counter, still in her gear from the mission. A sealed bottle of beer stood solid and real in front of her, rivulets of condensation ran down the sides and created a ring around the glass bottle. She licked her lips and spun the little poker chip on the counter every so often the little golden ‘9’ catching the rising morning sun.

She’d been awake for over 24 hours and somewhere in the middle of waking and now her whole life had turned upside down. Biting the side of her tongue hard with her back teeth she sucked in a ragged breath, trying to keep her composure and control. Tears burned hot behind her eyes and all she wanted to do was throw the stupid little blue chip across the room and slam that beer in two gulps.

Flick, spin, spin, spin, spin, wobble, clink. Flick, spin, spin, spin, spin, wobble, clink. Over and over she spun the poker chip that celebrated nine months of sobriety, that she kept in the pocket of everything she wore so that she could feel its hard reminder. She had been doing so well, Bucky told her constantly how proud he was of her. But Bucky wasn’t here. He was this morning - yesterday morning - and now he wasn’t. Now there was a stranger in his body and his mind, one that everyone had been so sure was long gone.

All she wanted was her Bucky back.

~*~

“Mmm, do we have to go on this mission?” Layne pouted, looking pleading at her boyfriend. The morning sun was just breaking above the horizon and filtering in through their blinds. The rays catching dust motes and falling softly over the planes of Bucky’s bare chest.

She ran her fingers across his skin, brushing her fingers through the soft, dark curls that splayed across his pecs and circled his nipples. He reached out with his metal hand and with the utmost care brushed the long strands of brown hair from her cheeks and tucked them behind her ear. Layne’s heart stuttered at the love and gentle nurturing behind the gesture and she bit her bottom lip to stop her smile from splitting her face in two.

“Of course we do,” Bucky rumbled, his voice still deep and thick with sleep.

“But what if I want to be selfish and lay in bed with you all day? Maybe do some other things in bed,” Layne teased, rolling so she was half laying on Bucky’s chest and wiggled her butt in the air to tease him.

Bucky groaned and grabbed a handful of flesh over the thin white sheet that covered Layne’s naked form from him. “Is that an order from the squad commander?” Bucky questioned leaning forward so he could capture his lips in hers.

Layne melted against him with a soft moan, Bucky’s lips were like heaven to her. Soft and plush, but protected by the prickly little hairs of his beard and mustache - the itch they caused against the sensitive skin around her mouth making her crave to feel his cheeks between her thighs. She pulled away, tugging Bucky’s bottom lip between her teeth and releasing it with a soft snap, giggling at the sound. Bucky grinned his lopsided little grin at her antics as his hands slid underneath the sheet and slowly ran up and down her sides.

“I don’t think I should use my power so egregiously the first time I get it,” Layne responded, sounding disappointed.  

“Hmm, probably not. Steve would be very disappointed in his little protege.”

“Can you not talk about Steve when you’re playing with my nipples?” Layne requested as Bucky plucked both of her hardened nubs at the same time.

Bucky laughed and buried his face in her neck, sucking softly on her pulse point, not hard enough to bruise but enough for heat to flood across her skin.

“Think we can still make it to the briefing in thirty minutes?” Bucky asked against her skin.

“I think they’ll hold the jet for ten minutes if they need to.”

~*~

In one swift move, Layne snatched the chip up off where it was mid-spin on the counter and the bottle of warming beer. Placing the chip under the cap of the beer and using it as a fulcrum in her hands she popped the cap off just as Sue, Sam, and Steve walked into the kitchen.

“Layne, come on, what are you doing?” Steve admonished softly. He didn’t want to scold Layne, but he knew she would regret it in the morning.

“My doc said having one every now and again during particularly stressful events was okay as long as I could stop at one,” Layne gritted out, her knuckles white around the bottle. The problem was she wasn’t sure that she would stop at one.

“But do you want to risk it, sweetie? Possibly undo everything you’ve done?” Susanna asked, stepping up behind her and placing her hand over Layne’s on the small bottle.

“No, dammit!” Layne barked, slamming the bottle down on the counter, the beer foaming up over the mouth and running down the side. She stared at the froth on her hand, tempted to lick it off before swiping them angrily down the legs of her suit. “But what the fuck else am I supposed to do right now?”

“We make a plan,” Steve answered as Sue passed Sam the bottle who then tipped it upside down in the sink. Layne watched the beer pour out with a defeated heart and sighed, leaning heavily against the counter.

“There is no plan, Stevie. You guys almost killed each other the last time this happened, I’ve seen the footage on the internet,” Layne argued.

Steve hummed in agreement, his eyes not wavering off of the bruise blossoming on Layne’s throat. He stepped forward and with the back of his first two knuckles he tilted her chin up. She tried to hide the wince, but Steve felt the pull of her spasming muscles and knew that it had to be sore. She wasn’t enhanced like they were or super strong and able to take a blow like Sue. She was skinny and her big attitude clouded the fact that she was actually quite frail no matter how much exercise they forced upon her.

Sam nodded and crossed his arms over his chest. “I thought Shuri was supposed to get all of this out of him?” His tone was grim and annoyed all at the same time. No one in this building had fond memories of the Winter Soldier, but as Sam very nearly died a handful to times thanks to him he was feeling rather grouchy.

“You can’t remove memories,” Layne whispered, jerking her chin out of Steve’s grasp and glaring at him. “Only bury them.”

She had learned that the hard way when she tried to make a persistent ex-boyfriend forget about her. Whether it was the fact that she pulled two years worth of memories out at once or it shouldn’t really be done, to begin with she wasn’t sure, but he was currently in a nice facility for adults with traumatic brain injuries drooling down the front of his shirt.

“Barnes said that you’ve been helping him with his mind. Did you see that anything was starting to resurface?” Sam asked and Layne smiled wryly.

“Careful, Sammy. Keep it up and I’ll have to tell him you care about him,” Layne halfheartedly teased.

“Look, all I’m saying is this stuff doesn’t just pop on up from nowhere.”

Layne shrugged but it was Susanna’s point that made her freeze and really think about the mission.

“What I want to know is, if you guys already destroyed one of those books, how many are there and why did they just happen to have one available?” she asked looking over her shoulder as Thor and Loki came into the kitchen, squabbling like always. She smiled as Thor settled into place behind her, one hand resting casually on her hip.

Layne looked away sharply, trying very hard not feel jealous towards her best friend or scared that she may never get Bucky back to where she would ever have such casual intimacy like that again.

Steve chewed on his bottom lip and looked over at Sam, worried etched deep into his face. “That’s…a really good question.”

“You think there’s a leak?”

Steve let out a huff of air and combed his fingers through his blond locks. “I don’t know. It was also Siberia, that’s where most of the Winter Soldier training facilities were. Maybe they had backups in different locations?”

“Suzu, you said during the mission that when Bucky took off it was because he seemed to know the guy he was chasing?” Layne asked remembering suddenly.

Sue nodded and scrunched her brows together in thought. “Yeah, I think the guys I took care of working as his escort. He didn’t have a weapon or anything and he definitely knew Bucky. Got one look at him and high tailed it out of there.”

“It’s possible we didn’t round up everyone that was involved with D.C.,” Sam offered.

“Whatever you decide for a long-term solution, we should probably come to a short-term one. Rabid dogs are usually not content locked in cages,” Loki warned ominously.

“He’s not a rabid dog, Loki,” Layne grit out just as a warning siren pierced through the air of the tower.

“Code Snow,” came Friday’s pleasant, yet urgent voice.

“Son of a…” Layne swore as Loki opened a portal to the subbasement.

The group rushed through only to see the large glass container standing in the middle room without a scratch, door still closed and locked, but empty of any captive.

[elizabeth-234]

Chapter Twenty

Someone to Care

Summary: What happens when everyone makes an assumption about their friendly neighborhood spider?

Word count: 4k

Chapter Nineteen 

Natasha accelerated through the traffic, weaving in and out of the cars all at a standstill. It was exhilarating and there was a superior air around her because of the sleek vehicle she was riding. Her old motorcycle had been destroyed and she had quickly bonded with this new one. They had formed a kind of understanding with each other. An understanding that appreciated speed and demanded nothing less than the very best performance from both rider and machine.  

The sun streamed directly overhead as the people rolled their eyes at the motorcyclist disregarding the traffic laws. Some even sneered when the driver veered onto the sidewalk at one point, scattering the pedestrians, and leaving them angry in her dust. The wheels turned at a high speed pace but her heartbeat remained constant, steady.

She swung into an alley, ignoring the no park sign, and turned off the motorcycle. Walking around to the front. Along the way sizing up the building and making sure everything looked normal. Natasha climbed the stairs that were quickly becoming familiar. The door’s paint was chipping around the edges and she winced at the lock they had. Anyone with a connection to YouTube could figure out how to break in. She would have to find a way to convince the occupants to upgrade somehow. After knocking once she waited, not wanting to barge in, before knocking louder a second time. A shout came from inside followed by footsteps.

The door swung open and the brunette stood before her.  Her body fell against the doorframe and Natasha could see tremors wracking her hands. Without saying a word May plucked herself away and led them further into the apartment. The couch dipped under their separate weights and May wiped her eyes on the sleeve of her shirt. Natasha wasn’t one to talk without reason and waited for the other woman to start. To tell her what she knew.  

As she waited, Natasha glanced around the room. Not for the first time she saw the picture of the Parker’s family. It looked like Peyton and Ben had come up behind May and planted a kiss on either cheek. A huge smile adorned May’s face and was a dramatically different image than the one sitting next to her. How cozy they all looked. How happy and loved they were in each other’s embrace. From Peyton she knew that her uncle was no longer with them and Natasha grieved the loss for them. With them.

Fingers grasped her wrist and she fought the urge to relieve them of their hold. The hand shook and their eyes connected, forcing her to focus on the situation at hand, and not idling’s of the past.  May took in a deep, ragged breath and broke the silence.

“She still won’t answer, Nat. On one hand I think I’m being paranoid, you know? Sometimes she goes off on her own, especially after Ben. But on the other hand I can’t help but worry. Something just doesn’t feel right and there’s this squeezing in my chest like I know she’s in trouble. She always leaves a note” Natasha took May’s hand in her own and clenched them together.

“Listen to me. What I’m going to ask you to do is hard. I know it is but I would never ask if it wasn’t important. I need you to trust me. Okay?” The woman searched her eyes and upon finding what she was looking for nodded. Relief coursed through her veins at her friend’s firm understanding. This would make it easier. “You have to stay here. I need you to stay here. I am going to find her. No, don’t interrupt. I said this would be hard and I meant it. You’re an amazing mother and I know you want to be there but this is what I was born to do. I can find her. I will find her and bring your baby back to you.”

May’s eyes closed in an attempt to control the tears that were begging to fall and Natasha, after everything, had a hard time predicting what her friend was thinking. The first time they met Natasha was exhausted and pissed off. Her motorcycle had been ruined and was annoyed that she had to take the subway. It was frustrating to leave herself so open on the public transit. Staring out the window all she wanted to do was get back to her place and to sleep the lingering days of reconnaissance off. She had put on her don’t bother me face and was left alone.

Then the excuse for a man had gotten up and started harassing May. Natasha observed her. The woman had remained calm, centered, the whole time only moving to bring her purse in front of her and reaching for what she assumed was pepper spray. Most people in uncomfortable situations looked around for help, for support but this one remained unflinching at the man. Maybe the woman was hardened? Like anywhere but especially New York, it wasn’t so forgiving and was easy to fall into a jaded view of the world. She found the opposite in the woman who thanked her profusely. Who trusted her, a stranger, after something so insignificant. With earnestness that you couldn’t pretend the woman’s shoulders fell in relief and she hugged her on the spot.

Natasha walked back, card in hand, wrapped in a warm daze. She knew it wasn’t in May’s nature to stand back and let life wash over her. No, she held more command of her life than that butNatasha could find her niece much easier if she didn’t have to worry about the woman following her.

Finally, May assented but her frown told a story of her reluctance. May gave her Peyton’s number along with a friend of hers from school and last May gave Natasha a number she already had. And it was her next destination.She left the woman in the apartment alone with some peace of mind knowing May wouldn’t be searching the city. The lights overhead casted shadows on her face as she sat on the couch waiting for her phone to ring.

Natasha put her helmet on and without a backward glance tore out of the alley making her way to Stark Towers.

It was ironic how life worked out sometimes. How the connections in your life welded you together with the people in it. She had been surprised when May had told her of the internship. Of the girl’s association with Tony. When they first met, well, properly met it had been the morning and she was still aching from her injuries the night before. The girl had been tense. Natasha was used to that type of reaction from people. The normal person could tell she was different. That there was a certain danger about her and like animal instinct it kept them away from her. So, no, she wasn’t offended by Peyton’s behavior. The girl was kinder than most. Almost alarmingly polite which made her smile. The moniker Miss Nat had made her laugh whenever the girl spoke it.

There was something though. The girl never acted afraid of her, just cautious, and because of that distinction Natasha observed her closer than normal. She was hiding something and it was bigger than her aunt could imagine. The fact that Tony had taken an intern was one clue.

The building loomed like something out of a child’s imagination in front of her. The lights streamed like beacons across the city. She knew he would never hurt the girl intentionally and he would be in a world of pain if something had happened to her on his watch. Natasha had a worried mother and friend waiting for her to bring the girl home and Tony was going to give her some answers.

Stark Towers was impressive and she never ceased to wonder how Tony’s ego could be grander than the building. She strode in, making sure to flash her ID badge, and smile to the secretary, Rob. He returned the smile and on seeing the seriousness in her eyes refrained from trying to chat. The lights of the city filtered in through the giant windows and she smiled. Stark Towers may be a beacon of hope to many in the city but the city was just as much apart of the building too.

“Hello Friday.”  

“Hello Natasha. Tony isn’t currently in. Should I let him know you are here?”

“Dammit,” Her teeth ground together in frustration. “Yes… Please. Sorry, Friday. It’s not you.”

Friday responded that it was no problem and she walked onto the floor. She bypassed the couch and chose to sit on a table positioned by the window. Once settled she stared out at the expanse in front of her, she had been many places around the world but loved the New York skyline against the setting sun. The apartment was silent besides the tapping of her foot against the table leg.Not five minutes later the sounds of Tony’s arrival came from below. He came rushing up the stairs, joining her on the main level.

“You know there is a perfectly comfortable couch right there, right?” She stared at him, repressing her frustration. He looked like shit. His clothes were wrinkled with dark stains under his armpits. His hair, which on a normal day had a physical pulchritude –though she would never tell him that- looked greasy and unkempt. “What do you want Nat? I am kind of busy at the moment.”

“I want to know where the girl is, Tony.” He stared at her.

“How do you know about Peyton?”

“I know May. May Parker and she’s worried sick. So help me if you got her involved in anything.”

“I didn’t get…” He started indignantly before he threw his arms up and fell down into the couch. His forearms came up to rest on his thighs as his head bent down like he was praying.

“I don’t know where she is, Nat.” He sighed. “Where do you think I was, eating a bon-bon? No, I was out there. We’ve been looking into this warehouse that she was shot at and it’s bad. The shit I found there dates back so far. I was even thinking about contacting Rogers to see if he knew anything about it.”

“Okay, I’m going to ignore the fact that you just said she was shot, for now. But what warehouse? Tony?”

The table slid out from under her when she hopped off. She tapped their shoulders together as she sat down and waited for him to answer. He pulled up a screen, which hovered over the coffee table and pulled some footage. When the image of the building appeared her heart dropped. The reel continued and she couldn’t move. Natasha was helpless as she watched the strings in her life pulling tighter, leaving her bound in a web she hadn’t seen. One she couldn’t have possibly known was already woven around her.

She watched as the girl also caught in the web sported a familiar looking spider on her chest. The girl and Tony split up and she looked on as Tony found the same room she had.

She thought back to when she found that room. The files had just finished downloading and the computers lined against the wall went dark. Natasha snorted at the decoys and unplugged her encryptions. It was supposed to be a simple mission. Go in, grab the data, and leave undetected. Simple. But she had been distracted, unfocused, and paid the price. And out of character for her she missed something.

She had exited the building when four men came out of the shadows, surrounding her. They threatened and taunted her, but it was nothing she hadn’t heard before. Shutting out their incessant chatter Natasha focused on her breathing. Making sure she was taking deep breaths in and out she took them out one at a time. Their hits were no more intense than what she was used to but she was tired and that made her sloppier than normal.

The four men lay in various positions around the alley at the end of their confrontation. Natasha was left standing against the brick wall. Her breathing was heavy and she flinched as she lifted her head to look overhead. The night sky was out but the stars were shrouded by the city’s light pollution. It disturbed her to see the effect the city could have on the ineffable sky and had to turn away from the black. Grabbing a hoodie to cover up her injuries that she had stashed in the alley she noticed a small paper had fallen from the pocket. Before it had the chance to soak in the puddle she scooped it up from the ground, her side aching in protest.

The name stood out from the white background. She flipped it over and spied her own handwriting listing the address she hacked from the hospital. May did say anything after all. The aching in her chest worsened and she left the relative shelter of the alley, somehow making her way to help. To May Parker.

Her breath hitched as she stared at the image of the girl sitting in the same alley she had been in only a week before. The red masked stared up at Natasha from the ground. The same warehouse. The same alley. The same girl tangled in the same web she had been caught in.

“Tony, what have you done?” What had she done?

“Look, she was already doing this before I showed up and then we got to know each other. The kid is brilliant. She designed so much of that suit and then after Germany I was going through some stuff and she got hurt when I wasn’t there so I told her we would go there together. It seemed like the perfect training exercise. I’ve been looking all morning and left so many voicemails to her yesterday. I thought she was just out with that friend of hers, but I can’t find her.”

With care she let her fingers rest on his back before speaking. “I think I know where she is Tony.” His spine went straight under her fingers. She tried to explain as best she could without giving away need-to-know information.

“I was sent by Fury to gather information on an off sect of Hydra. They were working on something that he was interested in and I was contracted to get the data for him.” She left out the part where she got sloppy and was hurt. “They must have followed me. I was…. distracted and went to the Parker’s. She’s a nurse. May, that is. And now I would bet anything that they have her.”

He lacked his normal smirk and witty comeback. Instead he stood up without looking at her. “Suit up. We are going to go get the kid.”

The images of the warehouse transformed to a glowing map in front of them as Natasha directed their plan. While they had found the information and had both visited the warehouse, Natasha didn’t think that was where Peyton was. The actual building lacked the versatility of a headquarters. She thought that the base would be somewhere else; somewhere more secure. Under the files she had found there were other buildings leased to the same name under the pseudonym of Imperial Industries. The locations spanned across the city but after a brief conversation with one of her sources they narrowed it down to one with an influx of activity. With grim looks they embarked to find Spidergirl. To save Peyton.

—————————----------------------

The halls were narrow as she navigated through the building, gun at the ready. Her and Tony had split up at the entrance, hoping to find the girl faster. His face had been tight and he hadn’t given room for argument as he strode off into one end of the labyrinth like halls.

Tony liked to take the obvious power heavy approach. His tactics were muscle through and ask questions later. She, on the other hand, liked a more subtle style but today she took on his methodology and burst into the security room. Three men yelled in uproar as her anger mounted. Without looking she took them out and observed the cameras. There it was.  She tried to keep it under wraps, to stay levelheaded, but with every twist and turn her stomach clenched tighter.

The corner impeded her vision and she had to peer around to get a clearer look at the unexplored hall. A man and a woman were standing in front of the reinforced door she saw on one of the monitors. She felt the various knives and guns hugged tight against her body, comforting in their embrace.  

Squaring her shoulders she took a deep breath in before turning the corner. Her shoes clicked against the floor and the two occupants turned, pointing their weapons at her. The first, a prissy looking woman, shot and Natasha ducked before picking up her pace.

Strategically it would be better to take out her strongest opponent first, the most aggressive. At this point Natasha didn’t care who went first. The woman stepped forward. Her black leather outfit seemed a tad on the nose but Natasha admired the buckles on her boots, spotting a slot for a knife in the back of her heel. There was no time to play cat and mouse and she brought her gun up to shoot, just missing. She noticed that the man did not engage and stayed in front of the door.

Their fists connected and her lips pressed together from the jarring contact. Natasha wound her arm back before bringing it forward with a grunt, hearing a crunch as the woman fell back. Her nose started bleeding and she flinched but didn’t raise her hand to the point of impact.Natasha brought her hand to her side slipping a knife out of a pocket and released it into the air. A thump resounded around the hall as the woman’s body fell. The knife was standing at attention in her forehead.

Her neck cracked as she grabbed another knife before walking toward the man. His gun stayed at his side while his eyes searched her gaze. Her chest aching from the exertion and she took the moment to catch her breath.  

“Hit me,” He said, the sound low and resolute. Natasha flicked her eyes to the corner of the hallway. Two cameras. His body moved slowly, giving her enough time to mimic his stance before he winked. There was no time to talk, to find out why he was letting her through. Her feet pounded as she ran forward kicking him square in the chest. The door shook as he fell back and without waiting she punched him in the nose causing his head to bounce off the metal again. His body pooled at her feet and she slid it away.

The door’s lock was familiar to her and she knew how to crack it. Instead she shot it twice and swung it open. Before entering she sent Tony a message. “Stark I think I located her. Sending you coordinates now.”

Her gun breached the entrance first and her eyes ran across the room, heart quickening at what she saw. Sturdy cuffs encased the girl’s ankles. Natasha could see the irritated skin peaking out from the edges on her ankles. Her clothes were what you would expect from sitting in a chair for more than twenty-four hours and droplets of a dark substance sprinkled across the front of her tank top. Peyton’s shoulders were drooping forward, hunched at an angle that looked uncomfortable. Most troubling of all was that she couldn’t see the girls face.

Natasha’s eyes were drawn to the imposing figure behind her. He leaned in a casual manner on the wall opposite to her and he smiled warmly at her entrance.

“We’ve been waiting for you Ms. Romanoff. Haven’t we, my dear?” His hands curled around her shoulders as he walked from the wall. Peyton’s eyes bore into hers, exposing the moisture forming to her eyes only.Natasha’s arms flexed and her gun rose higher.

“Step away from the girl.” He lifted his hands up to placate but didn’t step back. She inched forward trying to get closer.

“I would be careful if I were you, Natasha. You see this here?” He opened one of his fists and it held a slim device: a controller of some sort. “This is directly connected to the pinioned Peyton. She knows exactly what they do and, I’m sure, doesn’t want me to use it again.”

“Drop it slowly and kick it over to me. Do it, now. ” Her voice was low and seriousand his smile dimmed a bit, unused to people unwilling to play the game.

“And why would I do that? You expect me to give up my leverage?” Natasha stepped forward again, now in the center of the room.

“Leave the girl alone. What do you want?” A million different scenarios came to mind and the one she was dreading the most poured from his lips.

“Why, you of course. You took something of ours and we want it back. Peyton here was just a way to a mean. Although we certainly had fun.” The girl flinched at his comment, folding into herself.

“Shut up.” She made sure to keep the quiver from her voice, to not betray her emotions. The pounding of her heart drummed loud in her head but fell silent to the others.

“I don’t think so Natasha. No, we are just getting started.” His hands rose in front of him and her hawk like eyes stayed glued to his blue ones. Their cold color looked back at her, not an ounce of humor present.  She couldn’t stand to listen to anything else he had to say.

“Close your eyes. Now.” The girl, bless her, followed her command as soon as she spoke it and a gun went off. It’s booming thunder echoed around the room, ricocheting off of the walls and into their ears. Natasha ran forward pumping her arms. Her knees hit the damp floor and the molded metal was cool under the vise like grip of her fingers but unmoving.

Her fingers let go of the cuffs and hovered in the air, afraid to move closer to the body shackled there. Dark swirls of yellow and purple painted her skin.  Her hair normally bouncing with life was wilted like an un-watered plant. Tears gathered in the creases bunched together at the corner of her eyes. She could feel the cool temperature of Peyton’s skin radiating through the air to her fingers. They remained bound in the air for fear of hurting her.

“You can open your eyes now sweetie. It’s going to be okay.” Green met brown and their skin touched. Her cheek was soft and Natasha could feel the swelling.

A groan came from the third occupant of the room. His prone body dispatched on the ground. The metal device had fallen to the side and she launched herself at it. Once the sleek metal was in her hands she turned to the supine man. Deep maroon liquid was seeping into the clothing at his shoulder. His moans continued at a high interval. Natasha grabbed her gun and pistol-whipped his head, causing the man to fall silent. Pressing the button caused a whirling to sound behind her. The restraints bloomed open but Peyton remained still. The floor was hard against her knees as she got closer to her and made sure to stay in the girl’s line of sight the whole way.  

“It’s okay, Peyton. You’re safe now.” Natasha’s hands curled around her small forearms, aware of the injuries scattered there, and brought her arms forward. The hands resting between hers were swollen and red, and she moaned as they were freed into a normal position.

Natasha could see the spikes crusted with red on the inner circle of the cuffs and examined the girl’s wrists closer. Underneath all the bruising and irritation she saw small indentations ingrained in the skin and her stomach crawled with realization. She had seen much bloodshed and horrors in her relatively short life. More than most people would see but everything about this struck her the wrong way. The way Peyton’s eyes remained glassy and unseeing. How she kept her arms still angled backward, like they were yearning to be back in the restraints. She didn’t say anything as Natasha moved her body and whispered to her. Her body rigid like a doll not used to motion. Natasha tucked the girl in her lap and cradled her to her chest, hoping to leech some warmth into her.

It was quite for some time. Their breaths and heartbeats unmatched: one much faster and more erratic than the other. Peyton seemed to sense a change and leaned into her chest. The girl’s ear pressed against her heart listening.

The door exploded outward and the red and gold suit came bursting in. Seeing as the danger was out of commission his helmet slid straight back revealing his face.

“Oh my god.” He whispered not walking further into the room. “Is she okay?”

“You need to do a scan. I didn’t want her moved out of here until we knew for sure what had happened.” His fingers flew as the light shined up and down on her body. The eyes that were normally full of mirth were haunted and more resigned with every word that graced his screen. Her skin was still too cool and left a clammy feeling on her own.

“That son of a bitch.”

“I know but she’s going to be okay.” Careful of the girl’s fragile body she slipped off her jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders.

“We...”

“No, I’ll take care of him, Tony. You need to get her medical attention. You’ll be faster than me anyway. Plus, extracting information is one of my specialties.” His eyes flickered over to her before nodding. One of his knees touched the ground as he gathered the fragile girl in his arms. Her arms and legs spasmed at the contact, kicking out against the unknown touch. His powerful arms clasped her to his suit and condensation puffed onto his suit from her breath.  She looked so small, so fragile against the powerful body holding her. Peyton’s eyes were scrunched closed against the light.

“It’s going to be okay, Peyton. We got you. I got you.” His hoarse voice was no louder than a whisper. “I got you. Look at me.” Finally her eyes focused and she saw him. The relief was palpable and shone out of her eyes and into Tony. His breath caught in his throat as she turned her body as much as she could into his suit, latching onto any crevice her small fingers could get in. The metal fingers came and smoothed her hair back before seeing a cut in her hair line and bringing his fist back to hold her to him.

Natasha was awed observing their reactions, feeling the trust and love radiating between them. She felt bereft of the body that had taken comfort from her before. How after all of what she had been through could she still trust so easily? The girl was so much like her aunt in that way. He straightened his back and went to walk out before looking back at her and nodding. They would talk later.

With a roar of his turbines Tony and the girl left. A grin stole across her face and she felt giddy on beholding the man on the floor. She was indeed skilled at gathering information and could make the experience as pleasurable as she wanted. Or as painful.

His body fell against her as she hoisted him in the air. Uncaring she threw his body into the seat that had been vacated. The body slumped forward and Natasha withstood his touch a moment longer to clamp the restraints shut. They were made for much smaller hands and his thick wrists pushed against and splurged out of the sides. When he woke up he would be surprised to find his situation switched with the girl he stole from them. Natasha, though, would be quite pleased with the information recovered. Like she said, she always delivered.

Chapter Twenty-one 

Thank you!