#i missed writing these too... bully me about it more often~

[scenteddelusion5]

Hi, can I request a platonic Rosie(or several overlords if that’s okay) with a Female reader who’s a teenager overlord who accidentally became an overlord?

The Overlord of Disasters

Fem teenage reader x platonic Rosie (and other overlords)

This got way too long so I tried to shorten it, hope you still enjoy it.

Word count: 2886

Note: I actually am working on a young adult/teenager oc that has the powers to become an overlord, so the fact that this is my first request is very funny. When I've finished her design, I'll write about her. But for now, here is the story of Y/n the overlord of disasters.

Y\n had to admit that she wasn't the nicest person but she never expected to end up in hell. HELL, like yess she was a bit of a troubled teen... she was a petty thief, yess, but some of her peers were much worse. Besides, she was only fifteen when she died. She never had the chance to do better. That should've given her at least some leeway? Right?? RIGHT???

But no, she ended up in hell.

When Y/n first arrived, she roamed the dangerous streets looking for shelter. Her face and slim goat-like stature was hidden by a torn cloak. She tried to be inconspicuous, discreet, low-key but she overlooked one thing... Our Y/n was ridiculously clumsy. So when she tripped over her own foot, her arm bumped into the light pole causing it to fall over onto a postal van. That in turn caused all the letters to fly out on the street. Some of the papers got carried up by the wind, eventually getting stuck onto the cord of a power pylon. Then there was fire, which spread onto a building...

Everyone's eyes were focused on her, including a set of hollow eye socket. It didn't take long for the demons that lived in the now burning building to storm her.

"YOU FUCKING BITCH!!!" One incredibly tall shark demon took the lead. "I'm going to rip fucking longs out of your chest and feed it to those CANIBAL FREAKS!!!"

At first Rosie didn't want to intervene. It really wasn't her style to get involved into random street fights, even though she found Y/n's disastrous display hilarious. But now that the loan shark insulted her people, she felt it was her duty to step in.

"Gentlemen, whatever might be the problem?" Rosie stepped in between you and the threatening hoard and flashed her sharp teeth to them. "You aren't bullying this poor newcomer, right?"

"Uhm, n-no miss, uhm Rosie. We're sorry." Before Rosie could open her mouth again, they ran back into the still burning building.

The overlord then turned to you. "Now darling, I take it you don't have a place to stay?"

Y/n shook her head.

"Then you can stay with me. I'm quite the powerful demon."

From that day on Y/n stayed with Rosie. During the years of living together, the two grew quite close. The overlord took over a motherly role for the teen. Everyone in cannibal town loved the unofficially adopted daughter of Rosie, they were even willing to put up with Y/n's clumsy nature.

Rosie truly loved her and when Y/n accidentally called her mom while helping out in the store, she was the happiest demoness in all of hell.

From that day on Rosie introduced Y/n as her daughter to anyone and everyone, even some of her fellow overlords.

Alastor and Y/n had met many times and often had tea together. The man often joked about how it's never boring with her. She had also met Zestial and Camilla a few times, but she wasn't as close with them as Alastor and Rosie.

One day Y/n had to make a trip to the Doomsday district. Rosie had, reluctingly, sent you to deliver a dress to a customer. She was all alone, her hand rested on the angelic steel knife on her belt. Rosie had given it to her so she could protect herself, just in case. Most people knew you were close to several overlords but you could never be more careful, especially Y/n.

Y/n was repeating her 'safety protocol' in her head.

Stay away from the walls

stay away from the poles

stay away from the demons

Stay away from the fire

Look where you step

Hold th-

She walked into something and fall back on her but. Looking up was a demon she recognized... An overlord, he was in charge of the Doomsday district.

"WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!!!" This situation seemed awfully familiar.

Y/n clenched her shirt. "I'm sorry sir, I didn't mean to."

"I DON'T CARE!!!"

The demon was menacingly towering over her. She crawled back and pulled herself up. Seeing as this wasn't going to be resolved with a pleasant conversation over tea, Y/n pulled out her knife. Her arms were shaking and the knife felt heavy in her hands.

"What do you think that toothpick is going to do?" He stepped forward and you stepped back. On and on until she hit the wall... OH no... she hit the wall...

Her elbow hit the random waterpipe on the side of the building and broke it. Water spewed out right into the overlord's face. The demon fell back. The water had landed on the street, causing a car to slip and running over the overlord and crashing into the wall. This in turn caused the satellite aerial to fall down and slightly bumped your back. The knife shot out of your hand right into overlord. The aerial send out a weird frequency.

"Spare me... Please..." The overlord gasped out.

Y/n was still shaken up. "What?... Uhm I don't plan on killing you." her voice sounded unsure, which the overlord took way different than you meant.

"Please!" He wailed. "I'm begging you... You can have all my souls, just please."

"I don't uhm..."

"PLEASE!!! TAKE THEM!!!"

"... Sure...??" She said very confused. "I'll take them." The two shook hands and immediately, Y/n could feel the pure power flowing through her veins. "Alright... Bye now?" As she stepped away a shadow covered the overlord. Before Y/n could look up a piano hit the demon, pushing the knife deeper in effectively killing him.

What the fuck just happened?

Everything was quiet. All eyes were on her, again... As always, only this time, she doubted she would be saved this time. She was prepared to be killed again... Only nobody did anything, no demons threatening to kill her, no stray bullets that got way to close to her head, not even another butterfly effect disaster... The demons around just stared.

One small demon with black eyes walked up to you... "What are you going to do to us?"

"What...?"

"What are you going to do to us?" He repeated. "You are the new overlord of the Doomsday district, you own our souls."

"I... I don't." She awkwardly grabbed at her sleeves. "I'm not an overlord."

"Yes, you are. You defeated the previous overlord of doom, took over his souls and territory, you became an overlord." Y/n stayed silent at this. "How about we talk in private?" He took her into a smaller building nearby, away from all prying eyes. "Let's start over. I'm Piper. You own my soul." The small demon introduced himself.

"Uhm... Y/n, and I'm no overlord. Overlords are like scary, like WHA!" She made grabby gestures with her hands. "And BOE! I'm anything but that."

Piper looked at her like she had just grown another head. "How about this? I'll keep your territory in control while you think this over a bit? And in turn, you'll keep me in high up in the social latter here."

Her mouth was dry. "... Deal..?" She was so confused.

From that day on Piper took care of the Doomsday district for her. Y/n never went to Rosie about this. She always wanted to keep her daughter safe and would be so mad to find out she got into trouble again... At least that's what Y/n convinced herself.

Even though Piper took care of most of the problems in the Doomsday district, word got around of the new overlord of disasters; a terrifying force of nature that shouldn't be reckoned with. So of course there were demons that wanted to challenge her. Every other day y/n needed to sneak out of Cannibal town to 'fight' these challengers. See 'fight' as in accidentally defeating them.

Y/n was filing her bag with a cloak and a mask she picked up to hide her identity when a knock came from her door.

"Y/n darling! It's me and Alastor." Rosie opened the door and summoned a table. "Please sit down, we want to talk to you."

She sat down in the Victorian style chair, but not before stumbling a bit.

"Little lamb, your mother is worried about you." Alastor broke the silence.

"Deary, you've been sneaking out a lot and staying away for longer and longer and when you come home you're exhausted-" Rosie took a deep breath "- what I'm trying to say is that you can talk to me if something's wrong... You know that right?" Her cheeks were droopy, a frown plastered on her porcelain face, it made Y/n's stomach turn.

"I'm fine, mom. There is no need to worry about me." She lied.

Alastor's eyebrows down, almost like he wanted to frown, but he still had that giant smile on his face. "Are you sure? If somebody is bothering you, we don't mind serving them for tonight's dinner. Hahaha." He joked, underneath, however, he was nervous. The Radio demon had grown quite fond of her and, knowing how clumsy she could be, he couldn't help but worry.

"No, one is bothering me... Thank you for offering though." At this point, Y/n had grown used to the cannibalistic tendencies of the people around her and so shrugged Alastor's joke off.

Rosie had a bad feeling about this. "Can you at least tell us where you've been sneaking of to?"

Shit

Y/n didn't have excuse for this. "J-just some friends... I.. I didn't want them to be scared off, so I didn't tell them about you. I'm sorry mom." Tears filled her eyes, she didn't want to lie to her. Rosie had done so much for her... She was planning on giving this whole being an overlord up anyway, there was no reason for Y/n to tell the truth now. It'll be like it never happened and then she can go back to her normal life with her mom.

Rosie stared into her cup. "Alright deary, but please make sure to be careful. Genuine friends are rare in hell."

"Thanks mom." Y/n stood up again and left the imperium, through the front door this time.

Alastor squinted his eyes, following your silhouette. Something was wrong, you were lying. He could feel it... But this was Rosie's responsibility, so he should leave it up to her. "She is lying."

"I know but if she isn't ready to talk about it, then I'll wait."

"On a different note, did you hear that the Doomsday district has a new overlord." Alastor took a sip from his 'Oh, Deer' mug. "They've been defeating demon after demon. I've been meaning to meet them for my radio show, would you like to come with me?"

Y/n was walking down the street to the Doomsday district. I should've just told Rosie the truth. She thought. But she had panicked and lied, only making it harder for herself.

Stepping into the same, small building where Piper first dragged her off too, Y/n put on her overlord disguise.

"You didn't break anything, right?" Piper asked, dressed in a brand-new suit. "I don't want to fix the sewerage again."

"It went fine!" She put up her thumb, before knocking over a chair that landed on a vase, breaking it in two thousant pieces. "Sorry."

Y/n and Piper walked around the district for a while, more so to let the demons know that the overlord of disaster was still around and that they were close with Piper. She caused chain reactions all around her, letting people know she got her title for a reason... Not her fault the denizens of hell took it the wrong way.

The two were rounding the corner when a familiar set came into view... What were Rosie and Alastor doing here? Y/n's panic only grew once she realised Alastar was trying to get her attention. Did they recognize her? What was happening?

As the two overlords came closer and closer, Y/n ducked into an alleyway and seemingly disappeared~

The dumpster wasn't Y/n's first choice of hiding place but it was the only one she had.

Piper was left alone on the burning streets with two dangerous overlords heading straight for him.

"Where did she go?" The woman, who Piper recognized to be the cannibal overlord, asked. "I swore she was just here."

"And what relation do you have with this new overlord, my incredibly short fellow." The second man Piper knew all too well. The terrifying Radio demon. "I was hoping to speak to her."

"Ah, I- I'm incredibly sorry... B-but the disaster overlord doesn't like dealing with overlord stuff, so she makes me represent." Piper sputtered.

"I see, but you see I want to speak to the REAL overlord. Not some pathetic representative." Dials appeared in Alastor's eyes and strange symbols started floating around. "GOT THAT."

"YES!"

"Lovely, then you can set up an audience for me. How does Friday sound?"

"Perfect, Friday at 5 p.m."

"Great, I can't wait to meet her." The two overlords went on their merry way again through the streets of Doomsday district.

Friday came around and nothing. Alastor had waited for twenty minutes, yet there was no sight of the disaster demon or her little pet. This was rich, never before was the overlord stood up like this. Who would dare to waste his time?! Alastor's stature as well as his antlers grew. That day there was a very horrifying broadcast and Y/n was at home with Rosie. She had to admit she almost peed her pants when Alastor openly threatened her on the radio broadcast...

There was no way she could come clean now. From that day on, you didn't show your overlord self once. Always letting Piper deal with everything.

That was until he came running to you, a letter in hand. It was an invitation to an overlord meeting, one she wouldn't be allowed to send Piper to. At first she didn't want to go, but Piper thought that would be a surefire way to piss off even more overlords. She had to go.

That's how she ended up, dressed in her cloak and mask, in front of an office building in Carmilla's circle of the pentagram. Stepping into the building the place was quiet, no one was around... Was this a trap? Y/n continued on the conference room, although more cautious. Room 666.

Everyone was already there. Were you supposed to come early?

"Disaster demon, glad you could join us." Carmilla spoke first. "We weren't sure you would show up anymore."

Y/n kind of shrugged trying her best to hide her voice.

"How rude, this new generation of overlords ought to know their place. Don't you think so Zestial?" Alastor commented half-jokingly.

"Yes, I must agree." The oldest overlord answered.

You wobbly sat down in your seat, but in doing so breaking the seat. A metal leg shot out to Vox, who protected himself. It ricocheted to the chandelier, which luckily kept hanging. Unluckily though, one of the more heavy ornaments fell down onto the table. It broke in two.

With each sound and broken item, Y/n hugged herself more and more until she resembled more of an hedgehog than a goat. She felt incredibly awkward, tears came out of her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"I'M SORRY!!!! YOU ALMOST BROKE MY SCREEN AND DESTROYED THE CONFERENCE ROOM AND ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY IS SORRY?!!!" Vox screamed, he was about to launch over the broken table but Alastor stopped him.

"Not a step closer my pal." Alastar's horns grew, showing that he was serious in protecting the newest overlord.

"There is only one demon in the entire universe who could create such a mess." Rosie spoke to herself. "Y/n is that you?" Rosie almost couldn't keep herself from smirking when she removed her mask.

"Yes... I-"

"Alright, everyone out this meeting is over!" Carmilla said. The demons left but only with some push. "Not you three."

They were all looking at you, Carmilla, Zestial, Alastor and Rosie, waiting for an explanation.

"Be- Before you get mad at me, this was an accident."

"I'm not mad about my conference room, now explain." Carmilla's eyes stayed focused on her, like lion waiting for its prey.

"I don't just mean the conference room, this was an accident." Y/n points to herself. "I didn't mean to become an overlord. It just kind of happened and I thought you would be mad at me and then I dug myself into a deeper hole, and now I'm here dressed like this embarrasing myself in front of everyone." The tears that had been slowly building up, started flowing.

"Oh deary." Rosie stood up and gave you a big hug. "I could never be mad at you. I just wish you would've told me. We can work this out together, besides this means you have the power to protect yourself. You don't know how worried I was if you would ever find yourself in a sticky situation alone."

"Thanks mom." Y/n hugged her back.

"If I may interrupted your lovely bonding time, but how exactly did you 'accidentally' defeat the previous overlord?" Alastor asked.

"Oh, I didn't defeat him." She explained. "He got runover by a car, then he decided to give me all his souls and a piano dropped on him."

"Excuse me?"

Masterlist/request guidlines

[hxney-lemcn]

The Riddle of Love — Gotham! Edward Nygma x gn! reader

summery: Edward's interest shifts to someone who indulges in his love of riddles.

tw: bullying (?), kristen kringle is a warning all her own in this fic, implied rejection (not really tho, Ed's just awkward).

a/n: I hope so much that I wrote all these characters correctly. I have riddler fever rn and really wanted to write for him, but I've always been scared that I'd write him too ooc. I think I did good tho.

wc: 3.1k

Master List

“What is it that no one wants to have, but no one wants to lose either?” I asked. I already knew it was a lost cause. Edward Nygma was the smartest man I had ever met. Dorky? Yes. Nerdy? Absolutely. Smart? Incredibly. So trying to impress him at his own game wasn’t exactly the smartest move. Yet, the first time I gave him a riddle to solve (which he solved ridiculously fast), I don’t think I’d ever seen him so happy. So I continued to scour the internet in my free time to try and find obscure riddles. 

Although this riddle wasn’t that obscure. I was running out of riddles to find, and I sure as hell couldn’t make my own. 

“A lawsuit,” Eddie replied without missing a beat, still focusing on testing blood samples. 

I couldn’t stop the pout that formed on my face, “It’s not fair how smart you are.”

I didn’t see Ed’s lips twitch up, how the praise I didn’t think twice about saying impacted him more than he’d like to admit. It was quiet for a few minutes, and I looked back down to the papers I had brought with me. Sometimes, I found myself working in the forensic lab when I could. One of the perks of being a criminal data analyst. I could make my notes on paper, and then just copy them into the computer later. 

Since I was a data analyst, I was in the record archives often. I was acquainted with Kristen Kringle, which obviously led me to Edward Nygma. She would complain about him if I came in after he had left. At that point I didn’t know him, but I also found her complaints unfounded. I’d let her vent, but I’d also speak up for him, which made her glance away in what I assume was guilt. Then there were the unfortunate times that I’d walk in on his awkward flirting. I’d just tensely put away or take the files I needed for my research and leave them to it. 

But after enough times, I’d caught him in the middle of one of his riddles. An easy one, probably to dumb it down for Kringle so she’d be enticed to answer it in the first place. Yet he had caught the attention of the wrong person. Although that didn’t seem to put a damper on his mood. He only sent me a tight lipped smile with a little ‘ding ding ding!’. That’s how I was caught hook line and sinker. His mannerisms were oddly endearing to me, and that’s how our odd little friendship formed. 

I was brought out of my reverie as Eddie shuffled over to his microscope, “I am a nine lettered word and rhyme with perfection; I am another name for love. What am I?”

I blinked, not ready for a riddle, even though I always should be in the presence of him. I looked up from my work, and I noticed how Eddie was sweating, his cheeks flushing a bright red. I tapped the metal table anxiously, the word love had thrown me off my game and my brain felt empty of anything else. I mumbled words under my breath that rhyme with perfection. 

“Deception, reception, perception,” I mumbled, yet none of them fit the rest of the rhyme. The longer I took, the more anxious Eddie seemed to get. “Affection. Oh! The answer is affection!”

Ed cleared his throat, adjusting his glasses, “Y-yes, that is correct. G-good job.” My proud smile fell into a more awkward one, thinking over the implications. That riddle sounded like one he’d save for Kringle. Was he running out of riddles as well? The thought alone was preposterous. It was tense for a bit. And when I realized I had nothing left to do but input the current data I had on some wanna be gang leader. The sad part is I knew that the cops aren’t going to be the first ones who get them. 

Even though I needed to leave, it felt wrong for some reason. To leave the situation after Edward had seemed to admit something in his unique way of sharing. I didn’t want to assume his feelings, yet I knew he also wasn’t one to just state them willingly. Biting my lip anxiously, I decided to just do it. 

Walking over towards Ed’s hunched form, I leaned down to place a light kiss to his cheek, “I’ll see ya later Eddie.” Then I booked it out of the room, leaving behind a very flustered dork. 

It wasn’t much later in the day when Doctor Lee Thompson entered my office. It wasn’t much of an office. The dark walls made the space feel enclosed, and it barely fit my desk and the few cabinets it held. Yet I didn’t mind it since it was a space for myself. Lee, on the other hand, was another acquaintance whose office was nowhere near mine. She’d only come to my office for a few reasons, if it was work related (which was rare since our departments weren’t similar), or if it was personal. Sometimes she fessed that it seemed I needed some company, that it would do me no good to spend all this time alone in my office. Other times…it was on a more personal note, about Eddie and I’s relationship. 

She plopped a candy bar on my desk, a placating move that was all too familiar.

“You must’ve done a real number on Ed,” She smirked, sitting on my desk. Due to the tiny size of the room, and the nature of my job, I didn’t have a seat for guests. 

“What do you mean?” I asked. Deep down, I knew exactly what she meant. I knew Edward was an awkward man, and his experience with flirting was an ultimate zero. Yet it was hard to imagine that he was still affected by a small gesture of affection… Okay maybe the gesture wasn’t that small, for either of us, but still! 

Lee’s smirk widened, “I think you know exactly what. Poor little Ed kept stumbling over his words when I brought you up. Something must’ve happened.”

I unwrapped the candy bar as she spoke, wanting to avoid any thought of the earlier moment. Looking back it was so awkward and a terrible attempt at…what? Flirting? Was that my intention? I didn’t even know my own intentions! 

I took a bite from the candy bar, savoring the sweet flavor before having to explain the painfully awkward memory. When I managed to explain the event, Lee couldn’t stop herself from chuckling, causing me to finish my candy bar with a bitter look. 

“That sounds like something you’d both do,” She smiled.

“What’s that supposed to mean,” I huffed, trying to fight off the flush of embarrassment I felt. 

“Nothing,” She sighed wistfully. “But you two really take your time, huh?” 

“Shut up,” I scowled. 

“Okay, okay,” She threw her hands up in mock surrender. “I’ll stop teasing…for now. But seriously, I think you two would be cute together.”

I let out a childish groan, “I get it. Is there anything else you need?” 

“No,” She smiled as she stood up. “Just wanted to see what had Ed all wound up.”

I rolled my eyes, but my heart skipped a beat at the implication. As Lee saw herself out, my mind kept racing. What was Ed doing right now? What was he thinking about? Did he really care enough about my opinion, about my affection, that he was still affected by it? I stared at my computer screen, the cursor blinking mindlessly. Glancing at the time, I scowled as I realized I still had 30 minutes left to my shift. The idea of going home, having a relaxing dinner and then maybe treating myself to a warm bath. 

…

That was only the beginning. It seems that Eddie’s admiration had shifted from Kristin Kringle to me. It was flattering, to say the least. At least to me. Once I gained Ed’s attention, I seemed to have gained his colleagues attention as well. Typically, I didn’t work with the officers, I’d research criminals, then that data would be added to the files. So when I walked past James Gordon and Harvey Bullock, I never thought twice. But when Ed had waved at me, that cute tight lipped smile on his face as I waved back, a smile of my own adorning my face, it drew the attention of the two detectives. 

"Careful Ed,” Harvey mocked. “Don’t wanna scare them off.” Jim only glanced up briefly, not interested in the situation in the least. I watched as Ed’s smile twitched for a second, Harvey’s words seeming to get to him. I felt my smile slip, not liking how they treat him in the slightest.

“He…didn’t do anything wrong,” I shrugged, before waving goodbye, making my way to the record archives. Not only them, but even Kringle was looking at me more than just as a person to vent to. 

“I feel sorry for you,” She stated, adjusting her thick rimmed glasses. Her hazel eyes held their usual air of judgment as she placed some files back in their spots. 

“Why?” I asked, flipping through to find the person I needed. 

“Isn’t it obvious?” She asked, raising one of her perfectly maintained eyebrows. “Edward’s got his eyes on another victim.” I frowned, anger bubbling within me at the way she always found new ways to insult him. 

“I wouldn’t describe it like that,” I managed to grit out. “I find the sentiment sweet.”

“Wait,” Kringle paused, turning to look at me with disbelief. “Do you…like him?”

I sighed, finding it hard to focus on the task at hand with this irritating conversation, “Would there be something wrong with that?”

“Isn’t it kind of weird how fast he switched?” She asked, a hint of jealousy in her tone. “I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before he loses interest in you.”

I slammed the cabinet shut in a bout of rage, leaving the room before I do something I may regret…or lose my job over. As I exited, my scowl worsened when I realized I didn’t even get what I needed. 

“Hello!” Edward’s excited voice greeted me as I entered the break room. When my gaze landed on him, I felt my expression soften, my shoulder’s relaxing. His brown eyes were so expressive, that silly smile on his face never failed to melt my heart. 

“Hey,” I muttered back. Looking over the options in the vending machine. Just get something to eat, and hopefully I’ll feel better. 

“Is…something the matter?” He asked, fidgeting with his glasses. I let out a long sigh as I sat across from him at one of the few tables. 

Taking a bite of my snack, I took some time to gather my thoughts and feelings, “Sometimes I just hate people.”

His eyebrows raised, nervously fidgeting with his tie, “Th-that’s…understandable.”

“Sorry,” I muttered, finally cooling down. “Someone was just saying some really mean things and it got to me.”

Edwards’ demeanor changed in an instant, a frown replacing his smile, and his eyebrows furrowed in a mixture of concern and anger, “Who?”

I blinked, “What?”

“Who insulted you?” He asked, fists clenched. This wasn’t what I was expecting. He would get annoyed, yeah, but he’d always just stew in it until he calmed down. And he was barely angry when I was around, which was something I was proud of. So seeing him react so harshly was unusual. It made me feel a bit appreciated, that he cared enough to get this angry over it, yet it was also unsettling.

“They…they were insulting you,” I clarified, rubbing my arm awkwardly. “And trust me, I was ready to do some things that would’ve gotten me fired.”

Ed blinked, calming down drastically at the revelation, “Oh.” 

“Yeah,” I shrugged. “I swear if she says one more damned thing about you I’m gonna…” I strangled the air, the only way I could express how frustrated her insults made me.

Edward fake coughed, his cheeks tinged a light pink, “I assume you mean Miss Kringle.”

I paused, hoping it didn’t hurt that his past interest was still as rude as ever. “I didn’t even manage to get the files I needed,” I grumbled, hoping to lighten the mood a bit.

“...I can get them for you,” I felt my heart crack. Was he still interested in her? Was that why he was so ready to go into the den of the woman who so readily insults him? 

“Oh, no you don’t have to do that,” I shook my head. “I’ll just have Lee do it.”

Ed blinked, seeming to think over something before standing up, “I’ll be right back.” Before he was fully out the door he paused, “Whose case files did you need?”

I couldn’t help the tiny grin at how eager he was as I gave him the names of the people I needed files on. Yet that smile fell. Was he really so excited to get a chance to see Kringle that he almost left without knowing what files he needed? I finished my snack, getting a drink from the vending machine while I was at it. My mind continued to make up terrible scenarios that could be happening at that moment. How she could manage to crush Ed’s precious heart even more than she’s already managed to.

Ed was back quicker than I realized. It took him less than ten minutes! He set the files I needed on the table, that tight lipped grin on his face as he waited for my input.

“Oh! Thank you!” I thanked, flipping through the files to make sure they were all there. “She didn’t give you any trouble, did she?”

“No,” He replied simply. As I met his gaze, that’s when I finally realized that he was truly over Kringle. I should’ve felt disturbed at how intense his gaze was, at how strong his emotions seemed to be when he wasn’t even trying. Yet I only felt flattered, important, and wanted. Emotions I wasn’t completely used to, and caused my heart to stutter at how strong my own emotions were becoming. 

Standing up, I leaned in and kissed his cheek again, this time a bit more confident then the last time I did. I waved goodbye as I walked out with the files he gave me. I felt pride swell within me as I watched Eddie become a flustered mess as I left. It was a good mood lifter as I watched him fumble with his usual nervous ticks, before he was finally out of my sight. 

…

Edward’s courting tactics only seemed to grow after that. I wasn’t sure what changed him to do so. I could only speculate that Lee had something to do with it. She kept stopping by my office, asking how Ed and I were doing like she hadn’t just seen us the day before. I can’t lie, I was reveling in the attention that Ed was giving me, and I could tell he’d revel in my attention as well. A mutual pining on both sides. 

Normally, I’d be okay with that. Too scared to try and push things forward. Edward Nygma was different. He was just so…amazing. I’ve never felt so strongly towards someone. He was sweet, attentive, smart, and overall lovely. I couldn’t just settle for pining, I wanted to experience what it would be like as his lover. 

Which led me to this horrendous mess up of a confession.

I dressed up a bit nicer than usual, hoping to impress the cute dork. I felt confident in myself, an emotion I don’t feel regularly. I greeted Lee, who seemed like she guessed the occasion and sent me a wink when I walked past. 

“Hey Eddie,” I greeted, setting a cup of coffee down on the counter.

“Oh! Hello,” He greeted me, smiling. “You seem chipper this morning.”

Nudging the coffee towards him I smiled back, “It’s a good day today. I got you a coffee.”

“You didn’t need to,” Ed replied sheepishly, not used to people giving him things. 

I only shrugged, “I wanted to.” I tapped the counter I was leaning on as nerves started to slowly creep through me. So, before my anxiety could get the best of me, I blurted out, “What is mine but only you can have?”

With furrowed eyebrows, Ed actually paused to answer a riddle for the first time during this little game we had. His eyes flitted around the room, like he was trying to avoid the answer. I know he was smart enough to figure it out, so the fact he was taking so long to answer caused my heart rate to spike from anxiety. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe I was reading the room wrong. I blame Lee for feeding me a wrong understanding. 

“I…uh…” Ed stuttered over his words, sweat dripping down the side of his face. Shit, shit, shit! I shouldn’t have said that. He does know the answer, I found it online easily, he obviously knows. He doesn’t feel the same and now he’s trying to find a way to politely reject me. 

“Nevermind!” I exclaimed, trying to quell my nerves by getting the fuck out of here. “Stupid riddle! Never needs an answer. I should get to work.”

“W-wait!” Eddie called out, making me stop in my tracks. So close yet so far. “I can be a fruit, I can be on a calendar, I can be important, and I can be forgotten. What am I?”

Turning back around, I watched as Eddie picked at his nails. We both seemed like complete messes at the moment. It was hard for me to think of anything due to my previous failure of admitting my feelings. I bit my lip awkwardly, trying to stop myself from making any more of a fool of myself.

“I…I’m not sure Eddie,” I chuckled solemnly.

Clearing his throat, he adjusted his glasses before admitting, “A date. W-would you accompany me on one?” I stared at him with wide eyes, unsure if I heard him correctly.

“Y-yeah! Of course I will!” That tinge of embarrassment was quickly overpowered by exhilaration. The smile that stretched across my face almost hurt with how big it was. Eddie’s smile was also wide as he still couldn’t meet my eyes.

“Is…is tonight okay? Dinner? 7 o’clock?”

“That sounds perfect.” 

And to make the moment better, I kissed his cheek before parting, excited for what the night held for us.

[mikaela-the-slut-expert]

How about a Hualian x calamity!reader oneshot? Maybe HC and reader know each other already and pursue XL together? Idk, love your writing tho!

Gang up

Hua Cheng x calamity!reader x Xie Lian

So sorry it took a while, I had strep these past few days but I feel good now so ty for being patient with me 😙🖤🖤

I tried to make it vague enough to where you can input your guy's own character in there 🥰🙏

I hope it isn't too short, and if you can't tell I pulled some make believe facts out of my ass. Have to change the story up a little bit

Spoilers Below!!!

____________________________________

Everyone talks about the four calamities, but recently all three realms have been talking about a fifth one. Another terrifying, devastation level calamity. Because that's all the heavenly officials, someone else to worry about.

That's your bad, woops. It's not like it was on purpose. Maybe. It's not like it was your fault. Really! They should have known by now but your crimes and deeds have been hidden behind Crimson rain's for so long, everyone has thought there were only four calamities. Now, with so much activity from Hua Cheng it's impossible to hide behind him. Oh well.

Now you get your own title, lore, rumors and all that nice stuff since everyone knows you now. It's crazy how fast words spread.

You've always been here, in fact you and Hua Cheng appeared one right after the other. So of course with such a close timeline one of you was going to overshadow the other. Not that you have a problem with this.

Surprisingly you and Hua Cheng know each other well. You met a long, long time ago and have been friends ever since. Since you're such close friends. Why not live in paradise manor together, why not rule a ghost city together too? The two of you really are glued to each other's side.

The base of your friendship? Xie Lian. Now of course it's more than that. You're both dead, both calamities, both know Xie Lian, would do anything for Xie Lian, both knew Xie Lian. . .

You guys still hold affections for one another though so it's okay. And the best thing? I lied. You guys aren't friends at all. After hundreds of years of knowing each other you and Hua Cheng have seen the absolute worst in one another. You still stayed. He still stayed. Just because you guys are lovers doesn't mean that you're going to stop pursuing Xie Lian either. There's nothing wrong with three.

Now the second best thing is that none of you harbor jealousy against the other because usually you guys are side by side like Siamese cats causing trouble.

Very often the two of you gang up to pursue Xie Lian together. You guys even bully heavenly officials together. It's all a part of the fun.

So when Xie Lian initially hears about one ghost? He meets two. Like, okay so he has two calamity body guards. Neat. The same goes as follows. Just when he thought he only had to deal with one smart mouth, it's two. Feng Xin and Mu Qing are very annoyed by this but Xie Lian finds it endearing.

It's actually very nice. He used to have two people by his side, but then the trio was separated. Now he has two people by his side again and he doubts that you two will be leaving anytime soon.

Though, since you're actually a known calamity now the stories and details change up a little bit. Xie Lian can click a few more pieces of the puzzle together.

I mean how do you think Hua Cheng got so good in bed, he wasn't practicing on statues alone. How did Hua Cheng get his smooth, suave, attitude? That'd be you too. You had to encourage him to actually make a move on his precious dianxia instead of seeing him act like a blushing maiden anytime Xie Lian looks at him.

Not that you can speak differently on that one. You've always been there through Hua Cheng's worse and. . . worser. You're both awfully silly. Silly enough to give Xie Lian your ashes one random day.

When Xie Lian woke up with a ring of ashes around his neck? Pause. One ring? Isn't one missing? There's two of you. Hua Cheng and you so, where are your ashes.

He's absolutely delighted and curious when he finds out the two of your ashes are mixed. He finds it endearing the two of you trust each other that much and are so close. That's how he learned the two of you were lovers.

Because that's a big risk, a big promise. To mix your ashes and give it to one person. If Hua Cheng goes, you go too. If you go, Hua Cheng goes too. Which on a usual note would never happen.

Hua Cheng breaking Xie Lian's shackles is not a usual note though. He's devastated when not only one of his lovers fades away into a flock of butterflies but when his other lover does too.

The two of you would never leave him alone though, not with that ring around his neck. He knew you two would come back and you both did. Hand in hand, running to Xie Lian excitedly. The two of you would never have to disappear like that again.

Xie Lian doesn't mind that there's two of you. he has two hands, more the merrier. He's happy and loved. Isn't that all that matters?

____________________________________

I thought this new ashes idea of mine was cute so 🥰🙏 I hope you guys find it cute too

Sorry about grammar mistakes

[st-eve-barnes]

I could be your lifeline

(modern Aegon x fem Reader)

Summary: When you visit Helaena's apartment you find her depressed brother Aegon instead.

Word count: +3100

Warning: 18+ for explicit language and content, handjob, dry humping in the shower (so wet dry humping I guess?), no penetration. Mentions of depression, Aegon is a sad wet puppy.

I missed writing this troubled baby so you guys get some more comfort smut. This was written quickly so forgive me for any mistakes (or kindly point them out to me)

***

You knocked on the door to Helaena’s apartment that afternoon, dropping by just to have a chat as you so often did when you were in the neighborhood. You hadn’t expected to find another Targaryen at the doorstep, one you hadn’t seen in too many years. 

For a moment you were too stunned to speak. He looked rough, his hair shorter than it was back when you knew him but still just as messy, his eyes were red and his hoodie wrinkled and about three sizes too big for him. There was no polite way to say it, Aegon looked like shit.

“Hel’s not home,” he spoke, voice as rough as the rest of him.

“Oh, okay, I guess I can come back later then.”

“You’re free to come in and wait, if you want. She shouldn’t be too long.”

“Okay, sure, yeah.”

Aegon stepped aside and let you in. 

You immediately noticed the empty beer cans on the kitchen counter, and the dirty dishes in the sink. The tv was playing in the background and the entire room smelled of cigarettes, curtains were closed even though it was 4 in the afternoon on a cloudy day.

“She just went to the store cause we ran out of food,” Aegon explained.

“Okay,” you nodded and took a seat at the kitchen counter.

“Can I…um…get you a drink or something?” he asked.

“Just some water is fine.”

You watched as he grabbed a glass from one of the cabinets and filled it up for you.

“Hel didn’t tell me you were back,” you broke the silence between you two after he handed you the drink.

“I’m not, this is just…temporary.”

“Rehab didn’t stick then?” you nodded towards the empty beer cans all around the kitchen and living room table.

Aegon gave a weak smile,”Nope.”

He kept staring at you with a somewhat confused look on his face.

“You don’t remember me, do you?” you then asked.

“I feel like I should but…sorry, no.”

You told him your name but Aegon still looked at you as if he’d never seen you before in his life.

“I used to sleepover in Hel’s room all the time when we were little,” you explained,”Aemond always ignored me, you always bullied me."

Aegon stared at you for a while longer and then his lips curled up into a hesitant smile.“Aemond ignored you because he had a mad crush on you and didn’t know what to do about it.”

“Is that why you bullied me?”

“Hey, first of all, I never bullied you, I teased you, there’s a difference.”

“Hmm,” you grinned.

He avoided your eyes and you noticed he was blushing a little when he repeated your name,”Of course. I can’t believe I didn’t remember you.”

“It’s been many years, Aegon,” you reassured him,”We were just kids.”

“You look so different.”

“Older.”

“That’s not what I was going to say. You look…really good.”

“Thanks,” you smiled, letting your eyes meet his,”You look…”

“Like shit,” he finished your sentence while he sat down next to you.

“Like life hasn’t been kind to you,” you corrected him.

He nodded his head and sighed, quietly,”Yeah.”

“What happened?” you asked.

“Nothing,” he shrugged,”Depression, anxiety, addiction, pick one. It’s just…all so fucking meaningless, you know? Life’s…I don’t know, sometimes I think I’m just not equipped for it. ”

You took your time to look at him, his face was so pale it looked like he hadn’t seen sunlight in months.

“When did you last leave the house?” you asked.

He shrugged,”What’s the point?”

“When, Aegs?” you insisted.

“It’s been a few days, maybe a week,” he confessed.

“Aegon,” you sighed.

“It’s fine, you don’t…you don’t need to pretend to care.”

“I do care, Hel’s been my best friend since we were kids. You’re important to her, so you’re important to me as well.”

Aegon just shook his head,”But we haven’t been kids in a really long time, haven’t we?”

“No, we haven’t,” you gave him a soft smile.

“You look like you grew up so well. You must have a successful husband and a great career, maybe even soms kids?”

You laughed,”None of those actually, but life’s been okay.”

“That’s good,” Aegon sighed,”I’m glad. At least one of us should do well.”

He stared out in front of him without saying anything else, clearly zoning out of the conversation.

“Listen, why don’t we go for a short walk outside?” you suggested,”Get you some fresh air?”

Aegon looked at you in surprise and for a moment it looked like he was going to take you up on your offer but then his face fell.

“No, I…I can’t go out like this,” he shook his head, withdrawing from you.

“When was the last time you showered?” you asked.

Aegon sighed again,”It’s definitely been a few days, maybe a week.”

“Do you want to shower now?” you tried.

“I…it’s not that I don’t want to but…”

You stood from your seat and carefully took his hand,”Come on.”

“What are you doing?”

“Dragging you to the bathroom.”

Much to your surprise he stood from his seat and followed you towards the hallway and into the bathroom.

You turned on the water of the shower and closed the door behind you both.

Aegon just stood there in the middle of the room without moving, suddenly awkward and shy having you in this private space with him.

This was going to take a little more work than you initially thought.

“Come here,” you slowly grabbed the hem of his hoodie and started pulling it over his head, followed by his t-shirt. Aegon didn’t protest but he wasn’t really cooperating either, letting you pull at his clothes as if he were a doll you were playing with.

You threw his shirt and hoodie in the washing bin and then placed yourself in front of him again, searching to meet his eyes. It took a moment for him to look back at you. 

“Hey, this will only take a few minutes, okay, you can do this. You’ll feel better afterwards, I promise.”

Aegon nodded but he still wasn’t making any attempts to take off the rest of his clothes.

You carefully took his hand again, trying to pull him out of his daze,”I can take your pants off for you but maybe that’s something you’d rather do yourself.”

This time his nod was accompanied but the tiniest of smiles and he started pushing down his sweatpants.“Turn around.”

You did as he asked and heard him take off his underwear and socks before he stepped into the shower, the curtain blocking him from your view now.

“You alright in there?” you asked after a while.

There was no answer and you could tell by his shadow that he’d stopped moving again.

“Aegs?” you checked.

“I’m fine,” he eventually answered but even with the water running you could hear his voice was breaking, and the next thing you heard was him crying.

“Shit,” you sighed. “Aegon, are you alright in there?”

No answer, only loud sobs.

You only hesitated for a minute or so before you realized there was only one thing to do if you wanted to pull him out of this funk and finish that shower. You started taking off your clothes and put them in a neat pile on the floor before you reached for the shower curtain, taking a deep breath before slowly pulling it open.

“What are you doing?” Aegon gasped, eyes widening in surprise at your naked form.

“Getting in there with you,” you answered.

“I..what…are you…fuck…,” he stuttered.

“It’s no big deal, we’ve seen each other naked before, we used to go skinny dipping all the time, remember?”

“When we were kids!” he pointed out,”This is not…shit…”

“If I get out again will you start showering?” you asked.

Aegon’s eyes met yours and just like that he was crying again. You closed your eyes with a sigh and opened them again in surprise when you felt Aegon’s hand grab hold of yours. His touch was soft and hesitant and it made you shiver.

“It’s okay,” you whispered comfortingly, squeezing his hand,”We’ll do it together, yeah?”

He nodded and you grabbed one of the bottles from the shelf, putting some shower gel all over your hands before slowly rubbing it over Aegon’s shoulders and chest, arms and stomach. He sighed into your touch and after a few minutes you noticed his breathing was calming down.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered after a while, avoiding your eyes,”I’m so fucking useless…you should’t have to do any of this…”

“Hey,” you placed your hand firmly on his chest and looked into his eyes,”You’re not useless, you’re human and you’re just having a hard time. It’ll be okay, Aegs.”

The sad, desperate look in his eyes was pulling at your heart strings now and you couldn’t help but lean in and rest your forehead against his for a moment, your hand cupping his cheek to wipe away some of his tears. Aegon closed his eyes and leaned into you.

“Thank you,” he whispered.

“Turn around,” you then asked softly, continuing what you’d started and grabbing the bottle of shampoo to wash his hair,”Lean back a little.”

Aegon followed your instructions without speaking but his little drawn out sighs and quiet moans every time you touched him reassured you that whatever you did was helping to make him feel better. And you didn’t want to stop.

He didn’t move the entire time you were washing him. It wasn’t until you’d rinsed the soap off of him and turned off the water that he suddenly reached for your hand again, his voice a soft but firm whisper,”Please, I…it feels so good when you touch me like that…I don’t…please don’t stop.”

Your eyes met his,”Does that help? Physical touch? Is that…”

Aegon nodded firmly, lacing his fingers with yours,”Yes, please, I need to feel you…it quiets my mind…so much…please.”

“Do you want me to take care of you?” you asked softly.

“Yes,” he confessed with tears in his eyes,”I want you to take care of me, please, baby.”

“Okay,” you nodded and you carefully cupped his face with both hands, locking eyes with him,”Okay.”

Aegon sighed in relief and gently placed his hands on your hips, pulling you to him. You shivered at his touch again.

“Can I hug you?” you asked.

“Yes,” Aegon breathed eagerly and he closed the distance between you both, pushing his body up against yours. You wrapped both arms around his neck and hugged him.

You’re not sure how long you stood there like that, Aegon’s hands caressing your back and his head resting on your shoulder as you just held him close to you, threading your fingers through his hair. 

He was breathing steadily now, calm and quiet, but after some time you could feel his heart starting to race against yours and his breathing gradually speeding up again. And then you felt something poking against your inner thigh. 

He was rock hard.

You didn’t say anything at first, not wanting to pull him out of this content haze he seemed to be in. Maybe it was just a physical reaction and he wasn’t even aware of it. You didn’t want him to feel embarrassed or self conscious about it. You had come in here to make him feel better and that was still your only goal.

But when he moved his hips against yours and let out a quiet whimper you couldn’t deny it any longer.

You leaned back to cup his cheek and look at him,”Aegs?”

“Hmm?”

“You alright?” you asked softly.

“Yeah, I’m…oh shit, I’m so sorry!” he stepped back from you when he realized what happened.

“It’s okay,” you kept your hands on his shoulders, not wanting him to pull away completely,”It’s okay, don’t worry about it.”

“No, it’s not okay, I’m making you so fucking uncomfortable, I’m so sorry, I’m such a fucking idiot, I can’t do anything right,” he was starting to spiral again and you quickly pulled him closer, cupping his neck and forcing him to look back at you.

“I’m okay, Aegs,” you repeated, looking deep into his eyes,”Hey, look at me, I’m okay, I promise you. I’m not uncomfortable.”

Aegon stared at you for a moment. “You’re not?” he then whispered.

You shook your head and smiled  at him,”No, in fact…”

You slowly moved your hand down, across his chest and then his stomach, watching his reaction to see if there was any objection from his side. But Aegon didn’t object, instead his lips opened in a deep sigh and his eyes closed in pure bliss when your hand followed his happy trail and your fingers gently wrapped around his cock. 

Aegon’s moan was the filthiest thing you’d ever heard and it went straight to your core. You started stroking him, slow and gentle.

“Fuck,” he moaned, followed by a quiet whimper of your name. 

He was big and throbbing in your hand already.

“Does this help make you feel better?” you asked, keeping your eyes locked with his as you continued pumping him, letting your thumb run over its leaking tip.

“Yes,” Aegon nodded firmly,”Oh god, fuck, yes…it’s been so long since…god, please don’t stop, don’t ever stop…”

His hands were caressing your back again, nails digging into your skin while he buried his head against your shoulder. His breath was coming out in quiet little whimpers, hot as fire against your wet skin.

“That’s it,” you encouraged him, slowly building up a rhythm as you jerked him closer and closer to his release.”Relax for me, baby, just give into it, let yourself feel good,” you whispered into his ear, your free hand caressing his hair again.

Aegon’s body was shaking, he was breathing so hard in between moaning and whimpering you couldn’t help but wonder when he last had someone touch him like this. 

He was crying out your name again, his teeth grazing your collarbone. “Please, please, please,” he whimpered,”I need to…fuck…”

You stroked him faster, bringing his cock in between your legs so you could rub your clit on its head and that was the final push Aegon needed. He came with a loud cry, spilling all over you, his cock nestled against your folds as you milked him for every last drop. He pulled you into his arms, holding you close while your body kept moving against his, involuntarily seeking friction.

You closed your eyes and tried to control your breathing, feeling guilty now for your own needs because this was never about that. You had only wanted to make him feel good and nothing more. But your body was betraying you, turning you into a horny mess desperate for some relief of your own.

“Fuck,” you breathed,”I’m sorry. I didn’t meant to…”

“Shhh,” Aegon whispered, moving his hand in between your legs to play with your clit,”I got you.”

His eyes met yours, neither of you looking away as he started circling your swollen bud. It didn’t take him long to have you moaning his name and bucking up into his hand.

“You close, sweetheart?” he breathed.

“So close,” you nodded, biting your lip to keep from moaning too loud,”Please, Aegs.”

Aegon pushed you up against the shower wall, his fingers continuing to bring you towards that edge while his lips brushed your ear,”Come for me then, sweetheart, soak my fingers, come on, give it to me.”

It was all you needed. Aegon held you through every last wave of it, letting you ride out your orgasm on his fingers. You clung to his shoulders, keeping yourself steady. Your heavy whimpers turned into quiet little breaths as you relaxed in his arms.

“There you go, baby,” he whispered against your lips, a sweet smile emerging on his flushed face as he nuzzled your cheek,”There you go, sweetheart.”

“Thank you,” you breathed.

“Oh no, thank you,” he whispered,”God, I needed that, I needed that so bad.”

You could hear the emotion return to his voice as he hugged you tighter so you reciprocated, holding him close and burying your face into his neck.

“Can we just stay like for a while?” he begged softly,”Just…stay with me, please.”

You nodded, allowing yourself to disappear into his hug, not sure who needed it more in this moment, you or him.

When you eventually leaned back to look at him Aegon’s eyes were on you instantly.

“I meant it, you know,” he whispered,”Thank you. You didn’t have to do any of this. I don’t deserve…”

“You deserve to have everything you want in life, Aegon,” you interrupted him,”You deserve to be happy.”

His smile was the saddest one you had ever seen and he broke eye contact to shake his head,”I haven’t been happy in so long I don’t even remember what it feels like.”

You leaned into him, caressing his hair and his neck.

“But today was good,” he then smiled softly, meeting your eyes,”Being with you was…unexpected, like a beautiful ray of sunlight coming out on a really dark cloudy day.”

You couldn’t help but smile,”Look at you getting all poetic.”

Aegon laughed and it surprised you how much you loved the sound of it.

He pressed his forehead against yours and you were suddenly very aware of his breath on your lips. He hugged you closer.

“Could stay here forever,” he then whispered.

“Me too,” you confirmed.

Aegon closed the final distance between you both and pressed his lips to yours in a soft, lingering kiss.

“Stay the night with me,” he then pleaded.

You kissed him back and nodded with a smile,”On one condition though.”

“Name it.”

“You go out for a walk with me first, get that much needed fresh air.”

Aegon sighed but nodded his head,”Yeah, alright, you can drag me around town for hours if that’s what you want, as long as you come back here with me afterwards.”

“I will, I promise,” you whispered and pulled him close, your lips brushing his ear,”I won’t leave you, I promise, baby.”

You could feel his tears against your cheek, but they were accompanied by a big sigh of relief as Aegon buried his face into the crook of your neck and breathed you in.

[hisui-dreamer]

an exchange for a spark

Pairing: Azul Ashengrotto x gn!reader

Synopsis: Knowing Azul, everything would come at a cost, but sometimes you get more than what you asked for in an exchange.

Tags: childhood friends, fluff, reader is a mer, mentions Azul's past, little mermaid references, bot proofread

Word count: 1.6k+

Notes: congrats to Azul fans who won the poll for our resident businessman!

Azul tsum came home in the JP server so here's some fluff for our dearest tako! this takes place before NRC and the boys are in pre-teens

Masterlist

Azul's heart skipped a beat as you neared him, your scales reflecting a stunning array of colours that reminded him of opalescent shells. Your beauty was ethereal, a sight to behold, and Azul couldn't help but feel like a mere speck in comparison. He recognised you instantly; the mermaid who never failed to light up the area, the one with the infectious smile and bright eyes that sparkled like diamonds in the demure rays of sunlight refracted into the depths of the sea.

You were the popular one in school, your every move and word fawned over by your classmates, while he was the outcast hiding in his octopus pot, fearing the bullies who would make fun of him.

An odd pair; but the two of you were close friends. He supposed it was inevitable, given how often your family frequented his mother’s restaurant, bringing the two of you together in an unexpected way.

"Hey there, Azul!" you sang out, your tail propelling yourself towards him. As you approached, you saw Azul perched on a counter, a look of surprise on his face as he looked up. His tentacles were completing multiple tasks at hand, keeping track of the inventory of his mother's restaurant, flipping through pages of an old book, and writing on multiple sheets of parchment. "Oooh, what are you reading?" you asked.

Azul smiled, pausing his tasks to focus on you. "It's a grimoire on terrestrial magic," he replied, the interest evident in his voice.

"Wow! That’s way ahead of what they’re teaching in class! Can you show me?" You asked eagerly.

His smile turned sly, and you knew instantly that there was a catch. "Of course, but it'll cost you," he said, pushing his glasses up with a flick of his hand.

You giggled, knowing that he always had something up his sleeve. "What do you want, Azul?"

Azul's eyes glinted mischievously, and you could tell he was up to something. One of his tentacles reached out and gently tilted your chin upward. "Your most prided quality, of course. How about... your voice?"

You blinked, before bursting into a fit of giggles. "Hahaha Azuzu! You and I both know you'd miss my voice too much!"

Azul's lips curved into a tender smile, exuding affection as his silver tongue wove compliments like a skilled weaver crafting an intricate tapestry. "You are right, your voice is a treasure beyond compare, and I could not bear to take it away from you," he murmured, but you could only shake your head fondly at his words. "But tell me, Angelfish, what else can you offer me?"

You paused, your mind spinning like a school of fish caught in a whirlpool. Then, a sudden flash of recollection struck you, and you reached into your satchel, fumbling around to pull out a small sack, handing it to him as your fins fluttered with exhilaration. "I almost forgot, here!" you exclaimed. "I got this for you."

As you handed it to Azul, he shifted towards you, taking the sack curiously. "What is it?" he asked, his excitement building as he examined the sack like an archaeologist uncovering a long-lost artefact.

"It's a surprise," you giggled. "Open it up and see for yourself!"

Azul's fingers trembled with anticipation as he gingerly unfurled the sack's opening, revealing a bounty of treasures within. A cascade of glimmering coins spilt forth, gleaming like the dying sun cresting over the ocean's horizon. As if holding a precious gem, he carefully plucked one of the golden coins from the pile, entranced by its lustre. Its surface glinted and shone, reflecting its metallic sheen into his aquamarine eyes. A radiant grin bloomed across his face, illuminating his features with pure delight.

"I've never seen this one before! You collected these for me?" he exclaimed, his voice full of wonder. "How thoughtful of you, Angelfish. I will add them to my collection." He looked up at you and coughed at his open display of joy, quickly returning to his businesslike demeanour. "Ahem, since you have been so kind to me, it is only fair I give you a show in return."

You couldn't help but feel a thrill of glee and curiosity. "Ooh! What is it?" you asked eagerly.

Azul's smile returned, and he leaned in closer to you. "I can show you a little trick I learned," he divulged in a hushed tone, "I can conjure fire."

"Fire?" you repeated incredulously. "But that’s… isn’t that only possible on land? They can’t… uhm... burn...? here, right?"

Azul chuckled softly, amusement gleaming in his expression. "Normally, no, fire cannot exist underwater," he explained. "But I found a way to conjure air simultaneously to feed the fire. I can make fire burn even here."

Azul raised his hand, murmuring an incantation under his breath. Suddenly, a small flame appeared in the palm of his hand, flickering and dancing like a playful fish, its warm light casting beautiful patterns on the sand below. Noticing the wonder in your eyes, a soft murmur escaped his lips. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" he whispered. "Up on land, humans use fire for illumination, cooking, and all sorts of things."

You nodded in understanding, your mind already racing with the possibilities. "It's amazing," you murmured in awe.

Azul turned to you, a look of satisfaction on his face. "I'm glad you think so, Angelfish," he smiled.

As you drew nearer to the crackling flames, you felt a jolt of awareness coursing through you, as if an invisible force were pulling you towards Azul. His warm breath, like a pleasant gust of wind, caressed your cheek, sending shivers down your spine. You gazed up to meet his eyes, so alike shimmering pools of liquid sapphire, radiating with a mesmerising allure. The reflection of the blazing fire danced in his eyes, as if mimicking the fiery passion that was stirring inside you.

For a moment, you both stood there, caught in a trance-like state, as if time itself had come to a halt. The heat emanating from the fire and Azul's body enveloped you in a cocoon of warmth, making you feel safe and protected. You could hear the rhythmic thump of his heartbeat, akin to the steady beat of the ocean waves, in perfect synchronicity with your own.

As if propelled by some unknown force, the words that had been burning inside you tumbled out of your mouth, unfiltered and raw.

"I really like you, Azul," you confessed, your voice barely above a whisper, your cheeks flushing with embarrassment. The words hung in the air, heavy with anticipation and vulnerability.

Azul's eyes widened in shock, but you caught a glimpse of hope flash across his face before he diverted his gaze to the ground. His hands ceased to hold the fire, now folded across his torso in a vulnerable stance.

"Angelfish... I... But your friends," he started, attempting to pull away from you.

Determined to make your feelings known, you interrupted him, grabbing his shoulders to gain his attention. "I don't care about my friends," you reassured. "I care about you, Azul. You're smart, and kind and sweet. I like you, no matter what anyone else thinks."

Azul's gaze softened, the worry etched into his features fading away as he drank in your words. He reached out, his fingers intertwining with yours, imbuing you with a sense of security and comfort. "My dear Angelfish," he marvelled, his voice filled with affection, "you have no idea how much that means to me."

Overcome with emotions, you leaned in, your lips colliding with Azul's in a tender, all-consuming kiss. It was a kiss of unbridled emotion, the sweetness of it threatening to intoxicate you both. It was as though the world had stilled, and all that remained was the two of you, lost in each other.

Azul wrapped his strong arms around you, enveloping you in his embrace. His tentacles curled around you like vines, pulling you deeper into his embrace. The heat of his skin and the softness of his lips were like a symphony to your senses, causing your heart to race with a mix of passion and delight-

"Azul~"

Suddenly, a voice interrupted your reverie, causing both of you to jump apart. You looked around and saw the twins, their faces beaming with grins as they called out to you. "Oh? What's happening over here?" Jade teased, his gaze alternating between you and Azul.

You felt a flush creeping up your neck as you tried to compose yourself. "Just catching up, that's all," you replied, hoping to avoid any further scrutiny.

Azul, on the other hand, was incredibly flustered. His heart raced in his chest, and his pulse quickened as if he had just been caught in the act of doing something wrong. His tentacles twitched nervously as he struggled to regain his composure, but his embarrassment was plain to see. With a forced smile, Azul tried to hide his discomfort as he greeted the eels. "Ahem, hello, Jade, Floyd," he coughed, his voice betraying a hint of strain. "We were just...uh...talking. Nothing...nothing important."

The eels snickered at his failed attempt, unconvinced by his dismissive response. "Well then, don't let us interrupt your... talking," Jade remarked with a sly wink. "Come on, Floyd, let's give them some space... for now." He added the last part with a sly twinkle in his eye, sharing a knowing look with his brother before they swam away.

As the two of you were left alone, you couldn't help but adore the deep flush of his cheeks. Unable to resist the allure of his charming blush, you cupped his jaw and pecked his cheek. Your lips brushed against his skin, leaving behind a trail of warmth and affection. When you pulled away, you were greeted with the sight that only warmed your heart further, his blush deepening like a sunset spreading across the horizon, painting the sky with a spectrum of colours.

Truly, how could anyone ever find someone as endearing as him dislikeable?

Masterlist

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[clairewritesjjkxreader]

Yakuza x Cinderella AU Part 1 (Sukuna x Reader)

A/N: I listened to Sukuna’s Russian voice dub while writing this. Gave me some cool gangster vibes.

Everyone would have understood if you shed the “Itadori” name after old man Wasuke passed away, and no one would have blamed you if you walked away from being Yuuji Itadori’s legal guardian. After all, you just started college, you didn’t need to be “burdened,” especially by a kid you weren’t even related to.

But there was no way you could leave eleven-year-old Yuuji alone. You grew up changing his diapers, taught him how to ride a bike, cleaned up his boo-boos, and threatened his bullies. 

He was your family.

Prioritizing your baby brother and his future above your own, you decided to bartender at a fancy but sleazy bar. Although the majority of patrons were assholes and the place was too far from your house and the university, the pay was better than most other part-time jobs so you sucked it up.

Between your job, mandatory onsite classes, group assignments with lazy jerks, and taking care of Yuuji and the house, you could never afford to sleep for more than three hours a day. 

But Yuuji was, of course, an angel. 

He didn’t like to show it, but you knew he missed gramps, and you often caught him biting his lip to suppress his whimpers and wiping his eyes with his back turned to you. He did his best to appear strong, but you wished he’d rely on you more. But the little tiger never stopped doing his chores and liked offering to do yours.

“I can’t get a part-time job yet so all I can do is take care of the house and everything else!” When he said that, you swore an arrow pierced your heart and you almost died from fluffiness. 

Seeing Yuji’s bright smile was the only thing that kept you going, especially after a long day at the bar.

That’s where you met Ryomen Sukuna. He was the single most irritating bastard you’ve ever had the misfortune of meeting. It wasn’t like he was a sleazebag per se–he was actually more of a silent, brooding type compared to the handsy, foul-mouthed drunkards you usually dealt with. At least, that was your first expression of him.

It was nine pm and your five minute break was almost over so you sent Yuji a good night text and a reminder to lock the doors and windows. You brushed your hair and went to your post behind the bar. 

This place was in the inner city, far from most schools, so it was rare to find college students here, but it was a Friday and the end of finals week so the place was jam-packed with depressed people. You didn’t mind. Actually, you preferred having a bar full of university kids over a bar full of working adults. You liked college students. They were… nicer, more polite and patient compared to their older counterparts, who were usually middle-aged career men and women whose dreams have been shattered by the real world. Your regulars were broken and pathetic, and they often liked making their problem yours. You’d “listen” to their ramblings, nod and pretend to care, when in reality their words just went in one ear and left straight out the other.

You didn’t like talking or socializing. You left that part up to the waitstaff and prepared the drinks as quietly as possible in order to avoid trouble.  

It was nearing one am, almost time for you to go home. You finished wiping the last piece of glassware when the store bell rang. You didn’t bother to even pretend to be polite this time and continued cleaning up, waiting for one of the waiters to tell the guest that the bar was already closed. But that didn’t happen. 

“The VIP room is a little unclean right now, so if you’re willing to wait–”

“What do you mean unclean? You should always keep it ready,” a cold, androgynous voice reprimanded.

You were annoyed. And a bit confused. You’ve been here for several weeks now and you just found out about this so-called VIP room. And up until now, the personnel here always shooed away all customers during closing. 

“It’s fine, Uraume,” a deep, husky voice interrupted. “I’m fine waiting here. Just get me my drink.”

You raised your eyes and saw a tall man in a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, bringing attention to his… big veiny hands and sinewy arms, lined with black tattoos. 

“O-of course!” Your boss clasped her hands together. “Please excuse me, I’ll get the sake ready in a bit.”

As if sensing your gaze, your tall, red-haired stranger turned his head, revealing a face also full of tattoos. You blushed but composed yourself and bowed in greeting. You refused to make eye contact again though, too embarrassed that you were caught ogling. He was more gorgeous than most idols and sports players that showed up on TV.

“On second thought, I think I’ll sit at the bar.”

Ah, crap. 

“Oh, um…!” Your boss fumbled towards you, putting a hand over your shoulder. “Th-this is Y/N. She’s new. Really new, I don’t think you’ve met yet.” It felt odd watching your usually calm and charming boss act like this. She was the one who dealt with perverts and other difficult clients, all without getting too emotional or stuttering, but she seemed almost afraid of this man. “Y/N, this is Mr. Ryomen Sukuna, he owns this bar.”

That name certainly felt familiar, but you sucked at names, and as for his face… you glanced up at his smirking face. Yeah, there was no way you’d forget a guy like him. Even if you just saw him walking down the street for a split second you would remember him for sure. 

Your boss squeezed you and you quickly bowed your head again. “Um, hello, thank you for the opportunity.”

“You seemed irritated when my companion and I walked in.” 

“No, you must be mistaken.”

“Really? You couldn’t even be bothered to greet us. Bartenders are supposed to be friendly.”

You just tilted your head, contemplating on what to say next when your phone started ringing from the counter. Mr. Sukuna swiped it before you could blink. 

“Hey!” Your sudden burst of energy shocked you and your boss. You slapped a hand over your mouth. “Er. I mean… I apologize.” 

“Shouldn’t phones be on vibrate during work hours?”

“It was on vibrate. We’re supposed to be closed now.” Welp. You were already as good as fired so you didn’t try to cover up your weariness. Yuji sometimes woke up randomly in the middle of the night. He was probably wondering where you were. You held out your hand. “Can I please have it back now? Sir?”

Like you just told the world’s funniest joke, he threw his head back, laughing heartily. 

Despite your boss almost fainting on the spot thanks to your little stunt, you didn’t get fired. Sukuna seemed absolutely smitten with you–that is, as much as an owner can be smitten by a pet hamster. 

It was the beginning of an irritating, one-sided relationship. 

Ever since that day, Sukuna began frequenting the bar more often. Sometimes three times a week, other times almost daily. Rather than stay at the VIP room, he’d hang out by the bar and find many ways to piss you off, like hitting on you, annoying you until you talked about either Yuji or your classes, and asking you to make some complicated cocktail he heard from a business partner, only to then insult it (he’d always finish the thing though). At the very least, he didn’t try touching you inappropriately. And plus, his childish fascination with you meant he demanded you hang out with him immediately after you finished preparing someone else’s drink, so you didn’t have to listen to other people whine about their lives and you didn’t have to make up excuses with the more gropey customers.

To be continued…

[idksmtms]

You Are Not One of Us (Poseidon x Norse Goddess!reader) - Part 8

Full Request

Part 7 << PART8 >> Part 9

AN: These are just getting longer and longer… Enjoy! I’m gonna try and end this at 10 parts so only two more to go! 

Summary: Everything in Percy’s life is turning upside down. First he finds out he’s a demigod and ends up at a camp for people like him. But one thing always stays the same: bullies.

Word count: 11,466

Trigger Warnings: she/her pronouns, AFAB reader, profanity, innuendo, age gap (even tho they are both thousands of years old), personal insecurity, insecurity about one’s parenting, absentee parents technically, abandonment issues, angst, supposed major character death (but it’s acc not), Percy believing there is something wrong with him, negative view of one’s own ADHD and dyslexia, way too heavy use of dramatic irony, any warnings associated with Percy’s adventures, (please let me know if I missed any) 

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians characters. I do not claim to own any of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians characters. I do not own any pictures used nor do I claim to do so. (I do use some scenes from the show verbatim but I did not write the dialogue for those scenes, only the descriptions attached.) 

Always appreciate comments, likes, and reblogs :)

Though Percy wasn’t often excited by anything related to school, he had been looking forward to the Museum trip. It was a change of scenery from the drab halls of Yancy, and it was a chance to have fun with Grover. He didn’t even mind the learning part. This mythology unit they were currently in was his favourite of anything he had learned thus far. It was interesting, exciting, and weirdly comforting, like he was connected to it somehow but not in any way that made sense yet. 

As Mr. Brunner took them around and explained some of the stories behind the statues, his mind began to wander (along with his gaze). The circular hall was a hodgepodge of statues from a variety of cultures depicting all sorts of mythological heroes, gods, and monsters. Mr. Brunner was currently parked in front of a statue of Apollo and Artemis, telling the story of how they were born, but Percy was looking to the right of it, a smaller statue carved out of wood. It was only a third of the size of the marble depiction of the twin deities, but it was just as beautiful, some argued even more so simply due to its rarity. 

The plaque boasted that it was the only statue made during the Viking period that survived the mass burning post-Christianisation. A woman was laying down in a bed of flowers, each petal around her head and body painstakingly chipped into the wood. Her dress was long and airy, flowing into the wood at the bottom of the carving. Her eyes were closed and a sword was resting on her stomach, the hilt pulled up close to her chest and gripped tightly with both her hands. The sword itself was pitch-black from the hilt to the tip and the plaque explained that the statue was once coloured. Natural paints made of fruit and vegetable pastes had most likely been used and washed or faded away over time, but the sword had been made using burnt wood so it retained its colour. Her hair was loose and billowing around her head and there were faded black stains in different places. Her hair had most likely been coloured with some type of blue paint, the restorers speculated, some paste made with a blue mineral and crushed blueberries. Though all of this was only a guess supported by stories of the goddess’s appearance. 

Percy remembered the statue from his trip to the museum with Aunt Sally when he was seven. She had stood in front of the statue for some time with a wistful smile on her face. He had tugged at her hand, asked her to tell him the story of this one, and she had ruffled his hair before bending down to press a kiss to his cheek. 

“This is the goddess of love and war, from the Vikings.” He had stuck out his tongue at that, frowning and tilting his head. 

“How is she the goddess of love and war? That doesn’t make any sense.” But Aunt Sally just smiled and shook her head. 

“I know it doesn’t seem like it, but you’d be surprised how similar love and war are, how much they intertwine with each other,” she answered simply, looking between him and the statue as if she could see something he couldn’t. “The stories say she was a heroine for the Vikings, their protector from the creatures they couldn’t see. At their height, they often claimed she was on the battlefield with them, that she was in each of their victories.” Percy was looking up at Sally with big, intrigued eyes, lips slightly parted as he breathed slowly. “I think she tended to lean on the love side of her duties more though,” Sally added, holding Percy’s hand a little tighter. She spoke as if she knew the goddess personally, and back then Percy honestly believed it. Aunt Sally was his entire world, she was amazing. It wouldn’t surprise him if she managed to befriend a goddess too. 

“What else?” Percy asked quietly, pressing himself to Aunt Sally’s legs and gazing up at the carving. 

“Well, she had blue hair, bright blue like the ocean.” And Percy smiled at that, whispering ‘that’s my favourite colour’ almost dazedly, enraptured with the statue and its story. “I know, I think you’d like her,” Sally whispered, closing her eyes for a moment as if she was in pain, and Percy saw her trying to wipe at them discreetly. 

“Tell me more,” he demanded, and Sally only nodded before staying silent for a moment. When she spoke again, her voice sounded a little clogged and she didn’t look down at Percy. 

“She was kind, and sweet, a good friend,” Sally cleared her throat, pushing some hair off her face and finally smiling down at Percy again, “at least that’s what the stories say!”

 And then she was walking again, taking him to the next statue, and the one after, reading him what the plaques said. It was on the third statue that she paused again, gently placing a hand on Percy’s back as she pointed out the name for him. 

“Perseus. That’s me,” and he smiled the innocent smile of a child, and Sally nodded enthusiastically. 

“Mhm, that’s who you were named after.” 

“Am I named after him because he’s a hero?” He asked innocently, and Sally only smirked. 

“What makes you think he was a hero?” 

“Because he killed monsters?” He scrunched up his nose as if it was obvious, but Sally only raised an eyebrow.

“What makes you think she was a monster?” 

“Aunt Sally,” he whined, pulling on her hand a little, and she just smiled, squeezing his hand in return and calling off the teasing. 

“Not everyone who looks like a hero is a hero, and not everyone who looks like a monster is a monster. You were named after him because, against all odds, he found his way to a happy ending.” She gripped both of his cheeks and pressed a long kiss to his forehead. Percy just giggled, pushing her away before grabbing her hand and moving onto the next statue. 

Percy hadn’t thought about that trip in a long time. It had been such a fun day, with blue ice cream and no homework. But he could still remember how wistful Aunt Sally seemed, as if it wasn’t the Met but a museum of her life that she was being forced to walk through. 

“...Now, on your worksheets, I want you to choose one of the subjects you see here, and describe it. Not just how it looks, but how it makes you feel. Okay? Come on.” And Mr. Brunner clapped his hands to get them all moving. 

Percy stared down at the clipboard, at the letters jumping around and shuffling themselves, and looked away almost instantly, heading to stand directly in front of the statue of Perseus profering Medusa’s head. 

“Move, nerd,” Nancy spat out as she shoved past him. Percy gripped his clipboard tightly as he almost fell back before raising his hands in the air in shock. Nancy simply jerked her head at him and he scoffed. 

“Mr. Jackson, you will learn to control yourself, do you understand me?” Percy felt his eyebrows leave his forehead. 

“Me?” He asked in surprise, pointing at his own chest as if he couldn’t quite believe Mrs. Dodds was speaking to him. 

“Do you understand me?” Her face didn’t move when she spoke, just that same stoic look of loathing that was probably there while she slept. 

“He can’t help it, Mrs. Dodds. Percy’s special,” Nancy chimed in, emphasising ‘special’ with her lips in a way that made Percy want to walk over and shove her back. 

“That’s enough.” Mr. Brunner interjected harshly, frowning as he rolled his wheelchair to Percy. “Pay them no mind. When you’re ready to hear what the gods have in store for you, they’ll tell you. I believe in you.” And he said it with such conviction, in that weird cryptic but sincere way that Aunt Sally always said that there was a bigger world out there for him. “And I believe you’ll be needing this,” he added, pulling a pen out of his coat pocket and profering it to him with a little ‘hm?’. Percy hadn’t even realised he had broken the tip of his pencil when Nancy shoved past, and he gave Mr. Brunner a pursed-lip smile as he took it from him. “Hang on to that,” Mr. Brunner gestured to the pen, “‘tis a mighty instrument.” And with a knowing and kind smile, he wheeled himself away. 

Percy looked back up to the statue of Perseus and sighed. 

A couple hours later, he sat down next to Grover by the fountain with a despondent sigh as they simultaneously unwrapped their sandwiches and switched fillings. Grover was trying to make him feel better, pointing out that there were many reasons as to why someone chose to bully someone else, but Percy just frowned and shook his head. 

“I get that Nancy probably has a mountain of unresolved issues hiding in that hair of hers, I’m just tired of her taking it out on me.” Percy sighed, putting the top piece of bread back onto the sandwich and bringing it close to his mouth. “I feel like… maybe it’s time to do something about it,” he shrugged. 

“You could make an appointment to talk to Mr. Kane! He’s really good at talking-”

“I was thinking more like shoving Nancy into a dumpster,” Percy interjected, a small mischievous smile on his face. 

“Oh.” Grover stared at him. Then he began shaking his head vigorously, “No, no, no. If there’s one thing I know about bullies, it’s that you never stand up to them.” Percy frowned. 

“That doesn’t sound right…” 

“Look, we’re not gonna be here forever. I know this place is hard for us right now, but there are better places out there.” Grover’s sincerity, his bright little smile of hope and positivity, was infectious. Percy nodded, a smile appearing involuntarily. And then a slice of cheese came flying into the side of Grover’s face, and Nancy stood there smiling, letting out a little ‘oops’. 

Percy couldn’t take it anymore. His chest was tight and the back of his throat felt like it was full of fire and he stood up, marching over to Nancy with his arms out, ready to push her into the fountain in his rage. He didn’t even touch her, not even a graze of her shoulder, and she went flying into the fountain. Like something had pulled her body from behind and dropped her into the water. 

Percy stopped short. He stared at the space in front of him that Nancy had occupied up until about a second before. His hands were tingling and something had pulled deep inside his gut, but it was gone now. He could hear Nancy spluttering and squealing like a stuck pig. And then she began to scream “Percy pushed me! He pushed me!” 

Someone asked if Nancy was ok, another person took up the cry that Percy had pushed her, and all he could do was stand there and stare between the fountain and his hands, and the feeling that somehow the water had listened to his urge and acted on his behalf. That something in the world had shifted all of a sudden, like a puzzle piece clicking into place. 

The pen Mr. Brunner had given him was vibrating in his back pocket, shaking like crazy, and he pulled it out, staring at it as it seemed to flicker in and out of focus in his palm. 

“There you are.” It felt like the voice was inside his skull, and it sounded just like Mrs. Dodds. Percy looked up, and through a gap in the crowd he could see her slowly walking toward him. She was too far away for it to have been her who spoke to him in that low tone, but the voice came again. “We’re not fools, Percy Jackson.” Percy watched her come closer, one step at a time and an almost smug tinge to that never-changing face of hers. 

“Uh, Mrs. Dodds? You ok?” He asked, brows pulled together in a frown. 

“It was only a matter of time before we found you.” Her lips weren’t moving but he could hear her so clearly, and he gulped, a hot and slimy fear snaking down his spine. Then one side of her coat began to lift up and over her head before it peeled back and unfolded into a grey-black wing. The other followed, morphing as it moved and unfolding to reveal a monstrous creature covered in leathery spikes and folds, hints of red in the crevices and over her slowly disappearing face. Her shoes had morphed into talons like bird feet, and she kept walking toward him. 

Percy felt like he couldn’t breathe, blinking over and over again, hoping whatever episode this was would end quickly. But she kept coming. One of her wings pushed a person but they simply fell forward, looking back but not seeing anything noteworthy. Percy stared at them then back to Mrs. Dodds. 

“Where is it, Half-Blood?” Her voice slithered in his mind. He began backing away, that fear coiling tighter and tighter around his spine. But the creature only walked onto the top of the water feature before spreading its wings and flying straight for him. In his rush to back away he fell flat onto the floor, hitting his head so hard it began to ring. He clutched the pen in his hand so tight he could no longer feel his fingers.The creature fell over him, crawling up so their faces were level and all he could smell was sulphur. “Where is it?” She raised one of her claws to his face and he simply clenched his eyes shut. 

But the touch never came. A golden-orange light peaked at the crease of his eyelids and something was crumbling around his hands. He creaked one eye open, then the other. Mrs. Dodds was staring down at the space between them, at the sharp, bright, line of orange that seemed to emanate from the weapon in his hands, a glowing bronze sword. Her body was crumbling into dust, and when she looked back up at him her face contorted into rage. She reared back, as if she was about to come back down for the kill, but her face disappeared into a crush of dust that floated away into the wind. The ringing in Percy’s head turned into a white light in his eyes and everything- stopped. 

As Percy walked through the hallway from the elevator to the adjoining hallway that would lead to the apartment door, he thought about the last words he had said to Mr. Brunner. “I don’t need any more stories about how special I don’t realise I am.” And he meant it. All that those stories had done was lead him to getting expelled from another school, getting betrayed by someone who he thought was his closest friend, and disappointing Aunt Sally all over again. Mr. Brunner had looked so downcast when he had said it, like Percy had personally hurt his feelings, but Percy was tired. 

He was sick of this talk of potential waiting to happen, because the truth was there wasn’t any potential. He had nothing else to give. He tried and tried and the world never seemed to try back. Even if things were alright for a while, he always ended up back here, tail between his legs wondering why he simply wasn’t good enough for anything. 

He could hear Gabe yelling already, and he tightened his grip on his bag. Eddie the handyman closed the door behind him and stood still for a second on the welcome mat. Percy could see the deep breath he took, could feel the exasperation and worn-thin patience that he experienced every minute he spent in Ugly Gabe’s presence. When Eddie turned around, he smiled sadly. 

“Oh! Hello Percy.” Eddie always smiled when he saw Percy but this time it was only a tight pursed-lip one. 

“Hey Eddie,” Percy sighed, “I’m sorry about that,” and Percy gestured to the door. Eddie looked at it then shook his head. 

“I’m walking out, you’re walking in. I should be apologising to you,” and Eddie squinted in sympathy before walking off down the hallway. 

When Percy entered the house, he was hit with the comforting smell of Aunt Sally’s many ocean-scented candles and air-fresheners, and the less comforting stink of body odour, cheap beer, and hair oil that Gabe seemed to drag into any room with him. 

Speaking of Gabe, the man was sitting in his easy-chair directly in front of the tv, legs up and laptop resting on his thighs as he cracked another beer open right as Percy entered the house. 

“Welcome home, genius!” He called, sneering at Percy as he stood in the hallway looking down at the train-wreck of a man. 

“Is Aunt Sally home from work?” Percy asked tiredly, not interested in engaging in a conversation with the greaseball. 

“Oh, is that all you got to say to me? Huh?” Gabe asked angrily, nodding his head as if Percy was proving whatever point he had concocted in his head. Percy could almost see the invisible high horse Gabe believed he sat on. “After failing out of school?” 

“I didn’t fail out of school.” Percy scrunched up his face, shaking his head a little at the stupidity. 

“Your principal called, and that’s what he said. He said you got kicked out.” Gabe moved back and forth a little as he spoke, and Percy watched the chair move rather than look at the man’s ratty little face. Then he paused for a moment, frowning as he took in the words Gabe said. 

“They called Aunt Sally’s cell. You answer Aunt Sally’s cell?” He asked angrily, turning from his place in the hallway to look at Gabe, ready to argue. 

“I answer whatever’s ringing,” Gabe argued back, shaking his head as if it was no big deal. “So what did you get kicked out for, hm?” He asked, taking a sip of his beer and looking at Percy with wide curious eyes. Percy could see the man was getting a kick out of it. 

“He said I attacked a kid on a field trip,” Percy mumbled, looking at the carpet as he scuffed at it with his shoe. Gabe raised his eyebrows and seemed to nod in surprise. He almost looked like he respected Percy in that moment, and it made Percy’s frown deepen. 

“Ok. Alright, if… but still, if you’re gonna live under my roof, you gotta live by my rules,” and Percy’s face scrunched up, turning to Gabe and shaking his head as if none of what he said made sense. 

“Your roof? Aunt Sally is the only one employed here.” 

“Excuse me?” Gabe was offended, eyebrows raising. “I have a job. What does it look like I’m doing right now?” Gabe gestured to the tv and laptop but Percy’s expression didn’t change. 

“Losing at imaginary poker,” he answered simply, gesturing at the laptop as well. 

“You would think that because you’re a child, and you don’t understand things like-”

“Where’s Aunt Sally?” He interrupted, looking down the hall. He was already tired, he didn’t need interactions with Gabe today. 

“I don’t know. I don’t know where your aunt is. I’m not Nostradamus. What are we doing Percy? Every time!” But Percy just walked away, listening to Gabe’s distant and exasperated ‘wow! Wow!’. 

As Percy walked farther into the apartment, he could hear the rain and realised the window in the other small den area was open. He could see Aunt Sally sitting on the fire escape, soaking in the rain. Her hair was damp and curling slightly, and her cardigan was becoming wet. Music was playing loudly from the corner and everything suddenly felt like it was crashing down on him all over again. His lip began to quiver and he wanted to cry. 

“Aunt Sally…” he whimpered, screwing his eyes shut as she turned back and realised he was standing there. She quickly clambered in from the window but Percy was already speaking again. “I’m really sorry. I tried this time. You know how hard I’ve been trying. But this time it really wasn’t my fault. It really wasn’t my fault.” His words trailed off as she wrapped her arms around him and pressed her cheek to his head. Her hair dripped all over him and her damp shirt stuck to his face but it felt so good to be hugged, so he let her just embrace him. “I’m all wet,” he mumbled against her shoulder. 

She pulled back but kept her hands on his shoulders, tilting her head so she could properly look at his face. She cupped his face in one hand and stroked his cheek as she smiled lovingly down at him. 

“I’m sorry. I’m just really glad to see you.” She grabbed the towel on the ironing table to her right and began scrunching the ends of her hair as she spoke. “I found Gabe on the phone with the headmaster and he told me what he thinks happened with Nancy Bobofit. I told him I believed my kid, it was a real short call.” She shrugged simply, pursing her lips and clutching the towel in her hands as she looked at Percy. He was staring at the floor, head downcast, and he only offered her a small smile in response. “Hey, all that matters is that you’re here, ok?” She asked, hoping to lift his mood a little, “and that I had time to get your welcome home gift,” she sang, reaching into a tote bag on one of the chairs and pulling out a little plastic pouch of blue jelly beans. He smiled a little more this time, watching her shake it just in front of him before grabbing it and putting it into his coat pocket. 

Then Sally smiled sympathetically, crossing her arms over her stomach and waiting for Percy to look back up again before speaking. “Mr. Brunner called me too. He told me about Grover.” Percy began blinking again, feeling the tears burn the backs of his eyes and his mouth scrunched up a little. “Do you wanna talk about it?” His blinking slowed down again but he stared at the carpet a little harder, letting out a long breath. Sally straightened up a little. “Is there something else you wanna talk about?” She asked, concern dropping her voice a little lower. Percy looked up and met her eyes for a second before dropping his gaze back down. He took a deep breath in and began toying with the hem of his coat. 

“Something happened to me. Something has been happening to me. More than just my mind wandering, and it got worse, and…” he trailed off. They both listened to the rain as she waited for him to speak and he gathered his words. “I’m scared.” He looked up finally, staring straight into her eyes as he said the words. They just looked at each other for a moment, Sally’s lower lip pulled slightly into her mouth. Then she simply looked past Percy and yelled, 

“Gabe!” 

“Aunt Sally?” Percy asked, staring at her, suddenly worried she was going to tell Gabe everything he had just said, but she simply waited for Gabe to appear in the hallway. He grumbled as he got up and came down the hallway, adjusting his pants higher onto his hips and pointed back to the living room as he spoke. 

“I don’t know how anyone expects me to get any work done-” 

“Percy and I are leaving for Montauk.” 

Percy didn’t realise he had fallen asleep in the car until after he woke up from the bone-chilling nightmare. After witnessing Aunt Sally put Gabe in his place and hurriedly packing a bag for the weekend, he had simply fallen into the passenger seat and passed out when they hit the road outside the city. 

He looked to the left slowly, shifting a little further up in his seat, watching Aunt Sally hurriedly wipe tears off her cheeks when she realised he was still awake. She smiled at him, mumbling out a ‘we’re here’ as she watched him fully sit up straight. 

“On three?” He asked quietly, and she smiled, nodding as she looked ahead and began counting. On two he bolted out of the door, smiling widely as she squealed and struggled out of her seat. 

After they had settled everything into their rooms and Sally started the fire in the living room, he went to the bathroom to change his clothes and have a quick wash up before dinner. He washed his hands and splashed his face, then stood in front of the sink staring at the mirror. He couldn’t keep pushing it off anymore. He had to tell Aunt Sally about what happened and how something needed to change because nothing was right anymore. 

By the time he came back out, Aunt Sally was standing at one of the kitchen counters with a pack of marshmallows. The table hadn’t been cleared from dinner but more candles had been lit and placed around the cabin, only one or two lamps flicked on here and there. He tapped her on the opposite shoulder and smiled when she looked there then back to the other side where he stood. 

“I found the good marshmallows, the ones that don’t burn so easy.” She sounded so proud and happy, but Percy could only nod. 

“I don’t think it was ever the marshmallow’s fault that I wasn’t paying attention,” he sighed, and she paused. She put down the marshmallow she had been holding and turned to look at Percy. The serious look on his face made her fully turn and lean her hip against the counter. She waited for him to say whatever he clearly wanted to say, crossing her arms loosely.

“Aunt Sally… I need to talk to you about something.” She simply watched him for a moment, then nodded, standing up fully again and telling him to head to the couch and get cosy by the fire. They would talk there. 

Sally curled up on one end of the couch and Percy sat down on the other. He leaned his elbows on his knees and stared into the fire. “I’m used to feeling weird. I’m used to the world feeling weird to me. Like a puzzle with half the wrong pieces. I try to pay attention, I really try,” and he looked at her as he said this, his face so earnest, “but then I’m daydreaming. I can’t help it. But lately it hasn’t felt like daydreaming. It’s felt…” he paused, looking back down at his hands. “I don’t know. More real, maybe?” He took a deep breath in, and Sally averted her eyes to her lap. “And then we were at the museum, and…” 

“You saw something,” she said quietly, knowingly. He nodded, stilted and slow, but a nod nonetheless. “Something that felt real to you, but no one else could see?” Again, he nodded, lips pursed. She tilted her head down a little to look at his face, then put her hand on his back and rubbed it softly. “What did she say to you?” Sally asked apprehensively. Percy’s head snapped up to look at her, and he frowned in confusion. 

“She? How did you know it was a she?” 

Sally paused, and he could see the millions of thoughts running around behind her eyes. She leaned her head back and looked at the ceiling before clenching her eyes shut tightly, as if fighting with her lips. She pushed her lips out and shook her head, like the fight was raging and she was in pain. Then, with her eyes still closed, she asked, 

“Do you know why we come to this cabin every year?” Her head came back down but now she was the one looking into the fire and avoiding his gaze. 

“Because it’s near the septic tanks so it’s cheap,” Percy answered quickly, still bewildered and shaking his head a little as he spoke. “Aunt Sally, how do you know about the thing I saw?” 

“We come to this place every year, because this is the place I met your parents,” she spoke quickly, only turning to look at him with her face set firmly as the last words left her lips. He stared at her. 

“My parents? What do my parents have to do with this? And what do you mean ‘met them’?” 

She smiled a little, a sad little thing that said ‘there’s so much you don’t know’ then gently cupped the side of his head, pushing some of his curls back. 

“A long time ago, I met a woman, here, on the beach. She was kind, and brave, and sweet, and… noble. And she introduced me to her husband, and he was just like her. He was wise, and caring, and they loved each other like no love I had ever witnessed before. And…  ugh, look Percy, I can’t tell you about your mom, but your father? He was a god.” Sally paused, gulping then letting out a whooshing breath. She looked at Percy and he was just staring at her like her head had popped off. 

“God? Like Jesus? Like you met some woman who said she married Jesus and you believe her?” He asked, one eyebrow curling up slightly with his sceptical tone. 

“Not God, Percy,” she sighed, “a god.” She turned to sit facing him and gently held his hands in hers. “Look, Percy, the stories that I have told you, about Greek gods and monsters? About Norse mythology? They are real.” Percy began shaking his head. 

“Aunt Sally-” 

“In those stories, I have told you about how gods fight, and get married, and sometimes they have children with mortals…” 

“Aunt Sally, please, stop.” 

“How they can have demigod children…” 

“Aunt Sally!” 

“And sometimes they are known as half-bloods.” Percy paused, slowly turning his head to look at his Aunt Sally, at the desperate look on her face as if she needed him to believe her. 

“That’s what the monster called me. Aunt Sally, what’s happening?” 

“You are a half-blood.” She breathed out, eyes roaming over his face for any sign of belief. “And half-bloods are not safe in the world. Once they reach a certain age and they begin… to understand what they are, terrible forces are drawn to them, driven to harm them before they can become strong enough to fight back. That is what you have been feeling.” She gripped his shoulder tightly, shaking him just a little as if it would make him believe it any more. “It has always been a part of who you are, it was always coming,” her words were beginning to become frantic, “I just-” 

“Why are you telling me this?” He asked angrily, shaking his head and staring at her as she moved even closer to him. 

“Percy, I know this is hard to understand, but you have to believe me that this is real,” she pressed. 

“No, this is crazy, ok? I am not a god. There is something wrong with my brain.” She clenched her eyes shut, tears leaking down her cheeks and sweat collecting on her upper lip as she leaned back to look at his face, slowly shaking her head like she was flexing her neck. “I understand that I’m weird, believe me, I get it,” and she smiled in pain at that, her face saying that it hurt her that he believed that, that it simply wasn’t true, tilting her head to the side and huffing out a breath as he continued. “But I’m afraid something may be really broken now!”

“Oh, honey, no-”

“And-and now you’re telling me stories, like it’s gonna make it ok?” She pursed her lips and looked down. “Well I’m not a baby! I know there’s no such thing as monsters, I know there’s no such things as gods, and I know for certain that there is no such thing as demi-gods.” His words were final, and he only got to stare into her eyes for a moment before there was suddenly a knock at the door, and Grover was calling out for Aunt Sally. 

And it was only moments later that Grover was standing in the hallway with goat legs. 

When Grover pulled his beanie off as they drove down the highway, Percy felt for the first time that Aunt Sally had been telling the truth. The little horns poking through his curls were so… real. And then the explanation for Grover’s betrayal was so crazy that he was angry again, and this concept of ‘the Mist’ was so confusing that he felt lost all over again. 

“The sooner we get you to camp, the better of you’re…” Percy snapped his head back to look at Grover. He paused, mouth open, staring at Percy then turning to look at the back of Sally’s head. “You told him about camp, right?” 

“Not yet, no,” she answered, exasperated, and Percy just sat back in his seat and looked at her. She glanced at him, just a moment, and he frowned. 

“Camp is a sanctuary for half-bloods. A safe space where you can learn who you are and what the world is like on the other side of the Mist.” Grover leaned back a little and looked out the windshield before tapping on the shoulder of Sally’s seat. “Uh, it’s not far, actually, just a little ways past the bend up there,” and he pointed to somewhere in the rain in front of the car. But Percy didn’t look, he kept staring at his Aunt Sally and frowning. 

“Aunt Sally, what else haven’t we talked about? What else haven’t you told me?” He paused for a second, settling further into his seat. “Why can’t you tell me about my mom? What’s so dangerous that you can’t tell me about her?” 

Just as Sally opened her mouth to respond, to say anything about all the secrets that had suddenly opened up between them, the road under them shuddered, and something roared in the distance behind the car. There was a flash of light, and Percy watched as the silhouette of something huge dropped down onto the road. 

“Is that the Minotaur?!” 

In the yellow glow of the totaled car’s headlights, Percy watched as the only parent he had ever known was crushed in the hands of a monster. He watched his mother disappear in a flash, watched the woman who had tried to fill the role of a father disappear into dust. His chest filled with rage like a gallon of water being poured into a shot glass. His mind suddenly quieted, only the rush of his blood pounding in his ears. Aunt Sally’s face flashed before his eyes, glowing in the yellow lights, dripping with rain. Her hands gripping his face as she tried not to cry, biting at her lips as she pressed out the words. “You… are not not broken. You are singular. You’re a miracle. And you are my kid. Hold fast. Brave the storm.” She stroked his cheeks with her thumbs and smiled, sad yet hopeful, sweet yet resigned. “I love you.” Her watery voice. He saw her reaching for him before the crush. He uncapped the pen and watched it grow into a sword in his hands. And then he charged. 

Percy was hoping he had dreamed everything from the conversation with Aunt Sally to the creepy girl standing over his bed. But when he woke up and the first thing he saw was Grover with his little horns poking out of his head, he knew he had really killed the Minotaur, and that Aunt Sally was gone… 

Grover tried to talk to him about it, desperately wanted to talk to him about it, but he wasn’t ready. His mind was already playing everything on loop for him and he didn’t want to talk about it too. 

“Your job is done,” he told Grover, and it hurt. Because it had all been a job. Every laugh, every moment of their friendship had been a cover. And he didn’t want to talk about that either. 

As he headed for the door, Grover asked where he was going. Percy clenched his jaw and turned back to look at him, his mind set on one thing and one thing only. “It was so important I get here ‘cause my father is a god. So I’m gonna go find him.” The words were so simple but he spoke so gravely. 

“It’s not that…” Percy was already out the door, “simple.”

As Percy stepped out and onto a porch, he couldn’t help but look around in wonder. The house had been built on the banks of a beautiful lake with turquoise green water and a pebble beach. Orange kayaks and rowing boats were sitting near the treeline with people in equally orange shirts milling about around them. On his other side, a type of orangery was jutting from the house, made of pristine white-painted wood and huge panes of painted glass windows. 

Inside the orangery, a man was sitting reclined in a chair, sunglasses over his eyes and face tipped up to the ceiling. Even from the distance he was stood at, Percy could see the man was wearing an absolutely abominable Hawaiian shirt and had quite a long salt-and-pepper beard. Percy walked closer, pausing in the doorway to observe the scene. A wheelchair with a blanket draped over the seat was placed next to the man and both seats were placed around a pink marble table. The doors on each of the walls had all been thrown open and the natural light of the sun painted the window patterns on the hardwood floor. A small candle chandelier hung from the ceiling and there were even huge candelabras on the floor, flanking even bigger ornate white pots of flowers and small trees. 

“Excuse me?” Percy began quietly, “I’m Percy Jackson, I’m new here.” The man didn’t budge from his seat. He simply took a long breath in, twisted his head slightly to the left and yelled, 

“Peter Johnson is here!” 

“‘Kay. That isn’t… really my name,” Percy responded awkwardly, holding up one of his hands, “I guess I’m looking for the office? Or whoever’s in charge, so…” The man began sitting up a little and removed his sunglasses to look at Percy. A faint ‘wait, wait, wait, wait’ reached Percy’s ears and Grover came running into the room, stopping just beside Percy and quickly touching him on the arm. 

“Um, Percy,” then he gestured to the man at the table, “Mr. D, Camp Director.” Then he gestured back to Percy while looking at the man, “Mr. D, this is, uh, Percy Jackson.” 

“Yeah, Grover, I heard him the first time,” the man responded breezily, frowning at the satyr as he threw his sunglasses onto the table. 

“Yeah. But did you?” Percy added, tilting his head as he looked at Mr. D. 

“Ok,” Grover breathed out, pulling on Percy’s shoulder and turning him back so he could lean in closer. “You really don’t wanna start with this guy.”

“He’s starting with me,” Percy argued back, gesturing to Mr. D with his arm. 

“Percy, the D is for Dionysus. That’s Dionysus.” Grover urged, glancing to Mr. D then back to Percy who was squinting at him. 

“What do you mean, Dionysus? The- like the god, Dionysus?” He asked, staring at Grover. 

“Yes.” 

“No way.”

“Yes.” 

Percy looked around then simply gave Grover a little nod before they both turned back to face Mr. D who was looking up at them with a bored face. 

“Excuse me, Your Highness?” And Mr. D grimaced, shaking his head and letting out a little ’oh’ that was part exasperation, part annoyance, and part disappointment, but Percy simply continued. “I think my dad may be around here somewhere. I don’t know how to ask for him,” and Percy looked around because he didn’t have a single clue about who he was looking for or how to find him, and it all sounded kind of delusional and crazy when the thoughts became words that came out of his mouth. “I don’t-I don’t even know his name. But I think I should see him. I just…” Percy sighed, “I think I really need that right now. Can you help me?” 

Mr. D slowly sat up with a dignified smile on his face, depositing his drink on the table as he nodded. 

“Actually… I think I can.” He spoke slowly, and Percy’s eyes began to fill with hope. “Son.” He stared at Mr. D. The man was smiling in a self-satisfied way and simply watching Percy. 

“Dad?” He questioned. 

“Yes, Peter,” Mr. D answered, folding his hands in his lap. 

“It’s Percy,” he mumbled, not being able to tear his eyes away from Dionysus’s face. 

“Exactly,” the man brushed off. “Now, before we get to know each other, there’s something very important I want you to do for me, okay?” Mr. D gestured with his hands as he spoke, a grave look falling onto his face. Percy only nodded in reply, hesitant shakes of the head. Mr. D smiled and leaned back a little in his chair. 

“In the galley,” he pointed out one of the doors, “there is a bottle of 1985 Chateau Haut-Brion.” He spoke with such reverence, gesturing with pinched fingers in front of his face as a giddy look crossed his face. “Will you go fetch that for me?” Percy stood still for a moment. 

“Is that really all you have to say to me?” He asked, everything inside him suddenly agitated. 

“Hey, um, Mr. D, even if Percy was-” 

“Uh, uh, uh, bup!” Mr. D made a pinching motion in the direction of Grover’s mouth. “Grover, quiet, please. This is a nice moment, don’t ruin it. The galley is right down that path,” he pointed out the door to his right again, “grab that bottle and I’ll talk to you about whatever you want. You know, uh…” he moved his head around as he tried to come up with something, “you, uh… me, who cares?” He batted his hand around in the air and frowned. 

Just as Percy stepped toward the door, he stopped again and stared at Mr. Brunner as he came walking up the dirt path to the orangery. With a horse attached to his body. Or… the body of a horse attached to his… body. The centaur walked up to the entrance of the orangery and stood in front of Percy. Everyone was silent for a moment. 

“Percy.”

“Mr. Brunner?” He asked, staring up from the horse legs to the old-man cardigan and grey blazer. 

“Uh, Mr. Brunner’s real name is Chiron. Camp activities director, immortal trainer of heroes, he is-” 

“Grover, thank you. I’ll take it from here,” he politely interrupted, smiling at the excitable satyr who simply pursed his lips and nodded, swinging his arms back and forth. “Oh, Percy, this must be a lot for you to process,” he said kindly. 

“Oh, no. It’s-it’s fine. I mean, you’re a horse,” he gestured to Mr. Brunner’s lower body, “my father won’t talk to me unless I get him a drink.” He pointed at Mr. D who simply gulped from his can then brought it down again when he noticed they were all looking at him. Chiron looked between Mr. D and Percy, a look of surprise slowly widening his face. “Well, this all seems totally normal and reasonable.” 

“Oh, no, no, no. No,” Mr. Brunner began shaking his head, “Mr. D is not your father.” Percy and Grover simultaneously turned to look at Mr. D. He simply shrugged and held out his hand as he looked at Chiron. 

“I could be.” 

“Yes, but are you?” Chiron asked, hands holding the lapels of his blazer. 

“Why must you ruin everything?” Mr. D answered petulantly, but Chiron ignored him and turned back to Percy. 

“Mr. D knows that Zeus has forbidden him from consuming alcohol. And that demigods are able to do things for gods that gods are forbidden to do themselves,” and Mr. D sighed in the background, reaching for his can and bringing it to his lips again. “Mr. D was taking advantage of that, hm?” Percy turned to look at Mr. D with a frown and the man simply let out an ‘eh’ and shrugged. “Percy?” He turned back to Mr. Brunner - uh, Chiron - and the man smiled comfortingly down at him. “Walk with me and we’ll start again, hm?” He only shot one last look at Mr. D before walking out of the room. Grover went to follow but Chiron held up a finger. “Uh, Grover, please give us a moment.” And with an approving smile, he followed after Percy. 

Grover stumbled backward into the room then walked to the other door to watch Chiron and Percy walk along the path down to the lake. 

“This doesn’t feel right,” he murmured. 

“What, success?” Mr. D answered from behind him. “You got the boy to camp alive. Don’t overthink it.” Grover nodded a little and turned back to look at Mr. D. 

“Yeah, but it’s…” Mr. D shot him a look, head tilted forward and eyes saying, ‘really?’. Grover turned back to the door and watched the centaur and the boy walk farther and farther away. 

Percy stood in front of the rolled up sleeping bag and his backpack set on the floor of the Hermes cabin. He stared at it for a moment before getting onto his knees and opening the flap of his bag. Right at the top was the little plastic pouch of blue jelly beans Aunt Sally had given him before all the craziness had occurred and he held it gently in his hand, tears burning at the backs of his eyes all over again. He could see the happy little smile she had given him as she shook the bag in front of his face, the damp hug she had pulled him into. 

A little group of campers was gathered to his right and he could see one of them begin to approach. He sighed, a sense of despair filling his limbs with exhaustion. He couldn’t do this today. 

“Look, if you want to give me a hard time, just do it tomorrow. I can’t do anymore today,” he sighed as he got back onto his feet, looking at the boy in front of him. He had a scar on his face running down his cheek from under his eye and he simply brushed off Percy’s words. 

“Heard what happened to you on the hill. And I just… wanted to say I’m really sorry.” Percy nodded, looking away from the boy’s face. “I know what you’re going through. Believe me. Losing your mom is…” The boy gave a rueful little smile but Percy just began shaking his head. 

“Oh, she wasn’t… she wasn’t my mom.” It felt wrong to say that though, because Sally had been Percy’s mom all these years. She was the one that did everything mothers do while his real one was gods know where. “She was my aunt, Aunt Sally,” he told the kid, pursing his lips. 

“Oh,” the kid reared back a little in surprise, tilting his head in question but not choosing to ask anything further. He simply nodded then held out his hand. “I’m Luke.” Percy reached out and shook his hand. 

When Percy jumped awake, Luke was already standing near the end of his make-shift bed. He smiled at him in commiseration. 

“Intense, recurring nightmares. That’s normal here.” Percy stood up and stretched his back a little, feeling the stiffness and soreness in his muscles slowly began to dissipate. “And the daydreams, and the ADHD, and dyslexia. Demigods just process reality differently than humans do.” Then Luke smiled and gestured to the cabin. “For the first time in your life, you’re just like everyone else.” Percy squinted at Luke in question. 

“So are you also… Do you not know who your-” 

“Am I unclaimed? No. Hermes is my father.” For a moment Luke’s face was stormy but the look was gone so quickly Percy didn’t question it. “That doesn’t matter,” Luke shook off, “we’re all on the same team here.” But Percy couldn’t let it go. He frowned at Luke as petulance brewed in his expression. 

“Why is that ok? Why do they get to bring us here to just ignore some of us?” 

“Spend too much time trying to figure out why the gods do whatever it is they do, you’ll drive yourself crazy,” and the way Luke said it made Percy think he was speaking from experience. “Sooner you stop worrying about that, the sooner you can enjoy what this place actually does offer,” Luke smiled. 

“And what’s that?” 

“Glory.” 

As Luke went about explaining what exactly glory was and why in the world it was so important at Camp, Percy listened intently. He liked the way Luke spoke, the way he was so comforting and treated him like he was his little brother who he wanted to teach things to, to spend time with. 

Percy had always thought it was great with just him and Aunt Sally. They didn’t need anyone else. Even when Gabe came to live with them it didn’t feel like he was actually joining the family, just hanging around. But it felt nice to have someone treat him like a sibling would. He wouldn’t have minded having a brother if it was Luke. 

Just as they followed the curve of the path around a little grass nole in the middle of the circle of cabins, someone shoved past him, sending him into Luke’s side. He turned to look at them, a loud ‘hey!’ leaving his lips as he frowned at the girl standing just there. She only stepped forward and shoved him in the chest so hard he went straight into the dirt onto his back. She was glaring down at him, a look of annoyance and superiority on her face as Luke came to stand between them. 

“Hey. Know it off, Clarisse. It’s like his first day, come on.” Luke glanced at Percy to make sure he was alright as one of the other Hermes kids helped him up, before turning back to stare at Clarisse with a hard look in his eyes. She only smiled, a cruel smile as she gestured to Percy. 

“Wait, so this is the kid who killed the Minotaur. Is that right?” She turned to look at Percy properly and he only frowned, looking at her warily like she would shove him again. 

“Yeah?” 

“I’ll bet.” But she didn’t look impressed with what she saw. “Look, you want attention around here, dummy? You better be ready for when it comes.” Then she pressed forward like she was going to attack him and he stumbled back, but she was already walking away with a gleeful smile, the people following her laughing together as they glanced at him in all his scrawny glory. 

Percy stood there for a moment, watching her walk away. 

“Well, she seems nice,” he said sarcastically. 

“Ares kids.” Luke said it like it was all the explanation he needed but Percy just looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He shrugged, “they come by it honestly.” 

“Why don’t they mess with you?” 

“They know better,” Luke answered with a smirk, hands on his hips. 

“Luke’s the strongest swordsman at camp,” Chris chimed in. Percy looked up at him and began connecting dots in his head. 

“So, they leave you alone because ‘glory’?” Luke just nodded. “So if I get glory, Clarisse wouldn’t mess with me either?” 

“Exactly,” Luke nodded again, clapping him on the back, and Percy finally felt like he was beginning to understand how things worked around this place. 

“And people think I’m a big deal?” 

“Well, sorta, but-” Luke tilted his head to the side, a very simple gesture that said ‘I wouldn’t choose those words yet’. 

“And my dad’s got no choice but to claim me,” Percy added, finally feeling like he had a solution, but Luke just frowned a little bit. 

“You can’t force the gods to do anything.” 

“Well, yeah, but… it would make it harder for him to pretend I don’t exist, right?” It all sounded so simple when he said it like that. 

“Maybe,” Luke answered quietly, nodding in thought. 

“Well, great! Where do we start?” And Percy smiled properly for the first time since he had arrived at Camp. 

As Percy sat down at the pavilion table with Chris and Luke after a dismal afternoon, he let out a long sigh.

“Is there a Greek god of disappointment?” He asked, raising his eyebrows in exasperation, “maybe someone should ask him if he’s missing a kid.” Luke looked up in thought, squinting and tilting his head. 

“Oizys… but she’s a goddess. And her whole thing isn’t really disappointment, it’s more like failure.” Chris answered, fiddling with his fork. Percy sighed and gestured at himself. 

“Well, that works too. Maybe she’s my mom,” he shrugged, looking down at his plate. 

“We’re gonna find the thing that you’re good at. I know it.” Luke leaned forward so Percy was forced to look at him and he smiled in that soft, brotherly, way. They were quiet for a moment and Percy continued picking at his food when Luke brought his elbows to rest on the table and folded his hands under his chin. “So you don’t know either of your parents?” He asked, frowning at Percy. 

“No, my Aunt Sally raised me. At least, that’s what I’ve called her my entire life. She’s the one who told me about my dad, that he’s a god…” Percy paused, staring at the table. “She didn’t tell me anything about my mom though. I was asking her about it before… everything.” Luke nodded in understanding but Percy didn’t look up from his plate until a gong sounded throughout the pavilion and Luke sighed. 

“Our turn,” he told Percy, smirking in exasperation before grabbing his plate and standing up. 

“Our turn for what?” 

“Burnt offerings,” Luke and Chris answered simultaneously. “The gods like the smell, so it gets their attention before you say a prayer,” Luke added. Percy just stared up at them in confusion. 

“They like the smell of burnt mac & cheese?” He asked. 

“They like the smell of begging,” Chris answered, smirking sarcastically. Luke just chuckled quietly as Chris walked off with his plate. 

“You burn what you’ll miss the most. Then they know you really mean what you’re about to say, so they listen.” And Luke walked away with a shake of his head. 

But an idea was brewing in Percy’s mind and he needed his jelly beans for it. 

Percy went as deep in the woods as he wanted to risk, and built a fire in an old can he had found in the trash. Aunt Sally had taught him how to build fires on a camping trip a couple years ago and the dry sticks and leaves on the floor were perfect kindling. He stared into the little pot of flames and held tightly onto the pouch of blue jelly beans. Slowly, he picked one out of the pouch and dropped it into the flames. It began to melt and he could hear the sugar sizzling at the bottom of the can. 

“Hi, Aunt Sally. I don’t know if I’m doing this right. I hope you can hear me.” He paused, gathering his words. “I think you used to hate this. When the phone would ring the night after you left me at a new school. I’d tell you that the people are awful. That I wanted to come home.” His voice felt so heavy, and he cleared his throat but the feeling didn’t go away. “Well… the good news is… this isn’t that call.” He smiled a little. “I hope you’re sitting down, but… I think I’ve made some friends here. Like, real friends.” He stared into the fire like soon the flames would form her face. “I think they might really like me. Imagine that.” A huff-laugh left his lips and he looked away from the fire. “He isn’t here. My father, he just… didn’t show. I mean, ignoring me is one thing, but he doesn’t get to ignore you.” He clenched his jaw, face twitching in anger. “I’m gonna make him come down here. I’m gonna make him see me. I’m gonna make him see us both.” 

Percy flexed his jaw and closed his eyes. He was angry, and scared, and disappointed, and hopeful, and determined. He was going to do it. Whatever it took. And then, slowly, he picked another jelly bean out of the pouch and dropped it into the fire. He thought of someone he didn’t know, someone who could look like anyone, sound like anyone, be like anyone. 

“Hey, uh, mom?” The word felt so awkward coming out of his mouth. “Long time, no speak,” he chuckled awkwardly and winced at himself, pressing his face into his knees and rubbing his hair aggressively. “Uh, sorry. Look, I don’t really know who you are, or what you look like, or anything, so, sorry about that I guess. I mean, it’s not really my fault, ya know? 

“Anyway, I don’t even know why I’m talking to you right now. It’s not like you’ve ever been around either. But I guess with everything changing, now’s the time to try and talk to you.” Suddenly tears collected in his eyes and his hands began to shake and he turned to stare into the fire as pain filled his chest and a lump grew in his throat. 

“Where are you? Why haven’t you been here? Aunt Sally once said she thinks you’re the one sending all those birthday gifts, and-” he took a shuddering breath in, lips quivering as he tried to control the urge to sob. “Why aren’t you here to explain them all to me? Why aren’t you here to explain this entire world and tell me what I should do? Why aren’t you here to tell me who my father is, and why in the world you loved him?” Percy paused, wiping haphazardly at his nose. “Why don’t you love me?” He breathed out.

Far away, a woman sat dazed on one of the roots of Yggdrasil. You were staring into a pool of water that had collected between the roots of the tree of life, willing it to show you something, anything other than your own reflection, willing it to listen to the power you had that no longer seemed to work. Your knees hurt from pressing on the unforgiving branch but you didn’t move. The edges of your white dress were turning grey and brown with the grime and water, and your bare arms and shoulders were beginning to get cold. 

Then, as if by the very magic that was threaded into the air of Asgard, the smell of burning sugar reached your nose. It was soft, barely a hint at first, and it mixed with the smell of food colouring and gelatin being burned as well. You frowned, closing your eyes and sniffing the air. And slowly, like someone was moving one side of a pair of headphones closer then farther away from your ear, a voice began to reach you. You tried to follow it with your head, to find it and bring it closer, but it faded in and out. 

The voice was full of pain, and you felt that pain within yourself, now. It filled up your throat and made your fingertips hurt. Your eyes began to burn behind your eyelids and tears slipped past the cracks. You could hear some of the words now, “where are you…” a child’s voice, desperate. “Why aren’t you here…” through shuddering breaths and a cracking voice. A voice you would know like a song from your childhood. You smiled through the pain, the tears streaming down your face like unstoppable rivers now, dripping into the puddle before you. And suddenly the voice was clearer, coming from right in front of you, and you opened your eyes hurriedly, breathing in big gulps of air as you saw your son’s face right in front of you.

His eyes were red, big and blue just like his father’s. And you couldn’t help the little laugh that left you, a watery, relieved, sound that mingled pain and joy so perfectly. His hair was curly and blond and unkempt and you reached out, hoping you could brush your fingers through it, but your fingertips only met water and rippled the image of his face. His cheeks were wet with tears and he was almost glaring into the fire. 

“Why don’t you love me?” He whispered, and you shook your head, entire body shaking as you sobbed out, ‘no, no, that’s not true.’ Your voice crackled and your face was scrunched up as if someone was stabbing you in the chest and twisting the knife. Your very organs were in turmoil. 

“Perseus,” you whispered, reaching out to the puddle again. He looked up and then around himself, as if someone had spoken behind him, and this time when your fingers touched the water, the image dissolved with the ripples. You cried out, your hand fully immersed in the water and sat there, shaking with sobs. Then a frenzy overtook you. 

You had to find him. You had to get to your son. Something had happened, you were sure of it. If he knew how to make a sacrifice now, he had entered your world. And if he had entered your world, then something had happened. And if something had happened… He needed you now. You stood up and clambered your way back to the feast hall. No one else was there yet and you hurried past the head table where you would be expected to take your place in the evening. If everything worked out, you wouldn’t be there to hear the questions about where you had gone. 

Just as you got to the centre of the table, a raven flapped down onto the back of Odin’s throne. You paused, where you stood opposite it, watching another raven circle down then hop onto the opposite end. Another raven squawked from somewhere behind you and you turned to look for it, dread creeping up your spine. When you turned back around to look at the two ravens on the throne, you gasped and jumped back. 

Odin was sitting on his throne and watching you with pursed lips. His eyes were pained when they met yours and you stepped closer to the feast table, wanting to reach out to your father and soothe whatever ache was ailing him. 

“Where are you going?” He asked simply, watching you clench both your hands in the skirts of your dress. 

“My son, he… Father, he needs me,” your lower lip wobbled as the tears returned with your force. 

“You know you cannot go to him. For his sake, and your own,” his voice was low, a tone you had not heard before. “You would be risking his life.” “It is already at risk!” You exclaimed, throwing your hands up in the air. “Something has happened, and he is aware of the world he comes from. He has always needed me but I was too much of a coward to stay with him and risk the fight. I reasoned that he needed to be hidden,” you clenched your eyes shut at the pain of the years missed, the time lost. “But now… he has entered a world that he knows nothing about. He still doesn’t know even the extent of himself. And-and… he needs his mother.” You were resolute, clenching your hands into fists and staring at your father. 

Odin stayed silent. He watched you straighten your back and press your fists into the sides of your legs. He could feel the power you exuded, could see the little waves of sparkling particles that emanated from your skin, the raw magic only he was capable of seeing. He sighed, rubbing his forehead for a moment. Your own face seemed to draw downward as you saw the look on his face, a bone-deep sadness, a raw despair that added lines and wrinkles before your eyes. Then he looked up and directly into your eyes. Into your soul. 

“I have been protecting you from yourself, for so long,” he sighed, and you watched him slowly peel his eyepatch off and set it on his knee. His eye socket was a gaping black hole, the red scarred flesh at the edges had healed long ago and was just threads of red blood vessels under thin skin. “You have always been my favourite child,” he told you with a soft smile, and you returned it, suddenly feeling like you had only just been a little child the day before and Odin had been leading you around the halls of Asgard. “And I only do what I do, what I have already done, out of love.” You frowned, mouth parting to speak. “You would understand, I hope, the inherent need of a parent to protect their child.” 

“Father, what are you-” 

You glanced back into the socket of his eye and suddenly your limbs could no longer move. Images assaulted your mind, flashing one after the other as the sound of ravens screeching and squawking and calling hit your ears. You tried to bring your hands up to cover them but you couldn’t. Every muscle felt like it was stuck in syrup and you couldn’t even lift your fingers up let alone try and swim out of it. And then the images, your little Percy’s eyes flashing in front of your eyes. Every moment you had missed, every little word he said and every movement he made. 

You watched him wail in Sally’s arms as she desperately tried to soothe whatever was bothering him, walking around in the living room of a small apartment at one in the morning. You saw him carefully pull himself up onto his chubby toddler legs and begin precariously waddling his way to Sally as she clapped and teared up, reaching out for him and pressing kisses to his cheeks. You watched him on his first day of school, hands shaking and eyes tearing up as he tried to read what was on the paper and couldn’t get the letters to stay still. You saw his downcast face as the principal told Sally the school couldn’t support his needs. You saw him run up the dank stairwell of a school building, desperate to get to the roof and see the Pegasus before it left. You watched him lay in bed at night and whisper goodnight to a mother and father who weren’t there. And you watched him grow, and grow, and become a sassy teenage boy who was kind and loyal, even to a fault. You saw him smile happily when Grover found him and struck up a game of mythomagic cards. You smiled and laughed and cried without moving a single muscle. 

And then you saw the minotaur chase the car. You saw Sally push Percy away in the rain and begin screaming at the monster to come for her. You saw the creature pick her up, the flash of her disappearance, and a soundless scream parted your lips slightly. But nothing else moved. Not an eyelash. A constant stream of Percy’s life played before you until it disappeared in a flash. You stared at Odin, unmoving as a tear slipped from the corner of your eye and slowly tracked down your cheek. He watched its trajectory until it dripped off your jaw. You wanted to open your mouth, to scream at him to let you go. You wanted to ask why, why did he hide everything, why would he do this? You wanted to go to your son. But he just looked at you with that never-ending pain in his eyes and whispered, 

“I’m sorry.” 

A flock of ravens descended on you. Pitch black wings hit you and flapped in your face until you were lost in the flurry and didn’t know if you were awake anymore…

Taglist: @thicficbich1, @pasta-warlord, @turtleshavesoulmates, @wolfgirl294, @stanswifties, @mrsinclaire, @homanoid, @bellamysnatblida, @mooncleaver 

[cripplecharacters]

Feel free not to answer this question as it's more a research-type question, I'm just not sure how to go about finding what I need: do you happen to know any fiction books with portrayals of medium to high support autistic people that are considered realistic and positive? All I can find is rep of low support autistic ppl (unless it's in semi-educational children's books) and it's making it harder to figure out how to write medium to high support autistic ppl myself.

Hello!

When I was diagnosed, it was before the levels were used (Or at least before they were used where I lived). I suspect that I would be considered 'level one autistic' today but would likely have been 'level two', bridging into 'level three' as a child. This is all just to explain my perspective with this.

That being said, here are some of my recommendations:

A Step Toward Falling by Cammie McGovern

I just finished this book earlier today and while it isn't specifically about autistic characters, it does feature several autistic characters with high support needs as well as other disabled characters. The book is written from the perspective of two characters, one of which is developmentally disabled (Belinda). Although her disability is never specified, I do see a lot of autistic traits in Belinda. The premise of this book is a bit heavy. It's about two characters (Who are not disabled) who end up volunteering at a centre for adults with developmental disabilities. One of the things I appreciated about this book was how well rounded the characters are. Each of them has their own stories, interests, and ideas. I also like how it discussed sex and relationships in the context of people with developmental disabilities. Something to note is that this does have some sensitive topics such as ableism, sexual assault, and bullying. It is also written by a parent of an autistic child but, as far as I'm aware, the author herself is abled. I did have some conflicted feelings about specific parts of it but I'll leave that for you to make your own decisions about. Target Audience: Young Adult

How to Speak Dolphin by Ginny Rorby

I also read this book recently and I personally really disliked it. There were several scenes that made me feel very gross and I found that the autistic character was dehumanized very often. One line that stuck with me was another character about a blind character, essentially saying, "I thought she was going to drown herself. If I was blind, that's what I would do." Although the character does get to know the blind character and changes her mind, it really felt awful to read and seemed so unnecessary -- especially given the target audience. The way it talks about blindness in general bugs me. That being said, I have seen several autistic people recommending the book (Which was why I read it in the first place) so I'll include it here anyways since my opinion seems to be in the minority around this book. Target Audience: Elementary/Middle Schoolers This is a brief review from another autistic person. [Link]

Planet Earth is Blue by Nicole Panteleakos

This book centers around Nova, a young autistic girl with high support needs. Nova is a foster child who is missing her older sister and the story is told through a mix of narrative, letters to Nova's sister, and flashbacks. It's been a while since I've read this book but I remember really enjoying it (And maybe crying a little bit too). The author is autistic herself and also consulted many other autistic people with a variety of experiences, which I appreciated. Target Audience: Middle Schoolers This is a more in-depth review on the book from a reader who (I believe) is also autistic. [Link]

These are also a couple books that I've seen recommended but can't personally recommend as I haven't read them myself yet:

Real by Carol Cujec

Remember Dippy by Shirley Reva Vernick

I know it's not very much but hopefully it's enough to get you started! If anyone has any recommendations for anon, feel free to mention them in the notes.

Cheers,

~ Mod Icarus

[obeyme-and-myfics]

Hi!! May I request a continuation of short!MC with the side characters? I love your writing! 💖💖💖

Yes, of course! I took a little break from posting on the internet so that's why it took so long for me to respond. Also thank you! I try to write as well as I can. (●'◡'●) Some side characters are gonna be missing from this cuz I'm not quite comfortable writing for them yet.

I haven't met Raphael, Mephistopheles or Thirteen(I am planning on making their own parts when I do tho!) in anything other than events. So I'd like to apologize in advance because if I remember correctly one of your favs is Mephisto o(TヘTo) (I hope this doesn't sound weird since we've only met briefly on the discord server /gen)

Anyway onto the actual prompt (￣y▽￣)╭

Part 1| Part 2(here)

Prompt: How Obey Me Characters react to a short MC/Y/N

Characters: Diavolo, Barbatos, Simeon, Solomon, Luke(/p)

Headcanon List

CW/TWs: Teasing for your height,

Diavolo

I don't think he'd have much of a reaction seeing as most people/demons are a lot shorter than him

This man is easily 7ft I don't think he gives a fuck, everyone is puny to him

He'd definitely say something by accident, something he doesn't think would bother you

He's a himbo and oblivious to this shit

He'd probably say some shit like

"You're quite small for a human" or something like that

Crouches/Bends down to talk to you sometimes

Only when he really feels like it

I swear he's not trying to be rude

He'll pick you up only if you ask

For any reason too, he adores his small human

He respects you and doesn't want to help you like that unless you want him to

If he sees you struggling to grab something he'll get it for you

Gently reminds you that he can help you and you don't need to struggle with these things while he's there

Worries about other demons taking advantage of your small stature and hurting you

So he checks in on your wellbeing more often than he would if you were taller

If he knows you're around, he's making sure he doesn't accidentally run over you

I'm so sorry! to be fair he's probably gotta do that with bitches 5'7 and below

He'd probably enjoy holding/hugging you too

Like you ask for cuddles this man is cradling you in his arm

Maybe even rocking your ass to sleep

Barbatos

Man has nothing to say about your height

Like he couldn't care less about it and has the foresight to not say shit if you're a little insecure

Not that he would even if you weren't

If he sees you struggling to get something off a higher place, he's helping even if you don't ask/don't want him to

That's just kinda how he is

If you request he stop that he will but you need to communicate your wants and needs

If he sees you getting bullied(/lh) for your height and you look distressed he'll give to culprit a bit of a scolding

Depending on how bad it/Who it was it'll be harsher

Of course he'd like for you to defend yourself at least a little bit

When you do he can't help but smile a little to himself.

He likes to serve the ones he cares for so if any difficulties arise due to your height he'd be happy to attend to them

That is to say its only if you ask/he has the time to

He is still the butler of the future ruler of the Devildom after all

Barbatos also wouldn't treat you any different than how he would treat some one of average height or taller

Solomon

He makes the occasional comment about your height to your face

Giggles about it in private on occasion LIKE A BITCH

It's only occasionally that he does this tho

Overall its not that big of a deal to him

He's been alive long enough that he doesn't really care

Will absolutely help you with things your height hinders you from doing

If you're being bullied about your height he'll give you a chance to defend yourself before jumping to your defense

Will pick you up and carry you sometimes just for shits and giggles

Other times he picks you up and carries you away to hang out or aid him in another one of his magical endeavors.

and now we have Nightbringer /j

He's not doing anything to talk to you on your level Slay, king Solomon. Slay

He thinks its mildly entertaining to watch you struggle to grab something off the top shelf/anything out of your reach

He's a bit more careful with you than he normally would be with others

Has offhandedly suggested making something to make you taller if you'd like it

you gonna whoop his ass or should I?

He enjoys watching you stand up for yourself despite your height

It can be intimidating when people who are much taller than you pick on you and he understands that

or maybe you're not intimidated in the slightest and just wanted to unleash a can of whoop ass on some assholes who've been picking on you Period. Slay honestly.

He understands that too, and enjoys watching it go down

He finds it satisfying

Simeon

Won't comment on it most of the time but he does think its really cute

Only makes a comment when he's asking if you need help getting something higher up than you can reach

and its normally something like

"Oh! MC did you need help? It looks like you can't quite reach that."

A bit more careful with you than he would be normally

Though he's gentle by nature most of the time Sadistic Simeon has me in a chokehold fr fr

He won't get down to your level or do anything to demean you

not intentionally anyway

He doesn't say anything about your height for the most part but he will slip up every once in a while

It's nothing bad he just lets it slip he thinks your height is cute

He encourages you to stand up for yourself but has no problem sticking up for you or stealing you away if you're being bullied too much.

Happy to help with anything your height makes difficult when you ask

Other than that he doesn't treat you any differently due to your height

Luke

He's just happy he's not the only short one here.

If you're shorter than him he doesn't comment on it but he is excited to not be the shortest there.

He would make a few comments about it but you just gotta tell him to stop and he will

He doesn't want to make you upset with him

Sweet baby just wants to bond with you over the others making fun of your heights

Doesn't hesitate to yell at anyone making fun of your height and calling you names because of it

Makes sure you're okay afterwards

He's getting made fun of for this though

The brothers would take to calling him your guard dog

He barely gives you a chance to defend yourself but will back up if you defend yourself before he can

He borderline clings to you like a sloth

Comes to you every time he needs to vent about everyone bullying him for his own height

You're his favorite human now

If he's taller than you, he will do his best to help with things you can't reach.

He's happy to help out his friend

[emberfrostlovesloki]

Teacher's Pet [Aaron x Reader]

Photo credits: Left (@littlecarmine) Center (@penandpaper-love) Right (@f4iryesss)

Prompt: When the reader, Jack’s teacher gets injured during the school day keeping her students safe, Aaron goes to check on her that evening. The unlikely pair get closer, but it's up to both of them if they want to make whatever they have more. 

Pairing: Aaron x Non-BAU!reader, teacher!reader,  ally!reader. The reader uses she/her pronouns

Category: hurt/comfort 

Word Count: 12K

Content Warnings: Homophobic phrases [from anti-LGBTQ+ protesters (the bad guys)], brief mention of religion, mention of being hit in the face and body and a split lip (reader) distress, mention of food and drinking alcohol, mention of an accident [not specified what (reader)], Haley’s death is brought up. If I missed any, please let me know. 

A/N: Hi all! I hope you are all doing very well! This fic is for amazing @imagining-in-the-margins's Pride writing challenge! I made up my own prompt for this one which is: The reader puts herself in danger to keep her students away from anti-LBGTQ+ protesters. Aaron finds out about this and makes sure she’s fine (aka protective Hotch.) I hope you like this more fluffy and cute style of fic. It’s a bit different from the angst I write. It takes me back to my early Aaron writing style! I want to note that I know that not all school districts deal with this kind of stuff, but as I live in the South, and my sister and I are both in Education, I get to hear about this kind of thing more often than I’d like. Anyhow, please be kind to yourselves this week and do something you love, you are so special. If you enjoy this fic, likes, comments, and reblogs are appreciated! Love Levi - ❤️

List with all stories 

y/n = your name 

y/l/n = your last name 

a/r = age range 

a/d/r = any dietary restrictions (if none, please ignore) 

Aaron got the call from the school shortly after he’d finished an early lunch. He was seated at his desk, the soft glow of the lap lighting his space which was covered by the team’s files. He was going to do the boring parts of the files for them, as he always did, but his phone ringing had disrupted his workflow. He glanced at the caller ID and quickly picked up, saying, “This is Mr. Hotchner.” There was a brief pause before the woman on the phone said, “Good afternoon, Mr. Hotchner. This is Rachel Jenkins, the school receptionist.” Hotch nodded his head; he knew the woman well, as he had gone to the school multiple times this year already because Jack had gotten into some kind of trouble, or needed him. Rachel continued, stating “Sorry to disturb you during the work day, but there’s been an incident with Jack, and the nurse thinks it’s best that you come and pick him up as soon as possible.” Aaron stifled a sigh. He wasn’t angry at Jack. He didn’t blame him for acting out, a trait that had started once his son had started processing his mother’s death. The family counselor said that was a natural part of grieving for a child, and Aaron was sympathetic to his son’s pain and emotions. Sometimes he wanted to scream or lash out too, but he had more faculty over his emotions. Even with all that being said, Hotch did find it a bit troublesome that Jack got into scuffles on days that would have been easy for him. But that was neither here nor there, life, nor emotions waited for anyone’s schedule -- Aaron knew this like all parents did. 

Hotch asked a follow-up question: “Was this Jack dealing with bullies, or was this him doing something he shouldn’t be?” Aaron liked to know these things heading into the Principal or Nurse’s office beforehand, so he could set his tone appropriately. There was a pause on the line which made Hotch nervous. The silence was broken as Jessica replied, “No, Mr. Hotchner, it’s not that. I… I think it’s best that you just come down to the school.” This response made Aaron even more tense. 

What could have happened that the woman would hesitate like that? He sensed that an answer had been on the tip of her tongue, and she’d stopped herself from speaking because she thought it was better. Hotch furrowed his brows, got out of his chair quickly, and grabbed his suit jacket. He flipped the screen of his laptop down, then grabbed his shoulder bag from the couch. No matter what Jack might have gotten up to, not knowing if something bad had happened to his son, nothing would stop him from getting to Jack. 

Hotch hurriedly locked his office door behind him and as he started striding toward the stairs that would get him to the elevators, Rossi exited his office and offered a quizzical look at his friend. It was unlike Aaron to flee the office, even on days that felt like they were drawing on for an eternity. Hotch beat Dave to the question forming on his lips, someone would need to know where he was in case something serious came up in his absence. “Jack had some trouble at school and they said I should head over there.” Rossi frowned and said, “The bullies again? Remember my offer of teaching Jack how to punch is still on the table.” The worried look on Aaron’s face prevented Dave from joking further. Hotch pinched the bridge of his nose and said, “I don’t think so, I hope to be back in a half hour or so. Look after the team while I’m gone, please?” 

Rossi nodded his head in understanding and watched as Aaron took the stairs quickly down to the bullpen and out of sight. Dave closed his eyes for a second. He knew things had been hard for Aaron and Jack after Haley. There was no avoiding the hurt that lingered like a shroud around the two of them. He knew that Hotch had done his best to help and support Jack, but that didn’t make Aaron’s pain any less. If anything it made it worse because the guilt still haunted Aaron like a spector. Jack’s anger had grown and manifested at anything that it could get its teeth into, and often its victim was Aaron, who was trying his best. Dave bowed his head and saw the grief with Aaron. Rossi knew grief, it had been his companion for many years. And it hurt to see it on Hotch, but there was little he could do but support Aaron to the best of his ability and let time do its healing. And healing was a slow seamstress. Dave looked over the bullpen at the team working and smiling and turned back to his office, he felt like he needed a drink, but for now, bitter coffee would have to do. 

Aaron drove at a speed that was technically street-legal. The churning of his stomach and the constant red lights had him worried and agitated at the same time. Jack’s school wasn’t too far away, but he’d hit the lunch-hour traffic which made the drive at least twenty-five minutes long. Hotch jacked up the air conditioner to silence his stressed-out thoughts. If something very bad had happened, then he would have been told. And there was nothing on the news, no lockdowns, or active shooter drills. However, sending Jack off to school every morning knowing that that was a possibility didn’t make him feel good. 

It was the fear of the unknown that made Aaron press his foot down on the accelerator further. Hotch arrived at the school and everything looked normal from the outside. With hurried footsteps, he made it to the front office to check in. Jessica could see how nervous he was and the intensity of his expression. Aaron’s eyes, when they were dark and worried, had opened many doors for him, and broken many unsubs in the interrogation room. The receptionist swallowed and said, “Just grab a visitor badge and you can head to the nurse’s office, Mr. Hotchner. I’ll sign you in. The Vice Principal is already there.” 

Aaron grabbed one of the laminated passes and said, “Thank you,” as he headed out of the glass office and toward the nurse’s office which was located at the end of the central hall adjacent to the janitor’s closet. Knowing the Vice-Principal was present with Jack told Aaron more information, but not enough to know exactly what had happened. If he found out that his son was being bullied again, he was going to send some strongly worded emails to those boy’s parent’s this evening. As he was drafting the letters in this mind, he made it to the nurse and opened the door. As soon as he saw Jack’s tear-stained face, and that he was clutching a Kleenex in his hands, Hotch stepped further in the door and the nurse and Vice Principal moved aside and let him go to his son. Aaron knelt next to the bed that Jack was sitting on and embraced him firmly. Jack let out some sniffles and Aaron reassured him before asking for any information, “It’s okay, Jack. It’s okay.” 

After a few moments, Hotch attempted to move away, but Jack’s hands gripped the fabric of his shirt. Aaron moved his right hand from Jack’s soft hair that reminded him of Haley to under Jack’s legs as he stood. Unamused at how he’d been kept waiting, Aaron asked in a cool tone, “Would you tell me what’s going on, Vice Principal Westbrook?” The silence that stayed in the room as the Vice Principal picked at the hangnails on his fingers and looked at the floor had Aaron hot under the collar. Jack didn’t look bruised or hurt in any way, just very upset. Upset enough that he had wanted him. Before Dr. Westbrook could come up with a scripted answer, Jack said, “They hurt her, Dad.” Aaron frowned, pulled Jack back from his chest a bit, and asked, “Hurt who, bud?” Jack sniffled and replied, “Ms. y/l/n. He punched her in the face and her shoulder.” The words tumbled out of the boy's mouth and only had Aaron more concerned. Jack was crying again, and Aaron handed him back his crumpled tissue and pressed Jack to his broad chest again. Jack set his head on his dad’s shoulder and took comfort in the solid presence and scent that was always there for him when he needed it. 

Jack had done a lot of growing up in his short years. He’d discovered a few things about life that he wished he hadn’t. How people you loved sometimes went away, maybe just for a bit, or sometimes forever, but that didn’t mean they weren’t still there loving him. His dad was a prime example of this -- and even if Jack couldn’t articulate this, or might change his mind later, it was still true in the moment. As his little fingers clutched at Aaron’s shirt collar, Hotch turned to face Dr. Westbrook again. 

The slim man seemed to be trying his hardest to avoid eye contact with Aaron, and giving a straight answer to anything, but Hotch wouldn’t let him get away with this. Ms. y/l/n was someone who had become very special to Jack this year when he got into her class. Aaron also had a kind of parasocial relationship with y/n, as she had been very helpful with Jack and dealing with his grief and the bullying he’d been dealing with that year. Jack had brought her up early in the year and when Aaron had met with Ms. y/l/n for the Meet-The-Teacher night, Hotch could tell why. She was so bright. Her presence illuminated her cozy room which she had decorated with bright posters and lights. It seemed even the sharp corners of the room were softened by y/n’s presence. She had given Jack such praise for his manners, his reading skills, and how he treated his classmates with kindness. Aaron had almost felt like a lost that night, as he could only listen and nod. He had to really pay attention when some of the other parents started asking questions. Apart from the fact that y/n was clearly an adept teacher and classroom manager for her age, she was also pretty. Pretty in a quaint way. He’d left the school that night feeling oddly lighter than he had in months. 

The next time they met was at the first parent-teacher conference. That was where Aaron had learned that Jack was dealing with bullies. The administration hadn’t even informed him of this issue. y/n was very kind about it and wanted to make sure that Aaron had the right support for something like this. y/n hadn’t meant to question his parenting skills, but as a single dad, she wanted to get a better feel of how emotions were handled around the Hotchner household. Not just sad feelings, but anger and resentment too. It wasn’t until a month later when the bullying had gotten really bad, that Aaron realized, thanks to y/n, that he wasn’t equipped to handle this alone and had brought in the help of a family counselor. He had more contact with y/n after that, as she checked up on Jack and kept Aaron informed about his son’s grades and other issues that popped up in the classroom. 

Hotch could understand why Jack would be upset that y/n had been hurt somehow. He was also angry, and asked in a firm voice, “What happened to Ms. y/l/n?” The VP sighed and said, “Well it was just an unfortunate situation, Mr. Hotchner, but no one was seriously hurt and we’re launching an investigation into the situation that happened.” This evasive answer didn’t satisfy Aaron and he replied, “Great, but what happened to Ms. y/l/n, and why is my son so distraught about it? What happened?” 

Dr. Westbrook realized that he couldn’t talk his way out of not answering Aaron as he had with the other parents he’d had to have had this conversation with. The man relented and said, “Well this morning a group of Anti-LGBTQ+ protesters amassed at the front of the school and held up degrading signs and shouted at anyone coming into the building through the front entrance.” Hotch already didn’t like where this was headed. The political climate had many up in arms due to the acceptance of others, and they made it their goal to try and complain and intimidate those who didn’t agree with them and their views. The VP continued, “Well they were blocking the flow of traffic and harassing the faculty, so we had some city police move them off campus. Unfortunately, they set up on DeGhatty Street on the sidewalk by the area for recess.” Hotch nodded, getting a better picture of what had happened. But there were still missing pieces. The next bit Dr. Westbrook rushed through, but Aaron caught the story even if the VP was trying to make it hard to. “Well it was the second shift of recess, the time that Jack has, and the protesters became more agitated. They weren’t getting the engagement they wanted, and they started yelling at the kids. Ms. y/l/n was on recess shift and tried calling the school’s two SROs, but they were dealing with an incident in the cafeteria. The screaming was distressing to some of the students and one student started moving toward the group by the fence…” 

Hotch stopped the man and asked, “Was it Jack?” The Vice Principal nodded his head no and replied, “No Mr. Hotchner. It was another student, but other monitors and students did say that your son was watching from a pretty close distance.” Hotch narrowed his eyes but didn’t detect that the man was lying. Dr. Westbrook swallowed thickly under Aaron’s gaze and shaky continued, “Well Ms. y/l/n saw the student moving toward the protesters, and she moved forward to cut the student off. The group was unhappy about that, and they accosted her and made some false statements and allegations about her. She did her best to verbally defend herself and move back to protect the students and get them all inside, but one of the men in the group, allegedly, grabbed her shoulder, screamed at her, and then lost his composure and hit Ms. y/l/n in the face and chest.”

The image that the man was painting made Aaron feel his anger flash up in him. Not only was the VP using protective language for the protesters, he, nor the school had done a proper job of protecting their students or teachers. No wonder Jack was distraught. Thinking of Jack, his son had settled and Aaron knew they would have to leave in a bit. This was still a school and there were other things that had to be done, but Aaron asked, “Are the protestors gone now? I drove down DeGhatty to get here, and I didn’t see anyone. Also, how is Ms. y/n? Is she alright?” 

Dr. Westbrook nodded and seemed relieved that the conversation had turned away from the events of that afternoon. He cleared his throat and straightened his blue striped tie which didn’t match his grey suit before replying, “The local police came down and dispersed the crowd and told them they didn’t have a right to protest on the school’s block without a permit, which is true. As for Ms. y/l/n, Nurse Patty here looked her over and we decided it was for the best to send her home for the day. Ms. y/l/n seemed shaken up.” Aaron refrained from letting out a long sigh. Now was not the time nor the place. But the feelings and questions that flooded Aaron were that he wondered why the police hadn’t been called earlier, why the school didn’t seem up on its legal code, and the utter condescension that came with having to send y/n home for the rest of the day. What did the Vice Principal expect from her after being punched in the face? y/n had “appeared shaken up?” How the hell would he have reacted in that circumstance? 

Aaron didn’t want any of this frustration at this situation to make Jack feel like he was angry at him, but he would have a conversation with his son later about when to step back in a situation. But he’d worry about that later. For now, Hotch said, “Okay. Thank you for explaining. May I take Jack home now?” Dr. Westbrook seemed to deflate and nodded his head yes. The nurse moved over to Jack and gave him a pat on the head and handed him a lollipop. The older woman said, “Have a good rest of your day, Jack. If you’re at school tomorrow and you feel bad at any time in the day you can come and see me, okay?” Jack nodded softly and Aaron shot her a thankful smile before tightening his grip on his son and moving out of the door and back toward the front office. Hotch quickly signed out with Jessica and returned his visitor badge to the counter. 

Once he was back out into the warm, almost, summer sun, Aaron dipped his head down to Jack's ear and said softly, “Hey, Buddy. Would you be okay with hanging you with Dad’s friends for a while while I work in the office? You could camp up with me or you could see Uncle Spencer, Uncle Morgan, or Aunt Penelope?” The prospect of seeing his friends had Jack perk up and his distress diminish as he said, “Hm-hm. I wanna see Aunt Penny and Uncle Derek.” Hotch smiled and replied, “Okay. We’ll just be there for a few hours and then, if you’re good, we can go to ice cream after Daddy’s done with work.” That last piece of information really made Jack happy, and Aaron relaxed for the first time since the school had called him. It didn’t take long for Aaron to get Jack strapped into his car seat and head back to the Quantico Field Office. 

Hotch spent the rest of the afternoon working and looking after Jack; mostly making sure Jack wasn’t getting into too much trouble with the team. Derek showed Jack around the bullpen, and Spencer did some physics magic which the whole BAU oohed and ahhed at, even Aaron and Rossi, from a distance. Then Penelope took Jack into her office and they spent around an hour together laughing and talking. There was something about Garcia’s energy that matched Jack’s so well, and his easily distracted self could be entertained for hours. Hotch made sure to set up a fancy coffee delivery for tomorrow morning for the team out of his pocket. He knew all of their orders by heart now. He did this as a thank you to the team. Not that any one of them would complain about having Jack distract them, however, being a babysitter was very much not in their job description, especially when they were in the office, so wanted to make sure they knew how appreciative he was of their support. Each one of them had been there for him and Jack on numerous occasions when Hotch thought that he couldn’t go on. He realized how lucky he was to be surrounded by this support system. Jack had them too, and also his friends and teachers at school. Ms. y/n came to mind as he finished scheduling the coffee order. The thought of someone laying hands on her gave him a constricting feeling in his chest. 

Aaron let out a breath and looked outside his windows into the bullpen where he watched Prentiss, Morgan, and JJ kneeling next to Jack who was speaking animatedly about what looked like soccer practice. Hotch moved his eyes back to his laptop screen and pulled up his personal email. With a few clicks of his fingers, he had gmail pulled up. He hit ‘new message.’ He typed in y/n’s email into the ‘to’ box. It felt so strange to be the one initiating a conversation, especially a new one, but he cared about Ms. y/n, and he knew his nerves wouldn’t settle down until he’d checked in on her. 

y/n was the one to normally start a conversation either to check up on Jack or let Hotch or Mr. Hotchner, as she called him, what had happened with Jack at school. Aaron had only once emailed y/n for details about Jack’s day when he’d come home upset about something that he couldn’t quite decipher. She responded promptly and told him everything she knew about the situation. Essentially they had only emailed in a professional capacity before, and this felt different. For a moment Aaron wondered if anyone else had called or messaged her. If her friends from school or elsewhere were getting a story about the wild day she’d had, or how she was hurting. The thought made Hotch’s heart clench for some unknown reason. He typed out this message: 

To: y/n.y/l/n@_____ISD 

From: Aaron.Hotchner65@gmail.com 

Subject: Checking-In 

Good afternoon, Ms. y/n,

 I heard from Jack and the school today that you were hurt today while trying to keep your students safe. I wanted to thank you for putting yourself in that position for the sake of the students, especially Jack. He is very worried about you and keeps asking if you’re okay. He and I both share that sentiment. I hope the school fully supports you in what you need at this time. If there is anything I can do to make your life easier these next few days, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I would be happy to drop off food or just be a support if you need it. Wishing you the best, 

Aaron Hotchner 

Hotch hit the send button and listened to the little swoosh of the sent sound. Although he did feel better after sending the email, it was also odd. He didn’t want to come off as a parental figure to y/n. Not that he wasn’t older than her by a good few years, he was, but the idea of him coming across that way made him uncomfortable. And the fact that that idea made him uncomfortable only made him question what he wanted to come off as instead. Mostly, Aaron didn’t want to seem patronizing. He knew y/n was tough and could handle things, but his concern and care had overrode those thoughts. Hotch pushed those thoughts from his mind; he had good intentions sending the email and if it came off in another way, then at least he’d tried his best. 

Aaron looked at the clock at his wall and it was five minutes to five. Unlike a normal day, where Jack would have an afterschool activity or Jess would pick him up for a few hours before he would swing by and get Jack for the rest of the evening, tonight was different, and he started packing his things up in his briefcase. He took some of the important files and the rest he left for tomorrow. He’d come to the office early if Jack felt up to going to school tomorrow. Once Hotch had most of his things ready, he moved outside of his office. Jack was playing a game with Spencer, and Aaron called out, “Jack, come up here and get your backpack and lunchbox, please. We’re about to go home.” Jack looked up at his dad and said, “Just one sec, Dad.” Aaron gave his son a look, and Jack sighed, got out of his seat, and made it up the stairs to Aaron’s side. As Jack moved past Spencer, Reid gave his head a little pat and once Jack had passed the lithe agent, Aaron gave Spence a smile before turning to his son and moving with him to the office. 

Jack only had one binder and one maths assignment out on Aaron’s office couch. Jack had promised his dad that he would be good in the office, and being good meant doing five minutes of a math worksheet and complaining about how hard it was before the little boy moved out into the bullpen to see the team. Aaron didn’t blame him. Jack had had a hard and stressful day, but he did expect his son to pick up and get ready to go on his own. 

Jack was getting old enough for those things now, but Hotch still packed his lunches every day or made sure his son had money for his lunch account. By the time Aaron had his suit jacket back on and his briefcase and shoulder bag in hand, Jack had put his paper and notebook away and was struggling to zip up his small Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles backpack. Aaron leaned down and helped him close the bag and handed it back to Jack. Aaron led his son out of the room and locked the door behind him for the last time for the day. Hotch nodded to Rossi who was also locking up his office and then followed Jack down the stairs. The pair made it through the bullpen, and Jack waved at the team as he passed them. Aaron said, “Thank you” to each of them as well in his low voice. As Hotch got to the edge of the BAU’s area, turned, and said more loudly, “Thanks for today, everyone. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Morgan, Prentiss, Reid, and JJ nodded and said bye. 

True to his word, Hotch took Jack to get ice cream at a local spot not far from their house. Jack was ecstatic to be having sweets before dinner. Aaron had to remind his son that he still had to eat some other food once they got home and settled. Jack agreed excitedly as they walked into the pastel-colored storefront. There weren’t many people inside and no one in line, so it took only a few moments for Jack to order his chocolate swirl scoop with add-ins of Oreos and strawberries. Aaron got a scoop of brown butter vanilla for himself and then paid as Jack got them spoons and napkins, then found a comfortable table in the corner of the building near the window. After paying, Hotch sat down across from Jack who said, “Thanks, Dad.” Aaron smiled and reached over and patted the top of his head, replying, “Of course, Buddy.” Hotch cherished these moments. There would only be a few more years that ice cream before dinner was a big thing, and time in some things, such as kids growing up, moved so quickly. Not only was this time for them to have a bit of fun, but it was also a teaching moment for Jack. But Aaron was going to enjoy his ice cream first. 

Aaron dipped his plastic spoon into the slightly yellow-colored ice cream. There were specks of vanilla bean in the scoop that was slowly melting in the afternoon sun. Hotch took his spoon and slipped it in his mouth, sucking off the sweetness. Hotch let the cold ice cream sit in his mouth and melt with the body heat inside. The taste was sweet, but not cloyingly so which he enjoyed. The aftertaste of the browned butter hit as he swallowed. Aaron didn’t allow himself to have anything this indulgent very often, so when he did, he tried to enjoy and appreciate it. For many years, Hotch knew that his faster metabolism had gone in his early thirties, and treats were a thing he sought out less and less for himself. However, as he watched Jack enjoy his ice cream and as the soft music played in the space while the cars drifted by outside, he realized that this was something not only Jack needed, but something he needed as well. Aaron was brutal on himself and his body, and maybe he was trying too hard. He wanted and tried to be the best version of himself for the team, but more importantly for Jack, and he might have been taking it too far on his end. He relaxed a bit into his bench seat and took another bite of ice cream, this time just enjoying it for the sake of the experience. 

After their paper bowls were empty, Aaron took a breath and looked at Jack who was playing with his spoon and asked, “Jack, did you know what those people who were at your school today were talking about?” The boy stopped fiddling with his cutlery and made a face that said he was thinking before saying, “I think so. They were mad about gay people and shouting. They were really angry and I don’t know why…” Hotch nodded his head and tried to think about how to best respond. He had talked to Jack about the LGBTQ+ community, not so much like that but in the more simple and kid-friendly way of emphasizing that anyone can love anyone else as long as it’s not hurting anyone. That there could be two moms or two dads, and that not everyone felt like a boy or a girl. Jack looked up at his dad and asked, “Why were they so angry?” 

Aaron swallowed and replied, “Well, sometimes people don’t like something, or don’t believe in something. And they can think that, but the thing is that they try and want to make other people think it too. And when people don’t agree with them, they get angry. Because if you can’t make someone agree with you, then you can at least make them scared. And what do we know about being scared, Jack?” It took a second before Jack replied, “It’s okay to be scared but being different doesn’t mean being scary.” Aaron nodded proudly and Jack added on, “So they were just big bullies?” Hotch knew it was more complex with that but for now, it was a good analogy and he nodded yes. 

This conversation gave Jack a new thought and he asked, “You told me that I shouldn’t give bullies time, but Ms. y/l/n went up to them and tried talking to them.” Aaron nodded and replied, “Yes. You’re right. That’s what I’ve said to you. Things are different with Ms. y/l/n because she’s an adult, and she was trying to keep you and all of the students safe. But you’re right, for you, Jack, I would say to stay away from a situation like that, but there are some other things you can do too.” Aaron knew that Jack was a helper, and always had been. So in a situation where his son might feel helpless, he wanted to give him an option to do something that would give him power in the scenario and to do something that he was good at. 

Aaron stated, “So what you can do, Jack, is to find the other kids like you who might be upset. Because those people were saying upsetting and hurtful things. So you can find those kids who are hurting and make sure they’re doing okay.” Jack nodded along, this was something he could do. Aaron also added, “And if things seem bad, like if you feel unsafe or the other kids feel unsafe, the best thing you can do is get help from an adult. From someone you trust or know. Does that make sense?” Jack nodded and sat forward, mirroring Aaron’s posture as he shook his head yes. Hotch smiled and said, “Good, If you have more questions about today you can ask me anytime, okay?” 

Just as Aaron and Jack were getting ready to head home, Hotch’s phone pinged with an incoming message, and he checked it. The email was from y/n and he tapped on the screen opening the message which read: 

To: Aaron.Hotchner65@gmail.com 

From: y/n.y/l/n@_____ISD 

Subject: Re-Checking-In 

Good afternoon, Mr. Hotchner, 

Thank you so much for checking in on me. That is very kind of you. I’m just sorry that Jack or any of the students at recess had to see and hear what they did. As for what the administration thinks about what I did today, I think I’m going to find that out tomorrow, but don’t want to know really, nor should I speculate about it in an email. You are niceto offer your help. I think I’m just going to order a frozen pizza from the store and call it a night. I’m a bit banged up, if it was any more than this I think I’d have to go to the ER (that last bit is hyperbole). Thanks again for checking in Mr. Hotchner. I hope Jack isn’t too upset. Tell him I said hello, and that I’ll see him tomorrow at school! I hope you have a pleasant night, 

Ms. y/n. 

Aaron frowned slightly. There was a hesitancy in y/n’s tone here. Especially with how the school might react to what had happened. That, and the fact that y/n seemed to be in a lot of pain didn’t make Hotch feel good. It made him want to go over and see her even more. He paused to make sure this was still being done with good intentions. That his desire wasn’t just trying to find an opportunity to see y/n again. The feelings in his gut were still one of concern, even if his heart was doing something different. Hotch pushed aside the new feelings in his chest, something for him to contemplate later, and composed a reply to y/n: 

To: y/n.y/l/n@_____ISD 

From: Aaron.Hotchner65@gmail.com 

Subject: Re-re-Checking-In 

y/n, I’m glad you can bring some humor into this situation. That’s a relief. It sounds like you’re in a good bit of pain. Are you sure you don’t need to go to the ER? Also, would you let me pick you up a pizza? It’s no big deal at all, and that way you can save money on the delivery. Sorry, I don’t mean to overreach, but I am willing to give a helping hand if you want. 

Aaron Hotchner

Hotch really hoped he wasn’t sounding too desperate, or that y/n would think his offering to help her save money made her feel poor. He didn’t mean it that way. He’d tossed a few options out for her to reach out if she needed, or wanted help, or just some company. From what Aaron could tell about y/n was that she was fiercely independent. She’d seemed so put together for someone in their mind a/r. From what he could tell from y/n’s weekly email updates, she made a lot of her own classroom content and tried very hard to connect with each of her students. Not only that but from the two times they’d met at school, there were no indications that she had a partner or parents close by to help her with things. Aaron assumed this mainly because she’d told him how she’d had to learn how to fix the leak in her bathroom faucet from YouTube just so she didn’t have to call in a plumber. That was another time when Aaron had wished he could just whisk himself over to her duplex and lend y/n a hand. Before he could overthink what he’d sent there was another reply: 

To: Aaron.Hotchner65@gmail.com 

From: y/n.y/l/n@_____ISD 

Subject: Re-re-re-Checking-In 

Ummm, you’d do that, really? I don’t want to be a bother, Mr. Hotchner. I know you have to take care of Jack and everything… 

y/n y/l/n

Now a hint of a smile turned up the corner of Aaron’s mouth. He and Jack had made it to the car at this point and Hotch typed out: 

To: y/n.y/l/n@_____ISD 

From: Aaron.Hotchner65@gmail.com 

Subject: [Re]-Checking-In 

y/n, 

I’d be happy to take even a small load off of your shoulders. After what you’ve been through today it is the least I can do, and I can get someone to sit with Jack for an hour or so while I come over. To make communication easier, here is my cell Number: (804) 572 - 4459. If you’d like, however, to keep this over email, that’s fine as well. It might be a moment before I get back to you as I have to get Jack home and get him dinner, but I’ll be open after that and talk to you again then. Do you have any allergies or dietary restrictions I should know about before I go grab your pizza? 

Aaron Hotchner 

The drive home was quiet as Jack thought about what his dad had said. The sandy-haired boy had a few more questions which Aaron did his best to explain. When the questions turned toward religion, it had been a church group protesting, Hotch did his best to turn the conversation back to the key points. He rarely talked to Jack about church or religion, wanting his son to be able to make his own choices in faith, or not to have any at all. That hadn’t been a choice for Hotch as a child, and he wanted Jack to not have the burn of guilt that faith could bring unless it was something his son came to on his own terms. Plus religion had become a bit of a sore subject for Aaron after Haley’s passing. How could a fair God take away someone as good and pure as Haley? It didn’t make sense, and he didn’t have the will to study theodicy. So he pushed those thoughts to the background and focused on getting home. 

It didn’t take long for Aaron to get dinner ready for Jack. While he reheated some leftover pasta and veggies, Jack did his homework, and they both had a small dinner. Hotch also texted Jess to see if she was open to swing by for an hour to which she replied, “Yes. I never miss a chance to hang out with my coolest nephew. Are you going on a date or something?” Aaron rolled his eyes at the text, he suspected sarcasm and replied, “Something like that. Making a house call to a friend in need. I’ll tell you more later.” A moment later Jess sent a thumbs-up emoji and said, “I’ll be over in about forty minutes once my boys are settled, probably playing Fortnite or something *sigh*” Hotch liked the text and checked his messages to see a text from a new number which he correctly assumed was y/n. She had sent a simple, “Hello, it’s me, y/n. For your pizza question, I have a/d/r so knock yourself out with that. I’m not a picky eater. Also here’s my address, ________. I’m not doing anything tonight, I couldn’t even if I wanted to, so you can come over anytime, but before nine would be great as I have to wake up early. Thanks so much again. This is very, very nice of you. - y/n.” Aaron liked the text and replied, “Sounds good. I’ll make sure to make it to yours before nine. - Aaron.” 

Jess arrived promptly at 6:30, and Hotch let her know it was the normal bedtime routine that night. A half hour of TV, upstairs, teeth brushed, and in bed by 8:30. Jessica nodded and said, “Gotcha. You owe me a story for this one.” Aaron chuckled and said, “I’ll let you know. There’s an open bottle of Pino in the fridge if you want some. I shouldn’t be gone long.” Jess couldn’t help herself from saying, “That's what she said,” and Hotch flushed crimson. Unlike Haley, Jess had gotten the more crass humor of the Brooks family. 

Aaron left the room, keys in hand before any more jokes could be levied at him. He really didn’t plan on staying at y/n’s long. However thanks to the recent comments, Aaron couldn’t help but feel like he was a teenager sneaking out of the house to see some girl after curfew. Hotch shook his head at the silly notion and reminded himself that he was an adult man, and such thoughts were above him. However, he couldn’t stop the small thrill that ran through him as he entered y/n’s address into his phone. He swung by the local store and picked up two frozen pizzas that he thought y/n would like and matched her allergy and dietary restrictions she’d sent him earlier. He also moved to the pharmacy section and picked up some pain relievers, liniment oil, and cotton pads, just in case y/n didn’t have any of those things at her apartment. After all, she had said she was going to get stuff delivered to her, and he didn’t know if those were things she had planned on getting and then just didn’t tell him because she hadn’t wanted to be a burden. At least, that was how Aaron justified the extra purchases. 

Hotch texted y/n that he was on the way and the closer he got to her place, the more nervous he felt. It was strange. He hadn’t felt this way in ages. He had to keep attempting to suppress the feeling, but it kept creeping up on him like frost on the ground in the morning; an inevitable thing that he knew would change and probably go away with time. It was a week away from summer, there shouldn’t be frost on the ground at all. Hotch felt exasperated at his state and realized that maybe he was just too cold of a person and the frost stuck with him. Outside of y/n’s place, Aaron said, “Get ahold of yourself Hotchner, and be helpful for once, goddammit.” His little pep-talk got him to the door with the groceries. The lights were on inside and Aaron knocked lightly on the front door. There was a very muffled, “I’m coming” and all of a sudden the piercing darkness was broken by a stream of yellow light that poured from y/n’s open door. Aaron blinked for a second as he took in y/n. She seemed pretty relaxed in an oversized t-shirt and shorts that were nearly swallowed by the length of her shirt. She was barefoot and leaning against the door frame taking him in as well. Apart from the angry bruises on y/n’s face and her split lip, she looked comfortable here. ‘This is her home, of course, she’s comfortable’ Aaron reminded himself. 

While Hotch’s eyes had been adjusting to the light, y/n’s eyes were getting used to the dark. Jack’s father had always been an attractive man even though she’d only seen him briefly in the drop-off and pick-up lines and even less for any extended period of time. But Mr. Hotchner had a face, and attitude one didn’t easily forget. There was an intensity about him, a fierceness that could easily draw one in or scare one away. 

y/n wondered why the other teachers didn’t talk about him more. Maybe it was all the things he and Jack had gone through, horrible horrible things that kept people away. It made sense that Mr. Hotchner was in the FBI. He had a high-intensity job. All that energy had to go somewhere, and when he wasn’t being a parent to Jack and doting on his son, he must be doing dangerous and exciting things. Far more exciting than her job at least. y/n noticed his jeans and polo, a new outfit on him, and most certainly not his normal pressed suit and tie. y/n wasn’t complaining. His arms filled out the sleeves and his waist seemed a little less trim. y/n felt like a total fool for just standing there, realizing that he was also waiting to come inside, or maybe just drop off the bag of groceries he’d brought her so kindly using his own money and taking time out of his night. 

y/n snapped back to reality and berated herself and thought, ‘You’re fun little thoughts are getting out of hand. Please like he’d care about you like that.’ It was true, y/n had allowed herself to think, just a bit about the mysterious Mr. Hotchner. It was harmless, just small vignettes of them laughing about a joke, or holding hands -- kid's stuff, or at least it had been until he showed up outside her doorstep. y/n shook her head and said, “I’m so sorry Mr. Hotchner. I get hit in the head and my manners fly out the window. Would you like to come in, or just hand those things over? I can pay you back for them. Do you have PayPal or Venmo?” The words came out quickly, more quickly than y/n had hoped. There was no hope in sounding nonchalant now. A flush started forming on y/n’s face and she wanted to put her face in her palm, but had enough dignity left to not do that in front of the parent of her student. 

Aaron let out a little sigh of relief knowing that he wasn’t the only one who thought meeting like this was a bit, different. He wondered for a second why y/n had accepted his help, but pushed that aside and said, “Please Ms. y/n, you can just call me Aaron. I’d like to come in for a moment. See if you’re alright if you don’t mind?” y/n nodded and opened the door wider for Hotch. Aaron slid past her into the warm comfort of her space. It was lit mostly by lamps and the furnishings seemed soft and cozy which would match y/n’s personality. It was a bit more sparse and minimal than Hotch would have imagined, but maybe the chaos of a classroom called for order at home. The lights in the kitchen were on and the brightest. Hotch heard the soft click of the door behind him as he looked over the space. 

y/n stepped forward and said, “Well, please just call me y/n. Unless I’m in the classroom, Ms. makes me feel like a 19th-century spencer waiting for Harlod Hill to come into town.” y/n rolled her eyes at her choice of words. ‘Yes y/n, let’s talk about The Music Man in front of Mr. Hotchner, why don’t you?’ In an attempt to recover and hide her embarrassment, y/n stated. “I was just pouring myself a glass of wine when you knocked, um, would you like one? I can also take those groceries from you.” Aaron offered y/n a soft smile that only made her heart beat faster as he extended the bag of groceries and said, “I’m good for now. Thank you. Have you had anything to eat yet tonight?” y/n took the paper bag and their fingers brushed, the warmth of their skin spreading despite the frozen contents inside the bag. y/n cleared her throat and turned toward the kitchen in an attempt to hide how flustered she was. The cool linoleum tile of her kitchen managed to cool her down, and she placed the pizzas in the freezer. She tried to say casually over her shoulder, “I haven’t eaten yet, no. You can sit down anywhere if you like…” y/n didn’t know exactly if Mr. Hotchner wanted to stay long and she felt silly for having offered him a drink in the first place. Maybe he didn’t drink. By the time y/n had situated the food, Aaron had taken a seat in one of the chairs sitting catty corner to her tan couch. Trying to play it cool, y/n moved to her counter and poured herself the glass of wine she had been planning before she’d put her foot in her mouth. y/n contemplated that maybe this was why she was good with kids. The nuances of adulthood could pass over children’s heads so easily. They didn’t feel the awkwardness that y/n did right now. Nor the racing of her heart as Aaron filled one of her seats. 

She moved over to the couch and asked again, “Can I please pay you back for the groceries? It was nice of you to bring them, and for you to check in on me. I got a few angry emails from parents saying that I exposed their children to danger today, so yours was a nice change.” Aaron’s eyebrows pulled together. The comment about payment passed him by. He wasn’t going to let Jack’s favorite teacher pay him back, even if she asked a hundred times. But the more pressing issue was the emails from other parents. If y/n’s actions didn’t look good, then he didn’t know what they were. He asked in a low voice, “Why were they upset?” y/n bit her lower lip and cringed as the pain stung from the split in her mouth. She had forgotten it was there for a moment. Perhaps she shouldn’t have brought up the other emails. Depending on how the district’s admin took her situation, it wouldn’t help her to spread information. 

y/n chose her words carefully as she replied, “Well some were mad that I got hurt in front of their children and some were angry that their kids were exposed to those protestors in the first place.” y/n looked at Aaron and his slightly annoyed and sympathetic gaze made her feel better, safe. She hadn’t really processed what had happened to her yet, and she’d been alone since she’d been sent home. It was good to have someone here, and y/n took a sip of her wine and set her glass down on the table before leaning her head back on the couch and sighing deeply deflating slightly. 

In a smaller voice, a voice that gave away the pain she was feeling y/n said, “Maybe I shouldn’t have done anything. I just didn’t like the things they were saying. Kids are much more cognizant than people like to think and for those who have gay parents, or siblings, or might be part of the community themselves, they shouldn’t have to hear that stuff.” y/n pinched the bridge of her nose and continued, “This had to happen the week before summer break?” As y/n had her eyes closed, Aaron took the chance to give her face a better look. The bruise under her eye was turning a nasty purple that would fade to an even more ugly yellow color in the following days. The split on her lip looked nasty as well. The tender pink skin must hurt as she talked. He got what she was saying about kids knowing more than others expected. Jack was a prime example of that. Of course, Jack had been through more pain and grief than many his age. It would only make sense that he was more perceptive. The claims from the other parents sounded like bullshit to him though. 

y/n turned her face to him and said softly, “Sorry for unloading on you. I haven’t really had anyone to talk to about this yet. I don’t mean to hold you up.” Aaron nodded his head no and said, “You’re not bothering me, and you’re not holding me up. What were the protestors saying exactly, had you seen them before?” y/n’s eyes softened. She hadn’t really allowed herself the opportunity to picture Aaron like this in person, so kind and concerned. She’d just let herself think silly little snippets, but this gentleness hadn’t filtered into the equation. y/n moved her gaze to the ceiling and said, “Oh they were saying all the homophobic classics. Fags go to hell, god hates queers, and they were accusing the teachers on the staff of being groomers and turning the students gay, all that jazz.” Hotch rolled his eyes. These points were so tiring at this point, and he was annoyed with y/n for having to deal with this. y/n looked at Hotch and said, “And I haven’t seen any of those people before. Not like I’d be looking for those types of people on a daily anyway. They must have come down from upstate.” 

Hotch let out a small huff, his lawyer side kicking in as he asked, “You seemed hesitant about the school’s response to what you did today, and some other parents showed concern. Do you think the district might not support your actions?” y/n sat forward and took another drink of wine, more this time. It was helping her calm down. Not that she normally needed wine to unwind, but it had been a long day, and there was a very attractive man unexpectedly sitting in her home. That last fact was still a wonder to y/n. Like a dream. y/n considered that she might have gotten a very bad concussion and was being wheeled right now to a hospital. But she was brought back from her wayward thoughts when Hotch cleared his throat. y/n shook her head. She was letting her brain get away with itself far more than normal. But she blamed it on the pain, painkillers, and stress of the whole situation. That stress was slightly intensified by Mr. Hotchner’s question, but y/n realized it was better to say it out loud instead of keeping it in to eat at her. 

y/n sighed and said, “It really depends. You’ve heard about that Mom’s for Student Purity campaign at the beginning of the school year, I’m sure?” Hotch nodded his head slightly. He had heard of it but hadn’t thought much of it. Only that there had been some issues and poor behavior at the school assemblies. Aaron had assumed that the district had taken care of the situation and that’s why he hadn’t heard more about it. As hard as Hotch tried to be involved in Jack’s academic life, and he did show up to every game, play, and parent-teacher conference, he didn’t have much time for the school board meetings. That had been Haley’s forte and the thought pained him momentarily. Aaron wished he could live up to the expectation that y/n must have had of him as he said, “I’ve heard of them, but not much. I’m sure they’d have something to say about today.” 

y/n let out a little snort and replied, “Tell me about it. The district has been having a constant battle with them. Ever since the president and the vice-president of their organization got elected to the school board it’s been hard to keep them at bay. They’ve tried implementing book bans, vetting curriculum, and getting the librarian fired. Right now they’re not in the majority and their ideas are unfounded and impractical to implement, but they’re making things hard. Every time the district shoots them down, they start a new campaign and it gets more troublesome. I know this will come up in a performance review and if they don’t like it, they’ll find a way to make it hard for me. They’ve done it to others already. I can imagine the comments, ‘Teacher causes brawl in front of students leaving them disturbed.’” 

Hotch took a moment to think about how hard that must be. To have to be so careful that making a choice to do the right thing could get y/n in trouble. How the system was setting her up to have to make hard choices at the expense of her employment possibly. All of these loopholes reminded him of his own work in a way, though he didn’t have to deal with kids all day. Even though some of the police and sheriff’s departments the BAU worked with acted like children. y/n sighed and said, “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to complain. I love my job. I love working with my students. I love to see their joy and to have concepts click in their heads. They bring me so much happiness every day. It’s just the other part of the job, having to tip-toe around people and admin, it kind of dims that excitement I had when I was a new teacher.” y/n finished off her wine as Aaron took a moment to think. y/n had a great way of telling stories, it wasn’t a surprise that Jack was drawn to her tone and humor. It drew him in. He turned his head back to y/n who was now longingly looking between her wine bottle on her counter and her empty glass, as if trying to decide if she should risk another glass. 

Hotch asked carefully, “Have you taken anything for the pain?” He didn’t want to say that she looked rough, but her face looked like it hurt, and from y/n’s small grimaces, it clearly did. y/n nodded and said, “I did. I had some painkillers when I got home. I think I have another hour before I can take another round.” Aaron didn’t make a comment on y/n’s choice to mix alcohol with painkillers, nor the fact that she was drinking on an empty stomach. He’d recommend that she have some dinner in a minute, but for now, he said, “Well, I think if you iced your face for a bit and used some liniment oil on your lip it would reduce the swelling. It’s still going to hurt for a few days, but the bruising should be a little better, and it might tide you over until you can take your next dose of painkillers.” y/n nodded and said, “There’s a bag of ice in the freezer. I was doing that earlier but then fell asleep. I woke up in a nice puddle.” y/n grunted slightly as she got to her feet and made her way toward the kitchen. Aaron followed her with his gaze and he asked, “Can I refill your wine glass, and maybe you can try that oil, it’s pretty soothing. I know from experience.” 

y/n turned her head toward Aaron, he was being so nice to her and she wasn’t sure why. She didn’t come across people who were just nice for the sake of it often, and it filled her with warmth. She nodded her head yes and tried to imagine Aaron, who was always so put-together and composed, not bruised and bloody. The thought sent a pang through her. She wondered how often his getting injured happened, and if he’d let her help him like he was helping her. y/n shook her head. This was already feeling like a fantasy, she couldn’t possibly hope for more than this. Things like this didn’t happen, not to her. y/n grabbed the bag of ice that had refrozen after her nap, and grabbed a towel from the drawer next to the fridge, cradling the cool bag in her hand. y/n moved back to the couch and sat back down. The butterflies in her tummy had fluttered their wings like they did when they stopped to get warmed on the gray pavement outside of her house in summer. She wished she could still them, but at the same time, it was such a rush, they almost made up for the pain in her face. She wished she could get a better read on Mr. Hotchner. She knew about his son, and his circumstances, but even so, he was unpredictable like a comet. Why he’d offered to help her apart from out of kindness was hard to pin down, and she didn’t dare ask him outright. Why she’d accepted was another mystery. Did wanting to be in the company of a good man make her a bad person? Was she sexualizing him, taking advantage? 

Before her thoughts could take her further, y/n pressed the bag to her face, covering her and dimming the flush that was blooming on her cheeks. y/n pressed a little too hard and grimaced at the cold and the pressure. Just as she did this, Aaron sat down with her wine and the grocery bag. Hotch softly said, “Gentle now.” y/n looked up at him, half of her face covered, and smiled. She felt like I might cry, but she didn’t know why. How pathetic she must have looked to him. Not able to take care of herself. But she’d been trying. She’d been trying to prove she could care for herself forever. Now one had trusted her, not after the accident. Not after her life had been turned around. But she didn’t talk about that. She didn’t even talk about it with herself anymore. There was no point in self-pity, she’d lived, externally unscathed. For as perceptive as Mr. Hotchner was, he couldn’t know everything inside her, maybe that was what she was waiting for. Someone who could explain why bad things happened to good people. y/n swallowed back her emotions and wiped away one stray tear, and Hotch sat in silence watching her with concern. Wondering why her mood had shifted so suddenly. 

After a few minutes, y/n pulled the ice pack off her face and set it on the table. She then picked up her fresh wine glass and took a smaller sip, savoring it this time, as she did this, Aaron put his hand into the grocery bag and pulled out the cotton wipes normally used for removing makeup, then the liniment oil which was in a small dropper topped bottle. He opened the bottle and took off the paper cover keeping the clear liquid inside. Hotch screwed on the cap and then dropped a few drops of oil onto the pad. He considered that if this was for Jack, he’d use his hands, and let the warmth of his skin soothe the hurt. But this wasn’t Jack, and Aaron remembered that as he started raising his hand to y/n’s mouth like she was someone he could just tend to like family. Hotch froze mid-movement and turned noticeably red. He cleared his throat and said, “Sorry,” as he set the pad into y/n’s waiting hand. She was as shocked as he was at how he’d reached out for her. y/n murmured a barely audible, “Thanks” as she took the pad and, this time, more carefully pressed it to her split lip. Aaron filled the silence with what he hoped were some helpful reminders. It felt too awkward if he didn’t speak after his slip-up with his hand, plus, he was going to have to leave in a few minutes. He didn’t want to stay out late and the darkness outside was only getting darker. 

“If the school or the district ends up giving you any serious trouble, make sure your union rep is with you when you have to explain the situation. And, heaven forbid, there is some complaint and the union can’t do anything, I have a few lawyer friends I can get you in contact with.” y/n nodded her understanding, Her eyes widened at his lawyer comment. Who doesn’t this man know? Aaron continued, “You should ice your face on and off until you go to bed, and make sure you get some dinner before you sleep. You can also use this oil in other places if you’re aching elsewhere, just make sure not to get it in your eyes.” y/n watched him list off these things so collectedly. Not even having to think about them. She considered that he would make a good teacher if he was inclined toward that profession, but then again, he was the leader of an FBI Unit, how much more of a teacher can you get than that? y/n snapped her head up, realizing Aaron was saying something to her. Hotch smiled and repeated, “Can I see?” He gestured toward her lip and y/n let out a little breath and said, “Okay,” as she removed the pad from her lip and looked into Aaron’s dark, thoughtful eyes.

Hotch sat forward in his chair. y/n’s face was in the light of a lamp and he could see her full-looking lips which were pretty except where they were marred by the scar and scab of dark clotted blood. It didn’t look bad enough to need stitches, but just barely. He’d seen so many scars like these on Morgan, Reid, Emily, and his own mouth that it didn’t bother him. What did bother him was that what was a painful and annoying injury being inflicted on y/n. That would sting for at least a week. Sure it sucked when it happened to him or a member of the team, but they’d signed up for that, the most y/n should have to expect in terms of harm on the job was a paper cut. Clearly, he had been mistaken. 

Since they had both returned to their seats, y/n and Aaron had started drifting closer together like moths drawn to a flame. Hotch was about a foot away from y/n and could feel the ghost of her breath on his face and the hint of her barely touched second glass of rose now forgotten on the table. Without thinking, he moved his large hand up to the side of her face. The warmth of his hand on the side of her face had y/n rest her chin in his palm, and she closed her eyes. Not exactly sure what or why he was doing this, Aaron brushed his thumb over y/n’s top lip and then softly over her bottom lip. She winced as the pad of his thumb brushed over her scab, but didn’t pull away from his touch. y/n opened her eyes and Hotch dropped his hand. He leaned in slightly, entranced by y/n, her presence, just wanting to be a bit closer to her. y/n did the same. 

The moment was shattered when y/n’s phone loudly went off. Aaron dropped his hand like a lead weight, and y/n’s head snapped toward her phone on the side of the table. She turned her gaze back toward Aaron, but the moment had been broken. He looked silly, almost ashamed of himself. He’d pulled back and away and his posturing also made y/n feel like a fool. What had she been thinking? y/n got up grabbed her phone and answered, stepping farther away, but not so far away that Hotch couldn’t hear. What did she have to lose after acting so immature in front of him anyway? She could hardly think how she’d act when she saw him again, especially in the classroom. 

Putting the phone to her ear, she listened as her doctor asked if she’d picked up the refill of the medication that she had needed since her accident. y/n dipped her head. She’d completely forgotten about going to the pharmacy after her day and replied, “No not yet. I’ll pick them up right after work tomorrow.” There was a short reminder that those meds were helping y/n and she shouldn’t go without them. y/n nodded and said, “I know. I’ll pick them up tomorrow. I have enough to make it till then.” Hotch watched y/n cave in on herself as she walked away from him. He hadn’t meant to make her feel bad, or silly. He felt silly. Like someone who hadn’t been thinking about what he was doing. He shouldn’t have put y/n in that position and he was sorry for it. He’d have to find a way to apologize and leave y/n to her night before making some other kind of monumental error in judgment. 

Hotch heard y/n wrap up her call and her footsteps came back toward him. He stood and moved into the open space of the living room. The front door was just a few feet away and he felt like running out of it. But he stayed in discomfort and said, “I’m sorry for what I did earlier, y/n. That was inappropriate. I, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.” y/n dropped her eyes again and said, “It’s alright. You were really kind to come over here and listen to me ramble and complain for half an hour. Not even my friends did that, and I’ll make sure to heed your advice. It’s clear you have a lot more practical life experience than I do. You don’t need to apologize for anything.” Aaron nodded, trying to accept her words for a situation he’d created. He wished he could explain what he’d been thinking, but he couldn’t because he hadn’t been thinking. The final nail in the coffin was when y/n said, “I hope you have a good night, Mr. Hotchner.” The change back to his last name, y/n hoped sounded regretful, but to Aaron, it only sounded hollow. Now it was Aaron’s turn to drop his head and he moved toward the door, stopping for one second as his fingertips brushed the cool metal, so unlike y/n’s warm skin. 

y/n didn’t like this. She didn’t like this at all. She hadn’t really known why she’d said yes to him coming over other than she wanted to see Aaron. She had enjoyed feeling his hand on her face. It was fast and strange like a dream, but she’d liked it, and part of her wanted very badly to understand why she’d wanted him here. And she didn’t think she could do it alone. She assumed that Aaron was as lost as she was. It seemed like he was. The words of y/n’s therapist rang in her ears, “Sometimes being strong is letting people in instead of keeping them out.” Just as Hotch’s hand latched onto the door knob y/n said, “Mr. Hotch… Aaron. I can’t exactly tell you why I asked you here, apart from the fact that I wanted you here, and I really enjoyed having you here, for all of it. I mean, like, before the phone call. I don’t know what this is,” she gestured between them, and continued, “But I’d like to understand it more. Maybe when the semester is over we could get coffee or something. Or if you don’t want that, I understand too.” 

There was a moment of silence that felt like an eternity before Aaron turned. His expression looked lighter, and maybe there was a ghost of a smile on his face that said, “I’d like that y/n. I enjoyed tonight too. You have my number now, so you let me know once you have the headspace to come up with a day for our meeting. I look forward to it.” y/n smiled too and raised her hand and waved. Hotch then moved outside and closed the door behind him. As he walked down the drive he felt better. Much better, and happy he’d come, even if he hadn’t been sure why, he had a better picture now, and he felt less guilty about it. He’d have something to tell Jess when the time was right, but for now, he could look forward to getting to know y/n better, and get to know himself too. 

Inside, y/n looked at the door for a second before she moved to it and locked it. She then moved to the couch and dropped into the cushions with a sigh. Once she’d grounded herself, y/n grabbed her glass and took another sip. The bag of ice was once again going unnoticed on the cushions and melting. y/n pulled the glass from her lips and contemplated how her face didn’t hurt so much anymore. Perhaps it was the painkillers, or the wine, or maybe, just maybe, it was the courage to tell Aaron the truth, and the possibility to know more about that feeling between them.

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[rottenwhoreee]

Warning signs and blissful ignorance.

this is in the context of mass 👟ters

first off, columbine was an obvious example of missed warnings, at the time it was more excusable as school 👟tings were a less common occurrence.

Then there was sandy hook. There was no excuse, the warnings were painfully evident and Adam was actively being enabled by Nancy. No one deserved to have to suffer due to his actions, including himself.

Robb, in my opinion, was a mix of both tragedies, I won’t say much else, I don’t know much about the case and I don’t want to spread misinformation.

now for all the people who actually go out and commit crimes against others, there are 100 people like me.

when I was 13 I became obsessed with mass 👟ters, specifically Dylan K and Andrew B.

I did condone. I was planning something of my own. I was going to do something whether it was just myself or the people I hated too.

I luckily never hurt anyone else but that year marked the beginning of my severe SH and my first attempt, which I did at my middle school.

I also started using alcohol, with my psych meds. I was hospitalized for about a month. Getting out on Dec 24. At which point I was freshly 14, diagnosed with multiple mental illnesses and completely locked off from anything I could possibly harm myself or others with.

My warning signs were as follows:

violent threats, writings, and statements

openly talking about columbine with teachers and students, making jokes about shootings my classmates infront of and to teachers.

stealing scissors, pencil sharpeners, and Xacto knives from teachers.

reading books about shootings and telling people about them.

Falling grades, falling asleep in class, drawing violent pictures.

Being bullied badly, talking often about exacting revenge.

self harm and substance abuse

I understand it seems corny, or stupid, but I had the courage, and if I had access my story would be much different.

sorry if this is stupid, but if this could at least inform someone.

I just wanna clarify I am not anti TCC. I just want people to be safe and get help if they need it.

[xxbimbobunnyxx]

I little ramble/announcement:

When I'm in a better headspace I will still be reading Stranger Things fics again eventually. But, I’m done writing for this fandom. I feel like it's just been proven to me over and over again that this is a negative, generally unsupportive, entitled, competitive space. I often wish I stayed a reader. I miss when I didn't know about all the drama. I’m not going to put my time and creativity into something just to put it out into such a toxic space. It’s not worth it to me.

I truly wish I could just get the entire ST fandom in a room and give us all the Mean Girls gym scene treatment. Like "who here has felt personally victimized by this fandom?" Because I bet it would be just like that scene, everyone would raise their hands. I have been belittled, bullied, called racist and homophobic slurs. I've had insults thrown at me that I haven't heard since l was in highschool. I've watched my friends be treated the same way. I've watched the fandom divide and then divide again. The cliquey bullshit, the pointing fingers, the accusations of "copying". It's all so fucking pointless, if I'm being honest. We are all here for the same reason more or less. We all love the same characters.

This fandom has completely forgotten what FANDOM is about. Community, creativity, a safe space to share your art and your love for something with people who love it too. I wish so badly that we could all go back to that. To when it felt like an actual safe space, an actual community. But I just want to say thank you to anyone who's ever taken the time to read my work, become my friend, or even just been kind to me on this app. I'm thankful for each and every one of you.

I've always said I wouldn't let people chase me off or ruin my love for this fandom but at this point, I'm done. I'll still be around, l'm NOT deleting my blog, I still love Eddie and Steve very much but I absolutely need to take a step back from them before my love for them is ruined entirely. I am multifandom now and I will still be writing but for other characters. So if you don't want to see that I understand if you decide to unfollow me. I won’t hold it against you. I wasn’t even going to make a post, because honestly? No one is entitled to an explanation from me but I felt that the people who have actually been kind and made being here worth while deserved to know.

-Xoxodolly

[cactus-cass]

do you have any headcanons for the ggy trio?

Tysm for asking this aughhhh

I'm only gonna go over Greg in relation to the other two because Gregory alone I talk about headcanons for a lot, and he's included in the post about the 3 star fam headcanons. So yeah

I just made a separate post for my sorta headcanons for GGY specifically, which you can find here.

Greg was a really good friend before being glitchtrapped. He was during it, too, but that was Rab playing an act. He's a super sweet kid, despite everything

Greg would give Tony his own pocket money sometimes. "I get a lot of it, and you need it more than me." Tony didn't like to accept it, but Gregory is a persistent person.

Greg would always help Ellis with the arcades he wasn't very good at. "I learned this strat, actually...."

Gregory would get them both snacks and sneak them under the desks in class, the trio eating them when the teacher wasn't watching. This was especially the case if Ellis seemed less hyper in class or Tony was particularly quiet.

Gregory was extremely helpful and kind with Tony when his dad got locked up. He was there for him. Ellis is better at lightening the mood, but Gregory is good at real comfort and supportive words

They're all there for each other. Gregory fights when people pick on his friends, which is rare-ish-- they don't really get bullied-- but it still happens, and Greg gets hurt. He gets anxious. But then Ellis and Tony are there. Tony's awful attempts at comfort make Gregory laugh, while Ellis is naturally good at making people smile

The trio balances each other out perfectly, and it makes things easier in school! Sometimes, Tony needs to lighten up and see the bigger picture. Sometimes, Gregory needs to relax and take things slower. Sometimes, Ellis needs to be brought back to earth a little.

Ellis has a pretty normal life. He doesn't have any particular bad shit going on, only the losing his two besties thing in the case of canon. His home life is okay, though; he has a caring mother and a little sister he enjoys taking care of, despite her attitude sometimes-- It's small, and it's nice. His dad is usually away at work, but he finds time for his family.

Ellis has as much monty merch as he can possibly get, but he insists on winning it himself at the Plex instead of just finding it on amazon or whatever.

Tony's secret opinion on Ellis would be so heartbreaking for him. Ellis would be devastated to find Tony doesn't like his silly side. It'd drive him away, "Wow, man. Okay. I'll find new friends, you can have Greg all to yourself. Enjoy it."

If Gregory knew about it, he would side with Ellis. He'd be angry, but also try to help Tony loosen up. "Hey, you don't have to be super mature yet. You're so young. Trust me, you should enjoy being a kid before you force yourself to grow up. Being forced into growing up sucks, I promise." Tony would hate the fact that it sounds like he's talking from experience.

Tony loves music! His dad liked music, and he could play guitar, so Tony likes music and wants to learn to play. He also wants to learn piano. He learned like 2 meme songs on piano to impress people in music class and almost got detention (tryhard)

Tony listens to music mainly at the moment. He wants to learn to write songs. He doesn't wanna be a songwriter-- He's still set on investigative journalism. It's just a hobby

He'd write lemon demon type shit mixed with like uhhh. Idk. Less silly, more serious stuff. Imagine Cabinet Man, but it's about an arcade controlling a person, and it's slower and more ominous sounding (the GGY song)

He listens to songs his dad likes, often. Reminds him of him. He misses him every day, and it's a way of escaping. He usually listens to music late at night, and he thinks... just thinks.

Gregory is the one who got Tony into cheesy 80s music instead of mf. The Clash and The Cure, which his dad likes. "Should I stay or should I.... Nah. Listen to this." He hands the phone back and it's playing Material Girl

Speaking of, Gregory loves 80s music! Ellis loves hard rock and punk music. They really do reflect their glamrock faves in terms of favourite music genre!

They'd have a collab playlist that they can all add music to, and Gregory always quietly adds things he thinks are funny. Tony got 'How Bad Can I Be' blasting in his ears one day and turned to see Gregory and Ellis giggling away nearby.

Gregory adds real songs. Some really good ones. But then he also adds it's raining tacos 60 times. They played it on a speaker once, and when it's raining tacos started playing, Gregory turned it up so it blasted through the cafeteria. All 3 of them got detention

The trio definitely snuck into a show at the Pizzaplex. Yeah, two of them can afford it, but what's the fun in paying? And it's from there that Tony was obsessed with Bonnie. It's the one thing at the Plex he can't pretend he doesn't find childish

Tony has been trying to forget it. He's too old for all that. But he just loves the characters despite everything. He'd start going into how he can like the glamrocks because he researched glam rock, while Gregory and Ellis don't really care-- "Yeah I looked into Glam Rock. It's like. A part of queer history. It's important haha. and I can look into its influence. Okay? It's normal and fine and mature." And they're just like "??? Okay???"

Greg's favourite is Freddy, Tony's is Bonnie, and the duo are super close. Ellis isn't stupid. He definitely thought they were gonna end up together or something; even if they weren't gonna end up like that or anything, Ellis is a huge tease

They all tried cooking once! Tried. Tony isn't a bad cook at 14, but he's an awful, terrible cook at 12. Ellis can't cook at all, and Gregory can only bake (at age 12, also badly).

No matter what they're making, Ellis manages to make slime every time. His favourite to cook is spaghetti and the pasta is always mushy, the sauce always thick as hell with not enough meat... It's slime. Tastes nice, with the worst texture of all time. Despite that, the boys like it anyway. When Tony's sad Ellis is like right. Dude. I'm making you my slimy spaghetti surprise rn

Greg would bake them all cookies at the weekends they work on school projects! They're usually slightly too hard or too soft, but they taste okay.

Ellis helped one time and the cookies became slime. "Oh my God Greg. Who made these, Ellis?" "Uhmmmm excuse me you're doubting the master chef of the three musketeers?" "He helped."

Greg got extremely, scarily good at baking that one September before he and Tony went missing (Afton/the Mimic can really cook apparently!)

The trio has a Minecraft server, owned by Gregory. Tony builds actual houses and stores, Ellis builds really huge complex things like farms and redstone contraptions + traps, and Gregory builds sometimes like Tony, but is shockingly good at it. He builds megabases. But he also starts a million things he never finishes, accidentally breaks things, causes chaos (usually along with Ellis), buries Tony or moves him while he's AFK, and /kills everything.

Ellis and Gregory built a dangerous labyrinth, and Greg teleported Tony to the centre of it. He's in spectator mode with Ellis, watching Tony struggle and constantly respawn in the maze while he complains. "MF GIVE BACK MY CREATIVE PERMS???" "Seek the exit, and your desires will be met." (leaves vc)

If Tony ever gets genuinely annoyed by their antics, Greg usually builds him something as an apology because he feels really bad about it.

And uhh that's all for now! I could probably come up with more eventually, but these ones have been on my mind abkshduhdjd

Thanks for the ask!

[outeremissary]

I was really sleepy when I was answering asks yesterday and I almost forgot to check if you were doing the problematic oc ask too!

Balth is your oc I’m most familiar with! But if they’ve already been asked tell me about whatever critter is infecting your brain most rn 👀💖

Ahh, I appreciate the ask!! Somehow, no one did ask about him!! At any rate, I feel like this blog is full of Balthazar's sympathetic moments and not his Chaotic Fucking Evil Moments, happy to finally correct that <3

Lies constantly

Vengeful

Selfish

Past history of gold digging

Former con artist

Endorsement of experiments on animals

Enjoys watching other people suffer

Loves making people worse

Willing to sell out friends when they cease to be useful

Told a suicidal man to do a flip on the way down

Made fun of a suicidal man's family's deaths

Invades woman's memories to see her at her most vulnerable, mocks her for it

In general just willing to kick anyone when they're down

Doesn't like Regongar's puns

Profited from infant sacrifice

Murdered his own cult

Lied about having a cult

Problematic trans rep?

Accepted demonic gifts multiple times

Supported two different Lamashtu cults

Really does unconditionally forgive Tristian

Sincerely thinks Tristian did nothing wrong

(except cause problems for him but see two points above)

Funded demonic library

Misappropriation of public funds for personal projects

Harboring smugglers

Has been called the worst and most evil person in the Stolen Lands multiple times

Had a cult dedicated to him being The Worst (until he murdered them, see above)

Recruits enemies terrorizing area to work for him

Leading on poor Sharel

Frequently manipulates others into killing on his behalf

Takes credit for the work of others

Refuses to help with camp chores

Troll alliance

Hates animals

Obnoxious PDA

Abuses aasimar heritage to take advantage of others' trust

The public executions

The secret executions

Comes from working class family, often uses his success to close opportunities for others instead of opening them

Jaethal minister

Belittles Regongar's mental health problems

Ghosts Regongar instead of breaking up with him

Mocks Linzi's writing constantly

Enchantment specialist. Mind control is the way <3

Endorsement of experiments on nonconsenting wererats

Identity theft

Identity theft coverup

Asshole southern elitist, frequently belittles local culture as backwards

Propaganda

Lying to the public about a plague

Gaslighting rioters into fighting each other

24 year old bullying a 17 year old... Lander Lebeda is literally a minor

Plus that's just high key pathetic

The murders

The assassinations

Doesn't like dessert :(

Funding foreign dissidents

Endorsement of troll torture

Bad at communicating emotional needs

Using other people as shields in combat

Will throw anyone under the bus for anything

Really only heals Tristian in combat

Supports filicide for dark ritual purposes

His friendship with Jaethal in general

Problematic bi rep?

Attempted to recreate Bloom

Everything that happened during the Divorce Era

There's probably still a warrant out for him in Absalom

Due to [redacted]

Defacing a priceless historic tome (only known copy)

Anyone can die if it's for Tristian's sake

Sells out allies when they stop being convenient

Surtova supporter

Covering up Lander's death

Lander Undeath Incident

Torture is fine

I'm not even sure he seriously thinks torture works he's just horrible

Bread and circuses babyyyyyy

Mean to Nok-Nok

Literally kicked a dog

And there's an incomplete list of Balthazar Crimes! I'm sure I'm missing so, so much but honestly he's problematic more than he's not so. You know.

[prompt]

[southangel]

can I ask for a butters younger sister that super sweet she is adopted because his parents didn't want to have a pregnancy but wanted a baby she and butters are really close when Butters was grounded when he was younger he was still allowed to play with her this can also tie over to post covid where there maybe not as close but he still loves her

Being Butters’ Adopted Younger Sister

Warnings: none

Notes: Sorry for the wait! This was really fun to write though. Post-Covid Butters is written in both not fixed timeline and fixed.

As a child, Butters has always wanted a younger sibling.

It didn’t matter whether they were a boy or girl, biological or adopted, nothing mattered for him.

Butters just wanted a sibling to take care of.

After months and relentless attempts at his parents for a younger sibling, he got what he wanted.

When his parents came home with you one day, you can bet that Butters was jumping around in excitement.

When he ran to long at you, he thought you were adorable, you seemed shy though.

It would probably take time for you to warm up to him, but that didn’t matter.

Butters often got grounded a lot, more often than not, for the dumbest things too.

You had a slight advantage by getting grounded less often, but you both spent your time wisely.

Hanging out while grounded was the best thing you both could do, especially since you’re both stuck in the house.

Butters tries his best to protect you from bullies in your grade, yet you’re doing just fine.

Gives you some of his allowance if you ever need extra money, takes you out to hangout with your friends as well.

Really nice to you in general, but will most likely never let you meet his friends.

They aren’t the type of people he wants you to be around.

Butters often feels really bad for you when you get in trouble, so he might take the blame for you and get grounded instead.

He really cares for you, just show that you appreciate him back, he wants to have you feel like you’re really family.

“Do you wanna play Hello Kitty Island Adventure with me?”

Post-Covid

In Post-Covid, Butters kind of loses himself a bit.

Being grounded and trapped in his room all the time really screwed him up mentally, and it shows in his adulthood.

Both of you kind of disconnect, especially once he gets locked away in an asylum for influencing NFTs.

Somehow Butters still manages his way to contact you, maybe electronically or through letters, yet you ignore him.

Butters isn’t the same, you don’t like how he tries talking with you.

He doesn’t really care about you as much, no matter how much he says it.

Every letter or message he sends you is always hidden with some kind of encouragement to invest with NFTs, you’ve gotten used to finding it out.

He almost got you at one point, you almost believed him since he was talking about how much he missed you, you got really upset after that.

You don’t talk to Butters at all, you don’t think that your brother would ever actually change.

Butters is a lot better in the fixed timeline, showing almost all the same attributes he did when you were both kids.

He’s always there to support you on whatever you end up doing with your life.

If you ever have kids in the future, he will be the best uncle.

Butters might be a little too nice to your kids though, accidentally spoiling them when he buys then candy for the 5th time that week.

Even after all these years, he’s still that same person you can always go to for support.

You’re still just as nice as you were before, which is probably why your relationship with him still stands.

You both still hangout together from time to time, yet it won’t be as often as how it used to be.

Butters would be one of the best siblings you could have.

“Oh jeez.. I guess I really spoiled them, huh?”

[nukacourier]

While a lot of people reasonably don't like the bully ending up falling in love with their target troupe, I honestly don't feel really bad about pairing Butch and James together for a few reasons. And this is speaking as both a writer and someone who was bullied constantly through his childhood

First of all, I don't have them end up together to be a perfect couple where it's like nothing bad happened between them, their relationship is rocky at best. In my narrative it's very obvious that Butch is 100% not good for James despite having sweet moments, James constantly has his doubts about their relationship and people outside of the relationship often point out how shitty of a boyfriend Butch is to him

Secondly, I know that for something like that to realistically work the bully character would need to do a lot of introspection and growing as a person to be viable for any positive relationship with the target of their harassment, so the whole reason they fall apart is BECAUSE Butch never fully committed to changing. He thought that he simply needed to be nice more than mean and spoil him to make up for constantly neglecting James' needs and still belittling him (whether intentional or not) and because of that they have a very messy breakup (and James doesn't miss their relationship too much)

So, lastly, it's basically like a narrative where the shitty actions of Butch leads to quite a bit of consequences where his asshole tendencies leaves him alone and vulnerable in a world he's not suited for. To an extent it's also something that leads James along in a narrative way where he starts to lose his naivety and learn that sometimes people will suck and treat him badly and it's not his fault and not something he can magically change without hurting himself for it

TL;DR - I hope when people see me mention their relationship they don't assume I'm writing it in a shippy, "omg they're so cute together!!!" way but rather in a "this is the way these characters would interact" way

(Also as usual quick clarification that I'm talking about my oc James Junior and NOT Liam Neeson James)