#i wonder if i should try continuing my sketches from last night or if i'll destroy my hands hrm

[weregreatatcrime]

Speaking of April’s father, how is April herself taking all of this?

I haven't thought too much on how the humans react to the changeling drama yet tbh. I know she's pretty cautious of Karai in general, while Casey is totally into this hot badass biker ninja chick. But then again I'm pretty sure Casey Jones is into just about anyone who can kick his ass and mood bcz that is. also my type lol

I think it would be funny if they all found out the changeling stuff in like. One Day and then just come back with a baby and a beat up Karai with no time to explain. That's so far lining up with my plans for writing the reveal, they get a lot of buildup clues but only get the final reveal right about when Karai brings Miwa back. So it's all VERY sudden and they have to explain that this stone monster is Karai and this baby is their sister Miwa and no, apparently Karai and Miwa AREN'T actually the same person but technically they are??

Depending on whether or not they know about April's own heritage though, Karai will reveal it in a heartbeat because she's NOT letting a Kraang infiltrate them. Except no, April's telling the truth, she smells like Kraang but she doesn't know Anything and ugh everything just gets more and more complicated

April and Casey are generally disregarded by Karai at first. She doesn't go out of her way to insult them or anything but she doesn't give humans much credit. She's also unsure about interacting with them. She didn't get much time in her changeling form before because she was you know, surrounded by ninja all the time and caution was very important. What interactions she had with humans while being a changeling was mostly very violent. And she is a lot stronger and tougher than humans. The turtles are tougher than them too and she still leaves Raph with bruises when they wrestle. She is Very Very Very careful with baby Miwa but also, she Feels things from Miwa, so she knows exactly how gentle she needs to be. She's just. Genuinely unsure how to interact with humans without being lethal.

She does end up respecting Casey a ridiculous amount because this idiot has so much sheer fucking balls it's admirable. Boy runs around fighting ninjas and mutants with no hesitation and zero formal training and actually manages to stand his ground. Sheer grit and survival against the odds is a good way to get a changeling's respect. At first Casey might be against her randomly attacking him for "practice" but she IS surprisingly good at helping hone the fact that he is a complete wildcard who is impossible to predict. He also thinks being a rock monster somehow made her hotter but is aware she is so far out of his league it's hysterical

April and Miwa end up kinda at odds? Karai doesn't trust the part Kraang thing and April is insulted by this. Like, come on, you're a changeling, you're literally made to infiltrate humanity and have done so. April didn't even KNOW what she was for most of her life. Karai is just like "yeah? and?? you SHOULDN'T trust me!" like. April has probably tried to reach out and be friendly for the turtles' sakes but Karai is not on board with that because why are you being nice what do you want from me

Once more of Karai's past comes to light April isn't magically "oh everything's okay now" but she puts the pieces together herself and is less offended by Karai's general distrust of everyone. They might bond later over being created by jerks who don't care about them

Also obsessed with the idea of Casey, being a big brother himself, teaching everyone how to have a baby sister when Splinter isn't there to teach them baby stuff. Here's how you hold her, don't worry babies do that, here's how you burp them, babies scratch themselves even without claws don't worry they make baby mittens for this very reason, etc

[asterlizard]

2023

I have kinda mixed feelings about this year. There were some low points, but then there were some high points too.

I was mostly busy with almost nonstop dogsitting sessions and zine work, but they really ate away at my personal time, especially during the middle of the year. On top of that, I kept job hunting for the first half of the year but it was going nowhere. It really broke my spirit, to the point where just thinking about job hunting made me feel depressed, and I needed to step away from it. All of this combined, I dealt with burnout, discouragement, feeling lost, and stressed to the point of developing a excessive hand-washing compulsion during the summer, which I'm still trying to shake off. I wonder if I also lost a bit of myself along the way, often not feeling absorbed in the moment.

And yeah, this low period also showed in my art summary for the year. I only published a few sketches if they weren't zine works.

That being said!

It wasn't until December that things felt like they were starting to get back on track. I finally got a chance to draw for myself again, and I think the interest I had in this showed in these last few pieces. I felt a lot more comfortable drawing these pieces. I was also finishing tasks in December when I wanted to finish them, and I'm now feeling more accomplished and less ashamed of myself.

On another note, we had great weather this year! There were no wildfires to watch out for (at least, that I was aware of), no nearby smoke or really bad air quality, and not much hot weather! Also lots of rain and cool weather in the first half of the year, it was really pleasant! It really helped with our drought crisis!

As for other accomplishments:

I went travelling for the first time since lockdown! (though even with official safety precautions being relaxed, I still continued to be careful)

I finished pieces for 5 zines: -DanganParty: A Birthday Party zine -Fly!!: A Haikyuu zine -Tsukuyomi: A Tokoyami zine -Celestial Night: A Sailor Moon zine -Wintertide: A BNHA zine

Started some serious cleanup, both at home and on the computer

Going to the cinema again for the first time since lockdown!

I turned 30, which does feel kinda weird because I certainly don't feel like I'm that age. I spent some time while I was 29 kinda fretting about it, but if it makes me feel a bit better, 30 is technically the last year of the 20s. I felt like more could have been done in my 20s that I would look more fondly on like I would for my first two decades, but then again I was dealing with hardship and then healing during my 20s (though it wasn't all bad) I can only hope that I can make my 30s more what I want.

Now then, onto the resolutions:

Image descriptions: Because my mind was preoccupied due to working on other things, I never got around to making any image descriptions this year. On top of that, I ran into a dilemma on where to put these descriptions (do I use alt text? or do I keep writing it in the text box because I hear the alt text can be buggy?) Hopefully I can find a solution and make good progress this year.

Language learning: I think I progressed well in my Japanese learning this year (I watched a video of a N5 test review, and I only got a couple of mistakes, so I think I qualify? Not a huge accomplishment, but it still feels good to pass some kind of level) I'd like to add another resource that involves writing or speaking, if not communicating with someone (that'd be a difficult goal, since I'd need to figure out where to find a conversation partner)

Storywriting: I'm in the middle of writing my next chapter for KalChi, though burnout created a roadblock for me. The chapter after that should be a bit easier though, so I'd like to get more than one chapter published this year. Also… I have another story I'd like to get started on soon (hopefully I'll have news about this in the 4th quarter of the year) I'd also like to try and find a proper website to put my stories on, such as Wordpress. I'm open to suggestions!

Other fun things: Find more things to do outside of what I normally do. It got a bit monotonous for me this year, and I was really itching to see some local stuff again.

Relax: This is the most important! I made this my resolution last year, but I didn't follow it at all, and I think I did worse this year in regards to self care. I really want to plan out my personal time better so I'm not either rushing to get a lot done at once or feeling bored out of my mind.

I also want to continue to keep up with friends! I think I did a little better this year, but our main issue was schedule coordination. But I feel like my ability to communicate has suffered a bit, so I need to keep that up too.

I want to remind myself that making an effort can make a positive difference and not to give up, so I'm once again adding a link to some good things that happened in the world this year: [link]

I have a feeling 2024 is going to be a big year, at least in the world. Maybe the same will be true for me as well, at least in a positive way (though I won't push myself too hard) So I also hope that you stay safe and take care of yourself too. I wish the best for you 💕

[blueeyedheizer]

Hi! I’m happy you’re writing! I hope you enjoy it. Even with lots of requests. May I please get 30 and 31 with Warren? Or Billy. Your choice because I love them both. Happy writing!

#31 "Your head between my legs sounds so good right now." (changed this one a little bit)

#30 “Just let me finish this and I’ll go down on you.” NSFW warning

someone else requested the same numbers for warren but i'm only going to do this one for four/billy. i hope it's okay <3

"You absolutely need to leave the building when I give you the signal. From then on you'll have exactly thirty seconds, not one more." Four explained, sketching out the information for a little more understanding. "Two, Three and Seven will be near in case something goes wrong and you need backup, but still, keep in mind that you're supposed to do this on your own. So as soon as you get the signal, run."

You nodded as he continued to explain the conduct of the mission, your focus mainly on his lips as he spoke. You'd already been over this a hundred times so quite frankly, you'd stopped listening a long time ago. Four eventually paused as he could tell something was on your mind.

"Are you listening?" he wondered, frowning.

"Yeah. Yeah, I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"About how good you would look with your head between my legs." you smirked.

Four blinked in surprise and opened his mouth to say something, only to close it again.

"Eight...this—this is important." he eventually stuttered, focusing his attention back on the paper in front of him.

"Why are you acting all shy? You weren't so shy last night when I was sucking your cock." you whispered, smirking as you shifted closer to him. Your bottom lip caught between your teeth and you leaned to kiss his lips as lightly as possible, teasing him. Four tensed.

"Eight, please...We can't fuck this one up." he murmured.

"We've been going over it non stop for the past three weeks, Four. I get it. The whole thing is more than clear in my head."

"I'm sure it is, but One insisted—"

"I don't care. God, if I hear one more detail about this mission I'm going to rip my hair out."

With that you climbed onto his lap, circling your arms around his neck as you pulled him in for a deep kiss. A soft moan escaped his lips as you began to grind your hips against his.

"Just...— fuck, okay, let me finish this and i'll go down on you yeah?" he managed to say in between kisses.

"But I need you to do that now." you pouted, going back to kissing him. Four cursed against your lips and suddenly stood, causing you to you gasp in surprise. Without warning, he lifted you up and sat you on his desk without breaking the kiss.

You moaned, your hands burying themselves through his hair while he undid your belt and pulled your shorts down along with your underwear, both your breathings growing heavier from the kiss.

"Please." you begged as his lips traveled down your neck.

Once he had made his way down to your thighs, he parted them and pressed a feather-like kiss to your core, a soft whimper leaving your lips as you closed your eyes and tugged on your bottom lip in anticipation. Then Four moved his lips back to the inside of your thighs, leaving kisses everywhere he could except where you needed him the most, wanting to tease you.

“Shit, Four please do something...” you whined, lifting your hips to try and meet his lips.

"I don't know. I don't think we should be doing this here...anyone could walk in and see you like that, all spread out for me..." he teased, looking up at you with a smirk as he hooked his arms around your thighs, keeping them spread open for him.

"I don't care just— god, fuck, baby please." you begged, almost sobbing due to how worked up you were.

With that, Four gave in and wrapped his lips around your clit, humming as he sucked softly. You moaned at the feeling, your hand tangling into his hair and pushing him further into you as he began eating you out properly.

He didn't need his hands to pleasure you, his mouth was enough to drive you crazy as his lips covered your heat, his tongue running up and down your wet folds, his ministrations never ceasing until you came at least three times on his tongue.

[yostresswritinggirl]

100 Followers Special

(And how to participate) you don't need to be a follower to vote ack

~yostresswritinggirl

Hello AGAIN, with your back to back followers special! Exiled here, very tired, as I just closed the requests box for our 50 followers special. I asked for some recommendations and no one helped me so this is what I came up with!

Granted, it's nothing that special, I literally just dumped my notes into this so—

Please make sure to follow the guidelines and read this thoroughly to properly participate!

1. You will be given a long list of fic prompts specific to a character that I've come up with for weeks on end, please don't steal, as I will remove them after this event is done!

2. Voting! You now have the power to influence my writing schedule haha- what you need to do: is to pick three prompts from the list and send it to me; either through reblog tag, a reply, or in my ask box (not anon so we can count fairly, will not publish these answers tho so worry not)! Not in messages tho! It should be in this format:

1. Character - prompt or prompt title

2. Character - prompt or prompt title

3. Character - prompt or prompt title

example:

1. Albedo - Citrinitas

2. Zhongli - Braid

3. Xingqui - Author!Reader

The top three most voted prompt and character will be the next fics I'll publish after I'm done with the current reqs. Speaking of: Voting ends when I finish the current reqs. You'll know it's done once the counter in my blog desc reaches 12/12.

3. In addition to the three prompts, you also get to add your own prompt to it! My prompts list does not include ALL the characters that's why I wanted to give you this option too! Add a fourth number and specify a character, a prompt/idea, and the format of the fic! Format it this way:

4. Character - Prompt/Idea (Format)

4. Kaeya - What's under that eyepatch? (Scenario)

After I pooled the answers, I'll randomly pick between the bonus answers and write them last! So give it your best shot!

4. Tags-list! I thought this would be necessary for this kind of a whim special, so if you wanna be tagged, just put Tag Me! at the end of your vote. Please make sure that you're actually able to be tagged because I just tried and some users are not in my orbit huhu, look here

5. If a pocket watch/series prompt gets chosen, I will only post the first chapter, not the whole damn fic pls. Have mercy,,,

I will post a counter of the top three in my blog description and will be updated as frequently as possible. Any questions, please direct to this post or my dms <3

Without further ado, here is your choice list!

Xingqui - "My liege, would you care to accompany me on my reading break? I've picked up a romance novel and it reminded me of us."

-> Author!Reader: You met Xingqui at Wanwen Bookhouse when delivering a batch of your newly-published book. But as a ghost writer, no one knew it was you that authored such books. Safe to say it was cute watching the noble bookworm fanboy about you in front of you. [FLUFF] [FIC]

-> Headcanons with a reader older than Xingqui who's a close family friend of the Feiyun Commerce Guild. Fascinated after meeting you in a party, the noble boy aspires to become the best man for you despite the difference, promising to be the best suitable partner for you in the future. [FLUFF] [HEADCANON SCENARIO]

Childe - "Hey there, comrade! What a coincidence that we had a break at the same time, care to accompany me for a walk? I promise I won’t lead you to a fight haha... hey, don’t look at me like that!”

-> Antinomy -  The 10th Harbinger (You) and the little shit they had to mentor (Childe), this fic enumerates the trials of the 11th before he became a Harbinger under your care. From strangers to mentor to friends to love- Childe made a grave mistake, now you’re once again strangers. [FLANGST] [ONESHOT]

Albedo - "Ah, it's you. I've heard of fleeting rumors that you've been pestering a certain someone just to see me. Next time, just come directly to me, I wouldn't mind the assertiveness."

-> Refer to these three as well: Albedo Fic Ideas [FLUFF/FLANGST/FLANGST] [ONESHOT/ONESHOT/SERIES]

-> “You’re Enough”: A year into being the new Chief Alchemist of Mond, Albedo finds himself holed up in his room in the dead of night, haunted as he continuously comes out empty on his research to bring his master back, feeling inadequate. So you reminded him of what he’s capable of. [FLUFF?] [ONESHOT INSPIRED BY You Are Enough - Sleeping At Last]

-> Under the Artificial Sky: Michaelangelo Scenario focused on Albedo’s sketching aspect. Grand Master Varka and Acting Grand Master Jean figured Albedo needed a break and a change of scenery, and sent him off under the guise of a commission in Liyue. What he didn’t expect was another artist from Fontaine accompanying him in this big project.(Albedo and Reader are tasked to paint the new Jade Chamber within 7 days) [FLUFF] [SERIES - 7 CHAPTERS]

-> Albedo SMUT: I had this idea while laying wide awake at 3 AM. The alchemist had been trying all remedies to shake off the stress and fatigue in his system and they all seemed to fail, no amount of sketching or discoveries can pull him away from it. So when you offered a solution he hasn’t heard, he’d jump at it immediately. “You know, some people say having intercourse with someone is a good stress-reliever.” “Intercourse? If it’s true, then please, I wish to have intercourse with you.” “Wha- wait Albedo, do you not know what that is? It’s only done between lovers!” “Convenient, I love you, anything else?” (Two virgin dumbasses do the thing to relieve stress) [SMUT] [ONESHOT]

Xiao - “I’ve taken care of every threat around this area, you can relax now, I made sure of that.”

-> What is it with you and Qingxin flowers? The Traveler had once heard of Xiao’s affinity for Qingxin flowers, and they’re flying companion boldly asked this lingering question to the adepti himself. His pupils dilate and sharpen before Paimon could finish her sentence. (An origin story about his favorite flower, and his favorite person) [SLIGHT FLANGST] [ONESHOT]

-> Just how harmful is adeptal energy to normal humans? You both found out in the worst way possible: silently, deadly. (Slight spoiler: you fucking die) [ANGST] [ONESHOT]

-> Nightmares Taste Horrible: He’s seen that look in your eyes and the ancient soul within it; you’ve lived long ago, and the only thing your soul carried now was the nightmares of a macabre timeline. Was it him or was it demons that brought you that fear? No matter, he’ll protect you even from yourself. (eating the nightmare of a dead soul reincarnated to you) [FLANGST?] [ONESHOT]

-> Go for the throat: The seal that marked you had made it all too late for him to remedy. Bleeding eyes, growing fangs, it’s just another demon to vanquish just like he’s done for centuries. What makes it different was it was sealed in you. (Inspired from Melanie Martinez’s song uhu) [ANGST] [ONESHOT]

Zhongli - “Mortals are capable creatures that evolve and adapt for means of survival, but they advance in ways that changes the world around them. This retirement, may be harder to me than it is to them.”

 -> “In human history, there’s a certain noble and powerful connotation to rulers who braid their hair.” Convince to braid his hair using some historical braid trivia; that long hair behind his back should not be ignored for any longer. [PURE FLUFF] [DRABBLE]

-> History has its eyes on you: A traveling theatre hailing from the land of entertainment finds its way to Liyue for their last caravan. A certain Geo Vision man seems to resonate with your newest script: fighting and protecting your land, building up its nation, before being forced to let go of it. He resonates maybe a little too much. (Musical!Reader with heavy references to Hamilton hehe) [FLUFF] [ONESHOT]

Venti - "Can you hear the symphonies of the wind as it sings to you? That's me, guiding you and protecting you! Whenever you hear it, know that you're safe and sound under my protection!"

-> the one the bard once loved: like actual bard, you are the archer or smth, loved by Venti and Barbatos. Yandere!Barbatos undertones, very unhealthy relationship. This hurts the kokoro. [PURE ANGST] [ONESHOT]

-> The Caravan: (related to the Zhongli and Musical!Reader up there) Your caravan stops at Mondstadt for a whole week before it reaches its final destination. This new fanfare pulled in a peculiar bard who now wants to tag along for the fun of it. "I have no more responsibilities in this free land!" Just what kind of responsibilities does a broke bard have in the first place? [FLUFF] [ONESHOT/HEADCANON]

Diluc - "You look weary, and you still managed to pull yourself here. Here, a fresh and cold glass, on the house. A relieved smile should be enough payment."

-> Abandoned by The Altar: A timeline oriented story focused on your once perfect childhood relationship as Diluc's bride to be, soon becoming estranged after the death of his father and his neglect. You only wish now that he looks at you the same way he did when you heard you were supposed to be together forever when you were young. [FLANFF] (The ending gets better pls; Inspired by Still Into You - Paramore) [ONESHOT]

-> There are No Laws Against Homelessness in Mondstadt: My favorite title out of all of this ahahhaa- who says adventurers can't be broke? You're the living embodiment of that. (Good boi Diluc with a broke ass reader) [FLUFF] (Warning: homelessness) [ONESHOT]

Scaramouche - "Let's go already, the sun is setting and we're nowhere near our destination. If you wanted to linger just to spend more time with me, I would have indulged you behind closed doors anyways."

-> Scaramouche Finally Does the Fandango: Have you ever wondered how Scaramouche is like working with other people? His first assignment was to accompany you in your main region and he sees you in your natural habitat, entranced. [I dunno how to tag this, NORMAL?] [ONESHOT/SHORT]

-> Skincare bitch, how I headcanon Scaramouche as someone actually conscious and always tending to their skin. Look at that smooth skin, cute cheeks, let me pinch, eyeliner glory— In which case, that hat has more purpose than being a frisbee. (May or may not include reader. (based from a reblog convo with chels-void) [GOOD VIBES] [HEADCANONS]

-> Once Supreme: Before Scaramouche, there was someone else higher than him. Before Balladeer there was just a young man fighting for his beliefs and her Majesty. Before Mondstadt, his smile wasn't just for deception. "Someday, someone would take advantage of that smile, Scaramouche. It's not appropriate in this work environment." The day you break a man. (Harbinger!Reader again, and lots of HCs for Scaramouche, same format as Antinomy) [I also do not know how to call this, eventual ANGST] [ONESHOT]

Kaeya - "What are you doing out here in the dead of night? Citizens like you should be cozied up in bed and leaving the patrols to us Knights. Come, I'll accompany you back home."

-> Honey Whiskey: A mysterious band of dancers from Sumeru visits Mondstadt and its taverns to offer a night of alluring dances. What was supposed to be a night of drinking for Kaeya and his troops ended up becoming a tipsy surprise mission when the main dancer steps down from the stage— and ignores him?! How scandalous! (Slightly suggestive themes/You're a bad guy) [COOL?] [ONESHOT] [slightly inspired by song with the same name]

General:

-> A Musical!Reader but with a scenario with every other character, most probably headcanons master post.

-> Genshin Food prompts: From that one post, I ended up making a whole storyline of oneshots related to their special dishes. Oneshots connected to a bigger picture. By impulse you've ended up leaving your normal life behind to pursue your cooking career, starting from Mondstadt, to learn all the cuisines to establish the first ever international restaurant. With the implications of magic and peculiar customers, your simple dream turns into a harder goal. [GOOD SHIT] [SERIES] [CANON-COMPLIANT]

-> God of Time!Reader that hails from Fontaine. Do you wish to know more about their origins and their purpose in this world? [CANON-COMPLIANT] [HEADCANONS] (General since it deals with all the characters/interactions)

▰▱▰▱▰▱▰▱▰▱▰▱▰▱

Tagslist-for-my-thirsty-homies:

[chromium7sky]

Four-eyes| one shot damirae

A/n: I'm trying to stretch up my writing muscle before continuing other work. Sorry for crappy idea and crappy sketches.

Either her reason is to cut off from social interacting or just the aesthetic, Damian can't help find himself staring at her as she held her book close up, almost buried her face in it.

'What's with the pose?' Damian mumbled as he seen her sit at the living room, while other member interacting, playing even asking question while she simply choose to isolate herself by reading book way to close as if she literally pushing everyone away from her.

Damian as usual goes to the table which situated near the window and put down some document and report for him to finish and compiling. Other than patrolling, working on clerical stuff makes him busy.

Growing up training to kill, social were never be in his dictionary but it seems Raven's effort in social distancing is a bit...annoying as he seen her at the corner of his eyes while studying the statistic of how many times someone try to mess up banking system at the city then he decided to focus on his paper.

-------

He remember when the first time he was sent to teen titans by his father much to his dismay, the member seems to display a tiny of fear as they look at him like seeing a nightmare but for raven, she keep calm.

He thought she's different perhaps because she's the daughter of demons (the worst one), she takes no judgement. But still, he need to be cautious towards her.

Perhaps it is one of her trait where she tries to calm down her team mates if there's inner tension happening. If Starfire unable to calm down the fight between two boys especially when involves with him.

One thing he can't be control is him being hard head and stubborn to the point Raven almost sent him to another dimension. Raven's patience are not infinite and he definitely not going to be overboard with his attitude. Therefore, it train him to tolerate some of member attitude as well as how to cooperate and using other member's ability to achieve the objective of the mission.

He does prepare some plan and blueprint towards the teen titans member for tactical study. Beast boy and Wally simply scoffed as they skim up the document like it was nothing. They prefer to wing it in, as what they told Damian which almost makes him lectured them about preparedness and failure is only for people who don't prepare for any consequences.

However, Raven told him, he should lose up a bit and she does say the others are learning from him being better in tactical as she let him to observe the other member closely when they conducting some mission that involved less threat. She pat on his back, simply said " Don't worry, they got it. They learn it from you. " She smiled.

He felt something after he heard it. What is this flutter feeling in his chest?

His face felt some heat. what is happening?

Trying to avoid Raven from seeing his vulnerable state , he simply let out the sigh and step away from her. At the corner of his eyes he saw her face from pleasant smile to surprised.

Sometimes he cursed his past for not knowing the meaning of emotion. All he learn is vengeance and angry. Only those two. As soon as he move in Gotham, he start to learn respect, family love and worries. The feeling after being praised? He still figure it out what is it.

As time goes by, he eventually try to bond the team, helping them become better. "Dude, even though you'relike some sort of gremlin, I guess you are a good person after all!" Beast boy cracked then turn into a Macaque hugging Damian's face much to his disgust after he improved the shapeshifter's suit.

He sighed.

--------

After two years later, he's begin to be comfortable with the team and almost memorize their attitude and personalities. Somehow, he still haven't figure out Raven. When it comes to accomplish the mission, she glide through the air, launching attack and be as enigma and Raven-y as she can, casting fear towards the enemy. He swore he has seen the method before.

As soon as the mission over, she open the portal pulling the team back into teen titans tower like a worm hole short cut and after that the team disperse at the launching pad, getting rest or shower.

At night the team leisuring in living room but Raven spend her time in her room. But this time, Kori ask him to call her because it is the night of mandatory fun.

Damian keeping his composure, nodded and walked towards her room. He knocked three times, then he heard footstep walk towards the door. " What is it, Damian?"

Damian perhaps jolted a bit as he wonder how could she guess him but quickly discarded as he forget that she, is Raven who can read minds and an empath.

"Its Kori. She said it's Mandatory night." Damian simply state the business. Then he heard silent for a while.

"C-could you tell Kori that I'm not coming?" She spoke behind the door.

"I'll inform to her then." Damian nod and walk away. He inform to Kori about it.

"Ah, too bad. I wanted to show this new movie. Guess it's just us then." She smiled.

"I'm not coming too, Kori. I'm afraid if there's any emergency mission, I don't think she could handle it alone." Damian crossed his arms.

"Raven handle a case during valentine day when she was alone." Said Jackson as came up with casual clothes.

"Which she end up crying after she's back from the mission." Damian sneered at the Aqualad.

"I never knew Damian would care so much for a team mate or...are you planning something else?" Beast boy came up after putting his best clothes and his grin.

"Yes, I'm planning to take over the world, once you're back from outside please do inform me how it went so that I could proceed my plan." Damian said sarcastically.

"Ahah, don't worry, D. We'll buy something for ya." Wally pay on his shoulder.

"Just go." He shoved all three of them as Kori are about to leave the room.

---------

Damian now at leisuring room playing cheesy Viking 3 console mode to passed the time. The tower really quiet as four of them gone out excluding Raven and he really appreciate the moment of silence.

Suddenly he heard a fridge door open. Quickly he put the game on pause, and went to the kitchen.

As he coming to the room he saw the girl with bob hair style with dual color hair consist of navy blue with manogany red ending.

' That's must be Raven.' his heart spoke. As he pulled the chair at the kitchen the table, the girl froze.

"Who's there?!" She spun and held her hand that enveloped with purple energy towards him.

Damian simply stood there and so was she.

Both of them froze.

A moment passed, then another.

And...

"You ... wear glasses?" He rose his brow.

Raven with sweaty face, blink a couple of times as she adjusted her glasses with her other hands.

"Damian, what are you doing in here? I thought you follow others to Mandatory day?" Her hands with energy start to dispersed.

"That explain everything." His lips tug aside.

"What?" Raven confused with the answer he gave.

" The book, the pose, the distance." He chuckled. Then, he looks at flustered Raven.

"What do you mean? you still haven't answer my question, Damian Wayne." Raven getting confused.

"Ah, nothing. I decided to stay just in case of emergency mission and all. I Wouldn't let you handle the cases alone." Damian crossed his arm as he sit at the kitchen counter.

"So...you're doubting me?" It was Raven turn arched her brow.

"I'm not saying you're not capable. I'm saying that you'll need some back up. Two heads are better than one, wouldn't it?" Damian lean back at the chair.

"Never knew you would thought of that, that's very kind of you." She smiled. " An improvement too."

Damian clicked his tongue and looked away, but pink tint start to visible on his cheeks and his ears. Ah, again with this feeling.

He clear his throat a couple of times, then a mug set in from of him. "Peppermint ice tea?"

His eyes looked at Raven as she seat in front of him, with glasses and book on her hands. The Flowers of evil, as he observed the title. "Thank you."

As he sip his tea, he stared at the book. "Flowers of Evil?" As he pointed at the book.

"Yeah, might try to read something like old poem." as Raven looked at the book title.

"I could recommend Robert Frost."

"I did read some of his. The Road Not Taken." As Raven sipped her tea.

"I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference."

Raven blink her eyes as she heard his recitation the last verse. "So, do you take it?"

"Take what?"

"The road less traveled by."

Damian looked at her. " This is the road less traveled by." He smirk as he sip the cup.

Raven try to understand that line but Damian simply silent. He's quite enjoy the company he's having now.

"All these time, I've been wonder what's with burying your face in the book." He rest both of his elbow on the table as well as his chin on his propped hand. " Never knew you were actually Four-eyes, metaphorically."

"Are you, mocking me?" Raven furrowed her brows as she put her cup on the table.

"I found you looks more professional in those glasses." He smirked as he stared at her which leads to Raven unknowingly adjusting her glasses as she looked away.

"The glasses is expensive. I lost mine as I bought to mission when I first join the titans, so I tend to leave it at room and I had to use some of my powers to adjust my visions."

"But you could heal them?" Damian's begun to curious.

"Only limited time."

"Did you know there's is laser treatment for that?"

Raven surprised as she heard it. She seems to be thinking but then she put down her cup.

"I'd rather wear glasses than risking my eyes to go blind." She sighed. "Unless I end up become Bran the third eye Raven."

Damian chuckled. She's indeed full of surprises.

"If you lost your glasses again, do tell me. I might know some excellent optometrist to do excellent job."

"Uh, n-no. You don't have to. I.."

"That's what team mate for right? Helping each other?" He smiled. A genuine smile.

She seems stunned by him. Smiling. Damian Wayne is actual smiling.

"Besides, you in glasses, is a rare opportunity and quite pleasant to the eyes." As he get up and goes towards the sink to wash his empty cup. At the corner of his eyes, Raven were blushed hard then adjusting her glasses.

Shit. He cursed under his breath. She IS adorable IN glasses.

[hexpea]

Ch. 19 - Fort Salta

AN: This chapter should be read if you chose not to read Ending V.1.

We were safely on the plane, all of us here like we were supposed to be. Hange's daring move was incredibly inspiring and we were all pumped up for what may be the final battle of our lives. My thoughts never left Zeke. I wondered what he was going through, if we'd be able to save him.  While aboard, the others began to devise a plan.

"Captain, Pieck, is this what the founding titan looked like?" Armin asked as he sketched on a piece of paper.

"Yes, it looked like a stupidly big pile of bones...like a bug," Pieck confirmed.

"Normally the body controlling it would be in its nape, but we can't be sure considering what the warhammer titan did. In other words, we don't know where Eren is." Armin stopped sketching and looked at the horrific drawing he finished.

"Even if we don't we could always just blow the whole thing away, just like the way you flattened Liberio's port and left nothing behind. Your colossus titan could do it..." Pieck took a light jab at the new commander. A bead of sweat formed on his temple.

"True, that would be the most effective way to do it, but only if we've tried and failed to have a dialogue with Eren...only if that's the only way to stop him. It's our last resort," Mikasa looked away from the conversation. I knew what she was thinking.

"I'm fine with us having a last resort, but Eren's controlling the founding titan through Zeke, right? Can't we just stop the rumbling if we went and killed Zeke?" I shot Levi a harsh look, but he didn't waver.

"That's not happening either. Mikasa and I both have someone in danger right now and our goal should be to save them both. I know this isn't want Zeke wanted."

"But he might be right," Armin said.

"I'm not certain, but that's what Hange predicted. Then we just have to find that furry bastard inside those bones," Levi concluded.

"You're acting like I'm not here," I demanded, "if we save Eren, then we save Zeke. End of story. If he ends up dead and I don't, I'll come for each one of you." I glared at Levi as he knew my capabilities.

"We'll try our best," Armin bit the inside of his cheek.

"I'm not going to try at all," Levi scoffed and continued glaring my way.

"We had to slaughter hoards of our allies to get this plane in the air. We can't allow that to be a meaningless slaughter," Jean mumbled, "this is all in order to stop the rumbling. I'll do anything it takes.

"I...shot and killed Samuel and Daz. I sliced their faces until I knew they were unrecognizable," Connie sighed and leaned on his knees. "All while they called me a traitor, while they kept telling me they were saving the world. Hey Reiner," Connie looked up, "you...Bertolt...Annie, it must have been awful for you."

"My sins are beyond redemption. I doubt I'll ever forgive myself for what I did, even if I manage to help save the rest of humanity," Reiner put a hand to his chest. "So...well...let's at least save the rest of humanity," he then put his hand on Connie's shoulder.

"Yeah, you're right," Connie said, voice shaking, "even if we can't be redeemed, we've still got this to do...I guess."

"That's right, we're the same Reiner," Jean added, "I never had any blame for anything. I became a murderer in order to save others."

"Yeah, Eren told me the same thing the night of the raid on Liberio," Reiner blushed, "I feel like I kind of understand what he's thinking. Eren...might want us to stop him."

"What do you mean?" Mikasa spoke up from her usual silence.

"That's just how it feels to me," Reiner shrugged.

"I've always wondered the same thing," Armin whispered. "Eren is able to effect the actions of every titan and Eldian, but we're still able to use the power of the titans the way we always could."

"Are you saying that Eren is choosing not to interfere with us?" Pieck asked, sounding really confused.

"Yes, he's letting us act freely...almost as if he's testing us," Armin had a determined look on his face.

"Why?" Mikasa shook her head. "Even though we might be able to stop the rumbling?"

"It's the same thing for him," Reiner said, "it has to be painful for him, too. Slaughtering all of humanity isn't something you can just endure...if it was me. I'd probably want someone else to handle the power of the founder by now. And if I couldn't...I'd want to be stopped by someone."

Suddenly our consciousness traveled somewhere else. It was a mystical looking place with a blue aura, a giant glowing tree-shape grew in the middle. All of us were together and stunned.

"He hears us or something..." Levi looked around.

"Eren!" Armin screamed. "Please listen to us! You've done enough! I'm sure that no one is going to put a hand on Paradis for centuries to come now! That's just how much fear and destruction you've brought! You can still agree to a non-aggression pact and end this! You don't have to kill anyone else, the island is fine now! We were wrong! We're the ones who forced you to this point!"

"Eren!" Jean now spoke up. "We'll figure out the rest from here, so you don't have to keep slaughtering people for our sake!"

"Yeah, it's alright!" Connie cried. "Eren! I hated you over what happened to Sasha, but I know that you must have been as sad as the rest of us, right?! And yet, I never even considered what it must have been like in your position!"

"Eren..." Mikasa whispered, "I want to share the burden of your sins with you. We're guilty of all the same sins so please, stop avoiding us like this. Come back to us..."

"Hear that, Eren," Levi muttered, "stop now and I'll let you off with an ass-kicking. Why don't you speak up for a change?"

We waited a moment in silence. "Eren!" Armin shouted once more.

"The rumbling will not stop. I won't let fate decide Paradis' future. I will keep moving forward," Eren's voice boomed out of nowhere.

"Wha-?" Armin's eyes widened with the rest of us.

Suddenly, out of the tree-like shape, a figure stood. Eren... Several of the others began shouting and running after him while Reiner, Pieck, Levi, and I stood behind. Once they were close they realized that it was Eren as a child somehow. Armin begged Eren to explain himself, explain why he was letting us to proceed. The rest of us began walking in their direction once they stopped running.

"In order to gain my freedom, I will take freedom away from the world," Eren's voice boomed again, "but I won't take anything from any of you. You are all free. You have the freedom to defend the world's freedom and I have the freedom to continue moving forward." A second figure stood. It looked like Ymir from the history books. "So long as we have our unbreakable conviction, we will collide. There's only one thing left for us to do. Fight..."

"Why'd you call us here?" Armin asked.

"So I could speak to you and tell you there's no need for us to speak. If you want to stop me, then try to stop me from ever taking another breath. You are all free." When Eren finished, we were suddenly all back in the plane and feeling disoriented.

The others were whispering and crying, saying that there was nothing we could do. They would have to kill Eren to save the world.

"There goes any hopes for negotiations, I guess," Levi shrugged, "what now?"

The others faded away from me as they returned to their heads somehow. Eren also disappeared. It was as if something else was keeping me there. I looked around frantically, trying to see if there was something I needed to get back.

"Lotte," I heard a familiar voice behind me. I swung around as fast as I could to see Zeke's face staring at mine.

His glasses were gone and he was shirtless just like he left. He also had hair to his shoulders, as if time passed faster than in the earth realm. He looked incredibly sad and lost, his arms reaching out to me.

"Zeke," I mumbled.

"I'm okay," he whispered, "for now. I'm not in pain or anything. I just have no control," he explained. "Eren is too powerful."

"I miss you," my voice wavered, falling into his arms. His touch was cold, as if he weren't there...like some sort of ghost. His touch was still his touch, though, and it was something I was thankful for. "Please come home..."

"I would if I could...I wish I could keep you here forever," Zeke breathed deep as if to take in my scent.

I parted with him for a moment, only to connect again, our lips pressing against each other harshly. His grasp on me grew tighter, I squeezed back. His presence, though cold, was good enough to satiate what I had been missing. He ran his fingers through my hair and gently caressed my face. It was as if he were trying to memorize it. When our lips finally parted, he rested his forehead on mine and sighed deeply with our eyes closed to fully absorb each others' presence.  Our eyes both gently fluttered open, his grey eyes were warm and tired. I focused on every detail of his iris to burn it into my brain. He then broke eye contact to kiss my forehead, extending the kiss to keep me close.

"We have to get you out of here!" I suddenly broke our contact. "How do we do that?" I asked. He shook his head.

"I'm stuck here. If there's a way out, I don't know it," he said sadly.

"We're going to find a way," I grabbed his hands, a determined look on my face, "I promise." He smiled gently at me.

"I believe in you," he released my hands and started fading. I started to fade, myself. My vision felt as if it were traveling through a wormhole.

"No!" I shouted, reaching my hands out into darkness. "Zeke, come back!"

Levi should know that was no more 'what now.' We knew what we had to do. At least one of the brothers needed to be killed. This was no fault of Zeke. He was doing what he thought would be best for our future while Eren gave no regard to the future of others. All he cared for was his own freedom, something he could have had if he listened to us one last time.  The rumbling was something incredible to see from above. Hundreds and thousands of titan heads moving at the same place... Eren was at the front in his strange bone form. He was incredibly massive and without muscle we had no way of knowing how the beast was moving.  With the plane running out of gas, the plan was to jump out while Onyankopon made an emergency landing at the fort.  From a distance, as we got a bit closer to Eren's body, Zeke's titan was attached to one of the bones. It was clearly being controlled by Eren with its strange demeanor. It began throwing rocks and debris in our direction. It rocked the plane to a point we were about to fall out of the sky.

"He's here," Levi hissed, "that big, furry bastard!"

"Hey!" I shouted at all of them. "The key here is to find Eren. Not kill Zeke," I reminded them, eyes bloodshot with rage. "We're stopping the rumbling by taking out Eren!" Mikasa ground her teeth, glaring in my direction, but something in her eyes knew.

[inconcieveable]

Chapter 2 bby. Have fun reading and any feedback is greatly appreciated. :)

Chapter: 2

Words: 1.7k

Roman P.O.V.

"Okay, i'll pick you up here later. You should be fine, just remember-"

"To look for the signs, make friends and don't beat anyone up we get it." Remus reiterated. Uncle sighed.

"Just.. be careful. okay?"

"We'll be fine uncle. C'mon Roman." Remus said, nearly dragging me out of the car.

"see you later," I smiled at Uncle as I shut the car door.

We stood in awe at the building in front of us. "Who knew schools could be this big," i whispered.

"I know right. Fucking hell."

We wandered around like lost puppies as we tried to find reception. "Look." I said, pointing to a sign that said "office"

"Thank-fucking-finally," Remus sighed as we started to follow the signs.

/////

"Oh you boys must be Roman and Remus King, correct?" The receptionist asked, noticing us as she lifted her head from her computer, before she went to back to her work.

"That's us. We were told to come here and get our schedules?" I replied, noticing the "she/her" badge she had on her blouse.

"Oh! You're English!" She stated, looking up and giving us her full attention.

"Yep! We're good ol' Brits! Now can we get our schedules please?" Remus interupted, already annoyed at her.

"oh, of course! here-" She said as Remus snatched the schedules off of her. I elbowed him in the rib, somewhat harshly.

"ow! you bitc-"

"be nice" i chided. He responded by growling lightly.

"Sorry for him," I apologised to the receptionist.

"Its okay!" she smiled. "There should be a student coming soon to give you a tour.." She went on, explaining how the timetables worked, where to get lunch and how the one-way system on the stairs worked. Remus gave up listening pretty quickly and instead was looking out for the student that was going to tour us.

"hey babes" I heard as Remus nudged me. I turned to look at Remus as he nodded towards the student. click click. The sound of heeled shoes filled the room. A man wearing big, round sunglasses, a black jacket and obnoxiously sipping a Starbucks strutted into the room.

"Remy!" the receptionist exclaimed "Good to see you. Here are the new students, Roman and Remus king" She gestured towards us.

"hi!"

"sup bitch." Remus saluted. Remy giggled as I turned to Remus exasperatedly.

"I'm Roman. He/Him" I continued, sticking out my hand. He shook it.

"Remy. Also he/him." He purred, winking at me. He chuckled lightly at my eyes widening slightly at his confidence and forwardness.

"Oh, and who is this cutie?" He pondered, moving so he was in front of Remus. He took a slow sip of his Starbucks as he checked Remus out, eyes fluttering up and down.

"I'm- er- Remus. Um- he/him and all- hehe- did you know if you clenched every muscle in your back at the same time you'd break your spine? hehe" Remus spluttered quickly, not used to all the attention. Remy smiled affectionately.

"I didn't. Thanks for the knowledge Einstein. Logan's gonna like you." He said, muttering the last of the sentence.

"Remy dear, the receptionist interrupted. "May you please give our new students the tour so they can get to lunch on time?."

Remus looked to me, confused. "Lunch? Isn't it like half way through first period at the minute?." Remy chuckled again.

"Yeah, but schools here aren't as small as they are in England. It might be a while. Plus I need to take you to the Principal's office and god knows how long that'll take. So come on hon," he gestured with his head towards the door and took another slurp of his Starbucks as he placed his phone in his pocket. click click. I turned to Remus who just shrugged and started following Remy.

/////

It was around lunch, when we had finished being dragged around and severely warned by the principal of the punishments for any misbehaviour. We trudged along through the canteen, making our way outside.

"that's a good spot," Remus said, pointing to a big oak tree, where no one was sitting.

"alrighty then."

Remus plonked down as we reached the tree. "heads up" I called. Remus barely had any time to react before I flung my bag towards him. He caught it milliseconds before it would've hit his face.

Bitch." he scowled as I sat down, a few feet away from the tree. "That tour took us fucking forever," he complained.

"I knowww."

"Why the fuck did we go to the dorms if we aint gonna get one for another week or so?!"

"I suppose it was so they could get the tour done in on hit?" I reasoned.

"Yeah.. Its still fucking shite though." I smirked as Remus sighed dramatically and brought his sketchbook out of his bag. Along with a pencil and rubber.

"I thought Uncle said not to bring that. It coul-"

"I don't give a shit. Let me have this one thing. Be thankful I didn't decide to bring my iPad." Remus scowled. I pouted at him.

"Well what am I supposed to do now?"

"Practice your lines for that shitty play your doing." He offered, throwing my back towards me.

"Excuse me. It aint 'shitty'. Its fun! Plus doing community plays will help me get to a good place in the future. you know this." I defended, air-quoting the word "shitty"

"Whatever. I still don't understand how you managed to find a theatre and audition when we've only been here for like a week and a half." I flicked the ends of my hair obnoxiously.

"What can I say? I'm just amazing." Remus snorted at that and through a crumpled piece of paper at me.

"nerd." He returned to his drawing, ignoring my "offended princey noises" as he called them. I stuck my tongue out at him as I rooted through my bag to find my lines.

Remus P.O.V

Watching Princey practice was always funny. Without fail, he would always go from sitting down, to walking around, practicing the delivery of the lines, script in one hand, the other flourishing through the air, within a maximum of 5 minutes. I leant back on the tree more as I stopped drawing for a second to watch my brother. He was walking back and forth, reciting about slaying some dragon thing. "Don't worry. I will save you! Begone evil Dragon!" he shouted, jumping into a fighting stance. His free arm acting like it was holding a sword. I burst out laughing at him. Roman turned around furiously, shooting death glares at me. Unfortunately for him, this only made me laugh louder. His eyes narrowed at me before he too, started laughing.

"You're a fucking dork."

"Yeah, yeah. Just lemme practice." I rolled my eyes before focusing back on my design. No matter what I did, I couldn't get it to look right. And boy, was i determined to get it right.

/////

"Hey!" a new, chirpy voice said. I looked up to see a kid looming over me.

"can I help you?" I asked, trying to be nice.

"Yeah. I was wondering If you've seen our friend? they're around so-high, chestnut hair, blue overalls, yellow t-shirt, black jacket with a.... double headed snake? on the back." The boy explained.

"nah I don't recognise the description. Why would I have seen.. them?" he asked, noticing the pronouns used and feeling slightly proud of himself for noticing.

"It seems they're new Patton. That would probably explain why they don't recognise Janus and they don't know that we normally sit here." A different boy said. "where the fuck did he come from?!" he thought.

"Its alright Logan. Janus will find us and we can always sit somewhere else for today." the first boy, Patton? ,said.

"But vi-"

"Hold on lemme get that dipshit." I interrupted. I turned towards Roman, who was oblivious to the entire conversation as he was quite a few feet away. "OI TWAT!" I shouted. Roman jumped at the sudden noise and his foot caught on a visible tree root and he fell over, landing on his arse. I, once again, burst out laughing.

"Wha-" He cut himself off when he noticed the boys. He quickly got up and walked back towards us.

"He's much better at things like this." I explained between laughs as Roman arrived, cheeks dusted In pink from embarrassment.

"twat?" The taller one, Logan?, asked.

"Its a British thing." I said, waving my hand dismissively.

"Oh, you're British!" The smaller one, (Patton? I don't fucking know) said excitedly.

"Indeed we are." Roman said, entering the conversation.

I let Roman take over as I tuned out the conversation and focused back onto my design.

//

"I'd draw an extra petal there." someone said. I jumped slightly at that and turned to see someone sat next to me, snickering at my shock. I turned to see that Roman was sat opposite me, the boys from earlier were sat to my left and the person who I could only assume was 'Janus' was sat next to me. I stared into their face, searching for a sign that he was mocking me. "Janus. They/them." The person said, unfazed, confirming my suspicions. Once I felt satisfied with their intentions, I turned back towards my page where they had their hand.

"Remus. He/him." I said as I started sketching. I was trying to draw a rose, with its flowers wilting off. Kinda like the flower from Beauty And The Beast. The movie which I was forced to watch the other night by my brothers demands.

Once I was finished sketching the flower, I saw how much better it looked with Janus' addition. I turn to thank Janus, only to see them looking at me. Smiling at my own happiness towards the now finished design.

"Thanks," I said cheerfully "it looks so much better now"

"No problem," Janus simply said.

"Ah so you've decided to come back down to earth now?" Roman teased, noticing how I wasn't fixated on my page anymore.

"Fuck off." I said, sticking out my tongue. Roman giggled whilst Patton inhaled sharply. I turned to Janus, a confused look etched onto my face.

"Patton doesn't like swearing." they explained. I chuckled mentally. "Well i'm fucked" I thought, Laughing again at the irony.

"well at least he didn't fall over a tree root now," Janus said to Roman, smirking. I started laughing.

"I like this one." I said and everyone joined In with my laughter.

The bell cut the fun short though. We all, besides Logan, groaned as we started to collect our things and head towards our next lessons.

[dorotheajanegilmore]

Closer to you - Chris Evans

CHAPTER TWO

Dinner that night was lovely. Mom made my favourite meal, chicken casserole and it was so flipping good. You know when you don't have a certain food in a while and you grave it so much and then you finally have it and it's so satisfying? That's this. This chicken casserole.

I sat beside Lucy and Joe on the left couch whole mom, dad and Leo day on the right couch. Alex sat on the floor and worked through some receipts for his and my dads garage.

Dad and Alex are mechanics and own their own garage in town. Alex skipped out on college, he's been working on bikes and cars since he could walk and so my dad decided to go into business with him a year or two ago.

My mother is an interior decorator and artist. You'll either find her in paint stores or furniture stores and then you'll see her in her paint splashed dungarees, holding  four books of paint swatches and fabric samples.

My sister Lucy is a nurse and works at the local hospital. Her husband Leo is a high school teacher who teaches french, which comes in handy when I want to talk to him and Lucy in private in front of family members. And Joe, well Joe's 6 so he's whatever he wants to be.

Holly is a therapist in the city, she has her own office and clients and is a full on boss lady. Her boyfriend Penn is an attorney at a big firm a few blocks away from her office.

Teegan also works in the city, as a freelance photographer. Her photos have been featured in big magazines and she's working on her own exhibit at a small museum right now.

Chloe is a fashion designer who's trying to get her boss to take a look at her sketch book, however it's kind of a Devil Wears Prada situation and her boss is ignorant unless she wants coffee or an Advil. Chloe's boyfriend Jonas is a builder and works around the city doing various things.

It's hard to believe we've all got grown up jobs. Even though my next birthday I turn *cough* thirty *cough* I still feel like a fifteen year old high school student with pink streaks in my hair and working Saturday's at the Dairy Queen.

As we all crowded around the tv in the living room, the fireplace crackling in the background, watching Home Alone, the door bell rang.

My mother was busy creating interior designs on her iPad, my dad was captures by the booby traps set by young Kevin McAllister and my sister gave me a sharp elbow, telling me I had to go. With a roll of my eyes I let my fluffy socks hit the hard wood floors.

I stepped out into the hall and closed the living room door behind me not to let all the heat out of the front door. I pressed my hands to the solid wood door and peered up through the peep hole. As soon as I saw who it was I stepped back down in panic. It was the hot guy from next door. I had just washed all of my makeup off in the shower! My hair was a wet scraggly mess and my pyjamas had Rudolph on them.

Not wanting to leave him I the cold I sighed and twisted the key in the lock. I pulled the door back and acted surprise. "Hi."

"Hi, uh Alessia right?" He asked, pointing at me casually, while holding a small shoe box that had been decorated with Christmas paper.

I nodded and pointed back. "Lisa's son right?"

"Chris." He shrugged and chuckled.

"Nice to meet you properly, Chris." I said and he nodded.

"And you. Uh I just found the box my grandma left you and thought I should bring it over." He held it out to me and I took it.

"Thank you. Do you know what's in here?" I wondered out loud.

Chris shrugged. "No, Nana never said. It's intriguing though."

"Well would you like to come in and go through it with me?" I offered.

"Oh I wouldn't want to intrude." He shook his head politely.

"It wouldn't be intruding, it's me inviting."

"Well..." He stepped back and glanced over at his house before nodding. "Sure, it would be nice."

I stepped back and pulled the door open for him to come in. His sneakers left snow on the welcome mat and he hung his jacket up on the hook.

I closed the door and gestured to the door beside the living room door. He went first and stepped into Joe's playroom. We walked through the playroom until we got to the study. A small room at the back of the house that was lined with bookshelves that were full of the classics. Apart from one wall which left room in the middle for a fireplace and a tv. The fireplace was fake, we could t risk all of these books being caught ablaze. It was just cosy.

A large grey couch was placed in the middle of the room, filled with blankets and comfy plump pillows. A small bar cart  was at the back of the room with sachets of hot chocolate, teabags, various mugs and a tea kettle. My dads hot chocolate station. This room was the epitome of cosy.

"Wow, this is the most homely cosy room I have ever been in." Chris chuckled as he sat at the far end of the couch, his eyes frantically searching the room in wonder and awe.

"Yeah, my dad designed it when I was 12. I was the most anxious kid you'd ever meet. It really helped me."

"You struggled with anxiety?" Chris asked, taking interest in me.

I nodded, feeling strangely comfortable with him. "I had knee surgery when I was young so I took quite some time away from school. I spent six months in the house so when I finally went back to mainstream school and going back to stores and being around strangers and crowds, it hit me hard." I sat down on the couch, leaving a comfortable metre.

"I couldn't even imagine. You're really strong for going through that so young." Chris put a comforting hand on my shoulder absentmindedly. When he realised he had touched me he tended up and awkwardly removed his hand. "Sorry about that."

I shrugged. "It's fine, thank you for trying to comfort me. I appreciate it. Now, let's get into this shall we."

He nodded and I began to pick the edge of the brown tape sealing the two sides of the box. With a great pull the tape lifted and the two sides opened. I placed the box between us and pulled the sides back.

"Oh my god." I giggled as I saw the familiar white paper. "Cheryl always has this fancy paper on her kitchen counter-"

Chris nodded like an excited child, his cheeks becoming flushed. "Yes, for her recipes!"

We each took a sheet and read over them. "I must've asked a good thirty times for her blueberry pie recipe."

"Looks like the nagging was worth it." He chuckled as he pulled out a chunk of paper. He flipped through and nodded. "Yep. All of Nana's recipes. You lucky cookie."

"Well now I have to go to the store don't I." My smile was wild as I remembered all of the hours I spent baking with sweet Cheryl.

"Why's that?" Chris wondered out loud.

"I need baking supplies. Tomorrow's gonna be a busy one."

Chris shook his head and placed the recipes on the couch. "Not to be invasive but would you mind if I joined? I could test all the goods, you know make sure they're up to standard." He nodded, pretending to be serious.

"Are you kidding? If you want the food you have to help." I told him and he nodded, throwing his hands up dramatically.

"Hey I wouldn't mind that."

"Alright then." I nodded.

We continued through box, pulling out photos and little things I had left like a bracelet I had taken off before a baking session and my scarf I had forgotten.

"Would you mind if I kept this?" Chris asked from behind me as I slid the recipes into a plastic pocket I had gotten from one of the drawers.

Without turning back to see what he meant I furrowed my brows and buttoned the pocket. "My scarf? Sure, if that's what you're in to."

"Funny." He chuckled. "I meant one of these photos. I know you're in it so if you'd feel uncomfortable or course tell me to piss off but, I've never seen my Grandma so happy."

I turned around to glance at the photo and ended up stopping. The photo Chris wanted was of me holding a baking tray will Cheryl added some last minute sprinkles to the batter. Her eyes were sparkling and her mouth was open as she laughed fiercely at something I had said. It made me miss her and our baking sessions so much.

I wiped a tear and nodded. "Of course, yeh, take it." I said quickly before my voice began to shake.

"Aww Alessia." Chris rushed to his feet as he saw me cry. His thinking was just to comfort me, he didn't care that we had only just met. He pulled me into a hug and his hand rubbed my back.

I hugged back momentarily before remembering that this guy was a stranger. I quickly put my hands on his muscular arms and pulled back. "I'm sorry. She was your grandmother, I have no right to cry over this."

"What? Of course you do." Chris shook his head and defended my emotional outburst. "You grew up next to her. You spent hours with her. Hours that me and my family really appreciate. When she lost Arthur, my grandfather, she was so lonely and me and my siblings couldn't come back and forth as much as we would have liked. From the photos, I can tell she loved every minute with you. You were like a granddaughter to her."

"Thanks Chris." I said with tear filled eyes.

His kind blue eyes looked down at me and he nodded with a small smile. As we looked at each other in silence, another tear fell from my eye, one that had been on the edge for a while. His hand came traveled up and his thumb gently wiped the heat from my cheek.

Before things could get awkward I looked down and then back up at him. I stepped back and put a hand in my hoodie pocket. "So I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yes, of course. What time did you wanna get started?" Great, the subject had been easily changed and we could move on.

"Uh I need to go to the store so maybe like 10-11am?"

"You want to sleep in don't you?" He smirked at me and I nodded with a shrug.

"Yeah well it's been a long drive from New York and I'm tired from...all of the emotion. So yeah, I'm sleeping in."

He chuckled and I reached for the door. I pulled it back to see my mother standing with her fist in the air, obviously about to knock.

"Mom?"

"Oh, hi honey. Uh, Chris?" My mother's eyes shot to his direction and she sent him passive aggressive daggers.

"Yes Mrs Perri?"

"You're girlfriend-" my mom emphasised the word "girlfriend" and I quietly giggled and nodded. Of course he had a girlfriend? Why wouldn't Mr Handsome McPerfect have a girlfriend? "-called and said that dinner's ready."

Chris nodded. "Great, thanks Mrs Perri."

My Mom nodded and turned to walk away, sending me a sorry look. When she closed the had gone down the hall and I heard the living room door close I looked over at Chris.

He was twiddling his thumbs, looking at me to judge my reaction. I gave him a friendly smile and pulled the door back. "So I'll see you tomorrow right?" Pretending I wasn't disappointed. But what did I expect? That he liked me? No way, we're friends. I just met the guy, he's my baking partner. Nothing more.

"Right, yes." He looked and sounded so relieved.

Previously (chapter one)

Next (chapter three)

[lucyjadesilverson]

Just Jimin

Note: All characters are speaking Korean but you guys will read it as English.

Jimin's pov.

Today had been such a long day, not necessarily a bad one, just a stress filled one. I'd finished my new sing which I was so excited about. But planning our next tour and practicing was exhausting.

I was finally home and in bed. Yet I couldn't sleep. I closed my eyes but sleep didn't come. I counted sheep but sleep didn't come. I drank warm milk, ice cold water, read, listen to music and still sleep didn't come.

The stress of the day was getting to me, and I needed fresh air. I snuck out of the apartment and made my way to my secret place. My feet stop just before the bridge. I always loved this place at night but was so peaceful compared to the day.

I walked onto the bridge, I didn't find any signs of life except for myself. I continued walking trying to clear my mind when a sigh caught my attention. I turned to see a young woman, she had a sketchpad on her lap and a pencil in her hand. The sketch was of the view of the harbour in front of her.

She was talented. Extremely from what I saw. I took a step closer, she was gorgeous, wow truly beautiful. I couldn't tear my eyes away from her. I saw her notice me from the corner of her eye but she ignore me.

Then she spoke making me jump...

Your pov.

"You know. If you're gunna stare at a girl the least you can do is tell her your name." You said looking up at him.

"You don't—-I mean you.."

"I know who you are." You said with a casual tone. He sat down next to you on the bench.

"Then why—-"

"Why aren't I screaming and asking for an autograph? Because you're a person. A normal person, who seems stressed out and I think you came here to get away just like I did. So, I'll treat you like you're just Jimin" He looked at you shocked.

No one had ever referred to him as a normal person before. And the last time he was around someone new who didn't freak out was a long time ago. This was new to him. For the next hour they sat in comfortable silence. You didn't want to talk and he didn't want to leave. Until—

"I've got to get home." You spoke standing up. He looked towards you with a smile. You felt your knees go weak at the sight.

"I'll see you around 'just Jimin'" you said before walking away. You had got halfway down the bridge before a hand grabbed you wrist, you spun around to see the same dark cap.

"You know my name, it's only fair you tell me yours." He said panting slightly. You paused slightly before answering.

"Y/N"

"Y/N." He repeated trying it out for himself.

"I like it—" he said looking up to find you'd already gone.

"Y/N" he smiled to himself.

Two week time skip brought to you by Namjoon breaking something.

"Yah! Get up!"

Your eyes opened to the sound of your best friend's voice. Taeyeon.

"What?!"

"There are pictures of you and Jimin. BTS's Jimin all over social media!" She practically screamed.

"Stop yelling! I just woke up!" I whined. She groaned loudly pulling the bedsheets off of me.

"Taeyeon!"

"Y/N!" She mimicked me.

"What's the big deal?" I said blankly.

"What's the big deal? Are you kidding me? We're not just talking about any hot guy. WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE HOT GUY OF ALL HOT GUYS AND YOU WERE ON A BRIDGE HOLDING HANDS WITH HIM!"

"We weren't holding hands—-wait I thought Taehyung was your bias?" I said raising an eyebrow.

"He is! And we're not talking about me, this is about you. Look at these!" She said excitedly handing me her iPad. On them were pictures of Jimin and I on the bridge. Us talking, to him grabbing my wrist and him asking my name. It was all there from different angles.

I sighed before shrugging. I knew I should of been more surprised, freaked out even, but what did I expect? Jimin was very very popular. And had a whole lot of fans. Good and bad. If I met him, either the whole world would have know about it or no one would have.

It didn't particularly bother me. I read through the comments and their were all really positive.

"She's really pretty"

"I want her waistline"

"They look like a cute couple"

"Jimin deserves to finally have someone"

"Hope he treats her well."

I smiled to myself. Jimin, treating me well? Being with him? Wow, what a thought.

A ringing noise brought me out of my zoned out face. I turned to my phone to see an unknown number calling. I picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hello, is this Miss Y/N L/N?"

"Yes this is she."

"I'm calling from BigHit Entertainment. We need you to come in and sign some papers if that's okay. It's to do with a confidentiality agreement. That's all I know."

"Of course. I can come in today?"

"Wonderful. I'll notify BTS's manager at once."

"Okay. Thankyou."

"Have a nice day Miss."

I hung up before looking at a confused Taeyeon.

"I need you to drop me off at the BigHit building. Now."

TIME SKIP BY YEONTAN BEING CUTEEEEEE.

"I'm very sorry about this." Their manager said.

"No it's fine honestly. I understand."

"It was nice meeting you Miss. L/N."

"You too sir."

He nodded and bowed before walking away. You sighed deeply.

"Y/N!" You turned to find Jimin looking at me with his crescent moon eyes and a wide smile. You sized him up and definitely liked what you saw. He wore a white shirt tucked into black dress pants and black loafers. It was simple but hot.

"Hey, I thought I might run into you here." You smiled at him. He chuckled.

"Come on, I wanna show you something." He said happily pulling on your hand. You blushed harshly under the gazes of trainees and staff as Jimin gripped your hand tighter. He noticed the redness growing on your cheeks and smirked a little.

We walked down a hallway, there seemed to be music studios all the way down, Jimin spotted someone who he waved at, you looked and saw a glimpse of BTS's Jin before he pulled you to a room, on the door it read "studio 4", he opened the door and pulled you inside.

He gestured to a spinny chair, you sat down while he pressed a few buttons. He made his way into the sound booth. He put on the headphones and stood in front of a microphone.

"Listen." He said into the mic. I nodded and listened as he started singing. His voice was angelic and beautiful, thoughts of him singing you to sleep or while you danced together entered your mind.

"..... cause you're mine, I just wanna blow your mind." He looked deep into my eyes singing this part. You blushed thinking he was saying that to you. A few minutes later the song was over.

"What do you think?" He asked biting his lip nervously.

"It's beautiful. Is it new?" You asked.

"Yeah I wrote it recently, after getting some new....inspiration." He said smiling to himself.

"Well I think it's amazing. Your voice is too." You said making him smile.

"Thankyou. That means a lot." He looked nervous.

"Y/N, I was wondering..." he played with his fingers looking at you. "Would you like to have dinner with me?" He said. You looked surprised. But a smirk made its way onto your face.

"Like a d-date?" You asked making him nod.

"I'd like that." You said making him grin happily.

"Great! Come by my place at 7 tonight. Here's the address." He said writing down the address on a piece of paper and giving it to you.

"Umm...." he looked worried.

"What?" He asked.

"I don't mean to sound like a total girl, but what do I wear?" He giggled looking at you sweetly.

"Just dress in whatever's comfortable." I nodded.

"Okay. See you then." I waved before leaving the studio and bighit.

Time skip brought to you by Taehyung ripping his trousers.

You waited outside the door. Your whole body felt tingly and your stomach had butterflies. A few deep breaths helped you keep your cool. You lifted your hand and pressed the doorbell button.

"Deep breaths." You whispered to yourself.

The door opened to reveal Jimin in dark blue jeans and a plain black tee shirt. He smiled at you.

"Hey come on in." You did as he said. He closed the door behind you and before you went in any further he bent down in front of you. You looked at him confused before looking at the slippers he placed in front of you.

You giggled blushing lightly before slipping off your shoes, Jimin pushed the slippers on your feet. He took your bag and coat gently and placed them on the hook.

"Come." He said softly taking your hand. You arrived at a kitchen with the smell of food coming from it. You peered over the counter to see what was being cooked but Jimin covered your eyes with his hands from behind.

"No peaking. It's a surprise." He whispered in your ear. A shiver ran down your spine feeling his hot breath against your skin. You brought your hands up to his removing them from your eyes but holding on to them.

"Y/N," you turned around at the sound of his voice, "I like you. I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since the first time we met. You were——are so different from everyone else." A deep shade of red tinted your cheeks. His eyes sparkled noticing it.

"I like you too. You've been on my mind so much, it's like all I can think about is you." You said looking down shyly.

"Can I, kiss you?" Your breath hitched at his request.

"Yes..."

His hands slipped from yours and came up to your cheeks. He cupped them gently and leaned in. Your eyes fluttered closed when you felt his soft plump lips against yours. You fingers slid through his hair tugging slightly. He nipped at your bottom lip asking for permission and you granted it happily. Your tongues fought for domination over the kiss. You gave in as he pushed you against the wall gently. A moan slipped from you and you felt him smile against your lips.

He pulled back. You were both breathless but smiling. You felt your cheeks burn. He tucked a stray hair behind your ear and kissed your cheek.

"I'm gunna like being 'just Jimin' with you."

[hexpea]

Ch. 19 - Fort Salta Ending V.1

We were safely on the plane, all of us here like we were supposed to be. Hange's daring move was incredibly inspiring and we were all pumped up for what may be the final battle of our lives. My thoughts never left Zeke. I wondered what he was going through, if we'd be able to save him. While aboard, the others began to devise a plan.

"Captain, Pieck, is this what the founding titan looked like?" Armin asked as he sketched on a piece of paper.

"Yes, it looked like a stupidly big pile of bones...like a bug," Pieck confirmed.

"Normally the body controlling it would be in its nape, but we can't be sure considering what the warhammer titan did. In other words, we don't know where Eren is." Armin stopped sketching and looked at the horrific drawing he finished.

"Even if we don't we could always just blow the whole thing away, just like the way you flattened Liberio's port and left nothing behind. Your colossus titan could do it..." Pieck took a light jab at the commander. A bead of sweat formed on his temple.

"True, that would be the most effective way to do it, but only if we've tried and failed to have a dialogue with Eren...only if that's the only way to stop him. It's our last resort," Mikasa looked away from the conversation. I knew what she was thinking.

"I'm fine with us having a last resort, but Eren's controlling the founding titan through Zeke, right? Can't we just stop the rumbling if we went and killed Zeke?" I shot Levi a harsh look, but he didn't waver.

"That's not happening either. Mikasa and I both have someone in danger right now and our goal should be to save them both. I know this isn't want Zeke wanted."

"But he might be right," Armin said.

"I'm not certain, but that's what Hange predicted. Then we just have to find that furry bastard inside those bones," Levi concluded.

"You're acting like I'm not here," I demanded, "if we save Eren, then we save Zeke. End of story. If he ends up dead and I don't, I'll come for each one of you." I glared at Levi as he knew my capabilities.

"We'll try our best," Armin bit the inside of his cheek.

"I'm not going to try at all," Levi scoffed and continued glaring my way.

"We had to slaughter hoards of our allies to get this plane in the air. We can't allow that to be a meaningless slaughter," Jean mumbled, "this is all in order to stop the rumbling. I'll do anything it takes.

"I...shot and killed Samuel and Daz. I sliced their faces until I knew they were unrecognizable," Connie sighed and leaned on his knees. "All while they called me a traitor, while they kept telling me they were saving the world. Hey Reiner," Connie looked up, "you...Bertolt...Annie, it must have been awful for you."

"My sins are beyond redemption. I doubt I'll ever forgive myself for what I did, even if I manage to help save the rest of humanity," Reiner put a hand to his chest. "So...well...let's at least save the rest of humanity," he then put his hand on Connie's shoulder.

"Yeah, you're right," Connie said, voice shaking, "even if we can't be redeemed, we've still got this to do...I guess."

"That's right, we're the same Reiner," Jean added, "I never had any blame for anything. I became a murderer in order to save others."

"Yeah, Eren told me the same thing the night of the raid on Liberio," Reiner blushed, "I feel like I kind of understand what he's thinking. Eren...might want us to stop him."

"What do you mean?" Mikasa spoke up from her usual silence.

"That's just how it feels to me," Reiner shrugged.

"I've always wondered the same thing," Armin whispered. "Eren is able to effect the actions of every titan and Eldian, but we're still able to use the power of the titans the way we always could."

"Are you saying that Eren is choosing not to interfere with us?" Pieck asked, sounding really confused.

"Yes, he's letting us act freely...almost as if he's testing us," Armin had a determined look on his face.

"Why?" Mikasa shook her head. "Even though we might be able to stop the rumbling?"

"It's the same thing for him," Reiner said, "it has to be painful for him, too. Slaughtering all of humanity isn't something you can just endure...if it was me. I'd probably want someone else to handle the power of the founder by now. And if I couldn't...I'd want to be stopped by someone."

Suddenly our consciousness traveled somewhere else. It was a mystical looking place with a blue aura, a giant glowing tree-shape grew in the middle. All of us were together and stunned.

"He hears us or something..." Levi looked around.

"Eren!" Armin screamed. "Please listen to us! You've done enough! I'm sure that no one is going to put a hand on Paradis for centuries to come now! That's just how much fear and destruction you've brought! You can still agree to a non-aggression pact and end this! You don't have to kill anyone else, the island is fine now! We were wrong! We're the ones who forced you to this point!"

"Eren!" Jean now spoke up. "We'll figure out the rest from here, so you don't have to keep slaughtering people for our sake!"

"Yeah, it's alright!" Connie cried. "Eren! I hated you over what happened to Sasha, but I know that you must have been as sad as the rest of us, right?! And yet, I never even considered what it must have been like in your position!"

"Eren..." Mikasa whispered, "I want to share the burden of your sins with you. We're guilty of all the same sins so please, stop avoiding us like this. Come back to us..."

"Hear that, Eren," Levi muttered, "stop now and I'll let you off with an ass-kicking. Why don't you speak up for a change?"

We waited a moment in silence. "Eren!" Armin shouted once more.

Suddenly, out of the tree-like shape, a figure stood. Eren... Several of the others began shouting and running after him while Reiner, Pieck, Levi, and I stood behind. Once they were close they realized that it was Eren as a child somehow. Armin begged Eren to explain himself, explain why he was letting us to proceed. The rest of us began walking in their direction once they stopped running.

"In order to gain my freedom," the child's voice quivered, "I took freedom away from the world. I-I couldn't take anything from you. You've always been free. I...thought I had to do this to give you that..."

"Eren, you've done enough," Mikasa knelt down in front of him, "you don't have to worry anymore. We'll take it from here, just like Jean said." Eren's big, green eyes looked up at Mikasa. It was quite sweet to see, really. His eyes just screamed innocence.

"But I've killed so many people," Eren continued, "what will happen to me."

"I-I don't know, but we'll make sure you're taken care of," Mikasa hesitated. What Eren did was beyond anything the world has ever seen in terms of destruction and would likely be the last time it would see something so massive.

"Okay..." Eren looked away, "but I'm stuck here...she," he pointed at the blond figure with bangs covering her eyes, "won't let me leave. I made her do this..." His voice was low as if he were trying to whisper away from the figure. It looked to be Ymir from our history books.

"Do you know how we can fix this?" Armin asked. "Just tell us and we can do it!"

I walked over to the figure and took a good look at her. She stood like stone, unmoving. I took out one of my swords and slashed her neck. Nothing spilled out but she collapsed, turning to dust when her body hit the ground. Suddenly, the strange ground we stood on began shaking. It made all of us fall to our knees, including Eren who was now rapidly aging into the familiar form we knew. The world suddenly faded and we were back on the plane. All of us picked a window and stared out of it.

"What happened?!" Onyankopon shrieked. "It's stopped!"

From the window, we saw the titans collapsing to the ground and steaming as their bodies evaporated. The big bony figure was also gone and by closer inspection we saw two human figures also laying on the ground steaming. The other strange thing was a centipede-like figure that was about fifteen meters long. It squirmed about like a parasite that needed a host. It was trying it's best to squirm its way toward Eren.

"We need to go!" I screamed, grabbing the nearest parachute. "We need to destroy whatever that is before it gets to Eren!"

Without further hesitation the others began putting on their parachutes. We leaped, one-by-one, out of the plane to their rescue.

"You all better stay away from it and let Armin, Pieck, and I take care of this thing. Who knows what it can do to humans!" Reiner shouted to all of us as we slowly glided to the ground.

Mid-air, the titans - except for Armin - transformed. Two large balls of lightning occurred and Reiner and Pieck plummeted to Earth at full speed.  They began engaging the squirmy object which began to retaliate aggressively. It had many 'legs' that it used to wrestle with the two titans.

"Armin, I think you're going to need to get in there!" Mikasa shouted at her friend. Armin nodded and the group began to direct themselves away from Armin using the handles on their chutes.

Once we were far enough away, and, at this point on the ground, we watched Armin transform into the colossal titan. He was a whopping sixty meters tall which looked small to what Eren had transformed into. It was at least four times larger than this thing. It looked almost like a spine, something that attached to Eren.  Armin slowly bent over and began trying to rip the limbs off of the object. I analyzed the object as close as I could. It was white and had what looked to be veins running through its body. It was definitely a living creature. At the front of it, at least what I figured was the front based on its moving direction, was an off-colored part that looked thinner than others with a bright red patch...it looked to be in the same place a 'nape' would be. My eyes widened and I glanced at the others. I began sprinting toward the creature.

"Lotte!" Hange shouted, reaching out for me as I looked back. The others took a few steps forward as if to try and stop me as well.

"I've got this!" I promised.

When I got close enough, I used Armin's body to fly myself high into the air using the ODM gear. I took out one of my swords and aimed directly at the spot while the titans continued wrestling it as best as they could.  My sword pierced the object easily. The object began writhing and emitting some foul-smelling odor. I felt my body begin to change. It was as if was a gas form of Zeke's spinal fluid. This thing created the titans! My body continued its strange transformation. It felt as though I was losing my consciousness. I was becoming a pure titan.

It felt like I was stuck for an eternity. I was suddenly shaken awake by Levi. I was in a hospital bed somewhere. Was this whole thing a dream?

"Zeke!" I sat up quickly, my vision darting in and out. "Where is he?" I shot my head in Levi's direction. "Did you kill him?!" He chuckled and shook his head.

"I behaved," he motioned to the bed next to me. Zeke was sitting up in bed, glasses on but shirtless, and reading a book I knew he'd read a million times.

"Good morning, beautiful," Zeke gave a crooked smile, "I've missed you." I shot out of bed but was quickly stopped by Levi's grasp.

"You probably should still rest, you all went through quite a bit," Levi gestured to the room. Armin, Annie, Reiner, Eren, and Pieck were all resting in their own beds.  "You're also hooked up to all these things over here," he motioned to the IV tubes that were on the opposite side of the bed.

"What happened?" I asked, trying my best to focus on Levi and not my husband who I missed devastatingly.

"Well, when you pierced that thing in its weak point you turned into a pure titan for a short period. Very hideous," he laughed, "but then it dissipated and all of you turned back into humans."

"Wait...does that mean what I think it means?" I cocked my head to the side, waiting for what I wanted to hear.

"Yes, it does," Zeke spoke up, smiling ear to ear, "no more titans...and I'm officially thirty."

"How long was I out?" I asked, recovering from the news I just heard.

"About two weeks," Zeke answered for Levi, "they brought me a cake and everything!"

"Really?" I smiled, looking at Levi who looked absolutely thrilled.

"No, not really. But the good news is, I'm not dead!"

"That really is great," I chuckled.

"Lotte," Levi started, "do you have something you might want to tell him?"

"What...do you mean?" I asked. Had they figured out my secret? How?

"I think you know what I mean. The doctor kept us updated while you were all in a coma," Levi crossed his arms, "I'm surprised you're still..." he hesitated, "even after turning into a pure titan. I guess you all just resided in the nape like the shifters, but you can't control yourselves."

"What's going on?" Zeke asked, genuinely concerned. I paused, unsure of what to tell him. I didn't know how he felt about Eldians and the whole sterilization idea. I feared that the news would ruin his feelings toward me.

"It's now or never, I guess," I sighed. I looked over at Zeke who's soft grey eyes were inviting me. His gaze felt warm, like home. "I'm pregnant."

Zeke's book dropped and so did his jaw. He leapt from his bed and covered me in his embrace. My skin tingled with his touch that I missed so much. I felt his chest heave heavily, feeling his sobs as his grip tightened on me.

"I thought you'd hate to hear that," I whispered, my voice shaking and throat hurting with tears of joy.

"You're everything I've ever wanted," Zeke pulled himself away from me. His face was red and his glasses were smudged. Levi looked like he might vomit. "I had some time to think while trapped with Eren...I changed my mind. I was desperate to get back to you and I vowed that if I made it back to you we'd start trying."

"Now you don't have to," I giggled through the tears, "but I'm so happy to hear that."

"How far along?" He asked, grabbing my hands that were in my lap. I smiled wide at his eager response. "How long have you known?"

"At this point..." I thought about how long it had been, "probably around two months. I had some hunches for a while but when I went in after Levi...that's when I knew."

"You...did all of that," Zeke referred to all the action to save the world, "while pregnant...and you knew." At first Zeke looked a little offended that I hadn't told him, but then his gaze softened and he brought me into a tight embrace.

I am home.