#in which they largely trip over their own damn feet and cause characters to fall flat on their faces in horrifying fashion

[under-sedationnn]

the arcana: main six reacting to injured! reader

anonymous: Could u do m6 reacting to mc coming home injured? I want some hurt/comfort >:))

Warnings: talk of being injured, blood. if that bothers you or tiggers you in anyway, please scroll away! i want this to be a safe place, only :)

thanks for the request anon!! i hope you enjoy!! <3 requests for the kissing prompts and physical affection prompts are STILL OPEN. please send them in with the character of your choice (which could be any character from any series i write for) and i will create an imagine!! thanks and happy reading!!

- tries his very very best to stay calm

- you can see panic bubbling under the surface

- faust is on high alert

- slithers around your shoulders and squeezes you for a hug

- "friend! hurt!"

- doesn't immediately ask what happened, just gets you to a comfortable place to be cleaned up

- then, and only then, will he brave to ask what happened to you

- or who did this to you

- wipes the blood from your skin with very gentle swipes

- winces when you wince, and apologizes profoundly

- "Y/n, how did this happen? i thought you were just taking a quick trip to the market."

- "i fell in the market, tripped over a stone"

- "and nobody helped you?"

- in this case he's disappointed with the bystanders, but does not become angry

- in a situation where someone hurt you?

- oh god

- "Y/n, how did this happen? i thought you were just taking a quick trip to the market."

- "yeah, well, somebody had their eye on the same apple i picked up. somehow, though, they managed to push me to the ground and steal it from my hands."

- i don't even think he would know what to say

- and asra is not really the type to march out into the streets of vesuvia and seek to challenge the one who hurt you

- but he would certainly hold a grudge against whoever it was if he did find out

- and would feel absolutely awful about letting you get hurt

- his mind would race about the possibility of losing you again

- because he simply can't handle it

- and what if that person had been particularly violent or malicious? what if you had been taken??

- you'd have to comfort the hell out of him to make sure he knows that you're okay

- "asra, hey, i'm fine! i can handle myself, you know that"

- "you're right, and i know you're right. it's just hard"

- "it's still hard for me, too. the market still makes me a little nervous and i got caught a little off guard, is all"

- that would make him feel better

- would finish patching up your wounds and would make sure to bring you to julian the next day if they were too bad for him to fix or needed stitches

- would also create a special brew to help with the pain and ease you to sleep

- "why don't i go down to the market tomorrow?"

- "why? so when you pick a fight over apples, i can pay you back for all of this high quality medical treatment?"

- "well of course, surely you didn't expect all this tender love and care to be free" *wink*

- panicked doctor mode enabled

- immediately begins checking you over, asking questions

- something tells me it would be a head injury of some sort

- "oh darling, what happe- you're bleeding!"

- "julian, i'm okay! it's just a little scratch"

- "no no no you might need stitches, come sit down. i'll go get my kit!"

- there's really no use in arguing

- he has cold ass hands, so he tries to warm them up before he begins suturing the wound

- tries to be gentle, and his expert hands move quickly without any snagging

- "so, how did this happen?"

- his voice is literally trembling

- "well, i was in the clinic grabbing the list of ingredients we need for our next grocery trip and there was a puddle of... something on the floor. i slipped and hit my head on the corner of your desk"

- immediately thinks it's his fault

- like "oh shit i should have cleaned better that could have killed y/n and then what would i have done-"

- doesn't necessarily voice this, but you can tell by the silence that follows that he's feeling really guilty

- would kneel for you, head on your knees

- "y/n, i am so sorry"

- "juli, it's really okay, i should have watched where i was going"

- "i'll make sure to clean better from now on, okay?"

- would guard you throughout the night in case of concussion

- nurse juli <3

- but let's say someone had put their hands on you

- would patch you up the same way, and apologize profusely for not being there with you

- tuck you into bed and fetch mazelinka to keep an eye on you throughout the night incase of a concussion

- would most definitely be self destructive and seek that mf out

- maybe not successfully, but would try his hardest

- "i'll be back in the morning, get some rest"

- "I can find them myself if I want to, you know"

- embarrassed blush

- because he KNOWS you can take care of yourself

- "of course, but right now you're hurt. as your partner, i will do what must be done on your behalf darling"

- probably shows up the following morning with battle scars of his own

- the guards found you in the garden, passed out in the maze

- blood trickled down your arm, a large gash marking your bicep

- ran you up to the palace and immediately to the medical wing

- them]n nadia gets word

- the calm, collected queen act disappears

- abandons anything she's doing, anybody she's talking to

- "we will finish this at a different time, i have more important matters to attend to"

- she is so worried and it's honestly adorable

- very much giving "where tf are they?" energy

- god i love her so much

- anyways um

- asks the nurses over and over what happened, if you're okay, etc.

- watches the physicians and nurses like a hawk as they clean the wound and suture the cut

- and they're so intimidated lmao they never come face to face with her literally ever

- brushes your hair back from your face as they do so

- holds your hands

- would demand that you be brought to her sleeping chamber

- so that's where you wake up! how cute

- she's laying beside you, her brows furrowed

- maybe even her eyes are a little hazy

- "y/n, sweetheart, do you remember what happened?"

- patiently waits for your answer, you're still a little groggy

- you were either attacked by an animal and passed out from the fright

- or you were attacked by an armed person and was knocked out

- either way, the guards are on it

- nadia isn't letting whoever or whatever did this get away without a fight

- the palace is meant to be a safe haven for you

- for the both of you

- "well, don't you worry, we'll take care of that"

- you try to sit up but she won't let you

- "oh no, you must stay down, y/n. you are possibly concussed from the fall"

- "oh okay, sorry"

- "is there anything i can get you?"

- the countess of vesuvia, serving you in your time of need

- "just some water would be nice"

- "of course, i'll have some brought up right away"

- i literally feel like he would just start crying straight up

- cause like he has some problems anyway

- he big sad boi

- and you coming home to the hut bleeding from a gash in the arch of your foot is not helping

- picks you and carries you to the bed without a word

- just starts examining the cut

- inanna is also very concerned

- she licks the blood from the cut, she's trying to be helpful

- meanwhile muriel is stumbling around the hut looking for anything to stop the bleeding, disinfect it, bandage it, anything

- but he's not the best about keeping that stuff in stock

- keeps looking back at you with worry in his eyes

- he doesn't know what to do

- "muriel, let me see if i can contact asra. maybe he or julian can bring me a salve. i'm pretty sure i'm gonna need stitches"

- low-key makes him feel worse

- cause he feels like he's unable to care for you and keep your safe

- even tho this was just an accident

- he's breathing really fast, his anxiety creeping

- agrees anyway, but goes to get them himself

- "i'll be back soon, just keep this piece of cloth pressed against it"

- cause you're bleeding like a lot

- inanna stays behind

- he returns very quickly with julian in tow, though he doesn't look happy about it

- leaves the hut without another word

- julian gets to work immediately

- "so, you cut your foot i see"

- smartass.

- "yeah, muriel always tells me to put on shoes when i walk in the woods but i love to feel the grass beneath my feet"

- julian chuckled at this

- "and i'm assuming you, what, stepped on a rock?"

- "...yeah, sliced it right open"

- after julian is done cleaning up the cut, he tells you to just stay off of it for a while and make sure it doesn't get infected

- once he's gone, muriel trudges back into the hut

- "muriel, baby, it was just a cut it's not a big deal"

- but his eyes look hurt, and you beckon him toward the bed

- "hey," your hands on his cheeks, "i'm okay, really"

- "sorry, i just got scared. blood is still a trigger for me and since you got hurt in my woods, i felt like it was my fault"

- "muriel, of course it wasn't your fault"

- he really needed a hug

- after this instance, he made sure to keep medical supplies in the hut and you promised to try and wear shoes in the woods more often than not

- "i'll try my best to be more careful. deal?"

- sweet lil smile

- "deal."

- "oh my god, y/n, what the hell happened??"

- you were tending the garden

- without her supervision

- and the garden sheers might have sliced into the palm of your hand

- deep

- brings you over to the sink and runs water over the cut, covering it with a towel when the dripping blood had been washed away

- girl is on the move

- cause she knows what to do! love that

- low-key a main reason why julian managed to live as long as he has

- pepi is curiously perched atop one of the counters, peering down

- finds her personal first aid kit she had stashed in the bathroom

- guides you over to sit on the counter while she tries to figure out what to do

- "damn, you really cut yourself, y/n"

- "sorry! i think i just got a little carried away"

- she giggles at that, though she is still worried about the fact that it won't stop bleeding

- gently wraps the cut in gauze and adheres it together

- places a kiss to your fingertips

- "all done! no more gardening for you!"

- "hey, why not?"

- "well you don't want that cut to open back up again and again, do you?"

- "no"

- "alright then," she smiled, moving to put away the first aid kit again, "and we're going up to the palace medical wing first thing tomorrow morning to make sure it's not infected"

- eye roll

- "yes ma'am" you mocked

- even though you know it's just because she loves you

- "but since you got hurt, you want me to bake you some cookies?"

- "only if you let me eat the dough!"

- good god do i love this man

- but he is so self-absorbed it's actually insane

- and I feel like he wouldn't even notice at first

- cause he's too focused on himself

- gazing into the mirror without a care in the world when you walked in

- "y/n, thank goodness you're home, how do you feel about these pants?"

- you just hobbled to the nearest seat, hand resting over the gash on your knee

- mercedes and melchior were lazing across a rug at the base of his mirror, their attention set on you

- "u-um, yeah, they look good"

- literally just trying not to bleed out, over here

- "good? oh really, now, y/n don't they look amazing?"

- "yes, they look ama- ow, damnit"

- then he turned around

- immediate shock and worry! oh no oh no y/n is hurt!

- mercedes and melchior walked over first, whining as they took in the cut, brushing around the edges

- lucio raced over, squatting down in front of you, and began examining the cut

- "hey, hey, what happened?"

- "i accidentally tripped on my walk in the garden and scraped my knee on the cobblestone"

- he was lightly touching around the cut, gauging how sensitive it was

- when you flinched he stopped, looking into your eyes with a soft "sorry"

- "i think i need to go to the palace infirmary"

- "oh there's no need, i can take care of you!"

- you were not convinced he could take care of you, at least not well

- "uh, lucio, are you sure?"

- he looked slightly offended, at that

- "you know, y/n, i did fight in battles at one point. i have not only tended to my own wounds, but the wounds of others, as well"

- you giggled at the thought

- "much to your protest, though, i'm sure"

- he moved to the small cabinet of medical supplies in the ensuite to your bedroom, returning to your side with it in hand

- "at points, but i don't mind helping you in the slightest"

- for all of his antics, his soft side was enough to make you fall in love all over again

- and although i know he would take care of you in literally any situation, i can't say for certainty that he would stick around and place nurse lucio for long if a person had hurt you

- attacked you

- much like nadia, the guards would be sent out without a second thought, lucio leading the pack in the search for you aggressor

[acourtofbookishdreams]

Azriel ~ Irresistable*

Azriel x Reader

* = NSFW. EXPLICIT CONTENT.

Summary: Whilst training with Azriel, you make one too many ‘innocent’ mistakes and his resolve wavers with each one until he can’t take it anymore.

Warning: NSFW, forbidden romance, teasing, shitty writing with no sense, out of character azriel, piece of crap - posting anyway aha

Word Count: 2539

"You need to tighten your core" Azriel instructs, voice soft and unjudgemental but aggravating nonetheless.

"I am tightening" I grit from between my teeth, working with all my waning strength on moving along the balance beam.

Azriel and I had been training only for a couple of weeks now after I'd finally decided I wanted to learn how to defend myself or at least be able to hold my own until I could get to safety. However, my insipid mortal reflexes and strength was making it insanely difficult to learn anything.

Considering my being the remaining mortal sister of the Archerons after thankfully being on a short trip to see a friend at the time my other sisters had been kidnapped and turned, it seemed like an even better idea. Especially to my overprotective older sisters. Sometimes, being the only human around definitely sucked and others, like when my sisters got roped into Fae bullshit...it definitely didn't.

It did really suck I wouldn't find a mate, though. That sounded incredibly...convenient.

"You may think you're engaging your core but you're not" Azriel says, moving slightly closer, his shadows surrounding him in the soft dawn light.

"You know what, if this is so easy then-ah!" I squeal as I fall off the beam, stumbling slightly and gripping the beams surface to keep from slipping as my feet land hard on the floor, ground shock reverberating up my legs, "Ugh, this sucks!"

Azriel chuckles softly, "You'll get it."

"It doesn't feel like it" I grumble

Azriel comes up behind me, placing one large hand across my stomach, pushing against it softly, "You need to act as if you're sucking in your stomach, belly button to spine."

I do exactly that, my stomach concaving in, forcing his hand to slip from my stomach and back to his side and Azriel laughs - a big, joyful chuckle, the loudest I'd ever heard from him.

"Was that a laugh?" I smirk, quirking one eyebrow

"I do laugh, you know."

"Not often...and not around me."

"Focus. We're not here to discuss my social habits. Now, I meant internally. It may sound strange but visualise it in your mind and then pull your stomach in and hold it. You'll feel it."

My smirk slips and I nod, focusing. I do as he instructs and though he is right, it does feel strange, I definitely feel it in my stomach, an odd and uncomfortable tightening sensation as if my stomach was benching a weight.

"Ow" I pout, releasing my stomach, "I don't like that"

"You'll get used to it" Azriel smiles, "Now, come on, back up on the beam and try again"

"Will you catch me if I fall?" I tease, my smirk returning. Though he may be over 200 years older than me, strictly off limits because of his being a completely different and dangerous race from me and completely emotionally unavailable, it didn't mean I couldn't flirt.

"Of course" Azriel responds, tone all business. I roll my eyes slightly as I hop back up onto the beam, one foot in front of the other.

Squeezing my eyes slightly against the pressure, I perform my weird suck-in thing to engage my core, taking a tentative step forward...and finding it suddenly way easier. Gaining confidence, I take another step forward, and then another, each one coming faster and faster until...

"I did it!" I giggle, reaching the opposite end of the beam and jumping off, "I actually did it."

"Well done" Azriel commends, his ice-hewn face slightly broken by a small smile, "Next beam"

"Already?" I gulp, looking over my shoulder. The next beam was higher up then the first, the top of it reaching my chest. I turn back to him, gesturing to the lower one, "Can't I just do this one again?"

Azriel says nothing and I sigh, moving over to the other beam and grabbing a couple step blocks to get up to the beam. Heaving myself up and onto the beam, I wobble softly and a small, startled squeak escapes my lips before I regain my balance.

"You really will catch me, right?" I ask nervously. Again, no response omits from his lips, just a short nod of which I couldn't tell was either actually in answer to my question or instruction to get a move on.

"Okay" I breathe, closing my eyes and stilling my body completely, performing the process of engaging my core slowly, each muscle at a time until I felt so tightly wound even a sharp shove couldn't knock me from my feet.

I take a step forward...then another...and then I slip.

My foot hits the side of the beam wrong and in an effort to stay up, I attempt to pull it back on rather than letting it go and placing it behind my other foot, bending at the knees as I was taught to do and had done many times on the lower beam. I scream and squeeze my eyes shut tightly as I tip backward, flailing my arms out as my back heads for the ground.

As if in slow motion, I turn my body as I fall, instinctively positioning to catch my fall with my hands - a rookie mistake. A pair of strong hands encircles my waist as I turn and without thinking I grab onto him, securing my body to his in every way possible to stop my fall. I grunt as one of my feet lands hard on the floor, ground shock again erupting through...one of my feet?

I open my eyes and find myself in the strangest position...Azriel's face was before me, his arm hooked underneath the crook of my right knee, holding the one leg up whilst the other was placed upon the floor as normal, my hips pressed against his.

"You really did fall in the most difficult way possible" Azriel says, voice deep and gravelly...as if straining.

It's then I notice Azriel's stance is crooked, his weight tipped to one side slightly as if weighed down...I gasp and almost send myself flying again as I realise what exactly I'd done in my attempt to escape a painful landing.

My knee was grazing his right wing, my left arm tightly wrapped around his neck with my elbow brushing the inside of his left wing and my right hand was placed entirely on the soft membrane of the inside of his right wing, my fingers splayed across the shimmering surface and pressing lightly onto it, the way one would place their hand on a surface to maintain balance.

Points of contact everywhere with Azriel's wings...Azriel's sensitive wings.

"Oh my...I'm so sorry" I gasp, pulling my leg out of his grasp and removing my arm from his neck, my hand from his wing, until I was standing before him. Closer than I'd ever been before, his eyes boring into mine.

"You couldn't have just fallen backward?" Azriel says, his voice still rough and strained, "I would've caught you."

"I know, I-" I stammer, "I didn't think, I just acted on instinct. I don't know what I was thinking. Are your wings okay?"

"They're fine" Azriel frowns softly, "Why wouldn't they be?"

"Feyre's told me before to be careful of your wings, to make sure I keep away from them because they're really sensitive...are they not?" I redirect as his confused frown deepens.

"They are but not in the way you seem to think" Azriel explains, "It doesn't cause me pain, which by the look on your face, I assume is what you think."

"It's not painful?" I breathe a sigh of relief, "Oh thank the forgotten gods...but if it's not a painful sensitivity, why do you seem so tense? Well, tenser."

"While it's not painful, it is still sensitive. The sensation is hard to explain but it just provokes a different...reaction."

"What do you mean?"

"It's too hard to explain. How about I show you the approximation of what it feels like to a non-winged being and then you tell me the reaction you have."

I nod, a little nervous about the slight gleam in Azriel's eyes, a knowing one...

Leaning forward, Azriel breathes softly into the shell of my ear, lips trailing sensually along the outer edge as his large hand ghosts down my spine in soft, light movements, his fingers barely touching the skin but sending shivers all the way through my body. My eyes go heavy lidded and instinctively, I grip his bicep to hold myself steady, neck tipping back slightly to expose more of my neck as his breath gusts over the sensitive skin, his hand coming to rest on the small of my back to keep me from falling on my ass. A small noise escapes from my throat.

In a lighting fast move, Azriel pulls me to rights and releases me completely, stepping a good few paces back. Breathing heavily, my eyes open and meet his and I imagine our expressions to be almost exact. Flushed cheeks, glazed eyes, chests rising and falling so agonisingly slowly as we attempt to keep our breathing even and failing completely.

"Woah" I breathe, "I definitely get it now."

"You can't do that, Y/N, damn it!" Azriel growls and I straighten further, lust filled haze vanishing.

"Do what?" I gape

"Make me-" Azriel says and then stops himself, "Never mind. Today's session is over"

He turns on his heel to leave but I run after him, meaning to grab his shoulder...and accidentally gracing the back of his wing again.

Damn it, dumbass.

Azriel releases a frustrated growl and whirls on me, pushing me back into a nearby wall, his hands on my waist, eyes staring into mine.

"That"

I was still confused. This was the only time I'd ever touched his wings...

Seeing my confused expression, Azriel presses closer, his body pressed to mine, something hard pressing into my-

Oh.

"I...I wasn't aware I" I stumble over my words, "I wasn't aware it was something I'd done more than once."

"That's a lie and you know it" Azriel huffs, "Stop feigning innocence."

"I'm not feigning anything!" I protest. I truly hadn't meant to turn him on. Now or any other time. Feyre and Nesta and Elain had all made it clear I shouldn't get into it with Azriel...Gods, even Rhys had told me to keep away!, "Why does it even matter? We're both adults, we can just move on from-"

"You don't get it, do you?" Azriel growls, "That I've wanted you every moment from when I first saw you, that Feyre and Rhys gave me this lecture about duty and responsibility and the different race bullshit and ordered me to stay away from you. The only reason I was allowed to train you is because I swore it'd be training and nothing more!"

"I'm...I don't know what to say to you except that I didn't know anything about any of that."

"I swear you're my own personal hell on Earth." Azriel sighs, shaking his head, eyes hard and cold as flint.

"Wow, thanks" I scoff sarcastically, offended, "I wasn't doing anything intentionally."

"That may be even worse" Azriel concedes, "Knowing that anything you did wasn't intentional means if you truly tried to make a move...I would fall at your feet and beg you for just a second of your time. For one moment between-I shouldn't be entertaining this idea."

No, please go on.

"It doesn't help that I can smell you every time you enter a room. It's like you specifically-"

"Wow, so now I smell?" I huff, "Perfect."

"Not that kind of smell. I can smell it on you now."

It?

Well, sure, I was sweaty but I'd just been working out. Although I'd cooled a bit now, with all the slow and steady lust-filled contact we'd had-

Oh...again.

I remember Nesta telling me once to be careful with any time I spent...with myself because the males could smell...

Could smell arousal.

"Oh" I say aloud this time, "That."

"I could swear you would touch yourself before each training session just to drive me insane with what I can't have-damn it, stop it!"

"Well I can't really help my body's reactions when you talk like that" I defend, that warm and tight feeling in my stomach building, eyelids fighting not to fall.

"Try" Azriel suggests weakly.

"If the past few weeks of my unintentional seducing you wasn't proof enough, I clearly can't do that."

"What has been with you recently? You're aroused all the time."

"I don't know" I blush, "I just...have been. Besides, it's not like I have someone I can go to here to...relieve myself of the frustration so I'm all I've got."

Azriel's jaw clenches, eyes ablaze with a hungry fire.

"Why can't we...I mean, why am I so forbidden to you?"

"Feyre and Rhys say...well, I don't know. It doesn't matter about their reasons, their my High Lord and Lady. If they order me to do something, I obey."

"Is that something you can't fight?" I ask, eyes trailing up and down his body, "Like a magical side effect stops you?"

"No, it's an honour thing-" Azriel stops short, recognising my intention, "Okay, I know you're doing this on purpose now"

"So what?" I whisper, "It's not like I'll tell them anything...and there's no one out here to witness for at least a few hours."

"Hours?" Azriel chuckles, "What makes you think you can handle that?"

Cocky now, huh?

"I'm almost certain I probably can't...but I'm more than willing to try."

Azriel's erection grows larger, pressing insistently upon my upper thigh, "Y/N...I can't"

"Yes you can" I say, "Something tells me you're just as good at getting in your own way as Feyre and Rhys are. I'm more than capable of making my own decisions and I would be lying if I said this isn't one of the fantasies I've used to help me out when I'm alone."

The sound of Azriel's teeth grinding against each other makes me smile. I don't know where this sudden confidence came from - perhaps from knowing how badly he also wants this. Maybe it was fate's way of making something that was always supposed to happen, happen. By removing my nervousness and forcing Azriel to think his way out of his own mental purgatories.

Azriel, still fighting his own mental battle, pants softly and I lean forward, trailing a long line up his neck and along his jawline with my tongue. My hand drifts up, reaching for the tender inside of his wing-

"Don't. Do. That" Azriel grits out, hand gripping my wrist and pushing it back against the wall, up above my head, the other arm quickly following, "Don't start something you can't finish."

"Who said I wasn't planning to finish?" I smirk

"Gods, you'll be the death of me" Azriel sighs, leaning closer to me. I could already tell the battle was lost, he was just clinging to the last scraps of will he had left.

"What was that you said earlier? That you would 'fall at my feet and beg for just one moment between...' What were you going to say?" I tease

"Shut the fuck up" Azriel growls, his lips pressing to mine.

Masterlist

[forever-rogue]

Hello! If possible could I request from Prompt List 3 under fluff and romance? There wasn't a number, but it was, “You’re basically a marshmallow. Perfect for cuddling.” with any of the Marcuses! :')

I had to go with one Marcus Moreno because I am soft for him 🥺💕

Marcus Moreno x Fem!Reader ; warnings: none

Pedro Characters Masterlist 

»»————-　♡　————-««

"Are you cold?" the tone of amusement in his voice was evident as you turned and narrowed your eyes at your boyfriend. You huffed lightly before sticking your tongue out at him, causing him to break into a wicked grin and giggle wildly. You froze as you stared at him, mesmerized by his breathtaking smile and the way his eyes crinkled in the corner as he laughed, along with the dimples that made their appearance. Marcus Moreno was a handsome man, and how you got lucky enough to call him your own, you’d never know. 

“It’s freezing,” you insisted as you held out your arms and gestured to the glittering snow piled high all around you, “of course I’m cold! I wasn’t prepared for...this.”

“Honey,” he calmed himself from his laughter as he made his way over to you, finding it a small struggle from all the snow that littered the ground, “when I said we were going away for the weekend to the mountains in the middle of winter...what did you expect?”

“I dunno,” you pouted at him, crossing your arms over your chest as he held his own arms open to wrap you up, “not quite this much cold. I’m wearing like twenty layers and I’m still freezing, I have no clue how people manage to survive this. I thought it would be a nice quiet anniversary thing...ie.”

“Okay, now you’re just being dramatic,” he raised an eyebrow in amusement as he stepped closer and wrapped you up in his arms before you sighed contentedly, “sometimes I wonder if Missy learns from you or you learn from her?”

But there was a wicked little grin on his face and you almost instantly knew what he was up to. You pulled out of his arms and tried to create a space between the two of you, already holding up your hands in defense. Oh no - no, no, no. You knew him well enough to know exactly where this was going. 

"Marcus Moreno!" you hastily backed up and tried to behind a tree as Marcus reached down and scooped up a handful of snow, and quickly formed an almost perfect snowball, "if you know what's good for you, you won't do it!"

"Come on, honey," his voice was colored with amusement as he tried to run over to you but you weaved your way through some trees. You were both laughing as you tried to escape to safety and he started throwing some soft snowballs at you, "we're just having fun!"

"No!" you dodged another snowball, hastily leaning down and scooping up your own handful. You didn't even try to form it in anything before lobbing it over your shoulder at him.

"Nice try," he somehow had managed to evade you and make his way in front of you. You squealed in surprise as he wrapped his arms around you and pulled you against his chest, "gotcha!"

"Cheater!" you giggled as you tried to pull out of his grasp, but he was feeling particularly devilish and started to tickle your sides, "no fair, no fair! You're playing dirty!

"I'm just having some fun!" he insisted as slowed down his assault before making sure you didn't fall into the cold snow from your breathless laughter. He brought you to feet and held you tightly against his chest. He gave you a gentle little grin before pressing a quick kiss to your lips.

“Very funny,” you playfully groaned as he rubbed your back in soothing circles. His touch was like fire, sending sparks up and down your spine. Despite how long the two of you had been together, nearing almost two years now, he still managed to make you feel like you were falling in love all over again. And in a way, you supposed you were; you were always continually falling for Marcus and the million ways he always seemed to dazzle you. There were soft flakes coming down and a few landed in his dark hair; you couldn’t stop yourself as you reached over and tenderly swept them away. Marcus couldn’t help himself as he leaned forward and pressed a kiss to your lips, “can we please go inside and get warm? I think there’s hot cocoa calling my name.”

“I suppose that’s fair enough,” he agreed, reaching down and grabbing your hand, trying his best to hold yours despite the thick mittens you both were sporting. You watched him struggle for a moment before he finally managed a gentle hold, “there.”

“Hey,” you said as he looked at you curiously with that boyish charm all over his face, “I love you. Like really, really love you.”

“That’s good,” a light tinge of pink rose up in his cheeks, this one decidedly not due to the chill of cool breeze, “because I really, really love you.”

“Enough to get me inside and warm?”

“Always.”

»»————-　♡　————-««

As soon as you stepped out of the shower, already feeling infinitely warmer and refreshed, you pulled on the softest and coziest pajamas you had packed. You’d brought a few...sexier pieces, but decided that those could wait for later. You doubted Marcus would mind, if anything they’d be a good surprise for later. RIght now all that was on your mind was getting warm and comfy. 

Eyeing the huge, fluffy white duvet on the large bed, you quickly gathered it up in your arms before padding down the hall and into the open spacious living room. The little cabin he had rented for your surprise trip was lovely and quaint, almost picturesque enough to be out of a movie. Ever the amazing man he was, Marcus has started a fire that was merrily crackling away and had set the television on Netflix.

“Honey?” he called to you from the kitchen, where you could already hear him chopping and cutting away at something. You threw the large blanket onto the couch before flopping down on it.

“It’s me,” you confirmed as you keened your ear and found that he was listening to some soft music in the background, humming along to it lightly. It was all these little things, so simple, so domestic, but so endearing that still managed to take your breath away and remind you of how much he meant to you, “love, do you need a hand? I thought we were just going to make hot cocoa.”

“Just making a little snack,” he called back, “just get settled and find something to watch!”

“Are you-”

“I’ll be there in five minutes,” you could practically hear him smiling as you burrowed your way under the big blanket, cocooning up in it so only your face was sticking out. Grabbing the remote, you started scrolling through Netflix as you listened to him messing about in the kitchen. 

Eventually you settled on a new show you’d both mentioned watching, getting it all set up as you waited for him. True to his word, it was only a few minutes before he came into view, a large tray filled with snacks and two steaming mugs of hot chocolate in his hands. 

“Marcus,” you shook your head in amusement as you slowly sat up, “you said a snack...this is….”

“This is the snack,” he moved his head in the direction of the tray before setting it down on the coffee table. He took a step back and pointed at himself, “and this is the whole damn meal.”

You burst into a fit of laughter as grinned sheepishly at you. You were beside yourself as he just looked so proud of his little joke, “Marcus Moreno - where on earth did you hear that? Who taught you that!?”

“I think I heard Missy say something like that once,” he admitted as he came over and you made room for him on the spacious couch, “or maybe it was on some show...isn’t that something the kids say?”

“I’m sure there’s some kids that do,” you reached over and gently touched his face, brushing your fingers over his cheek before kissing him softly, “but you’re right. You are the whole damn meal.” 

“And you - you’re basically a marshmallow. Perfect for cuddling,” he gently poked the big, puffy blanket. You lifted an arm and offered him some blanket so he could properly cuddle you and get warm as well. Instead of accepting your offer, he did one better and pulled into his lap and wrapped his arms around your waist as you made sure the blanket was covering both of you, “hi.”

“Hi,” you whispered before nuzzling your nose against his and gently kissing him. Even these types of kisses, so tender and slow, were wonderful. Every touch, every taste, everything was so sacred and intimate. You almost sighed contentedly into his touch as you wrapped your arms around his neck and laid against him, feeling his heartbeat against your chest, “you made a charcuterie board. How very fancy Mr. Moreno, are you trying to woo me?”

“Always,” he insisted as he traced featherlight, aimless shapes along your back, “I figured we could be fancy adults for once.”

“It’s greatly complimented by the hot cocoa,” you teased as you placed a few kisses along his jaw. You swore you could feel his heart flutter wildly at your words and kisses, which both was and wasn’t odd for him. You knew he was big into touch and gentle words, and he always relished in your praise. But today, in this moment something felt...different. Not bad...but different, “Marcus? Is everything alright, love?”

“I…” he paused for a moment and you pulled back, looking at him nervously. His soft brown eyes were filled with a mixture of emotions, but the corners of his lips tugged into a soft smile.  He brought his hands to the side of your face, cradling it gently as you just watched him with a reverent expression. It was the soft look on your face that caused him to finally break, “marry me?”

“I…” you looked at him with wide eyes as butterflies erupted in your stomach. Surely...surely he couldn’t have said that...right? His own expression was almost as nervous as you felt and maybe...he had said those two little words. You tilted your head to the side as you felt your eyes start to sting with the familiar burn of tears, “I...what?”

“I-I-I know it’s not...I had this planned out better,” he stammered nervously, “I had a whole...well, I guess not. But I just...I’ve been wanting to ask for so long and the timing just never seemed to work out, and I don’t want to wait any more.”

“Marcus…” he held up a finger quickly as he shifted slightly and reached into his pocket and slowly fished out a small ring box. You couldn’t help but laugh lightly as you realized that he must have been carrying it around all day, if not longer. He laughed nervously before opening the box and showing you the gorgeous ring that was nestled among the velvet inside, “oh Marcus.” 

“I’ve had this for so long now, and I just think it’s time,” he admitted softly, “I know that I want to spend the rest of my life with you...you are everything. I never thought...I never thought I would love someone again, that life would ever get better than what it was, but then I met you. You came into my life, Missy’s life, and made everything so much better. There is no one I would rather by my side than you. I guess I should rephrase this better, but will you marry me?”

“Yes,” you whispered softly, overwhelmed by his soft declaration and the way he looked at you like you had hung all the stars in the night sky, “of course, I’ll marry you, Marcus. Nothing in the world would make me happier than being your wife. You and Missy are the best things that ever happened to me.”

He beamed at you before wiping away the few tears that had run down your cheeks before pulling the ring out of the box and slipping it onto your finger. It fit perfectly, like it had always been meant to be there, neither too large or small, but just...perfect. You couldn’t stop yourself from kissing him, melting into his touch, “I’ve been trying to figure out how to ask for so long.”

“How long?” you asked curiously, running your fingers through his dark locks, “how long have you had the ring, silly?”

“A while,” he admitted as you raised your eyebrows in amusement, “I bought after we’d been dating for a few months.”

“Marcus,” you threw your back with laughter, filling the room with his favorite sound in the world, “love, we’ve been together for two years now.”

“I know,” he admitted with a small grin, “I just...I never knew when to ask. I always knew it was you, so the timing didn’t really matter, but I wanted to do it right. And yet...I still didn’t really do it right.”

“You did,” you promised softly, “it would always be perfect because it’s you, and anything with you is just...right. I love you, Marcus. This was perfect, trust me.”

“I love you,” he whispered before pressing a kiss to your forehead, “now, let’s eat and drink the cocoas before it gets cold. We can celebrate more later, and tell everyone then.”

“Let’s wait until we get home,” you suggested, “I want to tell Missy first, in person, and your mom. Then we can tell everyone else. I want to make sure Missy knows first though.”

“She’ll love that,” he agreed, his expression soft beyond words, “she’s been pushing me to ask anyway...she’ll have her little I told you so moment.”

“As she should,” you grinned before moving off of his lap and grabbing your cocoas, “come on then, Mr. Moreno, let’s get warm and relax - I think I heard something about cuddles.”

“Anything for you, Mrs. Moreno.”

»»————-　♡　————-««

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[riverscyberwife]

The First Time She Met Daryl Dixon

Part of the 'Call Me 'Darling'' Series

(Daryl Dixon x unnamed female character)

The first time she met Daryl Dixon was not pleasant.

“Fucking Shit!”

It wasn’t long after the fall. The time of indescribable horrors. The day the dead began to walk the earth.

“You useless shit” a feminine voice rang out in exasperation, met only by the greenery that surrounded. Tears pricked at frustrated eyes as small, dirty fists beat aimlessly at the soft earth beneath. The roots of a nearby tree grazed along knuckles, breaking the skin there. An unintentional hiss left trembling lips as sad eyes observed the fresh blood appearing.

She had found herself alone in a dense wood somewhere near farmland in Georgia, drifting aimlessly, no destination in mind. Attention on the songs of the wild birds. The music of the forest being the only company had in days.

In dazed wandering, clumsy feet had met a large tree root protruding rather rudely from the ground. It met her right foot violently, causing herself to stumble harshly while holding the appendage prisoner. The attached ankle twisted painfully as her warn body was thrown forward and forced to spin, landing unceremoniously on her obnoxiously generous behind.

An advantage only when the clumsy feet betrayed her. Something that happened more often than her ego would like to admit.

A glare that could almost kill, along with some less than lady-like language was aimed at the battered ankle. It lay life-less and throbbing next to the offending root, almost mocking with its silence.

A twig snapped far too near for comfort. A rustling of leaves alerting to a nearby presence. In such a vulnerable position, the woman mentally chastised herself for becoming too distracted to hear the oncoming intruder. Almost definitely one of those undead fucks stumbling across a yummy young lady laid out like a buffet.

Her head whipped around to peer behind with enough force to cause the joints of her neck to let out a crack. A sound that went unnoticed as a sharp gaze found a man staring at the crumpled heap she currently was. He seemed alive enough as he pointed an intimidatingly large weapon at her head.

Is that a crossbow? The thought shot through her mind before returning swiftly to the danger that was presented. It wasn’t something you’d ever expect to see in real life, let alone have pointed at you. Far more intimidating than a gun it seemed due to its unexpectedness.

The man holding the weapon was rugged. Short brown hair and clothes had seen better days. Gaze locked with the most vibrant blue eyes. An intense silent battle taking place between said eyes and her own.

“Ya kiss yer mother with tha’ mouth?” His voice was gruff. Deeper than expected. It held a soothing quality even in its accusing tone.

“Not if she was alive” A deadpan tone returned, eyes narrowed as the gaze turned cold. He only grunted in response. A shiver ran unexpectedly down her spine. Probably just caused by the very pointy stick he had ready to be catapulted through her skull.

“What are ya doin’ round here?” he questioned more aggressively this time. The hints of playfulness had disappeared. This man meant business and she didn’t doubt he would shoot her with the intimidating weapon if he felt the need to.

“I’m having a teddy bears picnic, can’t you tell?” An overly sweet voice quipped back unwisely. Suspicious eyes only narrowed in return as the grip seemed to tighten on the bow.

“Okay” A tired sigh left dry lips. “I was just wandering, looking for her next meal and place to sleep. I fell over this damn tree”. Trying not to feel embarrassed by the statement, her gaze wandered the muscular upper arms visible due to the missing sleeves that seemed to have been forcefully ripped away.

“I take it by your defensiveness that your camp is near here” she queried. “Don’t worry, I won’t go near it.”

“Better not. Now get outta here before it ain’t a choice.”

Eyes rolled at his threat. “Not very welcoming are you?” The question was met only by silence.

“Fine, I’m going.” She stated as weak arms pushed herself to her feet, forcing the rapidly bruising ankle to take the weight. Attempting to ignore the pain in refusal to look weak in front of this rude man. The backpack that slid from aching shoulders during the fall was slung back into place and the dagger that had saved her life numerous times secured in a determined grip.

“Nice to meet you” her defeated voice rang sarcastically before turning and limping away as fast as able.

“Asshole”

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

Many months passed without a thought about the rugged man. Surviving alone could be very distracting after all. Jumping from abandoned house to worse smelling abandoned house with the hopes of a safe nights rest. Never knowing where the next meal would come from or even if there would be a next meal.

The weight dropped off at a concerning rate. Concerning only because there was a good chance of being eaten by the dead because her trousers fell down. What a way to go. She died as she lived. Falling over.

Eyes raked over the forest floor in search of life. Trusted dagger held securely in her dominant hand, poised ready to strike should dinner appear suddenly. An unexpected commotion seemed to begin somewhere to the left. Ears guiding rushing feet towards the sound in hopes of a large animal to catch. The grumbling of her stomach agreeing with the silent statement.

Upon the arrival at the scene, crouched down behind a shrub, her small body was easily hidden by the undergrowth. In immediate sight was the back of a man. Keen eyes would not have recognised him so immediately if not for the missing sleeves on the dirty brown shirt. He was facing off with four of the dead. A knife raised high in his right hand seemed to be his only weapon. A glance to the side revealed the crossbow a few feet away. Far less intimidating when not pointed at ones head.

Logic said he couldn’t reload the damn thing in time to shoot the fuckers one by one. She however had not been spotted by the dead and was only about 3 feet from the weapon.

Daryl began to panic as what felt like a never ending amount of walkers came at him. He couldn’t kill them all at once and his knife wasn’t doing much good. He’d resorted to desperately shoving them backwards.

The walker directly in front of him was big, standing at least 6 foot tall and charging with a purpose. It managed to knock him to the ground, the snapping jaws aiming to rip Daryl’s face cleanly away. It was prevented only by an increasingly weakening forearm to its neck.

Thick black blood oozed from the tear in its jugular, dripping grotesquely onto its struggling prays jaw and throat. Should Daryl open his mouth he’d be treated to a very unfortunate final meal.

‘This is it’ thought Daryl as he frantically felt around for the fallen blade. ‘I’m gonna fuckin’ die.’

Daryl’s rapidly beating heart seemed to stop dead as a bolt from HIS crossbow shot through the top of the walkers head to protrude from the now permanently dead man’s mouth. The sharp tip pointed directly between sky coloured eyes.

With a confused sigh, his head leant back to peer behind at the crossbow which lay exactly where he had left it. The unsightly corpse was shoved unceremoniously off of the hunter as he realised suddenly that there were no walkers after him.

It took a few seconds to come to his senses as he observed the 3 other walkers already dead on the ground nearby. Steely eyes flickered up to the small woman standing a few feet away, casually wiping a bloody knife on a large leaf. Confusion only grew as he stared at the calm woman who acted like nothing out of the ordinary had happened. A look of boredom on her face.

Smug eyes flickered to the side where the rugged man still sat stunned on the ground. An involuntary smirk forced its way onto her face. It was so difficult to keep the bored look when the handsome mans jaw was practically on the floor.

“What’s your name, sweetheart?” This seemed to snap him out of his daze. His mouth clamped shut audibly as an irritated expression took over.

“Daryl” was all he said as he made his way slowly to unsteady feet.

“Well Daryl” she chimed nonchalantly “You’re welcome” before turning and once again walking away from the shocked man.

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

Most nights she dreamt of the undead. Snapping jaws, inches from her face. Dirty, broken nails on rotted flesh, grabbing at her skin. Thick black blood filling her mouth and claiming her lungs.

Sometimes she would dream of family. The life lived before. Laughing faces and sweet smiles. Little girls with pigtails and pink dresses. School days sat on the grass in the sun. Underage drinking in the park. Splashing in the cold sea. Golden sand between painted toes. Faces not seen in years.

And sometimes she would dream of the most beautifully pure blue eyes. Those eyes were the most haunting.

Stayed local to the area, familiar terrain was an advantage. It was only a matter of time until she stumbled across it. The prison. The opposing grey buildings would have been of little interest had it not been for the suspicious lack of dead ones.

Upon closer inspection there appeared to be crops growing in the grounds. A variety of luscious plants living in neat rows. Every so often a mop of brown hair would appear within the greenery. A slender teenage boy who tended the food.

Witnessing silently from the branch of a nearby tree, never daring to make a noise or risk being seen. People were after all, dangerous.

Many others appeared within sight in the hours observed. Some seemed to be on lookout. Some pierced the skulls of dead ones through the fence. Many simply socialised and basked in the sun. Although not terribly interesting, it was the most entertainment had in weeks. Quite like a trip to the zoo, watching them in their natural habitat. There seemed to be little of concern and just as the tired woman considered slipping away to find her own refuge for the night came the startlingly loud rumble of engine.

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

Far louder than that of a car, approaching the fence that opened in entrance to the structure was a motor bike. Another thing unexpected at the end of the world. The more shocking factor however being the slim figure and mop of brown hair that sat astride. The fear-provoking weapon strapped to a wing adorned back. Her rugged man.

Any idiot with half a brain would know not to approach the prison alone unless they desired an arrow through the head. But there was something about this man. The incessant need to see him again. To hear the drawl of his voice. To see that pretty face up close even in the snarl that was sure to be aimed at her. Luckily, Mr Dixon, hunter and gatherer extraordinaire didn’t seem to spend that much time in the prison. The outdoors suited him far better.

Daryl treaded stealthily through the thicket, bow aimed low and eyes alert. His ears strained in search of a living creature. He swore his heart leapt from his chest at the sudden noise slightly behind and above him. Startled feet spun so fast he stumbled.

“I like your hair. Suits you”

The feminine voice presented no unease due to the deadly weapon pointed directly at the source. A raised eyebrow prompted Daryl to lower the thing before accidentally shooting.

“Bloody ‘ell woman, where’d ya come from?”

“Bit of a personal question. Don’t you think? You don’t even know my name yet” the voice quipped with a smile. Feet landing gracefully on the ground in front of the alarmed man as she dropped from the low branch.

Daryl grumbled, dropping his eyes which only caused her grin to widen.

“What’s yer name then?”

“Can’t tell you that. Stranger danger.”

“Think yer the only danger ‘round ‘ere.”

“You think too highly of me, Darling.” Lips smirked as light fingers gently raised Daryl’s chin to meet devious eyes.

His shining orbs widened comically at the gesture. “Darlin’?!”

The outraged tone of the statement served to strengthen the ever present accent.

“Oh I do like that.” Smirk turned to a full grin. “Call me Darling.

----------

They couldn’t seem to keep away from each other. Well she couldn’t keep away from him anyway. He’d always go in search of food and the menace would always appear seemingly by magic. She intrigued the man and she knew it. The way his eyes followed her form was like he wanted to figure her out. Solve her like a walking puzzle.

She craved his voice. It soothed something inside her. Somehow made the state of the world forgettable. Hours were spent together without notice. He didn’t speak much but he always listened intently and usually had a smart remark to counter her regular jabs. Teasing Daryl Dixon was always her favourite part of the day.

He never asked where she was going, was staying or why she was always alone. He didn’t seem to want to burst the secret little bubble they’d made for themselves. Something both were happy to keep intact as curious eyes secretly watched the prison.

It was getting progressively more difficult to live alone in the wild. When Daryl went back to his cosy home with his friends at the end of the day her tasks were to go in search of food and a place to rest her head. She would never confess her struggles. He would want to help and her pride wouldn’t allow it.

At her lowest she found herself slumped in a corner of a dingy old house, curling in on herself. The small fire haphazardly made almost burnt out, the strength to go in search of more kindling evaded the weak woman.

Just as she hadn’t seen the face of her favourite person, her body hadn’t seen water in days. Food even longer. If this was how she was to go out then so be it. She’d survived this long alone and that’s all that mattered.

Her vision swam as black spots appeared. There was no control left of her body as it slumped sideways, striking her head against the wooden floorboards as unconsciousness consumed entirely.

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

Daryl panicked when she wasn’t at the usual spot. She was always there when he went to hunt. He had no idea how she knew when to find him but she did. He often questioned if she was real. This mysterious girl that no one else had ever seen could so easily be part of his imagination.

He remembered how Rick had seen Lori for so long after her death. He’d spent so much time alone out in the woods that it wouldn’t surprise him if his mind had made up the annoying woman that he couldn’t stay away from. No, she had to be real. Even Daryl’s mind couldn’t tease him like she did.

He began by wandering in the direction he had last seen her go as they parted, knowing there was a nearby town that could offer some food and protection. As gravel crunched beneath old boots in place of the usual dirt and neglected buildings began to rise on either side of the man, it became clear that the area was empty. Motionless walker bodies lay scattered around, each seemingly had received a knife through the head.

The smell was overpowering as the hunter contemplated why they hadn’t been burned. Perhaps she was only passing through. Perhaps she simply didn’t have the strength.

Tracks were clearly visible all through the town. Mostly bloody, they led into every single building. Daryl sighed. He was sure by the small stature of the print that they were hers. The woman that so desperately clung to his mind had clearly been here. Yet he had a feeling she was still here. She wouldn’t just leave him, would she?

Daryl could almost hear Merle’s voice echoing in his head, calling him a whipped little bitch. He scowled at the thought but just couldn’t stop. What if something had happened to her?

----------

Sharp eyes scanning the area, he could clearly visualise the woman clearing the place, killing walkers and scavenging for the food. His eyes drifted to the last house to the left. The windows were boarded and the door was shut. A trap lay set in front of the building. It was clearly the most secure place. His feet carried him almost involuntarily towards it. Towards her.

White light pierces blackness. Heart beat rising. Blood rushes ears. Footsteps sound a million miles away.

Gentle knuckles brush cheeks. Rough fingers press pulse point. Fluttering eyelashes attempt in vain to open.

The earth tilts sickeningly as her body is forced into sitting position. The sound of ringing slowly transitions to the calling of her name. The familiar voice causing an upturn of lips. Her rugged saviour.

Cold liquid is raised to parched mouth. Gulped down greedily without thought. Hands fly to grab the bottle. The best water ever tasted. An appreciative groan as eyelids are forced to rise. Blurred vision soon clears to reveal shaggy brown hair that begs to be touched.

His name leaves her lips in struggled whisper. His eyes are hard with judgment and underlying concern.

“Why the hell didn’ ya tell me?” some form of food is held to her chin.

She doesn’t take not what as her eyes shift away in shame and her arm weekly brushes it away.

“I don’t want your food”

“Well ya clearly need it. Ya look like hell.” His teeth grind in annoyance at the usually stubborn girl. Her head shakes in response, causing the black spots to momentarily return.

“I don’t need saving, Prince Charming.” He guffaws at the name.

“I aint no prince, nor ‘nything charmin’.”

She needed him gone. She couldn’t bear the look of pity in his eyes. The worry on his features. She wasn’t anyone’s problem.

“You shouldn’t be here. Just go back to your damn prison. The irritation clear in her voice. Almost missing the way his vibrant eyes widened.

Shit. She realised her mistake a split second too late.

“How the fuck do you ya know ‘bout tha’?” She’d never heard him sound so angry and even a little scared. Knowing full well that if they found she knew about their home that they wouldn’t just leave her alone. She was dangerous to them.

Nervous eyes flicker everywhere but at the face that stared her down.

“I’ve been watching. Had to know if you were dangerous.”

“An ya didn’ tell me”

“Would you have let me go?” It was Daryl’s turn to look away in shame.

“Nah. Would have to tell ‘em ‘bout ya” He sighed defeated.

“Exactly.” Their eyes clashed in a battle of wills, silently debating what would happen next. After a beat, his eyes shined in a way that determined a decision had been made.

“Yer comin’ with me” He stated assertively.

“No” she countered plainly, offering little room for argument.

“Wasn’ askin’.” Before further refusal could leave her, strong arms surrounded her. He rose to his feet, cradling the surprised woman to his chest. Her bag hanging from his right hand where it curled around her knees.

Her malnourished body was slow to react. Sluggishly moving to press at his firm chest in protest. He easily made his way out of the house and to the far end of the street where the bike sat undisturbed.

The fresh air aided in clearing her senses. The situation she was in becoming evident to her irritated mind.

Gently set down on the leather seat, she was released from the sure grip.

“Fine.” A resigned smile as the cogs of her mind began to spin. “I’ve got another bag though. Brown satchel. Must still be in the lounge.”

He nodded. “Alright, I’ll be right back. Don’ move.” Turning and jogging back into the house.

The moment his right foot made it over the threshold, the loud roar of the bike engine caused his heart to sink.

“Son of a bitch!” Fast feet threw him back out the door and half way down the street but it was too late. His mysterious girl was gone and so was his bike. A lone bag lay in the spot it had previously been in. His own bag containing the water and food he had offered her.

The walk back to the prison was long, made worse by Daryl’s rising anger. Refusing to interact with anyone upon his return, he had his way into the empty cell where he refused to sleep but went to for privacy. Throwing himself down onto the lumpy mattress, he glared at the underneath of the top bunk. His mind swirling with images of her devious smirk.

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

Two days later he was woken at the ass crack of dawn by Glenn frantically calling his name. As the sun had appeared over the horizon so had his bike, propped up on its stand just outside the gate. Next to it lay a cardboard box full of baby formula as an apology.

Daryl of course went looking for her, but she no longer appeared. Weeks were spent without a trace of her until another box of formula appeared outside the gates in the dead of night. Sat atop this one was a small stuffed elephant, the perfect size for little ass kicker. Soft and clean as if straight from a baby shop.

Next to it a small piece of paper. In loopy handwriting it read ‘Stop looking for me, darling. It makes me miss you more.’

He thinks he can let her go. Thinks he can carry on living. Barely thinking of her during the busy days but she appears in his dreams. Reliving the sweetest moments between them behind closed eyelids.

“Come back with me.” His sombre voice breaks the silence.

They had somehow ended up leaning against a railing on the edge of a rooftop. Forearms against cold metal, they basked in the glow of a setting sun. Features basked in orange light, he watched her shyly.

They both knew that they should retreat to safety before darkness fell but neither could bring themselves to leave the others company. Peace consumed them as they absorbed the view laid before them like a renaissance painting.

Her head tilted as her eyes searched his face contemplatively.

“Ya always leave me.” His dejected words caused an ache in her chest.

“Why won’ ya stay with me” He asks earnestly.

“I can’t” Eyes cast downward at the sudden urge to shed a tear.

“Why? They’re good people. Rick an’ Carol an’ lil ass-kicker...” His fists clench as the unfamiliar emotions stir within him. His stare fixed on the setting sun.

“Exactly. You’re a family. I don’t belong there. I can’t. I can’t lose anyone else.” Her eyes squeeze shut as pain consumes her.

“So I don’ mean nothin’ to ya?” His voice strains.

“You shouldn’t” Her voice is a soft whisper.

His head turns to question her answer but she’s already gone.

“Darlin’?”

He’s woken suddenly by the sound of Judith’s cries. Greeted only by the sight of the bunk above him. He decides he’s going to find her. He has to.

But he doesn’t. Because soon enough the sounds of gunfire and screams is all that’s heard as the prison falls.

A/N - Here it is, the first thing I've ever written recreationally. It was so much for difficult than i expected. I feel like i'm handing over a steaming pile of rubbish but here you go! I hope you enjoy.

@pandorahurtsx @winchestershiresauce @sunflxwerbullet @holliss @haruhey @lilythemadqueen @dixonextracts @daryloverdixon

[kanonsarchivedblog]

Hair Cut

Writing Example Word Count: 1430 Rating: T Warnings: Brief description of wound care. Characters: Yumichika Ayasegawa

Shortly after joining the Eleventh ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Each step felt like fire shooting through his legs, starting at the soles of his feet, racing up through his calves, only to settle in his thighs, as if that were its bed for the night. Even so, he dragged himself along, cold night air filling his burning lungs with each breath he drew. His side was white hot, as if a coal had been pressed into the skin and left there, sitting and burning away. It was such a good pain. A little smile tugged at the corner of his lips as the sight of his barrack came into view. His room, his bed- where he could tend to his wounds without feeling shame for grimacing. Where he could see the full extent of the damage done. After all, sparring with your captain was either a great idea if you were in another division, or the absolute worst. Lucky for Ayasegawa Yumichika, it was the latter of the two. He had to prove himself, that’s what he’d been told. He’d come along with the other new recruits; Ikkaku had proven himself two days ago. Today? Today it had been his turn. Watching Ikkaku fight had been amazing, wonderful- it brought back memories of their time in the academy, sparring together and meeting one another blow for blow. The feeling of the blade reverberating within his grasp, the way his blood seemed to sing within his veins, heartbeat pounding in his ears. Yes, this was what he was made for. He was made to fight, to survive. Survival was key in the world he grew up in.

A hand covered with dried blood reached up to grasp the edge of the Shōji, carefully sliding it open. Distantly, he could hear laughter; other members of the Eleventh celebrating. He, too, would celebrate- just not now. Now, he needed to change out of the torn and bloodied shihakusho he wore and make sure nothing was actually broken.

Broken bones meant making a trip to the Fourth, and he’d rather avoid moving any further than necessary. Door closed soundly behind himself, Yumichika took a moment to simply stand and breathe. The fight had lasted longer than he’d expected, Zaraki-taichou pushing him further than he’d pushed the others earlier. But by the Soul King, it had been amazing. Perhaps this would solidify a numbered rank? He certainly hoped so. A numbered rank meant more respect, a better chance at advancing, and a better chance at surviving. He knew his own reiatsu was certainly stronger than some of the grunts that had ended up here; not larger than Ikkaku’s, though. Head tilting, he noted that the ache was beginning to spread throughout his entire body. It felt like he got his shit rocked- and not in the fun, rolling around in a bed sort of way. Then again, that is what happened- he got his shit rocked in front of fifty others. But he’d lasted well over two hours before he finally collapsed. And the smile hadn’t left his lips since then. Gaze drifting around his personal quarters, he paused as he took in the old flowery kimono he once wore. It had been beautiful, well taken care of, and his most prized possession aside from his zanpakutou. Now? Now, it paled in comparison to the shihakusho he donned. A sense of pride swelled within as he limped to the mirror in the corner of the room. A cushion sat before the large mirror, and beside that lay an ivory comb, a small bag containing little pieces of makeup he’d managed to get his hands on through the years, and a much larger bag of first aid supplies. Bloodied fingers grabbed the bag as he settled onto the cushion with a long-suffering sigh. “Shit.” Yumichika murmured, wine toned gaze widening in surprise at the utter mess he was presented with. Carefully, the shihakusho was shrugged off, a hiss escaping his lips as the fabric clung to wounds, the dried blood acting as glue. Head tilting this way then that, he studied the bruises that bloomed along his jawline and torso- and the utter mess that his hair had become. The deep navy locks were a tangled mess, matted and, in some places, uneven. Brow pinching, he turned his attention away from his hair to study the scratches and scrapes along his arms. “Double shit. He really did a damn number on me, didn’t he?” He asked the empty bedroom, staring down at the gash on his side. It wasn’t deep, so it wouldn’t require stitches or any sort of healing. Teeth gritting, he steeled himself for the inevitable sting that would come from rinsing it out. At least he’d had the foresight to ask for water to be delivered to his rooms. He wouldn’t be able to get to his bathroom even if he wanted to, not now. Sitting up on his knees, he grabbed hold of the towels he’d set aside just for instances like this. He needed to flush it first. Kenpachi’s blade didn’t look to be the cleanest, and it obviously wasn’t the most well-kept, given how jagged the gash appears to be. Then again, this wasn’t the worst scar he had. No, that one was on his left thigh, and even now when he looks at it for too long, his stomach twists with the memory. Shaking his head, he drew in a breath before beginning to flush the wound out with clean water. “Fuck, shit, damn it, maybe I should’ve gone to the Fourth,” he muttered under his breath, jaw clenching. “But that’s one long fucking walk that I really don’t want to take. Get it together, Yumi.” Next step, cleaning it with a rag and water. Tears pricked at the inner corners of his eyes from the sharp sting that came with agitating a fresh wound. It took a good few minutes before he was satisfied enough to set the rag aside and slouch, a tear sliding down a pale, unblemished cheek. Ouch. “Tomorrow. The Fourth.” Damn his pride. Angrily, he began to wrap his midsection up with gauze and a white cloth bandage, which only caused the wound to hurt even more, which caused more tears to fall from the pain. By the end of it, he looked a proper mess, bandaged up and crying. Even so, as he studied his reflection, he couldn’t find it in himself to be truly mad. Until he began to try to comb out his hair, and then, reality hit. A lump formed in his throat as he stared at the uneven length. When had Kenpachi even grabbed his hair? Or had he even? Yumichika couldn’t remember; all he knew now was that the waist length locks had been butchered. The hair he’d spent so long growing out, that he’d taken such careful care of- Half of it was cut to his collarbone. The other half was still long. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he reached out, taking hold of his zanpakutou’s hilt. He could hear the spirit whispering to him, wondering what he was doing, what he was planning. He didn’t answer. Instead, he settled the blade on his lap and took out a hair tie, reaching behind himself to gather the mangled, navy tresses into a ponytail that settled at the base of his neck. Wine toned gaze trained upon his reflection, wine toned hues were strong, steeled. Ruri’iro Kujaku hissed as he left his scabbard. The moonlight settled upon the floor beside him, causing the metal to glint in the darkness of the bedroom as he raised in behind his head, the edge settling between the ponytail and his neck. He pulled. Navy locks fell to the ground around him, the remainder swinging forward to settle just below his chin in an asymmetrical bob. Head tilting, he studied his reflection. So much lighter… He shook his head, and the tresses followed the movement. It made a little laugh bubble up. Cutting his hair- that had felt oddly freeing. A smile curled his lips as he reached up and touched the ends. It felt smoother, healthier. Lighter. “Beautiful,” he whispered, a hand cupping his own cheek as he studied his reflection. A tear slid down his cheek, the last bit of mourning leaving him with it. This was who he was. Yumichika Ayasegawa of the Eleventh Division. He will become a seated officer. He will earn the respect of his peers. He will survive this. He will survive.

[cherryeol04]

Stray Kids Playing Minecraft~

A/n: I hope you all enjoy, and if you liked, please leave a like! 💖💖💖💖

Tags: @straysrachaa @lordseochangbin @channiesmixtape @starryseung​ @felixsanxchatbot @jisungsjheekies​ @mrbangchannie

Chan

- doesn't know almost anything about Minecraft the first time around but he plays with you to make you happy

- you have to baby him for a while

- BUT THEN!

- He goes and learns about the game in his free time

- and then he pleasantly surprises you now that you he doesn't suck anymore

- and most peculiar of all

- he got really interested in redstone

- boi can make some INVENTIONS

- His house is like, fully automated - farm and all

- it makes you jealous but also very proud

- a pretty big pacifist

- shears, veggies and bread is all he needs

- he still big soft baby but he smart baby now

- also, would totally run around with a pumpkin on his head if you could still wear them in the latest version

Lee Know

- would kill everything that moves

- would hoard all the meat and refuse to give you any

- deforestation at its finest

- king of surplus

- playing with him is actually playing by yourself cuz he goes off on his own

- builds himself a goddamn empire!

- and no one knows where it is

- if he catches you inside his house without permission: shoot first, ask questions never

- mobs fear him, not the other way around

- will give you items cuz you're a charity cause

- actually shares when you both go mining though

- but let's face it, he's just OP

- would try to get all the cats

- totally to chase away creepers

- not because he wants an army of them or anything

- gets annoyed that he has to constantly fish because the cats keep taking them but won't be tamed by him

- he totally did not search for mine shafts just for name tags to name his cats

- DO NOT HURT HIS CATS

- or he'd cancel you in-game and irl too

Changbin

- would be super excited to play Minecraft with his friends

- he would be the first on the server to scout out the land and get resources

- however, no one warned him about night fall

- and all the creepy, scary things that spawned

- changbin lives in the ground now

- he dug a hole at the base of the mountain to take refuge during the night and never looked back

- normal person? No way! He was a mole now!

- the best at mining and interior rock design

- he would only resurface to seek out food and animals

- it was Changbin who stole all the cows and sheep, so you couldn't find them for felix

- he would have three large pins just next to his mountain

- lots of cows, rainbow sheep and pigs with saddles

- " uh...so I found these pins of animals and like...no house?"

- "What?"

- "I think the magical Minecraft fairy spawned it into the world?"

- "It's super weird. But I'm gonna kill some cows for their leather"

- "DON'T YOU TOUCH MY COWS!"

- and to your shock, a secret door in the mountain opens and Changbin comes running out

- the door made courtesy of Chan

- "He's got a diamond sword already?!?"

- it's the last thing you scream as he kills you for being near his cows

- and after a round of feeding and breeding, he disappears back into his hole

Hyunjin

- would only be about building

- he would be the first one to have a diamond pickaxe just so he could mine cobblestone faster

- would also get efficiency V just so he could speed run through the mines

- would wander through different biomes for days to collect clay so he could make concrete

- and while you're busy actually playing the game, he would beg for you to pick flowers on your trip so he can dye the concrete different colors

- his first house would be a mansion

- but he would give up half way because he kept falling off the roof and dying

- would forget he is actually playing the game and would get scared when night falls and mobs start spawning in his unlit house

- not like you didn't tell him countless times to put down torches

- but he kept saying they ruined his aesthetic

- but now he keeps dying because mobs are literally waiting at his spawn point, killing him over and over and over again

- and he begs you to set the time to day and kill the mobs for him

- but you just laugh uncontrollably at him because karma really is a bitch

- but in the end, he ends up making an entire city, and invites the others to come and play on the server.

Jisung

- would be just like Chan

- a pure ass baby when it comes to playing minecraft, but super eager to play the game

- his first spawn would be in the middle of the night (because of server)

- and you would try to tell him to not leave the safety of spawn, but he just wouldn't listen

- "Listen, Y/n, I know what I'm doing! I'm a pro at this!"

- and he would run confidently into the night, like the actual idiot that he is

- he wouldn't get too far before he was attacked by all the mobs and got killed

- "Well that was just rude!"

- "Oh my god Jisung, I told you not to do it."

- "Well how was I supposed to know they were going to kill me?!"

- and you can only shake your head at his stupidity

- he would eventually wait until daytime, but unfortunately all of his items would be lost due to despawning

- it's not like either one of you were equipped to go and retrieve his items

- zombies sucked man! And skeletons are the worst!

- but with a new day comes a new adventure and you both head out to find a place to call home

- Jisung would run the entire way, even though he had no food to keep his hunger up

- he also wouldn't be paying attention to where he was going and would fall into a hole

- a very BIG hole

- 'J.One fell from a high place'

- "Really Jisung?"

- "I couldn't see it!"

- playing with Jisung would be a very challenging task, because he would never learn

- because by the time he had diamond armor and ready to fight the wither, he would have fallen from fifteen cliffs, twenty holes in caves and three ravines

- "Jisung if you die one more time I swear to god!"

- 'J.One fell from a high place'

- "That's it! I quit!"

Felix

- You would be so hyped to play with Felix

- You've seen him play other games, so you knew he'd be great at minecraft

- Getting the server had been his idea, the easiest way everyone could play together

- First day of spawn, Felix would already be listing off the things that you would need to accomplish

- wood, cobblestone, iron, seeds, sheep

- it was all just so overwhelming

- by the time you make your first complete set of wooden tools, felix would have iron tools already

- he'd been ten feet underground, digging for more resources while tasking you to find the animals for food, wool and feathers

- easier said then done

- and when he resurfaces and you don't have animals, he would simply sigh and go do it himself

- which would upset you because you would spend hours looking for just one god damn cow

- meanwhile, Felix would take five steps in one direction and come across hundreds of cows!!!

- WHERE DID ALL THESE COWS COME FROM?!?!?

- he'd travel the whole map just to find a jungle to get coco beans

- seriously though, how did he find the fucking jungle?

- it like doesn't exist

- except it does and Minho most likely lives there with all his cats

- Also, there's pandas!!!!!

- Felix would try and tame a panda, even though it's not possible

- When not trying to show off, Felix would be in his crappy little hut (cause hyunjin was still making the city), making cookies and cakes because why wouldn't he?

- at least he shares, unlike someone.....

- Felix would be absolutely unstoppable at the game, while you struggle to get to iron level armor (while trying to keep Jisung alive)

- Felix would have just a big ego

- it's okay though. One strike from Seungmin's sword and he'd be put back into his place

- Revenge is a dish best served Seungmin.

Seungmin

- the worst of the worst

- he would be the one to pretend to not know the game

- but really, he would be a minecraft expert

- read: troll

- every chance he would get, Seungmin would try to do something to ruin your day

- don't ever go mining with him. EVER!

- he would be the one to lead over a creeper to you in a ravine while you're trying to mine diamonds, right next to a lava pool

- the first one to explode wouldn't do any damage, thankfully

- "Don't you dare bring a creeper over here!"

- "I wouldn't."

- somehow, you wouldn't be convinced

- but you decided to trust him

- y/n clown

- you're just mining away at the diamond when a big explosion happens

- and you notice two things

- 1. the diamonds and the surrounding area were blown up

- 2. you were now in the pool of lava, dying

- meanwhile, Seungmin was running away, cackling like the evil little shit that he was

- the holy terror, that's what they would call him

- he would purposefully go out and fight creepers just to gather their gunpowder so he could make dynamite

- no one was safe from him

- except Minho

- because no one knew where he was

I.N.

- Jeongin would spend at least two days researching things for the game before actually playing

- he would want to have some knowledge before walking into hell that was the Stray Kids server

- it's okay though, because everyone loves Jeongin

- really, he wouldn't need to do a thing

- diamond armor, enchanted? check

- enchanted weapons? check

- his own cat and dog? double check

- everyone would do anything for this baby

- but Jeongin isn't one to mooch *coughJisungcough*

- even with all his presents, he would still start with the basics of punching a tree

- while others have found this skills in cooking, mining, falling into holes, redstone and building

- jeongin would be more interested in potions and enchanting

- YOU'RE A WIZARD INNIE!

- Jeongin would quickly master potion brewing

- even if it meant battling the scary blazes in the nether

- huh, so that's why Changbin was screaming so much

- he would be hired by Minho to make him potions of breathing so he could go claim an ocean monument

- Jeongin would only do it if he could help

- surprisingly Minho agrees and for the first time in 84 years, everyone gets to see Minho's character

[oikawasass]

Okay so this is based on the end of this story so I highly suggest you go read that if you haven’t.

do I really have to go?

‣ pairing : bakugo x fem reader.

‣ oneshot.

‣ synopsis : a trip down memory lane.

‣ wordcount : 1.9k+

‣ warnings : angst, character death, swearing.

“Y/n…” Katsuki’s strained voice choked out, waiting for a response. He didn’t receive one.

“Y/n. Answer me.” He spoke more stern this time with a shake to her body, hoping this was some sick joke and a serious tone of voice would force her into an answer.

It didn’t work.

Katsuki’s body fell on top of her, head resting atop her chest as he felt like he was about to be sick to his stomach. There was a sharp, yet empty feeling in his gut, it felt like someone had just stabbed him.

No more calls of her name left his lips, no more shaking her body while trying to wake her up, it all stopped. Now he was left alone, shattered into what he felt was a million pieces. She was gone. And here he was, laying on top of the near mangled body of his first love, still holding her cold and limp hand to his cheek while he felt something build up and sting deep in his throat.

As his hearing went fuzzy, and all he could hear was his own racing heartbeat in his ears, Katsuki screamed.

Katsuki screamed out of the sheer ache and torment his body felt as she lay lifeless in his arms.

Yet to Bakugo’s own knowledge, she was seated right beside him, head rested gently atop the back of his shoulder, as calm as she could be. Or should I say, her spirit was.

It was weird to her, seeing herself laying so pale and torn up on the ground in front of her. But what was really tugging at her heartstrings, was the way Katsuki was sobbing on top of her. The way he was struggling to breathe between the agonizing noises that left his chest while continuing to shake her and beg- no, plead for her to just wake up.

“He’s never cried like this before. . .” Y/n muttered quietly, turning her head to get a better look at her boyfriend. The blonde looked so. . .so broken. She’d never wanted to see him in such a state of vulnerability and pain, yet here she was, being the cause of it.

“He loved you.” The tall, dark figure behind her, who’d she’d been becoming rather acquainted with up until now, spoke up. Y/n slowly nodded her head in response. “You were the only one he’d ever loved like that.”

Y/n smiled softly at his words, yet shook her head slowly. “You don��t have to rub it in, y’know. This already sucks enough as it is.” A sad chuckle fell from her lips. “I don’t wanna leave like this either.”

She lifted her head up once the familiar ringing of sirens blasted from somewhere in the distance, signalling that help was finally near. If only they’d come a bit sooner, huh?

“L/n, we have to go. It’s been long enough.” The voice of the shadowed figure was surprisingly soft, almost comforting with how deep and smooth it was. It seems as if it was rather fitting for the job he had; welcoming, comforting and bringing newly released spirits to the other side.

“Just. . . just a little longer? Please?” Y/n gently rose her hand to cup the cheek of Bakugo, the one of which he wasnt holding her body’s hand against. “Will I still get to see him once we go?” She asked hopefully, turning to look up at the man beside her. “Like, to watch over him?”

“I'm afraid I can’t answer that, L/n.” He responded, walking towards her and slowly sitting cross-legged beside her. “However, there is one thing you get to observe before we go.”

Suddenly, everything around the two began to twist and contort, almost as if someone was spinning the scenery around them. Now, they were no longer in the snow-covered ground beside Katsuki and the body she once occupied.

They were in the room of class 2-A, her classroom.

Y/n blinked in confusion, looking around the classroom she very sadly wouldn’t find herself returning to.

No more of Kaminari and Jirou’s flirting bickering, no more of Kirishima yelling about how manly something he saw a fellow classmate do was, or Izuku and Uraraka turning beat red with every word they spoke to each other.

No more Aoyama pretending he was French and sophisticated when everyone knew otherwise, or Mina’s cute smile and bubbly attitude lighting up the room. She wouldn’t be able to watch Iida scold Tokoyami for sitting on the desks, or giggle in amusement when she noticed Tsuyu zone out in class as her tongue fell out of the side of her mouth.

There wouldn’t be another time where she watched Ojiro blush like a madman when Denki would start rubbing his tail, or when Hagakure’s uniform sleeves would flail around in the air as she told the boy ‘not to be weird’ while Sero was laughing like an idiot in the background.

Sato would no longer be able to offer her any of the delicious sweets he’d made that day, and she could say goodbye to Koda letting her pet some of the animals he’d been surrounded by on those sweet summer mornings.

She wouldn’t be able to smile at Todoroki happily slurping his soba noodles, while he and Yaomomo sat in the back of the class having a peaceful conversation amidst all the chaos during lunch. She was no longer there to notice the small smile under Shoji’s mask as he couldn’t deny the fondness that had grown within him for the people in his class, hell, even no more Mineta around to pester and bother her with his pervy comments and actions, only to have Bakugo threaten the little grape every time he tried something.

And finally, no more Y/n and Bakugo to make the rest of the class feel ‘hopelessly single’ as Kaminari used to say.

“I thought I told you not to rub it in.” Y/n said, smiling sadly when all the memories of her class were shown before her. God, she already missed them so much. She no longer had a heart, but she couldn’t deny the ache deep in her chest at the memories of her friends surfacing.

“Keep watching.”

“Oi, shitty girl.” Bakugo said, approaching her with his hands stuffed into the pockets of his baggy uniform pants. She turned her attention away from Denki, Jirou, Sero and Mina to look at the blonde who now stood before her.

“What’s u- woah okay!” Bakugo had grabbed her wrist, pulling her up from her seat and leading her out of the classroom before anyone else could make note of their exit together.

“Well you could’ve just asked me to follow y-” “Just shut the hell up and listen, will you?”

Y/n clamped her mouth shut, nodding and motioning for him to continue.

“I-” he sighed, rolling his eyes and scuffing one of his feet against the polished floor beneath him.

“I like you, okay?”

“....”

“Me?”

“Yes you, idiot! Who the hell else is around?!”

“Like, you like like me?”

“You’re such an idiot- yes!”

“Shut up I just wanna make sure!”

“Tch. Listen-!!”

Katsuki was cut off by the feeling of soft, plush lips against his own.

“Well, ill have you know that I like you too, blasty.”

“That's when he confessed back in our first year. . .”

The same spinning illusion they’d gone through before repeated, this time bringing them into the downtown area Y/n used to live by. A light sheet of snow covered the ground as more continued to fall from the sky, the orange and pink colours coming from the setting sun above them illuminating the city.

“Wait, is this the spot that he-”

“Katsu!” Y/n yelled, running to keep up with her boyfriend who’d now walked quite a few steps ahead of her.

“You couldn’t even wait for me to finish tying my boot- woah!” Y/n cut herself off as she slipped on a small spot of ice in her rush to catch up, expecting to be met with the wet and cold concrete street beneath her. Instead, she was engulfed by a large, warm pair of arms catching her before she got the chance.

“Careful, dumbass! You almost ate shit there!”

“Oh please, I would’ve been fine.”

“You’re so damn clumsy. You’re lucky I love you or I’d kick the hell out of you for not watching where you’re g. . the hell are you smiling like that for?”

“You said you love me.”

“Well-” Bakugo bit the inside of his cheek, looking down at his girlfriend who was still wrapped up in his arms.

“Well, it's not like I was lying, idiot.”

Y/n leaned up to kiss him softly, smiling against his lips.

“I love you too.”

“Man, you’re really giving me a hard time here, huh?”

The scenery around them faded to another time, Y/n instantly recognizing where she was and feeling herself reach for her left ring finger when she did.

It was summer, and it was dark. The stars were out, beautifully on bright display for everyone beneath them. She and Katsuki were sat on the U.A. rooftops, admiring the beautiful constellations above them. It was right after they had finished celebrating their one year

“Hey, I got you something.” Katsuki quietly broke the silence between them, reaching into the pocket of his hoodie, (one Y/n had surprisingly not stolen) and pulled out a small, rectangular box, handing it over to her.

“What's this?”

“Open it, dummy.”

Y/n chuckled softly, opening the box to reveal two silver rings, one slightly larger than the other. She felt her eyes go a little wide in surprise as she looked up to her boyfriend.

“Are these. . .” “Promise rings.” Bakugo confirmed, taking the smaller ring out of the box and holding his hand out for Y/n’s to which she gave to him. He slowly slid the ring onto her left ring finger, it was a perfect fit.

“Or just call them. . . place holders.”

“Place holders until what?”

“Until I can put a real ring on your finger, obviously.”

“He always used to swear he was gonna marry me.” Y/n chuckled sadly, placing a hand over her chest as the ache slowly began to fade away. Seeing all the most amazing memories and sweet moments they shared together, it made her feel as if she could leave on a good note. A small smile graced her face as she nodded, finally understanding the purpose of the small journey she was taken on.

Suddenly, she was back in the present, where Katsuki now sat pressed up against the ambulance doors alone, sitting with his knees pulled up to his chest and a shadowed cast over his eyes. A few bandages littered his cheeks, signalling he’d already been treated. Y/n paid no mind to the black body bag a few feet away from him.

Y/n went over and sat beside him, resting her head on his shoulder and hugging his waist, just like she always did when he was upset. Katsuki felt a small chill, rubbing gently at his arms to make the goosebumps he felt go away.

“Its time, L/n.”

“. . .Do I really have to go?”

“I'm afraid so.”

Y/n nodded slowly, placing a soft kiss to Bakugo’s cheek. Bakugo scratched the surface of his face at the sudden tickle against his skin.

“Okay, I think I'm ready.”

[peterparkerxtrauma]

studying each other

summary: you like MJ but you’re 94% sure she’s into Peter.

Characters: MJ x Reader, Peter x MJ (unless?)

Warnings: Mentions of studying and exams ew but nothing else 

Words: 1806

basically just very fluffy 

the large pile of books threaten to spill over the table, taunting you with every tired glance. Learning all the contents becomes more and more unlikely as you realise you’ve been concentrating more on the concept of failing the exam than actually studying. Stress sets in and feeling of despair makes itself at home at the bottom of your stomach. With a heavy sigh, you tip your chair back slightly and stretch, peering around the café and cracking your neck as you decide a short break is very much needed. 

The café is quiet, a result of the late hour, the only noises are a couple murmuring a few tables away and what sounds like two workers in the back talking in hushed tones. There is a soft patter of rain tapping on the windows, a calming constant in the background. You draw in a breath, concentrate on chilling out.

“Another one?”, a smooth voice breaks through your thoughts. You focus on MJ in the chair opposite you and raise your eyebrow in question. She gestures to your empty coffee mug and you grin gratefully.

”Would love that, thanks,” you reply to your friend, your attention now on her. 

You watch as she takes your mug and hers and makes her way to the counter. Her long hair originally fell in loose waves when you both entered the café earlier that day but 5 hours and three existential crisis’ later, it sticks out of a messy bun, frizzy tendrils hanging out, randomly framing her sharp cheekbones. She blows a piece of hair out of her face and your attention increases, hyperfixated on the pout of her lips as the hair falls back in the same place. You notice the crease between her eyebrows as she blows again, this time fractionally harder and then watch as she sighs, placing the cups in front of her and undoing her hair from its scrunchie. 

Your heart rate quickens as she shakes her head, allowing her curls to tumble down onto her shoulders. In front of you stands a beautiful temptress with wild hair and dressed in an ugly Christmas sweater, making her just a little more amazing. Slowly you shake your head and lower your eyes back to your notes that had gotten more unintelligible as the evening went on.

Against your better judgment, you give up trying to decipher what the hell you've written and your eyes flit to your best friends figure once again, only to be met with her thoughtful gaze, her chocolate coloured eyes scrutinizing you. You give a fleeting smile and quickly turn your head back to your work.

After ordering, she saunters back over to the table and collapses in her chair, her hand once again coming up to her hair to tame the mess.

“You look like you’re about to pass out any minute,” she observes quietly, peering at my face. Not in a mean way, just an MJ way, saying things as she sees them.

You shrug your shoulders, “pour the coffee down my throat when I do please, I can’t be sleeping until I’ve at least finished this chapter.” You lean your chin on your hand and your eyes fall on MJs face, momentarily catching your breath, before you focus on the stray hairs that refuse to be tied into the bun.

She reaches over and pats your hand that’s resting on the table and your fingers twitch in want.

“You’re so dramatic,” she jokes, “you should have taken Drama and these meltdown study sessions wouldn’t be so common.” 

Although the study dates were something you definitely cherished as it was an excuse to spend hours alone with MJ, you go to agree with her, but before you can reply, your phones buzzes, catching your attention.  You read the text and let out a laugh.

“Peter says he’s locked out of the apartment…again”, you inform MJ as she gives you a quizzical look.

MJ raises her eyebrow and takes her hand back from yours to play with the locks of hair by her face, twirling them around and around. Your hand feels wrong without hers and you frown momentarily.

“Vanilla latte and medium Mocha,” the waiter appears by our table and smiles, “have a nice day”. We smile up at him before he leaves. Instantly, you pick up your drink to replace the lost heat in your hand.

“Tell him to meet us here then,” MJ suggests and frowns for a second before taking her drink. The way she wraps both her hands around the mug and brings it up to her face to sip, warms you up as if you were the one drinking it. You can’t help the small smile that forms on your face, she truly is beautiful in all small actions.

An odd sense of disappointment sinks into your stomach. Hanging out with MJ alone was a rarity, especially since Peter moved into yours and MJs flat. Not that there was anything wrong with him being with the two of you, you just missed MJ being yours and yours alone. Especially lately, she’s been acting weird when Peter comes around, causing you to worry that she may be catching feelings for the boy. Every time he enters the room, she repels from you, often leaving him to sit between the two of you like a physical barrier. You guessed it was because she wanted to be closer to him, perhaps prove to him that she definitely doesn't like you so he knows she’s available.

Jealousy stung at your eyes.

”I’ll tell him to now.” You answer eventually and shoot him a quick text, making sure to tell him to take his time getting there, “Want to test each other until he’s back?”.

You and MJ continue to study together, working well as a team, just like you had done in high school, until the door of the café rings, signalling Peters’ arrival.

Peter ambles towards your table, managing to trip on the short walk over, causing MJ to snort and catch your eye. 

“Hey guys. Sorry to bug you on your date, I can’t believe I left my keys again. I even left them on the table right next to the door just so I wouldn’t. There’s even a reminder on a post it note on the mirror in the bathroom I put there just last night.” Peter rambles as he sits down between MJ and you and takes your drink to sip from, a bad habit he picked up years ago and seems to be keeping.

MJ looks between you and Peter, eyebrows raised, “nobody is surprised, Peter,” she says, “anyway, let’s pack up and go. If I write down one more word my wrist will definitely never be the same again.”

You take both of your mugs this time and head to the counter to leave them there. You’re only on your feet for a second, but when you turn around, Peter and MJ are laughing together over something you must have missed. It causes an uneasy feeling, the two of them so close and once again, you feel jealous of Peter. You turn back to the counter and mentally scold yourself for allowing yourself to be so selfish. As long as they are happy, you should be too.

Later on, when you’re in your room getting ready for bed, there’s a tentative knock on your bedroom door, which is odd because your flatmates have the tendency to waltz into your room unannounced when it seemed fit to them.

“It’s open!” You call and MJ slips into the room. She seems wary as she sits on your bed and begins tracing the flower patterns on your bedsheet.

“Hey,” she begins, and takes a deep breath before continuing, “I know that it’s not really any of my business but I was just curious because I’ve been seeing some things that mean it but also I could be wrong so I figured to ask and it doesn’t matter really but-“

“Oh my god, MJ, spit it out,” you laugh as you sit beside her on the bed, but alarm bells have started ringing in your ears. Is she on about how you have been seeing her lately? Oh my god, has she noticed you like her?

“Do you like” -oh god- “Peter?”

Wait what?

“Wait, what?” You breathe out.

“I don’t know. I was just wondering… for no reason.” She mumbles and there’s a splash of pink on her cheeks that makes your heart swell.

You nudge up closer to her, “god no, Peter is definitely not what I’m into. Not that there’s anything wrong with him. He’s a swell guy, honestly. He’s just… not what I want,” you say and inwardly cringe at your answer; could you make it anymore obvious?

She furrows her brows and looks you straight into the eyes for the first time since entering the room, “what do you want?”.

Your eyes widen at the straight forwardness and you know that with all her attention on you it will be impossible to lie to her. You bark out a laugh that is way more forced than you intended, “Good question! Um, well, the thing is... Wait. Do you like Peter? Is that why you wanted to know?”

MJ blushes and you feel another spike of jealousy.

“Peter? For me? It’s less likely than you think.” She giggles and it’s absolutely beautiful, a symphony strung together by angels. It’s almost as if you can feel a weight lift off your shoulders and the jealousy whooshes out of you like a cool breeze.

It makes you chuckle, the dismissal of Peter being the butt of the joke, but the laugh dies on your lips as you notice the close proximity of you and MJ. Her curious eyes inches away from your own. It’s too tempting and when she parts her lips slightly, letting out a small breath, you find that you can’t hold back your feelings anymore. In this moment, nothing stands in your way except your own fear and you’ll be damned if you let that stop you from the most extraordinary person you've ever met.

It’s sudden, but your lips meet hers in a rush of bravery. Your heart almost beats out of your chest as your feel her soft lips move against yours. Kissing her feels like everything you had imagined when gazing at her smooth, full lips and more. It’s almost too good and when she eventually pulls away you are breathless. It makes you smile to realise she also seems to be short of breath. Unable to be away from her lips any longer after being so lucky to kiss her a first time, you lean in again and somehow, the second kiss is even more spectacular than the first. You feel tingles begin in your toes and move up your body until it feels like your whole being is alight with this euphoric feeling only MJ can give you.

This time, it’s you that pulls away, much to both of your chagrin. You blush as you stare at her, and you don't think you've ever been so happy.

“So... would you like to go on a date with me? Without Peter and our textbooks?” You ask, unable to tear your eyes from her own starry ones.

MJ laughs, “God, I have been waiting for you to ask me out for the longest time. I would love to,”.

She then leans back in and the both of you smile into the kiss that was much awaited for.

[kayteewritessteve]

Locked Out

Description: A much needed trip to the laundry room takes a turn for the worse when you realize you’ve locked yourself out of your apartment. The next move you make doesn’t play out quite like you’d hoped and ends up turning south, and fast. But, your luck starts to change when a neighbour finds you in a rather compromising position and offers his help.

Masterlist HERE.

Word Count: 9,280 ish.

Pairing: Modern!Steve Rogers x Reader.

Rating: G - mainly floof.

Warnings: Curse words. Poor life choices, don’t try this at home. Slight description of high heights and the fear that goes along with that.

Requested: Nah, this just popped into my head and so I wrote it lol

A/N: I sadly don’t own any of these characters. And no beta reader either, so I do proudly own all the errors and this story, so there’s that.

You slowly walked down the hall towards your apartment door. One hand holding your laundry basket as it rested on your hip, the other hand trying to locate your damn keys. You finally reached the door and dropped the basket to the floor with a thud, your folded clothes bouncing up upon impact. As you stood in front of the door, patting down your body, searching for the noticeable bulge of your keys. However, you quickly realized that they weren’t on you, as all you were wearing currently was an old pair of pj shorts and a t-shirt, neither of which even had pockets. Got to love laundry day attire. You glanced down at your laundry basket, giving it a good look over, but again, no keys there. You reached out and tried the door knob, giving it a few hopeful jiggles, but alas it was, in fact, locked. Shit.

You stood there looking around, trying to remember when you’d last seen your keys. Realizing instantly that you didn’t remember grabbing them off your counter when you’d headed down to the laundry room.

Now normally you’d have needed your keys to get into the laundry facility, but a week ago your building manager had switched the laundry room door to a key fob entry system, for better security, and you being the oh so smart cookie you were, had put the key fob on it’s very own lanyard. That way if you ever lost your keys, you wouldn’t have to pay the ridiculous replacement cost of the fob.

So now, here you were with your clean laundry and your expensive ass key fob, buuuuut no apartment keys. How’d you lock your door without your keys, you ask? Oh, well, let me explain that for you. You see, you have this fancy door knob, one that you could lock while open and then close the door behind you and it would stay locked. So cool, right?! No need to waste precious time putting the key in and locking it like any other normal schmuck. However, it made locking yourself out of your place, faaaar to easy. As you were currently realizing. So, you still ended up being the schmuck in the end. Just a fancy schmuck. Figures, this was just your luck. One of the few times you actually got a night off from your gruelling nursing job, and here you were, locked out of your damn place. You sighed and dropped your head back in frustration. Just staring up at the hallways ceiling and trying to come up with some sort of plan as to how, exactly, you were going to get into your locked apartment.

Then an idea crossed your mind, you’d left your bedroom window open and if you were super careful, and lucky, you’d maybe be able to climb in through it, as it was just off the fire escape. It was honestly a dumb idea, but it was the only one you had as there would be no managers around till the morning. And as it was 9pm, that was still quite a few hours away. And even if you called them, no one would show up for hours. You left your laundry basket sitting in front of your door, it was a pretty secure building, so only neighbours would be in the hallways, and you hoped none of your neighbours would stoop so low as to steal your clothes. But you’d just have to make this quick, just in case.

You quickly made your way to the stairwell and basically ran down the stairs. Your apartment was located on the 3rd floor and being that this was Brooklyn, it had a few fire exits around the outside. As most apartment buildings in this area did. And luckily for you, one of those fire exits just happened to be right where your apartment was. You pushed open the buildings front door and ventured around to the side, then halted to glance up at the fire escape, and attempted to steel your nerves. To say you weren’t a fan of heights was a bit of an understatement. You hated heights, feared them even. But this was currently your only option. So you surveyed the area then attempted to reach the pull down ladder, which—wasn’t going so well.

You peered around and noticed a metal garbage can down the alley a bit, then went to grab it. Chances are it wouldn’t hold your weight for very long and you’d probably end up having to replace the garbage can if you broke it. But you’d leave that for future-you to deal with. Present-you, just wanted in that damn apartment! You dragged it over, trying not to be too loud, the last thing you needed was someone calling the cops thinking you were a bugler or something. God, that would just make this whole experience so much more enjoyable. Not.

You lined the garbage can up with the pull down ladder then climbed on top, quickly grabbing the lowest crosspiece and pulling it down with all your might. It made an ungodly loud, metal on metal screeching sound but did pull down fully. You then slowly and quietly began to climb up, making it to the first landing and pulling the ladder back up into its original resting place, then you continued up from there. Taking massive effort to keep your steps light and quiet, which was a hefty task in and of itself, as the metal fire escape seemed hell bent on informing all your neighbours of your every move. You finally reached the third floor landing, which sat directly in front of your living room windows, so of course because of that exact reason, all those windows were locked tight. You stood at the edge of the railing, trying to figure out your next plan of action.

Your bedroom window was open slightly, showing that it was in fact unlocked as you’d remembered. But it was also about 2 feet away from the edge of the fire escape. And even though that doesn’t seem like that large of a distance normally, the fact there was a 3 storey height on that 2 feet gap, made it seem much, much more daunting. As if that 2 feet was all of a sudden a mile wide, and instantly all your courage left you. So you just stood there, attempting to get back your ‘give er hell’ energy from before, but that wasn’t proving to be a simple thing at the moment. You weren’t sure just how long you stood there, trying to either talk yourself into this, or out of it. Part of you saying to stop being such a baby and just do it already. While the other part adamantly shook it’s head and reminded you that if you slipped, it wouldn’t end well for you. At all.

“Fuck it.” You mumbled then swung your leg over the railing, promptly halting as soon as you were straddling it. This is a horrible fucking idea… You think I don’t know that? You’re gunna fall. Just shut up and let me do this! You slowly pulled your other leg over the railing, now standing on the opposite side of it. You know, the side you aren’t supposed to stand on, yeah, that side. Then with one hand that had an iron grip on the railing you slowly reached out with the other to push the window all the way up.

Once it was up and you were sure it wasn’t going to slam back down, you slowly turned yourself away from the railing, to face the window and then reached out with one hand again. You grabbed ahold of the windows edge then carefully release the railing with your other hand and grabbed the window frame. So now, your feet were still on the fire escape, and both hands were holding on to the window frame.

You slowly leaned forwards, then with another deep breath and a silent prayer to whichever God was currently listening, you pushed yourself towards the window and managed to pull your upper body in, with your legs dangling out, 3 storeys above street level. It was all going perfectly to plan, that is, until the window was jarred free, most likely due to your less then gentle dive into the window, and plummeted down towards you. It slammed into your mid back, which fucking hurt and you nearly screamed from both the shock and pain of it. But luckily you’d managed to muffle the sound just in time with your hand. Making it a low throaty yelp instead. You gave yourself a moment to breathe, and for your heart rate to drop back down to normal. Then you attempted to reach back with one hand to push the window back up, quickly realizing it was stuck. The impact with your back must have jarred it off its track slightly, so now it was pinned in place, which meant you were also now pinned in place. One half of you in your bedroom, the other half dangling 30 ish feet in the air. Great. Just fucking great. What the hell do you do now—

“Ah, whatcha doing over there?” A deep voice startled you, causing you to yelp again and then on instinct you went to look at where the voice had come from, quickly realizing you couldn’t see through fucking walls.

“I seem to be a little stuck.” You said loudly so he’d be able to hear you.

“I can see that,” he said and you could hear the amusement in his voice. He was clearly trying not to laugh at you. “But, ah, can I ask why you’re trying to break into my neighbours place?”

“Well you see, I um, I live here. This is my place, I’m um, your neighbour,” you paused, realizing that didn’t sound convincing, at all, “I locked my keys in my apartment.”

“How do I know you’re telling the truth?” He asked, but it didn’t sound suspicious, it honestly sounded like he was messing with you. But you’d never actually talked to him before. You’d just always figured you worked separate hours, as you’d hear him in his unit every once and awhile, but you’d never actually seen him in the halls. And you’d lived in this apartment for going on 6 months now.

“Shit, ah, my name’s Y/N, and I’ve lived here for 6 months.” You said, trying to think of anything that would prove you actually lived here. Then a thought popped into your mind, “Oh! My laundry!”

“Your laundry?” He asked, confused.

“Yes, it’s in the hallway! I was coming up from doing my laundry and realized I locked myself out! You can go check, it’s in the hallway!” You paused, then added quietly, “hopefully it’s still in the hallway.”

He chuckled, “Don’t worry, I believe you. Can you get the window back up?”

You attempted to try one more time to push it up, but it wouldn’t budge, “No, it seems to be stuck.”

“Okay, hang tight.” He said, and the words grow quieter as he spoke, you assumed he was walking away from his window.

You couldn’t help but laugh, sardonically and mumble, “what else am I supposed to do.”

“Right,” his deep voice startled you again, “sorry, poor choice in words there.”

“It’s fine.”

But this time you didn’t get a response, and everything went quiet again. “Hello?” You paused, “Are you still there?” Another pause, “I’ll take that as a no.”

You weren’t exactly sure what he was going to do, you just prayed it was something that would get you out of this damn window. And fast. Maybe he’d call the manager, and say it was an emergency. Hopefully that would get a faster response time as you weren’t exactly comfy wedged between the window and its sill. And your legs were starting to ache from just dangling there.

A few minutes went by and you were starting to panic now. Would you be stuck here all night? Was he ever going to come back? Calling the manager couldn’t have taken this long. Fuck. Look what you’d gotten yourself into. Having to rely on a complete stranger to basically save your stupid ass. You should have just called Wanda and asked if you could stay the night, and dealt with all of this in the morning. You know, when the manager was in her office!

You heard the ungodly loud metal on metal screech of the fire escape ladder, and then heavy footsteps quickly ascending the stairs, until finally they stopped at the railings edge near you. “Alright, I’m going to get you out of there, but I need you to trust me, okay?” He asked.

You nodded, then realized he couldn’t see it, “yeah, o-okay.” You stuttered, not sure what his game plan here was, but if it backfired, you’d have a very long fall ahead. So you were terrified, to say the least.

“I’m going to try to push the window up now, so you can finish climbing in.”

“Okay.”

You then felt the window move slightly, but that was about all it did. “Wow, it’s really in there.” He grunted. And you could feel him tugging on the window, but it refused to budge. “Okay, ah, that’s not going anywhere. It’s really jammed, and honestly might need someone to come fix it. But I won’t be able to get it any further up from this angle, so I am going to help you back out of the window.”

“What!?” You exclaimed, “that ah, that doesn’t seem like a very good idea.”

“Well it’s either I help you out of the window, or you just continue to dangle there.”

“Shit,” you mumbled, he had a point there, “so ah, what’s your plan then?”

“I’m going to help you get back over to the fire escape.”

“And how exactly are you going to do that?” You were genuinely curious, but also freaked the fuck out.

“You said you trusted me, right?”

“I’m probably going to regret this, but yes, I trust you,” you paused, “but just so you know, if you drop me, I will haunt you for the rest of your life. So, just, keep that in mind.”

You heard him chuckle quietly, “I won’t drop you, I promise.”

You heard some shuffling noises and a few weird clanks and clicks, and figured he was just getting himself into position, “alright, I’m going to touch you now, is that okay?”

“Ah, yup. Yes.” Wow, smooth.

Then you felt a large hand skim your lower back, then your side closest to him, before something was tightened around your waist. It felt thick, like a strap of some kind. Then you heard a metal click. “Okay, I put a harness around your waist and attached it to the fire escape. So if you do slip, you will only fall about 5 feet.”

“That’s comforting.” You mumbled.

“Hey, it’s better than 30 feet.” He chuckled again.

“You do have a point there.”

“Now, I’m going to grab on to your waist,” he said, and you felt his arm wrap around you, “is this still okay?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, now very slowly, I need you to wiggle yourself out of the window. Can you do that for me?”

“Ah, yup.” You said then took a deep breath and slowly started to push yourself back out the window, feeling his arm tighten around you as you did.

“Perfect, you’re doing great, Y/N,” he praised you, sweetly, “just a little further. You got this.”

Just before you got the last bit of your upper body out the window he spoke up again, “Okay, that’s good.” You stopped moving instantly. “This next part is going to happen fast, I’m going to pull you out and bring you over to the fire exit, so be ready to grab it, okay?”

“Okay.” And as the words left your mouth you felt him pull you the rest of the way out of the window and then all of a sudden you were grabbing onto the fire exit. He released your waist and then effortlessly hopped back over to the proper side, unhooking his harness and then helping you back over.

Once your feet hit the landing you almost collapsed, your legs felt like mush and all you wanted to do was fall to your knees and kiss the metal ground. But you refrained. For now. You felt his arm wrap around you again, but this time around your upper back, “woah there, you okay?”

You nodded, “yup, my legs are just a little asleep.”

“Okay, hold on.” He said as he quickly unhooked the harness from around your waist then helped you sit down on the top step, “here, sit for a few while your legs wake up.”

“Good idea.” You nodded slowly, and he chuckled again. You turned to peer up at him, taking a moment to just admire your savior. You obviously couldn’t have seen him before, but now that you could you damn near blushed at how handsome he was. He was tall, you guessed around 6’3”-6’4”. Very well built, you could tell, as the almost too tight black t-shirt he was currently wearing wasn’t hiding a damn thing. And he was blonde. You always had a thing for blondes. As your eyes gave him another once over you saw him unhooking the clips from the railing and rolling up the harnesses. “So you just keep harnesses on hand?”

He looked down at you, and you could just barely make out that his eyes were a dark colour, maybe blue? And then he smiled and shook his head, “no, I use them at work, I just happened to have a couple laying around.”

“Oh? What do you do for work?” You paused, “if you don’t mind me asking, that is.”

“No, it’s fine.” He smirked, “I’m actually a firefighter.”

“You don’t say.” You said slowly, then laughed, “it all makes so much more sense now.”

“Oh yeah? Why’s that?” He wondered.

“You were really good at this,” you gestured to your bedroom window, “you really seemed to know what you were doing. I don’t even know you and I trusted you.” You shrugged.

“Well I’m glad you did. And ah,” he stuck his hand out to you, “I’m Steve, by the way.”

You shook his hand, “Y/N. But you already knew that.”

He nodded, “I did. But it’s nice to meet you Y/N.”

“Oh shoot,” you smacked a hand to your forehead, “I totally forgot to thank you for saving me! So, ah, thank you, so so much! Seriously, I’d still be dangling there if it wasn’t for you.”

“No worries at all,” he smiled, “I couldn’t exactly just leave you hanging there.” He shrugged, then nodded his head towards your lower half, “how are your legs feeling?”

You turned to look at your feet and wiggled them, then looked back up at him, “better, I think they’re all good now.”

“Good, then let’s get you off this fire escape and back on solid ground.”

“That sounds like a wonderful idea.” You said as you slowly went to stand, feeling Steve gently grip your elbow to help balance you. Just incase your legs weren’t fully back yet.

After a moment of you standing, he released your arm but kept his hand close to it for another moment, clearly gauging if you were okay on your own. He obviously deemed you stable as he dropped his hand back to his side, “I’ll go first, just in case you slip.” He said and then started to head down the stairs. You following closely behind.

When you reached the lowest landing, he dropped the rolled up harnesses to the ground and then skillfully descended the ladder. Clearly, given his day job, he was a pro at this. You, not so much. You had almost made it the whole way down without looking like a fool, but that didn’t last long. Just as you went to put your foot on the final crossmember, you overestimated it and missed it entirely. Sending you plummeting to the ground with a yelp. You braced for impact—but it never came. You slowly opened your eyes, not exactly sure when you’d closed them and came face to face with Steve. And yup, his eyes were in fact blue. Neat. “It’s okay. I got cha.” He said softly.

You just nodded, and waited for him to put you down. Which—didn’t happen right away. “Ah, Steve?”

“Hmm?” He hummed, as if he was completely out of it.

“Are you gunna put me down?” You asked quietly, and wiggled your feet that were dangling, once again, except this time only inches above the ground. Instead of storeys.

���Shit, right.” He chuckled awkwardly, then placed you back on your feet gently and took a step back from you, his eyes shifted to the ground as he rubbed the back of his neck, “sorry about that.”

“You prevented me from hitting the ground, no need to apologize for that.” You said as you waved it off, “and ah, thanks, again, you know, for saving me.” You paused, “again.” You cringed. Okay. Your awkward had now reached a whole new level. Damnit.

“No worries,” he looked up at you and smirked, “Again.”

“Well, I’m gunna go back in now,” you gestured over your shoulder with your thumb, as you took a step backwards, “I’ll ah, see you around though.” you waved, awkwardly, because let’s be honest, this is just who you are now. ‘Awkward Y/N’. That’s your new self appointed nickname. You’d just decided this right now.

All he did was nod his head, as the smile on his face grew huge. You almost swooned but then quickly spun on your heel and hightailed it out of the alley. You reached the front door—and instantly remembered you didn’t have any fucking keys. Damnit! You groaned and dropped your head back, and then heard a now familiar chuckle from behind you. You spun around to see Steve walking up to you, “Figured you wouldn’t be able to get in without keys.” He jiggled his for effect.

“Shit,” you mumbled, “yeah, that would probably help.”

He unlocked the door then pushed it open for you, gesturing for you to enter, “after you.”

You pursed your lips together then nodded and walked through the door, whispering a “thanks” as you did. You both climbed the stairs to the third floor, Steve ahead of you, and you might have checked his ass out. But if anyone ever asked you, you’d plead the fifth. You didn’t condone being a creep, but, my god, you sure could tell he climbed ladders all day. He had a glorious butt, not that you were lookin—Fuck. Who are you kidding. You couldn’t even lie. You’d basically stared at it the whole way up. God. You were such a creep.

He pushed through the door to your floor and then you both walked quietly down the hall, as you rounded the corner you noticed the hallway was …empty. Fuck! The hallway is empty! You halted your steps and groaned, “Well that’s just great.” You mumbled as you gestured to your door. Where your laundry hamper wasn’t sitting anymore. Who steals someone else’s laundry!? So freaking rude!

Your head whipped around at the sound of Steve chuckling again, you narrowed your eyes at him. Because honestly, who laughs at someone else’s misfortune.

He quickly wiped the smile off his lips the second he saw the look on your face, then cleared his throat, “I ah, I put your laundry in my place, so it wouldn’t go missing.”

Aaaaand you’re totally an asshole. Way to go. “You did?” You asked quietly.

“Yeah, figured I could just give it back to you once you were out of your window.” He shrugged, then gestured for you to follow him.

“That was really sweet of you,” you murmured, mostly to yourself.

He unlocked his door and then pushed it open and walked inside, the door slowly closing on it’s own after him. Leaving you awkwardly standing there, in the hallway. You weren’t sure if he’d wanted you to follow him or if he’d even be okay with you in his place, so you figured it was smarter to just wait for him to return with your basket. You glanced around the hallway just as the door swung open, startling you. You snapped your eyes towards it and saw he was now standing on the other side, giving you a quizzical look. His hand high on the door’s edge, “You didn’t have to stay in the hallway, ya know?”

“Oh, sorry, I just wasn’t—“ you stopped mid sentence as he stepped back and opened the door more.

“You’re more than welcome to come in,” he gestured for you to enter, “if you’d like, that is. You can call the manager about getting into your place.”

You nodded, “ah, okay. Thanks.” You said as you walked into his place, instantly noticing your laundry basket on the floor near the living room. You looked around and saw that his suites layout was a mirror of yours. His furnishings were mismatched, but not in a cheap way. They all went really well together, as if every piece had been hand picked to tie a different piece into the room. There were personal touches everywhere, photos on the wall of various friends or family. Little trinkets, books and photo frames on a free standing shelf up against the far wall, in between the two large living room windows. A couch and chair, mismatched but yet, matching. With a simple wood coffee table, and a tv on it’s stand along the left wall, that separated the master bedroom and living room. There was a few plants scattered throughout and a lamp in a corner. All and all, it wasn’t what you were expecting at all. At least not from a bachelor—he was a bachelor, right? “Ah, your place is really nice.” You offered lamely, “did you decorate it yourself?” God, you really are so awkward. Who asks that?! Hopefully he wouldn’t notice that, that was your weird way of finding out if he was single or not. Or at least if he lived with anyone.

His chuckle led you to believe he’d read between the lines and knew exactly what you were asking, “Yeah, I did. Well, myself and my roommate.”

“Oh, you have a roommate?” You turned to look at him momentarily then glanced around, half expecting someone to appear out of thin air now.

He nodded, “Yeah, he’s at work currently.” He said as he moved towards the kitchen, “do you want anything? A drink or?”

You shook your head, “no, thank you though, I’ll just call the manager and then get out of your hair.”

“Okay,” he said then gestured to the entry table, “phones on the table, I believe the manager’s numbers are on the notepad beside it.”

“Perfect,” you wandered over to the table and glanced at the notepad, scanning for the late night number you’d need. You found it then pick the phone up and dialled. As it rang you glanced over your shoulder to look at Steve, while he poured himself a drink. Before you could stare to long at him a groggy voice spoke. “Hello, this is Susan.”

You quickly turned back towards the wall, “ah, hi, Susan. This is Y/N, from 3C.”

“What can I do for you Y/N?” She asked groggily, but sweetly.

“I seem to have locked my keys in my apartment. Is there any way someone can come let me back in?”

“Ah,” she paused and you heard some shuffling noises, “I can call maintenance, but I’m not sure how long they will take, not until I speak to them. Are you at the building now?”

“Um, yeah, I am.” You nodded then glanced back at Steve, who was watching you intently, you looked back towards the wall, “I’m just at a neighbours currently.”

“Okay, I’ll give them a call and then I’ll call you back, is this a good number to reach you at again?”

“Yes, yeah. This one works.”

“Alright, talk to you shortly.”

“Perfect, thank you Susan.” You said then hung the phone up and turned to Steve, “she is calling maintenance to see what they can do, said she’d call back shortly.”

He nodded then headed into the living room, he placed his drink on the coffee table and then plopped down on the couch. You hesitantly followed and sat down in the chair, “I hope you don’t mind me waiting here.”

He leaned forward to grab the remote off the coffee table, “not at all. Hopefully they can get you back in your apartment soon.” He said, not unkindly though. Maintenance had a reputation for taking hours to show up for anything, so you figured he knew that, and hoped you wouldn’t be locked out all night.

“Yeah, fingers crossed.” You replied as you settled into a somewhat comfortable silence, both just staring at the tv, watching some random cooking show. Chopped, or something like that. You weren’t to sure.

“Are you okay if I change it?” He asked out of the blue and it took you a moment to comprehend what he was asking.

“Oh, yeah. No, uh, please, feel free.”

“Bucky loves these cooking shows, I just have never been able to get into them.” He shrugged and brought up the channel menu.

“I’m guessing Bucky is your roommate?”

“Yeah, been best friends since we were kids.”

You were just about to reply and then the phone rang, you glanced at Steve to check if he wanted to get it or not. He gestured that it was okay for you to answer it and you sprung up and quickly made your way to the phone. Picking it up and saying, “hello.”

There was a pause and then a voice that definitely didn’t belong to Susan spoke up, “hello? ah…” you heard some muffled sounds, that resembled the caller pulling the phone away from their ear, and then heard a mumbled “did I call the wrong number again?” Which you figured wasn’t directed at you as it sounded a little to far away from the mic. You quickly looked at Steve, who saw the nervous look on your face and was just getting up off the couch to come save you from whoever was on the phone. Then another soft but confused, “nope, that’s our number.” Before the voice grew louder, like he’d put it back to his ear now. “Ah, who is this?” He asked.

“Oh, um, Y/N,” you said quickly, “I live ah, next door, in 3C.”

“Okay, Y/N from 3C,” he chuckled, “why are you answering my house phone?” He asked but you could hear the amusement in his voice, “is Steve there?”

“I was waiting for the manager to call back, and um, yeah,” you glanced at Steve who was now standing beside you, “he’s right here,” you passed him the phone and mouthed, “Bucky, I think.”

He chuckled and nodded as he took the phone, “What’s up, Buck?”

You moved back towards the living room, not wanting to intrude on their convo, but you could still hear it clearly, as you were only about 7 feet from Steve.

“Not even close,” he whispered quickly, then turned to face away from you, “Nothing, just waiting for—” he was clearly cut off, “no, I wont pass the phone to—“ cut off yet again, “it’s not like that and you know it,” there was a pause, “oh please, you’re one to talk,” another pause, followed by a deep sigh, “can we please talk about this later?” Another pause, “fine, fine. Whatever. So what do you want, jerk?”

It took everything in you not to burst out laughing at the one side of the conversation you were currently hearing. You instantly figured Bucky was a little shit, in all the best ways. And Steve was obviously more reserved. They were probably like yin and yang, and you’d have killed to be a fly on the wall for an in person convo between them. It was probably hysterical. To say the least. “Fine, yeah, see you later.” He finally said then hung the phone up, you only knew that because you heard the sound of it being placed back on the receiver. You’d stayed facing away from him after he’d turned around. “Sorry about that,” he offered lamely from behind you and you peered over your shoulder at him.

“No worries at all,” you waved off his apology, “hopefully I didn’t create to many,” you paused to think of the right word, “problems. For you.”

“Ah, no. None at all. Bucky is just,” he sighed deeply, “being Bucky.”

You nodded, “ah, gotcha.” then turned back to the tv, as you couldn’t look at him and not grin like an idiot over what you’d heard. Granted, you’d only heard half the convo, but you knew it was entirely about you. It didn’t take a rocket doctor to figure that one out.

The phone rang again, and this time Steve answered it. But probably not just because he was closest to it. You guessed he was worried it be his roommate again, calling back in the hopes you’d once again answer it and he could interrogate you further. “Hello?” He said, “yup, she’s right here.”

You stood up to go take the phone from him but halted when you saw a frown slowly form on his face as his eyebrows pinched together, “ah, okay, and that’s the best they can do?” A pause, then he slowly nodded, “not really ideal, but I guess there really isn’t much we can do about it.”

Now you frowned as well. That was not sounding good. At all.

“Ah, right. Okay, thanks Susan. Yeah, I’ll tell her.” He said a quick goodbye then hung up the phone.

“That didn’t sound good?” You hesitantly said.

He rubbed the back of his neck and his eyes drifted to the ground again, “yeah, no, it wasn’t really. As I’m sure we both suspected, maintenance said they couldn’t be here till the morning, and by that point Susan will be in her office. So she sends her apologies, but you won’t be getting back into your suite tonight.”

“Well shit,” you groaned and dropped your head back, mumbling “That fucking sucks.” Now what!?

“I’m sorry, Y/N.” he said softly and you quickly looked at him.

“Not your fault at all. I’m the idiot who locked my keys in my apartment.” You sighed, “would you mind if I used your phone one more time? I just want to call my friend and see if I could crash at her place tonight.”

“Ah, yeah, of course.” He paused, “this might be a little forward, but you are welcome to stay here, if you’d like.”

“Oh, I couldn’t ask that of you.” You shook your head, “You’ve already done way too much for me.”

“Honestly, it’s totally fine. You can have my bed, I’ll sleep on the couch.” He paused, “it has a lock on the door, and I can change the sheets.”

“You have a lock on your door?” You asked skeptically.

“Yeah, I uh, don’t always trust the,” he hesitated for a second, “people, Bucky brings over. I’ve had a few things go missing in the past. So now I lock up when I’m not going to be home for the night.” He shrugged.

“Oh, that makes sense.” You nod, “but I couldn’t force you to sleep on the couch, I can take it. That way you can have your bed.”

He chuckled, “Trust me, you won’t want to be on the couch when,” he glances up at the clock on the wall, “Buck gets home in 3 hours. He isn’t exactly quiet.”

“Oh, yeah. No. I guess I don’t really want that.” You laugh. “But won’t he wake you up?”

“No, I’m used to his noise levels. I’ve passed out on the couch a few times before and he hasn’t managed to wake me up yet.”

“Okay,” you sigh, “if you insist.”

He smiles, “I do, just give me a few to change the sheets over.”

You nod, “yeah, of course. And thank you, Steve. Seriously. You’re a lifesaver.”

“So I’ve been told. It sort of comes with the day job.” He laughs then walks into the master bedroom. Right, firefighter. You chuckle to yourself then patiently wait for him to return. Which luckily doesn’t take long, as he reemerges a few moments later with a small stack of blankets, sheets and a pillow, in his hands, plus a charging cord on top. “Okay, all set.” He said as he moved towards the couch.

“Thanks,” you smiled then moved towards the bedroom door, halting at the threshold, to turn back to him, “ah, goodnight, Steve. And thanks again, for everything.”

He smiled back at you, “goodnight, Y/N. see you in the morning.”

You nodded then shut the door, hesitating for a moment before deciding to leave it unlocked. Just in case he forgot something and needed in the room. You turned and then just took in his room, it was super clean and everything had a place. Which wasn’t really a surprise. Steve seemed like a well rounded, tidy guy. You were glad the roles weren’t reversed as you’d be ashamed if he saw the current state of your room. You weren’t a dirty person, by any means, but your room got a little out of hand sometimes. You just had so many clothes, most of which you never even wore, but just couldn’t part with. Your hamper was overflowing, and the accent chair in the corner was covered in clothes you’d tried on, but decided against and just hadn’t managed to hang back up. And your closet was, a nightmare, if you were being honest. You were always coming and going in such a rush between shifts, that your room sort of got the shit end of the stick when it came to cleaning. The rest of your home was damn near spotless, but that was because you hardly spent any time in it. And the odd time you did have friends over, you wanted it to look nice for them.

You walked quietly around the room, just looking at all the little touches. The artwork on the walls, the photos on the dresser, the books on the nightstand. Your hand reached out to move the top books to see the ones underneath. Noting that he had a great taste in literature, as your eyes landed on your favourite book that was hidden in the middle of the stack. You refused to open any drawers though, as that really wasn’t polite, so you just took in everything on the surface. Everything you could see without being a complete snoop.

After a few more minutes you pulled back the corner of the dark blue duvet, on his king sized bed, figuring a guy of his size would need a king size bed. You gingerly climbed in and pulled the covers back over you. You wiggled around, trying to find a comfy position, which didn’t take to long as the bed was honestly super comfortable. You were slightly jealous of his bed game. And once you were all settled in, you finally noticed the glorious smell coming from the pillows and blankets. You involuntarily took a large whiff, just basking in the glorious smell you could only describe as ‘clean man’. It smelt of clean laundry, and a delicious musky cologne.

You clearly hadn’t really had a chance to smell Steve, because that was a little creepy, but you figured he’d smell pretty damn similar to his bedding. To say the smell was comforting, was an understatement. It had been far too long since you’d laid in a bed that smelt of a man. Your job really didn’t allow for much in the way of relationships or boyfriends. You’d had one for about a year, but that ended 7 months ago when he couldn’t take your jobs hours anymore. He wasn’t mean or rude about it, he just sat you down one day and you both talked for hours, then amicably decided it would be best to end on good terms right then. Instead of waiting for things to turn sour. So you looked for your own place, and promptly moved into the apartment next door. You know, the one you currently couldn’t get in to. Your mind slowly began to cloud and before you knew it, you were fast asleep. Both from the exhaustion of all that had happened tonight, on top of the comforting smell of Steve’s sheets. Yeah, you didn’t stand a chance.

You woke to the light filtering in through the cream curtains, they managed to block most of the direct light, but gave the room a soft glow. Your ears instantly perked up at the sound of metal hitting the tiled floor, followed by a few muffled curse words. You sat up and rubbed the sleep from your eyes before flipping the duvet off and padding to the bedroom door. You opened it, glancing around but didn’t see anyone at first. That is, until you saw Steve stand up from his momentary hiding place behind the kitchen island. You made your way towards him, mumbling a soft, “morning,” as you did. Not wanting to startle him.

But clearly you’d failed on that endeavour, as he whipped around at the sound of your voice, metal mixing bowl in hand, with a shocked look on his face. One that he quickly corrected into a apologetic smile upon seeing you, “Morning.” He quickly said then added, “sorry, I hope I didn’t wake you.”

You took a seat on one of the barstools at the island counter and waved off his concern, “No, not at all. I woke up right before you dropped that,” you chuckled and gestured to the bowl in his hand.

“Okay,” he chuckled as well, “good. I um, I’m making pancakes, if you want some?”

“Pancakes sound wonderful.” You smiled and he nodded then turned around and rinsed out the bowl then began making breakfast, “so, any word from Susan?”

“She actually called about an hour ago,” he said over his shoulder, “I didn’t want to wake you up, so I hope you don’t mind, but I went and met her at your place, she let me in to grab your keys. Once I had them, I left and locked back up,” he pointed to the hallway table, “your keys are over there.”

You glanced at the table to see your keys sitting there then turned back to him, “I don’t mind at all, thank you so much for doing that.”

“No worries,” he glanced at you and smiled, “I’m just glad you can get back into your place again.”

“Me too,” you sighed contently, then give the apartment a once over, realizing someone was missing. “No Bucky?”

“No, he likes to sleep in after his shifts.” He chuckled fondly as he glanced at the clock on the oven, “we won’t see him for a few more hours.” ….’we’? You figured he hadn’t even noticed saying that, but just how easily the word fell from his lips made your heart flutter, just a little.

“What does he do for work?”

“Same as me.”

“Oh, so you’re both firefighters?”

“Yeah, we joined up at the same time.”

“That must be hard. Living and working with your best friend.” You said quietly, more a voiced thought then anything else.

“It has its challenges for sure,” he said as he placed a plate of pancakes and a bottle of syrup in front of you, “but he is like a brother to me. And we don’t always work the same shifts. So it isn’t too bad.” He shrugged then grabbed some utensils and placed the next to your plate. “Do you want any coffee?”

“Well that’s good then. And oh god, yes, I’d love some coffee.” You happily groaned.

He laughed as he grabbed a mug from a top cabinet and poured you a cup, “anything in it?”

“2 and 2 please.”

He nodded and quickly added them to the cup then stirred it and placed it in front of you, before making up a cup for himself and taking a sip. “So, what do you do for a day job?”

You quickly finished chewing the pancake in your mouth then took a quick sip of coffee to wash it down, “I’m an ER nurse.”

“Oh wow,” he said, slightly wide eyed, “that would explain why I’ve never seen you in the halls.”

“Yeah, I always just figured we worked different hours.” You shrugged.

“That must be an intense job?” he asked, but it wasn’t really a question, more just a informed guess.

“Probably no more intense than your own.” You laughed.

Before he could say a word in response you both heard the creak of a door opening followed by a grumbled, “there better be coffee.” You both turned to the source of the voice, seeing a groggy, still clearly half asleep Bucky walking out of his room.

“There is,” Steve replied, “your up earlier then normal.” He added, the words sounding less like an observation and more like a suspicious remark.

“Well, we have company,” Bucky glanced at you and gave a cheeky little grin, then shifted his gaze to Steve and shrugged, “would be rude of me to sleep through that.”

You side eyed Steve and saw the death glare he was currently giving Bucky, one he was clearly trying to hide from you. “Uh huh. Right.” He said, skeptically. Which only caused Buckys grin to widen as he moved into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee. Steves eyes following him as he did, as if his friend was a ticking time bomb and if he didn’t keep a close eye on him, he’d go off and leave a bunch of chaos in his wake.

You had to hold back the giggles that wanted to escape at the interaction between the two guys. This moment instantly solidifying in your mind that Bucky was, in fact, the little shit you’d assumed he was. And you loved every second of it. You just sat there, happily munching your pancakes and sipping your coffee, just waiting to see what would happen next.

The talking might have died down, but that didn’t mean the conversation did. You noticed a few different pointed looks from Steve and a few body gestured from Bucky in response. His back was to you as he made his coffee so you couldn’t see his facial expressions but you assumed they were just as expressive as Steves. Clearly they were having a full on, non verbal, discussion that only two lifelong friends could have. Bucky finally turned to face you, a smirk on his lips as he took a sip of his coffee and hummed happily, before sticking his hand out to you, “I’m Bucky, by the way.”

You giggled at Steve’s eye roll, then shook his hand over the island counter, “Y/N.”

“Yeah, 3C.” He chuckled, “it’s nice to finally meet our neighbour after months.” He turned to Steve, and chuckled, “who knew there was a cute chick living nextdoor all this time.”

You blushed and laughed at that but before you could reply Steve did, “Buck,” he warned, “can I speak to you for a minute. Privately.”

“That’s rather rude, leaving our guest all alone.” Bucky replied, cheekily. And oh god, these guys needed there own reality tv show. Because you’d totally watch it.

Steve looked about ready to either drag Bucky out of the room, or smack him upside the head. You glanced down at your now empty plate and mug then spoke up before Steve could murder Bucky, “I should really be going,” you said as you stood from your stool, “thank you for breakfast, and letting me crash here, Steve.”

He snapped his eyes from Bucky to you and went to open his mouth to speak, but Bucky was a little quicker, “you’re leaving, so soon?”

You smirked and looked at him, “yeah, I should really be getting out of your hair now.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that, you’re no bother to us,” he said quickly, “isn’t that right, Steve?” He asked as he swatted Steve’s chest with the back of his hand, receiving a grunt in return.

Steve rubbed the spot on his chest and shot Bucky a nasty glare, then his eyes landed on you and softened, completely, “it’s no bother at all, but I’m guessing you’d like to finally get back into your apartment.”

You nodded, “yeah, that I would.” Then you walked over to your laundry basket, picking it up and resting it on your hip before you turned back to the two men. Who were once again having a nonverbal conversation, that halted the second they realized you were facing them again.

“Ah, do you want help with that?” Steve asked as he gestured to the basket.

“No, I got it.” You replied with a smile as you walked to the entry table and grabbed your keys.

“Alright, then let me walk you out.” He said as he moved towards the door.

“It was nice to meet you, Bucky,” you smiled and went to follow Steve.

“Yeah, you as well, hopefully we get to see you around more often now.” He said back.

You nodded then joined Steve at the door, as he opened it for you. You exited into the hall then turned back to him, “I know I’ve said this so much already, but thank you again for everything, Steve.”

He smiled, “it was no bother. Really. Just ah, promise me if you get locked out again, you’ll just come knock on our door. Instead of trying to break in again.”

You giggled, “I will. Promise.”

“Okay, good. I’ll sleep better knowing you aren’t going to be dangling from anymore 3rd floor windows.” He chuckled.

“I’m glad to hear it. Bye, Steve.” You waved then started down the hall.

“Ah, bye, Y/N.” you heard him say back as you did.

You wanted to glance back, really you did, but you fought through the urge and just as you reached your apartment door you heard the soft click of his door closing. You finally unlocked your stupid fancy door knob and entered back into your suite. Releasing a deep breath, and hoping you’d get a run in with Steve again soon.

A thought crossed your mind and you laughed then shook your head. No, you can’t deliberately lock yourself out of your suite just so you can see him again. Because that’s insanely creepy and all together stalkerish. So you resigned yourself to just hoping you’d get to bump into him in the halls a little more now.

Over the next three weeks, you got your wish. Ten fold. It actually started to feel a little suspect, but you weren’t complaining. 6 months of living here and never once crossing paths with Steve or Bucky. And yet, in the span of three weeks you’d managed to see them both damn near daily.

Bucky would stop and chat with you, so long as neither of you was running late for something. He’d ask how you were and offer for you to come hang out with them. Sadly you’d usually either been just coming off a long shift and were dead on your feet, or heading to start your next one. So you hadn’t been able to take him up on the offers yet. But he’d always just nod, smile and reply, “next time then.” And on occasion he’d comment about how, “well, you do know where we live, so pop by any time.” To which you’d laugh and tell him “will do.”

When you ran into Steve, he was never as forward as Bucky, he’d make simple small talk. Asking how you were and how work was going. On occasion he’d be covered in dirt and ash, clearly just getting off shift, and waiting till he got home to shower. Every emergency worker had their own way to decompress after a particularly difficult shift. You assumed part of his was taking a nice long shower in his own home, where he could just stand and unwind on his own terms. You only figured that because you had a similar step in yours, plus the hospital showers just weren’t as good as your own. When you had stumbled upon him in that state, you’d ask how he was doing, truly, and question softly about his shift. He’d tell you little bits, usually nothing too deep. And you’d listen intently and just let him say as much or as little as he wanted. You knew from personal experience not to push more then that.

But today, today was a little different. You’d just stepped out of your apartment door, and as you were putting your key in to lock up, you heard the guys door open abruptly and then a stumbling Steve emerged into the hall with some force. He quickly collected himself, shooting a pointed glare back into his open suite door, just before it slammed shut. You heard his deep sigh right before he shifted his attention to you, giving you a shy smile and an awkward wave.

You laughed and waved back, figuring Bucky was behind this little ‘impromptu’ hallway meeting. Then finished locking your door and directed your attention to Steve, “fancy meeting you here.”

“Ah, yeah.” He rubbed the back of his neck, “are you just heading off to work?”

You smirked, “nope, got one of those illusive days off. If you can believe that.”

“Oh yeah?” He asked, intrigued. “Got any exciting plans for it?”

“Ah, nope. No set plans, I was just going to go wander around and get some fresh air. You heading somewhere?” You asked.

“No, nope. No plans either.” He shrugged.

“Did you want to join me?” You asked, hesitantly, preparing yourself for his possible decline.

His eyes snapped to you then, but just as he opened his mouth to reply his suite door abruptly opened again, “he’d love to!” Was yelled out of it as one of, you assumed, Steve’s jackets came flying into the hall. He barely reacted in time to catch it and then the door slammed shut again, the sound of the lock clicking into place hitting your ears a second after.

Steve groaned softly, probably hoping you wouldn’t hear it, but you had. And you couldn’t stop the laugh that burst from your lips. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

“God, he is just so damn pushy.” Steve mumbled as he put his jacket on and shot the closed door a quick glare, then started to walk towards you, “but he’s right, I’d love to.”

You smiled and tucked your keys into your purse, as you both headed for the stairwell door, “so, where to first?”

“Coffee?” He asked.

“Sounds perfect, my treat as a thank you for saving me that night.”

He shook his head adamantly, “nah, my treat this time. You can get the next round.”

The smile on your face grew even bigger, and even though you wanted to fight him on this, you didn’t. Instead replying with, “Deal. I’ll get the next round.”

You both glanced at each other as you made your way down the stairs, smiling like a pair of idiots at what you had both just implied. You weren’t sure what this little coffee date would lead to, or where this would all go, but you were excited for the possibilities it presented. And let’s be honest, any chance to glance at this handsome mans butt up close, was a perk all on it’s own. One you’d never turn down. Not in a million years. And to think, this all started because you ended up Locked Out of your place. It’s funny how life unfolds sometimes.

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[daysswithyou]

Fallen Chapter 23: Promise

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Characters: DAY6 Young K x OC (Rachel)

Warning!: Mentions of drowning

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Your homeroom teacher and overall teacher in charge for the trip Mr Kim felt like he was going to cough out blood just simply trying to get your cohort in order. You are all high school seniors ready to graduate in a few weeks’ time, but here all of you were, acting like a bunch of elementary school students that didn’t know how to keep their excitement in and their volume down.

“Alright! Listen up! Boys off to the left, females off to the right. I sent the room arrangements to the various class presidents whom should have sent it to you. Check again if you forgot, else hound them for it. Have fun, stay safe and most importantly, don’t break anything. Else you’re footing the entire bill yourself.”

Mr Kim isn’t dignified with a response when everyone scurried off to their rooms, the volume of their chatters became deafening as the second passed. You and Younghyun chuckled sympathetically at your teacher, whose face looked ashen as he retired to his own room – presumably to get away from you little devils.

“Rachel, meet me here in 30 minutes? I planned a little something for us.”

“A date?” You quirked an eyebrow up, pleasantly surprised that he planned ahead without you catching even a waft of news.

“You can say so…”

“Attire?”

“Comfortable… light… where we’re going to go can potentially be very hot.”

“Oh~ interesting! Alright, I heard you lover boy. I’ll see you here in 30.”

With one last squeeze of your hand, both of you parted to get settled in your rooms. As promised, both of you met again at the lobby at almost the same timing, Younghyun carrying a large black duffel bag in one hand.

“So secretive? You won’t even let me see the contents of the bag?”

“It’s to maintain the suspense, and really make it a surprise! I promise you that I don’t have anything illegal or dangerous in there.”

“I trust you. Want to lead the way?”

“Of course, sweetheart, but after you.”

With a flourish of his hands, he directs you towards the glass entrance of the resorts. As you trailed behind him, you soaked in the sights and smells along the way. It’s been so long since you lasted travelled anywhere outside of your town, so all of this was new and fresh to you. Too entranced by the activities happening around you, you merely followed Younghyun, not really focusing on where he was taking you. It wasn’t until you felt the heat of the sand, heard the sounds of the waves lapping languidly at the shore, and smelt the salt in the air – that you realised that you were by the beach – the single, most hated place on Earth for you.

Against your wishes, you halted in your tracks as you felt the blood drain from your face, shivering despite the hot sunlight that nearly blinded your eyes. Younghyun notices the lack of footsteps behind him, and turns around to find you pale – almost like you had seen…a ghost. That expression on your face looked familiar as well – when did he see that expression on your face before?

“Rachel? Love, are you alright? You look really pale, are you unwell? Maybe we should head back to the resort, you must be tired from the travelling and late nights.”

Younghyun turned to walk back where you two came from, but you immediately spun around and caught his wrist to stop him from leaving.

It’s been years, Rachel. Get a damn grip.

You didn’t want your fear of the ocean to stop the date from happening, especially not when Younghyun put in effort to make it happen. The look of disappointment on his face would be unbearable.

“Rachel, it’s fine, really. We’ve got a few more days here, we can come back when you’re feeling better.”

“I’m better! I mean- I was not even sick to begin with. Let’s just stay ok? We can try to catch the sunset too.”

You muster up a smile, hoping it didn’t look too weak in his eyes and you internally breathed a sigh of relief when he walked back onto the beach. You helped him carefully lay out a mat under a shady palm tree – the last thing you need is some skin ailment from the harmful UV rays. The two of you chatted like you always did, and the conversation flowed smoothly from one topic to the other. Younghyun got tired after some time, and you let him rest his head against your lap as you threaded your fingers through his short black hair. You silently observed as he slowly fell asleep, noticing the rhythmic rising and falling of his chest as well. It brought back memories of that afternoon in the café – but that awful reality felt like a universe away and once again, you thanked the heavens that you no longer had to experience that sort of uncertainty again.

Just as you were staring out at the horizon, you felt Younghyun shift around on your lap. He – too – was now watching the horizon like you did but he turned to you swiftly to ask a question.

“Do you want to swim? It’ll be fun, bet the water isn’t too cold.”

Shit. Why did he have to ask this question…

Licking your dry lips, you racked your brain for the least suspicious excuse and you mentally steeled yourself before answering, praying fervently that Younghyun wouldn’t press the issue further.

“Erm… I don’t actually feel like swimming today… you can swim on your own! I’ll get us some snacks from the convenience store?”

You jabbed a thumb behind you, hoping that Younghyun would let you off the hook.

“Awww. You really don’t want to swim?”

Younghyun pouts and gives you his best puppy eyes, even going so far as to rise his voice a pitch higher to play up his cute appeal. Usually that would have done the trick, but not today. Not in this situation.

“It’s fine, really. I’ll swim another time! I’ll go get the snacks now ok? What do you want?”

“Ice cream? Oh, frozen slushies!”

“Alright, I got you. Be right back!”

Both of you rose from your respective spots and as you rummaged through your bag for your wallet, Younghyun sheds off his clothes, leaving him only in a loose-fitting white shirt and swimming trunks. You left the beach fast, your heart stopped thumping when your feet finally let the hot sand onto the hot gravel. The little granites of gravel rock tickled the soles of your feet, occasionally pricking the skin but you didn’t let the pain bother you. Whatever it is, it’s always going to be better than staying by on the beach… and near the sea. Just before you pushed open the glass doors of the convenience door, you turned back to glance at Younghyun one last time, realising that he was not waddling knee-deep into the water. Turning your eyes away from the scene, you entered the store, the blast of cold air from the air conditioning above causing you to shiver momentarily. You took your time picking out the ice-cream and slushie flavours, wanting to delay the return to the beach. A good 20 minutes had passed before you were willing to head to the counter to pay, and you were only out of the store after 25 minutes. Gripping the white plastic tightly in your fists, you trudged back to the shore. Once again, you were trying to delay your return – but you were only delaying the inevitable. Eventually, your feet found soft sand again and you called for Younghyun as you dug around the plastic bag for his food.

“Younghyun! Got your ice cream, you should eat it now before it melts!”

You anticipated a reply from him but none came. Instead, the only sound that filled your ears was the sound of the waves crashing against the shore and rocks, creating a loud and distant boom as they slammed into the wall of rocks. It felt like déjà vu.

No… it can’t be…

“Younghyun?”

You tried calling his name again, louder this time, as you turned to face the sea despite the blinding lights of the now setting sun. All you were met with is a body of water that glistened golden under the sun rays, but there was nobody in sight. It was happening all over again.

“Younghyun… come on now, it isn’t funny. Show yourself. Younghyun! YOUNGHYUN-AH!”

With each successive cry being met with silence, the desperation grows within you, swelling like a bubble that threatened to burst apart any moment to release a torrential flood in it’s wake. With shaky legs and ragged breathing, it’s a miracle that you got to the sea without tripping, your fear of the sea forgotten as you plunged into the water in search of him. It’s been years since you’ve last went swimming ever since that incident, so your body no longer knows what to do when it’s in water. In an effort of stay afloat, you flail your limbs frantically as you move deeper into the water in search of him. Like before, the saltwater mixes in with your tears, and you’re no longer sure which is streaming down your face. The mouthfuls of saltwater that you drink in makes you gag, and you nearly retch your innards out into the ocean. You scream, and scream, and scream – but Younghyun didn’t reply you, nor was there anyone that came to help you.

You’re all alone – again.

Just as you were slowly losing consciousness from the exertion, you felt strong movement from beneath you and you came face to face with Younghyun, whom was now carrying you bridal style with his hair slicked back due to the water.

“Rachel! What were you doing!”

Younghyun’s teeth are bared as his lips curl upwards, a deep frown settling between his brows as he noticed the look of pure anguish on your pale face. Younghyun doesn’t get another word in before you’re lunging at him, knocking the breath out of his lungs as you slam into him. You’re now clinging onto him with a vice-like grip – your arms around his shoulders as you secure your legs around his waist. Younghyun feels the skin around his shoulder break as you dug your nails into his flesh, the weight on your leg bruising his lower back. Still, Younghyun doesn’t say a word – something terrible has gotten you shaken up so badly, and your well-being was his top priority now. Your harrowing sobs into his ears evokes deep sorrow within him, the kind that comes from deep within his bones. He immediately wrapped his arms around your smaller frame, hoping the contact will help to calm you down.

“Oh my god, I thought I had lost your forever! I was so scared… so afraid… so – ”

You choke on your saliva and words, violently coughing now as you struggle to get your words out.

“Shhh… it’s ok, I’m here now, I’m here now. I got you, ok? Don’t cry anymore please…”

Younghyun continues to soothe you with his words as he strokes your hair with one hand, the other placed securely around your waist. It wasn’t until a violent tremor ripped through your body before Younghyun realises that you might be cold from the water. Wordlessly, he carried you out of the water and back onto the shore. Even as he tried to detach himself from you, you couldn’t let him go, tightening your grip on him instead.

“Please! Don’t go! Don’t leave me again…”

There was so much desperation and pleading in your voice that he feels his heart crack at your words so he does as he is told, never leaving your side. With one hand, he tugged the towels out of his black duffel bag before wrapping them around your shivering self. The two of you stay locked in each other’s embrace until the sun sets. That’s when you’ve finally calmed down, and you were willing to let him go. Younghyun feels your grip on him gradually loosen as your hands fall limply to your lap, your eyes still glossed over from the trauma earlier. He takes it as a cue to try to probe the topic – what the hell was that just now?

“Rachel? Rachel, love, can you talk to me?”

You nod your head slowly – it was only a matter of time before he found out and you would have to tell him. With your little fiasco just now, there was no running from the matter anymore.

“I’m afraid of the water.”

Younghyun raises an eyebrow at your statement – he’s not thoroughly convinced that this was the sole reason for your behaviour just now. There must be more to the story. When you’re met with silence, you hesitantly lift your eyes to meet his.

Doubt. Worry. Apprehension. – these 3 emotions were clearly reflected in his eyes. Of course, of course he wasn’t going to believe you. That outburst wasn’t just due to simple “fear” – even a toddler can see through your lies.

“That’s it…?”

“No, of course, that’s not simply it. You know it yourself Younghyun, I can see it in your eyes. It’s just… it’s just… it’s just something that I still have a very hard time talking about.”

“It’s alright, just take your time. I’m not going to go anywhere.”

Sucking in a deep breath, you close your eyes before you start telling your story, not wanting to look Younghyun in the eye out of fear that your resolve might break again.

“I lied. I lied about my family. My parents weren’t just out of town for a long business trip, they’re… they’re… they’re gone. Gone as in dead. I lost them due to drowning many years ago, before I even became a teenager. Right here by a beach. We were just playing in the waters before this storm came out of nowhere. The waves got larger… more violent…

And then…”

You let out a shaky breath at this point in time, hot tears burning at the back of your eyes again. Still, you persisted with your story.

“And then I just couldn’t see them anymore. I woke up a long time later in the hospital, only to have my aunt tell me that they’ve left. That’s why I was so deathly afraid, Younghyun. I can’t bear the idea of losing someone else that I love to the waters again. I can’t stand the idea of someone that I love leaving my side too soon again. It’s all too much to bear and I – ”

Another violent sob rips involuntarily from your throat and Younghyun has you trapped in his warm embrace again, once again stroking your hair as he tries to comfort you.

“I won’t leave you. I meant it earlier when I told you that I always got you.”

You scoff weakly against his chest.

“You’re not going to be around forever, Younghyun. People die and leave as a natural course of life.”

“I will stay, I will be around for as long as you would allow me to. I’m not going to die and I’m not going to leave.”

“Even when she wants you back?”

You don’t know why the words slipped out of your mouth, you’re not even sure if he knew that Ayeon and Jaebeom had broken up. Maybe it was your fear talking and now that you’ve said it, you waited in bated breath for his reply.

“Even when she wants me back. I’m not going anymore. I’m staying here by your side. I’m here, I’m always going to catch you when you fall. Promise.”

The frantic beating of your heart finally slows down, your heart comforted by his words of reassurance. Younghyun tightened his hold around you when he felt you snuggle into his chest. He places a soft kiss to the crown of your head before staring off into the horizon.

I promise you; I’ll be by your side.

[prolestariwrites]

Time To Go [4]: Sparda Boys On A Road Trip, What Could Go Wrong?

Fandom: Devil May Cry Rating: M Characters: Nero, Dante, Vergil, Kyrie, Nico, Trish, Morrison Tags: Mystery, Humor, Missing Person, First Time, Family Drama, Family Bonding, Post-Canon Chapter: 4/9 Chapter [1] [2] [3]

Summary: When Kyrie goes missing, Nero goes on a desperate search to find her. Unfortunately, Dante and Vergil go too. Sparda boys shenanigans, fighting demons, a smattering of family drama, and male bonding (otherwise known as Nero’s worst nightmare). Please check it out below, or you can read on FFNet or AO3. Beta read by @copper-wasp.

Now posted! Chapter 4: Sparda Boys On A Road Trip, What Could Go Wrong? in which the Sparda boys go on a road trip, and Dante fights a cat.

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Getting out of the van was one of the best moments of Nero’s life. Despite his warnings, Dante and Vergil continued to discuss women, sex, techniques, preferences, and things they had seen on television until Nero thought he would go mad. When they pulled into Clear Point at a quarter past midnight, he was never so glad to see a bar in his life.

Calling it a bar is generous, he decides. A dive is more accurate: decrepit, even. He puts his hands on his hips and looks the building up and down, taking in the dirty brick and the BAR sign half-flickering in pink neon. The windows are nearly black and the door looks rusted shut. He is going to need a hazmat suit to go in there.

Vergil makes a noise as he steps up next to Nero. “That place looks disgusting. I’m not going in there.”

Nero is loath to agree with anything he says, but nods. On the other side of him Dante says, “Places like this always have the best grub.”

Both Nero and Vergil turn to look at him strangely, and Dante shrugs. “What? It’s true. There’s a reason this place is so dirty.” They stare at him blankly and Dante gestures, “You know, ‘cause people come here.”

“Not people. Demons.” Trish steps out of the shadows and walks up towards them, shaking her head. “This isn’t gonna work.”

“What isn’t?” Nero asks.

“The three of you. You stick out like a sore thumb.” She nods to Dante. “Especially you. You can’t come in.”

“Fine by me,” he says, stretching his arms over his head.

Nero gives him a glance as Trish continues, “Find somewhere to set up and cover the door. My contact knows we’re coming, but the bar will be full of demons. If they start to suspect something, there may be a problem.”

“Right.” Dante salutes and walks off whistling. Nero turns back to Trish, who looks them both over. “You’ll do,” she says to Vergil, then jerks her chin at Nero. “You stay in the van.”

“No way,” Nero says. “I’m coming too.”

“He looks like a demon,” Trish argues, pointing at Vergil. “Still smells like one too. You, on the other hand, look like a three-course meal. No way you are gonna pass in there.”

“I’m not staying here!” Nero snaps.

“And I’m not going in there,” Vergil adds, gesturing towards the bar. “God knows what diseases I’ll pick up. And I don’t smell.”

Trish huffs in annoyance and puts her hands on her hips. “Look, either we do it my way, or we don’t do it at all. Vergil comes, no one else. Or you can turn right around and go back to Fortuna. I’m not risking you scaring off my informant because you’re too stubborn to do this.”

Nero works his jaw as he struggles to put a lid on his temper. “Fine. Vergil goes in. But I’m giving you ten minutes, that’s it.”

“What?” Vergil exclaims.

“You owe me,” Nero nearly growls, jabbing him in the arm with his finger.

Vergil rolls his eyes with a sigh. “When will you stop playing this card? Fine. I’ll go in, but I’m not touching anything.”

Nero watches them enter, shaking his head when Vergil insists Trish hold the door open for him. He will be damned if he’s sitting in the car though, so he goes hunting for Dante, who is pretty easy to spot in his red leather coat. He finds him on the roof of an auto supply store across the street, and Nero easily pulls himself up the side of the building and walks across the roof, crouching down next to where Dante is sitting. “Vergil went in,” he says. “Trish said he was the most demonish.”

Dante laughs. “Yeah, sounds about right. Pop a squat, kid.”

“No thanks.” Nero flexes his hands as he stares at the front door of the bar.

He feels Dante give him a hard clap on the back. “Try not to worry.”

“How can I not?” he hisses. “Kyrie is god knows where, she could be hurt, she could be— shit! If we don’t find her—”

“We will.”

“It’s been more than a day.” Nero runs a hand through his hair, tugging it sharply by the roots. “We need to find her.”

Dante stretches his legs out, leaning back on his palms to prop himself up. “They said they’d be in touch, right? They wouldn’t kill her if they were gonna call you.”

Nero glances over to argue, but can’t find a good retort. Dante’s right, but the lack of action and the very casual way he watches the bar grates on Nero’s nerves. “They’re gonna be dead once I find them.”

They fall into silence as a few minutes tick by. Then Dante asks, “You got any money?”

Nero frowns. “A bit, why?”

“I’ve got an idea.”

He kneels and reaches into his pocket, pulling out a couple of twenty dollar bills and handing them over. Dante grins and fishes inside his own pocket, finding his cell phone. Nero watches as he pushes a few buttons, narrowing his eyes when Dante puts the phone to his ear and flashes a smile.

His suspicion turns to irritation when Dante says, “Hey! You are open. That’s awesome. Yeah, I need a large ham and extra cheese, and throw some pepperoni on there too—”

“You’re ordering pizza?” Nero hisses.

Dante waves him off, turning to finish his order. Nero silently fumes as he describes the auto shop, shooting him a death glare when Dante laughs as he hangs up. “They’ll be here in ten.”

“We’re staking out a demon hangout and you’re ordering food,” he mutters.

“I’m hungry,” Dante counters. He stands up and stretches, then looks down at Nero. “I’m gonna go wait down there. Give a signal if something happens.”

He strolls over to the side of the roof, and Nero watches in annoyance as he swings his legs over and jumps. “What an idiot,” he mutters, shaking his head. This family is filled with idiots, but he can’t help but chuckle a bit despite himself.

Several minutes go by in silence, and Nero feels uneasy. Something should be happening, but there is no sound or movement from the bar. No one goes in or out, and he keeps a sharp eye on the windows for any sign of what is happening inside. As he waits, he can’t help but think of Kyrie. His mind goes to the worst possible scenarios, flipping through them like a picture book: Kyrie hurt, Kyrie crying, Kyrie tied up, Kyrie shivering and dirty and scared. Emotion wells in him at the idea, and he vows for the thousandth time to find the bastard that did this and make him pay.

A car pulls up below, and when Nero leans over to look he sees Dante bending into the passenger window. A moment later he emerges with a pizza box, and Nero rolls his eyes. Deep down he is grateful he is here; Nero wouldn’t have gotten nearly this far without him, and if and when it comes to fighting Dante is the best. Plus… he grumbles to himself, folding his arms, It is nice to not have to do this alone.

Vergil, though, is another story. Nero had insisted that he not come, but he and Dante basically bulldozed over him. Nero grits his teeth thinking about the two of them together. Everything is a contest they can bicker over, and when they do actually get along for a minute, it’s as if they are determined to join forces to drive him mad. He gives a shudder, thinking about the quickly aborted sex talk. Sometimes it felt like they wanted to make up for twenty years by going over the top playing dad and uncle, when other times they treat him like an employee, or worse, some dumb kid. Is it even possible for their family to just be normal?

His thoughts are interrupted when there is a movement in the window. Nero stands, narrowing his eyes into a piercing gaze, when a bullet whizzes out of the window with the sound of shattering glass. “Dante!” he shouts, launching himself forward, and he easily jumps off the side of the building and lands in a crouch that knocks the wind from him a bit.

Dante is nowhere to be seen, but he takes off running, darting to the front door and yanking it open. He blinks as his eyes adjust while he steps inside, pulling his gun from the holster on his side and looking around. The place is packed with people, although many of them look strange, and his insides twist as eyes land on him.

“Who the fuck are you?” one of the demons asks, standing up and flashing a set of claws.

“Back off,” Nero growls, pointing his gun at it. The demon doesn’t move, so Nero’s eyes dart around, looking for Trish and Vergil. He carefully steps around the tables, aiming for any demons that look like they might want to tangle. The others are nowhere to be seen, and he mutters a curse as he makes his way through the room.

A hand grabs his arm and Nero spins, ready to fight. But it’s Trish, who is glaring at him angrily. “What are you doing in here?” she asks. “I told you to stay outside!”

“A bullet came flying out!” he hisses. “I thought you guys were in trouble.”

“You need to go,” she mutters. Trish pushes on his back to spin him, herding him towards the front door.

“Stop,” Nero protests. “Where is your informant? I want to talk to him.”

“No. You need to—”

A huge man steps in front of them, blocking their path. He is easily over seven feet tall, and both Nero and Trish look up into his deep scowl. His body is huge, dark oily hair hanging in his eyes, but Nero can easily see the crimson glow in the corner of his eyes. “Hey. I know you.”

“Good for you,” Nero snaps.

“You’re that kid from Fortuna.” The guy cracks his knuckles, and Nero puts his thumb on the hammer of the gun. “I lost my whole crew there.” It narrows its eyes and grins, revealing sharp and pointed teeth. “Time to pay up.”

They both move at the same time, and Nero has his revolver pointed between the demon’s eyes as its giant hand grabs the top of his head. He feels it squeeze, and Nero cocks the gun. “Let’s see who pays first,” he growls.

“Don’t try me,” the demon answers.

There is movement in the bar as people step back from the fight, but then the flash of something catches Nero’s eye. The Yamato is now pressed against the demon’s neck, and Nero spots Vergil behind it. “Looks like you lost,” Vergil says.

“This isn’t your business,” the demon growls.

“On the contrary. He is my business.”

The demon gives a low rumble. “If you think cutting off my head will stop me—”

He tilts the blade so it picks up some of the light in the room. “Take a look at this sword, and decide if you want to risk it.” Vergil tilts his head, a small smile creeping on his lips. “I can assure you, this blade is no ordinary weapon.”

Nero’s eyes dart back to the demon’s face. The creature is peering down at the blade, and then its brows twitch. “Fine,” it says, releasing its grip on Nero.

He keeps his gun pointed as Vergil steps around the hulking thing. “Move,” Nero says.

The demon takes a step back, and then its arms go out. “Looks like the sons of Sparda are here!” he calls. The entire bar goes silent, every head turning in their direction. “Anyone feel like getting some payback?”

“Oh shit,” Nero curses. He and Vergil press back to back as dozens of them form a circle around them, the familiar burn on his arm filling the room with a blue glow as his demon arm rises to the surface of his skin.

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“Son of a bitch!” Dante curses. He kicks a trashcan and listens, following the rattling sound through the alley. It is dark as hell in the space between the auto shop and the convenience store next door, but he knows the thing darted in there.

He grabs another can and pushes it aside, and finds his prey underneath. “There you are,” he growls. “Give it back.”

The cat hisses at him, standing on top of the half-eaten pizza it had snatched. Dante had stuffed four slices in his mouth before slinging the box under his arm for the climb back up to the roof. But just as he had reached the top, the damn thing slid out from his grip and fell to the ground. By the time Dante had jumped back down it was gone, and the mangy tail of the stray slinking down the alley told him exactly what had happened to it.

“Shoo,” he says, waving his hands at the cat. “That’s mine. Get out of here.”

The cat’s hair stands on end, its back going rigid as it gives another hiss. “All right, you asked for it,” Dante says.

He moves to grab the cat, but its claws swipe first, drawing blood on his arm. “Damn it!” Dante curses, and then the cat bites his hand, its teeth sinking in and not letting go. He shakes his arm to knock the cat away, but the fucker won’t let go, and he tugs on its scruff to pry it from him.

At the end of the alley, an eruption of gunfire and shouting catches his attention, and he drops the cat. It pounces onto his leg, giving him one last bite for good measure before darting underneath the dumpster against the wall. “Bastard!” he snaps, shaking his bleeding hand.

More gunfire and a roar sounds, and then he hears Nero shout, “Dante! Haul ass!”

He looks down at the ground where his pizza is covered in dirt and hair, ruined. “You owe me ten bucks!” he yells at the dumpster before taking off for the street, pulling Ebony and Ivory out as he runs.

There are demons spilling from the bar, kept at bay by Vergil and the Yamato. Dante darts forward, landing in the center of the swarm, and starts shooting. It takes no time at all for the two of them to wipe out the dozens of demons, but just when he thinks they are done, more start to emerge from the shadows and crawling up from the sewer grates.

“What the hell did you guys do?” he shouts to Vergil.

“You were supposed to be covering us!” Vergil yells back.

He looks up to see Trish pushing something into the side of the van as Nero pulls the door shut. “Get in, let’s go!” he calls, yanking open the passenger door and sending a few bullets flying over Dante’s shoulders before pitching himself inside.

He makes it to the van first, Vergil a split second after, and he climbs into the back as Vergil slams the passenger door. Nero takes off with a squeal of the tires, and Dante stumbles, landing hard on the floor of the van with a shout.

“Well that didn’t go as planned,” Trish says.

He looks up at where she is sitting on the bench, her legs crossed and an annoyed look on her face. “Just another Saturday night,” he jokes.

“It’s Tuesday,” she says sarcastically to Dante. Then she yells at the front seat, “And I told you to stay out of there!”

“It’s not my fault!” Nero argues back.

“Just take a left up here,” Trish sighs. She nudges the thing next to her, and Dante peers in the darkness at the lump. After a second he realizes it is a person—or rather, a demon in a person disguise that is now dirty and badly torn.

“This your guy?” he asks.

“Yeah. Now we can see if he knows anything.”

Dante grins as the van crests a hard left. “Good thing for you, interrogation is my specialty.”

[fluorescentpipedream]

Dayton winced as he opened his eyes. The ceiling above him was high and a eggshell white and it took him a moment to realize where exactly he was. The bed he was sleeping in wasn’t nearly as comfortable as the one he had gotten accustomed to and the coarse, itchy blanket over top of him told him exactly where he was. 

Sitting up, he got out of the bed and put his socked feet on the tile floor, glancing at the soft, baby blue walls and the large metal door that sealed him in this room like an animal. He’d fucked up, and he knew it. Dropping his head into his hands, he flinched and looked down at his hands, opening the palms and just stared at the bandage on his right hand.

“Fuck.”

He got up slowly and wobbled a little, losing his footing and sat back down again. They must have had to sedate him, and since he couldn’t really remember what exactly had happened, he could only assume he’d had another blackout. Trying again, this time he found his feet and carefully, if not a little unsteadily, he found his way into the small bathroom that was across from the bed. The room was small, just a bed, the door and a simple toilet with a sink off to one side in a sort of alcove. After relieving himself, he stared at his reflection in the mirror, one hand on either side of the sink. What had happened…?

A click at the door let him know someone had come in and he heard Dr. Snow’s soft voice.“Just a minute.” He flushed the toilet and washed his hands a second time before drying his hands as he walked out. He picked at the bandage that was wrapped between his thumb and index finger and frowned when it pulled the skin.

“Good morning, Dayton.”

“Hmm.”

The woman gave him an expectant look and he sighed. “Good morning, Dr. Snow.”

“That’s better.” 

She looked around the room and seemed almost sad that he was back in here again. After a moment of looking down at her clipboard she brought her blue eyes back up to his soft brown ones, and gave him a sympathetic look. “Do you remember what brought you back to the main building?”

He held his right hand up to her. “This..” He hadn’t been particularly suicidal in almost four years, so this was a little out of character. Lowering his hand, he turned and put the bed back together again, but hesitated before he sat on it.

“Yes…that. Would you like to go back to your apartment?”

“Am I allowed to do that?”

“That’s up to you. Do you want to?”

“Yes”

“Good! I thought we might walk back there and we could see how you felt from there.” 

Dayton, for his part, only nodded and sat down, shifting off the socks he was wearing and put on a pair of black sandals that were under the bed. He was wearing the standard issue mental hospital patient garb and he hated it, he’d rather be in his own clothes. Standing again, he used the wall to brace himself and frowned. “Did they think I was a tiger or something?” Dr. Snow gave him a sad look before he smiled at her and she realized he was making an odd, badly timed joke.“No...I’ll explain on the way home. You owe Trey an apology.”

He only nodded and motioned for her to lead out of his room. “Did you call my sister this time?” He scoffed but when the doctor didn’t answer him, Dayton looked at her. “Dr. Snow?”

“What do you remember from Wednesday?”

“What’s today?”

“Friday.”

“Fuck, I lost a day.” 

Dayton shrugged. His short term memory had mostly been taken out by the brain damage caused by the alcohol poisoning and head injury when he’d struck the ground at the Mensa gathering eleven years ago. “Um....” He tried wracking his brain a little as they walked to the elevator, once inside he turned to the doctor again, having to look down at her. She was all of 5ft tall, a squat woman anyhow but being 7 months pregnant made her look more like the little girl that turned into a blueberry in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Especially since she was wearing a blue jacket. His brain got stuck. “Violet.” He stopped and looked ahead at the door. “No...sorry. Lottie.” 

“Why did you say Violet?” 

“Thinking of something else, I derailed.” 

“Oh...alright then.” She chuckled as he started whistling the Oompah Loompah song. “You can be so funny sometimes.” It was a dry compliment and Dayton stopped, looking down at his feet, his hair falling into his eyes.  

“Lottie came to get me and we had lunch Wednesday, like we do every other week.” he trailed off, his voice catching in his throat when he mentioned his sister. And then it happened, rather suddenly he felt his face get hot. He clenched his fists, immediately regretting it as pain shot through his right hand and relaxed them again. Lottie came twice a month, every other Wednesday. They would go out for coffee or lunch somewhere in the Quarter and just spend the day together. He always looked forward to it, doing everything in his power to take his medication, keep himself heading in the right direction so he could have that little reward. This time had been no different but while they’d been at lunch at one of the oyster houses, she had broken some heartbreaking news. 

“So…Tyler and I are getting married next month and…” She’d started and Dayton had set down the sweet tea he’d gotten with his lunch, looking at her somewhat expectantly. He’d thought she was going to invite him to the wedding finally, since she kept saying she’d add him when she knew the seating charts better.

“And?”

“And…I’m sorry Dayton but…we don’t think it’d be a very good idea for you to…eh…be there” He felt like his world had fallen apart with that one sentence, especially since she wouldn’t look at him.

“Lottie…?”

“Well. Tyler and I were talking and…he says that….when we get married he thinks….well WE think that maybe I shouldn’t come see you anymore…” She had trailed off and for a minute he didn’t think he’d heard her correctly, though as she looked up at him, he realized he had heard her and she was serious. Her tone was soft and sheepish, and he remembered now that he’d growled at her, getting up from the table until she’d put her hand on the top of his, her eyes pleading him to sit down.

“This is Tyler’s doing! Lottie…you’re the only part of the family that even acknowledges I’m still alive…why would you do this? Why?” He was heartbroken, and who would blame him? Dayton had sat back down at the table but his appetite was gone at that point.

“It was his gun you tried to shoot yourself with in the park, and Dayton what if…what if you came out of the hospital and you hurt yourself again or…we have kids and you hurt one of them? I…can’t. I just…maybe it would be better if you’re not part of our…my life. I’m….I’m sorry.”

“You’re sorry.” He spat back at her and shook his head. “Take me back to the Manor…maybe we should just end this now.” He’d remained silent on the trip home, she had tried several times to start but the dirty look from him each time she tried had silenced her immediately. When she’d pulled up in front of his little duplex apartment, Dayton had gotten out of the car without a word but stopped before he closed the door.

“Lottie” His tone was soft and sad, but as he turned on her it got angry. 

“You’re 25 and I know you think this is the only thing you’re ever going to get, I understand love. Fuck! I’m a 43 divorced gay man with brain damage bad enough I have to live in this place because I can’t function on my own! Why don’t you let your ‘dangerous’ brother give you some advice. Men like Tyler come and go, they don’t matter. What fucking matters is supposed to be your family and you were the one I had left! But...You’re right…you shouldn’t have me in your life, because I’M the bad guy!. I’m a danger to myself and everyone else, might as well be better off if I’m just not around!” 

He slammed her car door shut and went into his apartment.The blood rushing in his ears had been so loud it had sounded like he was standing inside of a waterfall and he felt like he’d lost control of the world. He had fucked up four years ago, not wanting to live anymore, he had taken Tyler’s gun to Audubon park and put the gun in his mouth, hoping to just shoot himself and be done with the world. But instead, it had just clicked. The damn gun wasn’t loaded, though the fear of that click had scared him. He had gotten into it with Tyler after the other man had made an underhanded comment that he should stop mooching off his sister’s kindness. Lottie had offered, since their parents pretended that they didn’t know who he was and in the middle of all of it, unable to make sense of what was happening in his own head, he’d slipped down a depressive slope and decided that he didn’t want to burden anyone anymore.

Dayton was walking with the doctor now, trying to remember what had happened after he’d gotten home but he couldn’t think of anything. Beside him, Dr. Snow waddled along with an uneasy gait. He stopped walking so she could stop to catch her breath.

“Sorry…doctor. Long legs.”

“I know…you and Mr. Powell make me work for it.”

Dayton chuckled and looked down at the bandage on his wrist again. There were a couple of little dots of red blood seeping around the edges and he sighed, lowering his hand.

“I try to kill myself again. That’s a mature reaction to your sister telling you to fuck off out of her life…” He rolled his eyes at himself.

“Trey says no…he found you in the bathroom with pieces of the mirror in the sink. He thinks you hurt yourself and hit the panic button, which actually is a much better reaction.”

Dayton thought about it for a minute and then remembered. He had gone into the bathroom to take one of his sleeping pills but when he couldn’t find them, he’d gotten angry and punched his mirror. He had picked up one of the larger pieces of glass and ran it over his palm, the blood beading up around the cut as he did it but he had hesitated long enough to get some clarity. Lottie had been the cherry topper to his week. He had been on google when his name had come up under one of the headlines, something about the Mensa gathering and his name coming up during one of the speeches. A man he vaguely remembered had talked about him, once again as a cautionary tale of how not to turn out. He’d looked up the man who gave the speech and though it had taken a minute he remembered him. Mike Tomlin had been a straight-forward young man, he’d approached Dayton apparently to ask a question but instead said he wanted to kiss him. It had only been a few days after his divorce was finalized, he’d been drunk and reckless and figured a night of sex with some 20-something would be a good distraction. It had turned out that Mike was 18, not 20 and a virgin but he was good in bed, at least. Now he was attending meetings and delivering speeches like Dayton used to do, name dropping like he had any idea what was actually going on. It had hurt, whether he wanted it to or not and this wedding business had been the last straw. He’d thought about it, just end it then, be done and disappear. He wouldn’t have to disappoint and hurt people anymore but something had stopped him.

Dayton couldn’t say what it was but as he’d watched the blood pool in his palm and drip into a sink full of shattered glass, he’d hit the button beside the toilet that summoned his personal nurse. Trey was a good man, entirely creole and black as darkest night. He’d found Dayton sitting on the ground with a towel tied tightly around his hand and a sad, lost look in his eyes.

“Why did they sedate me?” 

Dayton stopped underneath a bough of one of the massive oak trees on the property and looked up at the leaves and the sun shining through them. There was something surreal about New Orleans, it was in the air at all times and for that moment he actually felt calm. A little embarrassed, but calm. 

“They didn’t, but you lost a lot of blood before Trey got to you.”

“Oh.” He sighed and looked at her. “I don’t think I’m suicidal anymore. I considered it...I remember that part very well. I actually thought about not being anyone’s problem anymore but then...”

“I know. And I’m very glad to hear it, we’re getting somewhere.” She smiled brightly at him and started walking again. He offered her his other hand and helped steady her across the uneven cobblestones in the walkway. 

“I think you actually made a very good decision about Lottie. Even if you didn’t realize it at the time”

Dayton looked down at the little woman beside him and raised an eyebrow, not really able to figure out where she was going with this. Sensing this, she continued, urging him to keep walking. They were almost back to his apartment.

“You agreed with her that having you in her life wasn’t safe..but it wasn’t about her safety. You used Tyler’s gun, four years ago, to try to kill yourself and had it been loaded, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. But you told me when we met that you felt like he was making your life harder because he made you feel guilty for relying on your sister. And now, he’s using her to push his weight around again, trying to make you into the bad guy to make him feel better about telling her how to live her life.”

Dayton didn’t say anything but it did make a certain amount of sense. As they walked in silence, he was listening to the hum of the cicadas all around them. It was summer so hot and humid. He had been expecting to see Arthur sitting outside the apartment next to his but remembered he was in Los Angeles with his little sister and her new boyfriend.

Dayton had only smiled at him when Arthur had asked him to watch one of his plants. It was a fake plant, as far as Dayton could tell, so it was probably a joke. Arthur was a weird man, only a little younger than Dayton was, and ready to get out of this place now. He was going to end up following his sister Frankie wherever she went but their relationship was different. He’d asked Arthur to bring him something from Disney but wasn’t going to be surprised if the other man forgot. Stopping in front of his door he sighed and looked at the doctor.

“Want to come in?”

“I would love something to drink…and I do have something else I’d like to show you.”

“I don’t think I’ve got much more room up there for anything else.”

“You got a package yesterday.”

He started to say something but wasn’t sure how to respond to that. The only person that sent him things was Lottie. The doctor said nothing else as he let her into his apartment. He remembered destroying it, but maybe that was wrong.

“The cleaners came in and straightened it up in here.”

He nodded and offered her a seat before going into the small kitchenette and got two glasses of tea from a container in his fridge. Offering one to the doctor he noticed the small box on his coffee table and gestured at it. 

“It’s open.”

“You know we have to go through your mail. Sorry.”

“oh…right.” He leaned over and looked down into the box. The contents confused him even further. A floppy, Jellycat brand frog with a green bow around its neck, a large box of crayola colored pencils and a spiral bound coloring book of forest animals, a large bag of mini gourmet fruit slice candies and a CD from the Gothic Demolition.

“What in the world?”

“There’s a letter…” She sipped the tea and leaned forward, picking up a rather long looking letter but as he glanced at it he realized the handwriting was bigger than most adults’.

“It’s from a child.”

“Yep…seems that little Mensa party got you a fan.”

“That’s odd...Did you read the letter?”

“Skimmed it mostly, but not completely. I think it might make you feel better.”

“You don’t find it strange a little kid wants to be my friend?”

“I do. But I also think it might be good for you. Read the letter, you’ll understand”

He tossed the letter back into the box to go through it later. Dr Snow watched his movements but didn’t say anything about it, they had other things to discuss. Before leaving she reminded him that the lunch car would be coming around in another hour, and he should remember to eat something.“Trey will be coming by later too…and I will see you for our last meeting next week, before I go on leave. While I’m gone…”

“Dr Stadler will be coming, I remember.”

“Good! Your short term memory must be getting better.”

“No, it’s not. I wrote it down.”

“Oh, well... Have a good day, Dayton. And lets try to keep you out of the main hospital for a while, okay?”

“Yeah.” He had waved her off and was left standing in his apartment. He was uncomfortable and felt shaky and nauseous. Laying against his door for another moment he pushed off of it and walked into the little bedroom in the back. There was a bathroom attached to it, just a standard tile shower, a toilet and a window with a nice view of the grounds. His stomach rolled and he knelt down for a minute or two to see if he was actually going to throw up but all he did was dry heave. Taking a few slow breaths, Dayton got up and into the shower, just standing under the water as it beat down in his shoulders. He wanted to cry, scream, kick something, lash out at someone but all he could do was stand there. 

When he got out, he still felt hollow and laid face down on his bed, pulling an old, worn out alligator toy from under his pillow and snuggled with it. To some extent, it had hurt his feelings to be used as a warning once again. Only remembered for what he could have been rather than what he was now. What was he now? 

Anger welled up in him again and he screamed as loud as he could until he couldn’t breathe anymore and clamped his eyes shut. He must have fallen asleep, because someone was knocking on his door and he could hear someone saying his name, rather loudly.

“Dayton! Answer me brutha...”

Dayton raised his head off the gator toy and grumbled. “I’m fine...I f-Fell asleep. I’ll be out in a minute, Trey”

“You scared me, man...thought you were hurt or somethin. Jeeesus!”

He couldn’t help but chuckle, rolling off his bed and pulled on a soft pair of pajama pants. As he walked out of his room carrying his shirt he stopped and stared at a young woman in his living room. “Hello Sherri”

“Hey! Trey told me you weren’t feeling well! We got you some gumbo and beignets”

“Thanks...”

Trey moved over to him and checked him out for a moment, the touch felt alien and made him uncomfortable. Trey was, first as foremost a nurse, but he did everything to make his patients feel more like they were friends. On a normal day, Dayton appreciated that, today he would rather be alone. But with them both here he knew he was going to have to eat and function a little longer.

“Cute frog”

“What?”

Sherri had opened the box on his table and was holding the floppy little frog. Dayton shrugged but when she came toward him and set it on his shoulder he smiled weakly. “We should get that gator of yours and set them together somewhere. I’ve got a camera..”

Trey had started to say something, probably about to remind her that Dayton was 43, not 12, but he interjected first. “It’s a gift from a little girl, she might like to see that he arrived safely”

“Great! I’ll go get it camera out of the car, we were at the zoo today”

Dayton looked at Trey and the two exchanged a wordless glance before the other man pointed at his cup of soup.

“Eat.”

While Dayton was eating, Sherri seemed to be having fun setting up the stuffed animals doing things like playing cards or sitting in the window just looking out.

“She realizes I’m not going to use all those, right?”

“Yeah...the camera prints Polaroids like the old ones used to...these are stickers though. She might be stickin them in her little scrapbook thing, if ya don’t mind”

“Whatever. Those cameras aren’t that old either”

“They are to me. Gimme you’re hand brutha, I need to clean that up. You look like you’re having a rough go, you want a smoke?”

One thing about Trey, he smokes marijuana when he doesn’t have to work, and since it’s legal across the US, he had taken to offering it to Dayton once in a while. It didn’t alter his medication and often helped him sleep. Dr Snow was wary of getting him a prescription for it but she didn’t seem to mind if he got it once in a while. While focusing on the bandage wrapped around his hand once more, Dayton nodded. 

Trey smiled and walked out to his car, coming back up a few minutes later with a small case, which he handed to him.

“When I was at the dispensary, I gotcha this. It’s a vape, real easy to use, a couple of puffs and you can go to sleep.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome brutha...Sherri, baby, lets leave him alone alright?”

“Okay, feel better, Dayton”

“Thanks Sherri...” she hugged him, seemingly unaffected by how tense he became and the two left. Once he was alone, Dayton opened the small case and took a few minutes to figure out the vape pen, letting it heat up as he turned his attention to the box on his table again.

Picking up Louis the frog, he settled back on the couch with the letter and the bag of candy, eating a few of them as he read.

Dear Mr. Foster, 

My name is Beatrice Summers, I am 5 years old and I’m in Mensa too! I heard about you a few days ago from one of the speakers, Mike Tomlin, who said he knew you before you got hurt and wound up in the hospital. I felt bad that you were all alone in there and thought we could be friends. I know I’m little and my mommy says it’s weird for us to be friend friends, because you’re an adult but I would still like for you to talk to me. Daddy says that’s called pen pals, could we be pen pals? I think I’d like that.

The letter carried on in much the way you’d expect something from a little kid to go, she rambled about what she liked to do and she hoped he liked to color and that the frog’s name was Louis and he was a friend for the gator that Mike gave him when he was in the hospital. She hoped he liked the candy she got him and that she’d never had those before…She explained the CD too.

I didn’t know what kind of music you liked cause I don’t know any of the bands on your profile. Daddy said you could have one of his band, they’re called the Gothic Demolition and they’re really good! I think you’ll like them!

Dayton stopped at about that point, setting the letter down and picked up the CD, turning it over to see the band’s picture on the back. If the man in the middle of her father, damn. He sighed softly and set it down again, picking up his vape pen and took a few drags before he started feeling that warm feeling take over. Getting up, Dayton got himself a cup of water, locked his door and made himself go to bed. 

--

Dayton woke up in the morning to the sound a very annoyed hummingbird complaining, probably about not having enough food in the feeder outside of his window. He sighed, sitting up and looked around. His hand still ached and he  still didn’t feel all that well but still he had to get up. There was something he had to do, though for a while he couldn’t figure out exactly what that was. After sitting at his table for a few minutes trying to force himself to eat the toast he’d made for himself he noticed the box still sitting there. Right...he was reading something last night. 

Seeing where he’d left off, he stuck the CD in his stereo system that was in the corner of his living room. It was one of the stacked ones with the record player on top, a CD/DVD player that was also hooked up to a flat screen TV on the wall and a radio with a large knob tuner and preset buttons below it. The whole thing was in a cabinet built especially for it, the only thing slightly out of place on it was the cable box and Apple TV that was installed in all of the duplexes. After closing the little CD door he sat down in the window, setting his new frog in his lap as he finished the letter.

I found out from your profile that we have the same birthday and I think that’s neat. But I’m worried…cause you’re really smart and you were going to do so much and I don’t want you to hurt yourself anymore or feel like no one likes you. I don’t know you, but I like you. And Mike did too. I don’t want to believe that smart people have bad lives because I don’t want to be alone too. I hope you write me back, you need to have someone who cares about you.

“When a toddler cares more about you than your own family.” Dayton wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and cleared his throat, looking down at the big eyes of his floppy new friend before turning to look out the window. It was about eleven in the morning now and he actually didn’t feel that bad now....there was something strange about having someone care about you, even if she was little. Getting up off his couch, he walked over to a small desk that was on the far side of his living room and sat down at it, going through the drawers before he found what he was looking for. A few Christmases ago, Lottie had bought him a little set of inks and a glass dipped pen with a few sheets of antiqued paper. They were supposed to start writing letters to one another while she was in another state but he’d only gotten one back from her before she started emailing him, telling him it was too hard to find the time to write. 

Testing the ink a few times on a separate page, Dayton seemed to fall into the rhythm of writing with the glass tip and ink as though it was second nature. 

Dear Beatrice,

Thank you for your letter and the package, it’s been a very long time since anyone has sent me anything. I haven’t been feeling that well the last few days and it made me smile. And, admittedly, a little sad too. You talked a lot about your family in your letter, I don’t think you’re at the same risk as I was. 

My home life was tumultuous for a lot of reasons growing up and it didn’t make for a very safe environment. When I started to spiral and show signs of depression, no one would believe that I was suffering and it ended up causing more harm. In the end though...if I hadn’t been through all of this, we might not be talking right now. Life is strange that way.

You mentioned that we share a birthday? I agree, that is pretty neat. My grandfather used to say that truly special people are born on two days instead of one. I’m not sure how I fit into that but I’m sure you’re going to grow up into someone that’s going to turn your world on its ear.

Dayton paused for a moment and a couple of drops of ink fell on the page. He dragged the glass tip through the droplets, making a strange little caterpillar out of it and wrote “hi!” in a little speech bubble.

Ignore the caterpillar, I had too much ink on my pen and didn’t want to start all over again.There’s some discipline in using a glass pen and I haven’t written anything with this set since I got it a few years ago. It will be nice to get some practice in. I used to love drawing so those colored pencils you sent me are going to get a lot of work. I can try to send something out of the coloring book with my next letter, if you want? Also, while I appreciate the candy, I think 5lbs might be a little too much. I’ll be eating them for the next year, but I do really like those, so who knows. I know it’s an odd question for a stranger to ask but do you have a favorite? Maybe I can get someone to take me down to the Quarter and find you something sweet. *

Dayton scratched a small asterisk next to that sentence, making a note at the bottom of the page for her parents: If you would rather I not send her candy, I completely understand, it sounded a little odd even to me.

Thinking for a moment he dipped his pen again and curled it slightly, watching the green ink drip off the tip. Satisfied, he started writing again, he was on his second page already. Usually his handwriting was very small, especially when he was using cursive but because she was younger, he was going with a more calligraphy style.

I am sending you a few things with this letter, just so you know. The frog you sent, Louis, seemed happy enough to meet my gator, though he doesn’t have a name. Eleven years with me and he’s a raggedy looking thing. You’ll see in the pictures...I was told they’re stickers but I’m not sure. I’m also sending your father money for the CD, I really liked it, and thank you for sending it to me. I like finding new music. What about you? Do you have a favorite band...or book right now? I used to devour mystery books when I was your age.

One thing, and this is from my experience, if you aren’t happy with what you’re doing or feel like you’re loosing yourself to what everyone else thinks you should be because you’re a “genius”, stop. I wish I’d had more control over my life. I let too many others dictate my actions and in the end they left and I was alone to deal with it all. You have a beautiful name and from what I can tell just from this, you have a very big heart.

I hope we can keep talking but I have to ask a very big favor. If you get bored with the letters, I understand but please send me a letter telling me, so I’m not waiting around for something that may not come. 

Thank you, Beatrice.

Sincerely,

Dayton

Setting the pen down in its rest he closed the bottle of ink and lightly dabbed the papers with a tissue to check to see if they were dry yet. Once they were, he tri-folded the letter and put it in an envelope with the pictures of the toys and the promised $20 dollar bill and set it outside in the little flip top mailbox beside his front door. He wasn’t expecting anything to come of this, he might get one or two messages from her but children are notorious for either getting bored or distracted over time. Still...he had even something small to look forward to and that was a comfort in its own right now. 

@musesnotebook

[therainroguefanfiction]

🔥 ℝise Ⱥbove I̾t ◈ Chapter 043 [Karma’s A Bitch]

📑 Table of Contents | ◂Backward

Word Count: 2,939

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〈“Expired chances, but we gotta make it through again. ‘Cause there’s nowhere else to run. There’s still so much here, a life worth living.” AmaLee, “Again (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Cover)”〉

⊱ ────── {⋅. 🔥 .⋅} ────── ⊰

The door creaked out and both Kurogiri and Tomura stepped inside. I glared at them, a bead of sweat rolling down my cheek. Since the day I had arrived at this hideout, I had only seen Tomura once and that was when I landed in front of the fucker. So why is he here now? This ain’t gonna end well, is it.

“Release her,” Tomura’s scratchy voice rung out. Wait, what? His red eyes narrowed between the fingers of the hand covering his face. “Don’t get any funny ideas, Winchester. You remember what my quirk is and what it can do, don’t you?” He held his right hand up, flexing his fingers.

Images of Aizawa’s skin decaying and cracking flashed through my mind. I remember the excruciating pain I felt when my own skin was decayed. I remember seeing the muscle, my heart skipping as panic flooded my senses. My lips pursed as Kurogiri unlocked the chains, letting them fall to the ground with a loud thump, kicking up dust into the air. I stood up on shaking legs – it feels like millions of tiny needles piercing my skin. I stomped my foot, making Tomura’s head tilt.

“Are you throwing a tantrum?”

“No, you fuck. I’m trying to wake up my legs.” I scowled. “You try sitting for a fucking week with your legs chained to a damn chair. Shit ain’t pleasant!”

He humphed, fingers curling around my wrist, his thumb held out and away from my skin. “We’re taking a trip. Be on your best behavior, Winchester, or else.”

“Yeah, yeah. Whateva.”

A warp gate appeared in the doorway and he started toward it, tugging me sharply forward. Kurogiri came up behind me, his arm wrapped around my right. The warp opened up to a water tower on top of a roof, the sky shining a rich, neon red as the sun sunk across the horizon. A man was sitting on the edge of the roof with his back to us.

“Huh, Hosu city looks nicer than I expected,” Tomura commented. “So, what are you gonna do?”

Wait, this is Hosu? My brow furrowed. Why the fuck did he bring me here? I know this is where Iida is interning… could I get his attention and get help from the hero he’s interning with? That could get messy and there’s no way for me to find them. One thing’s for sure though, Tomura just gave me a huge chance to escape by bringing me here.

“I will reform it,” the man answered in a deep voice. “In order to do so, blood must be spilled.”

“You have a clear goal,” Kurogiri commented. “Your dedication is admirable.”

“Ah, finally someone who understands.” The man stood up, his back slightly hunched over.

Tomura raised his free hand to rest over his right shoulder. “I get the feeling you enjoy picking on me.”

I noticed bandages peeking out from the sleeve of his sweater. Is that leftover from the USJ? “What’s wrong, Handiboi? Did the big bad villain hurt your feelings~?” I mocked, making his hand tighten around my wrist, angry eyes boring into my own. That’s gonna leave a bruise.

The man turned his head, red eyes settling on me. “Who is she?”

I scoffed. “You’re supposed to introduce yourself before asking who someone else is you Voldemort’s reject cousin lookin’ ass.” Not to mention he looks like he drowned his sorrows in a Ninja Turtles marathon. And why the fuck is his tongue hanging out his mouth like that? Bitch, are you a dog?

“Winchester,” Kurogiri scolded, his grip on my arm increasing.

“What? It’s the fucking truth.”

“I am Stain.”

My body tensed. Stain… this bitch is Stain? The mother fucking hero killer?? I swallowed hard, glancing at Tomura. They’re trying to recruit him? Wait, does that mean that neither of these dipshits knows that Stain killed my mom? I’ve personally never been in love with anyone that ain’t an anime character, but I’m pretty goddamn sure if the person I loved was killed by someone, my ass wouldn’t turn around and try to fucking recruit that someone. They must not know… should I say something?

Stain smirked, holding his arms out to the side. “Hero is a title for those that have accomplished great deeds. This city is full of false champions. All they care about is money and fame! Until this world realizes its mistakes,” he reached around, his fingers curling around the hilt of the sword strapped to his back. “I will continue my work!” And then he jumped from the roof.

“Fuck,” I muttered. “He almost makes Handiboi look sane.”

“I can hear you,” Tomura scoffed, his fingers squeezing my skin. “He talks all high and mighty and stuff, but he’s wasting his time focusing on a small stage. He’s so noble, I could cry.” He dropped my wrist to scratch at his neck.

“You shouldn’t spurn his methods,” Kurogiri scolded. “The reality is – in all the cities where Stain has appeared, crime rates have fallen. Perhaps because heroes are more conscientious or perhaps out of fear. Regardless, he does bring change.”

Tomura started to monologue about Stain’s actions, stepping away from me. Kurogiri still has his arm around mine, but his grip is looser than it was a few minutes ago. This might be my only chance.

“Kurogiri, bring out the Nomus.”

My eyes widened. ‘Nomus’? As in, plural?? It took everything Toshi had in him to beat that bird brain fuck, now there’s more of them? Fuck.

Several warp gates opened up on the roof below us, three different Nomus stepping through them. One hovered above the ground with discolored bat-like wings. One was huge like the Nomu from the USJ. One was thin and spindly.

Fuck, this is really bad, bro. They’re not attacking heroes in training, they’re attacking fucking civilians! Some of which may not even have a damn quirk. Fuck fuck fuck, what do I do? I have to do something. I took a deep breath, my body shaking as my blood started to boil within me.

Limit release!!

My school shirt shattered as power shot through my body. Before Kurogiri could react, I ripped my arm from him and rushed at Tomura, cocking a flaming fist backward but before I could make contact, I saw a stream of black from the corner of my eye. Something large slammed into my body, throwing me across the alley and to the next roof, my feet sliding across the ground to stop my momentum.

“Don’t kill her!” Tomura snapped. “Kurogiri, why did you bring her here?!”

“I didn’t. She must have come with one of the other Nomus.”

This Nomu is different. My eyes narrowed as it landed on the roof across from me, feet cracking the rooftop. While it had the same black, muscled body as the Nomu from the USJ, it was a bit smaller and its face was covered by what appears to be a paper bag with holes for its eyes. Brown hair fell to its shoulders from behind the mask.

“I order you to return,” Tomura growled angrily, but the Nomu just smirked, teleporting in front of me. I couldn’t react fast enough, its large fist connecting with my cheek and sending me flying back off the roof. It teleported behind me, its knee slamming into my back as it laughed. I cried out in pain, snapping my eyes to the ground below me. I teleported, but it was unstable, my body stumbling as I tried to catch my breath.

The Nomu landed in front of me, the force cracking the cement beneath its feet. “What’s wrong, Tegu? Where is that fire of yours?!”

My eyes narrowed. “How do you know that name?” As far as I can remember, I only used that name once when I first got here, and that was with Gran and Toshi. Had I told someone else?

It smirked. “You don’t remember me? How hurtful!” The Nomu reached up, untying the mask from its face. It slid down, fluttering on the breeze.

My eyes widened and it felt like my heart stopped. “S-Skye? How…” What the fuck is happening right now? Am I dreaming? Is this some sick joke?

She licked her cracked lips, running a hand over the scarred flesh of her face. “I was in the hospital for months because of what you did. When I finally recovered and returned to school, my friends abandoned me. They said my face was too gruesome to look at! Said it made them sick to their stomach! Even Heather betrayed me, fucking my boyfriend!”

I stood up straight, flames engulfing my hands. “Is this the part where I’m supposed to feel sorry for your ass? Don’t fucking count on it, bitch. Everything that fucking happened to you was good ol’ Karma. You got what you deserved.”

She tilted her head and giggled like a maniac. “Karma, you say? Yes, yes, it was karma that stabbed Heather and my ex-boyfriend. They betrayed me and Karma got them~”

“You fucking stabbed them for cheating? What, are you fucking Jane the Ripper?”

“Weren’t you fucking listening?!” She snapped angrily. “It was karma.”

“I always knew you were a fucking psychopath but damn…”

Her anger dropped and she giggled again. “When that shadow man walked in on me while karma was at work, I tried to stab him, but he’s immune to that. He offered me power, offered to make me stronger. How could I possibly deny such a wonderful offer? He brought me to this world, to this man that gave me power. Now, I’m unstoppable!”

My brow furrowed. Gave her power? As in, a quirk? I thought only One for All could be passed down like that. I guess… if there’s one that can do it, there’s gotta be another.

“You look confused, Tegu~ You never were very smart, were you? I’ll just have to show you instead!”

Within the blink of an eye, she appeared behind me, both of her fists coming down hard onto my shoulders. I bit back a yelp of pain as my body hit the concrete, my left shoulder going numb. She’s always been ridiculously strong, but this is just fucking ridiculous.

“Don’t tell me you’re done yet!” She brought her foot down and I rolled out of the way, jumping to my feet.

She’s super fast and strong, plus she can teleport. What is her quirk? I need to keep my distance, I can’t win in a hand-to-hand battle with her.

A scream ripped through the air behind me and I turned my head to see the large Nomu chasing after a woman – and she was carrying a small boy in her arms. I narrowed my eyes, focusing as I teleported between them, holding up my arms as the Nomu slammed into my body. I was able to slow it down, but it didn’t stop, my boots digging into the ground as it pushed me backward.

The woman had stopped in surprise and I groaned. “What are you fucking doing?! Run!”

She snapped out of her shock and began to run again, but Skye appeared in front of her with a maniacal grin. “Look at you, Tegu! Trying to act like a hero, huh? How disgusting.” She held out her hand, lightning crackling across her palm. “Too bad it’s in vain!”

My eyes widened as the lightning shot toward the woman. Damn it! I propelled myself forward with flames under my boots, my shoulder slamming into the woman’s back and shoving her to the side. The lightning hit me square in the chest and a scream ripped from my throat, my heart beating so quick I wondered if it would burst within my breast. My hair stood on end, goosebumps covering my skin. The lightning faded and I fell to the ground, my body screaming at me, begging me to stop fighting back.

I lifted my head, my fingers digging into the concrete. I coughed a few times before managing to bring myself to my knees, glancing at the side. There was a small opening between the two buildings, just barely big enough for a person to slip through. The woman and the child were gone. Good.

There’s a Nomu behind me and I don’t know what its quirks are. Skye is in front of me – super strength and speed, teleportation, and lightning. I can’t beat them, but… if they focus their attention on me, they won’t attack civilians.

“Are you really in any position to be smiling, Tegu?” Skye growled before rushing forward.

“How can I not smile when I’m looking at that gruesome face?!” Fire shot out from my body, wrapping around my torso and jerking my body upward as the flames took on the shape of a phoenix. It dropped me onto the roof before circling above me.

The building shook as Skye landed in front of me. “You won’t escape me, I’m going to rip your body apart and feast on your heart!!” She threw her head back, voice taking on a more demonic tone as she laughed.

Sweat rolled down my cheek as I stood up on shaky legs, forcing a grin. “I don’t think your boss will be happy if you kill me.”

“My boss?” She responded incredulously with a bark of laughter. “That’s hilarious, Tegu! That hand fool thinks he can control me? With these powers? Not a chance!” She lifted her hand and the ground started to shake violently, pieces of concrete broke apart and lifted up into the air, shooting toward me. I swept my arm in front of me, raising a wall of fire to destroy the debris before they could hit me.

How many fucking quirks does this bitch have??

“Skye Atol, calm yourself.” Kurogiri’s deep voice reached my ears and I could see the pulsing purple on the other side of the fire. “We need her alive. By using more than three of your quirks, you risk -”

“Shut up!!” She screamed, the rooftop lighting up as she used her lightning attack. A huge gust of wind put out my flames, pushing me backward. My heels hit the small lip surrounding the roof and I fell backward, my body falling through the air toward the earth below.

What am I supposed to do here? I’m not strong enough to beat her, but if I run away, she’ll attack other people instead! I tilted my head to look at the sidewalk at the end of the alley, focusing on that spot. I teleported, falling to my knees and breathing heavily as a sharp pain shot through my head. Shit, I’m at my limit for porting.

“Winchester?”

My fingers dug into the cement beneath me and I forced my head up. Endeavor? What the fuck is he doin’ in Hosu – A sharp pain rang through my body as something slammed into me from behind, sending me flying across the road. I shielded my face as my body slammed through the glass of the building across the street.

“Winchester!”

I coughed, rolling over onto my side. My stomach throbbed painfully and I glanced down, seeing a piece of glass lodged into my right side, blood dripping down the glass. I groaned. This is so not how I wanted to spend my fucking week.

The crackling of flames made me glance over my shoulder, remembering Endeavor. I clutched the piece of glass, the sharp edges cutting into my palm as I tugged it from the wound with a grunt. Blood splattered to the ground and I placed my hand over the wound. Fuck, this is gonna hurt so bad…

I closed my eyes, focusing my power into my hand as it started to heat up. I pinched the skin together, my teeth burrowing in my bottom lip at the searing pain that shot through my body. It hurts so goddamn bad, but it’s better than bleeding out. Breathing heavily, I forced myself to my feet, limping toward the broken window.

Endeavor is going toe-to-toe with Skye and he seems to be holding up a shit-ton better than I was. As I watched her, my brow furrowed. Her muscles are starting to rip apart, cuts appearing across her body. Is that part of a quirk? She’s not talking, either, instead just making deep, guttural noises like… the bird brain Nomu…

Skye roared loudly, her muscles twitching as they expanded. Sweat rolled down my cheek as I held the building for support. Her power shot through the roof, her aura fluctuating like crazy. Oh, shit sticks.

“Get away from her, Endeavor!!”

His narrowed turquoise eyes glanced over at me and he huffed, holding his ground. Goddamn prideful ass fuckers.

Skye’s muscles continued to expand, her voice deepening as she roared, the sound shaking the world around us. There was a good half a second of dead silence before her body exploded from the inside out with a huge gust of wind, knocking me back against the brick wall of the building. I yeeted myself through the broken window just as a chunk of metal hit the wall where I had been standing.

I waited a few seconds until the howling wind died down before peaking around the broken window. Endeavor had blood sliding down his face from Skye’s exploded form, his eye twitching in anger. I still hate the flame fuck honestly, but at this moment, I couldn’t be fucking happier to see him.

“I told you to get away from her, flame fuck.” I released a shaky breath, sinking to my knees.

⊱ ────── {⋅. 🔥 .⋅} ────── ⊰

▸ Forward

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[mittensmorgul]

For the first time in weeks, I had exactly zero messages, anon or otherwise, asking me about the new episode. Let me say, I feel y’all’s apathy. There were a few things that are worth mentioning, though.

First of all I AM THRILLED THAT GAVIN WAS RESTORED TO HIS PROPER TIMELINE. As to HOW and WHY and all the rest of the details surrounding Gavin’s return... I’m just gonna...

BUT IT IS DONE. I am more than willing to just close my eyes to the timey-wimey bullshit fixing their original problem dredged up. It’s just gonna give me a migraine trying to sort through this problem. I just... can’t be fussed to care.

For ~plot reasons~ I’m just gonna... handwave the whole mess and pretend it’s just... not a problem anymore and just move on with my life. Especially since it didn’t really seem like Bucklemming themselves could be fussed to do it much justice. The whole plotline played out with the feeling that they’d been ordered to clean up their mess by Dabb and they went about it in the most perfunctory and grudging manner possible.

Okay. :)

On to the other important plot-related stuff, in order from least disappointing to most disappointing:

Mary’s descent arc is moving along apace. Those BMoL weapons that we find absolutely morally reprehensible (that mutate vampire blood to poison them en masse like some sort of radiation sickness, and now a ray gun that boils rugaru brains at twenty paces), Mary thinks they’re neat and effective tools. Her “training” session with Ketch was a more voluntary and only slightly less horrifying callback to Castiel’s “training” under Naomi to kill a warehouse full of Deans. To an extent, I think when Dean learns the entire truth about Mary’s involvement with the BMoL, it’ll have the same metaphorical impact. Basically a room full of “you’re dead to me” Deans... a la “the face.”

(aside to note that all I could think of when Mary complained about “the face” was Phil Dunphy on Modern Family talking about how “in the know” he is about the kids’ lingo... before listing off the acronyms he knew... including WTF, which he sincerely believed stood for “why the face.” WHY THE FACE. And yes. This was a serious WTF for me... in the correct meaning of wtf...)

So yeah, Mary’s come ~partially~ clean to Sam and Dean. She’s been willing to accept Ketch’s statements about Toni having been a “rogue operative” who wasn’t working within the authority of the MoL, but Sam and Dean have seen just a little bit too far behind their curtain. They’ve also had experience with these sort of shady deals, and unlike Mary, they’ve grown FAR past the “shoot first, ask questions later, just kill ALL THE MONSTERS” mentality. Mary still believes in that definition of hunting. On top of all the guilt she feels personally-- rightly or wrongly-- for the lives her boys ended up leading.

That fundamental core belief is in need of some serious shaking, and I think (I hope!) that 12.14 begins to address that for her. She’s still keeping some secrets (like her role in having been ordered to steal THE COLT in 12.12...) so Sam and Dean are still partially in the dark as to the extent of her shady dealings. There’s definitely more revelations to come to light before they have all the information they need to begin putting the RIGHT questions to Mary...

Dagon’s an interesting character. Kinda relieved she was used so lightly in this episode, so they didn’t have a chance to do anything regrettable with her... but still... both she and the two angels had no trouble finding Kelly, when Cas and Sam and Dean have been looking for her for weeks now with no success. I’m now rolling my eyes at the logic gap with that one, but then I remember Bucklemming and again it’s just easier to handwave it and accept they lack a grasp of narrative continuity and logic. *HEAVY SIGHING*

I’m slightly confused as to how she was able to just annihilate two angels so easily when Ramiel needed to use Michael’s lance on Cas... but then again maybe he could’ve just poofed Cas to death and he just wanted to watch him suffer with the wound from the lance instead. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

(I should probably just title this essay *shrug emoji*)

(anyway, moving on)

Rowena was a delight, as usual. I love that she’s developed her own interesting relationship with Sam and Dean, independent of Crowley. And despite the fact that Rowena has worked with Crowley when their motivations were to defeat a common enemy, it’s interesting to see the sort of situation that has the power to drive a wedge between them.

I’m glad that Rowena’s grudge over being forced to kill Oskar has finally gotten a little payback. I also find it interesting that her revenge also including a “child” who had been “displaced in time.” Rowena had given Oskar immortality, which in its own way is just as problematic as Crowley’s desire to give Gavin a shot at a normal life in the wrong time.

Crowley’s weirdly powerful feelings toward Gavin, I believe, stem from just how human and vulnerable he’d been through most of s9 when he was at the peak of his human blood addiction. Granted by 9.21 he’d “recovered” a lot from that, but he was also biding his time waiting for Dean to completely succumb to the Mark. Crowley had some weirdly familial feelings for Gavin, after having largely ignored the boy for most of his life. Getting a chance to give Gavin a taste of normal modern life was probably the least he could do to repent for that... but the fact he STILL seemed to care so much now is just... weird. IDK.

I saw another post complaining that Sam and Dean didn’t “let” Crowley have a proper goodbye, and Rowena had frozen him when he’d reached out to Gavin. BUT CROWLEY WAS NOT ABOUT TO SHARE A TEARFUL GOODBYE. HE WAS ABOUT TO BOOP OUT WITH GAVIN AND TAKE HIM TO PLACES UNKNOWN TO PREVENT HIM FROM RETURNING TO HIS PROPER TIMELINE. So, no. I don’t think their actions there were hypocritical.

Dean’s shirt during the “Send Gavin Back To The Bottom of the Ocean” scene was eerily similar to the ugly plaid couch on which Cas nearly died in 12.12. So, watching Gavin reunited for all time with the “love of his life” while wearing the goofiest look on his face as these people who were brought back together by the power of their love in order to repair a broken timeline and restore a bunch of innocent people to life... *it’s all about the love... and love* and I mean thanks costume and props folks for dressing Dean in Castiel’s 12.12 couch basically. I see what you did there. I only put this so far down the list because it’s interesting, but that’s all it is.

Cas and Dean are still having private phone calls. But after the intensity of 12.12, and the revelations about Cas and his feelings, what we were given as a reminder here was just... underwhelming. There was just no weight to it, as if 12.12 hadn’t even happened. As if Cas hadn’t nearly DIED, and confessed his LOVE and feeling of FAMILY and BELONGING. It’s just... opportunity wasted to have given some sort of (or ANY sort of) emotional punch to the fact that Cas has just ~randomly left the bunker to fruitlessly continue the random Kelly search~ all alone. I mean... ???

Crowley. Oh dear. Can you say, Character Assassination??? I mean, wtf, bucklemming. After one of Crowley’s strongest episodes in YEARS, where we got a plethora of incredible insight into his motivations, his history, his intelligence, and his FEELINGS for the Winchesters-- including Cas-- all of a sudden we get this ridiculous disaster of characterization?

Seriously, WHAT THE FUCK.

What was both ridiculous and terrible here:

Crowley really had no idea that the Winchesters had failed to kill the nephilim?

THEY HAD BEEN IN PRISON BUCKLEMMING! REMEMBER? WHERE YOU’D PUT THEM WITHIN MINUTES OF THEM BANISHING LUCIFER IN THE FIRST PLACE?! AND IT WAS YOUR STUPID FUCKING PLOT HOLE THAT ALLOWED THAT TO HAPPEN IN THE SAME MOMENTS THAT KELLY WAS ALLOWED TO “ESCAPE.”

I mean, you could’ve just left her in the White House with the President and had Cas escape safely with Sam and Dean, BECAUSE YOU, CROWLEY, HAD THE ABILITY TO JUST BOOP IN AND PICK KELLY UP TO DO WHATEVER YOU WANTED WITH HER DOWN THE LINE. BUT NOOOOOOOO IT’S YOUR OWN DAMN IDIOTIC CANON ACROBATICS THAT HAVE LED US TO THIS INANE PLOT SITUATION FROM WHICH THERE IS APPARENTLY NO REPRIEVE. YOU STUPID FUCKERS.

So in order to make this entirely idiotic and contrived plot line work, you have to warp a character so far beyond logic that they barely even seem to be the same character we saw the week before... and no. After the brilliant writing, the loving recollection of past canon and the incredibly nuanced characterizations we’ve had over the prior three episodes, this just felt THAT MUCH MORE FUCKING CONTRIVED AND WRONG FOOTED.

I’m not really gonna forgive this bit.

Crowley, Mr. “i’m the only one on the board who doesn’t underestimate those denim wrapped nightmares,” Mr. King of Protecting his own Self Interest, Mr. You’re Good But I’m Crowley... you... bucklemming... want us to believe that in ANY ITERATION OF REALITY that Crowley is not only petty and vengeful enough to have his demons pull the same “resurrect the meatsuit” bullshit they pulled to fix your meatsuit with in 11.01 TO DIG UP AND REPAIR LUCIFER’S FORMER VESSEL NICK, as well as “studying the molecular makeup of the cage” in order to forge some weird dog collar thing strong enough to hold Lucifer, and that you would risk unleashing Lucifer on the world again ENTIRELY OUT OF PETTY VENGEANCE BECAUSE YOU WANT TO FORCE HIM TO CLEAN YOUR FLOOR WITH HIS TONGUE?!

I’m sorry. That’s just... no. That’s too much no.

AND IT GETS WORSE!

Not only is Crowley suddenly behaving idiotically out of character here, HE IS ALSO SUDDENLY MORONIC ENOUGH TO LET INFORMATION SLIP IN LUCIFER’S HEARING? Like the fact that he even had a son at all, let alone was having some sort of ~personal issues~ surrounding this weird parental family dynamic?

AND CROWLEY IS REPEATEDLY PUTTING HIMSELF IN A SITUATION WHERE HE’S LET HIMSELF BECOME COMPROMISED THIS WAY?!

I mean... this is NOT the Crowley we’ve seen lately. The Crowley who would sacrifice the only weapon that could potentially put Lucifer out permanently. One of the FEW weapons that could even protect him from what he should likely expect will be the revenge of Dagon and Asmodeus after Crowley essentially broke his deal with Ramiel... yet he’s too busy being a petty little tyrant toward Lucifer to be concerned about them?

I guess I’m particularly outraged about this 180 degree about face in Crowley’s characterization because after three OUTSTANDINGLY character driven episodes in a row, what we got here was a TERRIBLE FUCKING MESS.

Most of s12 so far has felt so deeply personal, like all of the major plot arcs have been deeply rooted in the characters own feelings and history, and have revolved around the questions of what is family and what is love and who am I and where do I fit in this world.

And in 12.13, it seems like ALL of that was just tossed out the window in favor of a couple of utterly contrived and flimsy plot points.

With a few obvious exceptions as stated above, it just felt entirely out of step with the rest of s12. In the hands of a capable writer, that could’ve been an entertaining and believable episode. But what we were served lacked any of the finesse and character development we’ve grown accustomed to.

Pro tip for writers: You have to make the plot actually fit the characters you’re writing for. This episode is an excellent example of how NOT to do that... >.>

[onsgiftexchange]

Third Wheel

For: Junai

By: sophelia_moon

Rated: T (Contains: MikaYuu, MitsuNoa, attempted murder/brief violence, and mentions of death (unnamed characters, offscreen))

Third Wheel

Yuu has been a vampire for fourteen days, twelve hours, and seventeen minutes. Now, it’s time for him to eat his very first person!

Well, he should clarify. His first person who wasn’t dropped at his feet by his adorable boyfriend, Mika. Yuu appreciates everything Mika has done for him, but he’s a fully capable individual, really. He can get his own food.

That’s why he’s at the movie theater at 11:45 PM. It’s Friday night. His chair has a sweet recline, the lights are dim, and he’s alone with his prey. Everything’s going according to plan.

The commercials are the sole fly in the ointment, but what can he do? He knows it’s only going to get worse from here. There’s a reason this showing is practically deserted.

With a sigh, Yuu leans back and stares at the ceiling. He is bombarded by the heady scent of popcorn, thick and buttery. It’s miraculous how the real thing would taste like rotting fish guts the moment it entered his mouth. Yuu regrets not eating more popcorn two weeks ago.

The girl sitting in the front row is the source—she’s got a large bucket sitting pretty in her lap. She stuffs a handful into each side of her mouth, causing them to bulge like a chipmunk’s.

Yuu breathes in deeply. It’s faint, but there’s something even sweeter than popcorn in the air.

He stares intently at the back of the girl’s neck. She’s got her blonde hair done up in pigtails, so the view’s not half bad.

Right—he should wait till after the movie starts. It would be awkward if someone walked in on them, after all.

His caution pays off more immediately than expected. He hears the sound of the door opening, and soon enough a girl with an oversized black bow in her hair traipses over to join Blondie. When she’s a step or two away, she trips over her own feet (as far as Yuu can tell) and the extra-large soda in her hand plummets to the floor.

“Mother—” says Bow. “I’ll go get another.”

“Bring back some napkins,” says Blondie, eyeing the soaking carpet with distaste.

Yuu frowns. Two people…he can probably handle that. Unfortunately, one of them will likely have time to get off a scream when he makes his move, so he should attack during a deafening action scene. Once the b-grade horror movie they’re here to see gets going, an opportunity will undoubtedly present itself.

Unless…if he can pull it off, the smart move would be to hypnotize Blondie right now. That way, when Bow comes back, Yuu can attack her immediately without worry.

With the formulation of his new plan complete, Yuu gets up, exits his row, and descends the wide stairs until he reaches the ground. He stops a step or two away from Blondie to avoid standing in soda.

“Hey,” Yuu says.

She looks up and makes eye contact with him, but she soon looks away: up, left, right, down, like a calibrating compass.

“You’re blocking my view,” she says.

Yuu takes a quick glance at the screen. “Of—advertisements?”

“If you know they’re trying to brainwash you, you can’t be brainwashed.”

“Um…doesn’t that mean you’re letting your guard down?”

She looks at him in disbelief. Yuu makes the most of her attention by focusing as much power into his gaze as possible. He can tell he’s begun to get to her, but it’s not nearly enough.

“No,” she says. “Look—I’m here on a date. So this is your chance to buzz off.”

“Oh! Your girlfriend, that was…quite a mess.”

He hears the door open again. Damn.

“I’ll leave you to it,” he says quickly.

Back to the original plan. He returns to his seat at the speed of light.

Bow greets her girlfriend and hands her a new soda. She lets the pile of napkins in her hands fall to the floor. She shifts them around with her feet.

Satisfied by a job well done, she walks away and heads—oh, man.

“Hey,” says Bow. She leaves a seat in between them when she sits down.

She’s wearing a salmon pink cardigan over a white shirt with a vertical stripe of buttons. Gray knee-high skirt, black tights, bare neck apart from an inch covered by the shirt—was the bow on top of a bun before? Whatever. There’s a napkin stuck to one of her Mary Janes, but he elects not to mention it.

He tries staring at her. She’s staring at him. It’s like looking into a fish tank. There’s something separating them, even if it’s not visible.

Natural resistance.

That…that’s fine. Should he just…go for it?

“So…” she says. “This movie is shit.”

The other girl’s far away. She could run if he sinks his teeth into Bow. If he knocks her out and goes for Blondie afterwards…

“You’ve seen it?”

“I don’t need to see it to know.”

Fair enough.

“So,” she continues, “do you want to…go outside?”

He blinks. “Sure?”

He can’t forget that Blondie’s seen his face, but missing out on a chance to separate them would be foolish.

Then he remembers. “What about your girlfriend?”

“Oh, did she say that?” Bow says. “She probably wanted you to stop hitting on her. We’re not together.”

“I see,” Yuu says. “Alright then.”

Bow fires off a text as they walk to the emergency exit.

Yuu opens the door for her. She walks through. He lets it swing closed behind them.

On this side of the theater, the parking lot is deserted. To his right, there’s a dumpster, and beyond the asphalt, the woods.

She fiddles with her shirt for a moment before closing the gap between them. Yuu puts his arms around her and leans in.

***

Here’s the thing about vampires: they’ve got a ton of advantages. Super strength, super speed, immortality until killed—Yuu’s loving every one of them.

The tradeoff is the disadvantages, of which there’s roughly a bazillion. Garlic, fire, holy water, sunlight…all the classics work with deadly effectiveness.

But in his defense, he wasn’t expecting to run into someone wearing a choker made of crosses.

***

Yuu howls at the burn and stumbles backward. Survival instincts kicking in, he leaps onto the dumpster and hisses at her.

Sure enough, Ms. Vampire Hunter is gripping a wooden stake securely in her right hand, but instead of moving, she’s trained a thoughtful gaze in his direction.

“You’ve never killed anyone before,” she says. “The screams of a vamp’s victims follow them wherever they go, so I should know. Still, it’s impossible to miss that emptiness, either.”

“What?” Yuu wheezes. “The aura of being dead?”

She shrugs. “It’s not too late for you, bloodsucker. Most vampires—or hunters, for that matter—don’t want to admit it, but you don’t need to kill to survive.”

“You literally just tried to kill me.”

“You went after my girlfriend first, buddy,” she says.

“True,” Yuu says. “Bad idea. I get it.”

She points at the trees. “Ditch this place. I don’t want to see your face around here again.”

“Alright, alright,” Yuu says, his hands in the air.

He runs. Once he has enough cover, he turns around and watches Ms. Vampire Hunter go back into the theater.

He wonders if she contacted backup earlier. Somehow, he doesn’t think so.

Five minutes later, he circles around and makes a break for his car. It’s high time he goes home.

***

As he drives, it’s quiet. On the side of the road, the streetlamps cast a dim, artificial glow. If not for them, the darkness would extend forever, unbroken.

He calls Mika.

“So, funny thing happened to me tonight…”

From the other side of the line, there’s nothing. Mika doesn’t need to breathe, of course.

“Are we in danger?”

“No. No! It’s all good. I just…didn’t get to eat.”

If Ms. Vampire Hunter can do him a solid, he can do her one in return. If Mika ever discovers her existence, Yuu will just feign ignorance.

“I’ll fetch something,” Mika says. “Wait for me?”

“Always.”

[shiftyskip]

Desmond Thomas Doss

The Real Desmond Doss: 

Desmond Thomas Doss was born on February 17, 1919 in Lynchburg, Virginia. He was the middle child of William Thomas and Bertha Oliver Doss. His older sister, Audrey, was born in 1916 and his younger brother, Harold,  was born in 1922. 

His mother was a Seventh-day Adventist, a Protestant Christian denomination, and she passed her beliefs onto her children, which included not working on Saturdays (the Sabbath) and not eating meat. Desmond was devoted to the Ten Commandments, of which “Thou Shall Not Kill” played a pivotal role in his life. 

The film based on Desmond Doss and his bravery, Hacksaw Ridge, takes certain liberties with his childhood. But his father, like seen in the movie, had an alcohol problem. His heavy drinking led to a brawl with the youngest of the children, Harold, and almost ended in tragedy when his father pulled a gun on Harold. Luckily, his father did not fire the gun but the event still affected Desmond heavily. 

After he completed one year of high school, he became a carpenter. He later worked at Newport News Shipyard as a ship joiner. Although this job would allow him to not enlist or be drafted, he decided it was his duty to enlist. He enlisted on April 1, 1942 and he was quickly sent to Camp Lee.

Desmond refused to carry arms. He was a conscientious objector. Which caused great unease and suspicion around him. There were many reasons for an army man to fear a CO. Some men claimed the status simply to avoid combat. They had to have religious reasons to be a CO and not simply a hatred of the war. Most of these COs trained like the rest of the men, but not pick up a gun or weapon. Many COs, like Desmond, became medics. There were 43,000 COs during World War II. 25,000 of them were medics/noncombatants.

He wouldn’t pick up a gun or fire one. He refused to carry a single weapon. He requested to become a medic instead. "I specifically requested medical duty," Doss said, "because I felt that while I could not kill, I could help save human life."

Much like the movie shows, Desmond and his fellow soldiers did not get along. His unit was the 77th Infantry, which consisted of older, New Yorkers. Desmond was a young, soft-spoken Virginia boy. These combinations did not mix fairly well. But Desmond’s status as a conscientious objector caused a lot more problems for him. His unit originally had 4 COs, but by the time they were sent overseas, only Desmond was left. 

Desmond faced tremendous harassment. This came from his superiors, his officers, and his fellow enlisted men. They threw shoes at him during his nightly prayers, insulted him to his face, and one told Desmond that if he went into combat that the soldier would shoot Desmond. 

 His objection to carry a gun or train on Saturdays, the Sabbath, resulted in an effort to get him discharged from the Army. Those trying to remove him claimed he deserved to be removed under the section that declared “inaptness or undesirable habits or traits of character.” This was more fit for people with mental illnesses. People went so far to try to prove Desmond had a mental illness. Desmond defended his faith, saying it was not a mental illness.

They even went so far to try to court-martial him. Which is shown in the movie but it did not go as far as it did during the movie. In real life, it was only a threat. While he was later denied furloughs to see his wife and brother, Desmond didn’t miss his wedding day, he was already married by then.

In the fall of 1942, Desmond got married to Dorothy Schutte. They were married August 17, 1942 in Richmond, Virginia. They had met in church one day, when Dorothy was selling adventist books in his town. The movie shows she was a nurse and they met when Desmond went in after rescuing a boy in a car accident. This isn’t entirely accurate because she only got her nursing degree after the war. 

Dorothy gave him a Bible that he carried throughout combat. When he lost it at Okinawa, his company put together a search to find it in the battlefield and they miraculously found it.

The movie fast forwards through time, ignoring combat at Guam and Leyte. Once the men hit combat, their perspectives of Desmond began to change. He was a damn good medic and the men began to put their trust in him. One such occasion was when Desmond found a man who’d been hit in the head and had blood rushing down his face. Desmond washed his face, clearing the man’s eyes of the mess and restoring the man’s sight. To which the man responded, “I can see, I can see. I thought I was blind.” This is instead moved to Okinawa in the movie. 

In Leyte, Desmond lost a close friend. After his loss, he refused to look any at any of his patient’s faces, unless their face was the part wounded, in case they were a friend of his. He would treat the wounded without meeting their eyes. 

Desmond earned the Bronze Star for his actions on Leyte. By the time he reached Okinawa, the men and replacements trusted him completely due to his skills as a combat medic. He was a valuable asset to morale within his regiment.

Desmond was not oblivious to the risks he was taking during combat. He was completely aware that he was risking his life to save the wounded men, but he repeatedly made that choice. Even when he wasn’t required to risk it or go on patrols, he continued to do so. There was only one time he rejected going on patrol. The patrol had left a while earlier, leaving Desmond behind. When he was ordered to go on patrol, to go catch up, Desmond refused to go. He explained to the man in command that Japanese could have come up behind the patrol and he would charge into them. He also explained that these replacements were skittishly new and were very likely to accidentally fire on him. 

The Maeda Escarpment was a ridge, that rose 400 feet high, with a vertical, jagged cliff that led up to the hiding Japanese troops. This is known as Hacksaw Ridge. Before the soldiers led the challenge of a thirty-fifty foot jagged cliff the American troops would have to climb before they could even start their fight. 

For nine days, the American troops fought the Japanese for the ridge. Not much land was gained, whenever the Americans gained a bit, the Japanese overwhelmed them and threw them back. This carried on, back and forth. 

Doss, ever faithful to his beliefs, did not hold a weapon throughout the battle. He passed one box of grenades forward, after much debate, but did not touch anything with the intent to harm.

But his true acts of heroics and self sacrifice happened from April 29-May 21, 1945. He served as a medic with his company. When under heavy fire he refused to fall back or hide and instead, risking his own life, carried the wounded men back to the edge of the 400 foot ridge one-by-one to the bottom with rope. “When the survivors gathered at the bottom of the cliff, they noted a wounded man on a stretcher being lowered down the escarpment. Looking up, they saw Doss maneuvering the stretcher, but Doss quickly realized that a stretcher was hard to handle alone without endangering the wounded, so he remembered a training exercise where he had accidently converted a bowline into large double loops of rope. The loops would not slip and would serve perfectly for securing the legs of a wounded man. Doss took the running end of the rope and passed it around the wounded man’s chest and secured it with another bow- line knot. He carefully slid the man over the cliff edge and then lowered him using the friction of the line around a tree to steady him,” claims Booton Herndon, in the article The Unlikeliest Hero: The Story of Desmond T. Doss, Conscientious Objector Who Won His Nation’s Highest Military Honor.(Mountain View: Pacific Press, 1967.)

He lowered 75 men down off of the Ridge. Doss argued that he had only saved 50 men. The men always believed he’d lowered closer to 100. So they compromised on 75.

On May 2, he risked his life under fire again, rescuing a wounded man 200 yards forward of the lines. Two days later, he treated four men who had been wounded, advancing through a shower of grenades, where he tended to them, and made four separate trips under fire to return them to safety.

On May 5, The final assault to take the Maeda Escarpment happened on the morning of the Saturday, the Sabbath. Doss held on to the Sabbath as a day of prayer, being the only Medic left in his company, he agreed to go but requested that he first be given time to read his Bible. The delay was approved and the the assault was put on hold until Desmond finished his devotions. May 5, he suffered under enemy shelling and gun fire to assist an artillery officer. He applied bandages, moved his patient to a spot that offered slight more safety, under artillery and mortar fire, he admitted Ed plasma. Later that day, Later that day, when an American was severely wounded, Doss crawled to him where he had fallen 25 feet from the enemy position, tended to his injuries, and carried him 100 yards to safety while continually exposed to enemy fire.

The company suffered enormous amounts of casualities. They had started this battle with 800 men, when they finished fighting, they had 324 men.

May 21, during a night attack on high ground, when everyone else took cover, Doss refused and aided to the injured men. This exposed him to the risk of being exposed not only to enemy fire but also friendly fire, in case he was mistaken as a Japanese soldier and shot on the spot.

He was severely wounded in his legs that night by a grenade. He tended to his own injuries, rather than risk another medic’s life. He waited 5 hours for a stretcher to reach him. When he was being carried back, he was caught in Japanese tank attack. Doss noticed another man more severely wounded, a severe head wounded, than he was and he crawled off his stretcher. He directed them to tend to the other man, and to leave him until they could return to him. At one point, 17 pieces of shrapnel were in him.

He was once again wounded. His left arm suffered a compound fracture due to a sniper. Desperate, Doss turned to the gun for the first time. But only to use the stock as a makeshift splint for his arm. He then crawled 300 yards in rough land to an aid station.

He was evacuated May 21, 1945. On the hospital ship back, he realized that the Bible his wife Dorothy had given him had been lost in the battlefield. He had carried it throughout combat with him. Doss’ company searched for it. As a way to honor him, even thought they had once wanted him gone. Surprisingly, they found it. General Bruce himself came to visit Doss during his recovery. During his recovery, he was promoted to Corporal and learned he was to be awarded the Medal of Honor - the first conscientious objector to be awarded such an honor

On October 12, 1945, Desmond Thomas Doss was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Truman.

The war had ended, and Doss was to be discharged. But, an exam revealed he suffered from tuberculosis, which is believed he had gotten on Leyte. Eventually, he lost a lung and 5 ribs. He was was not released from the hospital until 1951. His son, Desmond “Tommy” Doss Jr. was born during his time in the hospital in 1946. Doss could not see his son due to the tuberculosis.

He continued to receive treatment for tuberculosis, but in 1976, he suffered an overdose of medicine that made him completely deaf. Dorothy began writing messages to him so they could communicate, jokingly calling herself his “hearing ear dog”. He would eventually regain some of his hearing in 1988, due to receiving a cochlear implant.

Dorothy and Desmond had only one child. Dorothy raises their son Tommy almost completely alone for the first five years of his life. After the war they lived out their years in Rising Fawn, Georgia on a small farm. Later in life, Dorothy developed breast cancer. She died on November 17, 1991, from injuries sustained in a car accident while Desmond and her were driving to a hospital, crashing less than a mile away from their house.

Desmond remarried in 1993 to Frances Duman in 1993. They were together until his death in 2006. He adopted her three children: Thomas Duman, Michael Duman, and Marilyn Shadduck.

Desmond, after being hospitalized due to trouble breathing, passed away in his home in Piedmont, Alabama in March 23, 2006. He was buried in the national cemetery at Chattanooga, Tennessee. Frances died 3 years later. The three are buried next to each other in the cemetery.

Doss’ legacy was captured in the movie Hacksaw Ridge, directed by Mel Gibson. Desmond is portrayed by Andrew Garfield. It won two Oscars, out of the 6 it was nominated for.