#including the part where i got absolutely kicked in the face with the lightning vision of those two lines.

[crossbackpoke-check]

it’s all the rest of what i want with you

connor dewar/brandon duhaime :: 8k

Summary:

“Brandon,” Connor says with a sigh. “There’s no baby in there.”

“Not yet,” Brandon says. Connor feels his stomach twist, almost like what he would imagine a baby kicking to feel like.

in these trying times of dewvorce, may i offer you 8k of pwp inspired by @stillfertile’s wonderful art which i had. several breakdowns about 🫶 anyway please enjoy!!!

[words-writ-in-starlight]

Untamed TAZ Balance AU? Don't have to write anything, just consider that (is Wen Ning Lucretia in this or is he too nice for that)

NHS IS LUCRETIA, NHS IS ABSOLUTELY LUCRETIA, I HAVE THOUGHTS, my girlfriend yelled at me for these thoughts.  Hell this got long, I’ve literally been saving it in my drafts until Tumblr fixed the Read More issue.

WWX is Taako, JC is Magnus, WQ is Merle, JYL is in the umbrella (became a lich to keep her brother from doing it), WN is the Red Robe (became a lich because he thought it seemed reasonable), NHS is Lucretia, XXC is Davenport, LWJ and LXC are mutually Kravitz (LXC sets his bro up with the death criminal wizard), Wen Zhuliu is John Vore, LSZ is Angus but also a baby Reaper

ONE

So Wei Wuxian isn’t really a wizard, is the thing.  Like, he does the wizard magic, and apparently he has strong Wizard Vibes because wherever he travels, people ask him if he can solve their magical bullshit problems, but he’s, like, barely a wizard.  He’s an inventor, technically, except that a few years back some stuff went explosively awry while he worked with this traveling show and–yeah.  So he’s working as a wizard because, hey, he can cast Magic Missile and he needs to eat and he’s an Evocation specialist, anyway, so it’s not like he’s out here making food from rocks.  He’s hired on with a couple other random jackasses, a fighter who took a dislike to Wei Wuxian right off the bat and a cleric with a bad temper and an itchy Sacred Flame finger, and they’re doing a job for some dwarf, or whatever.  The dwarf has a guy hired on as muscle, but he doesn’t look like much, all wide eyes and baby face.  He calls himself Qionglin, no last name, and stares at Wen Qing like he’s never seen a cleric before, and Jiang Cheng spends the entire trip to Phandolin messing with his whip, which is the stupidest weapon Wei Wuxian has ever seen.

Well, then everything immediately goes horribly wrong, though, and turns out that Jiang Cheng is pretty okay with that whip.  Qionglin (Wei Wuxian spoke to the man all of one time, but he was sweet, if a little awkward) gets himself kidnapped by a bunch of goblins, and their employer is gods-know-where with whatever a Black Spider is, and suddenly this very boring escort mission is a very not boring rescue mission.

There’s a skeleton in the cave.  Wei Wuxian takes an umbrella from it, and it crumbles into dust beneath its red robe.  There’s a very annoyed man with a sword who calls himself Song Lan and speaks in static, and he’s somehow not the weirdest part of this whole day.

Phandolin doesn’t survive its brush with the Zidian Gauntlet, and neither does Qionglin.  Wen Qing screams when he dies, and Wei Wuxian grabs her under the arms with Jiang Cheng and books it for the empty well in Song Lan’s wake, and they just hide.  

And then they go to the goddamn moon, apparently.

TWO

The goddamn moon is run by an older man with hair still a glossy black, toying with a beautifully painted white fan in his hand.  He calls himself the Director and–after some testing–hires them more or less on the spot.  Something flickers over his face when Wen Qing, bemused by her own upset, makes an offhand mention of a man named Qionglin who died when the Gauntlet brought down so much lightning that it turned Phandolin into black glass.  But it’s not Wei Wuxian’s problem, so he doesn’t worry himself over it too much.  He takes the payment offered to him by the Director’s aide, a blindfolded, stunningly handsome man in Bureau blue and white who rests his hand on his own chest and says “Xiao Xingchen” and not another word.

The Bureau is–weird.  They’ve got a giant jellyfish and a store run by–something Wei Wuxian Does Not Trust and a dorm.  Wei Wuxian laughs and kicks Jiang Cheng cheerfully in the ankle and says “Just like college, huh?” and Jiang Cheng gives him a dark look and snaps “I never went to college.”

“Yeah,” Wei Wuxian says, blinking.  “Me neither.”

Whatever.  They go on a train adventure and there’s a kid, a kid who blinks and stares at Wei Wuxian like he’s seen a goddamn ghost and immediately walks up to introduce himself as Lan Sizhui, boy detective.

Wei Wuxian fucking loves this kid.  He’s not sure why this wide-eyed fifteen-year-old latched onto him so hard, but he’s smart, funny, loyal, and extremely easy to pick on.  13/10 child rating, in Wei Wuxian’s book.

(Sizhui, for his part, more or less kicks down the door to his father’s offices in the Astral Plane the second the Reclaimers are gone and shouts “I HAVE A LEAD ON WHAT HAPPENED TO THE WORLD.”)

(His father, Lan Wangji, the Grim Reaper, is very interested to hear all about it–especially when his son casually name-drops three of the biggest bounties that the Raven King, his adoptive elder brother, has ever sent him after, with the exception of that absolutely insufferably sweet-tempered lich Wen Ning.)

THREE

So…the Crystal Kingdom.

Is it Wei Wuxian’s finest hour, shouting obscure tentacle-related threats at the second crystal construct they’ve seen in the past twenty minutes?  No, probably not.  But it’s been a stressful day, they’re already down one Regulator and Song Lan is fuck-knows-where with Mianmian and, again, this is the second menacing crystal construct they’ve seen in twenty minutes.  Or maybe it’s the same one? 

Whatever, doesn’t matter.  They’re here to hunt down Meng Yao, a scientist who’s been dicking around with some seriously ill-advised necromancy and also the Philosopher’s Stone, and a crystal construct or two isn’t going to stop them.

Wei Wuxian actually physically cannot help himself, though, when the Reapers appear in the mirror, a matched set of beautiful men, and he grins broadly at the one glaring at him most viciously.  They get let go on a technicality, along with a conduit still containing Meng Shi’s memory of a vision beyond the cosmos, and Meng Yao leaves with his life and not much more.

Later, Lan Wangji is absolutely betrayed by the realization that his brother willfully set him up to be the primary go-between for the completely breathtaking deeply irritating wizard-by-way-of-death-criminal.  And that’s before the whole lich revelation.  (He does get a kiss, though, after he watches his brother pulled under by the Hunger.  That’s nice.  He hopes Wei Wuxian will mitigate the death crimes now that they’re dating.)

FOUR

The seven Relics are as follows:

The Zidian Gauntlet, which can generate a lightning blast so powerful that it can obliterate an entire city.  (Jiang Cheng–he watched the others try to lay in protections, try to make their Relics harmless, and he knew it wouldn’t work.  All the Gauntlet does is damage.  It can melt a city down to black glass, but it can’t be twisted, it can’t be made into any more of a nightmare than it already is.  He’s a fighter.  He knows all about damage, knew all about what he was making.  That doesn’t mean it didn’t kill him by inches to watch it leave a path of destruction–so much that his beloved jiejie tried to seal it away.)

The Oculus, which can make any construct real.  (Xiao Xingchen–Nie Huaisang didn’t take everything.  He doesn’t remember the mission, or his own past.  Something strange got confused in the process, and he lost most of his speech.  But he remembers how to fight, handles his sword as cleanly and effectively as ever, and he remembers that he doesn’t think much of Nie Huaisang’s combat skills.  Or maybe it’s just really obvious that Nie Huaisang isn’t much of a fighter.  Regardless, Xiao Xingchen insisted on accompanying him, before–before.  Then they went into the Felicity Wilds, and…Xue Yang is honestly delighted.  He’s never managed to ruin someone so badly on the way into Wonderland before.  It’s just a shame that Nie Huaisang sent Xiao Xingchen away before they reached the doors.)

The Healer’s Sash, which can manipulate natural forces like the wind, the tides, and tectonic plates just as easily as it can manipulate a heartbeat or a pair of lungs.  (Wen Qing–she prays to Pelor, the Dawnfather, the healer and Lord of Light, but she’s long since lost her faith in him as anything but a contracted boss.  It’s a shock to everyone including her when she’s granted a right arm made of glass and magic after losing it.  She was so determined to make a Relic that could be used for good, but–well.  She supposes she should have known better.)

The Philosopher’s Stone, which can more or less transform anything into anything.  (Jiang Yanli–she’s a Transmutation wizard, she’s been feeding the crew of the Starblaster for a hundred years on whatever she can pull together.  If the right person found the Stone, it would have ended world hunger.  The wrong person found the stone.  Jiang Yanli tried her damnedest to hunt it down, but she found the Gauntlet first, and, well–she already became a lich to stop one younger brother from doing it.  It’s not a struggle to decide that she’s going to take responsibility for saving Jiang Cheng from his own guilt.  Then things go horribly wrong, and she spends the next twelve years in an umbrella.)

The Temporal Chalice, which offers complete control over time.  (Wen Ning–he was a strict scholar until his sister was contacted about the IPRE’s creation, but he always did want to travel, and his theories about bonds were too good for Xiao Xingchen to pass up having on his crew.  Everything he’s done since they lost their home system has been about trying not to leave his family, about trying for second chances, he became a lich for them, he’s done everything to stay with them, of course his Relic is a second chance generator.)

The Animus Flute, which offers control over the spirits of the dead and, in the hands of a sufficiently competent expert, the living.  (Wei Wuxian–he’s watched his brother, his sister, his friends, die so many times.  He’s terrified of immortality, but he’s most terrified of being alone.  He meant to make something that could keep the dead present, so that they would never have to fear being left behind again.  Watching it rip Jiang Cheng’s soul clean out of his body in Xue Yang’s hands is the worst thing Wei Wuxian can remember, even after everything is over.)

The Bulwark, which Nie Huaisang never did explain to anyone, but took the shape of a hand-painted fan.  (Nie Huaisang lost the only person who mattered to him when the Hunger ate their home, and then as he slowly, painstakingly, rebuilt something like a family, he had to watch them suffer and die for a hundred years.  And then he watched them win, and grieve like dying all over again for the winning.  He’s sorry they suffered for his actions.  He’s not sorry for what he did.)

FIVE

Wen Zhuliu didn’t mean to make his whole plane give up.  But he had spent his whole life being used, and it all just seemed so pointless.  It all just seemed so pointless.  There was always someone stronger, always something bigger, always a rule he couldn’t break, always something, and he started talking, started telling people as much, and--

Wen Qing is about the farthest thing in the fucking world from a peacemaker by nature, if you ask her, but she’s a healer first, last, and most of all.  And, she thinks as she watches the sun sink with a very tired man crumbling away at her side, she might be the only person in the worlds who ever noticed that Wen Zhuliu needed a healer.

(They aren’t from the same plane, but--some of the others have found distant family, on their new home.  It’s an unanswerable question, if they might have been family, a few dimensions removed.  Wen Ning still thinks about it.)

[thorne93]

Unforeseen Chasm (Part 68)

Prompt: Two sisters fall for men that are absolute enemies. The love they have could tear all of them apart, or it could bring them together.

Word Count:5823

Warnings: Language,endgame plot, happiness, fighting, angst and fluff, reunited family, the truth comes out, character deaths, fighting while pregnant,  Note: This is by far the longest thing I’ve ever written (including my novels). It’s a collaboration with the amazing @mrs-dragneel-stark-solo. It started as a funny “What if…?” and it evolved and got huge. This took two years to write. We are both proud and happy and we hope you enjoy it. It follows from Thor 1 to Endgame in the MCU. Some of the timelines may be off in order to fit certain people, and some characters may show up earlier or in different ways than they have in the movie. But for the most part, it follows the MCU. It also has a bit of crossover with some other Marvel characters throughout the story.

Masterlist for Unforeseen Chasm

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

Tony, Rocket, and Bruce all worked on getting the stones on a glove. Once it was set, and it seemed safe, the main question was who was going to do the snap. Of course, you couldn’t wield the power, or Shannon. Thor offered himself up, but between you and Tony, you convinced him not to.

Bruce said that he would have to be the one who did it due to the gamma radiation and the Hulk’s actual size. Bruce had gotten a chance to sit Shannon down and explain to her what he planned on doing. He knew that it would potentially cause some damage so he asked her if she would use her healing ability so that whatever damage was done wasn’t permanent. She was wary of it all but knew she had to put aside what she wanted for the greater good to bring back her son and her parents as well.

As soon as it was decided that Hulk would wield the glove, everyone geared up, just in case his Hulk form went berserk. Tony, Rhodey, and Scott got their suits on. Clint got his arrows. Steve suited up. You and Shannon slipped into your fighting gear that had been adjusted by nanotech to properly fit her baby bump. You formed a forcefield around yourself. Tony ordered FRIDAY to activate the barn door protocol, to keep the compound safe, and to keep the rest of the city safe. Everyone was ready to face whatever happened or fight whatever happened.

Bruce transformed into Hulk, the lucid form of the Hulk and he put on the glove. The power surged over him, making everyone nervous, but after checking with him, he was able to get out that he was fine. He held on for a few seconds, then finally -- he snapped.

Then he collapsed. Tony and Shannon worked on healing Bruce’s arm, while the rest of the team tried to see if it worked.

Nothing seemed different for a second, but then Clint’s phone started to ring. It was a sign.

Hope, relief, joy, ecstasy flooded through you as you watched Scott go over to the window and see life outside of it.

“Guys, I think it worked!”

But in a flash of milliseconds, Hulk grabbed Shannon. Scott was blasted backwards. Hell, everyone was blasted.

The compound had been hit by a missile, several missiles in fact.

You fell forward before falling down into a hole one of the missiles had caused. For a second, you were disoriented as hell. Water was falling on you, debris and rubble were all around you. A large piece of the building was on top of you.

You looked over, trying to assess what the hell had just happened, when you saw Hulk struggling to keep part of the building up and protecting Shannon.

Rocket’s voice snapped you out of your confusion.

“I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe!” he gasped rapidly.

Immediately, you scrambled to your feet. Using your power to get the building of yourself, you got up, assessing any damage to yourself quickly. Then your purple power extended from your hand as you lifted the debris off Rocket. Next, your power flew to Hulk, helping him lift off the giant piece of building he’d been holding up.

“Can anyone hear me?” you spoke into the coms. You kneeled down beside Shannon to make sure she was okay as you spoke, but the water was flowing in fast. You knew if you didn’t get everyone out, and quickly, they’d drown. “There’s water filling down here. I’m going to go up and see what the hell that was. Does anyone copy?”

“I hear you,” Scott responded. “I’m on my way. I’ll get everyone out. You go.”

With one last check on Shannon, you soared up, flying high up. It took a second to navigate through the water falling on you, the debris settling, and all the jagged rods and beams sticking out, but finally, you broke through the top.

As you hovered in the air, you saw the last thing you’d ever want to see: Thanos - alive, and for lack of a better term, well. He wasn’t fucking dead, and that was the main issue.

The stones, where the hell were the stones?

Well, he didn’t have them. That was the main thing, and you needed to keep this purple sack of shit away from them at all costs. He had just kicked Steve across the wasteland that was the compound. The vibranium shield was broken in half. Steve was struggling to get up. You looked around and saw Thor laying on his side, and Tony’s suit immobile.

Suddenly, Thanos began talking, and you slowly hovered toward him, but he didn’t see you, you were just out of his field of vision.

“In all my years of conquest– violence– slaughter– It was never personal. But I'll tell you now– what I'm about to do to your stubborn, annoying little planet– I'm gonna enjoy it. Very, very much.”

Just then, an army beamed down from the ship above. Hundreds of Thanos’s soldiers landed on the field before you. You landed in front of Steve, trying to protect him from Thanos and his army.

“And I’m going to enjoy killing you again, very much,” you mocked as you stared him down.

“Ah, Y/N. I find it hard to believe that you could’ve killed me. You couldn’t even take over a city with your pathetic excuse of a boyfriend,” he retorted, giving you a look as if he’d already won.

All you did was smirk before you replied, “Killing you was the easiest thing I’ve ever done.”

Your eyes glowed purple before you and Steve suddenly heard something, in the coms.

“Hey, Cap, you read me?”

It was Sam. For the first time in five years, it felt like you could breathe again.

You and Steve gave each other a confused look, looking around to see where he could possibly be.

“Cap, it's Sam. Can you hear me?” he repeated. “On your left.”

A portal began to form behind Steve and you stood dumbfounded at the sight. Dumbfounded, but relieved and elated all the same.

Out of the portal walked T’Challa, Okoye, and Shuri. A sight for sore eyes.

Steve looked and sounded as if he were about to cry from sheer elation, and to be honest, you thought you would too. You and Steve would go against Thanos alone if you had to, but God it felt great to know you had a chance, a real fighting chance with all of your friends behind you.

In the next second, Sam came flying out, and then suddenly, dozens of portals were opening all over behind you and Steve. Strange appeared with three other beings you’d never met, and then suddenly Peter swung through.

With every new person, your heart felt fuller and fuller.

Armies began walking out. The Asgardian Army, the Wakandan Army, the army of sorcerers.

Your eyes were scanning, searching, looking everywhere for one particular individual. You didn’t see him though and your happiness started to deflate. Just as you turned to look though, another portal opened in front of you, and out stepped your one and only.

“Did you miss me?” Loki breathed as he stood before you, in the flesh.

In that one instant, that one moment, all else stopped. You forgot about everything and everyone. You forgot where you were, what you were doing, who else was standing nearby - absolutely everything disappeared and he was all you could see.

It was all you could do to keep from ugly crying from happiness. You wanted to throw your arms around him, never let him go. But you knew you needed to focus.

Scott, Bruce, Shannon, Rocket, and Rhodey showed up. Wanda and Pietro appeared. Tony and Thor joined the ranks. Soon, everyone was back that had been wiped off the face of the earth.

You gave Loki a smile and a look full of love before you and Steve looked at each other, a glint of determination in both your faces before the two of you turned, flanking each other.

“Avengers...” Steve shouted and everyone got in their battle stance as Steve called for Mjoirnir. “Assemble!”

In the blink of an eye, hell broke loose on earth.

The Avengers army charged forward at Thanos Army. After just seconds, the armies collided.

You were flying in the air, trying to get to Thanos. He was your soul focus. But he was too far away.

As you were flying, flying monsters from Thanos’s army came right at you. Smaller aircraft were deployed from Thanos ship. You did your best to use your electric dark energy to blast the aircraft out of the sky and crash through the monsters, decapitating them as you went.

Your eyes couldn’t help but scan the field for your loved ones. Loki was doing excellently, navigating the field as if it were a ballroom. He cut, slashed, punched, and dodged. Shannon stayed in the air, mainly healing anyone from above. Remy charged debris and cards, throwing objects as fast as he could, using his staff for close combat. Tony took to the air as did Wanda and Stephen, doing very well and staying out of most of the ground fight, which was good. Your eyes found Bucky and Steve, and you were nervous for them, worried, but you knew they could handle themselves. T’Challa and Sam were fighting fiercely. Thor was using lightning and his axe, full of rage and fury.

Everyone was fighting the fight of their life.

But you needed to focus on Thanos so he didn’t get the --

You internally gasped, glancing around. Where were the stones? Where was Clint? Did he have them?

Tony had been flying about fighting from section to section when he was surrounded by a few of Thanos’ goons blasting them with his hand thrusters. He became unaware of the enormous being that was coming towards him from behind, smacking him into a pile of debris in that instant he managed to turn and was using the blasters when the creature gets pulled back by the synthetic webbing that Peter had created and the monster was killed by giant Scott. Peter rushed up to Tony and began rapidly talking.

“Hey! Holy cow! You will not believe what's been going on. Do you remember when we were in space? And I got all dusty? I must've passed out, Because I woke up, and you were gone. But Doctor Strange was there, right? He was like, ‘It's been five years. Come on, they need us.’ And then he started doing the yellow sparkly thing that he does all the time–” Peter was caught off guard.

The entire time that he was talking, Tony was astounded about how unfazed the kid was being about the whole situation. The more he heard the kid talking the more emotional he got knowing that they had brought them back. Scrunching his face a little he got closer.

“Okay kid, hold me.” Tony pulled Peter close and held him tight.

“What are you doing?” he sounded a little confused but welcomed the much awaited hug. “Ohh, this is nice” and hugs the older man tighter.

“Mrs. Stark, it appears that your son and your husband are embracing each other,” TADASHI announced.

“Are they in a safe spot?” Shannon asked her AI.

“Yes they are safe,” came the Japanese accent.

Monsters of all sizes and kinds were flying at you, trying to keep you from getting to Thanos. Proxima jumped up on a rock, and launched herself at you from the side. You didn’t see her coming and she slammed you out of the sky. You went rolling along the debris.

You coughed as you got to your feet quickly, Proxima making her way toward you. You were shaking your head. You had to kill her...again?

Why did you all have to kill and fight people you’d already defeated once before? This was just insult to injury.

“Ready to fail again?” she asked with a smirk.

“Ready to die again?” was all you said before you charged your hands, shot out your purple electric energy and it kept her still. You were just about to kick up the voltage, hopefully stopping her heart, before suddenly her eyes went wide and she gasped, her chest moving forward.

You frowned, leaving your power on her, but then you saw blood trickle out of her mouth. You let your power stop, confused by why she was bleeding. But when she dropped to her knees, you realized why.

Loki stood behind her, wiping his knife on his pants.

“Thought you could use some help,” he smugly responded and all you could do was smile and shake your head. Oh how you’d missed him.

“I didn’t, but I appreciate you trying to help me,” you assured with a stunning smile.

Suddenly Clint’s voice was in your ear though, pulling you from the trance you’d been in.

“Cap, what do you want me to do with this damn thing?” he asked.

Your eyes searched the battlefield but from where you were, you couldn’t see him.

“Get those stones as far away as possible!” Steve replied with a harsh grunt.

“No! We need to get them back where they came from,” Bruce responded from somewhere on the battleground.

“No way to get them back. Thanos destroyed the quantum tunnel.” Tony’s voice came through everyone's earpiece.

“Hold on!” Scott huffed and shrunk to normal size and pulled out a remote. “That wasn't our only time machine.” Scott pressed the button, which activated Luis's van's horn, which was heard from afar.

Hearing so, Cap went to higher ground. “Anyone see an ugly, brown van up there?” Steve asked.

“Yes! But you're not gonna like where it's parked!” came Valkyrie from high above.

“Scott, how long do you need to get that thing working?” Tony managed to ask.

“Maybe ten minutes.” He hid behind a piece of debris.

“Get it started. We'll get the stones to you.”

Hope had landed next to Scott and took a breather.

“We're on it, Cap,” Hope responded for Scott. She turned to him and smiled and started flying.

Scott and Hope were on their way to the other time machine, trying to repair it while Clint ran across the field, trying to get it to them. You shot in the air, about to try and help him, or at least stop Thanos from getting to it.

Before you could locate him though, T’Challa asked Clint for the gauntlet. At his voice, you finally found the two of them. T’Challa took off like the speed of light. He was able to dodge shots and blows from several of Thanos’s soldiers. He landed with a large blast knocking several enemies back, but then Thanos sword came flying at T’Challa, dislodging the gauntlet from his grasp.

Terror overtook you and you were just about to fly down to protect the stones when Wanda beat you to it. She landed between Thanos and the gauntlet, a white hot rage burning in her expression. You couldn’t help but feel pride and sympathy.

“You took everything from me,” she stated darkly.

“I don’t even know who you are,” he responded defiantly.

“You will,” she vowed before slowly rising in the air, bringing along several pieces of debris with her.

For a split second, you wondered if she’d even need your help. Maybe Wanda would finish Thanos right here and now.

She launched objects at him that were the size of buildings. He just took the brunt of it and kept coming toward her before she fired shot after shot of her power at him.

Then you suddenly remembered the stones. Your gaze shot to the gauntlet where T’Challa was running towards.

Ebony Maw had picked up the earth where the gauntlet was and T’Challa was trying to grab it, but Maw used the earth to slow him down, trapping him.

“Hey, Maw!” you shouted, hoping to get his attention. You charged several stones nearby and slung them at Maw quickly. He deflected some of them, but at least his concentration was broken for a second, just enough time to let Peter Parker dive at the stones and grab the gauntlet.

Maw glared at you angrily, realizing what you’d just cost him. He threw earth, stones, debris at you, but you just put up your shield made of your birth power - Bio-Kinetic energy. Anger flared through you. You had failed once, been too distracted before, not again - never again.

With a surge of energy, you picked up debris and threw it at Maw and while he was distracted dodging it, your other hand came up, your power wrapping around his throat, the dark energy clenching tightly. He tried to launch objects at you to stop you, but your forcefield surrounded you and every object that hit you just disintegrated.

“Goodbye, Maw,” you said with dark happiness. You squeezed a little tighter and he went limp. You dropped him on the field, happy to be rid of another obstacle.

Peter Parker was jumping and slinging webs as fast as he humanly could to get away from the creatures from Thanos’ army. He had gotten far enough to activate instant kill mode. “Uhhh I could use a little help here, anyone?” Peter sounded distraught.

“I’m coming, Peter, hold on!” came Shannon’s voice through his gear. She flew as fast as she could. With the help of her AI Tadashi she managed to locate him and stop the creatures from coming too close to him. “Peter, on my mark, jump!” she yelled.

Soon enough, she was just above him and he jumped, latching his spider legs onto her suit.

“Thank you! Ms. Moran.” He sighed in a bit of relief while hugging the gauntlet.

“No worries, Peter and it’s Mrs. Stark.” Shannon giggled.  “Alright, I’m sending you up with Valkyrie, ready?”

“Ready!”

He got thrown into the air and was caught by Valkyrie and off they went on her flying horse.

Just as you finished killing Maw, you looked around to see where Thanos was, if Wanda had made any progress on killing him or stopping him. Yet, when you glanced to where they were before, Thanos was in the air as Wanda slowly ripped away his armor. He ordered a “rain fire” command, but Corvus argued with him against it saying it would harm the troops on their side as well as your side. Thanos demanded he do it anyway.

In one second, shots came raining down from the ship, hitting anywhere and everywhere. It knocked Wanda back as well as hit multiple people on the field. Your hope fell away as Wanda flew back, far away from Thanos. When Wanda was pushed back, it broke her hold on Thanos.

The sorcerers tried to act quickly to shield those that they could from the blasts. Then two seconds later, one of the shots hit the edge of the lake, and water came crashing in, threatening to flood the whole battlefield.

“Uhh, guys don’t mean to interrupt but the lake water is going to flood this area if we don’t do something soon!” Shannon announced while trying to keep her eyes on Peter.

Stephen took notice and flew over quickly before the water could hurt anyone. He began whirling the water into what appeared to be a water cyclone to keep it contained. You shook your head, wondering why he didn’t just lift the old debris up to keep it held back so he could fight too, but now wasn’t the time to argue with him.

Your sight reset on Thanos now. He wasn’t fighting anyone, and the gauntlet was still out there.

Peter had it and he was struggling. “I got this. I got this!” he yelled as he shot a web and glided along.

You were trying to decide whether to help Peter or stop Thanos. Your heart was racing. Seconds mattered, every second meant something. You didn’t have time to debate this for long. Finally, you made the executive decision to stop Thanos - several people could help Peter, but only a few of you could stop Thanos.

“Shannon, I’m going after Thanos. Peter needs help, I can’t get to him,” you told her, knowing she would be there to help him in an instant.

“Tadashi, scan the area for Peter. I need to know where he is,” she called for the AI.

“He’s still up in the air. They are getting close to the van, Mrs. Stark.”

“Alright turn on the thrusters.” From there she jetted to where they were. She was just about to get there but one of the ships snapped his webbing and he was rapidly falling. Thankfully the iron spider suit he was wearing had protected him from any of the harsh blows from the debris.

All she could hear were his screams and grunts as he fell. She got there just in time to shield him from the blast that had been far too close to her liking.

“Okay, I don’t got this. Help! Somebody help!” was all that anyone close could hear. “Ahh!” he yelled in panic.

“Peter! Are you okay?” she asked, letting her helmet retract so she could get a closer look. Her eyes began tearing up, seeing him standing there all bruise. “Oh, my son! You’re back. I’ve missed you so much.” She helped him stand and pulled him in for a hug.

“Hi there, Mrs. Stark, it’s good to see you—-” He got out once he steps back. “Wait, what do you mean by son?” he looked confused. “I mean I do see both you and Mr. Stark like family but—” he got cut off.

“There’s so much that I need to tell you, but this isn’t the time nor the place.” She smoothed his hair back, a few stray tears going down her cheek. “When all of this is over you, me, and Tony will have a talk okay?”

“Mrs. Stark, don’t cry. Things will turn out right, I know it will.” He tried to cheer her up. “Are you sure you should be here though?”  He started looking around hoping that no enemy was near. “Am I in trouble?” he instantly got nervous when he heard about having a chat with the three of them.

“Don’t worry, you’re not in trouble, Peter.” She ruffled his hair and he smiled sheepishly.

Soon enough more enemies started to approach and between the two they were able to diminish the numbers of them but more kept showing up. Shannon knew she had to keep Parker safe at all costs so she managed to connect all her powers together and send a surge of thunder and things to kill a large diameter of the enemies.

Just as you locked eyes on Thanos and set out for him though, the shooting from above stopped. Everyone halted on the battlefield, wondering what had happened. The shots didn’t stop though - they were redirected towards the sky, the clouds.

You frowned, confused. Your eyes met Steve’s, then Remy’s. Everyone had the same look you did -- utter confusion.

After a few people muttered their bewilderment and then soon it was easily realized why the ship had changed its aim.

Carol Danvers had just entered the battlefield.

She crashed through the ship, disabling it, and slammed through it again for good measure. The ship powered down and fell into the lake.

Everyone took a moment to shout with joy but it was far from over. Carol flew through the area looking for Peter and the Gauntlet.

“We’re over here, Carol,” came Shannon’s voice.

Carol landed, looking at him with a smile. “Hey I’m Peter Parker,” he introduced himself while hugging the gauntlet.

“Hey, Peter Parker. Got something for me?” She cocked her head.

He walked and lowered the stones, looking to the oncoming horde. “I don’t know how you’re going to get it through all of that,” he said in an exhausted tone.

Shannon and all the over women gather up. Wanda on his left.

“Don’t worry,” Wanda assured.

“She’s got help,” Okoye appeared on his right and you in front of them.

You stood shoulder to shoulder with the other women of the field as all of Thanos’s army charged towards all of you. Carol’s mission was to get the stones to the time machine. The rest of the women were to get the army off of Carol, clear her a path. Yours was to keep Thanos from getting to Carol.

Taking flight, you rocketed toward Thanos, who saw you, he was about to throw his sword your way, but something else sharp sliced your side, sending a searing pain up your right side. You began falling towards the Earth, glancing to see who hit you as you did so. Right before you landed, you saw Corvus smirking at you. When you hit, blood shot out of your side and you wheezed.

Get up, you ordered yourself. Monsters and soldiers were running at you but you held out both arms, charging items and throwing them and using your electrical power to knock them back. In a way, all you had done was clear a path so Covrus could run at you. He had picked up his spear, raising it high above his head before throwing it at you.

You rolled out of the way and onto your feet in one movement. A flash of anger went through Corvus as he jabbed at you again and again. All you were doing was dodging his shots before finally, you used one hand to grab the spear when he shot it towards you. He looked at you in surprise, but you used the hand on the spear to charge it until it blasted him off the end of it, sending him flying backwards. You charged the spear and launched it at him with all your force. It hit him square in the chest.

One second after he was dead, you remembered you needed to get to Thanos, to stop him from getting the stones, but when you looked up to find him, your blood ran cold.

Thanos had been slowed down by Hope, Shuri, and Shannon’s blasts, but then he resorted to another way to stop Carol. He threw his weapon straight into the time machine, causing an explosion that knocked nearly everyone on the battlefield.

You were too far away to help, but you saw that Carol had lost the gauntlet. Thanos made a move toward the glove, but Tony was nearby. He slammed into Thanos hard enough to knock him away from the gauntlet for a second, but Thanos, filled with wild rage, hit Tony -- your blood boiled at the sight.

Thor landed in front of the gauntlet, swinging furiously at Thanos. He swung his axe towards Thanos’s head and neck, but Thanos caught it. Thor summoned Mjorner, trying to brace the axe to push it towards Thanos’s neck. It looked like he was winning, but needed some help. Steve ran up and dove on the back of Thanos.

Thanos somehow shoved the weapons away from him, headbutted Thor, and threw Steve off of him, slamming his giant fist into Steve’s sternum, effectively knocking him out.

If your blood wasn’t already on fire from the attack on Tony, you were absolutely enraged now.

Immediately, you began flying towards them. You darted towards him, trying to fight monsters and soldiers as you went, shielding yourself from any other weapons that may be launched at you.

Thanos made towards the gauntlet, he had it in his hand, but Carol made it to him in time. She caved in his knee, punched him in the face, threw blasts of energy at him, dodged his blows, he grabbed her arm and threw her far away.

Come on, you screamed internally, pushing yourself harder.

Thanos put the glove on and your body felt hot, cold, numb. Every emotion raged through you like an ocean had hit you.

He raised his hand and went to snap. You were almost there. You could almost get him!

Not again, not again, not again!

Carol was suddenly back, her hands forcing Thanos’s hand open, preventing him from snapping. She pushed on the gauntlet hard, then pushed even harder, forcing him on one knee, bending his fingers so far back you were praying they were going to break. He tried to headbutt her, fight her, punch her, but her energy field was too strong.

Thanos suddenly grabbed the power stone and he held it in his other hand. He closed his fist around it, and punched Carol, sending her far away.

For the briefest of seconds, you felt failure, that it had happened again. He was going to win.

He put the powerstone back in the gauntlet, he was acclimating to the power of the glove, he said, “I am… inevitable.”

But then, you were there, right next to him. The hope, anger, fear, joy, all of it had returned.

Just before he could snap though, your dark energy wrapped around the gauntlet forcing it open.

“No,” you all but snarled.

Thanos stared at you with wide eyes, and he tried to punch you, much like he did with Carol, but your shield protected you.

Then your power bled onto him, starting from his hand, to his arm, then finally all over his body. Purple electricity snaked around his body. You lifted him off the ground.  

Your voice was full of pure malice and power, as you said, “You see, Thanos? When you take away your weapons--” your power peeled off the gauntlet from his hand “--and your armor--” your power pulled his armor off piece by piece, ensuring to wrap your power around his neck as you did so “--and your power…”

He floated there, in nothing more than a shirt and pants, his eyes squeezing shut from the pain around his neck and body as your power slowly squeezed him tighter like a boa constrictor. You slammed him into the ground, on his knees, so he could look over and see Tony, who had the stones.

“You’re nothing more than a man,” you said. “You’ll never hurt my family or this world again,” you vowed as you stared at him, and he at you.

Keeping Thanos in place with your purple, electric energy, you walked over to Tony, taking his left hand and holding it. You let your red bio-kinetic energy flow into Tony. It would help him so he didn’t have to take the full force of the stones. You knew your body could bear it, thanks to the power of the mind stone, and you knew by charging his body cells to their full potential, he could withstand the power even more.

One arm, one power flowing out of each as Shannon came over to constantly heal Tony, so that the power didn’t kill him.

It felt like you were being ripped in half. The pain was almost unbearable. Thanos was strong, and it took every ounce of your energy, power, and concentration to hold him back as well as not letting the stones completely kill you or Tony.

Shannon had been forcing her healing powers onto Tony. When her body began to feel the distress from the babies, she took a deep breath and calmed herself, focusing on keeping her husband and her sister healed. So you two could do what needed to be done, so that things went how they needed them to go.

“You almost had it there, buddy, but guess what?” He stopped in front of him and crouched down. “Out of all the possibilities there was only one shot at winning this and you know why?”

He looked around and saw everyone that had been dusted and was back. He looked towards his wife and his son and the family he formed within the Avengers.

“Tony, I can’t push my powers any further.” She looked to him, seeing just exactly what the gauntlet was doing to him and you. “Gahh!” she screamed from the exhaustion.

“Shannon!” both you and Bruce yelled.

“Because this wasn’t inevitable and I.. am.. Ironman!” he shouted and snapped his fingers.

Thanos looked on in despair as his troops began to fade into the air. At the very end when he is the only one left, he said, “This wasn’t supposed to end like this.” With that, he had become a pile of dust blown away a moment later.

“Holy shit,” you breathed out weakly before falling to your hands and knees, trying to catch your breath. That ordeal just took everything out of you.

Looking back to where both Tony and you were at, Shannon could see the power of the gauntlet. Raw energy had left most of his right side injured. He stumbled for a bit before his body collapsed beside a pile of debris. Rhodey soon flew in and went up to Tony to see his long time colleague and friend laying there in pain. Soon after Peter flew in and ran to his mentor.

“Mr. Stark? Hey- Mr. Stark” he stopped for a moment. “Can you hear me? It's Peter. Hey. We won, Mr. Stark– We won, Mr. Stark. We won. You did it, sir. You did it.” He broke down and hugged him.

“Alright kid, alright I know,” he patted the kid on the back. “Come on, breathe, I’m not dead, okay?” he tried to joke.

Shannon walked over with the help of Bucky. He had been told that she was pregnant and had used up most of her energy to keep them all alive.

“Thank you, Bucky.” She kissed his cheek.

“No problem, doll.” He smiled and walked back to Steve’s side. “Hey, babe,” Tony hoarsely got out. “We did it.”

She sat next to him and leaned her head on his left side. “Yeah we did, now how about we all go back to the cabin to clean up and eat?” she suggested. “The babies  starting to get too active.” She grabbed his hand and put it on her belly.

“Oh boy, those  kids got energy!” He laughed. “I don’t know how you managed to fight here with us today while carrying these little miracles.” He kissed her cheek lovingly.

“Get a room!” you teased as you walked up to the pair and offered your hands to get them to stand.

“Hey, we have and it made you an aunt, didn’t it?” He smirked.  “Alright, FRIDAY, see if there’s any quinjets left to get us all home.”

“Right away boss.” It took a moment. “There seems to be 3 quinjets still fully functioning, sir.”

“Alright you heard the AI, let’s get our butts into those jets and head back to their home.” Steve ever the team leader.

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

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UC: @lokis-high-priestess

[shinidamachu]

Japanese Doll

Summary: and she lived happily ever after... or so she thought. What to do when you are ripped off from your fairy tale and thrown into a horror story?

Word Count: 8002  Genre: boo!  Fandom: InuYasha  Pairing: Kagome + Distress I guess Format: oneshot  AO3 Link: 🌹  Fanfic.Net Link: 🌹

Tag List:  @gaykagome @mcornilliac @keichanz @amethystablaze @cstorm86​ (thank you so much for the interest, you guys).

When Kagome woke up that night, it was her worst nightmare that greeted her to conscious.

Bit by bit, and without fully comprehending, she took in the view of the room that was once hers, unmistakable even in the black. Everything was quiet. Too quiet. Like the pained whispers of a funeral.

The young priestess didn’t expect to be there ever again. She shouldn’t be. That was the deal — a lifetime of happiness with the man she loved in exchange of nevermore setting a feet on her own era — and she had accepted it with every string attached.

Then why was she there? Could it be that her return to the Sengoku had been nothing but a cruel dream? Impossible. She had felt the passage of time in her womb as it bore their first child. It wasn’t something her mind could forge, at least not that realistically so.

Her thoughts were a puzzle of incompatible pieces, buzzing so loud in her ears that only the thunder announcing the storm outside managed to be as strident. Not a slit of light dared to trespass the ajar door. Still groggy, Kagome crawled out the bed, its sheets feeling utterly foreign to her skin.

A few hesitant steps and she was pulling the knob carefully, making it squeak.

“Mom?” She tried, a single tear escaping her eyes while a bad feeling took the form of goosebumps on her arms. “Sota? Grandpa?”

No reply.

Walking outside, a putrid scent stole the air from her lungs like a punch in the guts. Kagome had inhaled that odor too many times to be naive about it. There was no doubt.

She had just smelled death.

Now shaking, she forced herself to go down the stairs, a billion horrific scenarios playing in her brain on repeat. Every little noise the wood made under her weight was enough to set her heart racing.

Finally stepping into the living room, Kagome snapped her gaze through the darkness, searching for something she was terrified to find.

Gasping when a shadow that resembled a silhouette caught her peripheral vision, she turned just in time to see a lightning reveal his hideous features by the window. For the first time that night, the knot on her throat loosened.

And she screamed.

Her stomach seemed to fall in infinite loop, the hair on her nape were crimped up in a way they never did while the creepiest feeling climbed down her spine, freezing her in place.

Kagome shook her head, as if refusing to acknowledge the scene before her could somehow make it disappear.

He hasn’t changed at all. She would know. For years, every detail of his figure was imprinted on her soul, becoming the impersonation of her deepest fears. For the majority of the time, Kagome would successfully push it to the back of her mind — she had to, in order to survive the horde of demonic creatures always on her pursuit —, but that fear never left. It kept waiting on the sidelines for another chance to get her alone, another lowered guard, another almost.

Eventually, Kagome got used to living with that kind of threat constantly sniffing on her neck — all women did, after all. What made it easier was knowing the man that represented that danger for her was long gone.

Yet, there he was. 

The white of his clothes were tarnished by blood, including the adornment that covered his mouth, leaving exclusively his lifeless eyes at sight. No matter how wide he smiled, it never reached them. Kagome remembered that well.

Mukotsu slowly raised the axe he held in his hand — blood dripped from it as well — and just as a magician had snapped his fingers, Kagome woke up from the trance, running to the kitchen.

Wake up, she kept asking herself, wake up, wake up, wake up.

The Master of Poisons showed no rush, but still followed her down the hall, making Kagome brace herself for whatever substance he meant to plague her with.

However, it wasn’t a poison that took her down.

Something solid and alarmingly soft had thrown her off balance. Fallen on the floor and utterly aware of his imminent approach, it wasn’t hard for Kagome to decide that whatever tripped her, would have to remain a mystery.

Then, with a sinister click, the lights went on.

The panic Kagome was incapable to voice came out in sharply drawn breaths and violent chills.

If she had thought waking up without InuYasha in her childhood bedroom was her worst nightmare, that was nothing compared to the horror of finding out she had stumbled on the ensanguined corpse of her mother.

Had the fatal wounds on her body not being sufficient indication, the dull eyes would do the trick — they told Kagome everything she already knew but still couldn’t really process. Lying near, were her brother and grandpa, equally covered on their own fluids. Without even touching, Kagome knew they would feel cold.

Mukotsu left his spot by the light switch, entering the room and driving her attention away from the carnage in which her kitchen had turned. Now that the mask was off, his almost toothless smile set her on her feet. She had lost precious time. Her chances to reach the back door before getting caught diminished by the second.

Acting on pure instinct, Kagome grabbed an abandoned knife on the sink and held it protectively between them.

After years of fighting the nastiest opponents and surviving, she unlearned how to be a prey. Since her bow became an extension of her body and she got a hold of her spiritual powers, Kagome had become someone to fear in the face of a battle. Now, devoid of archery, said powers were the only thing she had to lean on.

And a knife.

Her thoughts went back to InuYasha. How desperately she wanted him to just show up and save the day somehow. Something inside her stomach revolted, both from the strong smells and from the realization that this was the exact wish she made when she had first encountered the Shichinintai member. If it hadn’t been for Sesshoumaru…

Kagome was gonna throw up. She was positive of it.

“STAY AWAY!” She imposed herself above the rain noise. Timbre steady, hands trembling.

“That’s no way to greet your groom.” Replied Mukotsu. His voice was as deep as she recalled, but the goofy tone that detuned it in weird places was still there.

None of it made sense. By just being there, Mukotsu defied every universal law Kagome believed in. She would be the first to admit it wasn’t a long list, considering the insane experiences she went through. Of two of them, however, she was absolutely sure.

One, death — for the most part — was an irrevocable rule. And she saw him die. 

Two, the well didn’t work for anybody besides her and her husband. Sometimes, not even for them, as Kagome had felt on her own skin for the entirety of three years.

Part of her, the rational one, wanted to ask him how and why. The other part just wanted to stick the quivering blade on him as deeply as possible and run to safety, to InuYasha.

“I SAID STAY AWAY!” Kagome tried to stand her ground, in vain. He was getting closer. She was cornered. 

“Still scrappy.” Mukotsu mused, clearly unaffected by her threatening posture. 

Once he got in her reach, Kagome uncerismonly buried the knife into his neck and ran.

A pained groan dissolved into laughter behind her, followed by the metalic sound of a blade hitting the floor. Kagome didn’t get far before he managed to knock her down — hands opening in reflex to ease the fall, she immediately resumed her flee by crawling away, eager to put as many space between them as she could, but there was no matching his strength.

Mukotsu turned Kagome over, climbing on the top of her as she scratched and kicked nonstop. He had to put the axe aside to immobilize her properly. Fresh blood started to drip all over her uniform.

“GET OFF ME!” Her throat emitted the words, but it was in her soul she channeled every drop of energy, in order to release that dormant power within.

Nothing happened.

Raw terror threatened to disable any reaction Kagome might pull as her defeat became more and more evident. Nonetheless, she kept fighting. It was exhausting and futile at that point, but she knew what the alternative was. Fighting was all she had.

“You are just as pretty as I remembered.” He ran a finger through her cheek. His touch felt strangely warm and wet and she knew instantly it had left a trail of blood on her face. Kagome wondered, in vain, to which member of her family it belonged to, or if the slaughter had annihilated any chance to tell it apart.

The more the contact lasted, the more she ached for a shower. Anticipating what he was about to do, every inch of her protested the imposed closeness. She found herself hoping he’d just kill her already. A clean, swift, painless death. That would be the best case scenario, given the circumstances.

‘Kill me! Please, just kill me’, she thought, refusing to give him the satisfaction to hear her begging. Mukotsu would never let her go, one way or another.

“You are not getting away this time.” As she bit back her sobs, he took both her wrists with one hand and the axe with the other, lifting it to a good — aligned with her neck — distance. Kagome could hardly believe when she caught his intentions, shutting her eyes to cage the relieved tears. With InuYasha’s smile pictured behind her eyelids, she accepted her fate.

The last thing she heard was the swishing sound of an axe coming down.

As soon as Kagome came to consciousness, her hands flew to her throat, where Mukotsu’s final strike was supposed to be. There was nothing there but cold sweat, but Kagome was no fool.

It was clear now she wasn’t having a nightmare. 

She was living in one.

Someone or something was toying her like a Slinky and Kagome needed to get to InuYasha at once.

She kicked the sheets off herself — breath still hasty — and considered her options as her eyes adjusted to the dark.

The unsettling feeling of a presence she couldn’t see told her that Mukotsu was still downstairs. Waiting.

Kagome couldn’t bring herself to come down and check. She couldn’t risk reliving the trauma of finding her family in that dreadful condition ever again. It was just too much.

The priestess left the bed — careful not to drive attention to her awakening — and stepped inside a pair of shoes, looking for anything that might help her fight or flee. 

No bow or arrows at sight. Nothing sharpy or heavy she could make use of. Kagome doubt her spiritual powers would work, either, and given the previous failure, she was less than enthusiastic to try again. The insistent din against the curtained window reminded her of the raging storm outside and Kagome made a decision.

The umbrella she abandoned on the top of the wardrobe years ago was probably still there. Daring to hope, she navigated between furniture and triumphantly avoided potential tripping risks.

There it was. She grabbed the ferrule and pulled, realizing too late in her eagerness that something was attached to the handle. Whatever the object was, her movement made it drop into the floor with an audible thud.

Both her feet and heart stopped in place as Kagome got engulfed by a reverie of despair. She has been discovered. He was coming for her. Seconds crawled unrushed, one after the other. It looked like she was in the clear.

With renewed determination and umbrella in hand, Kagome marched to the window, pushing the curtains apart and lifting the glass open.

Then, without a warning, the door slammed, making her startle. She turned around to find Mukotsu, every bit the frightening monster from the past time. Kagome gripped the umbrella tigh to ease the tremors that took over her hands and before he could react, she jumped off the window.

It wasn’t a long fall, but the chilly air surrounding her all the way down made it feel eternal. The muddy ground approached in slow motion and when her feet finally collided against it, they did so in a bad angle. A searing pain inflicted her right ankle right away.

Kagome fell to her knees and whimpered. Under the incessant rain, she tried to surpass the ache and just keep going, but the unexpected sound of breaking glass announced it wouldn’t be that easy to escape.

Mukotsu had jumped after her, axe in hand. All the sirens going off on her brain screamed danger. She started moving, but in matter of instants he caught her by the injured ankle, making her screech and collapse face first in the mud.

“Where do you think you’re going without your groom?”

Without thinking twice, she yelled again — either from pain or adrenaline — and shoved the tip of the umbrella into his left eye with all the strength she managed to gather.

His hand instantly let go of her to nurse the damage as a guttural howl fell off his lips. Kagome seized the opportunity and ran to the Well House. Every step was torture, bringing her close to salvation and unlocking new levels of agony at the same time, but she wouldn’t stop. She couldn’t.

She threw at Mukotsu a final look back. His face was red with blood and rage, umbrella and axe tossed to the side. Kagome didn’t have too long now. Driving her gaze forward, her undivided focus was on the time portal.

Kagome jumped into the well and sighed in relief when the well known passage of years embraced her, transporting her back to another era. Part of her was terrified it wouldn’t work again, since nothing else seemed to do from the moment she woke up.

When she emerged, the urgency to go to InuYasha and the fear of being followed by Mukotsu set her running despite the soreness. She had to assume if he was able to show up at modern Tokyo, he might as well pursue her to the Feudal Era and the well was the only way to do that. She needed to put maximum distance between them.

It wasn’t raining, but the wind was cool and blew through her wet skin with the fury of a hundred daggers, the pain rivaling with the one in her ankle. Even so, Kagome refused to slow down now that she was so close to home.

Not once had occurred to her that the path of hope she so firmly walked on could crack under her strides, leaving her adrift. It was, however, exactly what happened just as she made the turn that should put their simple hut at sight.

Kagome felt electrified like the sky she left in the other side of the well.

There, in front of what their place was supposed to be, her knees gave in. Every inch of ground was taken by untouched flora. Nothing led to believe that, someday, a happy family used to call those desert lands home.

“I-I don’t understand.” Kagome stared at the empty field, feeling empty herself. The miko was willing to bet that whoever was playing this cruel games with them had got to InuYasha first, but there was no signal of fight and her husband would put up one for sure. It was so frustrating to try and come up with explanations only to have more questions popping up. 

She didn’t want to do it all on her own, without as much as knowing if her family was safe. Very little about everything that was happening that night seemed real, but it did feel like it to a frightful extent.

“InuYasha.” She wished for him, as if that alone could conjure the hanyou there. Her breath shook along with the tree leaves, the whistling wind their only company.

Or so she thought.

His small shape sprang out of nowhere, surprising Kagome just when she began to believe nothing in this fever dream could caught her off guard anymore. His contained chuckle prevented the tears she was about to shed.

“There is no use on calling for the half-breed.” Hakudoshi resembled an apparition, standing so palid in the clearing with the wind on his hair and shadows on his cheeks. His angelic face could fool anyone who didn’t know better. He was the devil.

“Where is he? What did you do to him?” Kagome wrapped her fingers around a handful of grass, wishing it was Hakudoshi’s neck instead. As much as she wanted to unleash her fury upon him, it would have to wait: the incarnation may hold the key to unsolve this distasteful ploy once and for all.

In fact, Kagome was mad at herself for not realizing sooner that this had Naraku’s fingerprints all over it. Of course, he was supposed to be dead. But so was Mukotsu. And so was Hakudoshi. If someone could trick death to seek vengeance, it would be Naraku. And who else would be his targets, if not her and InuYasha?

“I see your heart is still tainted by the likes of him.” He paused, savoring something she failed to perceive, then reducing the distance between them in two elegant steps. Kagome was used to see him with Kagura — or whichever creature Naraku designed to kill them that time — by his side. Alone and unarmed, the boy didn’t appear to be much of a threat. It was his mind games she should be looking out for. “I remember it well. All of that precious darkness, hidden behind a righteous facade. You try to fight it, but it’s there. It will always be.” Hakudoshi giggled again and it was an arduous task restraining herself from slapping that smile right off his lips.

“Listen,” she menaced, “I’m really not in the mood. Either tell me where he is or get out of my way!”

Clumsily trying to stand on her good ankle, Kagome stared him with every sign of deep dislike. She was soaked and cold. Mud covered most of her face. Everyone she ever loved was either dead or nowhere to be found. She was in pain and frightened and confused and wanted to scream into the void until her voice was gone. An uncalled for reminder that she used to cultivate such terrible feelings was the last thing she needed.

Long ago, back when Hakudoshi was still part of the Infant, he reached for the darkness within her heart, meaning to corrupt and use her to find the remaining shards of the Sacred Jewel. He tried to twist her love for InuYasha, to pin her against her best friend in the entire world. Kagome was not proud to admit he almost got away with it.

“I’m afraid I didn’t see him around.”

Kagome didn’t bother to grant him not even the briefest of eye rolls. It was a lie, but in spite of her talk she was in no conditions of doing something about it. She was about to leave when he spoke again.

“I did, however, met a new friend. A charming, brunette little child. What was her name again? Izayoi, was it?”

She froze at the mention of that name. Their poker faces were useless now. He had the winner hand. And he smiled because they both knew.

Ignoring her body’s plead for stillness, Kagome walked towards him, getting closer than she ever intentionally did.

“If you so much as touched a single strand of my daughter’s hair, then so help me...”

“You have nothing to fear.” Assured Hakudoshi, too affable to be trusted. “I just wanted to see what was in her heart.” Looking their surroundings conspiratorially, he toned his words down to a whisper. “Do you want to know how I did it?”

Keen pain clawed up her abdomen faster than any reply could be build and the air involuntarily expelled from her mouth soon turned into blood. It only took one look at the source of the damage to understand what had happened. He had a weapon hidden in his sleeves all along.

Hakudoshi removed the dagger from her insides and watched the blood flow, a pool of it forming on the ground while a fraction was spread on his face.

As Kagome broke down, agonizing, he struck her again.

And again.

And again.

Hand in hand with her senses, came a strange touch of acceptance.

The looping Kagome was stuck into caused the ceiling of her bedroom to be such a predictable vision, she recognized it within a heartbeat even in the complete lack of light.

Not that someone could come to terms with getting violently murdered so effortlessly, but death gets a little less scary when you already know what happens after.

Having learned from past mistakes, the priestess moved with expertise, dodging from anything that might drive attention to herself.

Until the time to make noise came.

She pushed the wardrobe to block the door, yelling ‘come and get me, you prick!’ just in case the friction of wood against pottery wasn’t loud enough.

Kagome didn’t stay to see it work. Climbing down the window, she shielded herself from the rain with the umbrella. Literally and figuratively in the eye of the storm, it was inexplicably good to use the item in its primary function for a change.

Running to the Well House was no trouble. The advantage of a healed ankle was everything she had prayed for. By the time she felt Mukotsu’s gaze burning on her back, she was too close to the well to be stopped. On the verge of freedom, Kagome didn’t met his furious stare, framed by lightning and the window’s edges: she simply jumped.

The night air that welcomed her in the other side was much kinder than the one from her previous attempt, since Kagome was now dry. It would have been the perfect moment to come up with a plan, had she better clues to work with.

Kagome knew her best shot was finding InuYasha. She also knew their home was gone and he could be anywhere. What wouldn’t she give to have her powers returned? She didn’t even ask for much. Just long enough to search for his aura.

But it wouldn’t be that simple to make it out of that mess and she had made her peace with it four or five terrible things ago, so she settled for the next best option.

There was a place, not far away, where her connection with InuYasha was the strongest: it was the place where they first met. The Sacred Tree, just like the Bone-Eater's Well, linked their worlds and bonded their souls, always bringing them back to each other. Maybe she could use its powers to find him, somehow.

Dropping anything that could possibly slow her down, Kagome headed to the Goshinboku.

The already shy moonlight got dimmer the further she entered the depths of the forest, the night sky getting gradually swallowed by the canopy.

Distant caw. Owl hoots. Her own hurried steps. They were the only sounds filling the air. Branches scratched her skin like decrepit corpse fingers and every new shadow was a threat until proven otherwise.

Kagome was midway when something went zooming by from behind her and landed a few inches away from her feet. She could have identified the device blindfolded. It was an arrow. On her mind, she retraced its trajectory, trying to track it back to the archer behind the bow.

As soon as she trailed it to a specific tree veiled spot, another arrow flew to confirm her hunch. Swift and precise, it grazed against her cheek as it passed by, stirring her hair on its path.

A thread of blood came streaming down her face while the person who caused it made herself seen.

It was as if the moon, tired of its ethereal realm, abandoned the heavens to wander the Earth in woman form. Her hair was uncharacteristically loose, the clothes immaculate. Her eyes were alive but she carried death on her hands — under her ministration, the bow almost seemed almost light and the arrow was aimed directly to Kagome’s head.

“Kikyo.”

She should had seen it coming. Although they had parted on relatively good terms when Kikyo finally reached nirvana, her relationship with the undead priestess had been turbulent from day one, and with dead, old complications popping out left and right in this little set up, Kikyo’s presence wasn’t exactly shocking. Seeing her there, ready to strike, revived a collection of entombed feelings.

“What are you doing?” Kikyo didn’t respond. She didn’t have to. Her hostile behavior left no room for reasoning approaches as she walked forward, but Kagome was willing to give it a shot. She could be a powerful ally at breaking off this prison if Kagome snapped her out of the spell, curse, or whatever it was Naraku had inflected her with.

“Look at you, trying so hard to hold onto what was never yours.” Her condescension hit Kagome’s pride where it hurt, but her curiosity spoke louder.

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t you see? I’m talking about the world of the living.”

She was making no sense and Kagome’s patience was wearing thin. She took a deep breath and mentally counted to ten.

“Okay... Okay! This is great! Now why don’t you put that thing down so we can talk about what are you doing here, why everything is such a mess and how do we fix it?”

Oblivious to her positive speech, Kikyo made no motion except for curving her lips in a smile that could freeze the sun.

“It was foolish of you to think tragedy would never find you again.” A disapproving shake of her head was all it took and suddenly Kagome was a five years old who just got caught wearing her mother’s makeup and pretending to be an adult. “Silly girl, don’t you know happiness comes with a price? Don’t you know I am you and you are me? Disaster is our fate.”

“You’re wrong!” Her words came off more confident than she actually felt. Kagome might had even believed them if each blink didn’t bring her closer and closer to crying. Not now, she begged, anytime but now.

“It’s time for you to learn I am much more than only your past. Listen close now…” As if on cue, soul collectors emerged from every corner to circle around their master, flying by Kagome without any consideration for her personal space whatsoever. Crimson eyes seeing right through her, they had never looked more wicked and surrounded by the creatures, Kikyo herself was a vision to fear. Her gaze was solid on Kagome’s. “I am your future.”

Without warning, sometime between one shinidamachu’s course and the other, Kikyo’s features changed. Round, slightly wider eyes and shorter hair that refused to stay aligned: every aspect that distinguished the priestesses gone.

Kagome was staring at her own face.

“No!”

Kikyo laughed. It was only then Kagome realized the tune was entirely new to her ears. She never would have guessed it could sound so frightening.

“Yes! Fighting is no use. My incarnation shall walk the same path I did.” Her skin rotted before Kagome, bits of it falling to the ground until she was more a carcass than a person. “This is what you will become.”

“NO!”

“And here is where the path ends.”

Then she shot.

Snorting was inevitable.

At this point, being murdered was just playing annoying and if Kagome was being honest, that last time had been particularly irritating. Of the worst ways to die, an archer getting killed with an arrow to the head by her husband’s ex had to be the dumbest.

At least, now she identified a padron. Everyone so far conspired to prevent her from getting to InuYasha. If that was really the case, finding him became even more crucial.

Maybe she was running against the clock without even knowing. Maybe one of these lives would turn out to be her last, just like in one of Sota’s stupid games. Maybe InuYasha and Izayoi were in an even bigger trouble than she was.

Lucky for Kagome, practice made her pretty good at avoiding the mishaps along the road.

Mukotsu and Hakudoshi weren’t even a problem, and once she got to the forest, she took a Kikyo-free route. Way longer, but also effective.

When she arrived to the Sacred Tree clearing, a distorted déjà vu knocked the air out of her lungs.

There, sealed to the Goshinboku, InuYasha laid unconscious.

The scene took Kagome back to the day they met, except this time instead of a impressionist painting withdrawn from someone’s dream, it looked more like a picture one might only find on a police file.

Skin as white as his hair, the half demon seemed dead rather than sleeping, with the night shadows shaped his face in keen angles. The green of the vines that tangled up his body had long worn-out and the arrow piercing through his chest appeared to be ready to disintegrate at the minimum touch.

It was like time had decided to spare the place, an unaffected sanctuary forgotten by its course. Even the Beads of Subjugation were missing from his neck.

“InuYasha!”

Kagome raced to him. Hands shaking and stomach sinking, her mind was only put at ease once she felt InuYasha’s even breath, her fingers tracing his jawline out of habit.

Yearning for his voice, his warmth, she grabbed the arrow and pulled it out with less resistance than she had anticipated.

InuYasha opened his eyes, but they weren’t the gentle honeyed ones she was used to. Glaring right back at her, his irises were blue as the sea and, just like the ocean, beautiful enough to make you forget why it was dangerous to dive in too deep. Still she might have drowned in it, if it wasn’t for the vicious tone of crimson surrounding them.

Trying to keep her worst fears in check, Kagome stood before him and hoped for the best.

Of course the best never happened.

“I smell it. The blood of the woman who killed me.”

His statement fell upon her like a blizzard. Implacable, leaving nothing but wastelands and a desolate cold on its awakening. Lilac strips sprouted on both his cheeks.

“Wha-”

Forceful and skilled, five sharp talons bore deep inside her flesh before the question could be even asked.

Her body reacted sooner than her brain.

The impact was excruciating in every sense of the word. Her blood all over his hand, his deathly grin. It was obvious what had happened, but even if Kagome had in herself to conjure a thought that wasn’t about the sheer agony that started in her heart and spread to the extremities in wildfire flares, she wouldn’t have believed it.

There was a clench on his grip and black dots obscured her sight. Although Kagome could feel her lips struggling to talk, nothing more than pathetic, meaningless sounds came off. Then his touch was gone and she was discarded to the ground.

InuYasha remained unbothered, smiling down at her as she died.

Kagome couldn’t stop shivering.

Silent tears bathed her face as she grasped her hair.

He had killed her. InuYasha had killed her. Her husband, the man who had sworn to protect her with his own life had murdered her without a second thought and the fingers that had once caressed hers with such devotion, betrayed her trust and ripped her heart out.

He wasn’t himself when he did it, Kagome was aware of it. Nevertheless, InuYasha had turned into a full demon before. There hasn’t been a single time when he had hurt her to the point of no return.

Truth be told, it wasn’t quite her case, since Kagome had returned. Details of how this continued to happen were still unclear, but she would find out. She would bring InuYasha back to himself and if Naraku was really the one scheming against them, he would be very, very sorry.

Mukotsu. Hakudoshi. Kikyo. None of them managed to stop her when Kagome got out to what she was sure to be her thousandth try.

More than a girl on a mission, she was a girl who realized the best defense is a strong offensive.

Which was why instead of heading to the Sacred Tree right away, Kagome went to the village.

The apocalyptic scenario that received her did little to wave her resolve. Burnt houses, abandoned objects: Kagome sidestepped all of them, telling herself it wasn’t real. Everything would go back to normal as soon as she discovered how to fix it. That didn’t keep her eyes from wandering briefly to where Miroku and Sango’s place was, neither her disappointment from surfacing when she noticed nobody was home. 

It was okay. Maybe that meant they were safe or on the run with their children. Be as it may, they weren’t the ones Kagome was looking for.

The village was unrecognizable. What had been so full of life now resembled a cemetery, gray and quiet. All the way to Kaede’s hut, not a soul presented itself. Kagome worried the ancient priestess had left too and when she arrived to her destination, she wished Kaede had left, after all.

In the center of the hut, Kaede’s remains hanged from the ceiling, a rope around her neck and a feeding raven on her shoulder.

At the sound of Kagome’s exclamation, the bird took fly, frightened by the interruption. She got out as well, fighting against the acid taste on her mouth.

In vain.

She emptied the contents of her stomach on the floor quite loudly.

Kagome had that coming since she first found her family, but with Mukotsu on her heels, there hadn’t been time to process that horrible view properly: her survival instinct wouldn’t allow her to. Now facing the music was inevitable and she didn’t like it one bit.

She composed herself. Kagome had come to Kaede in the hopes that her wisdom could tell her what to do. Just because that wasn’t possible anymore, it didn’t mean that her efforts should go to waste.

Holding her breath, she entered the hut again. The faint smell of smoke had masked the putridity within the area, but from the moment she inhaled it, nothing else could overpower it.

Avoiding to glance at the dead priestess, Kagome immediately got to work. She turned the place upside down, examined every corner, until find in a dustied little chest the items she seeked.

She also grabbed a bow, mercifully lying on the back wall, alongside with a quiver full of arrows, which she threw over her shoulders.

Craving for some fresh air, Kagome stormed out to the first secure spot she laid her eyes on. There, she opened the chest, bringing black and white beads to the moonlight. It was a long shot, but the only one she had. Praying that they were already enchanted, Kagome put the articles together in a rosary and ran to InuYasha.

“I wish I could say this will hurt me more than you.” With an apologetic look, Kagome set the Kotodama around his neck, then took off the arrow that sealed him to the tree and stepped back, her own arrow aimed to him by precaution.

InuYasha woke up, his eyes still demonic. Kagome didn’t think twice.

“Sit, boy!”

The rosary glew and brought him down. A wave of pure relief washed over her, but it was nothing compared to the bliss of meeting amber irises when he managed to lift his face off the ground.

“InuYasha?” Tried Kagome, slightly letting her guard down.

“You bitch!” InuYasha hissed as he stood up. Something about his wrath — probably the insult — took Kagome back to their infernal cat and mouse days, just before they became friends. When he spoke again, she discovered that was exactly the case. “It ain’t like you to rely on these little tricks, Kikyo.” InuYasha shook the dirt off his suikan and displayed his claws in a characteristic fighting posture, which made Kagome note he didn’t have Tessaiga on him. “Why dontcha shoot one of those arrows of yours? Gimme everything ya got. I won’t go easy on you this time.”

“Not Kikyo. Kagome. Ka-go-me!” Having to say that phrase once more, to him of all people, annoyed Kagome out of her mind.

“Keh. How much of a fool do ya take me for, Kikyo?”

“InuYasha, listen to me!”

The half demon attacked, but Kagome miraculously diverted his assault and ran deeper into the forest.

He was on her tail, both of them knowing he could catch up with her whenever he wanted. Still, Kagome couldn’t bear the thought of shooting him. Not him.

“If you just... take a break... for a minute and... hear me out...” She bargained, lungs giving up on her, legs burning. InuYasha paid no attention to her plea. He was a hunter, a killing machine. It would take more than negociation to get him to stop.

He was getting ready to strike. She could feel it.

“That’s it for you!”

“Sit!”

She waited until the the thundering noise of InuYasha hitting the ground echoed to slow down and turn around.

“Please, InuYasha, you have to remember me! Make an effort, okay? What did they do to you? Where did they take Izayoi? Where’s Tessaiga?”

Aside from a quick enraged glare, InuYasha ignored her altogether, too busy furiously trying to take the Kotodama off.

“InuYasha!”

“Damn it, Kikyo, quit stalling already!” Apparently deciding the beads were a lost battle, InuYasha darted to her again.

“Sit!”

Colorful curses left his mouth left and right, after the spell wore off and he could finally move. It was the gap she needed.

“I’ll talk and you will listen. Otherwise, I’ll take you down again. It’s up to you.”

Beyond displeased, InuYasha sustained her gaze. Kagome didn’t back down and was rewarded with a grumpy expression.

“Well? Spit it out!”

“It’s a long story, but… I’m not Kikyo.”

InuYasha considered her for a moment, his thoughts indecipherable. She expected his keen senses to confirm her statement without a hitch. If not, her clothes would get the point across just fine.

“I believe ya.”

“You do?” Kagome said, wondering if the raw hope on her voice was as evident to his ears as it was to hers.

“Yeah. In a closer look, you ain’t as pretty.” Reminding herself that he didn't really mean it, Kagome resisted the urgency of sitting him into oblivion. That would be just playing spiteful. InuYasha crinkled his nose. "Your smell isn't as good, either, and that’s gotta be the weirdest kimono I’ve ever seen.” He paused, then shrugged. “So you ain’t her. Big deal. It doesn’t change a damn thing."

It would be hard to swallow her pride and maintain focus if his tone didn’t have left her at edge.

"What do you mean?”

“That I’mma still gonna kill ya.” InuYasha explained, as if she was the dumbest person alive. “Whoever the fuck you are, I won’t let a human walk around subduing me at her will.” Instead of pulling it out, he now tried to rip the rosary off. Kagome rolled her eyes.

“How? You’ll be eating dirt before you could ever touch me. All I have to do is say the word.” InuYasha let it go of the beads, all of his hatred directed to Kagome.

“You’re just a pathetic, weak girl. Gonna have to sleep some time. I ain’t in a hurry.”

“In that case, I take it you will follow me anywhere I go, then.” She settled, pretending his threats had no effect on her whatsoever. InuYasha didn’t answered. She didn’t need him to. “Good.”

Kagome stumble on through the night, with InuYasha’s reluctant presence not far behind.

“All right!” She exclaimed, to put her thoughts in order. “It could be worse. At least now I have InuYasha by my side. Sure, he has no idea of who I am and wants to kill me, but that’s fixable. I bet Miroku knows someone who can help. They probably headed to Sango’s village. If we walk fast enough we’ll make it there by-”

“Don’t you ever shut the fuck up?”

She sighed. It would be a long trip.

Hours and hours of InuYasha being his most unpleasant self really took a toll on her and fatigue started to show. It would be better to continue, to cover more ground. However, the sun began to rise and Kagome decided to sit down before her body gave up on her and enjoy its light for a bit. For quite a while now, she had only known cold rain and cruel winds. The sunlight was a reminder of how far she had come. Surviving a whole night was something to celebrate, in her current situation.

Unfortunately, she had reached the limits of exhaustion. Kagome needed to sleep, and if she did, InuYasha would kill her on the spot. She could feel him circling her like a vulture whenever she closed her eyes a few seconds longer than a blink. It was a losing game.

“None of the stories I told you rang any bells?” Kagome had thrown countless tales of their journey on him. Facts, secrets, anything that could trigger his memory. She would be luckier talking to a wall. “How about this: I take the Kotodama off you.”

That seemed to break the ice.

“Why would you do that?”

“A sign of good faith. I take them off and in exchange, you neither hurt me or run away. Deal?”

“Get on with it already!”

It was sad to admit she didn’t trust InuYasha to keep his end of the bargain, but at least if she took a risk, there was a small possibility of it paying off, after all. If he kills her… Well, she would just have to start from scratch.

Kagome got up and went to him. Slowly, testing the waters. Impatience emmaned from every gesture he made, urging her to move faster. When they were close enough, she removed the rosary. Then he smiled at her and whatever weariness she still felt became irrelevant.

“InuYasha? Is that you? Did you remember me?”

His smile turned wider and wider.

“Not at all.” Out of the blue, a clawed hand closed around her neck, choking Kagome impetuously. She dropped the Kotodama to the floor, reaching for his arm in a weak attempt to break free. It only caused him to lift her up and squeeze harder, until her breath was finally gone.

Eighty-first time was the charm.

What kept her going, after all the failures, was the confidence that, however long it took, she would get it right eventually.

Kagome was running out of mistakes to make.

She had tried to get help. Sango and Miroku. Koga, Totosai, Myoga. Even Sesshoumaru. So far the scoreboard marked fourteen beheadings, ten stabs, eight chokes, three arrow shots and one drowning — which was specially infuriating, because she was a really good swimmer — and those were only the most memorable ones.

No matter what she did different, the outcome was always the same: her death.

To make things worse, InuYasha had no remembrance of who she was. It was like they had never met. As if Kagome had been erased from his life forever. Still, there was no way she would leave him behind, so she swore to get him back if it killed her. Which, to be fair, happened more often than not.

Hypnosis, describing their life together, letting him inhale her scent — she had even tried kissing him once. None of it induced his memories.

So there they were again, alone in the middle of nowhere, stuck in the same impasse.

“So whatcha telling me is that you’re Kikyo’s reincarnation?”

“That’s right.”

“And we’re married?”

“Yep.”

“What a lot of crap!” They both said, in unison. Kagome sighted at his puzzled look and left the rock she had been sitting on.

“Did I also mention I’m reliving the same day non stop because somehow I keep getting killed? Mostly by you.”

Matter of fact, the Kotodama around his neck and the bow and arrows over her shoulders were the only thing preventing another bloodbath from happening.

“You’re a crazy ass bitch.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah.”

Kagome nocked an arrow, drawing the string and pointing directly at him. At the last second and without looking away, she changed her aim to the bush on her right, where a red eyed, old witch that had got her killed once or twice was hidden. She released the traction, hitting the creep straight in the head and raised a brow.

“This doesn’t prove anything. I knew she was there too. Not really brainy, are ya?”

“Ugh!” She threw the bow onto the grass, her hands closed in fists so hard her knuckles were probably white. “You believed me when I said I wasn’t Kikyo. What’ll take for you to believe everything else?”

“Why don’t you try a better lie than Kikyo dying so that a wannabe would take her place? Do ya really think, if there was any truth in your story, that I’d settle for a poor excuse of an imitation?”

Different words, same crushing feelings. Kagome should have been used to them by now, but no matter how the sentences were rearranged each new attempt, they still hit where it hurt.

The tears came pouring out as they pleased. She was tired of fighting them.

“I can’t… I can’t do this anymore.” Kagome lifted her chin to the night sky, throat aching with the effort not to sob. “DO YOU HEAR ME?” She screamed to whoever would listen. Never had occurred to her that accepting defeat could be so freeing. “I GIVE UP, YOU WIN!”

InuYasha watched with a sadistic smile while she curled into a ball and weeped.

He didn’t care.

He didn’t care if she was in pain and it didn’t matter to him that he was the one inflecting it to her. She might as well be a stranger. The saddest part was Kagome was starting to feel the same way about him. It was torture.

And then she understood.

“I see.”

The one thing she kept making each and every time, the one constant on this absolute mess.

“I thought I had to find InuYasha to escape.”

She had guessed all the obstacles separating them were thoroughly calculated to prevent their getaway.

How stupid of her.

It was for divert her from the truth.

“But you’re not him.”

Under her intense gaze, his lips formed a firm line and Kagome knew she was right.

“I should have noticed sooner. InuYasha would never, ever hurt me. And even when we weren’t friends yet… he couldn’t stand to see me cry.”

Kagome had the satisfaction to see the astonished expression on his face as he realized his mistake.

“This is real, isn’t it?” Melancholy and comprehension intertwining in a mix she had never experienced before. “InuYasha… he never came for me.”

It had been an illusion. All of it. Her rescue, the three years apart. Even her return to the Feudal Era, their marriage, Izayoi… Everything was nothing but a cruel scheme to torment her mind little by little and she fell for it.

“I’m still in the jewel.”

Just like that, the impostor wearing InuYasha’s face vanished. The forest crumbled and faded away, engulfing her into an awfully familiar darkness.

In the distance, an ominous laugh reverberated through the void, followed by a voice that terrified Kagome to her very core.

“And you always will be.”

A/N: first of all, thank you so much for deciding to give my story a go and for coming this far. This one-shot is my longest one yet and pretty much the one that challenged me the most, since it was totally out of my comfort zone. It took me a lot of work and time and brain cells. That's why I ask (pretty please with sugar on top) that you leave a review.

It doesn't have to be clever or too thoughtful. Just tell me what you felt, what worked (or didn't) for you, the things you theoryzed you while reading. I had so much fun with this, maybe I turn this Halloween themed one-shot extravaganza into an annual thing (should I?).

Second of all, this title is a refference to Russian Doll, you know, because of all the deaths. Anyway...

Happy Halloween!

[mrs-dragneel-stark-solo]

Unforseen Chasm (Part 68)

Part 68 of Unforseen Chasm

Prompt: Two sisters fall for men that are absolute enemies. The love they have could tear all of them apart, or it could bring them together. Word Count: 5823 Warnings: Language, endgame plot, happiness, fighting, angst and fluff, reunited family, the truth comes out, character deaths, fighting while pregnant,  Note: This is by far the longest thing I’ve ever written (including my other fic series). first major Collab with my best friend @thorne93 what was first a simple “what if” moment turned into a two year writing session and I’ve never been more prouder of myself than when i started my first series. goes through most of the MCU plots there are some changes to accommodate for what we wanted and there is a bit of a crossover between the MCU and other characters. I hope you guys enjoy reading this just as much as I enjoyed writing it.

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Tony, Rocket, and Bruce all worked on getting the stones on a glove. Once it was set, and it seemed safe, the main question was who was going to do the snap. Of course, you couldn’t wield the power, or Shannon. Thor offered himself up, but between you and Tony, you convinced him not to.

Bruce said that he would have to be the one who did it due to the gamma radiation and the Hulk’s actual size. Bruce had gotten a chance to sit Shannon down and explain to her what he planned on doing. He knew that it would potentially cause some damage so he asked her if she would use her healing ability so that whatever damage was done wasn’t permanent. She was wary of it all but knew she had to put aside what she wanted for the greater good to bring back her son and her parents as well.

As soon as it was decided that Hulk would wield the glove, everyone geared up, just in case his Hulk form went berserk. Tony, Rhodey, and Scott got their suits on. Clint got his arrows. Steve suited up. You and Shannon slipped into your fighting gear that had been adjusted by nanotech to properly fit her baby bump. You formed a forcefield around yourself. Tony ordered FRIDAY to activate the barn door protocol, to keep the compound safe, and to keep the rest of the city safe. Everyone was ready to face whatever happened or fight whatever happened.

Bruce transformed into Hulk, the lucid form of the Hulk and he put on the glove. The power surged over him, making everyone nervous, but after checking with him, he was able to get out that he was fine. He held on for a few seconds, then finally -- he snapped. 

Then he collapsed. Tony and Shannon worked on healing Bruce’s arm, while the rest of the team tried to see if it worked.

Nothing seemed different for a second, but then Clint’s phone started to ring. It was a sign.

Hope, relief, joy, ecstasy flooded through you as you watched Scott go over to the window and see life outside of it.

“Guys, I think it worked!”

But in a flash of milliseconds, Hulk grabbed Shannon. Scott was blasted backwards. Hell, everyone was blasted.

The compound had been hit by a missile, several missiles in fact.

You fell forward before falling down into a hole one of the missiles had caused. For a second, you were disoriented as hell. Water was falling on you, debris and rubble were all around you. A large piece of the building was on top of you.

You looked over, trying to assess what the hell had just happened, when you saw Hulk struggling to keep part of the building up and protecting Shannon.

Rocket’s voice snapped you out of your confusion.

“I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe!” he gasped rapidly.

Immediately, you scrambled to your feet. Using your power to get the building of yourself, you got up, assessing any damage to yourself quickly. Then your purple power extended from your hand as you lifted the debris off Rocket. Next, your power flew to Hulk, helping him lift off the giant piece of building he’d been holding up.

“Can anyone hear me?” you spoke into the coms. You kneeled down beside Shannon to make sure she was okay as you spoke, but the water was flowing in fast. You knew if you didn’t get everyone out, and quickly, they’d drown. “There’s water filling down here. I’m going to go up and see what the hell that was. Does anyone copy?”

“I hear you,” Scott responded. “I’m on my way. I’ll get everyone out. You go.”

With one last check on Shannon, you soared up, flying high up. It took a second to navigate through the water falling on you, the debris settling, and all the jagged rods and beams sticking out, but finally, you broke through the top.

As you hovered in the air, you saw the last thing you’d ever want to see: Thanos - alive, and for lack of a better term, well. He wasn’t fucking dead, and that was the main issue.

The stones, where the hell were the stones?

Well, he didn’t have them. That was the main thing, and you needed to keep this purple sack of shit away from them at all costs. He had just kicked Steve across the wasteland that was the compound. The vibranium shield was broken in half. Steve was struggling to get up. You looked around and saw Thor laying on his side, and Tony’s suit immobile.

Suddenly, Thanos began talking, and you slowly hovered toward him, but he didn’t see you, you were just out of his field of vision.

“In all my years of conquest– violence– slaughter– It was never personal. But I'll tell you now– what I'm about to do to your stubborn, annoying little planet– I'm gonna enjoy it. Very, very much.”

Just then, an army beamed down from the ship above. Hundreds of Thanos’s soldiers landed on the field before you. You landed in front of Steve, trying to protect him from Thanos and his army.

“And I’m going to enjoy killing you again, very much,” you mocked as you stared him down.

“Ah, Y/N. I find it hard to believe that you could’ve killed me. You couldn’t even take over a city with your pathetic excuse of a boyfriend,” he retorted, giving you a look as if he’d already won.

All you did was smirk before you replied, “Killing you was the easiest thing I’ve ever done.”

Your eyes glowed purple before you and Steve suddenly heard something, in the coms.

“Hey, Cap, you read me?”

It was Sam. For the first time in five years, it felt like you could breathe again.

You and Steve gave each other a confused look, looking around to see where he could possibly be.

“Cap, it's Sam. Can you hear me?” he repeated. “On your left.”

A portal began to form behind Steve and you stood dumbfounded at the sight. Dumbfounded, but relieved and elated all the same.

Out of the portal walked T’Challa, Okoye, and Shuri. A sight for sore eyes.

Steve looked and sounded as if he were about to cry from sheer elation, and to be honest, you thought you would too. You and Steve would go against Thanos alone if you had to, but God it felt great to know you had a chance, a real fighting chance with all of your friends behind you.

In the next second, Sam came flying out, and then suddenly, dozens of portals were opening all over behind you and Steve. Strange appeared with three other beings you’d never met, and then suddenly Peter swung through.

With every new person, your heart felt fuller and fuller.

Armies began walking out. The Asgardian Army, the Wakandan Army, the army of sorcerers.

Your eyes were scanning, searching, looking everywhere for one particular individual. You didn’t see him though and your happiness started to deflate. Just as you turned to look though, another portal opened in front of you, and out stepped your one and only.

“Did you miss me?” Loki breathed as he stood before you, in the flesh.

In that one instant, that one moment, all else stopped. You forgot about everything and everyone. You forgot where you were, what you were doing, who else was standing nearby - absolutely everything disappeared and he was all you could see.

It was all you could do to keep from ugly crying from happiness. You wanted to throw your arms around him, never let him go. But you knew you needed to focus.

Scott, Bruce, Shannon, Rocket, and Rhodey showed up. Wanda and Pietro appeared. Tony and Thor joined the ranks. Soon, everyone was back that had been wiped off the face of the earth.

You gave Loki a smile and a look full of love before you and Steve looked at each other, a glint of determination in both your faces before the two of you turned, flanking each other.

“Avengers...” Steve shouted and everyone got in their battle stance as Steve called for Mjoirnir. “Assemble!”

In the blink of an eye, hell broke loose on earth.

The Avengers army charged forward at Thanos Army. After just seconds, the armies collided.

You were flying in the air, trying to get to Thanos. He was your soul focus. But he was too far away.

As you were flying, flying monsters from Thanos’s army came right at you. Smaller aircraft were deployed from Thanos ship. You did your best to use your electric dark energy to blast the aircraft out of the sky and crash through the monsters, decapitating them as you went.

Your eyes couldn’t help but scan the field for your loved ones. Loki was doing excellently, navigating the field as if it were a ballroom. He cut, slashed, punched, and dodged. Shannon stayed in the air, mainly healing anyone from above. Remy charged debris and cards, throwing objects as fast as he could, using his staff for close combat. Tony took to the air as did Wanda and Stephen, doing very well and staying out of most of the ground fight, which was good. Your eyes found Bucky and Steve, and you were nervous for them, worried, but you knew they could handle themselves. T’Challa and Sam were fighting fiercely. Thor was using lightning and his axe, full of rage and fury.

Everyone was fighting the fight of their life.

But you needed to focus on Thanos so he didn’t get the --

You internally gasped, glancing around. Where were the stones? Where was Clint? Did he have them?

Tony had been flying about fighting from section to section when he was surrounded by a few of Thanos’ goons blasting them with his hand thrusters. He became unaware of the enormous being that was coming towards him from behind, smacking him into a pile of debris in that instant he managed to turn and was using the blasters when the creature gets pulled back by the synthetic webbing that Peter had created and the monster was killed by giant Scott. Peter rushed up to Tony and began rapidly talking.

“Hey! Holy cow! You will not believe what's been going on. Do you remember when we were in space? And I got all dusty? I must've passed out, Because I woke up, and you were gone. But Doctor Strange was there, right? He was like, ‘It's been five years. Come on, they need us.’ And then he started doing the yellow sparkly thing that he does all the time–” Peter was caught off guard.

The entire time that he was talking, Tony was astounded about how unfazed the kid was being about the whole situation. The more he heard the kid talking the more emotional he got knowing that they had brought them back. Scrunching his face a little he got closer.

“Okay kid, hold me.” Tony pulled Peter close and held him tight.

“What are you doing?” he sounded a little confused but welcomed the much awaited hug. “Ohh, this is nice” and hugs the older man tighter.

“Mrs. Stark, it appears that your son and your husband are embracing each other,” TADASHI announced.

“Are they in a safe spot?” Shannon asked her AI.

“Yes they are safe,” came the Japanese  accent.

Monsters of all sizes and kinds were flying at you, trying to keep you from getting to Thanos. Proxima jumped up on a rock, and launched herself at you from the side. You didn’t see her coming and she slammed you out of the sky. You went rolling along the debris.

You coughed as you got to your feet quickly, Proxima making her way toward you. You were shaking your head. You had to kill her...again?

Why did you all have to kill and fight people you’d already defeated once before? This was just insult to injury.

“Ready to fail again?” she asked with a smirk.

“Ready to die again?” was all you said before you charged your hands, shot out your purple electric energy and it kept her still. You were just about to kick up the voltage, hopefully stopping her heart, before suddenly her eyes went wide and she gasped, her chest moving forward.

You frowned, leaving your power on her, but then you saw blood trickle out of her mouth. You let your power stop, confused by why she was bleeding. But when she dropped to her knees, you realized why.

Loki stood behind her, wiping his knife on his pants.

“Thought you could use some help,” he smugly responded and all you could do was smile and shake your head. Oh how you’d missed him.

“I didn’t, but I appreciate you trying to help me,” you assured with a stunning smile.

Suddenly Clint’s voice was in your ear though, pulling you from the trance you’d been in.

“Cap, what do you want me to do with this damn thing?” he asked.

Your eyes searched the battlefield but from where you were, you couldn’t see him.

“Get those stones as far away as possible!” Steve replied with a harsh grunt.

“No! We need to get them back where they came from,” Bruce responded from somewhere on the battleground.

“No way to get them back. Thanos destroyed the quantum tunnel.” Tony’s voice came through everyone's earpiece.

“Hold on!” Scott huffed and shrunk to normal size and pulled out a remote. “That wasn't our only time machine.” Scott pressed the button, which activated Luis's van's horn, which was heard from afar.

Hearing so, Cap went to higher ground. “Anyone see an ugly, brown van up there?” Steve asked.

“Yes! But you're not gonna like where it's parked!” came Valkyrie from high above.

“Scott, how long do you need to get that thing working?” Tony managed to ask.

“Maybe ten minutes.” He hid behind a piece of debris.

“Get it started. We'll get the stones to you.”

Hope had landed next to Scott and took a breather.

“We're on it, Cap,” Hope responded for Scott. She turned to him and smiled and started flying.

Scott and Hope were on their way to the other time machine, trying to repair it while Clint ran across the field, trying to get it to them. You shot in the air, about to try and help him, or at least stop Thanos from getting to it.

Before you could locate him though, T’Challa asked Clint for the gauntlet. At his voice, you finally found the two of them. T’Challa took off like the speed of light. He was able to dodge shots and blows from several of Thanos’s soldiers. He landed with a large blast knocking several enemies back, but then Thanos sword came flying at T’Challa, dislodging the gauntlet from his grasp.

Terror overtook you and you were just about to fly down to protect the stones when Wanda beat you to it. She landed between Thanos and the gauntlet, a white hot rage burning in her expression. You couldn’t help but feel pride and sympathy.

“You took everything from me,” she stated darkly.

“I don’t even know who you are,” he responded defiantly.

“You will,” she vowed before slowly rising in the air, bringing along several pieces of debris with her.

For a split second, you wondered if she’d even need your help. Maybe Wanda would finish Thanos right here and now.

She launched objects at him that were the size of buildings. He just took the brunt of it and kept coming toward her before she fired shot after shot of her power at him.

Then you suddenly remembered the stones. Your gaze shot to the gauntlet where T’Challa was running towards.

Ebony Maw had picked up the earth where the gauntlet was and T’Challa was trying to grab it, but Maw used the earth to slow him down, trapping him.

“Hey, Maw!” you shouted, hoping to get his attention. You charged several stones nearby and slung them at Maw quickly. He deflected some of them, but at least his concentration was broken for a second, just enough time to let Peter Parker dive at the stones and grab the gauntlet.

Maw glared at you angrily, realizing what you’d just cost him. He threw earth, stones, debris at you, but you just put up your shield made of your birth power - Bio-Kinetic energy. Anger flared through you. You had failed once, been too distracted before, not again - never again.

With a surge of energy, you picked up debris and threw it at Maw and while he was distracted dodging it, your other hand came up, your power wrapping around his throat, the dark energy clenching tightly. He tried to launch objects at you to stop you, but your forcefield surrounded you and every object that hit you just disintegrated.

“Goodbye, Maw,” you said with dark happiness. You squeezed a little tighter and he went limp. You dropped him on the field, happy to be rid of another obstacle.

Peter Parker was jumping and slinging webs as fast as he humanly could to get away from the creatures from Thanos’ army. He had gotten far enough to activate instant kill mode. “Uhhh I could use a little help here, anyone?” Peter sounded distraught.

“I’m coming, Peter, hold on!” came Shannon’s voice through his gear. She flew as fast as she could. With the help of her AI Tadashi she managed to locate him and stop the creatures from coming too close to him. “Peter, on my mark, jump!” she yelled.

Soon enough, she was just above him and he jumped, latching his spider legs onto her suit.

“Thank you! Ms Moran.” He sighed in a bit of relief while hugging the gauntlet.

“No worries, Peter and it’s Mrs Stark.” Shannon giggled.  “Alright, I’m sending you up with Valkyrie, ready?”

“Ready!”

He got thrown into the air and was caught by Valkyrie and off they went on her flying horse.

Just as you finished killing Maw, you looked around to see where Thanos was, if Wanda had made any progress on killing him or stopping him. Yet, when you glanced to where they were before, Thanos was in the air as Wanda slowly ripped away his armor. He ordered a “rain fire” command, but Corvus argued with him against it saying it would harm the troops on their side as well as your side. Thanos demanded he do it anyway.

In one second, shots came raining down from the ship, hitting anywhere and everywhere. It knocked Wanda back as well as hit multiple people on the field. Your hope fell away as Wanda flew back, far away from Thanos. When Wanda was pushed back, it broke her hold on Thanos.

The sorcerers tried to act quickly to shield those that they could from the blasts. Then two seconds later, one of the shots hit the edge of the lake, and water came crashing in, threatening to flood the whole battlefield.

“Uhh, guys don’t mean to interrupt but the lake water is going to flood this area if we don’t do something soon!” Shannon announced while trying to keep her eyes on Peter.

Stephen took notice and flew over quickly before the water could hurt anyone. He began whirling the water into what appeared to be a water cyclone to keep it contained. You shook your head, wondering why he didn’t just lift the old debris up to keep it held back so he could fight too, but now wasn’t the time to argue with him.

Your sight reset on Thanos now. He wasn’t fighting anyone, and the gauntlet was still out there.

Peter had it and he was struggling. “I got this. I got this!” he yelled as he shot a web and glided along.

You were trying to decide whether to help Peter or stop Thanos. Your heart was racing. Seconds mattered, every second meant something. You didn’t have time to debate this for long. Finally, you made the executive decision to stop Thanos - several people could help Peter, but only a few of you could stop Thanos.

“Shannon, I’m going after Thanos. Peter needs help, I can’t get to him,” you told her, knowing she would be there to help him in an instant.

“Tadashi, scan the area for Peter. I need to know where he is,” she called for the AI.

“He’s still up in the air. They are getting close to the van, Mrs. Stark.”

“Alright turn on the thrusters.” From there she jetted to where they were. She was just about to get there but one of the ships snapped his webbing and he was rapidly falling. Thankfully the iron spider suit he was wearing had protected him from any of the harsh blows from the debris.

All she could hear were his screams and grunts as he fell. She got there just in time to shield him from the blast that had been far too close to her liking.

“Okay, I don’t got this. Help! Somebody help!” was all that anyone close could hear. “Ahh!” he yelled in panic.

“Peter! Are you okay?” she asked, letting her helmet retract so she could get a closer look. Her eyes began tearing up, seeing him standing there all bruise. “Oh, my son! You’re back. I’ve missed you so much.” She helped him stand and pulled him in for a hug.

“Hi there, Mrs. Stark, it’s good to see you—-” He got out once he steps back. “Wait, what do you mean by son?” he looked confused. “I mean I do see both you and Mr. Stark like family but—” he got cut off.

“There’s so much that I need to tell you, but this isn’t the time nor the place.” She smoothed his hair back, a few stray tears going down her cheek. “When all of this is over you, me, and Tony will have a talk okay?”

“Mrs. Stark, don’t cry. Things will turn out right, I know it will.” He tried to cheer her up. “Are you sure you should be here though?”  He started looking around hoping that no enemy was near. “Am I in trouble?” he instantly got nervous when he heard about having a chat with the three of them.

“Don’t worry, you’re not in trouble, Peter.” She ruffled his hair and he smiled sheepishly.

Soon enough more enemies started to approach and between the two they were able to diminish the numbers of them but more kept showing up. Shannon knew she had to keep Parker safe at all costs so she managed to connect all her powers together and send a surge of thunder and things to kill a large diameter of the enemies.

Just as you locked eyes on Thanos and set out for him though, the shooting from above stopped. Everyone halted on the battlefield, wondering what had happened. The shots didn’t stop though - they were redirected towards the sky, the clouds.

You frowned, confused. Your eyes met Steve’s, then Remy’s. Everyone had the same look you did -- utter confusion.

After a few people muttered their bewilderment and then soon it was easily realized why the ship had changed its aim.

Carol Danvers had just entered the battlefield.

She crashed through the ship, disabling it, and slammed through it again for good measure. The ship powered down and fell into the lake.

Everyone took a moment to shout with joy but it was far from over. Carol flew through the area looking for Peter and the Gauntlet.

“We’re over here, Carol,” came Shannon’s voice.

Carol landed, looking at him with a smile. “Hey I’m Peter Parker,” he introduced himself while hugging the gauntlet.

“Hey, Peter Parker. Got something for me?” She cocked her head.

He walked and lowered the stones, looking to the oncoming horde. “I don’t know how you’re going to get it through all of that,” he said in an exhausted tone.

Shannon and all the over women gather up. Wanda on his left.

“Don’t worry,” Wanda assured.

“She’s got help,” Okoye appeared on his right and you in front of them.

You stood shoulder to shoulder with the other women of the field as all of Thanos’s army charged towards all of you. Carol’s mission was to get the stones to the time machine. The rest of the women were to get the army off of Carol, clear her a path. Yours was to keep Thanos from getting to Carol.

Taking flight, you rocketed toward Thanos, who saw you, he was about to throw his sword your way, but something else sharp sliced your side, sending a searing pain up your right side. You began falling towards the Earth, glancing to see who hit you as you did so. Right before you landed, you saw Corvus smirking at you. When you hit, blood shot out of your side and you wheezed.

Get up, you ordered yourself. Monsters and soldiers were running at you but you held out both arms, charging items and throwing them and using your electrical power to knock them back. In a way, all you had done was clear a path so Covrus could run at you. He had picked up his spear, raising it high above his head before throwing it at you.

You rolled out of the way and onto your feet in one movement. A flash of anger went through Corvus as he jabbed at you again and again. All you were doing was dodging his shots before finally, you used one hand to grab the spear when he shot it towards you. He looked at you in surprise, but you used the hand on the spear to charge it until it blasted him off the end of it, sending him flying backwards. You charged the spear and launched it at him with all your force. It hit him square in the chest.

One second after he was dead, you remembered you needed to get to Thanos, to stop him from getting the stones, but when you looked up to find him, your blood ran cold.

Thanos had been slowed down by Hope, Shuri, and Shannon’s blasts, but then he resorted to another way to stop Carol. He threw his weapon straight into the time machine, causing an explosion that knocked nearly everyone on the battlefield.

You were too far away to help, but you saw that Carol had lost the gauntlet. Thanos made a move toward the glove, but Tony was nearby. He slammed into Thanos hard enough to knock him away from the gauntlet for a second, but Thanos, filled with wild rage, hit Tony -- your blood boiled at the sight.

Thor landed in front of the gauntlet, swinging furiously at Thanos. He swung his axe towards Thanos’s head and neck, but Thanos caught it. Thor summoned Mjorner, trying to brace the axe to push it towards Thanos’s neck. It looked like he was winning, but needed some help. Steve ran up and dove on the back of Thanos.

Thanos somehow shoved the weapons away from him, headbutted Thor, and threw Steve off of him, slamming his giant fist into Steve’s sternum, effectively knocking him out.

If your blood wasn’t already on fire from the attack on Tony, you were absolutely enraged now.

Immediately, you began flying towards them. You darted towards him, trying to fight monsters and soldiers as you went, shielding yourself from any other weapons that may be launched at you.

Thanos made towards the gauntlet, he had it in his hand, but Carol made it to him in time. She caved in his knee, punched him in the face, threw blasts of energy at him, dodged his blows, he grabbed her arm and threw her far away.

Come on, you screamed internally, pushing yourself harder.

Thanos put the glove on and your body felt hot, cold, numb. Every emotion raged through you like an ocean had hit you.

He raised his hand and went to snap. You were almost there. You could almost get him!

Not again, not again, not again!

Carol was suddenly back, her hands forcing Thanos’s hand open, preventing him from snapping. She pushed on the gauntlet hard, then pushed even harder, forcing him on one knee, bending his fingers so far back you were praying they were going to break. He tried to headbutt her, fight her, punch her, but her energy field was too strong.

Thanos suddenly grabbed the power stone and he held it in his other hand. He closed his fist around it, and punched Carol, sending her far away.

For the briefest of seconds, you felt failure, that it had happened again. He was going to win.

He put the powerstone back in the gauntlet, he was acclimating to the power of the glove, he said, “I am… inevitable.”

But then, you were there, right next to him. The hope, anger, fear, joy, all of it had returned.

Just before he could snap though, your dark energy wrapped around the gauntlet forcing it open.

“No,” you all but snarled.

Thanos stared at you with wide eyes, and he tried to punch you, much like he did with Carol, but your shield protected you.

Then your power bled onto him, starting from his hand, to his arm, then finally all over his body. Purple electricity snaked around his body. You lifted him off the ground.  

Your voice was full of pure malice and power, as you said, “You see, Thanos? When you take away your weapons--” your power peeled off the gauntlet from his hand “--and your armor--” your power pulled his armor off piece by piece, ensuring to wrap your power around his neck as you did so “--and your power…”

He floated there, in nothing more than a shirt and pants, his eyes squeezing shut from the pain around his neck and body as your power slowly squeezed him tighter like a boa constrictor. You slammed him into the ground, on his knees, so he could look over and see Tony, who had the stones.

“You’re nothing more than a man,” you said. “You’ll never hurt my family or this world again,” you vowed as you stared at him, and he at you.

Keeping Thanos in place with your purple, electric energy, you walked over to Tony, taking his left hand and holding it. You let your red bio-kinetic energy flow into Tony. It would help him so he didn’t have to take the full force of the stones. You knew your body could bear it, thanks to the power of the mind stone, and you knew by charging his body cells to their full potential, he could withstand the power even more.

One arm, one power flowing out of each as Shannon came over to constantly heal Tony, so that the power didn’t kill him.

It felt like you were being ripped in half. The pain was almost unbearable. Thanos was strong, and it took every ounce of your energy, power, and concentration to hold him back as well as not letting the stones completely kill you or Tony.

Shannon had been forcing her healing powers onto Tony. When her body began to feel the distress from the babies, she took a deep breath and calmed herself, focusing on keeping her husband and her sister healed. So you two could do what needed to be done, so that things went how they needed them to go.

“You almost had it there, buddy, but guess what?” He stopped in front of him and crouched down. “Out of all the possibilities there was only one shot at winning this and you know why?”

He looked around and saw everyone that had been dusted and was back. He looked towards his wife and his son and the family he formed within the Avengers.

“Tony, I can’t push my powers any further.” She looked to him, seeing just exactly what the gauntlet was doing to him and you. “Gahh!” she screamed from the exhaustion.

“Shannon!” both you and Bruce yelled.

“Because this wasn’t inevitable and I.. am.. Ironman!” he shouted and snapped his fingers.

Thanos looked on in despair as his troops began to fade into the air. At the very end when he is the only one left, he said, “This wasn’t supposed to end like this.” With that, he had become a pile of dust blown away a moment later.

“Holy shit,” you breathed out weakly before falling to your hands and knees, trying to catch your breath. That ordeal just took everything out of you.

Looking back to where both Tony and you were at, Shannon could see the power of the gauntlet. Raw energy had left most of his right side injured. He stumbled for a bit before his body collapsed beside a pile of debris. Rhodey soon flew in and went up to Tony to see his long time colleague and friend laying there in pain. Soon after Peter flew in and ran to his mentor.

“Mr. Stark? Hey- Mr. Stark” he stopped for a moment. “Can you hear me? It's Peter. Hey. We won, Mr. Stark– We won, Mr. Stark. We won. You did it, sir. You did it.” He broke down and hugged him.

“Alright kid, alright I know,” he patted the kid on the back. “Come on, breathe, I’m not dead, okay?” he tried to joke.

Shannon walked over with the help of Bucky. He had been told that she was pregnant and had used up most of her energy to keep them all alive.

“Thank you, Bucky.” She kissed his cheek.

“No problem, doll.” He smiled and walked back to Steve’s side. “Hey, babe,” Tony hoarsely got out. “We did it.”

She sat next to him and leaned her head on his left side. “Yeah we did, now how about we all go back to the cabin to clean up and eat?” she suggested. “The babies starting to get too active.” She grabbed his hand and put it on her belly.

“Oh boy, those kids got energy!” He laughed. “I don’t know how you managed to fight here with us today while carrying these little miracles.” He kissed her cheek lovingly.

“Get a room!” you teased as you walked up to the pair and offered your hands to get them to stand.

“Hey, we have and it made you an aunt, didn’t it?” He smirked.  “Alright, FRIDAY, see if there’s any quinjets left to get us all home.”

“Right away boss.” It took a moment. “There seems to be 3 quinjets still fully functioning, sir.”

“Alright you heard the AI, let’s get our butts into those jets and head back to their home.” Steve ever the team leader.

_______________

Unforseen Chasm Tag list- @reigningqueenofwords @oldfreakything @adefectivedetective @dontbetooobvious

Tag list- @cas-you-assbutt-dean-needs-you @winchester-writes @winchesterenthusiast @deansdirtylittlesecretsblog   @sammysbuttcheek @misz-adrii @sandlee44 @womanxofletters @natsuccs @childishhoebinoo @expecteddifferent @girl-next-door-writes @fanaticfanfiction @dakotapaigelove @sassy-spn-knight-of-hell @reigningqueenofwords @oldfreakything

Marvel: @reigningqueenofwords @flowerbunbunny​ @zelda2248 @misz-adrii

[she-is-tim]

P.S. I miss you | Elu Online friends AU | Ch.2

Previous Chapters: 1

It’s been since a month now that Eliott started to talk to this interesting boy on instagram. They get along well and it’s just a safe place for him to go back to when things are getting too much in his life. But january is here and he’s about to start at his new school. What he doesn’t expect is to bump into the person he’s been texting with. Suddenly Eliott’s life going upside down as he both tries to approach and avoid Lucas at the same time.

Face to Face

“So...” Idriss started, looking at the boy sitting on the bed with squinted eyes. “Why didn’t you tell him the truth again?” 

Eliott let out a frustrated sigh, focusing his vision on the snake that was wrapping itself around his forearm. He rubbed his head and made silly faces at him. It was good for distraction, because he absolutely didn’t wanted to explain himself yet again. They were supposed to hang out because Sofiane will leave to Morocco next weekend to visit his family and will not come back for a whole month. There’s no point in bringing up his stupid crush on Lucas beautiful eyes Lallemant. An yet there they were again.

“Don’t be such a drama queen.” Idriss scoffed and kicked his bed from the chair he was sitting on. Sofiane was chilling next to him, leaning his hips to the desk, crossing his arms and just watching Eliott with analitical glances.

“I’m not a drama queen.” he huffed and poked the nose of his snake, giggling when it hissed back at him. 

“Can you stop petting that thing?” Idriss screamed now, kicking the bed again. “You’re creeping me out.” 

“His name is Nagini, and no.” Eliott said, looking at his friend with piercing eyes, letting his little buddy to slide on his shoulders and around his neck. 

“If he doesn’t strangle you, I’ll do it myself.” 

“Idriss, calm down.” Sofiane sighed, finally getting into the conversation. “We are just worried about you, Eliott. You really like this boy, don’t you? There is the chance to start something with him. Why aren’t you doing it?” he raised his eyebrows in question. 

“Listen, he is most probably still closeted, it’s one thing to flirt online with someone through texts, but what if he would just push me away?” he asked with true concern in his voice. “I don’t wanna risk that, he is my safe place.” he mumbled, stroking the snake that was resting lazily on his shoulders. 

“You don’t know that.” Sofiane sighed and sat down next to his friend, he wasn’t afraid of Nagini at all, he liked all kinds of animals. “Just give him a chance. If it doesn’t work out, then what’s the point in texting him anyways?” he said and it hurt Eliott how true his words were. He just quietly nodded, but deep inside he knew that he is not ready to tell the truth.

“Okay, now get rid of that freaking reptile and let’s go out somewhere.” Idriss said, now a big smile spreading on his face. Both boys giggled at him and Eliott got up from his bed to put Nagi back to his terrarium. He gave him food and then changed clothes, ready to leave his apartment with his friends. 

His phone was buzzing once, twice. He hoped that it will stop, but it didn’t, so he groaned, opening his eyes as slowly as he could, fishing the device out from under his pillow, checking who was the brave person texting him at 9 in the morning on a fucking sunday. He jumped into sitting position like he was struck by lightning when he saw the username, unlocking his phone even quicker. 

lucallemant Eliiiii Good morning Wake uuuup I need your attention, sir You know what? FUCK YOU

Eliott couldn’t suppress his laugh, leaning his back to the headboard of his bed, typing a reply to his impatient friend. Lucas was really one grumpy hedgehog, especially in the morning.

srodulv Why are you even awake? 

lucallemant Aaaand he lives!  Ladies and gentlemen, the man, the myth, the LEGEND

srodulv It’s sunday, Lucas I was sleeping  So why are you awake? 

lucallemant I was in church with my mom...

Eliott felt a sudden pain in his chest and cursed for not waking up earlier. He knew how hard it was for the boy to spend time with his mother and going to mass with her. He wasn’t religious at all, so the whole thing felt like a torture for him and Eliott could understand his feeling. He felt the same when he was forced to meet his therapist once a month, or every other week when he had an episode. 

srodulv Please tell me you aren’t drunk 

lucallemant I didn’t drink yet 

srodulv Lucas...

lucallemant I know

srodulv Sorry for not waking up earlier though But I’m here now

lucallemant Don’t apologize I am the one being too clingy

srodulv You are definitely not too clingy Believe me 

lucallemant Thanks  ❤️

He sighed, looking at the ceiling. He wished that he could just pull the boy into his arms and hug him until he feels better. It was so fucking hard that he wasn’t able to comfort him physically, but he was afraid. It was one thing that Lucas accepted him with all his flaws, but he only had to deal with them through texting. He didn’t had to see Eliott cry in the corner, scratching red traces onto his arms, pulling his hair and yelling mean things. He wasn’t there when Eliott was in a depressed phase, ignoring everything and everyone, pushing away the ones that tried to help. He had no idea. He already had an ill mother to deal with, he wanted to spare him from having to deal with his shit too. 

srodulv Take a shower You’ll feel better 

lucallemant You’re just saying this, because you want me to take off my clothes

srodulv Guess I got busted I’m sure you have the finest ass in France

lucallemant Shut up 

srodulv Make me~ 

lucallemant You cheeky bastard

srodulv It’s a part of my charm ;)

On monday Eliott was not ready to go to school, even less to face with Lucas. He just hoped that the boy forgot about him completely, since they like talked for a few minutes, shared one joint (with an annoying girl included) and had a staring contest at the common room meeting. Nothing to really remember of, right? He let out a deep sigh and wished he could have the courage of Sofiane, who was always ready to express his emotions and do incredible things once he made up his mind. 

He walked into the school building, straight to his own locker, not even looking around if he could catch a glimpse of fluffy hair, baby blue eyes and sweet cherry lips. He swallowed and organized his books now at his opened locker, making sure he has everything in his bag that he needs before lunch. He was ready to leave when he saw Lucas walking towards his direction, so he just panicked and ran into the first room he found. As he closed the door behind himself, he had to face three confused girls glacing at him. One of them was more like thirsty than confused, but Eliott tried to get rid of that thought. 

“Hey, girls.” he said just a tiny bit nervously, only now realizing that he was in the common room, judging by the awful mural on the wall. 

“Hey, you were on the meeting last friday, right?” the blonde girl, Daphné if he remembers correctly asked him with a bright smile on her face. 

“Oh yeah, I remember seeing you.” the girl with the blue hair. She fucking had pink wings on her white shoes, Eliott was impressed by that, he liked weird stuff. “I’m Alex.” she smiled widely.

“My name is Eliott, nice to meet you.” he said with a gentle smile. 

“What can we do for you, Eliott?” the third girl asked, he remembers seeing her on Lucas’ instagram a couple times, she was Emma, the ex of his boy’s best friend.

“Nothing, really.” he said honestly and pointed at the door behind him. “I was just passing by and thought that I check in. How is the whole thing going?” he asked, looking around. The place was a complete mess, chairs and tables everywhere, big splatters of long dried paint on the floor. Plus the horrendous mural. He had no idea how Daphné could think this will be a place where students want to come and chill. He rather spend his time in a broom closet. 

“We are working on it.” the blonde one said with so much enthusiasm it almost convinced the boy that this place can be something better. “I have big plans, but first is to cover the mural.” she said, cocking her head towards the wall, not bothering to look at it. Eliott could understand, he felt like those colorful letters were burning out his eyes the longer he looked at them. 

“It is awful for sure.” Alexia nodded and looked around. “We will need some better furniture, these chairs are uncomfortable enough in classes, no one would want to sit in them while relaxing.” she pouted.

“Yeah, but like how could we afford any kind of furniture, Alexia? We have a really low budget for the common room project and painting the wall could cost a lot of money.” she sighed. 

“I can help if you want.” Eliott said suddenly, drawing all the attention towards himself. He was glad that seemingly his self-confidence was only lacking when he was in Lucas’ vicinity. “I know a place where we can get cheap, but good quality paint, plus I can try making something cool with it.” he offered. Out of the three of them, Daphné looked the most excited, almost jumping onto the boy in front of her, but thankfully Alexia stopped her immediately. Eliott shot her a grateful look and she smirked at him. 

“That is such a nice thing of you.” Daphné chimed, still having the bright smile on her face. “We will figure out things first, but I will contact you.” she said excitedly and handed Eliott her phone to type in his number. He took it and did just that, giving it back with a soft smile. 

“But just for the record, I am helping because you girls look cool and funny. I am not trying to flirt.” he said on a serious tone, just to make things clear. He hated when some girls thought just because a guy is nice to you, he has to be in love with you. Alexia and Emma laughed at him, while Daphné looked just a little bit disappointed. 

“It’s okay, dude.” the blue haired girl spoke. “Thank you for the help anyways. We need every working hand here. This place is a mess.” she sighed as she looked around.

“It’s going to be so beauiful soon.” said the blonde one with a dreamy smile on her face. 

“I should get going, but we’ll be in touch, yeah?” he said now, smiling at the girls. 

“Sure, thank you again, Eliott.” Daphné said smiling. 

Eliott nodded and was ready to leave when the door opened, smacking him right in the face. He gasped and fell behind, grabbing a table to not land on the dirty floor, his backpack was hanging on his arm now and he was sure that he’s seeing stars. When his vision started to clear, all three girls rushing to him to help, asking questions, but the only face he could see was Lucas’. He looked so scared and worried, he wanted to say something, but he barely could focus his thoughts, head throbbing like he got hit by a bus. 

“Fuck...” he mumbled, rubbing his free hand on his forehead, gladly not finding any bruises.

“Shit, I am so sorry!” He heard Lucas’ voice, desperate and sweet at the same time. He took a deep beath and looked at him. 

“I’ll be fine,” he said honestly, the pain started to fade away, it was like remains of a bad headache, nothing more. 

“I didn’t mean to... I should have been more careful with the door.” he mumbled, face turning into a painful expression. 

“At least he’s not bleeding.” Alexia said, bringing in some positivity, which was appreciated by the taller boy, since he found it pretty hard to make up logical sentences. 

“But you really should be careful, Lucas.” Emma said. “That is a thick metal door, you could have broken his nose or something.” she said with a wondering face, staring at Eliott like he’s part of an exhibition. 

“Guys, I’m fine.” Eliott sighed and straightened up now, fighting back the dizziness he was feeling.

“I can take you to the nurse.” Lucas offered and he could feel his heart skipping a beat, his palms getting all sweaty. “I mean, I was the one smashing a door to your face.” he said with a nervous smile, scratching the back of his head. 

“He is right, you should take a nap.” Daphné said on a serious tone now, pushing Eliott towards Lucas slowly. He panicked only a little, but was excited too at the same time. He just nodded without saying anything and followed Lucas out of the common room. Thankfully the girls stayed inside, Eliott had just enough of them. They were sweet and all, but when your head hurts like a bitch and your crush is right there in front of you, the least you want is three girls observing you with knowing eyes. 

They walked quietly to the nursing room, Lucas staying right next to Eliott, keeping an eye on him in case he's going to faint. Most of the students were already in their classroom, so the halls were empty. The tall boy felt dizzy, but not just because of the head damage he got. It was hard to be so close to Lucas and not talk to him. He wanted to ask about what happened on the mass yesterday that upset him so much he needed to wake him up, how is he feeling today, but he couldn’t do it without busting himself. And he wasn’t ready for that, especially not after he got hit by a metal door. 

When they reached their destination, Eliott stopped, turning around to face Lucas. He slid his hands into his pockets, feeling nervous, but he had to talk before they are parting ways. Taking a deep breath he started. 

“Thanks for taking me here, I’ll be fine from now on.” he said, voice shaking just a little. Lucas looked into his eyes and he could still see a glimpse of guilt in them. “Hey, this isn’t your fault, okay?”

“Yeah, I still feel bad about it.” he shrugged and forced a little smile on his face. 

“Last time I was the one smacking my head into yours, so I think we’re equal.” he smiled which seemed to make the boy relax a little too, his smile looking more honest. 

“That’s true. You have a hard forehead for sure.” he mocked, playful sparks appearing in those beautiful eyes. Eliott loved to see him like this. 

“Well, I’m going now.” he said, placing his hand on the doorknob of the nursing room, looking at the short boy with uncertainity. 

“Yeah, take care an all.” Lucas smiled one more time before turning around and walking away. Eliott wanted to go after him, grab his arms and tell him the truth, but the resonable part of his mind was stronger. 

He walked inside, explaining the school doctor what happened to him. She was really kind, even though she said some weird shit and let Eliott rest on the bed for a few hours. At least he could skip classes, which wasn’t so bad considering that lately he felt anxious and uncomfortable. Even if he had Alex by his side on most classes, he still couldn’t get used to all the new surroundings. Now that it came to his mind, he sent a quick message to his classmate to let him know that he is okay, just going to spent some time at the nursing room. 

lucallemant I’m such a mess You will laugh at me

Eliott was surprised when he recieved the messages, but he also smiled like an idiot. His head wasn’t hurting so badly and the doctor was busy with organizing stuff in the storage, so he decided some texting won’t cause any trouble to him. 

srodulv Try me 

lucallemant I smacked someone in the face with a door  I wanna bury myself 

srodulv You can’t bury a national treasure  And how did that even happen?  Was that person talking shit about you? 

He barely could hold back his laugh, because right now he wasn’t nervous, he was very much alive and active, ready to tease Lucas to death. It was the best thing, helped him through some dark phases during the holidays too. 

lucallemant I just wanted to go to the common room There’s this girl, Chloé  She’s totally into me because I once kissed her 

srodulv EXCUSE ME? 

lucallemant I was fucking wasted and she was the one pushing things on me 

srodulv My heart is broken 

lucallemant Drama Queen 

srodulv You would like my friends, they keep saying the same shit to me 

lucallemant  I would love to join them and tease you all day long That sounds like fun

srodulv It’s not, they are annoying 

lucallemant  Oh, so now I’m annoying? 

srodulv I was talking about them, not you. 

lucallemant So, back to the topic about the guy and the door 

srodulv I’m all ears

lucallemant  So I wanted to hide from Chloé And as I entered the common room, I managed to hit the guy in the face with the door I was so embarrassed 

srodulv lmao You are such a mess

lucallemant I knew you’d be laughing at me! 

srodulv  How wouldn’t I? You smacked someone with a door  That’s hilarious

And he wasn’t lying, he found the whole situation hilarious, especially since he and Lucas both went to the common room because they tried to hide from someone. Eliott tried to avoid the short boy, while he wanted to get away from that Chloé girl. They were more alike than he would’ve thought.

lucallemant  He’s in the nursing room now  But the worst thing is it was the guy I met with on friday

srodulv And that’s bad because? 

lucallemant Because he’s hot

srodulv So that’s what you value the most? 

lucallemant  Of course not, don’t be fucking childish But I’m not made of stone!  If I see a hot guy, I melt  Simple as that 

srodulv What about me? 

lucallemant I don’t know how you look like  But I’m sure I would like you  Even if you’re fat and bold

Eliott couldn’t suppress his victorious smirk. It might not be a bad idea to tell Lucas who he was actually. Things might change, but that’s not necessary a bad thing.

srodulv Ahw, you are so sweet ❤️

lucallemant I gotta go to class Talk later? 

srodulv Talk later  Have a nice day at school ❤️

lucallemant You too ❤️ 

Eliott spent almost three hours in the nursing room, then he went back to his classes. Alex was really happy to see him, giving him a bone-crushing hug as a greeting. It was a bit overwhelming, but also endearing, since Eliott still felt really insecure in this new environment, so Alex was like a safe spot for him. Especially since all he felt around Lucas right now was pure nervousness. But that might change soon, who knows. 

At lunch he was sitting with Alex and some of his friends. He was mostly on his phone, waiting if Lucas wanted to chat with him, but it looked like the boy was busy. He looked around in the cafeteria, trying not to be too obvious, but he couldn’t see Lucas anywhere. When his eyes traveled back to the table, he met with his classmate’s shit-eating grin. He sighed.

“Okay, who is it?” Alex asked, just without playing around.

“What are you talking about?” he tried to play dumb, but he knew that Alex won’t buy his bullshit. He might be looking like an idiot sometimes, but he was actually very smart and observant. 

“Eliott.” he tilted his head, tone demanding. The brunette sighed and ran his fingers through his hair a couple times, making a bigger mess out of it.

“I’m not telling you.” he muttered, not looking at his friend.

“Oh, so you’re not trusting me, huh?” he asked, raising his eyebrows so high that his hat slipped a bit back on his head. 

“It’s not that. The situation is kinda complicated.” he explained, rubbing his face into his palms. “I don’t wanna bring mess into his life.”

“Okay, so it’s a boy.” Alex stated with a happy grin. “I had an idea that you’re not straight.” he said proudly which made Eliott smile.

“I don’t like labels, you know. If a person is good for me, then I’m into that person, simple as that.” he shrugged.

“That’s cool, dude.” he said with an honest smirk on his face. “And you don’t have to tell me anything, but if you need someone, I’m here.” he continued now on a serious tone, reaching out to squeeze Eliott’s shoulder gently. The boy just smiled and nodded, enjoying that little gesture. Alex really was a great guy.

After school he went for a little grocery shopping, since he was aware that his fridge and cupboards were nearly empty. He got cereal, milk, honey, tea, pasta, rice, eggs and everything else he could be needing. When he was packing out the stuff in the kitchen, he felt his phone buzzing. He put the milk in the fridge before checking it, not being surprised that it was a message from his sweet, sweet boy. 

lucallemant I was thinking 

srodulv Thinking? You? That’s some serious shit 

lucallemant Oh, fuck off! 

srodulv If I fuck off, then who are you gonna talk shit to? 

lucallemant I’ll figure 

srodulv So what were you going to tell me? 

lucallemant You’re being an asshole  I don’t wanna tell 

srodulv Oh come on~ Lucas

Eliott sighed and leant his head on the fridge in front of him, smiling just a little. His little hedgehog was playing grumpy again. There wasn’t enough money on the world that he would pay just to see his face at this exact moment. It must be very cute. 

srodulv Hey, tell me please  Lucas~  My baby hedgehog~ I’m sorry, okay Lucaaaas

lucallemant Asshole... 

Eliott smirked after posting the picture and decided to record a voice message too, it might be a bit dangerous considering that Lucas talked to him before, but he was hoping that his little hedgehog will be oblivious like always. He raised his phone to his mouth, whispering into the mic.

“Hey, my sweet baby hedgehog. I’m begging for your forgiveness and I promise I won’t be an asshole. Please forgive me. Kisses.” he whispered on a soft voice, making a smooch sound at the end, smirking like an idiot as he sent it. He was waiting in patience, but he was dying that he couldn’t see the boy’s face as he listens to the record. He literally jumped when he finally recieved a response. 

lucallemant Fine  I forgive you 

srodulv ❤️

lucallemant That voice record was unnecessary though

srodulv Did you blush? 

lucallemant Pffff No 

srodulv You did, didn’t you?  Ahhhwww ❤️ 

lucallemant You wanna start this over? 

srodulv Nope, I’m listening 

lucallemant So you remember when we talked about parallel universes, right? 

srodulv Of course  How could I forget 

lucallemant I was thinking...  How cool it would be if you had been transfered to our school  We could hang out and all 

srodulv  How did that come from? 

lucallemant I feel kinda lonely  There are so many things that my friends don’t know 

srodulv  About your mom? 

lucallemant About me  That I’m gay...  I mean, Yann might be suspecting something But I have never told them face to face 

srodulv  I think I have a confession to make 

lucallemant What are you talking about? 

srodulv Don’t be mad at me, okay? 

lucallemant Why would I be mad? 

Well, I almost gave you guys angst, but I decided to take this one to a lighter tone, making it more of a FUNfiction. So Elu flirting shamelessly still, Eliott got a door to his face, he met the girls, his friendship is forming with Alex! Make sure to leave comments in my inbox or on Ao3. And sorry that it took so long! Bisou

[blade-revolutions]

Kai x Lyla AU Excerpt

//The ages vary between 18-19//

After 2 years of war against Voltaire and his dark spell over the sacred beasts, the creatures finally returned to the G Revolutions and humanity can wake up without fear lurking in their hearts. Every day of their lives, most people spent them with eyes wide awake and full of awareness, careful not to let themselves slip, and as much as prepared and trained they were for the final showdown, all of them knew that fear resided within them, covered by the most complex camouflage as an armour.

But now, brighter days are about to light their ways. All of those who had been sleep deprived in order to bring success in its best form are going to be rewarded with all the relief and peace this world has in store for them, including the team who gave it all and surpassed their human nature by pushing themselves beyond limits.

Expressing how refreshing this feeling of relief is seems an impossible task to achieve with words, but for Lyla Hart, the exuberant smile across her lips is a dead giveaway. It is as if all the pain has vanished in her soul, allowing happiness to consume her. Her brows are no longer furrowed, her eyes are not narrowed with suspicion, and her fingers aren’t curled into fists, accompanied by the fierce stance of expecting the worst any moment as every second ticks by. Her nails aren’t close to digging into her flesh from the sheer agony and her heart can rest without having to remind her she should continue training in the woods or the gym.

For once, life feels like a true gift. Although her intentions aren’t reaching ingratitude with these thoughts, someone who hasn��t crossed paths with her character would definitely interpret it otherwise. Yet it feels so good to see genuine happiness flowing around her, flooding everything with life and she can’t help but be fascinated by the way everyone has understood the fact that appreciating the small things in life can give you all the happiness you need. Surviving the cruel reality is a real challenge, almost a deathly one if it’s under the circumstances of a war, but if you believe then the dreams aren’t just dreams anymore.

If Lyla has to be honest with herself, then you don’t really need drugs or alcohol or a cigarette to survive in general. All you need is a healthy dose of daydreaming, and hope, as she prefers to add.

She remembers reading that quote a while ago and it got carved in her memory, like the song lyrics she gets addicted to. Daydreaming is probably the most ideal method to boost yourself enough, especially when you’re close to breaking down and tearing everything apart, along with yourself.

Lyla would continue the chain of thoughts which often lead to deeper questions if it wasn’t for the fact she has reached the music shop. A smile slips unconsciously on her lips, illuminating her face, and a soft rush of wind cools the heat on her rosy cheeks. Her enthusiasm of working again with Tyson, Rei, Mariah and Julia is the motivation she seeks since she doesn’t want to complain in any case about having to carry the heavy boxes filled to the brim with new music discs to the back of the shop. It’s gonna be worth it and spending time with her friends without fearing a suprise attack is all she could ask for. She has missed more than anything trying to wake up Tyson with new methods during their lunch break when he falls asleep on the sofa. She has missed conversing airily with Rei as they place the discs on their right spots on the shelves, laughing at their boss’ crazy and most of the time random ideas of making alterations to the shop such as adding neon lights without turning them off during daylight. And he would cast them a dark look, shaking his head as he defended himself that they are innovative, insisting someone has to be the source of creativity since his employees -according to him- have a serious lack of it. She’s looking forward to teasing Mariah about her crush on Rei and how he steals glances at her when he thinks she’s not staring. And Lyla can’t wait to see Julia taking over the DJ spot in one of the corners, blasting her music taste to vanish any traces of dull atmosphere.

Lyla’s fingers wrap around the warm knob of the door, a result of the amount of sun on it, but the movements of a familiar face across the street catch her attention through her peripheral vision. Her hand is frozen on the spot briefly and she turns her head to have a full picture of him, her lips parted. She may be acting like an old school girl with a crush -which is the truth in its most naked form- however, she has come to terms with the fact she has no control of her feelings towards him anymore.

Lyla lived has around him 2 years, and they had been more than enough to make her fall in love with him and everything he does. Apart from his ridiculously handsome features, his pride and confidence, his will and persistence to see brighter days had dragged her in like a magnet, rendering her unable to do anything. Lyla figured he has the traits every man should have, but she was mature enough to distinguish the drawbacks, the flaws that made him imperfect -which were the reasons she loved him even more, because of how real he is with everyone, but most importantly with himself.

If only she could collect her courage to tell him everything bottled up inside her…

A sigh escapes Lyla’s lungs before she decides to clear her mind. Nevertheless, as she does that she notices that Kai’s motorcycle is almost fixed, which means one thing.

With her heart in her throat, Lyla walks to the end of the pavement, waiting patiently for the road to be empty enough so she can cross it without any danger. Her heartbeat accelerates with each stride and her palms begin to sweat, an unusal effect as she notes.

It’s amusing though how her veins can be ignited with nervousness when there’s no need for that. Kai isn’t an unknown person. He was the leader of their team throughout the war and she has spent a lot of time of her life around him, growing accustomed to his imposing presence. It isn’t like they’re meeting for the first time. And she knows it all too well that following these thoughts isn’t going to ameliorate her composure, but nothing can stop her from hoping.

Lyla notices how determined Kai is on his task, putting as much as effort as he can like in anything he does and after a sharp inhale of breath, she finally breaks the silence.

“Hi,” she breathes softly whilst pushing a strand of hair behind her ear, thanking herself inwardly for becoming less anxious when it comes to talking to him.

Kai looks up, a genuine smile which kicks the strength out of her knees curving his lips -a rare sight concludes. Yes, she’s seen him plenty of times smirking or sneering, but none of the smiles were coming from the heart. So seeing him truly happy has the butterflies in her stomach dancing wildy with excitement. Because after all, Kai is the one amongst the group who deserves being alright for once the most.

“Hey,” he pushes himself to his feet, glad Lyla is within sight. He wanted to see her face and feel her comforting presence around him more than anything else.

A thought flashes his mind and leaves in the speed of lightning. During the war, he promised himself he would try to lock his developing feelings for the sweetest yet fiercest female of the team and even though he tried his best, they refused to stay buried.

But now, the final page of the war has been written, meaning the beginning of a new book, a new story, without fear and pain.

“Need help over there?” She tilts her head towards the motorcycle. Even though her knowledge on fixing them is limited, she still wants to be useful where she can.

“Thanks, though it’s actually finished. I just have to test to see if it works.” Kai shoots her a charming smile. “I hope my efforts won’t go to waste like last time.” He adds, wanting to believe his motorcycle won’t cause any further problems.

Noticing how lively his mood is, she attempts to ask the question that couldn’t let her fall asleep last night. The desire to know the answer was burning her insides, to the point she had become restless. “So…you’re leaving?” Lyla trails off, swaying her hands slightly back and forth, a habit impossible to break.

Kai catches the glimpse of disappointment in her chocolate eyes, and he would have surely missed it if he dared to blink.

As much as excited he was feeling of the prospect of spending time with his real family, his real parents, the crestfallen look in Lyla’s eyes have his heart falling along with hers. And suddenly, the idea of leaving doesn’t seem appealing anymore.

“Yeah. I’m going to see my family, spend some time to get to really know them.”

“Are you nervous?” She smiles briefly, shoving her hands in her jeans.

“A little yesterday, but absolutely not today. I woke up feeling like another person.” Kai leans against the tree, folding his arms across his black leather jacket.

“Quite understandable. Finding your biological parents after so long isn’t the easiest thing to accept to be honest. Many people are wary in of them in the beginning, testing their parents with questions such as where had they been all along and why weren’t they with them. That of course, isn’t truly necessary in your case though.“

"I know,” Kai pauses momentarily. “It’s just, kind of…” He frowns at the fact of beibg unable to find the proper word.

“Surreal,” Lyla chips in.

“Yeah.” he nods, confirming her words. He’s about to move away from the tree he’s leaning on when Lyla’s words still him in place.

“I hope you have a good time,” she wishes sincerely and takes a deep breath before continuing.

“You know, there are a lot of people who want you to stay. Like Tyson, Rei, Max. Hilary, Mariah. Tala and Spencer, and…” Lyla leaves the sentence to hang in the air. She doesn’t feel ready to speak again since this is harder than she expected, but she knows this is her last chance to convince him to change his mind.

Lyla shallows thickly, staring down at her feet before lifting her face to meet his piercing gaze.“And…me.” She confesses.

“I want you to come back for me.”

For some beats Lyla can’t bring herself to face him. Her words have already affected the situation, even if someone couldn’t detect it yet.

Lyla rises her eyes from the pavement and she has finally worked up the courage to look him in the eye. Kai is leaning on the trunk, his motorcycle the only object that separates them. He’s regarding her with an unfathomable expression and she’s beginning to feel self-conscious. Maybe she really screwed up the things between, maybe she-

Lyla’s train of thoughts is paused the moment Kai pushes his back to stand on his feet again, fishing an item from the pocket of his jeans, a Clef diamond necklane coming in view .

“Mind holding onto this?” Kai questions, a soft smile spreading on his lips. He’s staring at her intently and tenderly, and without even thinking, Lyla’s mind travels to those few nights where they used to play piano together to alleviate the mental pain at the moments where the war felt the need to rest too.

“Sure,” Lyla presses her lips in a thin line as he places the necklace in her palm.

She really doesn’t want him to leave and for a moment she senses he’s feeling the same.

However, Kai smiles at her one last time while he climbs on to wear his helmet. Lyla reciprocates it and watches him departing, hoping that this isn’t their ending whoheartedly. Instead, it’s a brand-new beginning.