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candied-cae · 1 year

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And Who Are We At The End Of The World? - Please, Be Gentle with My Breaks - III

Chapter 18/? - - - Read it on AO3

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Word Count: 10,480

Summary: There's a difference between being broken and having a few breaks. But a lot of these kids and been dealt a lot of blows, and not just from physical monsters of the Upside Down. There's still a lot of stuff hidden just under the surface that they haven't been able to show just yet.

TW: Depictions of PTSD - Triggering events and flashbacks

More ST Fics

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Friday morning - the morning Family Video was set to re-open its doors and begin taking business again - had finally come.

It was a sunny morning. The kind that starts with birds chirping from the trees and the smell of coffee drifting from the kitchen. Robin and Steve had made plans to be at the store early, a few hours before opening, to eat breakfast together in the back office and take care of any possible final business that could come up. It was going to be a very good day. They'd decided that much.

Robin was still asleep and a little while away from starting that very good day when a noise that was less pleasant than birdsong rattled through her window.

It had been a week since the morning after the earthquake, and the construction crews had finally made their way to the suburbs near the Buckleys to take care of refortifying, structural concerns, and general repairs. One such house that required their attention, was the neighbor's from right behind them. The one that happened to be closest to the wall of Robin's room.

She was woken up when the racket started.

There was yelling, the workers shouting across distances and making their plans. Her neighbor's house had a lot of worry. She usually wouldn't mind the yelling that much. She could ignore it until Steve arrived to whisk her away. But she had been asleep and would've liked to stay that way. And all the noise outside made it impossible to fall back asleep. So she rolled out of bed and pulled her thin, red curtains closed, trying to block out just a little bit of the early morning sun.

It was about then that the foreman of the crew grunted with displeasure and came to a decision.

“Too much mess here. The whole foundation's got cracks in it, I don't like the way these wooden support beams are splinting, these warps in the flooring don't look good, and that roof damage is only going to get worse with bad weather. Call the homeowners. They can bitch about the facts all they want, but this house is going to be next with the demo team and need a complete reconstruction before anyone moves back in.”

Robin had already finished getting ready. She was washed up and dressed, and finally, the noise softened. Maybe they were done for the day. And she probably had another hour before Steve would be rolling around. So she dove back under her covers and tucked them in around her. Closing her eyes and drifting back off to sleep for just a little bit longer before she'd be taken away from her warm, comfy bed, and would be made to face the daunting trials of customer service.

Maybe forty minutes later, Robin was in that slippery state between sleep and awareness while the heavy machinery of a demolition team rolled down the street. All at once, those titans of force began to unmake the house right behind theirs. So close to where she peacefully slept. And the house did not go down easy.

Robin was startled awake in a red-tinted room, with the impossibly loud sound of destruction erupting from right behind her. The strength of it was rumbling the bed under her body, accompanied by the shriek of over-used and under-cared-for mechanical parts.

And all of it just sent her.

It felt like Thursday night. In the Upside Down. Where the red-tinted sky opened up above her, and the ground shook under her feet so hard she almost fell over. When the groans of an old house moved around her and filled up her ears. Until it all became echoes of screams instead.

Lucas's screams.

“Erica! Call for help!”

She felt it. She felt the fear again. Like it was all occurring to her for the first time.

Max was dead. Lucas was hurt. Eddie was going to die.

Her hands started shaking. She felt the sweat stick to the back of her neck, on her forehead under her bangs. Her arms and legs almost felt numb- or maybe they felt disconnected from her? They didn't feel right. Or useable.

She was frozen. And she tried to reason with herself. Thursday night was Thursday night. It was over a week ago. It all already happened, and she's supposed to be fine. She's in her room.

But as she looked around, none of it seemed familiar. It all looked foreign. Alien. It even started to look like the room was covered in vines, and dust, and cobwebs.

And she was alone. Steve and Nancy weren't there with her. By her side. Helping her run through the terror anyway.

She was alone.

A tear slipped down her cheek, and then one of the neighbor's walls went down. Everything shook even worse. And while she was petrified just a second ago, she was then thrown into urgency. She all but pushed herself out of the bed and backed up under the frame. In the little space between the floorboards and the box spring. She just tried to crawl further and further back, closing herself into something small and hidden.

Nothing bad should be able to find her under there.

She started crying harder.

Somewhere in it, her parents started asking questions. Asking if she wanted any breakfast before she left. Trying to make sure she was still up. Wondering why she wasn't answering. But none of it reached her. She just stared straight forward, trying desperately to cover her ears and make it stop. She just needed it all to stop. But all she felt was the tremble. And all she heard were the screams.

Her dad opened her door. He and her mom poured into her room and kneeled on the floor to find her down there under her bed. They tried talking to her. To figure out what was happening. None of them understood why it was happening.

Max was dead. Lucas was hurt. Erica was in danger. Eddie was going to die. Dustin was limping. Steve was bleeding.

Nothing was okay. And Robin was alone.

Steve's car rolled to a stop in front of the Buckleys. But Robin wasn't sitting, waiting for him on the stoop. She probably just woke up late and needed another minute, or two, to finish getting ready. They were going in early anyway.

Steve wasn't in any rush.

So he just sat in the driveway. Letting the radio play through “You're Much Too Soon” by Hall and Oats. But still, as the song ended and the host announced that The Cars would be playing next, Robin wasn't outside.

Which was starting to seem unusual. He'd never waited very long for her to run out. It's not like she was someone to go to a rager and be hungover the next morning. And there was no way she had something with Vickie that went so late she couldn't wake up. At least no way she wouldn't have mentioned it to him.

He wasn't sure what her deal was, but he still didn't really want to risk getting Mrs. Buckley's stink eye by knocking on the door. A person only makes that mistake once. So he shrugged to himself and honked his horn in two short bursts. To make sure she knew he was there. Not to sound passive-aggressive, but maybe she forgot what time they planned on leaving.

And in that dark space between what was happening and the memory playing over reality, Steve's car broke through.

Robin knew that beep.

From all the times she was already packed into his car after closing, and he was taking too long to lock the door to Family Video, so she'd lean over to the driver's seat and honk at him from his own car. From every time they'd gotten talked into running one or a couple of the kids somewhere, and they were taking their sweet time, so he'd honk at them. From any time someone peeled out past a stop sign in front of them, Steve would curse, ask how much they think his car is worth, and he'd honk at them because he couldn't expect an answer.

Robin knew the sound of Steve's Beemer.

Which meant Steve was there.

That was the only thing she could grasp and hold on to. Steve was there. Somewhere out of sight, but there. Steve was there, so she wasn't alone.

“Steve? STEVE?” she called for him. Past her parents that didn't fit the picture in front of her, she yelled for her best friend to fill in.

Just when Steve was really starting to wonder what was up, he saw Robin's father open the door.

“There's something wrong with her!” he shouted, looking more scared than grown-ups usually let him see.

And Steve didn't even think he'd ever run so fast for anything. Before he could even worry about what specifically could be wrong, before he could worry about the Buckleys not being his biggest fans, before he could worry about not technically having been invited inside their house - he was through the front door and following the sound of Robin's voice down the hallway to her room. Where her mother was crouched on the floor trying to reason with where Robin must've been under her bed.

He just shucked the jacket off his arms and scooted himself under there beside her.

“Hey. Hey, Rob. I'm here. It's me.”

She looked at him. And he made sense. As much as all of it didn't make sense, Steve being there with her while she felt terrified? That made sense.

Robin's fingers released a sweater that had been lost under her bed and instead grabbed onto the short sleeve of Steve's white shirt.

“Steve. Steve, it's- i- it's shaking. Everything is…”

“I know. I know, it is.” He nodded with her,” But, hey, I’m right here with you. Okay?”

There was barely enough room for the width of their bodies under there. But even so, Steve untucked his arm from beside him and pushed it into the space over Robin. He held her tight around her shoulders, her hand still twisted in the fabric of his shirt. She was probably going to stretch it out, but Steve wasn't even a little worried about it then.

“It's so loud…” she whispered, trying to cover up one ear without letting go of Steve.

“That's okay. That's okay, because…” Steve reached over to his discarded jacket. In the pocket was his walkman and one of his mixes he was keeping on him until he made the one specifically for Vecna. He slipped the headphones over her ears with a little difficulty, due to the angle and tight quarters. But after he got it on, he'd quickly sped through the first third of the tape, because ABBA's “Lay All Your Love On Me” should've been the fifth song on it.

He pulled her tighter against him while she listened to the music and spoke right into her hair,“ I’m right here. And I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

She continued to cry.

Robin's parents just looked at the two in shock. They knew that they had gotten close, but they never imagined… Steve was the kid in town with a reputation for getting around. They always assumed there was something there, something he was chasing her for. They weren’t happy about it but figured - maybe just maybe - Steve Harrington got drawn into Robin’s refusal of his advances and it just made a game for him after they worked together at the mall.

But the way he was looking at her, it was love.

And not a romantic or lustful thing. It was just love in its purest form. Like they were two halves of the same person. Destined to link their arms together for the rest of their lives, despite whatever husband and wife they would get tied to down the road. It was something bigger than her parents understood.

But they were starting to.

Robin eventually stopped shaking so badly, and stopped crying so hard. Steve asked them if the construction crew could stop what they were doing. Even for just fifteen minutes. Just long enough to let Robin calm down some and get out from under the mattress and put some distance between them.

And the parents left them to each other. Somehow, they completely trusted that all Steve Harrington wanted to do was help their daughter feel better. When they told the crew that their kid was having something of a nervous breakdown, they were incredibly apologetic and immediately shut off all the equipment. Mrs. Buckley brought out some lemonade for them as a thank-you while they killed a little time.

“You doing better, Rob?” Steve asked when she looked like she was coming back to herself.

The room didn't look so scary anymore. Her mind wasn't covering her floor and walls in leathery tentacles. She couldn't hear kids screaming and crying in her ears. She knew Max was safe in the hospital, and Eddie was right next to her recovering. Lucas, Erica, Dustin, and Steve all made it out with bumps and bruises, but they were fine.

Robin pushed the headphones off of one of her ears and nodded to Steve, wiping off her face,” Yeah. Yeah.”

“Do you wanna get up?” he offered.

She thought about it. But her legs still felt like jello, and she still had an icky feeling making her hair stand up. It didn't look like the Upside Down anymore, but she was still scared it would again as soon as she made it to her feet.

“Not yet? It feels safer down here. Closed in, nothing can surprise me.”

“Okay. We’ll stay down here for a few minutes.”

Robin shook her head. She felt silly. “We’re going to be late to work,” she told him.

“Fuck work.” Steve remarked, and she laughed through a sniffle,” I’m the manager now. I say Family Video can re-open tomorrow.”

But then the worry hit her again,“ But, Steve, if I stay here all day and they start again, I-”

Steve just shrugged against her shoulder,“ We can go wherever. Wherever you want.”

And she relaxed again.

They got her up off the floor, splashed some water on her face, and got packed into the car after Robin hugged her parents. Told them she was going to be fine.

They blared music from his car and stopped back at his house first to grab snacks. She met the Antonovs while Steve stole a boombox and a handful of cassettes from his room. And then they made quick goodbyes and were off again. Steve figured a good place to go, to get away from everything, was that junkyard past the quarry.

They drove up the gravel road, around the big open water, into the break of the trees, and out through the clearing of abandoned cars and scrap.

“So, this is where Dustin took you, huh?”

She'd wondered what kind of place made for a demodog trap and makeshift fortress to hunker down in. Not enough to actually ask for a visit to a place that screamed serial killer central, but she'd wondered about it.

“Yeah. Except we came from the tracks and walked the whole way from town.” Steve told her.

Robin crinkled up her nose at the idea,“ If you're gonna bring me to the edge of the world, I'm not walking there. Only way you're getting me all the way out here is if I'm riding in style.” She leaned back in the seat, popped her feet up on the dash, and closed her eyes. Like she was trying to become the picture of luxury.

Steve just smiled softly and hummed,“ Of course, you are.”

The Beemer was parked and the two climbed out together. Robin's first instinct was to comment on the mess. The broken glass and the dented-up metal. Steve pretended it was all damage from the demodogs. She didn't know any better to push it. But they sat down in an open spot. Dug into the leftovers of Claudia's brownies while they just talked and looked out over the hill.

And then Robin brought the conversation back to something she considered to be of high importance.

“So, what's the plan with Nancy?”

Steve completely turned away from her, echoing her question like that'd make her drop it,“ What's the plan?”

And, as if she didn't even hear the annoyance in his tone, she agreed,“ Yeah. What's the plan? What sort of idea do we have on the docket?”

“Robin. Her boyfriend is sleeping on my couch right now.” Steve reminded her.

“Which is why I want to know the plan. Situation's gotten complicated.” Robin crossed her legs and popped a bit of brownie into her mouth.

But he declared,“ There is no plan.”

And she almost sounded disappointed. "Steve.”

“You guys keep trying to open that door - and maybe you could entertain the idea while Jonathan wasn't around - but it's different now.”

“You guys?” Robin pointed out,” Who else has been talking about you and Nancy?”

Steve muttered,“ Munson might've said something stupid…”

Her eyes widened,“ See! Multiple people-”

“Just the two-”

“Multiple people think there's something there! So why aren't you going for it? We got your confidence back, you're acting like the hot commodity you are again. Don't get why you're wasting time.”

He tried to redirect her,“ Why don't we focus on the Vickie front?”

She argued,“ The Vickie front is fine!”

“Oh? So what are the two of you then?” Steve pressed.

Robin got quiet before eventually saying,” I don't know.”

“That doesn't sound very fine.”

Which thankfully seemed to pull her away from Nancy Wheeler.

“How do I broach that topic then, Steve?” she asked.

“Well, you're gonna wanna get all dressed up, look real nice, lean in close, and then you're going to ask her where this thing is going.”

“And if she doesn't think 'this thing' is going where I want it to go? Then I've just outed myself and started the countdown until I become the town pariah.”

“You just gotta be covert enough it's safe, and direct enough you get a clear answer,” Steve advised. Which sounded like an impossible balance to strike.

And Robin was at least a little bit annoyed he'd even say such a thing. “Oh? Is that all?“

“That's all it takes!”

“Then…” Robin leaned over and got all in Steve's space before she put on a husky voice,“ Where do you think this Nancy thing is going?”

Steve cried out “Shut up!” and shoved her shoulder. They both fell into boisterous laughter while they lay out on the grass. Leaving behind the horrors of that morning and knowing full well that Family Video wasn't opening by 10 am as they planned.

Karen got a phone call that morning from Theresa. Robin's mother mentioned that they'd had a rough morning at their house, and asked if Karen had noticed Nancy going through anything after the earthquake. Seeming like she was reliving it at all, or stuff like night terrors? Karen truthfully told her that she hadn't seen any of that from Nancy, but what she kept to herself was that their kids didn't just face an earthquake. Karen knew they'd seen more than they needed to.

And with her soft heart, knowing that Robin got really shaken up and quickly left with Steve that morning to get away from the ruckus, Karen decided she'd pay the two of them a visit. Offer a little kindness and remind them that - even if they couldn't turn to their own parents for help - she was on their team now. Like what Nancy had said the night she found out what was going on.

So Karen baked a batch of fresh cookies in the oven. Her oldest daughter was pouring over her school work, the new and the old, and paying extra attention to her essays. Karen slid a plate on the dining room table to Nancy as they came out. Still warm and gooey, practically falling apart as Karen warned her to let them cool a minute so she didn't burn herself. And then she headed out the door. Packing herself and her Tupperware container away while she drove over to Steve's place. Where surely the two of them would have gone after Robin's fright.

The oddest thing was, as she came up to the front porch and knocked on the door, it wasn't either of them that answered. Nor was it Hopper or Joyce, or any of the kids. Instead, there was a man she'd never met before. A very attractive man, for the record, wearing a pretty skimpy pair of cut-off jeans that were halfway up his thighs and what probably used to be a tee shirt until the sleeves were snipped off to the shoulder and the bottom cropped until it almost showed skin.

Which was a little out of the usual considering Spring just started and nobody else in Hawkins would be dressing like that for weeks, if not months. Just wasn't warm enough for it yet. But there this mystery man was, looking like he was ready to host a Summer cookout and work on his poolside tan.

He pursed his lips under a crisp mustache and asked, with a strong, deep voice and accent,” Yes?”

“Uh, yes, I- uh- I’m Karen. Wheeler. Mike and Nancy’s mom.” she explained. Remembering herself after a moment and shifting the cookies onto one arm, reaching out with her other hand to shake his. Friendly, polite, and mannerly. Maybe a little more bashful than she should be.

He smiled kindly and shook it with a firm grip,” Dmitri. I am Mikhail’s father.”

“Oh, yes, I’d heard- that, um, that we had someone new coming into town.” she made the connection and thought to herself that she was being silly. Stuttering and sputtering for no reason.

“Ah, yes.” Dmitri nodded,” Once your government sends me some papers, I may move out of this boy’s home. Maybe then we will even be neighbors, yes?”

Karen smiled and agreed,” Yeah, maybe.”

It was quiet for only a moment before he wondered,“ Was there something…?”

“Oh! Yes! Sorry, um, I assumed Steve and Robin would be around. Wanted to drop off a snack for them.” she motioned to the container she held.

“That is very kind of you. They are out, but I can put it in the kitchen.” he offered.

She handed the sweets over with a simple “thank you,” but she didn't exactly want to run back home so quickly. And she thought it was only reasonable to try and get to know him. Being another adult on the end-of-the-world team and all.

“How- how are you and your son adjusting? To Hawkins? I'm sure it must be a big change.”

“It is fine,” he assured her. “Mikhail wishes he were in school. Also wishes he had his own room, but that will change in time. We are fine. Much better away from where we were. And I, myself, am most enjoying all the time free from work and the warm temperature.”

Dmitri remarked on it all with a smile. Pale, blue eyes shining under the midwest sun. Which must've been a stark difference compared to the snow-covered country he'd called home just days before. He really seemed happy to have completely turned his whole life around.

It wasn't like he had much of a choice. By the sound of it from Murray, Hop, and Joyce, he had to leave. There wasn't anything left for him or his son in the Soviet Union after he was imprisoned, escaped, and every person at his workplace - convicts and guards alike - was killed. He was a renegade, no matter what. So he had to pack up his kid and him, board a sketchy helicopter, and come with the people he'd become loose companions with. Chasing “hope of a better life” and “the American dream” as far as it'd take him.

It sounded terrifying for Karen to imagine putting her own family through. But here, the man stood. In the door of a teenage boy's home because it had a spare room to borrow. In a country he didn't know. Without a clue about what exactly was going to happen in the coming days, weeks, months, or years. If they made it that long.

And he smiled under the sunshine. Because he was away from work, and they had nice weather in Hawkins, Indiana. And that was enough to be happy about.

“Really?” she asked him.

“Oh, yes. Certainly. If I could spend the rest of my days like this, though in a home of my own, I would. Waking up early, making food, spending time with Mikhail and sending him off, enjoying this lovely weather… it is all I need.”

Karen had to laugh to herself. It sounded like the life of a housewife this man was wishing for. And she knew it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. It wasn't as easy or as fulfilling as it seemed like it was when a person summed up in one clean sentence.

“Your son must be better behaved than mine.” she joked.

But Dmitri's eyebrow raised, and he leaned in closer to drop his voice,“ You think too highly of Mikhail. He is still a handful.” He sat back and mentioned,” Though, I suspect I am lucky to just have the one. You manage two.”

“Three, actually.” she corrected,” I have my youngest, Holly, too.”

“Three, then. Miss Wheeler, you are a mother of considerable strength, to do so on your own.”

“Oh, I’m not on my own. My husband, Ted, he-” Karen stumbled for a second. Not exactly sure how much she could speak to her husband's adequacy as a father. Not when it came to the softer parts of childcare. “Well, he supports us. Has a good job and brings home the bacon.”

“But you manage the home and children?” the man restated.

“Uh, yes, I guess, he mostly catches the bills, and I manage the house. And the kids. The day-to-day. If you want to look at it like that.”

“Then that makes you strong,” he argued.

Karen just averted her eyes and brushed her hair off her shoulder. “You’d be the first to think so.”

“Americans do not think their mothers are strong?”

“It’s-” She didn't get very far.

“They should. I believe you are very strong woman, Miss Karen Wheeler.” Dmitri said with full sincerity.

She couldn't help but notice he didn't correct to “Mrs.” even though she brought up her marriage. But it was nice to hear the rest of that sentence too. She was a strong woman. Seriously spoken, because it was no laughing matter.

Karen also couldn't help but ask a question she's wondered a few times by herself.

“Was it easy? To work and take care of your son on your own?”

It seemed a little rude to ask. She'd only known the man for a few minutes, and she only knew he was a widower or some kind of divorcee because it was sort of the elephant in the room. You don't think to grab the kid and not the mom if everything is going well. So he was in the parenting game on his own. And maybe sometimes Karen wondered if she could do something like that.

“Absolutely not.” he answered honestly,” My wife passed many years back. And my job it- it kept me away from home a lot. Only way we got through it was our sweet neighbor watching him when I could not. I only hope I may find way to tend to him more now.”

“You’d want to be a house-husband?” she asked, surprised.

“If I could? Absolutely. Just be a little… little trophy for the Missus to show off while I take care of the home and my boy.” he mused. “Sounds like a fine life to me.”

Karen only let out about half a laugh. “You’re a very interesting man, Dmitri.”

“What? You do not agree?”

“I can see the appeal, from the outside view. I’ve been in the housewife spot for a while now. It can be nice at times, but I definitely miss…” her eyes wandered,” the freedom.”

“I take it you have a passion then? One you put away to take care of your family?” Dmitri leaned against the door frame. His exposed bicep squished against woodgrain, though Karen tried not to notice, and he watched her carefully. Listening.

She admitted to him,“ Yeah, I did. Once upon a time. Many, many years ago.”

“Well, I hope you find it again, Miss Karen.” There it was with the “Miss” again- “Maybe your kids straighten up and give you time to chase it? Or your husband takes over some responsibilities of the house?”

“Oh, that’ll be the day.”

“You think Mr. Wheeler is not strong enough for the job?”

“He does his job.” Karen had to defend her husband. She began to count on her fingers,” Provides the roof over our heads, food on the table-”

But this Dmitri wasn't having it. With one hand, he gently closed his grip around hers. Only enough pressure to stop her, so he could say,“ If your husband leaves you so dissatisfied, then I do not believe he does his job very well.”

And Karen could feel the heat in her cheeks go hotter. He was close. And touching her hands. And serious but not afraid to laugh. And sweet in the way he talked about his kid. And attentive to her in a way no one has been since she and Ted first met.

It swelled something in her chest that scared her.

She smiled politely, and pulled her hands back,“ Sorry to have taken up so much of your time. I wasn't planning on more than a quick drop-off. But I’m happy to hear you’re both settling in. Feel free to help yourselves to the cookies as well.”

“Thank you,” he said, smoothly. No hint of dismay as she backed out. And then he added,” But it was no bother to speak with a beautiful woman on a nice day. Especially if she's brought over her own baking.”

In a moment of bravery, Karen agreed.

“It was no bother speaking to you either. I’ll see you again sometime.”

“Until then, Miss Karen. To your free time and the rise of house-husbandry.”

And Mr. Antonov stayed at the door while Karen returned to her car. He popped open the top and swiped himself a cookie in the wait. Watching as she opened the door and slid into the driver's seat. He only closed the front door of Steve's house once he'd seen the engine turn over fine. Making sure she'd have no problem getting home.

A length of care just beyond what was necessary.

It'd been a long, long time since Karen felt like anyone had extended that attention toward her.

Not that it mattered much. She was a married woman. A housewife. A stay-at-home mom. And Dmitri didn't convey much confidence that she was able to be anything else anymore. Not with three children to look out for. Even if Nancy was going to be off to college soon, Mike still had three years left. Hell- Holly was only six.

She needed to get back home.

Get back to what she knew how to do.

Time passed by in the junkyard. The sun rose up and eventually hung high in the sky overhead. Steve and Robin nearly emptied the last of Claudia's brownies. They were probably ready for some real food soon. And to get back to civilization.

But, for the moment, they just lay out on the ground next to each other.

Trying not to think about all the dirt getting into their hair and rubbing into the back of their clothes.

But Robin finally felt like herself again.

“Thank you,” she said to him. Her best friend. Who sat with her through the whole thing. Even though it snuck up on them out of nowhere, and they've never dealt with anything like it themselves.

“For?” he asked her.

She filled in,“ For being there for me.”

“Rob,” Steve rolled over onto his side to look at her,” I always will be. You know that.”

Robin nodded,“ I know. I just…” she started to explain,” didn’t realize it could get that bad. Nothing ever hit me like that after last summer. Nothing was ever similar enough to what happened that I just- I don’t know. But then I was just in my room, and I looked around, and it was just like Thursday night. Like some amalgamation of my bedroom and the Creel house, and the sounds were just- ”

Steve put his hand on hers where she'd started mindlessly ripping grass up by the roots.

“I know. But we’re fine. We’re fine.” he assured her.

“Yeah. We are.”

“So we’re feeling better now?”

“Yeah. We’re feeling better now.” Robin squeezed his hand.

“All the way better, or is there still something you need to be all the way there?”

She chuckled and smiled up at the bright blue sky. A big toothy smile. The kind her mother would've told her to reign in if they were taking family pictures. But the gentle fondness of Steve Harrington could be funny when he overdid it. Like a mother hen checking on his little chickadees over and over again.

And Steve might've been thinking about cruising by a drive-thru to finish off the comfort, but Robin had another solution in mind to settle any lingering anxiety.

“Well, if you’re offering… you know what my favorite thing ever is…”

And that was all the leading she had to do. Steve's eyes narrowed at her. But he didn't resist much.

“… Fine. Since you had a shitty morning.”

And then Steve went to his cassette player and dropped in “Robin’s Mix.” A tape he'd put together some time ago that always got the most runtime when its namesake was with him. It only took seconds for the sounds of ABBA's “Dancing Queen” to come out through the speakers. The first song on it. Robin stood, dusted herself off, and joined Steve by the hood of his Beemer where he'd propped the player. Fully set on turning the patch of seclusion into their own private dance floor.

And as the Swedish singers came in, Steve was quick to mime a microphone of his own. Directing every single word to his very best friend. Just like they had for her birthday.

“You are the dancing Queen, Young and sweet, Only seventeen! You can dance, You can jive, Having the time of your life, Ooooo~ See that girl, Watch that screen, Digging the Dancing Queen!”

They spun around each other. Robin shook out her hair, dropped her shoulders, and grooved side-to-side. Put her hands up in the air and swept them around in smooth motions. Steve was jumping around, posing, and kneeling to bask up at her. Like she was a real celebrity.

They probably put too much energy into it. If anyone serious was looking at them and compared their moves to the music at hand, they'd probably have said they didn't fit together. But to the two of them, it was how the song was meant to be danced to. It's what was right when everything came down to just Steve and Robin. No one else on the planet was invited.

And just being Steve and Robin was the easiest thing most days.

They made it all the way through the song before Robin nearly collapsed against him in giggles. He put away the phony mic, tossing it somewhere behind him to catch her before they both ended up on their asses. “One Way Or Another” began to fire up, but neither was listening too carefully.

“Thank you,” Robin said, almost out of breath.

“You already said that.” Steve pointed out.

“I know. But seriously,” she grabbed his hand and squeezed it like it was the most tangible lifeline she's ever had,” Thank you. For being my favorite person in the whole world.”

He squeezed her hand back, just as much love expressed in the simple act,” Thank you for being mine.”

Eventually, Robin stood back up on her own two feet. And they decided on that drive-thru meal to offset all the sugar and chocolate they'd had in lieu of a balanced breakfast. And interestingly enough, they also decided on going back to Family Video anyway.

They had no plans to open. More so just get out from under the sun before one of them (Robin) got sunburnt. Maybe even avoid the mosquitoes for the rest of the day. And Robin's Mix played through Steve's stereo the whole drive.

It might've only been Friday, and the nurses might've said they wanted to hold on to Eddie through Tuesday, but he was getting stir-crazy.

He hated, hated, hated just sitting there on that bed. He wasn't supposed to get up and move around too much, lest he desire to face Nurse Tracey's wrath. But it was torture. The tv was no adequate entertainment, and it killed him to know that everyone else had something to do. Some way they were healing or fixing things.

Just “getting better” wasn't a good enough assignment.

Not when there was so much at stake. Not when he was laying down right next to Max, who was stuck where he'd gotten out of. They told him it wasn't the same. But it should've been. They both died, and El brought them both back, and they both got to a hospital. But she wasn't awake.

And it pissed him off so much.

She played decoy, and so did he. And they both did their parts a little too well. But she didn’t get up after.

Wayne dropped in and ate breakfast with him on his way to work. Expressed his sorrow about Eddie's ring. Eddie's mom's ring. His fingertips drifted to his right ring finger where he'd always worn it. Not on the left, because that was the spot dedicated to his own engagement one day.

He missed it. The black gem, cut in too many facets that it caught the light too much. It didn't have the same mystique as domed, smooth onyx that seemed more like a void set in silver than a stone. He'd looked at some in pawn shops and understood the appeal.

But as much as his mom's ring didn't exactly fit the idea of what his aesthetic "should" be, it was better.

And it was gone.

He didn't cry when Wayne mentioned it. Didn't cry when Wayne said he was going to ask around, keep an eye out, and look wherever he could think to. Didn't ruin it for him by saying," I know I wore it into battle. I fucking kissed it before climbing up a twisted version of our trailer and starting my set. So if it's gone, it's gone in another dimension. And, honestly, it was probably eaten by a demobat, given how much they bit at me. So it had to be fucked up for good after sitting in dead monster stomach acid all this time."

No. Eddie just smiled at his uncle. Told him thanks for everything. Said he was going to make it up to him with a spaghetti night when they settled in a new place to call their home again. Wayne smiled and told him not to forget the garlic bread.

"You know that's the best part." he laughed.

Wayne's eyes caught on his watch, and it was time to go. He laid a hand on his boy's shoulder, kissed him on his forehead, and told him to just keep getting better. Try not to worry about anything in the meantime.

Eddie didn't promise him anything.

He finished his re-read of The Hobbit. Sniffled at the end like he always did. He looked over old notes and put together new ones for a campaign. The boys, including Josie and Erica, and even Will, all came by. It was nice.

It wasn't a very complex storyline he'd thought up, but for a one-shot, it would do. The gang of nine players packed around his bed was given the task of sneaking into a masquerade party held in a castle. The queen had received word that her daughter was in danger, but she didn't know who it was. It could've even been a member of their own royal guard. So she'd hired the band of adventurers to make sure the princess would be safe. The hard part was, she'd survived an insane labor of nine. Yup, nonuplets. So there were nine identical princesses to keep an eye on and protect while they tried to find the bad guy. And just as fate would have it, one of them died.

It was only thanks to Will's impeccable notetaking that they figured out it was not actually Daphne in the pale green dress, but Rowena who'd swapped their clothes and taken the place of her sister. A scheme worked up with an assassin she'd fallen in love with to steal the title of "eldest daughter" and have the first claim to the throne. She had been the youngest of nine, after all, she was far down the list before she'd see a crown.

But they solvest the mystery. Earned a good chunk of change from an incredibly distraught royal family who not only lost one child, but a second too. Everyone cheered for each other when they got the confession and defeated the enemies in combat. Tucked away the characters with mentions that it might be nice to dust them off and revisit the theme again another time. Make a regular habit of these Sherlock Holmes-like mysteries dipped in a little bit of fantasy flair and ass-kicking to close it all out.

It was fun. Mostly. But holding the session around his bed, where he felt like he was some weak little thing he didn't think he was… it hurt Eddie in a way he wasn't expecting. It itched against all the other feelings he was holding on to. And he didn't like it.

He was feeling cagey.

So, after they all said their goodbyes, he made a break for it.

Or, more exactly, he told Tracey he had to get out of there and begged for any way to make it happen. She was not happy. Looked at him down her hooked nose, through her thick glasses, from under crumbling mascara that rimmed her eyes. A scornful expression like she was trying to intimidate him into pulling up his covers and saying how much he actually liked it there.

But he stood his ground. And she admitted, him being a legal adult and all, that he could fill out an Against Medical Advice form - meaning he couldn't sue if he fucked himself up for leaving early - and he'd be free. So he asked her, very nicely, to fetch such a document for him. And she did. She still pestered him about calling or coming in the minute he felt bad. To watch himself for a high temperature, upset stomach, sweating or chills, bleeding, puss, or extra sensitivity around the injuries. So he swore up and down he would.

And he made it out.

His car was still at Wayne's hotel, wherever that was exactly, so Eddie just hopped the bus and made it downtown. He didn't have an exact plan, but he was not going to go home. That trailer was practically a fallout zone and wouldn't make for much of a shelter at that point. And he also didn't want to even figure out where Wayne was pitched up at. Because he was bound to go stir crazy there just the same as he had in the hospital.

He ended up on the idea to stop by a certain video store to annoy a certain pair of employees and whatever poor souls decided to shop there on the day Eddie Munson became a truly free man.

“What? Am I not pretty enough for you, Robin?” Steve asked.

His voice dripped with offense, like the discussion at hand was the cruelest thing anyone had ever said to him. They'd been making plans for Robin to ask Vickie on something more obviously a date. To help bridge that gap between girl friends and girlfriends. Robin had suggested something more like what she and Steve do anyway, getting together at someone's house when there are no parents home for a movie. But that also painted what they do as being inherently romantic and she gagged. Now, Steve was on some tirade about being a wonderful date and she should be so lucky.

He leaned against the shop counter and struggled to pop his hip out in a way that could even come close to feminine. But none of the shapes were there, and Robin could only look at him with pity. Not an admission of defeat.

“As much as I love you, Steve…” she tried to soften the blow,” You already know the key thing keeping us apart is my particular interest in…”

”Oh, right.” Steve's tone dropped, and he cupped his hands on his chest as if it was the first time the thought had occurred to him,” Boobies. I don’t have those for you.”

The comment caused Robin to crinkle her nose in a sharp cringe,” Stop calling them that!”

“Why?! It’s what they are! Not my fault you can’t handle the proper word for them!” he pushed.

“ANYWAY!” she tried to take control of the conversation,” I like them a lot, so stop pressing it. It's starting to get really sad.”

“Alright, alright, I'm hearing you, but what if I turned like this.” Steve turned around and arched his back as he shyly looked over his shoulder at Robin. Trying to pull off a more pin-up pose. Like, because she couldn't see his front, she could forget he was missing the pair features they both enjoyed so much. Like it made him girly enough at all.

Robin tried to hold back her snickers at his display. Steve closed his eyes and shook out his hair behind him for effect. He put on a pretend sultry voice before asking her,“ Does this do it for you?”

“What did I just walk in on?” Eddie froze in the open doorway.

As Steve's brain registered that the question didn't come from Robin, he snapped open his eyes and jumped out of the pose. Some kind of less-than-manly shriek flew up from his mouth, and all too quickly he practically tumbled over the countertop and crossed his arms over his chest to cover himself behind it. As if he was even topless in the first place. He wasn't, but he still felt pretty exposed.

“Can't you read the sign?!” Steve griped. A pointer finger shot out to where the “closed” side of the board was clearly facing out the door to any foot traffic on the sidewalk.

Robin was less focused on Steve's cause for concern and complaint. Instead, she joyfully exclaimed,“ Eddie! You’re out of the hospital!”

“Yup, doc declared me as less than ‘healthy as a horse’ but not likely to bleed out at any moment, so I've been released on good behavior for bedrest at my own home while the wounds, you know, do their thing and scar over.”

“If it’s bedrest, shouldn’t you be, ya know… in a bed? Resting?” Steve questioned him. Maybe a little pointedly, but hey, he was allowed to feel a little sour over Eddie walking in on his and Robin's nonsense. That stuff's supposed to be private.

“Didn’t really feel like hitching a ride across town for a quiet hotel room packed with Wayne's and I's stuff while he finishes the rest of his shift.” Eddie excused,” Plus I’d miss out on whatever the hell all this is. So I’ll ask again; what did I just walk in on?”

“Steve’s just really sad that he’s not pretty enough for me.” Robin mused teasingly. Figuring that context was innocuous enough for the present company.

“Oh, man. Tough break, Princess Harrington. My condolences.” Eddie said, putting one hand over his heart and the other on Steve's shoulder like he actually meant to console the man's wounded pride.

Steve swatted away the gesture immediately. And then he decided something new about Eddie being a member of the party.

”You two are insufferable!” he said with a pair of aggressive finger-pointing,” I don't like this duo! I don't need the two of you ganging up on me! It's unfair!”

“Wait till we get Dustin in on the action too. Three on Steve seems like fine odds.” Eddie added just to see the way it made Steve twist up his face. He even started getting a little red!

Through it all, Eddie and Robin found some kind of understanding between the two of them. An understanding of how fun it was to push all of Steve's buttons. And somehow, they still secured invites to his place for dinner. Maybe it was their wicked pair of sad eyes, maybe it was more of that “feeling way too bad for everyone” gene he's got, but Steve let them both pile into his car while he made his way home.

Eddie met their European guests, shook more hands, and made more small talk. And by the end of the meal, Steve would say he narrowly survived the onslaught of teasing. Steve ran Robin back to her place and stayed parked right outside until she buzzed him on the walkie and said she wasn't having a panic attack in her room again and he needed to clear out before someone accused him of stalking. Eddie and Steve laughed, and as the driver wondered where he was sending Eddie off, he admitted he didn't know.

Still hadn't even called his uncle to find out which spot across town he was camped up in.

And somehow… that conversation ended with another invitation to Steve's house. That time, one to spend the night. Eddie was eager to accept. A bustling house of kids and the most random assortment of adults sounded like the exact opposite of falling asleep to the sound of his heartbeat beeping on a machine next to him, and Max's a few feet away.

And thanks to an already stacked dance card - the Byers and Co. on the couch, Joyce and Hop sharing the master, Murray laid claim to the first guest room, the Antonovs in the other - there was really only one place with any spare room without tossing one the injured men to the floorboards.

And that was to partner up and share Steve's bed with him.

It started with Eddie trying to break the ice. Pointing out the grid pattern painted on Steve's walls and hung up on his curtains. Mentioning that it was nothing like how he imagined the King of Hawkins slept. It looked more like a cage than anything else.

Steve shrugged, agreed with the sentiment, and tried to focus on grabbing his own pajama options and getting the night over with. As awkward as it was shaping up to be. But drawing attention to his closet, drew attention to the desk and chair right in front of it. And the denim vest hanging on the back of that chair, which rightfully belonged to Steve's most recent guest.

“There it is!”

Steve turned around and followed Eddie's eyes to the battle vest he'd accidentally borrowed for too long.

“Oh, right! Sorry.” he picked it up from its perch. “Didn't mean to steal it. Just forgot it was there a little.”

“Wow. I let you dress yourself in my battle vest - watching out for your delicate purity so that it might not be besmirched - and you forget about such a deep moment we shared?” Eddie lamented the tragedy. Wondering to himself if it would be too much to try and force a tear.

“I didn't mean I forgot about it like that. Just- I was trying to figure out what to do with it, and I forgot to give it back.” Steve quickly handed it over,” Here.”

Eddie barely looked at the item before he asked,“ What to do with it? That sounds a little spooky. Did you have some kind of black magic spell in mind that you needed it for? You're not gonna steal a lock of my hair after I fall asleep, right?”

“No. Absolutely not. I, just, I was wearing it while I was all gross and sweaty and bleeding, so I figured the same rules as borrowing gym clothes applied, and I should wash it before I gave it back.” Steve tried to explain,” But you have so much stuff on it I didn't want to get ruined, and I wasn't sure how to go about it, and everything has been so insane all the time-”

“I get it. Worry not, Stevie.” Eddie tried to release him from whatever pressure he put on the idea. “Plus you don't really wash a battle vest. It's kinda supposed to go through hell and come out the other side with some authentic grime.”

“But another guy's blood and sweat? That's pretty extreme.” Steve commented. But his face said he leaned more towards 'nasty' than just 'hardcore.'

“You don't understand the culture. That's okay.”

“Alright. Well, then I guess my dilemma turned out for the best.” Steve ducked back into his closet.

Eddie more carefully examined his vest for all the wear and tear it saw. None of the patches or pins looked like they were in danger, but there were some new loose threads he could think about playing with. As he looked it over, he commented with a chuckle,“ Yeah, if you wanna uselessly panic about other stuff and wind up saving the day through inaction, there's the Vecna guy I don't know if you've heard about. I think those magic powers could really speed things along and get us all to summer break in one piece.”

Steve quickly turned out of the hanging garments and urged Eddie,“ Don't let Murray hear you strategize, or he'll barge in and spend an hour actually trying to make a plan out of it.”

He said it so seriously Eddie couldn't even get a response ready while Steve slinked out of the room to go across the hall. To change into the jammies and take care of his nightly routine in the comfort and privacy of his own bathroom. And before Eddie knew it, he was left alone in Steve Harrington's room. Sitting crisscross on the edge of his bed, a pile of denim in his lap, and far too much awareness of how fresh their friendship really was.

The rest of the house had gotten pretty quiet. They'd all turned in for an earlier evening after a long afternoon of work at Hop's cabin and some folks still adjusting their internal clocks to Hawkins time. A big, big house, packed with people, and yet there wasn't much noise.

Steve came back to his room just after a few minutes. He tossed his clothes from the day in a dirty laundry hamper and sat on the other side of the bed. Pushing down the covers before he swung his legs up under them. Eddie followed suit. Standing up to put his vest back on the desk chair for the time being, and climbed into the bed next to his roomie for the night.

And then Eddie and Steve were left to each other. In Steve's bed. Laying still as statues to get some well-deserved rest.

And it was nerve-racking. All of Eddie Munson's nerves were racked. He couldn't help thinking about how the whole situation was so far off the map for him a few weeks ago. On the 22nd of March, Eddie Munson held a broken glass to his neck, and everything's been so strangely on the up and up since. Minus the whole almost-dying part. They'd been forging a bond, a weird one, given such a distinctly separate history. But there they were. Having a sleepover in the famed King's bedroom.

And it wasn't any easier for Steve to deal with. It shouldn’t have been a big deal. It shouldn’t do or mean anything to him. Steve's done this sort of thing with Robin tons of times. Falling asleep next to someone you’re not attracted to should be easy and simple. But it wasn't.

Like, with Robin, they were both allowed to stretch their limbs out in all directions and hug the night away before they tried to kick one another off the bed. But, with Eddie, they were both practically on the edges of the mattress with their backs to each other so they wouldn't accidentally touch or even look at one another. And Steve wasn’t falling asleep. Instead, he felt like he couldn’t move without bothering Eddie.

What if his stitches were still super sore? What if he was lying about the vest and was actually bothered about the condition it was in? What if he was mad about his mom's ring?

And all of a sudden, Eddie started talking.

“You didn’t, by the way.”

Which didn't exactly make any sense as the first thing either of them had said in almost thirty minutes.

“What?”

“Stomp on me.” he clarified.

And it didn't immediately click. But after a second, Steve remembered what he said while Eddie was still in the coma. The part about “I was a bully,” and “I hope I didn't bully you,” but “I wouldn't really remember,” and “Tommy called it stomping on the ants” like that excused any of it. So that was the stomping Eddie was thinking about.

“Oh… so you…“

“Heard that bit?” Eddie finished for him. “Yeah. When our girlie woke me up in my head, some stuff outside started coming through. When there were a lot of you in the room, I couldn’t really follow any of it or understand what you were saying. But you stopped by on your own. Said that bit. It was easy to hear then.”

“Sorry. I honestly didn’t think you’d catch any of it.” Steve tucked his hands in closer to his face. More thankful than anything else that they couldn't see one another for this conversation.

And yet, Eddie joked,“ You planned to waste such a moving monologue on deaf ears? For shame, Harrington, for shame.”

“I just-” he tried again,” I’m sorry-“

But the other wouldn't hear it. “I just said you didn’t do it. Alright? Nothing to waste ‘sorry’ on.”

“But I must have, at some point.” Steve reasoned.

Unsure why his idea was to argue that, no, no, Eddie, actually he did mistreat you, you must be mistaken, think harder. But Eddie didn't waver. His voice was sure and even. And he simply affirmed the fact.

“You didn’t.”

“But-“

“I’ll admit, I convinced myself once or twice that you orchestrated all of it. Sent out your legions of jocks and goons to carry out your dastardly demands for you while keeping your hands clean. But, I know now that I was wrong about that idea.”

And with a pang of guilt that gnawed at his ribs, Steve spoke quietly,“ But I know I’ve said it.”

Freak. He called him The Freak. He knew he did. Hell, he said it just weeks ago when Dustin invited him to the game. He knew that.

But Eddie didn't dwell on it. Didn't deem it the important part.

“Not to me. Not once did you shove my face in it.”

“I’m still sorr-“ but Steve felt a smack on his shoulder. Carefully, he looked over to see that Eddie was laying face up, no longer with his back to Steve. The wall of air between them was gone, in one way or another. So Steve shifted over, joining him in laying back until he was looking up at his ceiling too.

“And do you always do that?” Eddie asked as he tried to get comfortable.

“Do what? Apologiz-”

“Talk through movies?” Eddie interrupted, steering the conversation way out into the left field,” I mean, I was unconscious, but I still heard your whole commentary on Grease. Very strong opinions you have on that one.”

“Okay, Sandy did nothing wrong and shouldn't have had to 'compromise' with Danny at the end just because he lied about their relationship to his guys for points. Had her story been about actually wanting to be less of a goody-two-shoes for her own reasons-”

Eddie stopped him before he really got going,“ That is what I'm talking about. Seriously, dude? And you had something specific to say every minute of it. Was practically watching it with you even with my eyes closed because you'd remind me what beat we were on without fail.”

He bumped into Steve's shoulder with his own. Small laughs bubbled up. And the whole situation didn't feel so awkward and stilted anymore.

“Yeah, I guess.” Steve agreed with a smile,” Rob and I are usually pretty chatty when we watch ‘em together. I think I picked it up from her.”

“Oh, yeah, you’re a real Chatty Cathy, Steve Harrington.”

“That such a bad thing?”

Eddie paused to think on it. But quickly decided otherwise. “Nah. I wouldn’t say so. Felt way less lonely with someone talking.”

Steve felt some pride settle back into himself,“ Then you’re welcome.”

“Oh, great,” he groaned,” Now I went and gave you a big head about it.”

“I think most people would tell you I already had one.” Steve pointed out.

“A big, stupid head.” Eddie took a finger and poked Steve right on the side of his forehead. But before Steve could really say anything else, he tugged the blanket up and rolled over in the bed. His back was up again, but it didn't feel so insurmountable. It was comfortable.

“Go to sleep,” he commanded. As if he wasn't the one that started their discussion in the first place.

Steve rolled onto his own side,” You go to sleep.”

A comeback fit for a first grader. My, how the mighty have fallen. But sometimes falling could be a good thing. Brings a person back down to Earth. Reminds them of all the other people that didn't climb too tall on their high horse.

And that kind of falling, the kind that Steve Harrington did, didn't make him shatter into broken pieces on the ground.

Some parts of a person need to break. Explicitly so they can put themselves back together. And maybe the breaks were always going to be there. But maybe he'd be the better for it. Maybe they all would.

#Totally didn't forget to post this for a while what are you talking about I've never-#Yeah #I did. Sorry Tumblr I need to get back into the habit of checking in on y'all over here. Working on it.#Anyway #I hope this chapter was everything a person could hope for a more?#I really wanted to develop the trauma they're all kind of going through - Robin has some PTSD - Eddie has some survivors guilt - etc #And more importantly than just the pain they are going through is the reality that none of them are alone #Even if they feel alone for a little while. Someone always shows up. And they don't have to sit in it by themselves anymore.#Also some Karen Wheeler X Dmitri Antanov because when I'm not making her sapphic that's my fave guy for her <3 #And I really really really love the scene in season 3 where Karen tells Nancy not to give up on what she wants from this life #And you can kind of see there's a little bit of longing as she says it to her. Pushing away maybe a little bit of regret what she didn't?#And I never see that stuff addressed - so I'm doing it #These characters are so complex goddamn #Also the lil D&D bit was heavily inspired by Drawfee's Drawtectives on YouTube and everyone should watch it #I dm-ed a similar session and it's so fun highly highly highly recommend #And I finally threw two character into an 'and there was only one bed' situation #After all my years of writing fanfiction I'm finally hitting first base #I have a lot of reasons on why I wrote that Steve didn't really bully Eddie in HS - I might make a whole discussion post about it #I know it's a pretty divisive headcanon - but after all the times I've poured over this show - this feels like the most accurate answer #Steve Harrington #Eddie Munson #Steddie #Steveddie #Steve x Eddie #Nancy Wheeler #Robin Buckney #Ronance #Robin x Nancy #The Fruity Four #Stranger Things

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grailfinders · 3 years

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Fate and Phantasms #167

Today on Fate and Phantasms we’re making the single horniest character in FGO (in every sense of the word), Heaven’s Hole, a.k.a. Kiara Sessyoin. One half enlightened saint, 99% insatiable demon, all NSFW. Kiara’s an Open-Hand Monk to give off that aura of purity she loves so much, but she’s also a Great Old One Warlock to finally answer the question, “Can you really be a warlock if your patron is yourself?” (The answer is yes)

Check out her build breakdown below the cut, or her character sheet over here!

Next up: Cheer for your empress! Wooooo!

Race and Background

Kiara may be human, but she’s been infused with the spirit of an otherworldly horror. That’s a Kalashtar, baby! This gives her +2 Wisdom and +1 Charisma, as well as some other mentally themed goodies. Your Dual Mind gives you advantage on all wisdom saves, and your religious training gives you the Mental Discipline to resist psychic damage. You can Mind Link to creatures within 10 times your level in feet, speaking to them telepathically for up to an hour or until you end the effect or link with another creature. Finally, you’re Severed from Dreams, meaning you’re immune to spells involving your dreams. Sleep still works, Dream doesn’t. God I wish that was me, it would make youtube so much less annoying.

As a Devilish Bodhisattva, you’re kind of a Sage, giving you proficiency with the Arcana and History skills.

Ability Scores

First things first, you’ve got to be so hot you can make people masturbate to death. That’s non-negotiable. I’ll leave the exact mechanics of that to your imagination, but it’s probably based on Charisma. Aside from manipulating people, you’re also just as good at reading people, and that’s Wisdom. You fight in a habit and do it all without dying, so your Dexterity isn’t that bad either. Unfortunately this leaves your Intelligence a little lower than we’d like. You’re a hacker nun, but we needed other stuff more. Your Constitution isn’t that great, you’re so eager for pleasure you don’t last that long. Finally, dump Strength. You’ve got a demon god to do all the lifting for you, who needs muscles?

Class Levels

1. Monk 1: Starting off as a monk gives you Unarmored Defense, which is really useful for that “not dying” thing you like to do. You also get Martial Arts, letting you use your dexterity for your unarmed attacks. You can also attack as a bonus action after attacking with your action, and your unarmed attacks deal 1d4 damage, and they grow as you level up.

You get proficiency with Strength and Dexterity Saves, as well as Insight for your psychological training, and Religion for the whole nun/buddhist thing. You have a lot going on as a character, to be honest.

2. Monk 2: Second level monks get Ki Points they can spend to attack twice, dash, disengage, or dodge as a bonus action. You also get Unarmored Movement to speed things up a bit, and you get even faster as you level up.

3. Monk 3: Third level monks can summon a bit of demon pillar to Deflect Missiles, slowing down incoming ranged weapons and possibly even shooting them back as a reaction. (Obviously the demon thing isn’t all monks, but hush.) You also set down the Way of the Open Hand, learning the Open Hand Technique in the process. When you hit a creature with a flurry of blows attack (the two attacks as a bonus action thing), you can: force a dexterity save to knock the enemy prone; force a strength save to push it away; or remove its ability to react for the round. I’m not sure how you touching a person makes them fall to their knees or get distracted, get your mind out of the gutter.

4. Monk 4: Use your first Ability Score Improvement to bump up your Dexterity so you can actually hit people with your fists. You can also Slow Fall to reduce falling damage, presumably by swinging around on a demon pillar like some kind of spider woman, and you get Quickened Healing, letting you spend a ki point as an action to heal thy burgers. Despite your looks, you’re pretty tanky with all that healing.

5. Monk 5: Your Extra Attack does exactly what it sounds like, attacking twice in a single action. You can turn any of your attacks into Stunning Strikes, forcing a constitution save against getting stunned for a round. Ironically this is just leading into the explosive climax, where you beat the hell out of them. Where did you think I was going with that?

6. Monk 6: Sixth level monks get a little magical thanks to their Ki-Empowered Strikes so now your unarmed attacks ignore nonmagical damage resistances. You also gain a Wholeness of Body to heal yourself as an action. Unlike quickened healing, this baby heals you for 3 times your monk level once per long rest.

7. Warlock 1: Making your hands a little magical is nice, but we want to make stuff a lot of magical, and for that we’ll need to make some questionable deals. That’s where the Great Old One comes in, giving you Pact Magic you can cast with your Charisma and an Awakened Mind. It’s more telepathy. Not a huge boon, but now you can talk to two people at once, neat!

As far as spells go, Chill Touch lets you make creepy hands (kind of your thing), and Eldritch Blast gives you some generic magic projectiles. Charm Person makes you a bit more charming, and Protection from Evil and Good will help cut through those pesky rulers more easily by just straight up ignoring their god.

8. Warlock 2: Second level warlocks get Eldritch Invocations, to customize your soul pact a bit. Beguiling Influence makes you proficient with Deception and Persuasion to help cover up the whole demon pillar thing, and Thief of Five Fates lets you cast Bane with a spell slot once per long rest, further weakening your enemies.

You can also cast Arms of Hadar to launch more arms all around you for an AoE attack.

9. Warlock 3: Kiara’s definitely a weird one when it comes to her pact boon. Books have kind of fallen out of fashion by 2030, she doesn’t use weapons, and she really doesn’t care for a sidekick. That leaves her with the Pact of the Talisman to make her a little bit better than everyone else, letting the wearer add 1d4 to a failed ability check Proficiency times per long rest.

She can also cast second level spells now, like Enthrall! She’s the only person in the world according to herself, and now she is to you too! Just fail that wisdom save and you’ll have disadvantage on perception checks to notice anyone else!

10. Warlock 4: Use this ASI to bump up your Charisma for stronger warlock spells. You also get the On/Off cantrip from a super old UA to become a bit of a hacker, magically turning on or off an electronic device within range. You can also Detect Thoughts to be one hell of a therapist, being able to read the mind of a nearby creature as an action while the spell lasts. You can read surface thoughts over and over again, or you can probe deeper into the mind of a creature you’ve already read, forcing a wisdom save against the intrusion. Also, creatures are aware you’re reading their mind, and they can force a contested intelligence check to end the spell while they’re being read.

11. Warlock 5: Your first 3rd level spell is Hypnotic Pattern, to help dominate the minds of crowds all at once. You can also Mire the Mind to cast Slow once per long rest with a spell slot. Up to six creatures make a wisdom save, or they have their speed and AC reduced, take a penalty to dexterity saves, and can’t use reactions. On their turns, they can make either an action or bonus action, not both. It also can’t make more than one attack per turn. Finally, spellcasters affected by the spell have a 50% chance of taking 2 turns to cast a 1 action spell. Another wisdom save at the end of each turn can end the effect.

12. Warlock 6: All those hands and mind tricks coalesce into an Entropic Ward this level, letting you spend your reaction to impose disadvantage on an incoming attack. If it misses, you get advantage on your next attack against that creature. You can use this once per short rest.

You can also slip into your Heaven’s Hole persona by donning a Spirit Shroud, dealing more damage within a short area around you, preventing healing from enemies you hit with attacks, and slowing them down even further.

13. Monk 7: Bouncing back into monk gives you the Stillness of Mind to end effects messing with your thoughts as an action. The only person around here doing any charming today is you, thank you very much. You’d also be correct in saying the only person around here period is you, but I digress.

Your Evasion boosts your dexterity saves, so your failures are as good as other people’s successes, and your successes avoid damage entirely.

14. Monk 8: Use this ASI to bump up your Wisdom to become more observant, and get stronger techniques and a higher AC.

15. Monk 9: Ninth level monks get an Unarmored Movement Improvement, helping you run straight up walls and over water, as long as you end the turn on solid ground. Admittedly that’s not very in-character, but you’ve got tentacles growing outta ya, I’m sure you can justify it somehow.

16. Monk 10: Tenth level monks have a Purity of Body that makes you immune to poisons and disease.

17. Monk 11: Your final level of monk grants you a Tranquility that makes you harder to hit, effectively giving you the effect of a Sanctuary spell starting and ending on your long rests, though the spell ends early if you directly attack or cast a spell at an enemy. While active, creatures trying to attack you directly have to make a wisdom save. If they fail, they have to choose a new target or waste their action. The DC is 8 + your wisdom modifier + your proficiency bonus.

18. Warlock 7: Seventh level monks get fourth level spells, like Evard’s Black Tentacles. A 20′ square becomes a mass of tentacles (or demon god pillars), forcing a dexterity save against taking bludgeoning damage and get restrained. They can use their action to try and escape the tentacles, otherwise they don’t get a save on their next turn to avoid damage.

You can also use your Gaze of Two Minds to see and hear though a willing humanoid, like, say, your enthralled servants. Great for espionage, or just being a creep in general.

19. Warlock 8: Use your last ASI to max out your Charisma for super strong spells and the most sex appeal you can squeeze into a single servant.

You can also cast Summon Aberration now to give Zepar a bit of breathing room outside of your body. Honestly the poor guy deserves a break.

20. Warlock 9: Ninth level warlocks get fifth level spells, and Dominate Person lets you completely take over a creature’s mind. They have a wisdom save to avoid it, and they can make another every time they take damage, but if you’re forcing them into a really one sided fight, like say, against an agent of the counter force, that’ll be a one hit kill, so you don’t have to worry too much.

You also get one last invocation, and the Grasp of Hadar turns your eldritch blasts into even more hands, so once per turn you can pull a creature hit by the blast 10 feet closer to you. Bet they thought they were real smug waiting on the other side of your tentacle pit, huh?

Pros:

With an AC of 16, tons of mobility, and a wisdom save between you and even getting hit in the first place, you can be tough to attack, giving you a weird sort of tankiness to avoid conflict altogether.

You’re also good at manipulating people, with charms, mind reading, and just good persuasion scores making it easy for you to turn the tide of a conversation in your favor. Also if you’re having trouble with an enemy you can just dominate them and tell them to jump off a cliff, really easy. You won’t even have to fight if you can just inspire a mob to do it for you.

While the biggest part of your defense does come with a caveat, you’re good at indirect combat, which will keep your sanctuary up longer. Sure, you can’t cast spells affecting a creature, but you can always cast a spell now, and have it affect a creature later, the old “I’m just moving my fist and walking forward, if you get hit it’s your own fault” technique. Putting Evard’s Tentacles down between you and enemies, summoning aberrations, and just using On/Off to cause industrial accidents are all ways to get around this restriction and leave you looking clean as a brand new pair of panties.

Cons:

Your dexterity isn’t great, especially for a monk. That’ll make it harder to effectively use your martial techniques later in the game, and it also hampers your AC.

Despite all your defenses and healing, you’re still only rocking a touch over 100 HP, meaning a light sneeze will put you into power word kill territory. Which is, admittedly, still affected by your Tranquility, so it might not be a bad way to trick people into wasting a 9th level spell...

You only get two spells per short rest, that just isn’t enough to manipulate everyone you want to, so you’ll have to learn to pick and choose what happens when.

#fgo #fate grand order #DND #D&D 5e #Kiara Sessyoin #Monk #Warlock

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evilwickedme · 3 years

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ok so to sum up my feelings for leverage: redemption, season 1(a): (long post warning, there’s a tl;dr at the end)

I knew that Hardison wouldn’t be in most of the season due to Aldis Hodge being a busy bee nowadays, but I didn’t realize that meant he’d only be around for the first two episodes. He was sorely missed, not only because of my attachment to him, but also because he’s usually the grounding factor in the group dynamic, and his role as info guy and tech guy was split evenly between two characters who had their own issues.

That said, Hardison is absolutely a highlight of the two episodes he’s in. his speech about redemption was everything I could’ve hoped for (plus, more evidence for the Jewish!Hardison pile...). I wish we’d gotten to see more of his dynamic with Breanna because what we saw was funny and sweet and we don’t generally get to see Hardison taking care of somebody who so desperately needs taking care of. I hope that Aldis Hodge is around for more episodes in 1(b), because what we’re left with feels a little hollow.

Sticking to original leverage characters for now, for the most part the leverage crew still felt true to the original series as characters, even if the show itself was a little bit confused at times. The actors understand their characters and embody them so well that I think one could give them the trashiest script ever and they’d still sell it. Sophie is a particular focus in 1(a) because of Nate’s death, and she’s particularly well written as a result.

That said, I’m super bitter that we saw little to no mastermind!Parker. Parker’s character being given the mastermind role was a big deal and it feels like they’re walking it back because they feel uncomfortable with it. It is eventually given an in-text excuse, but literally in the last episode, and it was not a particularly convincing reason, and in fact contradicted moments from previous episodes (Sophie leaving for a client meeting and ignoring Parker in ep3 comes to mind). It’s frustrating, it makes the end of the original leverage feel pointless, and letting Parker make a decision once in a while is not the same thing at all. The original series repeatedly showed us that while everyone in the team had their strengths, Parker works problems and solves them in unique, interesting ways, and other characters’ days in the limelight tended to be comedic or even failures. It’s a broken promise, and a pretty major broken promise at that.

On a more positive note, Parker’s dynamic with literally everyone was fantastic. She’s possibly the best written character this season. They’ve taken the autism out of the subtext and into the text (although obviously still undiagnosed), and given her coping mechanisms that were taken seriously in the text even when they were played for laughs, which I appreciated. Her attempts to mentor Breanna were sweet, her friendship with Sophie was electric and at times (CRIMES) hilarious, and as usual, she has a fantastic dynamic with Eliot that makes my heart burst. If you don’t think they’re romantically involved, at least acknowledge there’s a life partnership here. They’ve spent the last decade together.

(We’ll get to Harry.)

Eliot isn’t given much arc-wise, which is frustrating since he’s my favorite. He’s being presented as the goal at the end of a redemption arc, ie to keep working at it every day until your soul heals or whatever, and it doesn’t reflect the message they’re trying to convey via Hardison’s speech and our two new characters. He’s got his moments, but I think they under utilized his potential.

Breanna!!! Breanna’s my new favorite, except for Eliot. She’s hilarious, she’s insecure, she’s nerdy and excited in a way that’s similar to Hardison but still distinct in its inherent teenage-girl-ness and I LOVE IT. Unlike the previous series, where Hardison’s “age of the geek” was often a joke played on Hardison, we’re at the point where Eliot and Parker are both right there with him, and so they accept and even appreciate Breanna’s nerdiness. Also, canon gay character? In YOUR Leverage? It’s more likely than you think.

(No, I never thought they’d make ot3 canon on screen. I hoped, but I didn’t think it would actually happen.)

I think Breanna’s the character that will be the most interesting to see grow. She’s got a lot of potential and a list of crimes a mile long (or more). I adore her with all my heart. I want to see her tiktok account.

Harry. Oh, Harry.

It took me a while, but I do like Harry. It took a while, because the narrative positioned him at the same level as Nate back in episode 1 of original Leverage. But in episode 1 we didn’t know the other characters. We had Nate as the POV character, and so we cared about him because we were seeing the world through his eyes. (This is TV Studies 101. I know this, because I took TV Studies 101 in 2019.) In Leverage: Redemption, we no longer have a POV character, for several reasons:

Nate, previously the POV character, is dead.

As it is, by mid-season 3 of leverage Nate was no longer a POV character. This is, coincidentally, the point where the leverage writers realized they had four other characters in the main cast they could do something with, and in-universe, Nate accepted that he was a thief, not a special Good Man.

Sophie is sort of a POV character for the first episode of the revival, but only for the first few minutes. Afterwards, the series settles into the groove of seasons 3-5, i.e., the entire crew is our POV. We know our crew, and we love them as is.

Narratively, however, Redemption insists on positing Harry as the POV character, because it is his redemption we are pursuing most vehemently. And I think they really relied on us already knowing the actor - I’ve never seen him in anything before, so to me he was a completely fresh face and they put almost no effort into selling him to me. Beyond being competent and consistently mildly baffled by the antics of the leverage crew, I honestly don’t know who this man is by the end of EIGHT episodes with him. I have a much better handle on Breanna by the end of 1(a), and I can tell you I knew all five of the original leverage crew better by the end of the first episode of the original series than I do Harry. What’s the name of his daughter, John Rogers. Is he still married. How old is the daughter. Why is none of this worth mentioning. Give him a sense of humor that isn’t reacting to other people’s shenanigans. I’m so frustrated. It’s bad writing.

I did manage to grow to like Harry by the end, but I’m pretty sure this is down to Noah Wyle’s charismatic portrayal of an under-developed character, at least partially. And I never stopped being frustrated at not knowing who this man is at all.

The two highlights of the season are undoubtedly episodes five and six. Episode five was the first time I felt like the episode was more than a collection of good moments between the main cast and mediocre moments between the main cast and also the main plot. The issues with pacing and tone that I suffered through for most of the season were mostly non-existent in ep5 and 6, and at least in episode 5 I attribute that to the pared down cast. They had time to focus not only on our actual characters - Sophie, Parker, Breanna - but also on the case. This is the only client from 1(a) I am going to remember next week without googling it first, mark my words.

Episode six worked for the exact opposite reason - it completely disregarded the client and plot and immersed itself in the characters. Breanna gets a moment to shine, but everybody else gets their bits and I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the script that was most fun to write. The characters felt natural, real, and captured the found-family dynamic that’s been missing all season for the first time.

While episode 2 is the weakest episode, I don’t actually have much to say about it. I am disappointed in episode 8. For a mid-season finale, I really expected them to do something. Instead, it was an episode about Nate Ford that copped out of being about Nate Ford (both with fake-Nate and with the new version of him being relayed to us). I would have told the writers to give that energy back to episode 1 and write an episode that’s about anybody who isn’t Harry, oh my God. I know I said I grew to like him but so many episodes were about Harry. He’s the newbie! Why didn’t Hardison get an episode that was actually about him, considering he was only around for two episodes? Why does Eliot have to be the butt of the joke when the theme of the series should directly tie back to him in a much more meaningful way? The last episode parodies their own tagline by saying Eliot isn’t just a hitter, but it deftly avoids noticing that they’ve turned him into nothing more than very muscly comic relief, including in that very episode!

Also, I hated the Marshal. Eliot actively looked uncomfortable around her.

tl;dr

The season took a while, that’s definitely true. But it did find its footing eventually, and by the halfway mark of 1(a) it finally felt cohesive again. The characters were played fantastically even when they weren’t well-written, and if nothing else, the humor landed every time. It still has its kinks and problems to work out, but if you look at it as a brand new show rather than a continuation of one that went off the air over eight years ago, it’s actually doing rather well. I’m choosing to judge it in both lights - according to its own standards, it establishes its identity in episode five; according to Leverage standards, it establishes its connection to its roots in episode six. Either way, I thoroughly enjoyed 1(a), and continue to have high hopes for 1(b).

fic writing will commence in three, two, one...

#leverage #leverage meta #leverage redemption #leverage ot3 #parker leverage #alec hardison #sophie devereaux #eliot spencer #breanna casey #harry wilson #mine

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staarshines · 4 years

Text

The Force Awakens Chapter 2: Hidden Force || P.D.

| The Force Awakens Masterlist |

Warnings: TFA Spoilers, torture, cursing

Word Count: 2.8k

After following Poe Dameron to the planet of Jakku in order to retrieve a map that supposedly leads to Luke Skywalker, a series of unthinkable events ensues and you’re left, stranded on a planet you know next to nothing about. After finding Finn, the stormtrooper you and Poe escaped with, BB-8, the droid who holds the map, and Rey, a girl who is surprisingly strong with he Force, you four embark on a mission full of long-lost family members, life-threatening situations, and tricks played by the Force. A mission that will change the fate of the galaxy.

[A/N]: Ignore any typos I’ll edit those out in the morning 😭 But y’all need to bully me into writing more please

“How’s mom?” Those words had been echoing in your head for the past however many hours you’d been in here. How could you have been so stupid? Maybe Mom was right. Maybe his training outweighed how strong you were in the Force. Hell, you couldn’t even brainwash the troopers that brought you in, let alone fight him in a lightsaber battle—

You hear the doors slide open and brace for whatever new form of torture they’d expose you to, but much to your relief, you see Poe—beaten, bruised, and bloody—but still your Poe.

“You look like hell,” he mutters with a grin, and you note the fact that he had four troopers escorting him. Little shit must’ve done something to up his guard count. Just the thought of it makes you smile a little.

“Look who’s talking.” You were lying. He looked hot—hotter than normal, you’d daresay. The white suits throw him at your feet and you reflexively try to bend down to help him up, but your restraints don’t allow you to do so. “Why’d they bring you here?”

“Hell if I know,” he shrugs, groaning as he tries to sit up—something the shackles made it much harder to do.

Before you two can continue your witty exchange, the doors slide open once again, and you know who it is before you even move your eyes from Poe. You let Ben—Kylo? (you’d always hated that name)—make his dramatic entrance and walk over to the two of you.

“Where’s the drive?”

“Hell if I know,” you copy Poe’s last sentence, hearing the pilot stifle a chuckle. Ben’s gaze immediately snaps down to Poe but you practically stare a hole into his helmet, not wanting to let him hurt Poe. He senses it—through the Force or whatnot, that isn’t your concern at the time—and turns his attention back to you.

“The drive.”

“I don’t have it, Ben.” You see Poe look at you and then Kyl—Ben, out of the corner of your eye, his face bathed in confusion.

“Ben?”

“Poe, meet my twin brother—”

“Stop it,” he instructs, but you can’t give a damn.

“—Ben. Solo.” You know he’s a mess of anger under that mask; you can feel it. And call it stupid, but that was exactly your plan. To get him so angry that he’d lose it, letting you see what his true abilities were.

Because fuck being on the frontlines. You finally understood that you were needed here, fighting the battles that nobody else could.

There’s the sensation of fingers curling around your throat, and you immediately regret your plan, trying to hold your breath for as long as you could instead of letting yourself panic and fight against it. Because you couldn’t. You choke a little bit, beginning to see black spots in your vision before squeezing your eyes shut, feeling yourself slowly start to slip away from consciousness.

“What the hell are you doing? Let her go!” Surprisingly, Ben does let go at Poe’s pleads, leaving you gasping for air and trying to focus on the situation at hand as fast as you could.

Poe. He was going for Poe.

Breathe. You can’t do anything if you’re unconscious.

Poe.

His screams shatter the silence that only your gasps were accompanying, which only panics you more. You’ve barely regained your breath before trying to find Poe through your haze, willing yourself to stay awake no matter how much pain it would cause you.

At least you could put up a fight against Ben. Poe was helpless.

“Ben, stop it!” Poe’s yells continue, and you can practically feel the pain he’s going through. “Ben, I said stop it!” You hear a thud and Poe’s screams stop immediately—you suddenly feel drained for absolutely no reason, like your oxygen supply was being cut off but you could breathe again.

“What… What did you do?” You hear Poe gasp, and you look down at him clutching his head, about to ask him what he means until you see Ben struggling to get up a few meters away from Poe, collapsed on the ground.

What the hell just happened?

Oh Maker. You did that.

“I don’t— I didn’t—”

“We have to get out of here. He’s going to hurt you.”

“No shit—”

“No, I mean he’s going to hurt you. He knows things about you that he shouldn’t—”

“What the hell are you talking abo—” Your head is suddenly thrown back, a sick bang resounding around the room as a result. You’re defenseless for now—when you’d look back on it, you’d realize that was bliss in the moment. You couldn’t hear anything except for muffled yells and a sharp ringing, and your vision had gone almost completely black—it was an escape for a few seconds before Kylo started to probe your mind.

And that was hell on its own.

You didn’t even remember what happened—it was all just a blur. It was like a knife being slowly pushed into your head, with you powerless to stop it. You couldn’t separate your screams of anguish from Poe’s yells of begging Kylo to stop.

But one thing you couldn’t understand—the memories of Poe flashing right in front of you. Why was Kylo looking for things about Poe instead of the location of the drive?

“No, I mean he’s going to hurt you. He knows things about you that he shouldn’t—”

That was why.

The knife is sharply ripped from your head and you’re not sure what hurt worse—experiencing the pain or being free of it.

You could recognize Poe yelling in the background trying to get your attention, but you just didn’t have enough energy to respond. The idea of trying to do what you did before to Kylo—throwing him on the ground somehow so that you and Poe could have a few seconds of peace—came to you, but if you were too tired to speak, there was no way you’d be able to channel the Force to do anything.

Through your blurry field of vision, you can see Kylo say something to the troopers then leave, and a few moments later, you have just enough strength to start to process what you were hearing.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“Poe, you… you have nothing to be sorry about,” you breathe, swallowing thickly and wondering if Kylo had done some permanent damage to him. If he had, there was no way you’d let your brother live.

“I gave him the location of the drive.” Your heart stops.

“You did what?” You find the energy to look at him, but even then, you just can’t seem to process everything at once.

“I told him where it was, he was going to kill you—”

“That was his plan, Poe.” He stops abruptly. “He could kill us and we’d have no regard for ourselves over the Resistance. But the moment he knew that we’d do anything to keep each other safe, that… that was the weak link.” You’re not sure if you just exposed the fact that you had feelings for him, but that was the last thing on your mind.

“So… So you’re saying the fact that we care about each other could be the reason for the entire Resistance’s downfall?”

“Get up.” You’re awoken by the unmistakable voice of a trooper—the heaviness of the modulator gave it away.

“I can’t exactly just walk out of here,” you quip tiredly, a bit glad to know that the sleep you’d fell into after the stormtroopers escorted Poe out of the room had given you back your usual self.

If you’d ever be back to your usual self after being tortured and seeing the love of your life tortured by your brother, the both of you helpless to stop it.

The trooper removes you from the restraints of the chair, giving you a second to rub your sore hands together. You look up at him while he re-chains your hands in front of you, staring through his helmet as if you’d be able to look through it if you tried hard enough.

You’d seen him somewhere. There was no way you were mistaking him for one of the other thousands of white suits you’d encountered; something just felt… different.

Jakku.

That’s where you knew him from. You’d sensed someone else Force-Sensitive, but their signature wasn’t as strong in the moment, nor was it the one you were focusing on.

“Hey. You were on Jakku, right?” He hesitates—even if it’s for a split second. “You gotta get me and the guy that came in with me outta here. You saw what Kylo did to those innocents. We can save others just like them, but not if we’re held captive or dead.

No response.

You sigh, at least having given it a shot. You’re thinking of other ways to make a run for it without being killed as he leads you down the brightly-lit black and white hallway—no wonder their stormtroopers were depressed. There wasn’t any life on these dreadnoughts. It just looked… Mechanical. Lifeless.

“Turn here.” You’re about to question where he means here, because the closest break in the hallway is about a hundred feet in front of you, but he quickly shoves you into a storage closet, and you go full-on defense mode.

That is, until, you see your favorite curly-haired flyboy staring at you in awe.

“Poe!” you nearly scream, just the mere sight of him making you want to hug him and never let go, but that wasn’t really an option because of the cuffs on both of you. He simply tucks a loose strand of hair behind your ear and you hold his face in your hands, thankful that your flyboy was okay and with you once again. Then, the fact that there’s a stormtrooper right behind you strikes you, causing you to turn around while grabbing onto one of Poe’s hands. “Wait, who are you? And why are you helping us?”

The stormtrooper rips his helmet off, and the sight brings you a little bit of pity—he was just another person scared for his life, running from the First Order. Or about to run from the First Order. You could tell.

“I wanted to do something good for once.”

“Nah, he was running and he needed a pilot. But I wouldn’t say yes until he agreed to bring you along, too.” You smile a little bit as he squeezes your hand, a gentle reminder that everything was going to be okay.

Maker, how could the two of you act like this as “friends” and still not be together?

You shake your head to get rid of those thoughts—why you weren’t dating Poe was an issue, but not the one at hand—and then ask the question everyone was wondering.

“So how the hell are we going to get out of here?”

“Are you sure you remember which TIE Poe is in?” you mutter quietly, starting to wonder if the stormtrooper’s nerves were rubbing off on you. The three of you had agreed that it would be stupid to have one stormtrooper escorting two high-profile prisoners, so he’d take you one by one.

“Just shut up. Stay calm.”

“I am calm,” you state a bit too confidently, still having doubts about the situation. But this was a shred of hope, and as a Resistance member, what you did best was live on the mere specks of hope you could find.

“No, I was talking to myself.” You roll your eyes a bit. “Okay, turn left, now!” The both of you quickly hurry into the tunnels where the access to the TIEs was, with you following his lead and quickly slipping into one part of the TIE, where much to your surprise, you land on Poe’s lap.

“What the hell?!” you yell, immediately jumping off his lap and thanking the Maker that the lighting in here was dim—he wouldn’t be able to see the absolutely flustered expression on your face.

“Oh. Oh.”

“What the hell do you mean ‘oh’?” you ask a bit harshly, already jumpy before you slid into Poe’s lap.

“There are only two seats in a TIE.”

“And there are three of us,” you finish for him, rubbing your temples. “I’ll fly my own one out.”

“And risk us being separated—or worse, captured? Are you out of your mind?”

“Do you have a better idea, flyboy?”

“Just sit on my lap and pilot.” You’re not sure why the idea is making you so flustered, but it is.

“Right. And is that harness big enough for the both of us?”

“I’ll be your seatbelt.” There’s a moment before you burst out into disbelieving laughter, shaking your head.

“That has to be the stupidest thing I’ve heard you say, Dameron.”

“Do you have a better idea, Solo?” He calls out your “true” last name right there, which leaves you speechless for a second. You simply shake your head, muttering a few curse words under your breath before sitting down, sucking in a breath when you feel his hands go around your waist. “Do you know how to fly a TIE?”

“Someone’s forgetting the time I did this exact same thing on my own,” you shut him up quickly, actually trying to recall how, exactly, you did it the first time.

“Are you two done, or do we plan on spending a few more hours here?!” The trooper calls from the other side, starting to fire up the weapons.

“Okay. Here goes nothing.” You push the joystick as far ahead as you can, bracing for the sudden change in speed when what actually hits you all is a jolt backwards. Your heart stops for a second, thinking Ben was pulling the TIE back, but then you realize that the idiot who you were hopelessly in love with forgot to take the leash off the TIE.

“Are you serious?!” Both you and the stormtrooper exclaim at the same time, and you swear you can hear Poe chuckle a little bit before reaching around you to grab some controls, doing Maker knows what.

You were going to kill him as soon as you made it back to base.

“I got it, I got it!” He somehow gets rid of it, leaving you to rely on nothing but memories from a few years ago and your sheer intuition to fly the TIE out of here, all while the hangar shield was closing and you were being shot at.

But, having it in your blood, you manage to do it, grinning as both of the boys cheer you on as you speed past the cannons on the bottom of the dreadnought.

Oh shit. The cannons.

“We have to get rid of those—”

“—cannons, you hear me?” you finish for Poe, making sure the TIE was going as fast as it could. “I’m going to spin around, and you’re going to shoot them. You got that?!”

“I got it!” he screams back, and you take in a deep breath, trying to do what you needed to before you realized how stupid it was.

Here goes nothing.

You spin around, yanking the joystick all the way back so you make a perfect transition from moving forward at full speed to going in reverse at full speed, all while making sure the wings don’t get burnt off by the walls.

“I got ‘em!”

“Well, you have some more TIEs to take care of when I turn back around!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

You do the full-spin again, laughing a little bit when Poe whoops and pulls you further into his chest, hugging you.

“You’re fucking amazing!”

“Tell me something I don’t know, Dameron!” You laugh in glee, shooting out of the tunnel and heading towards Jakku.

“I got ‘em! I got the TIEs!” The aircraft is full of laughter and rejoicing and hope, something you haven’t felt this much of in a long time.

“Hey, what’s your name?” Poe asks the stormtrooper sitting in the back.

“I don’t have one.”

“What?”

“They just call me FN-2187.”

“FN, huh? Well I ain’t using it. FN… How about Finn?” You turn around slightly, just enough to face Poe, and nod a little bit, a wide smile on your face. Looking back on this memory, you wonder whether it was this small action that led to the entire course of the galaxy being changed.

“Finn… I like it.” You seem to forget everything in the galaxy besides the man whose lap you’re sitting in, repeatedly looking from his eyes to his lips, unable to help yourself and not wanting to.

“You’re amazing, you know?” The compliment masked as a question brings a smile to your face.

And perhaps, if you hadn’t been so lost in the celebration and the haze of love, you would’ve kept your head in the game and swerved the incoming blast that Finn didn’t even have time to worry any of you about.

“I know.”

Masterlist

All taglists are open! Send me an ask or a message :)

Permanent: @becausewhyknotme, @browneyedhimbo, @theladyoffangorn, @officialtonystarkprotectionsquad, @justmebeingtheweirdmeiam, @fantasticcopeaglepasta, @talk-geek-to-me, @letsmellowjello, @thescarletknight2014, @bbluespiritzuko, @brooklynsmorales, @marvel-dameron, @marvelinsanity, @softly-sad, @yourbucky084, @mcolbz14

Star Wars: @kittyofalltrades, @arkofblake, @m1rkw00dpr1ncess, @propertyofdindjarin, @coldbreadbouquetworld, @melvls, @thedevilwearsbeskar

Poe Dameron: @poe-damnnn-eron, @lapilark, @peterhollandkait, @demigod-dragonrider-schoolidol, @twomoonstwosuns, @lady-sloan, @poes-stardust, @legamelo, @xremember-me-notx, @imtheoutgoingsidekick-baby, @yourbucky084, @agents-assemble, @asianravenpuff, @daydreamerinadazedworld, @darthadeline

Taglist (Drop Me An Ask To Be Added): @pizzahutmonkeybutt-orgy, @nerd-without-a-cause, @princekooks, @itspdameronthings, @um-chile-anyways, @lil-lex1, @lizajane3, @giselatropicana

#poe dameron x reader #poe dameron x you #poe dameron x y/n #poe dameron fic #poe dameron imagine #star wars fic #star wars imagine #my writing #holy shit i havent written for so long what the fuck #does that cliffhanger doesnt even make sense #its not really a cliffhanger bc you guys have seen tfa but-

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all-pacas · 3 years

Note

★ ☯️ 🤍 and ☠️ for Ersa! Love your characterisation of her!

oh ersa my favorite character who we never get to talk to because the game decides to ignore her incredibly disney princess backstory in order to kill her off 😌

i'm currently in the process of rewriting one story and getting ready to post another about my girl help i'm obsessed HZD writers we need to talk

★ - sad headcanon: quoting the guidebook here on erend, but —

Erend and his sister Ersa grew up against an acrimonious background of familial strife, economic uncertainty, and drunken rage. As children are wont to do, they responded in completely different ways. Determined to seize control of the things that mattered most to her, Ersa used this trauma as fuel and fought hard for a better life. Erend, on the other hand, internalized the conflict, which metastasized into the central dilemma of his life: hatred of his father's failings, accompanied by the creeping fear that he is doomed to repeat them. This toxic combination threatens to transform his anxieties into self-fulfilling prophesies, resulting in depression, self-destructive impulsiveness, and excessive drinking. […] much of his confidence is due to his sister. Throughout his life, she has been there to influence him, guide him, and when necessary, kick him in the ass. […] He has relied on her strength without co-dependent rancor or resentment, except for a bit of pouting after she scolds him, [looking] up to her like the parent he wished he'd had.

And from Avad's entry in the same guidebook:

[Avad] is capable of making tough decisions, but he is too fundamentally decent to make ruthless ones, like ripe out the insurgency of which is 8-year-old half brother is the figurehead. Until recently, this lack of savage expediency (viewed by his enemies as a lack of backbone) was covered up by Ersa, the Oseram woman who served as the Captain of his Vanguard, also his advisor, lover, and friend. Her blunt counsel often gave him the will to do what was needed, and when it didn't, she went ahead and did it herself. This relationship brought strength to Avad, giving him an equal he knew he could trust — someone who admired his geniality, and whose steel he admired in turn.

and like, that's fucking sad, isn't it? ersa is someone who has spent her life coping so hard that she makes a living out of being competent, being the person who makes the hard decisions and gets things done, who everyone relies on and needs. and her brother adores her, that most of meridian admires her, that between this backstory and avad's not-at-all-ambiguous comment that it would be frowned upon were he to have married an oseram woman, ersa was well loved and admired, that she wasn't some martyr who no one appreciated: and yet. she's the one who does everything. she's the one who charges off alone without telling anyone, who leaves her brother behind at a time she knew she was heading into danger to protect him, who dies thinking not of herself or her brother or her lover, but of duty that must be done. and yes, they're all tied together, but she's put so much of herself into the role of that person that it's also kind of tragic: erend loves her dearly but puts a lot of weight onto her to take care of him, and it seems avad was in his own way doing the same thing. and it seems like she did it willingly and that control was her own coping mechanism, but it's also just really sad. does she even know how to put that aside? if in a world where she doesn't die, would she ever know how to step back, see a place for herself with her loved ones if they don't need her in that same way?

in an au where she lives, she's probably not coming out of her months of imprisonment and torture uninjured or unscathed. would she even know what to do, if she wasn't Captain anymore, if her brother didn't need her scolding him, if avad had grown a backbone? it isn't as if they would stop caring about her, but what would she do, in a world where she's no longer able to protect and control and be the best anymore? the thing about aus where ersa lives is that it kind of goes hand-in-hand with: but now she isn't needed anymore. and that's actually a good and necessary thing for erend, and avad, but it's clear that so much of her life has been about being the person you relied on. and i just see it being a huge crisis for her. i'm sure she would much prefer it over being fridged for no reason, can we seriously talk hzd writers, but it's still running off a cliff into a void and i find it fascinating and really, really sad.

☯ - likes/dislikes headcanon:

okay this one will be less long and meta and more to the point: when i was writing my big backstory fanfic i kept sneaking in a running joke that when there was food anywhere in the room her entire pov was zoomed in on it no matter what else was happening. she stops paying attention to anything else. so ersa never stops eating is a cherished and beloved headcanon of mine that you can never take away from me. i literally just wrote a scene where she's a little cranky to have to sit at a formal dinner but also let's have two full paragraphs on what she's eating.

dislikes: boats. as a joke in the same story i had her become ridiculously seasick the second she went out on a lake and i just think it's funny for some reason. she just doesn't like boats and it's canon until you can prove otherwise, and you can't.

♡ - romantic headcanon:

extrapolating a lot from npc dialogue, the game suggests there's an Oseram concept of "Bladewife," where you "shave your head and kiss the blade." we really don't see many women oseram who fight, and npc dialogue suggests there's a pretty large cultural pressure on women to marry and work for their husbands — petra also suggests she came to the Sundom because fuck that — so i tend to assume that "Bladewives" are called such because they're married not to a husband but to battle, and that ersa is/was one.

so, the way i wrote it, she can legally never marry, have children, inherit property or assets. and of course those are the laws of a country she no longer lives in and it's all much more ambiguous now that she's living in Meridian, but, you know.

she's had a handful of relationships in her life, very few even remotely serious: erend isn't clear what her "type" is, not that she'd necessarily be telling him, but also she's not following the rules of her own people, being a warrior and unmarried and in command of others. i imagine there were those who saw "buff cute girl" and "legally can't get married" and went "excellent, i can sleep with her and never be trapped in a relationship!", and that ersa got burned a time or two before she wised up to dating in her social circle (in my big backstory fanfic, she has a messy relationship with a man named Dorin with whom exactly that happened — they were quite serious until he abruptly got married and more or less ghosted her, which she wants to think of as not his fault but also resents. and Erend hates the dude.)

her relationship with avad, canon as it was, seems to have probably also been complicated: they kept it incredibly secret, probably because the carja would very much disapprove and the oseram would not be any better, and while there's no denying they were close (again: avad's word choice to aloy, we couldn't marry, like, you don't usually throw marry around as the word to explain your relationship if you're just fwb my dude)… it can't have been the easiest thing, either, considering how public both their lives were and how fragile the peace in meridian is. they probably spend as much time as they could together and alone, but while sneaking around in a secret affair is probably super fun and sexy for a while, i imagine after three years it starts to get a little rough. avad very publicly has no heirs, no successor, and until the end of the game he and meridian are in a position where if avad were to die, the next legal king would be itamen and the shadow carja. (dervhal came so close to letting helis just take over meridian and he didn't even know it) avad must be under some pressure to marry and have a kid, even for cynical political reasons, and imagine if you're his closest advisor and secret girlfriend and in the past you've already been dumped because you're not allowed to get married and whoops these answers keep getting long and angsty sorry not sorry

☠ - angry/violent headcanon

by the standards of her setting, ersa is only okay at hunting machines. like, she's fine. she is unlikely to die if stuck in the wilds for a week. but people like talanah and aloy would absolutely smoke her in any kind of contest: ersa's a little bit hindered by the fact that she's spent most of her life fighting in a unit of soldiers, with other men, and not asked to hunt independently.

that said, she is very, very good at fighting people. that's what she was trained to do, after all: defend oseram lands against the carja. in the sun ring, she straight up goes around murdering kestrels and saves the ravager she's supposed to be fighting for last. in that same hypothetical contest, if aloy was kept from using her traps and skills and just had to fight ersa hand-to-hand, ersa would probably win. that's just her skillset, you know?

ersa as confirmed by the comic is actually pretty short — she's like a full head smaller than erend, avad, and dervhal. this doesn't stop her from kicking the latter's ass into a hole and leaving him there i'm still not over this can't believe my girl was asked to kill him and was like eh good enough he's in a hole, nor does it stop her from her attempted carja murder spree in and before the sun ring. she's not like nill, just a fucking serial killer having some fun, but… she can fight and compensate her stature and strength. she's pretty fucking good at killing people.

#hzd ersa #yeah time to keep spamming this tag what up

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hexdream18243 · 3 years

Text

Duskwood - What's next?

Probably soon we will get a new episode, so now I want to share my fanfiction written around two months ago, about my feelings and thoughts after 8 episode. (sorry for a little OoC Jake, I needed him to sort my theories) Also I'm not English speaker, this story is translated from my native language (Polish). Sorry for any errors!

Warnings: episode 8 spoilers!!!, description of "death"(?), my own theories Word count: 1509 Summary: It's about what my MC felt during MWAF call and how conversation with Jake would look after that. AO3 link As soon as Thomas and Jessy escaped safely from that house, I was overwhelmed with relief. It was unbearable when Jessy decided to go to the bunker on her own and ignore my message to wait for Thomas. It's unbelievable! Are these people crazy? They shouldn't ignore the threat, NEVER, especially when we don't know where the enemy is. They shouldn’t go anywhere alone. Cleo was watched when she was alone, Jessy attacked when she was alone and Richy was kil... He was alone then too. He did not wait for anyone either. That was the only reason I didn't want Thomas to go looking for Richy himself. Because we could have lost him too.

And now my worst fears have been confirmed! When I saw the hideout of the man without face, I wasn't sure what was wrong. Something wasn’t right. Only after a moment it hit me. Candles! The threat was near. If they weren’t together there, I don't know how it could have ended.

Lilly had barely written that she was calling the police when my phone rang. I had a feeling I might know who it was.

“It wasn’t enough for you, that I killed the mechanic?” – I heard a familiar hoarse voice. I shuddered. He want to tell me more threats, right?– “It’s over now. I will kill them all. Cleo. Thomas. Lilly. Jessy. And Dan. Every single one of them!” - Though it's hard for me to admit it, I was just waiting for him to say Jake’s name. Because if he does not know about his existence, does not know that he is important, then we have an ace up our sleeve. A wanted ace. In the hideout. But ace afterall. – “And. You. Will. Watch!” – I didn’t liked the sound of this sentence. Probably just a moment ago I received confirmation that these are not vain threats. That Richy is really dead. But I still didn't allow myself to accept that. I can't now. I can't be afraid. Not while talking to this man. – “And in the end. I’ll be coming for you.”

The caller hung up. I put the phone face down and exhaled a breath. The last threat didn't really scare me. All right, he'll come for me. It will take a while. I don't live in Duskwood, I'm not even close, I'm from another country. I wish him good luck finding me. I'm not even sure if he knows what I look like. I have never turned on the camera during a conversation, and my photos on social media are not under the same name which I introduced myself to the rest of the group. Why would I tell them my real name? I used a pseudonym. I’m sure Jake knows that. That's why I never asked him for his name. I didn’t have the right to know as I never given mine. Especially as he wanted to stay as anonymous as he could. I understand that.

But now is not the time to consider being anonymous. As far as I can tell I am, but the rest of them? They are not. He really knows them. He knows what they look like. He saw Thomas and Jessy running away. They're all in Duskwood. Only me and Jake are safe. But they are not.

My consciousness finally made me realize the full implication of the man’s without face words. He wants to kill them. Before my eyes.

When I spoke to Richy, I could see that he was trying very hard to let me see him. As if with the last of his strength he was forcing himself to put the phone in the right position. Maybe he wanted to say something. But the blood from his mouth must have surprised him, and he was unable to say anything clear. And then the phone fell down. Probably Richy released his grab when he passed out. Yes. Passed out. I still don't want to believe Richy is dead. If I do this, I will break down. Anyway, I really don't like the idea of seeing the rest of the group die before my eyes. I don't want to lose them.

Suddenly I heard a ping from my phone. The group or Jake. I bet on the latter.

Jake Tirada?

You Another threatening call.

He was definitely listening. He almost always listens. So he should know what was said.

Jake I know. I heard.

You He threatened them. He threatened me. That he would kill us. He said Richy is dead.

Jake He want to scare you. Nothing will happen to you.

You I know I'll be fine. I'm not from Duskwood. But THEY are not safe. He can attack them anytime!

Jake We won't let him do that. Look, he got scared. He want you to be scared too. That we would stop looking. It means we're very close to find Hannah's kidnapper!

I am well aware why the kidnapper called me. I agree with Jake. He got scared that we are so close and we found his hiding place. Although…

You How did he know Thomas and Jessy would be there?

Jake What?

He must have been confused by my sudden change of subject, though he should have been used to it by now.

You It does not make sense. Candles were lit behind the closed door. This is fire hazard.

Jake ?

You You saw how that place looked like. It would be really easy to set everything on fire. And why he used candles? Wouldn't it be better to use flashlights or lanterns? It was a hideout from a horror movie. Is it because he tends to be dramatic? That’s why he used a legend and impersonate himself as one? I sincerely doubt it. Jake, it looked like it was set up. Man without a face knew they would be there. I’m sure of it. Who is wearing a mask entering his own hideout? What for?

Jake Wait a second. Aren’t you jumping to conclusions?

You What do you mean?

Jake Their car was parked in the driveway. Maybe he had the mask with him and he put it on because he saw the vehicle?

You Then why he left? Why he wasn’t inside?

I started to wonder. What reason could he have for going outside?

You Do you think the car was audible from the hideout?

Jake I don’t know. It is possible.

You I have two theories.

Jake I listen.

You The first one: Everything was prepared for the arrival of Thomas and Jessy. The man without a face knew they were coming. Therefore, he prepared his burrow very carefully. It is possible that he wanted to attack them by a surprise.

Jake And the second one?

You The man was in the hideout when he heard the car. He went out to check who is coming from a distance. Just in case, he took the mask with him. When he saw that it was Thomas and Jessy, he decided to wait for the right opportunity and strike. He must have seen they were on the phones, so he didn't want to act right away. So that we wouldn't be able to warn anyone.

Jake I need to think about it.

You Jake. I really don’t want any of my theories come true. Especially the first one.

Jake That would mean that someone from the group informed him.

You Exactly. I’m afraid of that.

I hesitated. Both of the theories made a shiver run down my spine. Although I knew both of them weren't quite accurate. They didn't explain everything. Before I can draw any more conclusions, I need to talk to Thomas and Jessy. And the rest. I need to check what was possible and what was not. Could he watched them? How did the sound spread around in that place? Did they see another car while escaping? There were a lot of things ahead of me.

Jake Don’t worry. If all goes well, the police will catch him. There was enough evidence to arrest him.

You Sorry, but I'll be pessimistic. I'm sure he knows the police have been called. I'm waiting for information about the fire.

Jake It's all because of his threats. You're upset.

You I know. I have to inform the rest.

Jake Yes.

He started to type something but I didn’t wait.

You There is one plus of this man’s call.

Jake What do you mean?

You We know something new. The man without a face doesn’t know about you. Despite Lilly’s video. He didn’t threaten you.

After writing this, I left the conversation and turned on group chat. I was a bit calmer. I was still afraid for my friends' lives, but now I felt that I can warn them and bear their own anxiety for their lifes. I have to be strong. I have to be their support. Because if I panic too, it'll be over.

GROUP CHAT

You Guys? I got another threatening phone call. It's not good.

~Thank you for your reading!~

#Duskwood #Jake #MC #fanfiction #my fanfiction #What's next?#ep8 #spoilers #MWAF

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atombombbibunny · 4 years

Text

The Shop

Pairing: Thomas Jefferson x Reader

Word Count: 5215

Warnings: Some cussin’

Summary: Y/N’s uncle had offered her, her first job knowing she was saving up in advance for college. It just so happened that The Thomas Jefferson is working there and will be training her.

A/N: Omfg, this is my first time writing in third person, its probably shit. It took so much strength not to write in first person. Anyways, this is a story I wrote forever ago with a different fandom (Harry Styles.) I thought this would work, does this work? I hope this worked.....I had no idea how to end this..........................

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

It was the first day of Y/N’s first job and she could only hear the pounding of her heart in her ears as she entered the small grocery store. Living in a small town proved to have some perks like everyone knowing everyone, and the fact that her uncle owned the store itself. He knew she was attempting to save some money for school as she would be graduating in two years.

She had no reason to be freaking out, her uncle like her and she liked him.

Everything would be fine.

Oh god, what if she started a fire? The whole town would know it was her.

As a hand fell down on her shoulder she practically leapt out of her own skin.

“There’s my favorite niece!” She spun a full 180 degrees to be eye to eye with her uncle, she shook her head before shooting him a look. “I’m your only niece uncle Jack.” He flashed her a goofy smile before patting her shoulder. “Come, I’ll show you around.” Before the two of them could move an inch, the door rang out as someone entered, her uncles face went straight as he stared down the entering being. “Little late there Thomas.” Y/N glanced behind her at the person getting scolded by her usually easy-going uncle.

To her surprise it was Thomas Jefferson, the so-called god of her high school. The man looked exhausted. “Sorry, mom needed me.” He muttered, his eyes on his shoes. Jack raised an eyebrow. “She okay?” He questioned as his face was now filled with genuine concern. “She’s fine, I guess.” He finally raised his head, his eyes flashed at Y/N before looking directly at her uncle. After a nod from Jack he rushed past the two of them barely grazing her shoulder but still enough to earn a mumbled. “Sorry.” From him.

“That was Thomas.” Y/N rolled her eyes as she tilted her head to the side, she glanced to the door Thomas was now closing and locking behind him. “Really, I would have never guessed.” She felt like he forgot she was hear and didn’t just hear their whole conversation. “His moms been sick.” She quickly lifted her head and dropped her shoulders; her heart sank in her chest. Now she felt like shit. “He uh, goes to my school. Hes a senior.” Jack smiled lightly while leaning against the cashier counter. “So good you know each other, he’ll be training you.” His smile spread to a full grin.

Y/N didn’t actually know Thomas, she knew of him. But the two had never held an actual conversation. He was basically (as cliché as it sound) the school heart breaker, and an apparently amazing kisser. (Said information passed onto her from her friend Katie who had one to many wine coolers and got a taste.)

Thomas soon exited the room now in a bright blue polo with the stores name stitched into it, he made his way back towards Y/N’s uncle who looked rather short next to him. Y/N’s eyes couldn’t help but wander over the boy’s body, his arms looked practically stuffed into the shirt’s tight sleeves, his curls bounced with every small movement. It was only when Thomas’ arm moved forward did she realize her uncle was introducing the two of them.

A tight grip: was met with Y/N’s small hand as they shook hands for a second. “Hi.” She murmured as the burning sensation on her neck grew. After Thomas moved to behind the counter Jack smirked. “Well, I have to run, I’m sure you’ll do great today.” The last of his sentence was a mere whisper of encouragement to Y/N.

Just as Y/N began to turn to Thomas to say something a shirt was thrown at her head and covered her face. “Get changed.” He ordered while stifling a chuckle. Y/N tore the suffocating shirt from her head and stormed to the door she had originally seen Thomas enter.

Once she exited the back room and was now in the rather itchy blue polo, Y/N noticed that Thomas was now nowhere to be found. She soon found him stocking shelves, a rather pain in the ass smile resting on his face. “Get lost?” He teased, his eyes never leaving the inventory he was placing on the shelves.

“No.” Y/N grumbled, her glare unnoticed or unfazing towards Jefferson. She pushed on as she watched his every movement. “So, what are we doing, stocking shelves?”

“No.” Thomas began as he placed his last can on the top shelf, Y/N raised a curious eyebrow as there were plenty of boxes still placed on the floor. “You’re stocking the shelves.” He said leaning against the shelving behind him. “You’re really going to just sit there and watch me?” She asked before slumping down on her knees and pulling open the closest box. “Yep.” A smug smirk broke across his face as she let out a light groan. Y/N rolled her eyes while facing the shelf, she was regretting taking this offer already. “Like this?” She asked coldly while setting down can after can of peas down.

Thomas just nodded and continued to watch.

They were stuck in and awkward silence, the speakers only playing quiet music around the storm, and fading in and out of static from the rain now pouring outside.

“We go to the same school don’t we.” Thomas finally said, causing a slight jump from Y/N, he chuckled softly. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare ya.” Y/N attempted to hide the heat creeping up her cheeks and continued to work, refusing to look back at the lazy body behind her.

“Yeah, we do.” She answered quietly. The ambiance of the store felt like a library, and Y/N felt like she needed to be just as quiet. “I knew it, I’ve seen you around.” Y/N smiled gently at the acknowledgement.

Another moment of silence broke between the two.

“You- You hang out with that John kid, right?” Y/N shrugged. “Little bit, why?” Thomas cleared his throat before moving positions, he crossed his arms and leaned back once more. “Are you two like, datin? Cause I don’t need anyone coming in here to distract you” Y/N could hear his embarrassment.

“Uh.” She began, goosebumps growing on her arms. “No, I mean we’ve been on a few dates, but no, we aren’t dating.” She quickly cleared her throat as she moved to unbox the rest of the cans. “He’s… not really my type.” She fought internally at shooting a look at him but stayed focused on her work.

After their awkward one-off conversation, the two stayed pretty quiet. Thomas made his way to the front counter to help the few people in the store, some there to shop, some to congratulate Y/N on her first day.

After a few hours of almost pure silence the doorbell rang out as one of Thomas’ friends entered the store. Though Thomas greeted him like usual he practically b-lined over to Y/N who was stood in almost pure fear.

“Hey, you just started today right?” He asked flashing a bright smile almost causing Y/N legs to give in at the sight. She could barely remember his name; she would always see him and the rest of Thomas’ group smoking at the front of school before classes started.

“Uhm, yeah.” Y/N said her voice coming out like a squeak, another smile broke across his face, his teeth were almost blinding. “I’m Alex, I’ve seen you around school before.” All Y/N could functionally do was nod. “Right, I’m Y/N” she mustered enough to get her voice clear to him. He let out a light chuckled, Yeah, I know.” Cursing herself internally she shook her head. “Right, duh.” She giggled.

Just as Alex opened his mouth to speak once more Thomas’ voice rung out from behind them. “Alex.” His voice was low and close to sounding angry. “Can I help you with something?” Alex glanced back at Thomas’ stature and shrugged. “I’m just… looking.” He said winking towards Y/N who gave a small smile.

Thomas looked between the two. “Well, Y/N can you go make sure the milk isn’t spoiled.” Y/N wanted to protest, she knew there wouldn’t be anything wrong, but didn’t want to piss off the wrong person on her first day.

Alex gave a quick confused look at Thomas whose eyes were now hardening. “Y-yeah, of course.” Y/N began, she took a few steps forward before glancing back at the two boys. “See you later Alex.”

Once done the mundane task the store was completely empty. She walked to the front to see Thomas leaning against the counter reading. “Are you going to teach me the register?” She questioned; her boredom was almost consuming her.

Thomas shrugged, his eyes never leaving his book. “Not much to know, scan here.” He said pointing to the glass with the scanning mechanism in it. “We take cash or credit, if its cash press this.” He moved his hand to a blue button on the register. “If its credit, push this. Don’t forget their change or receipt.” Y/N stood patiently, only to realize he was done talking.

“Oh, okay.”

Though it was getting late the store didn’t close till 9:30, it was one of the only places that stayed open past 8:30 in their small town.

“What are you reading?” Y/N questioned, unmoving still, Thomas lifted his book to reveal the title The Glass Castle. “Oh, I’ve read that before.” Thomas hummed in response, his eyes scanning each word. “Do you like it?” He nodded, Y/N felt an annoyance grow in her as he was unresponsive and shooed off the one person that was talking to her.

She sighed, resigning to leaning on the shelf closest to her.

Luckily, the door rang out, her head snapped towards it to see John entering wearing his normal happy smile. “Y/N, hey!” She quickly made her way over to him, grateful for the new company. Thomas was still reading, basically ignoring any other goings on.

She grabbed at Johns arm and began to lead him down an aisle. “How’s the job?” He asked, shrugging Y/N glanced back at Thomas who was now eyeing the two of them, a shiver ran down her spine. “Its okay, just been really quiet.” Johns eyes followed Y/N’s to Thomas who looked back down at his book again. “Am I going to get you in trouble? I can go.” Y/N’s grip tightened on Johns arm. “No, please don’t. Plus, Thomas is harmless.”

“Okay, well I was wondering if you wanted to go-.” “Y/N” A deep voice came from behind them once more, and once more causing Y/N to jump, her arm pulling away from John’s. She spun on her heel, trying not to glare at him.

“Its gettin’ late, we should start cleanin’ up.” Thomas looked down at her like a child getting talked to by a parent. She nodded then looked at John who looked like he was damn close to shitting himself. “I’ll, uh text you.” She said watching as John scurried out of the store, as did Thomas.

“I thought you said you two weren’t goin’ out?” Y/N finally glared at him, who was still watching the long since closed door. “Eavesdropper.” She accused as he looked back at her. “No distractions.” He warned and turned to go back to the front.

Y/N flipped him off once his back was turned and stormed over to the small closet in the back, she assumed held cleaning supplies, she was correct. “No distractions.” She mocked in her worst Virginian accent.

Its not fair, she thought. He gets to just sit up there with his stupid hair and muscles. He’s the distraction.

She began to sweep a little to aggressively at the floor.

“Easy there cowgirl.” Thomas uttered, she spun. “How are you so quiet?” She asked in a harsh tone. “How are you so easily scared?” He mocked.

Y/N rolled her eyes as she continued to sweep at nothing. “You know we’re closed right?” Y/N’s eyes shot around the store till it fell on the clock now showing 9:35. He could have told her sooner. A slight blush grew on her cheeks as she placed the broom away.

Once changed into their street wear, they met outside, she watched as he locked up the shop, he turned to face her. “I’ll see you tomorrow?” He asked, Y/N nodded before turning to go down the street. “Night.” She shouted over her shoulder. “Night!” Thomas yelled back.

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

Y/N jogged into the store, closing her umbrella, the floor gave way from under her and she quickly grasped onto the door handle before hitting the ground. She stood once more and slammed the door shut, fed up with the rain.

She peeled off her soaked jacket before turning to see a smiling Thomas. “Quiet the entrance there.” He said biting back laughter as Y/N bowed. “You’re five minutes late though” He warned raising an eyebrow. “Sorry, the wind pulled my umbrella back and I got soaked.” She pushed back her hoodie to show a head full of dripping hair.

Thomas released his laughter. “D’you need a towel?” She nodded and one was tossed quickly in her direction.

After she went back to change and scrub some rain out of her hair, she made her way back to the front not one customer in sight. “Any customers yet?” She questioned. “Gunna be a slow night.” Thomas said whilst shaking his head. Y/N let out a long groan. Dead nights were the worst.

She had now been working there for a month, she knew of everything she needed to do and was already bored of it. On slow days she’d clean while Thomas read.

Once the store was basically spotless and everything was faced, she made her way back to the front to see Thomas squinting at a turned around cereal box. She crossed her arms as she leaned against the same shelf. “What, no book tonight?” She asked as he stayed still, he reached under the counter and pulled up a ruined rain-soaked book. “Fell out on my way here. Rain ruins everythin’ I love.” He muttered. “So, you’re reading… a box?” She asked as she looked at it, there was nothing of actual interest on it other than the history of said cereal and nutritional facts. “Nothin else to do.” A sly smile broke across her face as she lifted one finger and slowly pushed the box off the edge, sending it slamming to the floor. “Oh, you are the worst kind of person.” Thomas groaned, he turned to face the empty wall crossing his arms like a child throwing a fit.

“Y/N I’m bored, tell me something.” He whined, still facing the wall, Y/N sighed at his grumpy demeanor. “What do you want to know Thomas?” She asked leaning against the shelf once more.

“Just tell me about you, did you go on a date with that John guy?” Y/N let out a laugh, she knew he wasn’t just asking due to boredom. “No, I didn’t. He’s not my type, remember?” She blushed lightly at the thought of him being genuinely curious about her love life.

“Alex asked me out though.” Thomas’ back straightened and tensed before he turned back around. “Oh.” He mumbled. “What?” Y/N asked as she crossed her arms in curiosity, an eyebrow raised up as she watched him closely. “Nothing.” He said, his eyes on the counter as he picked at the chipping paint. “Bullshit, what?” She demanded; Thomas scrunched his face. “Well, are you going to go out with him?” She quickly shrugged as she looked out the front door, the rain still pouring. “I don’t think so, he always ends up going back to Eliza, or Maria… or John.” She laughed lightly at the now realization on how such a player Alexander truly was.

Thomas broke out into a smile. “I knew you were a smart one.” Y/N picked up the box from the floor. “Gee thanks.” She shot back sarcastically.

They talked for the rest of the shift.

Not one customer.

But Y/N got to learn all about Thomas.

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

Alex leaned in to press a quick kiss to Y/N, something she still wasn’t used to. “I’ll see you after work.” He mumbled against her lips. “Of course.” She said pulling back and hopping out of his car.

As she walked into the store, she saw no body presence at the front. “Thomas?” She called out into the empty store. She walked towards the back room pulling her work shirt out of her bag, she opened the door to see a shirtless Thomas there. “Holy shit! I’m so sorry!” She announced before slamming the door shut behind her.

Her heart pounded violently in her chest. It wasn’t fair that her boyfriend’s friends, (well sort of friend she had now learned.) were so good looking. Not that she didn’t think Alexanders body wasn’t hot, just, damn Thomas.

Thomas exited the back room a smiled glued to his face. “Smooth.” He said as he passed her to get to the front counter. “Oh, shut up.” She warned hitting him on the arm. “It was an accident.” Thomas chuckled. “Don’t worry darlin’ I won’t tell your boyfriend.” Y/N let out a sarcastic laugh before entering the back room. “Get to work, you ass.”

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

Y/N walked in practically pushing past Thomas. “You’re late.” He mumbled, she ignored him. “I said you’re late.” Thomas said standing straight. “Y/N!” Thomas shouted, stopping her in her tracks. “What, I’m here now so just leave it!” She marched into the back room and changed before making her way to the back of the store.

Y/N kept pulling her phone out, sighing when it came up blank, no new messages, no phone calls, nothing.

Alexander and she had gotten into a fight and it felt like their relationship was near its end, something that was bringing her to her breaking point at the thought. The shift had flown past her before she even knew.

“No phones on the floor.” Thomas’ warning voice came from over her shoulder, she knew he was ticked off with her. She quickly wiped the tears threatening to spill over and turned to him. “Sorry.” She mumbled.

“Oh, um, no I’m sorry. Are you okay?” He questioned, his eyes watching her small trembling body. She shrugged before falling into his chest, a sob broke through her. It was 9 and Thomas knew no one else would be coming at this time. He wrapped his arms around her as she cried into his shirt. “Do you wanna talk about it?” He asked resting his head against her head which shook and buried deeper into him.

He just squeezed her before sitting the two of them down.

Once it was 9:30 Y/N had calmed down a bit, her body was tired and aching but she sat and explained that she feared Alex was cheating on her, they were barely seeing each other and every time she brought up her fears to him he would kiss her or fight with her on it. This last time they were basically screaming at one another, she knew she was late for work, so she pushed herself past him he had attempted to grab her, but she shook his grip and stormed to the shop.

Thomas Hugged her into his arms. “ ‘M sorry I shouted at ya when you came in, I didn’t know.” Y/N shrugged content in his embrace. “You didn’t know. But, thank you for listening.” Thomas gave her a gentle smile, just as the butterflies rose in her chest, she felt her phone ring against her hip.

Thomas quickly let go and she jumped from his arms.

“Hello?”

It was Alex.

Y/N changed and left on her phone, leaving Thomas behind to close the store.

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

Thomas was late, his mom wasn’t doing well. But she told him to go to work.

They didn’t talk all shift.

His eyes held a sadness as he watched Y/N work.

Everyone knew about his mom and knew better to leave him alone.

Y/N didn’t know what to say to him.

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

“Thomas?” Y/N asked as the two restocked a shelf. “Yeah?”

“Do you think Alex and I are a mistake?”

Thomas tensed and stared straight for a moment.

“Don’t bring me into this.” He muttered putting his last can of soup on the shelf and began to walk away.

“Bring you into what?” Y/N asked bitterly.

“Don’t bring me into your relationship bullshit.” He grumbled.

“I’m not, I’m just asking.” Y/N said, shooting him a glare.

Thomas shook his head and turned back to face her; her heart leapt into her throat at his hardened look. “No, you’re not. ‘just askin’ me;” He raised his hands for the quotations. “You want me to comfort you like last time, then just fuckin’ walk away from me again.”

She had never heard Thomas swear like this before, it gave her a cold chill.

“I didn’t just walk away, you let go of me.”

“Sorry for making sure you were okay.” He scoffed.

Y/N kicked her empty box down the aisle towards him.

“I didn’t ask you to Thomas!” She shouted back, her blood coming to a boil.

“Well I did, and you just left.”

“Why did you even do it!?”

“Because I care about you!”

“Then why are you so upset now!?”

“Because he doesn’t fucking deserve you!” He shouted, he huffed out his next couple of breaths like he had just run a marathon. He rolled his eyes at Y/N’s frozen stature, as he turned to storm off Y/N finally shook off her fear of his anger and march towards him.

“Thomas don’t just walk away.” She demanded, before she could graze his shoulder, he was spun to face her, his hands on her waist as he pulled her against his lips, taking her breath with him.

Her heart skipped a beat from the feeling of his soft lips against hers, something felt like it had exploded in her heart, lungs and brain. Before she could process a thought, before she could truly kiss him back. He pulled away. “Yes, is the answer to your question.” His voice was low and rumbled against her body.

He released her and walked back to the front

She stood there

She stood there till they closed.

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

After the kiss Thomas had their shifts changed, she worked with her uncle most of the time.

Graduation season had come and past, Y/N was now a senior and knew she would never be seeing or running into Thomas at school again.

Alexander and her eventually broke things off, it wasn’t more than a few days till he was with someone else. Thomas was attending college in town, still caring for his mother full time.

He was barely working anymore.

One night in autumn it was pouring rain. Y/N had to close alone, the air hung with something, it was almost like Y/N could feel something bad was going to happen. Her uncle had left his shift muttering something about Thomas’ mom.

Since it was so quiet Y/N was just sat at the front counter running the register, her mind drifted to the memories of Thomas always up there, reading, or helping customers, or just simply talking to her.

After a customer had come in and brought their items to the front Y/N regained focus and began ringing in the items. Once they had finished paying Y/N was just about to hand them their receipt when Thomas came crashing through the door.

He collapsed onto his knees, his hair wet falling onto his face. The customer shot her a look of worry before she ran towards him. “Thomas are you okay?” He shook his head as Y/N began to lift him from his spot on the floor. As she led them to the back room, she heard the ring of the door. She sat Thomas on a chair before running out to lock the door behind the customer.

She quickly made her way back; Thomas had not moved an inch since she set him there. She began to look for a towel, as she turned to check a certain shelf, she felt his arms wrap around her waist. “My mom died.” He sobbed out, shattering her heart and confirming her worst fear. “She’s gone, Y/N.” Y/N watched for a second as the tears slid down his already wet face. She dropped down to the ground before wrapping her arms around his shoulders. “I’m so sorry, Thomas. God, I’m so, so sorry.” She held him tightly as he buried his face in her shoulder. “I couldn’t look at her, I couldn’t see her like that. I just ran, I came here, you’re the only person I could face.” He cried out as he gripped her harder. “Its okay.” She whispered against his wet hair. “I’m not ready for this. I’ll never be ready for this.”

She held him there till he calmed down as best he could. She took him back to the hospital.

She held his hand at the funeral.

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

Y/N had graduated, she was ready to leave her small town, she had gotten into her dream college and was just months away from getting out of there, she hadn’t worked much due to her studies for exams and applying for all types of colleges.

As she began to pass the shop something in her told her to go in, plus she was a bit peckish.

The door rang out as she entered, her eyes instantly snapped to the front counter, but she was left with disappointment as it was empty.

She absentmindedly made her way through the aisle trying to find something she was in the mood for. Once her eyes landed on a pack of mac and cheese, she picked it up. She glanced up to see Thomas walk behind the counter. The sight of him caused her to fumble with the box and it went crashing to the floor.

Thomas’ eyes flashed up to see Y/N blush and go to pick up the box. Once picked up Y/N looked back to the counter to see it empty once more. She shook her head wondering if she had imagined him. “What are you doing here?” She jumped, once more sending the box tumbling to the ground.

Thomas chuckled behind her, she spun back around and smiled. “Very funny” She glared.

“Its been a while, huh?”

She nodded. “Yeah, I graduated, so I haven’t really been working .”

Thomas broke out into a bright smile. “Well congratulations. When do ya work next?”

She shrugged attempting to hid any creeping feeling of red on her face. “Its staggered for the next few months, then I’m off to college.” Thomas’ eyes dimmed. “Oh, well I’m glad you got in, I’m assuming its not in town?” She almost felt guilty as she shook her head no.

“Then I guess I’m going to have to get our schedules fixed so we can work together again.” Y/N couldn’t stop the smile the broke across her face. “I’d like that.”

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

They laughed.

They goofed around.

They shared food nearing its expiration dates.

They bumped hands and blushed.

And they just had quiet days.

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

It was her last day. She had her bags packed for the airport and had told her family she’d meet them there.

She had said goodbye to everyone.

Everyone but him.

As she pulled up to the shop and entered, she couldn’t help as a knot grew in her throat.

Once the bell rang out Thomas had jumped up from behind the counter, his eyes landed on her and saw the hurt resting in them, his soon matching hers.

“Well…let the goodbye begin I guess.” He began as he walked towards her, he reached past her and locked the door, placing a sign on it stating he’d be back in an hour.

“Go to the back, I’ll be there in a second.” He practically ordered as he made his way down some aisles. Y/N watched him as she moved to wards the back door, she closed it behind her and sat in an empty seat. Her eyes wandered over the stuffy old room. A towel hung on the edge of a shelf, stiff from not being touched in a while. The copy of Thomas’ Glass Castle book sat opened to dry. But it was never picked up again.

The door soon open and Thomas came in with an arm full of chips and soda, a smile broke through Y/N’s face as she watched him struggle to put the items down. “I’m not lettin’ you leave till you absolutely have to.” She let out a light laugh as she opened a bag of chips. “Okay, but I do have a flight to catch.” Thomas smirked. “They won’t leave without ya.” Y/N rolled her eyes as she popped in a few chips. “Sure.” She said mouth half full.

They sat in a silence for a minute, almost causing Y/N to sink back into her heartbreak of today.

“I’m gonna miss you.” Thomas suddenly said, his eyes gazing into hers. She fiddled with the tab of her pop before setting it down. “Are you gunna visit?” He asked hopefully, her heart rose as she watched him. “Of course.”

Another wave of silence engulfed the both of them, this time it left the feeling of words unsaid, their eyes never leaving each other. “Y/N.” Thomas began gently. “Can I try something?” He moved forward, she nodded and watched his every movement. His hand slid against her now burning cheek, he leaned closer, his lips hovering over hers for a moment before pressing into her.

Y/N could feel that same feeling she had the last time she kissed, but this time it left her wanting more and this time she could kiss him back, his lips molded against her as she gripped at his shoulder.

He moved back and looked away from her. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what I was thinking.” Y/N wasted no time to grab at the blue collar of his work shirt and pull him back into their kiss. She slowly stood from her chair and moved to straddle him, their lips almost never breaking from one another.

“I’m going to miss you so much.” He mumbled against her mouth and his hands rested on her hips. “I’ve been wanting to do this for so long and now you’re leaving.” Y/N could care less about her flight, about her college, about anything. “You have me now.” She sighed out against him.

Thomas groaned lightly, his fingers gripping into her hips harder, his lips smashed into her, his tongue nudging against her which she quickly let into wrestle with hers. His lips then left to trail down her neck, his teeth grazed against her skin sending a shiver down her spine. Thomas moaned at her body movement into her skin.

She could feel him growing against her thigh. “Thomas.” She whispered in a breathy voice. “I have to go soon.” As much as she wanted to stay in this world of it just being him and her, she had to face reality. “God no.” He growled.

152 notes · View notes

yelena-bellova · 4 years

Text

Don’t Be Afraid: Poe Dameron x Solo!Reader - Chapter Nine

(gif not mine, credit to the original creator)

Chapter Nine: Not Even Death Could Break Us

Series Masterlist

Plot: Reader returns to the Resistance base and recieves a welcome surprise.

Warnings: Fluff, fluff and more fluff.

Word Count: 5.2k

A/N: Here’s your reward for sitting through weeks of angst because we’re jumping right back into it next chapter. ENJOY!!

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

“Commander Solo requesting clearance to land.”

I waited for a response as we flew above the familiar forests of D’Qar. I wished they’d have brought me the same level of comfort they typically did. Today, they just looked like trees rather than a reminder of home.

“Landing permitted. Welcome back, Commander.”

I tried to focus on adjusting controls as the base came into view but my father’s voice broke my concentration,

“Commander Solo.”

“What about it?”

“Nothing,” he said as his chest rumbled with a small laugh, “I’ve just never seen you as a Commander.”

“Well, I’d never seen you as a smuggler till today,” I replied with a faint sideways smile.

We were coming up on the base along with several X-Wings, I spotted Mom’s transport had just parked and was emptying. We landed easily amidst the other ships and as Dad powered down the ship, I stared off out the cockpit window. Everyone was rushing around yet I couldn’t find the strength in me to muster up similar energy. Not when I was about to face fighting a war without Poe.

“Alright, guess we’re doin’ this,” Dad remarked, turning to face me.

“You go ahead,” I replied monotonously, “I just...need a minute.”

“Sure,” Dad answered before standing up and placing a kiss on the top of my head.

After he’d exited, I buried my face in my hands and tried to keep my tears at bay. I needed to be Commander Solo now, the General’s daughter. Not Y/n Organa-Solo, the broken-hearted sob story. Poe would want me to walk into the command center, head held high, and ready to start giving orders. That seemed almost impossible at the moment, but I owed it to him to at least try. People were depending on me just on the other side of the ship and I couldn’t disappoint them.

I rubbed my eyes, smacked the armrest of my chair, and hoisted myself up. I took a quick look around the main area of the ship to see if Finn or Chewie were still there, everyone was already out. With no more ways to stall, I left the comfort of the Falcon and headed out into the uncertainty of war. I saw Mom from a distance heading inside with Chewie and Dad in tow. Around me, pilots were talking to their mechanics about what repairs needed to be done on their ships. And then I saw Finn a couple of hundred feet away from me, hugging someone with BB-8 at their feet. Finn didn’t know anybody here but us as far as I knew. He looked as if he was speaking urgently to the person and after a second, he turned and broke the embrace revealing his companion.

Poe.

I wanted to blame dehydration or lack of food, it could’ve easily been a hallucination. But it was undeniably him, I knew that as soon as our eyes met across the tarmac. Standing in his bright orange pilot’s uniform, jaw dropped at the sight of me, it was him. No matter how impossible, Poe was standing right in front of me.

Maz’s words had been right.

He kept his promise.

Poe took off at full speed towards me with no regard for the confusion he was causing. My feet began to carry me towards him in response like some magnetic force was pulling us together. We collided into one another with such force I should have cried out in pain, but instead, I whined in happiness. My arms wrapped around his neck and held on with a grip that death itself couldn’t break. His arms were wound tight around my waist and his face was blissfully buried in the crook of my neck.

“Sweetheart,” Poe whispered against my skin, reality setting in and causing my tears to fall in time with his.

“I thought I lost you,” I sobbed softly as one of my hands found itself in his hair, “I-I thought you were dead.”

Poe pulled back to look at my face but never did his hands let go of my waist. He wasn’t going to let me go any time soon and I didn’t take one issue with it,

“I thought so too for a while, so much happened that I have to tell you,” he said, his thumb softly rubbing the tears off my cheek, “But I’m here, I’m here.”

Despite my blurry vision, I could finally get a good look at him. He had a few scrapes that were already fading. It looked like his lip had been cut but was already healing. Nothing like how he’d looked in the dream I’d had. He looked just as I’d left him, tearful and shaken but for only good reasons this time.

“I told you I’d come back for you.”

I let out a sob of joy as I pressed my forehead against his, savoring the sensation of our breaths mingling together. In a surge of adrenaline, I leaned in and pressed my lips to his. It didn’t take him more than five seconds before reciprocating, making me smile and sink even deeper in. Our lips moved in sync with one another’s as if we’d shared a thousand kisses. Our bodies molded against each other as if they were meant to perfectly. For a few wonderful seconds, there was no war, just me and Poe.

We broke apart breathless, but I still pushed out the words that desperately needed to be said, “I love you.”

After catching his breath, Poe lifted my chin with a gentle finger, his chocolate brown eyes searching mine for any hint of falseness. Maybe to make sure it wasn’t a heat of the moment thing to say rather than a deep-seeded confession. All he’d find was affection and quite a few happy tears. I’d never seen him grin so widely,

“I love you too, so much...” he whispered before meeting my lips again, this time with more tenderness. We’d both experienced so many harsh things in the past day or so, one gentle moment was more than welcome. He pulled away after a few seconds, “What brought this on?”

I laughed as I brushed a finger at the tear stains down his face, “So many things that we don’t have time to talk about now. But I was stupid to not see it sooner.”

Poe chuckled, “You weren’t stupid, sweetheart,” he said softly, “Just a little bit behind me.”

I smiled and pecked his lips gently, they were gorgeously swollen by now. Judging by his smile, he didn’t mind...

“As much as I want to stay here kissing you, we’ve got work to do.” I stated.

“Yeah, we do,” Poe said determinedly, “And as soon as it’s done, we’re going to be doing a whole lot more of this.”

He gave me a final kiss, one that left me weak in the knees and gripping his biceps for stability. We broke apart and I’d never been so happy to see his smirk,

“Yeah,” I cleared my throat, “I think we will.”

Poe grabbed my hand and we jogged back to where he’d left Finn. He was standing there, definitely trying to look like he hadn’t seen our reunion,

“Finn buddy, come with us. We gotta introduce you to the General.”

“And we need to form a plan to go get Rey.” Finn said to me as the three of us marched toward the base.

We made our way through the halls swiftly, I ignored passerby’s wide-eyed stares at Poe’s and my intertwined hands and focused on Finn. Though his thoughts were solely about Rey, he couldn’t hide the childlike wonder in his eyes at the base. He’d never experienced goodness in his life and now it was everywhere he looked. Though its was all new to him, I could tell he was already one of us. The three of us stepped down into the command center and I spotted my mother conversing with officers,

“General Organa,” Poe called, “Sorry to interrupt, but this is Finn, he needs to talk to you.”

“And I need to talk to you,” Mom said warmly, addressing Finn, “That was incredibly brave what you did, renouncing the First Order, saving this man’s life, helping my daughter…”

Finn looked a little surprised that the information had reached her so quickly, “Thank you, ma’am, but a friend of ours,” he gestured between the two of us, “was taken prisoner.”

“Han told me about the girl, I’m sorry,” she replied.

“General,” I spoke up, “We need to make a plan to get Rey back however, Finn worked on the First Order’s base and is familiar with the weapon that toke out the Hosnian system.”

“We’re desperate for anything you can tell us.”

“That’s where she was taken, we need to get there fast.” Finn replied, urgency in his voice. He wanted to help us, but saving Rey was his first priority.

“And I will do everything I can to help,” Mom answered, “But first you must tell us all you know.”

“They go hand in hand,” I added, “We can’t get Rey unless we know about where we’re going.”

Finn looked to me and nodded determinedly, “Okay.”

Mom left us with a polite smile to go stand amongst beside Dad, 3PO and BB-8, she was going to examine the map. Squeezing Poe’s hand, I broke apart from him and Finn to go and join her,

“I didn’t get the opportunity to talk to you about the map. It’s not exactly what we thought it was.”

She furrowed her brow in confusion as 3PO took the drive from BB-8 and inserted it into one of the computers. As I drew a breath to explain, the map appeared holographically in front of us and I was too late.

“General,” C-3PO explained, “I regret to inform you, but this map recovered from BB-8 is only partially complete. And even worse, it matches no charted system on record. We simply do not have enough information to locate Master Luke.”

I sighed heavily, “That’s what I wanted to talk about.”

She looked wildly disappointed, we all were, but it ran deeper for her. This was family, this was years of hope washed down the drain. This had been her only shot at bringing her brother back,

“I can't believe I was so foolish to think that I could just find Luke and bring him home.”

I placed a hand on her back as my dad leaned forward, “Leia…”

“Don’t do that…” she replied, shaking her head in disapproval.

“Do what?”

“Anything,” she answered as she walked away from us. I turned to my father who looked defeated, he was truly trying with her. He followed her like it was reflex but I hung behind, they’d been reunited and that was enough for me. I didn’t need to listen to their conversation like a child trying to spy, no matter how tempting it was. I simply leaned against the computer and rubbed my face anxiously.

“Hey,” Poe’s voice made me look up, “What’s going on?”

“You know that map you and I went through hell to get?” I asked sarcastically, crossing my arms.

“I’m vaguely familiar with it, yes.”

“Well, turns out we only retrieved a piece of it.”

Poe exhaled and ducked his dead down, “Fantastic…”

“I thought we had a shot,” I mumbled as I shook my head, “But we’re no closer than we were a week ago.”

“That may be true,” he replied before grasping both my arms, “But the most important thing is that we made it out alive.”

I nodded, “There were a few too many close calls for my taste.”

Poe raised an eyebrow, “Such as?”

I chortled, “Getting chased by Stormtroopers, fighting off TIE’s, running from Rathtars, the scene at Maz’s castle…Is that enough for you?”

“A little too much,” he replied as he rubbed my arms softly, “I’m sorry I wasn’t there with you.”

“You’re here now,” I smiled, still getting used to him being here and whole, “That’s all that matters. You did miss me flying the Falcon though…”

I left him, smirking, as I heard him cry out “What?!”

—————

A short while later, Resistance leadership (plus Dad, Chewie and Finn) was gathered around a map table staring at a hologram. Snap had been on a recon mission and had brought back information on the weapon the First Order used to destroy the Hosnian system. I was stood next to my father, who seemed to have slid right back into his old militia role with ease. Poe stood across from me, the chatter in the room went silent as he cleared his throat to begin,

“The scan data from Snap’s reconnaissance flight confirms Finn’s report.”

“They’ve somehow created a hyper lightspeed weapon built within the planet itself.” Snap explained.

“A laser cannon?” Major Brance asked from next to me.

“We’re not sure how to describe a weapon of this scale.” Snap replied.

Major Ematt looked like he was having a war flashback, “It’s another Death Star…”

“I wish that were the case, Major,” Poe sympathized as he hit a button that displayed a wireframe of the aforementioned battle station, “This was the Death Star.”

He hit another control and we all watched the Death Star shrink in comparison to the gargantuan holo on display, “And this is Starkiller Base.”

Gasps and groans filled the air, there wasn’t even a comparison to make. This was nothing any of us, young recruit or veteran, had ever seen before.

“So it’s big.” Dad mused nonchalantly, leave it to him to act cool about something like this.

“How is it possible to power a weapon of that size?” Admiral Ackbar inquired.

Finn stepped up to the table, “It uses the power of the sun. As the weapon is charged, the sun is drained until it disappears.”

An officer approached my mother and handed her something, she looked over it before looking up at the group,

“The First Order, they’re charging the weapon again now,” her eyes found mine, “Our system is the next target.”

I drew a shaky breath as others reacted similarly. A few hours ago I was a few hundred feet away from my brother and now him and his followers were coming to kill us. I caught Poe’s eyes and we shared a concerned look.

“Okay,” Dad began, racking his brain for something helpful, “How do we blow it up? There’s always a way to do that.”

“Han’s right,” Mom replied, causing both me and Dad to look over to her in surprise. For just a second, the three of us felt like a united front again.

“In order for that amount of power to be contained,” Admiral Statura began, “That base has to have some sort of thermal oscillator.”

“There is one,” Finn stated, he walked over to join Poe at the controls, “Precinct 47,” he pointed towards an area in the structure, “Here.”

“If we can destroy that oscillator,” Statura continued as he paced around the table, “It might destabilize the core and cripple the weapon.”

“Maybe the planet,” Ematt added onto the idea, the plan was forming.

“We’ll go in there and we’ll hit that oscillator with everything we’ve got.” Poe assured confidently, I’d missed him and his determination so much.

“They have defensive shields that our ships cannot penetrate.” Ackbar protested, I shared a knowing look with Dad before turning back to the crowd.

“We can disable the shields, me and Han,” I volunteered, “Finn, you worked there. Surely you can help.”

After a beat, Finn nodded, “I can do it.”

Dad leaned down to me, “I like this guy.”

“I can disable the shields, but I have to be there on the planet.”

“We’ll get you there, kid.” Dad promised, Finn looked to me for confirmation and I smiled in assurance.

“Han, how?” my mother spoke up.

“If I told you, you wouldn’t like it.” he answered, causing me to smirk. The fewer details she knew, the smoother everything would go.

“So we disable the shields, take out the oscillator and we blow up their big gun.” Poe stated, earning a loud roar of agreement from Chewie, “All right. Let's go!”

Our group disbanded and the room became a sea of chatter and orders. Poe had taken off to assemble Black Squadron while me, my dad and Chewie were making our way out of the command center. Mom had ten different people flooding her with questions so I didn’t want to add to it when I could take care of things myself,

“You two go start running diagnostics on the Falcon. I can get techs and mechanics if you want but-“

"There’s only two people I trust with the Falcon other than me and neither of them are any of your guys.” Dad interrupted as we walked down the hallway.

“But I know you’d never trust them so I’ll leave it to you guys,” I finished, “I need to grab some things from my quarters and I’ll be out to help.”

I showed them out of the base before heading back in and taking the familiar walk to my room. It felt like I’d been gone weeks when really, it had only been less than two days. I punched in my code and entered, locking the door behind me. There was no time for sentimentality, or even a shower, as I began searching for the things I needed. I grabbed my communicator off of my desk and shoved it in the pocket of my pants. I slid my jacket off and stripped the sweaty shirt off my torso. I caught sight of myself in the refresher’s mirror and grimaced, my hair was frizzed, there were ugly bruises littering my arms and grains of sand stuck to my skin. Halfheartedly dusting the leftovers of Jakku off and running my fingers through my hair would have to do for now. I dug through my dresser, pulled on a tight black long sleeved shirt and found my dark green military jacket. Something felt off as I put it on, like something was missing.

I groaned as I dug through the pile of clothes, “Why do I need you so much?

Unhooking the lightsaber from my brown jacket, I clipped it into my new one and sighed. My father’s words from earlier rang in my ears, he wasn’t Force sensitive but he damn sure knew about it’s advantages. Could he be right? Was I being too dramatic about the whole subject? I’d spent so long afraid of what I could do, so worried that I’d turn into something dark and twisted. Could I let myself give into the pull towards the light side? As much as I hated to admit it, I loved using my saber, despite the traumatic memories attached to it. I enjoyed meditating and using the Force, I felt less like myself when I restricted my usage. I placed a hand on the cool silver handle and closed my eyes, hearing the words as if someone was in the room saying them to me,

Don’t be afraid.

“Okay.”

Opening my eyes, I took a deep breath and knew I couldn’t waste any more time. People were counting on me, the galaxy was counting on the Resistance to see them. Where I should have felt anxiety, I felt resolve and determination.

It was time to go do my job.

——————

The entire base was in a frenzy, the good kind though. The kind that united people, that caused everybody to pull together and do their part, even if it wasn’t their job. I saw people from the kitchen helping Commanders, mechanics and communication officers working together. This was one of those days where you felt extra proud to be a member of the Resistance.

If we succeeded, that was…

I made my way out of base and searched for the ships I needed to find. Along the way, I spotted Jess and Snap’s X-Wings parked next to each other, the both of them communicating with their techs.

“Pava, Wexley,” I called out, “You two come back alive, Commander’s orders.”

“The same goes for you, Solo. Black Squad’s order.” Jess shouted across the tarmac, I winked in response and continued towards one specific X-Wing. Bee was already loaded into his slot, yet his owner was nowhere to be found.

“You good to go, Bee?” I asked, climbing the ladder to get a good look at him.

All set. Just waiting on Poe.

“Me too. You take care of him for me, okay?”

“Why?” Poe asked from behind me, “You don’t think he can take care of himself?”

I climbed down the ladder and came face to face with him, “I don’t think it hurts to have someone watching your back. Especially when someone’s as reckless as you are.”

He put his hands on his hips and chuckled, “Same words could be said for you, sweetheart.”

I smiled and snaked my arms around his neck, “Well, then this is a perfect match.”

His lips curled into a grin before leaning down to capture my lips in a slow, passionate kiss. I carded my fingers through the curls at the back of his neck as his hands gripped my hips, pulling me close. A few days ago, kissing Poe was an intrusive daydream I tried not to focus on and now? It was a reality I never wanted to come to an end. We broke apart only when we needed air, he brushed his nose softly against mine and I hummed in contentment.

“I wish I were coming with you.” Poe admitted, “I hate the idea of you actually inside that base.”

“You wouldn’t be able to do anything that I can’t,” I assured him, “Besides, you’re most needed in the skies.”

“Doesn’t mean I won’t be worrying about you,” he replied, closing his eyes and pressing his forehead to mine, “Haven’t done much else since I watched you disappear into that desert.”

I scraped my fingernails lightly against his scalp, committing the little moan that escaped his throat to memory. There weren’t any words I could say in response to him, the past 24 hours had been a living nightmare for the both of us. All I wanted was to keep him in my arms and reassure him a thousand times that I would never leave him. But instead, we had to separate again and pray that the other returned safe and sound.

“Don’t worry, Dameron. You’re going to be stuck with me for a very long time.” I promised, staring as deep as I could into his eyes to drive my point home.

“Sounds like a plan, Solo.” Poe remarked before wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling my body into his. He buried his face in my neck, a spot that was quickly becoming one of his favorites. We stood there drawing strength from one another that would carry us through the battle, me on the ground and him in the air.

A familiar throat clear interrupted the moment.

Poe and I turned around to the sight of my parents standing a few feet away from us, my mom smiling and my father scowling. I chuckled and grabbed a very nervous Poe’s hand and walked towards them,

“Dad, this is Poe Dameron.”

At the mention of Poe’s last name, Dad’s face softened and he made eye contact with Poe,

“Are you Kes and Shara’s kid?”

Poe’s lips curved up, “Yeah, I am. They used to tell me stories growing up about fighting alongside you and the General during the Rebellion.”

Mom and I beamed as Dad chuckled and stuck out his hand for Poe to shake, which Poe happily took,

“It’s good to meet you, kid,” Dad began, before giving Poe a knowing look, “I’d say take care of my daughter, but I’ve seen first hand that she can do that herself. If you hurt her though, I can have the worst scum in the galaxy on your ass so fast you won’t even have time to power up your X-Wing.”

Poe was trying so hard not to look scared, “Y-Yes sir, I-I mean no sir, I would never hurt her.”

“That’s the right answer,” Dad grinned lopsidedly, “Give Kes my best.”

“I will, sir.” Poe replied, finally taking a breath again. That breath was gone again when Mom stepped forward, striking fear in both of us,

“Hurt her and the only squadron you’ll be in charge of, Dameron, will be janitorial.”

“Yes, General.”

Mom gave a smile and wink before she went back to Dad, “Time to get moving, Commanders.”

“Yes, General.” I repeated after Poe, they began walking back to the Falcon. I snorted as soon as they were far enough away to not hear, I thought I heard Poe actually whimper.

“I think I blacked out for a minute, please tell me I didn’t say anything stupid.”

“I was too busy trying not to laugh,” I replied as I chortled, “I can totally see you in a janitor’s uniform with a mop.”

Poe shook his head and took me back in his arms, the air between us became serious once again fast. I placed a hand on his cheek and watched him lean into it, kissing my palm softly before looking back up at me,

“I love you, Y/n.”

“I love you too,” I whispered, “Come back to me, Poe.”

“I always will.” he replied.

He leaned in and gave me one final quick kiss before we hesitantly broke apart, but this time it felt different. Though we weren’t by each other’s sides, we were still going to be fighting together in a way. I was disabling the shields so he could come in and blow up the oscillator. We were still working together, but it didn’t make turning away from him any easier.

I walked back to the Falcon where my parents were waiting, “Well, at least you guys weren’t too over the top.”

Dad laughed, “Was he scared?”

“Wildly.”

“Then,” Dad looked to Mom with an amused expression, “We did our job.”

I couldn’t help but smile, we felt like a family again. Even if we were all about to split up again, we were together right now and my heart felt at home. Tears began to swell in my eyes as I looked between the two of them, they each reached out and took one of my hands. Unable to contain my emotions anymore, I surged forward to hug them both. I hadn’t been held by both my parents in so long but it still felt just as familiar as when I was a child. As much as I wanted to stay in their embrace for hours more, we had to go and do our respective jobs,

“I love you.” I whispered, they both kissed my head in response and squeezed us together a little tighter.

“We’re so proud of you, Y/n,” Mom gushed as we pulled apart, “We love you so much.”

I noticed that they each had an arm around each other, something I hadn’t expected but a sight that was welcomed. Maybe, just maybe, everything was finally going to work out. We could go and destroy the weapon, come home and I could have my family back, or at least most of it…

“Han, Y/n,” Mom’s face turned serious, “If you see him, bring him home.”

I knew there was a chance that Ben would be on the base, though the chances of us coming in contact were slim. The request my mother was making was big, I wasn’t even sure if it was possible. But if the opportunity presented itself, I had to try. I’d be kicking myself for the rest of my life if I didn’t at least try. Looking at my mother with tears in her eyes, I wanted nothing more than to bring my brother home for her.

“I will.” I assured her, taking her hand in mine as Dad pulled her into his side. We embraced once again and I got to witness the sweet sight of my father kissing my mother on her forehead. It gave me hope and reminded me that this is what I was fighting for. For my family, for Poe, for the people that were closest to my heart.

“We’ve gotta go…” Dad interrupted the moment, but he had to.

“Be safe,” Mom ordered, we broke apart and me and Dad watched her hesitantly leave us and head back into the base. I knew she would have rather watched us disappear into the ship but she was needed elsewhere.

“Chewie,” I called as I walked around the ship to find him, “We good to go?”

He roared in response that we were all set before picking up his tools and heading up the ramp. I looked around for Finn, I assumed he was already inside and ready to go. He was the most enthusiastic about going since we were going to retrieve Rey. Dad was right behind me as we entered and walked to the cockpit,

“To think you started your day out hauling Rathtars…” I retorted, elbowing him lightly.

He chuckled, “I was looking for a job when I met your uncle and by the end of the day, I’d met your mother and was heading to blow up the Death Star. I’m used to this sort of thing.”

“Thank you for sticking with me,” we stopped before we got to the cockpit, “I know it was hard for you to come back here.”

He shook his head, “When it comes down to it, I’d do anything for you and your mother.”

I patted his arm warmly and we went into the cockpit to see Finn and Chewie waiting for us. Except Chewie was sitting in the seat behind his usual, “Why aren’t you up there?”

He didn’t say anything, he just shook his head and nudged me towards the co-pilot’s chair. I smiled, who was I to argue with a Wookie? Dad took his seat next to me and I didn’t even have to ask if he was okay with it, his beaming face said it all. We began adjusting controls and Dad powered her up,

“Alright, here we go…”

I looked back to Finn before we took off, he looked a little nervous yet wholly determined. He’d slid into the Resistance so easily, he’d fit in so naturally in the briefing when he spoke up about the base. We shared a nod and I turned back around to watch us lift above the base. I took one final look at Poe’s X-Wing, I could distantly see him climbing up the ladder and take his seat. He wouldn’t be far behind us, his squadron would be waiting to drop in on the planet once we’d disabled the shields.

“Ready to jump to lightspeed?” Dad interrupted my thoughts.

“All set.” I answered looking to the sky ahead, silencing any anxious thoughts that dared to come to my mind. We would succeed at our goal and we’d all come out alive, I didn’t know what I’d do if we didn’t.

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

A/N: TA-DA, hope everybody enjoyed the reunion! Fun Fact: When writing this series, I’m watching parts of the movie + reading the script online so everything is as movie accurate as I can make it. Hope everybody is staying safe and wearing your 😷 Let me know what you thought or if you’d like to be added to the taglist.

Taglist: @m1rkw00dpr1ncess @springfox04 @constantdisgrace @holybatflapexpert @seninjakitey @tammythompson-singslikea-muppet @leilei-draws @eternal-fandoms @dream-alittlebiggerdarling @imaginecrushes @eternallyvenus @thescarletknight2014 @simplyhemmings @captain-america5 @breyasficletblog @caseymcflurry @stumbleonmywords @april-14-blog @i-ievu @ultrunning

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batarella · 4 years

Text

The Commander - Part 8 (Arkham Knight x Reader)

We finally know the Commander’s history! Leave a comment and tell me what you think!

WORDS: 3165 WARNINGS: VIOLENCE. ANGST. WEW.

Masterlist

THE COMMANDER - MASTERLIST

-----

Breathe in. Breathe out.

One thousand yards. Only a hundred yards further than the last one. This should be the farthest she’ll hit. If she actually does hit it. There were a number of birds flying over the trees standing above them. She wanted to hit them instead, but they weren’t far enough.

She only barely hit nine hundred yards yesterday. Once out of the thirty times she tried over and over again. A thousand will have to take the whole of her senses away. If only she could block out her own sense of touch, that would be great. She didn’t need them when firing a sniper.

And there was tall grass in her optics as well. Some yellow, some green, and they waved around with the wind. The target was already small as it is. She could barely see it with all these plants in the way.

She squared her shoulders, placed her good eye on the scope and breathed. She pulled the trigger and felt the sharp recoil on her shoulder.

She’d learned to ignore the ringing that came after it.

After a minute, Uncle placed a hand on her other shoulder, and her stomach sank. That wasn’t good. With binoculars on his other hand, he murmured. “A bit off to the left. Again.”

Young Y/N bit her gum. She was hungry. But there was no getting anywhere if she kept doing it like this. She quickly reloaded the rifle and placed her elbow on top of her folded knee, with the other one flat on the ground.

Breathe. Breathe. Breathe.

The recoil felt just a tad bit more painful. Y/N looked into the scope and still, the bullet hole hit slightly to the right.

“What’s going on?” Uncle asked her. He wasn’t mad. This was her first time at a thousand yards.

“I think it’s the wind.”

“You can't work around the wind. If you keep crying about how it ruins your shots, you’ll never hit the center.”

“I know.”

“Again.” He folded his arms in front of his chest.

Breathe. Keep breathing.

And she did it. Over and over and over. Kept breathing, pulling the trigger, the pain in her shoulder less and less bearable.

Just another day. She got over it a long time ago.

“I can't do it, Uncle.”

“Yes you will.” His voice was stern. He never got angry. But she never pushed him enough to go ballistic on her either.

“I want to go home.”

“Fire the shot, Y/N.”

The ringing on her right ear became harder to ignore. She was gonna go deaf if this kept going on.

“Slow your heartbeat. I can feel you getting tense.”

The sun was starting to fall under, and the country side was a dark place if not for the sun. She’ll have three hours for her nap. Tops. Before they leave for the city tonight. The mafia leader who hired him wanted an entire rival gang gone. Uncle told her it was good if she came along, maybe even pull the trigger herself if it was close enough.

“I’m scared about tonight.”

“Stop being scared,” he said. “This is how you learn.”

“What if Batman and that red and yellow sidekick comes around again? We barely made it out the last time.”

They ambushed her and her uncle up on a rooftop. Robin was a hard one to fight off, and the snarky remarks he made while she tried her best landing a good one in the head didn’t help either. Like a parrot that just wouldn’t shut up.

“Two Face has been paid to stage a bank robbery as a distraction. Either he takes care of that or a warehouse full of drug dealers.”

Y/N had her gun lowered. Her limbs began giving out.

“Again.”

Breathe. Again. Slow the heart.

She looked back into the scope and fired.

xxxxx

Every single day. She’s held a gun in her hands.

Every day, she fired at a target that stood further and further away, each time she hits the center.

For tonight, it was farther than any average shooter could manage. She stood atop of the barracks’ roof, surrounded by nothing but grass and a few trees. The night was cool, warm enough for her to be staying out at this hour and not freeze to death. She breathed and a cool cloud of smoke escaped her lips.

In. out.

A whopping two thousand yards

Even with the scope, it was difficult to focus on. She had no assistance of any type. There were no troops around. She had no vision enhancing technology. It was just her, the moon, the gun in her hand, and target. A scarecrow from a far away barn.

The wind wasn’t strong, but it could easily move the bullet.

There were no tensions anywhere in her body. Her muscles were fully relaxed, her eyes completely focused, her mind in a calm, thoughtless state. This was her zone. This is when she felt most peaceful.

Her finger pulled the trigger.

The loud noise that followed after were enough to possibly deaf any passer by, but she remained unbothered. Uncle had made sure her ears had the strength of steel. Nothing deafened her anymore. Not even if a large drum hit close to her face.

Guns were an extension to her limbs. An extension to what she was. She could feel it merge with her body the moment she picks one up from the armory. She took out her binoculars and looked into the target.

Bullseye.

Xxxx

“What happened?”

They’d only just arrived yesterday. The Commander barged down the halls of the barracks with her Lieutenant Commander, Beckett, trailing behind her and keeping up with her pace.

“His name is Peter Hugo. He was recruited a few weeks ago-“

“How many weeks, Lieutenant?”

“Four weeks. He stayed with eight other men in the second floor. Unit 14.”

They turned to the corner, past the canteen. They said they held the culprit in the underground.

“Is the Knight coming?”

“Lieutenant Gray should be on his way to tell him.”

“Run me down exactly what happened. Don’t miss a detail.”

Beckett swallowed. “Hugo waited until you and the Knight were gone for Gotham. His first strike was about two days ago, just as you left. He was found hiding in the meeting area where he knew Deathstroke would be meeting with Crane and the other Lieutenants. It wasn’t until after the meeting when the cleaners found Slade’s cup of coffee laced with poison.”

“Poison?” The Commander shrugged. The man knew he couldn’t beat Slade at combat.

“The next day, we found him going into the kitchens with another batch of poisons with him. He’s been in the undergrounds since. Slade’s instructions.”

They went down the stairs, where they were met with a small, mechanical elevator. Beckett pulled the metal gate open and the Commander stepped inside.

“Right down here, sir.”

“That son of a bitch should’ve been taken out by now.”

Jason, fully clothed in his armor and his face covered with the same blue visor. He didn’t give her so much as a glance when the two Lieutenants gave him the room to step inside. Commander Y/N took a step to the right, then the Lieutenants went in with them and stood at the front, closing the gates and turning the lever.

The buzz from the noise made the lift last longer than it already did. The walls were dark, and they could see it move upward as they descended. They only had a single light bulb at the top, and the room, as cramped up as it already was, was made even smaller when Jason folded his big arms in front of him.

The Commander slightly turned her head, just to glance at him with the side of her eye, but looked forward before he’d come to notice.

As far as she knew, nothing happened in Gotham.

The elevator reached the underground. And the hallway leading down seemed even darker. The lights were so dim, she couldn’t see past the only lit room a few doors down. When they reached there, it didn’t even look like an interrogation room. It was like a supply closet emptied out. At the center was a man, held together with ropes around his legs and chest, his arms tied to the back of the chair as he held his head down.

Peter Hugo wasn’t much of a brute. In fact, he was quite thin. But the sharp look of his eye and the scars on his neck told them he was, in fact, quite the fighter.

Jason walked up to the man and gripped his hair.

“Who sent you?”

“I’m not talking to you!”

A hit to the jaw.

“If you keep hitting him like that, he won't be able to speak at all,” the Commander said.

Jason didn’t listen to her. He grabbed him by the hair again, pulling the chair along with him into place. He was bleeding through his mouth. Jason pulled on his scalp until Hugo’s screeching cries were too hard to hear.

“Talk.”

“Fuck you.”

A gun swiftly points at his forehead. Hugo didn’t even have the time to look up. He stared onward, still avoiding the terrifying look on Jason’s visor.

“You talk, and I’ll kill you quick enough to make it painless. Waste our time and you’ll beg me to pull the trigger.”

“Watch me.”

Jason hit the back of his head, pushing the chair down so his head would hit the ground. “Gray. Beckett. Spit it out of him.”

The Commander stood aside and watched. Not a strain on her face. Beckett was first to strike, landing the tip of his shoe right at Hugo’s unarmored chest. Gray didn’t hold back either, and his hits landed right on his teeth. A few spattered onto the floor and his blood pool started to spread further out.

“Talk!”

A painful scream when a couple of his ribs broke. It took a few minutes, and Hugo finally squealed.

“Some mogul from Armenia hired S-Slade-“ he coughed blood. “Then the bastard held off when he wanted double the pay last minute.”

“So he asked you to kill him? A small time mercenary who thought poison was the way to do it?” The Commander finally spoke.

“Fuck off!”

Beckett hit his head again. He was too weak to move. “Fuck!” Hugo cried.

“What do we do with him, sir?”

“I’m playing my end of the bargain. We kill him. Nice and quick.”

The Commander stepped forward, eyeing the man. She didn’t remember much about him. Just that he was timid, mediocre in her training sessions and couldn’t fire a bullet even when the target was in front of him.

Jason turned to her.

Slowly, he walked up to her, and spoke so silently she could make out his real voice from the visor’s filter.

“Kill him.”

He handed her the gun.

And the look Hugo hand on her when Beckett pulled the chair up again, making him look at the commander straight into her eyes, it was like he was daring her.

This woman couldn’t do it.

What does she have that made her the commander?

Anyone can take her place.

The Knight must’ve wanted her ass to look at up on the platform.

Some of these men forgot who she was. Who she really was.

“Take him upstairs. I want everyone to watch.”

They were wrong to think she was the commander for just her marksmanship, her knowledge in battle strategies, her will to lead. It was none of that. In fact, the men who knew exactly who she was, didn’t give the decision a second thought.

Some of these men forgot, or simply didn’t know. And the look Hugo gave her, it was obvious, he hadn’t a speck of an idea.

The Commander was the woman hired by the United States Secretary of State to assassinate three political enemies in their own homes on the same night.

The Commander was the woman called by three rival drug lords in Mexico to kill each other, and all three ended up with bullets stuck to their mouths.

The Commander was the woman who staged a suicide on a certain American financer convicted as a sex offender, paid millions by the biggest names in the world involved in the famous scandal.

The Commander was the woman who had the highest, and most notable, kill count out of all the men in the barracks.

She wasn’t here because she was good. She was the Commander because she’s proven it. Before she was even recruited. Only she had Deathstroke have a run for his money.

And she took them all out without having to stand less than five hundred yards away.

These men were mercenaries from all over the world. But everyone who knew her, who knew who her uncle was, kept their silence. And when they all turned to her, holding a gun while the Lieutenants lugged a man tied to a chair, brought him up to the platform where dozens of men watched on, she knew they had it right to keep silent.

Hugo looked at her, and the Commander reveled at the hundred pairs of eyes, watching as she let everyone knew why she was who she was.

She shot him right in the forehead. And the man didn’t even fall to the ground as his lifeless eyes stared blankly at the ceiling, blood dripping into his sockets.

Jason watched, and everyone was silent.

Another integral part of her training involved this moment. The hindrance of any feeling of guilt the moment you’ve pulled the trigger.

She’s mastered that quite well.

Xxxx

Bullseye.

Again.

And again.

Two thousand one hundred yards this time. That was her estimate. She moved from the scarecrow to the rooster wind vane above the same farm. So far it had three bullet holes on his little head. Y/N reloaded her gun and looked into her scope for the fifth time that night.

She had to keep her hands busy, otherwise she’d be stuck in her quarters and be forced to mull over him.

But the universe wasn’t that kind to her.

“You know.”

The chilling voice filter that had gone all too familiar. She hated it. She wanted to tear it off his face and smash it with her boot. Y/N ignored the voice behind her and pulled the trigger.

She couldn’t hear the wind vane, but it spun viciously like a storm had hit. This time it was just at the rooster’s thin neck.

“Get out of here.”

“Who told you?”

Commander Y/N reloaded her gun. She had three bullets left.

Jason didn’t sound angry. But she had no right to play victim.

“My uncle.”

She could hear him wrap his hand in a tight fist, even from a distance. The Commander focused on the scope.

“I didn’t know Joker called in Deadshot, too.”

“He did. Floyd was in Belle Reeves. But he didn’t want even if he could. He isn’t like that.”

“How nice of him. Everyone else didn’t seem to think so. Two Face. Penguin. Riddler. They all took turns at the crowbar,” Jason said. “How did he tell you?”

Y/N didn’t want to have this conversation. There wasn’t anything he said that she didn’t already know. “About a year ago when I last visited him.”

She fired another shot. The bullet landed on the wind vane’s arrow. She slowly pulled out another one.

“Why?”

Reloaded. Deep breaths. In and out.

“’Cuz he asked if I wanted to go into Arkham and… torture you.”

She fired the bullet before she could even focus on the scope. The wind vane didn’t turn. She hit the rooftop.

“You were in there for a year,” she whispered. “How are you still alive…”

“Did you hope I’d die?” Jason’s filtered voice echoed. “Maybe you should’ve taken Joker’s offer.”

“Don’t pretend we weren’t out to kill each other! No one wanted to hire me after you took me down every fucking time I got close to a target, Robin.” Y/N finally turned around.

“Part of the job. And you were the only one who was out to kill me, kid. Batman wouldn’t let me even if I wanted to.”

“Is that why you recruited me? So you could kill me from within?”

Jason fucking laughed. “You give yourself too much credit.”

She finally placed the gun to the floor, turning around to face him.

“We were enemies. You called me in to the militia knowing you had your history with Deadshot’s little partner.”

“Sidekick.”

“Partner!”

She was fuming, standing close to him while his eerie looking visor stared back.

“I only want Batman dead. I don’t care about anyone else,” he growled. “And I knew you. I knew what you could do. That’s why I called you in. This isn’t about some grudge.”

Jason took a step back. His voice was starting to crack. “Joker… beat any smidge of hope left in me. And turned me into this…” he choked.

Y/N watched him slowly crumble, holding himself up. A part of her hated him so much. The same part that destroys her from the guilt that came with her knowing.

And the other part wanted to pull him close and tell him how the nightmares will be over soon, that it hurt her to even think about him being hurt, too.

“I’m sorry…” she said. “I’m so sorry-“

“Don’t!” Jason took a step back and screamed. “You knew what happened.”

“I couldn’t do what Joker did to you-“

“How does it feel, huh? To have known I was in an abandoned wing in Arkham, tortured everyday at the brink of death and you didn’t do anything about it…”

“Jason-“

“You could’ve helped me. Or helped Joker. Either way, I didn’t expect you to just sit there and be some coward hoping I’d die.”

“Fuck you-“

“You were right. Deadshot turned you into a mindless machin-“

A strong, massive punch right into his visor. And it broke, some of the pieces scattered on the floor. Y/N’s hand immediately formed a bruise and she winced at the painful shocks running up her arm. Jason almost toppled to the ground, turning his head back before she landed her knee right into his chest.

Jason fell to the ground, but as the Commander charged, he caught her leg and flung her across the ground. He stood up, brushing the pain off his chest. Her hit went past through the armor. Good. Her strength will diminish before long.

Y/N pulled herself up, tearing a part of her suit to wrap around her knuckles. The pain can be ignored. For now.

Batman’s and Deadshot’s young wards. Now the Arkham Knight and the Militia Commander. The fight that was always meant to be.

If they were lucky, no one had to be thrown out of the roof before the sun rises.

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THE COMMANDER - MASTERLIST

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Taglist: everyartistwas-firstanamateur @sarcasmismyfirstlove @damned-queen-of-gotham @idkmanicantenglish @wunderstell @birdy-bat-riya @get-loki@everyday-imfangirling @comic-nerd-dc @multifandoms916 @icequeen208@offendedfishnoises @egdolan @xemiefx @arkhamtoddler @elsenthal@mythicbitchx @supremehaunter @ burning-alive

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phendorana · 4 years

Note

THERE'S SO MUCH TO SCREAM ABOUT MAYA SPOKE SHALLAN AND KALADIN SWORE THE FOURTH IDEAL NAVANI BONDED THE SIBLING TARAVANGIAN IS ODIUM AND MESSED WITH WIT'S MEMORIES RLAIN IS A TRUTHWATCHER AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

1) thank you for appropriately all-caps-ing your ask (not sarcasm)

2) i love how there’s no verb after shallan, it’s just shallan. not sure if the implication is that you’re referencing her whole row arc, or just y’know. her everything. both are valid things to scream about.

3) also i rlly loved the scene where kaladin swore his 4th ideal. ik IK some ppl will say it was a cop out or a deus ex machina and they’re allowed their opinion but i’m like NO. it was such a nice rejection of the whole “kaladin has to pull through his grief on pure strength of will and rise up to be a hero” thing. him swearing the ideal was a group effort: dalinar’s “give him more time”, the stormfather’s mercy, tien, teft’s voice. like that was the entire point, sometimes he will be too weak, and that’s part of life. like....the entire point of the ideal was “there will be times when you fail to meet the moment” and one of the people he couldn’t save was himself, in a way, but there were people who did help him and save him. and that “syl is helping just by being there” is great because yes!!! you need to spend time with friends to heal!!!! reach out to people!!! and accepting that he needs help!!! aaaaahHhhhhHHH. other reason’s it’s not a cop out: it was already established the stormfather was aware of where kaladin was and had the power to move him and create an in-between time. it wasn’t a new power created specifically for this. he already had the power to create “visions” and shit. also loved his ending where he accepted that he needed time away from the battlefield. and i love that dalinar mentioned that yes accepting he needed time away was A++++ character growth. also 👀👀👀 about him finding wit’s flute 😂😂😂 about him asking about lift and dalinar being like “yea she’s fine she stole my lunch” and 😭😭😭 about kal finding tien’s carving. AND 🤣🤣🤣about him and szeth fucking off to shinovar w/ their spren and nightblood in tow.

4) maya!!!! ;_; aaahhhh i loved that scene. that trial scene was just. perfect. the building tension was so well written. (i do wish we’d gotten more buildup scenes of maya’s slow revival)

5) also the sibling AAAHHHH i love this so much bc navani and the sibling will be such an interesting bond! like the sibling’s nature fits SO well with navani’s whole civic engineering & electrical engineering shtick. the idea that navani’s conciousness takes on the shape of the entire tower is AMAZING like navani would be in nerd heaven over that. and that scene where the sibling was like “i can’t teach abt all these complex fabrials and workings and mechanisms in time” and navani was like “already got it fam” and the sibling was like “YES!!!!!! YESSSSS !!!!!!” but there’s also this tension of navani not being the sibling’s first choice (rlain was) (sa 5′s gonna make navani’s impostor complex go brrrrr) so there’s so much room for relationship development like we’ve gotten w/ the stormfather and dalinar (which i love).

6) SPEAKING OF RLAIN OH MY GOD. I LOVED RLAIN SO MUCH IN THIS BOOK. Like....he started out with Y*nfah being racist and not wanting to bond w/ him and Kal trying to force it but by the end Sja-anat and the Sibling were like fighting to see who got him and i was like yes this is what he deserves!!! also i love that we got that inner monologue of him when he was taking charge at the end. and i love that we explicitly mentioned he was irritated about the whole “shen” thing. bc that kind of subtle racism born more out of ignorance than malicious intent was so relatable to me as an indian. it’s the kind of racism you’re most scared to speak up about and express offense at because you feel it’ll be seen as overreacting. like if someone called me a straight-up slur, i wouldn’t question my own anger, but subtle racism is, in many ways, more insidious, because you feel like your anger and hurt are just you “being sensitive”. also love that he was allowed to be angry at venli w/o it being demonized. and that part of the reason he chose to stay was to make sure the singers’ interests were represented in urithiru.

7) taravodium....uh yikes bro :/ like I AM SCARED but also this is a) a great twist and b) going to make a very interesting villain and c) i cannot wait for wit to find out someone killed his arch enemy and he didn’t even get to gloat abt rayse’s downfall d) cultivation honey not questioning ur wisdom except i actually am questioning ur wisdom are you sure abt this???

8) uhhh sorry for the word vomit i can’t help it.

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masterweaverx · 3 years

Text

Ilia Amitola has captured the mind and heart of certain parts of the internet. She certainly seems well suited for adventure, given her storied backstory and her usage with the White Fang. But if we’re going to set her Dungeoning and Dragoning, we’ve got to come up with a good series of goals for her.

Fortunately for us, while Ilia may be a complicated character emotionally she’s relatively simple from a mechanical perspective. Sneakery and agility is our primary objective with this young lady, accompanied and abetted by her crafty skinshifting. Oh, and there’s the whip--an electric stunning swordywhip thing that needs to be able to zap and stop. Personally I’d also say she needs to dominate the dance floor--not anything strictly canon, but just a headcanon of mine. All that said, let’s get to it.

Point arrays are standard for good reasons, so we’ll take the standard option and put a 15 in Dexterity--very good at the hopping and the hiding. Wisdom will be next with 14 points, Ilia has a very good internal compass even if she supresses it sometimes. Intelligence and Charisma are at 13 and 12 respectively--she’s had an education, and she can be a good speaker when she doesn’t get emotionally tongue-tied. Constitution has ten points, because she looks pretty healthy all things considered, but strength is at eight--Ilia’s kind of small, which is good for sneaking but bad for lobbing boulders at peeps.

For any 5E aficionado, you’re probably thinking we’re going to make Ilia a Changeling. And... you’d be right! This gives her +2 to her Charisma (upping it to 14) and +1 to her Dexterity (upping it to 16). She also gets two skill proficiencies out of a list of four; I picked Insight and Persuasion, since she’s not really that good at Intimidating people and she’ll be getting Deception from somewhere else. Changelings are good at language, automatically knowing Common and two other languages of their choice; I’m guess that stint in Atlas taught Ilia the esoteric languages of Legalese and Technobabble. And then there’s the big reason we picked Changeling...

Okay, quick side note here: When I construct these things, I look for ‘closest fit,’ not ‘one-hundred percent exact.’ Ilia Amitola can change her skin color, hair color, and eye color. Changelings are full-on shapeshifters--sex, size, apparent species, if they see you they can mimic you to a hundred percent. Doesn’t affect clothes, mind, but the point is D&D Ilia is going to be a touch more potent than RWBY Ilia, if you decide to use her that way. This is a role-playing game, not a rule-playing game. Mmkay? Mmkay.

For Background, I dug around a bit and found the Secret Identity background from the Adventurer’s League. And frankly it’s practically built for Ilia: pretending to be an Ordinary Human in the land of Racist Humans Who Hate Nonhumans. She gets proficiency with Deception, Stealth, Forgery Kits, and Disguise Kits, as well as the feature ‘Secret Identity.’ Meet Aili Alotima, a definitely totally normal human who does not, we assure you, have any skill at forging legal documents she has seen before, and has a totally real history you can absolutely check if you’re curious. (And if you believed that sentence, Ilia is going to be wondering exactly why she needed to go to the effort to trick the laws in the first place.)

And now we get to classes. I’m sure you were all expecting twelve levels in Thief Rogue, but I’m pretty certain you’ll all be surprised by the eight levels in Kensei Monk. Well, most of you, anyway. Some of you? Look, Monks are a pretty agile class, and Kensei monks specifically come with a few things that will be crucial to Ilia’s build.

But before we get to that, we have to get to Ilia’s Ability Score Improvements. Twelve Rogue levels and eight Monk levels give her a total of six. Every ASI can be used to either get two ability points or burned to get a feat; we’ll be using half of them to add two points to Wisdom and three to Intelligence (upping them both to sixteen) and one to Dexterity (making it 17--don’t worry, that’ll get patched soon). The remaining three points will be burned for feats--Acrobat, Skulker, and Magic Initiate.

Acrobats gain proficiency in the Acrobatic skill, and +1 to their Dexterity--so now Ilia has a full Dexterity of 18. And, as a bonus action, she can make a DC 15 acrobatics check to ignore difficult terrain till the end of the turn. Skulkers are extra good at sneaking, being able to hide when lightly obscured, suffer no sight penalties in dim light, and their location isn’t revealed even when they miss with a ranged weapon. Not that Ilia uses a gun, mind, but she’s pretty good at the whole shadow-hopping thing, so that’s nifty.

Magic initiates, though, choose a caster class and pick two cantrips and a first level spell from their list. They can only cast the spell once per long rest, but we’re really only here for the cantrips (which can be cast at any time and scale based on total character level). Lightning Lure drags a target from fifteen feet away up to ten feet closer and does some shocking damage if they wind up within five feet--perfect for some zappery dragging. And Sword Burst is great if you want to knock back enemies right up next to you--they have to roll a Dexterity save or take a hit from Ilia twirling a sharp metal rope around herself. As to the first-level spell... well, Longstrider increases a target’s speed by ten feet for an hour, and it can be cast on self. Ilia is really, really mobile, so...

Rogues get proficiencies with Dexterity and Intelligence saving throws, Thieves’ Tools, Light Armor, Simple Weapons, Hand Crossbows, Rapiers, Short Swords, and Long Swords. They also get four skill proficiencies--Athletics, Perception, Performance, and Sleight of Hand fit Ilia the most. And with twelve levels of Rogue, she’s really benefiting from a life of skullduggery--Expertise in four skills (Acrobatics, Deception, Persuasion, and Stealth), Reliable Talent in every other skill she’s trained in, and Thieves’ Cant for reading and writing secret messages to those who don’t want to be seen. And of course Sneak Attack, which means she deals an extra 6d6 damage on ranged or finesse attacks, as long as she either has advantage or her target is being flanked.

And then there’s all the mobility options being a Rogue, and a Thief Rogue specifically, gives Ilia. Uncanny Dodge to half damage on an incoming attack as a reaction, Evasion to possibly neutralize damage from any Dexterity-Save based attack, Second-Story work that makes her climb speed equal to her land speed (as well as adding her Dex bonus to her jump distance), and Supreme Sneak gives advantage on Stealth checks if she moves only half her speed (which, with her Monk levels, is going to be pretty fast).

And of course, there’s Cunning Action. As a bonus action, Ilia can Dash (take an extra movement action), Disengage (avoid attacks of opportunity for the round), Hide (make a stealth check to, well, hide), and Aim (give herself advantage on her next attack if she hasn’t moved this turn). Being a Thief Rogue gives her Fast Hands, which means she can also use her cunning action to Use An Object, use her Thieves’ tools, or make a Sleight of Hand check. Mobile and able to exploit that mobility? It’s no surprise the Belladonna’s need better security.

But all that is defensive mobility and sneakery. If we want to talk about Ilia’s attack capability, we need to talk about her eight levels in Kensei Monk. Sure, being a Monk in general does give her some bonus mobility--her Unarmored Defense means her AC is ten plus her Dexterity and Wisdom modifiers while not wearing armor (so 17), her Unarmored movement gives her a bonus to her base speed while not wearing armor (+15 at level 8), her Slow Fall allows her to reduce falling damage by a total of five times her monk level as a reaction (that’d be 40 points), and her Evasion... is actually exactly the same as her evasion she’d get as a rogue, so that doesn’t stack.

Martial Arts gives Ilia a few benefits: she can choose to use Dexterity instead of Strength for unarmed attacks or attacks with monk weapons, the attacks do 1d6 base damage instead of their standard form, and if she takes an attack action she can make one unarmed attack as a bonus action. Speaking of which, Extra Attack lets her make two attacks per attack action, Ki-Empowered Strikes mean her unarmed attacks count as magical for the purposes of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagic damage, and Stillness of mind allows her to use an action to shake off being Charmed or Frightened. And that’s all before we talk about Ki features or anything regarding Kensei Monks specifically.

Monks get Ki points equal to their monk level, which regenerate on a short or long rest, and can be spent for various actions. Options are added as the Monk levels up, both from standard sources and from their path; Flurry of Blows allows a Monk to make two unarmed attacks as a bonus action immediately after an attack, Patient Defense lets them take the Dodge action as a bonus action, and Step of the Wind doubles Jump distance and allows the monk to take the Dash or Disengage action as a bonus action. Then there’s Deflect Missiles--technically a free reaction to any incoming ranged attack that reduces the damage by 1d10+Dexterity Modifier+Monk Level (so 1d10+12 for Ilia), but if that reduces the damage to zero, a monk can spend a ki point to throw the projectile back as a ranged attack immediately. Stunning Strike can be used to try to Stun a character with a melee weapon attack, which lasts to the end of the next turn, and Deft Strike (the only Kensei-related Ki skill we’re getting) allows a monk to add an additional 1d6 damage to an attack with a weapon.

Which leads us to the whole reason I picked Kensei monk. See, Monk Weapons are specifically shortswords and any simple melee weapons that don't have the two-handed or heavy property. Which doesn’t include whips. But Kensei Monks have, as the foundation of the whole class, the choice to pick other weapons as Monk Weapons--as long as they lack the Heavy or Special properties. At eight levels, Kensei Monks have a total of three Kensei weapons--one melee, one ranged, and one that can be either. So going for Whip and Scimitar for Ilia’s weapon, and Hand Crossbow to satisfy requirements, is a pretty good option.

Of course that’s not the only benefit. Agile Parry gives Ilia +2 AC if she makes an unarmed strike as part of her Attack action, Kensei’s Shot means she can take a bonus action to make her Hand Crossbow deal an additional 1d4 worth of damage, and Magic Kensei Weapons mean her weapons count as magical for purposes of overcoming resistances and immunities to nonmagical damage. And of course there’s Way Of The Brush, which gives Ilia proficiency in Calligrapher’s supplies--perfect for planting secret messages, forging documents, or writing hidden notes in her diary about how hot various ladies around her are... although that last one isn’t strictly canon, but you know, shippers gonna ship.

If we tally all this up, we have a woman with a base 45 running and climbing speed that can jump 12 feet forward and 7 feet up without effort, with Acrobatics and Slow Fall meaning she’s able to handle unusual terrain, and she can up that to 55 speed for an hour once a day with longstrider, as well as double the jump distance up to eight times before needing a rest. That makes Ilia fast, and she’s also hard to hit--unarmored defense gives her an AC of 17, plus 2 with Agile Parry, she can Dash or Disengage or Dodge at will, and even if you get past all that she’s got Uncanny Dodge, Evasion, and Deflecting Missles to reduce damage. Of course that’s assuming you spot her at all--Supreme Sneak lets her remain hidden at 22 feet speed--27 if she’s got Long Strider up--Skulker means she can hide when lightly obscured, such as by shadow, and combining her expertise in stealth with her shapeshifting ability means Ilia can slip in and out of scenes unnoticed.

And for those of you that want some damage, allow me to direct your attention to this combinatorial explosion: Martial Arts Whip, Extra Attack, Deft Strike, Flurry of Blows. That’s 1d6+7d6+1d4+4, then 1d6+4 , then 1d6+4 , then 1d6+4 , for a cost of two ki points. Even without Deft Strike and Flurry of Blows Ilia can hypothetically pull 1d6+7d6+4, then 1d6+4 , then 1d6+4, per round--or sacrifice that last 1d6+4 for a different bonus action. And Ilia can give herself advantage either with Aim or Stunning Strike; Aim only lasts for the current turn, but Stunning Strike lasts till her next turn and renders a target stunned for her allies to deal with. Throw in Lightning Lure for 4d8 damage to any target she draws to herself, Sword Burst for 4d6 damage to ALL targets surrounding her, and the fact the whip has the Reach property, and we wind up with a fighter built to manuver and manipulate her opponents around the battlefield.

So yeah, that’s Ilia.

#RWBY #Dungeons & Dragons #D&D 5E #Ilia Amitola #Character Build

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pl-panda · 5 years

Text

Damienette arranged marriage: part 26

Credits: Miraculous Ladybug team for the elements I take from MLB show. DC for their characters, @ozmav for the AU, @maribat-archive for giving me access to so many different stories to have take inspirations from, @thyladyanput for idea for Chat Damian and me for the plot.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8

Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 part 14 part 15

part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 Part 21

Part 22 Part 23 Part 24

part 25

Damienette arranged marriage: part 26

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

“Hold still girl if you want to see your friend and yourself walk out of here alive!” Mayura threatened her. To enforce the point made by his partner, Hawkmoth pressed the blade closer, drawing some blood. A single droplet traveled along the edge and hit the floor. The heroine felt her whole body go stiff with fear. She silently accepted her fate when suddenly there was an ear-piercing cry of pain behind her. The blade, together with hand that was holding it, fell to the ground. Hawkmoth stumbled holding the stump that used to be his hand. Behind him Damian wiped the blood from his blade.

“Leave. My Wife. Alone!” He barked and turned to Mayura. “The game is over.”

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

Hawkmoth was really glad that his miraculous stopped the bleeding immediately. But at the same time the pain was almost making him see stars. So she married a batbrat…

Mayura immediately let Luka go and rushed to Hawkmoth to help him. She tried to lift him, but she was stopped when a cold blade was pressed to her neck.

“I wouldn’t try it. He will need immediate medical attention once his transformation wears off.” Robin said through the gritted teeth. “Try not to join that list.”

Marinette was still in shock of the events that just occured, but she grabbed her yo-yo and tossed it up. “Miraculous Ladybug!” A swarm of magical energy traveled everywhere around and fixed everything, including Hawkmoth’s hand, but he was still without his weapon while Mayura was at the sword’s pointy end. The heroine walked to the defeated pain. “Gabriel Agreste, Nathalie Sanscoeur, As the Great Guardian of Miraculous I hereby renounce your right to miraculous you have abused.” With that, she plucked their jewels away. The two Kwami were ejected from them and looked at the girl with clear relief. She then turned away to collect other miraculous when suddenly a knife went through her. Adrien was standing there with fury in his eyes.

“You’ve chosen some random american hero over me?! What does he have that I don’t!? You are a monster!” He spat at the girl. He was about to grab her miraculous when a chakram hit him and pushed him back. He stumbled and fell on the ground. Damian was about to rush him and gutter him open, but Nathalie used the distraction to tackle the hero and looked at the blond boy.

“Run! Run and don’t look back!” She shouted and turned back to the wrestle match against Robin. She was winning until other heroes didn’t come at her aid. Adrien grabbed the Butterfly and Peacock miraculous and run as fast as he could. He jumped into the platform and traveled to the underground compound. Spoiler was about to jump after him, but she turned her attention to where Ladybug laid.

Marinette had a knife going through her chest, about right where her heart was. Damian punched Nathalie hard enough for her to get knocked out cold and run to his wife.

“Angel! Can you hear me?!” He held her close.

“Dami…” She was too weak to actually say his full name. “Did… did…”

“You did it angel!” He cried loudly. “Hawkmoth and Mayura are both no more! Everything is going to be fine.”

“I… thank… you…” She managed to spit out. While she was not bleeding, having a pierced heart would still kill her slowly. He also suspected her lungs were damaged given her irregular breath and troubles with speaking.

“Save your strength. The help is on the way I am sure.” He tried to comfort her. The certainty in his voice almost convinced him that it will be okay.

“The t-time… with you…” She had to make a break in the middle of the sentence, but she grabbed his hand tighter. “was best… in my life…” She pressed his hand to her stomach tighter.

“And we will have more time together angel. Don’t leave me! Don’t leave me damn it!” He cried.

Gabriel took advantage of the commotion and tried to sneak away, but the Gorilla stepped in his way. “Nuh Nuh.” He grumbled while shaking his head before he hit his former boss on the head like a whack-a-mole game.

Finally, the transformation surrendered and Tikki was forcefully expelled from the earrings. Blood started to fall from the wound.

“Oh Marinette! I am so sorry! I…” The kwami moaned.

Damian stopped speaking. He just looked at his wife. She was so little, smaller than even him. He contemplated pulling the knife, but it would be pointless.

“Can you… Can you heal her?” Sabine asked the Kwami.

“I don’t know. Oh Marinette!” Small goddess of creation nuzzled into the neck of now passed out girl. The pulse was still there, but it was getting weaker with each passing second.

Damian took off his mask. Screw secrecy! He looked at the girl he came to adore and tightened his grip on his hand. “Don’t leave me habibti. Please don’t do it…” A single tear fell from his eye, mixing with the blood around her heart. Then the next one. And another. He allowed his emotions to surface. He didn’t care who saw what. It was his moment, his wife, his damn business and no one’s else.

Tikki saw the pain and suffering and cursed. Cursed the laws, cursed the balance, cursed her own limitations. She was the most powerful kwami... scratch that, most powerful thing in existence. She created this whole damn world. Marinette was her greatest companion and true friend. She would not watch her Ladybug pass away so young. The Kwami floated above the girl and focused her energy. An orb of white formed around her and she launched it on Marinette. As the energy connected with her, the knife was destroyed and wound closed immediately. There was a flash of green light for just a moment, but it was quenched with another green light that came from where Damian’s tears still remained.

There was also another pulse of energy. This one was much bigger and came from near the ring of Black Cat where Plagg just awoke after he was exhausted. Doing evil was much more tiring for Kwami. And him potentially hurting Tikki like that made the lazy cat pass out for some time. Now he sensed the balance shifting. He acted almost on instinct, but retained enough awareness to change one thing. This pulse hit everyone in the room, but it looked Like Gabriel and Nathalie got the worst of it.

Marinette opened her eyes and graped for air, looking at Damian confused. “W-What… What just happened.”

“You are alive!” He shouted and pulled her in deep hug. She was confused at first, but embraced her husband as well.

“Marinette! You are healed…” Sabine lost her voice. “Thank you Tikki. Thank you so very much. You can have any sweets you want whenever you want!” She shouted before jumping to pull both Damian and Marinette into embrace.

“That is indeed a great news to see Mari-hime well, but what exactly happened.” Kagami asked, voicing what everyone thought.

“I can answer that.” Plagg floated closer to them while carrying his own ring. “When Tikki used her power to heal Marinette, she disturbed the balance. Normally, it would require someone else to surrender his life force to heal her.” It was unlike the Kwami of destruction to speak in such academic tone, but most seemed to ignore this fact for now. “But since she was still alive and I was conscious I instead took some of the life energy from everyone. For next few weeks, maybe months I would advise you to avoid strenuous activities.”

“Since when do you know the word ‘strenuous’ Plagg?” Tikki giggled while looking at the other Kwami.

“I have other interests than eating cheese!” He shouted. “Besides this mogger hid my cheese behind encyclopedia and I read it while eating at night.” He murmured. Tikki would have probably laughed if not the implications behind this. She floated to her companion and pulled him in a hug. There were no words spoken, only the two of them comforting one another after so much things happened in such a short (for a Kwami) time.

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

Next week was hard. The defeat of Hawkmoth caused severe backlash. The public swarmed Ladybug wherever she went and questioned her about details. The chaos in the city caused by the news was close to riots. People were overly ecstatic. On the bright side, the school was canceled for the time of celebrations.

Before the heroes managed to turn their attention to Adrien he was long gone. He also wired all the funds from his father’s account somewhere. It was clear that the older Agreste had safety mechanisms in place just in case something like this happened.

Marinette didn’t care. She would later, but for now she was just happy that she could spend some time with Damian. Since the time she almost died, the two were inseparable. Even crowbar would not help here, so back off Jason!

The trip to America came sooner than expected. Marinette’s flight left on Monday, but Damian had to return by Saturday to have everything prepared. She wanted to go with him, but Madame Bustier firmly protested, saying that all students must travel with her because she is class representative and some other utter bullshit (Damian’s words).

Still, the bluenette came to the airport to say goodbye. It was about five in the morning and they were in private longue while waiting for the jet to be ready. Marinette kept forgetting that she was married into the richest family in the world. Then again, she did not care. Damian would mean no less to her if he was broke.

“It’s only two days, but I will miss you” Marinette said to him when the message came that everything was set.

“Me too habibti.” He said while looking into her blueberry eyes.

“I… Thank you. For everything.” She smiled. “If I didn’t meet you, I would probably still be fighting a losing war against Hawkmoth.”

“It was nothing.” He shrugged it off. “I did what I had to. To keep you safe I would do more.” He paused for a moment, taking another look in her beautiful eyes. She also starred back at him, the two whirlpools of emerald were mesmerizing in the morning light. They were really mesmerizing at any time of the day or night. “Marinette… Before I go. There is one more thing I wanted to tell you. The last months I spent with you were amazing.” He forced himself not to close. Damian decided that he would do it today and he would. No matter how embarrassed he was feeling right now. There was only the two of them and he turned all the cameras into loop so his family could not hack them. “For the first time I could really be myself. I am grateful for that.”

Marinette looked at him funny. “Damian? What are you…” She didn’t finish the question because he interrupted her.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng Al Ghoul Wayne. I think I love you. No. I know I love you.” He said with an emotionless expression. It took every bit of his willpower not to run away.

She blinked. Then she blinked again. The weight of this words almost crushed her. Suddenly her legs felt weak. She tried to avoid his gaze while her mind was getting overheated. But then the courage she always showed as Ladybug filled her. She straightened up and looked him deep in his eyes again. “Damian Al Ghoul Wayne… I love you too.” She said. there was a relaxed smile on her face, but the most important part were her eyes. Damian saw only one thing in them. Love. He never saw anything like that before, but he knew that this was love in purest form.

He grabbed her in the waist and looked at her with question. For a moment, she hesitated, understanding where this was going, but then she wrapped her hands around his neck and pulled himself closer. For a moment their faces were just inch apart. This was her last chance to back away. Yet instead, she closed the distance between their lips.

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THE END

KONIEC

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