#merritt x daniel

[poreyneel]

glance

[hermionegalathynius]

Found Family (4/?)

So I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of positive reactions this story is getting. I just want to say thank you to everyone who takes the time to like or reblog or comment my work because it means the world to me.

Fandom: Now You See Me

Pairing: Danny Atlas x Reader

Warnings: Some swearing — read at your own discretion.

Part 3

  “Hello New York!” Danny exclaimed, stepping forward and greeting the crowd. They screamed. 

  “Thank you so much! Hey, it’s great to be back! And have you met our newest Horsemen, the May sisters! Y/n and Lula!”

  The audience cheered louder and you and Lula waved, bright smiles on both your faces. Danny grinned back at you with a wink. 

  “Feels good right?”

  You nodded, “Yep.”

  “Pretty good,” Lula said, walking across the stage, “Pretty good.”

  Danny turned back to the audience and started to calm them, “Thank you, thank you.”

  The cheering quietened.

  “Um, okay. We want to talk to you about your privacy. What does your privacy mean to you?”

  “Because apparently to Owen Case, it means absolutely nothing,” Merritt continued.

  The audience looked around nervously. Your smile widened as you moved to stand next to Danny.

  “No actually, Merritt, it means less than absolutely nothing,” you said before addressing the audience, “You see, Owen’s mocked your privacy. He’s scorned it.”

  Danny nodded, running a discreet hand down your back and loosening the tension in your shoulders. You tried not to blush in front of an audience of people. 

  “Right,” he continued, “and we’re not just talking about the things that you already agreed to when you signed probably without reading the terms and conditions of Octas 1 through 7.”

  “So,” Lula began, “Before we start the show, we had Owen agree to a few terms of our own.”

  You grinned at her, proud of her for reaching this dream. She looked so comfortable up there, talking to the audience. You were glad to be able to do it with her, too.

  “So everything that he had once considered private…” Lula trailed off.

  Your heart dropped to your stomach as her mic cut out. One glance at Danny told you he understood and he quickly walked over to Lula.

  “Yeah, everything that he once considered private is now…” his mic cut off too.

  “Shit,” you whispered, not bothering to mind your language as you assumed yours had cut off too. 

  The screen behind you flashed and white noise filled the theatre. People screamed. 

  “Oh my,” a computer-generated voice echoed through the room, “As the Horsemen like to say, magic is about controlling perception.”

  You gazed up at the shifting face that appeared on the screen. Someone grabbed your arm gently and you turned to see Danny. 

 “Y/n!” He exclaimed, “Are you alright?”

  You swallowed, fear piercing through you, “I… yeah. Yeah I’m okay. What’s going on, Danny?”

  He shook his head, “I don’t know.”

  “You see them as the champions of the truth,” the voice continued, “but are they? Or is that just another one of their illusions?”

  “Shit shit shit,” Merritt was saying as he and Lula joined you and Danny in the middle of the stage, “Where’s Dylan?”

  “And Jack?” Lula added. 

  “So since they clearly love secrets, let’s reveal some of theirs.”

  “Danny, everyone, get off the stage,” Dylan’s voice crackled through the coms, “Jack, go with them. I’ll see you at the meet up point.”

  Danny’s hand moved down your arm and gripped yours. You squeezed his fingers in response.

  “Let’s go,” he said, pulling you off the stage behind him. 

  The four of you began running, the voice echoing behind you clear as day. 

  “Do you recall the death of Jack Wilder? What if I told you he’s not just alive, but he’s actually right here.”

  Jack’s alarmed face under his security cap was displayed on a screen you passed as you ran out of the backstage area.

  “Dammit,” you heard Danny mutter. His hand was still firmly clasped around yours. Normally you would be bothered by the tightness, but adrenalin was coursing through your veins and you were just that desperate not to lose track of him in this chaos. 

  “And do you know who else is here? The FBI. Let’s let them in, shall we? And now for the big reveal…”

  “Where’s the door to the roof?” Danny called to Jack as the younger man joined the group running to the meeting point. 

  “Take the next left then up the stairs,” Jack said. 

  “There’s a fifth Horseman, and he’s the biggest criminal of them all. FBI agent Dylan Rhodes.”

  The five of you punched through the door to the roof. 

  “How the hell could this happen? I thought Dylan had everything under control!” Merritt yelled.

  “Yeah. Apparently he didn’t,” Danny said, quietly frustrated in the way you knew he could get.

  Merritt whirled on the illusionist, and something in his expression told you Danny wouldn’t like what he was about to say. 

  “Maybe you’re the leak, Dan. Where’ve you been sneaking off to?” Merritt demanded. 

  Danny let go of your hand and advanced on the mentalist, “Don’t you dare for a second insinuate that I had anything to do with this!”

  “I’m not insinuating, that’s your-“ Merritt began to retort, but Jack cut in. 

  “Let’s get to the truck, come on!”

  You all ran to the black tube. Danny nudged you in front of him, and you jumped in. 

  Gritting your teeth against the roller-coster sensation in your gut, you crossed your arms over your chest and noted with some curiosity the pulsing sound coming from the gaps in the tube. 

  You could also hear Jack sliding ahead of you and Danny behind you. After a moment you also heard Merritt screaming further back. 

  Then, with a thud you tumbled into a laundry basket. 

  “Wha…” you breathed, getting a split second to gaze around at your surroundings before Danny slammed into you. 

  “Oof,” he said, “Sorry. You okay?”

  You winced, “Yeah. A little bruised, but I’ve had worse. You?”

  He nodded as Lula and Merritt tumbled into the basket next to you, “Yeah. What the hell is going on?”

  “Wasn’t there supposed to be a truck?” Merritt asked, clambering out of the basket. The rest of you followed his lead. Asian people in white aprons started yelling at you, shoving you through a crowded, steamy kitchen.

  “Wait,” Danny said in between being shoved by Chinese chefs, “did you mis-run the tube?”

  “No, I put it in the truck, I know I did!” Jack exclaimed, bumping into you while trying to dodge an oncoming tray. 

  “We’re really not in the truck right now,” you said, stumbling into Danny who reached back and grabbed your hand, the sensation becoming familiar to you.

  “Somebody must have moved the tube,” Merritt said, as you all moved through a set of doors into what looked like a restaurant, “Were we above a Chinese restaurant?”

  “I’m moving, relax!” Lula yelled at the man who was shoving her out of the kitchen. 

  “Okay, why are we here?” you demanded.

  “Why am I frickin’ starving?” Lula asked, staring at the Chinese food everywhere.

  “Yeah, I’m weirdly starving too,” Jack mused.

  At their words your own stomach growled, responding to the smell of noodles and stir fry surrounding you.

  Merritt moved towards the door, popping his head outside. 

  “Something’s very wrong,” you told Danny softly.

  He nodded, brows furrowed, “Yeah, I agree.”

  “At least,” Lula began as Merritt returned, “And I know this isn’t much consolation, but apparently we’re now surrounded by Chinese food. Right?”

  “Guys…” Merritt said and you all turned to look at him, “I think where we are right now, they don’t refer to it as ‘Chinese food’. It’s just called… food.”

  “Shit,” you muttered.

  “Wait, what are you saying?” Danny asked, “How is this possible?”

  A high pitched giggle directed all of your attention to the man with a perm sitting at the table nearest you, facing away with a menu held up in front of his face. 

  “I believe in your particular parlance, the word is ‘magic’.”

Taglist:

@pulling-out-my-eyes

[ajaxpetropolisismyhusband]

Dinner - Jack wilder x reader

Warnings: Implied smut, public fingering

Im going to write two versions of this. one with the horsemen and the other with just Jack and Y/n

As the sun set over the city, the Four Horsemen - J. Daniel Atlas, Merritt McKinney, Henley Reeves, and Jack Wilder - sat around a large table at a fancy restaurant. They were all dressed to the nines, enjoying each other's company as they chatted and laughed over dinner. Y/n, Jack's girlfriend, sat beside him, feeling happy and content.

The waiter arrived at the table with a tray of desserts, each one more decadent than the last. Y/n's eyes lit up as she looked at the array of sweets in front of her. She was always a sucker for dessert, and the sight of all that sugar made her mouth water.

"Wow, these look amazing," she exclaimed, reaching for a piece of chocolate cake. But before she could take a bite, she felt a foot slide up her leg. She looked over at Jack, who was smirking at her mischievously.

"Hey, what are you doing?" she whispered, trying to nudge his foot away with her own.

"I'm just having a little fun," he replied, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "Don't tell me you don't like it."

Y/n rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but feel a little bit turned on by his teasing. She tried to focus on her dessert, but Jack's foot kept creeping up her leg, getting close to her thigh and making her squirm in her seat.

"Jack, stop it," she hissed, trying to keep her voice low so the others wouldn't hear.

But Jack just grinned even wider. "What's wrong, baby? Can't handle a little bit of fun?"

Y/n could feel her face turning red with embarrassment. She didn't want the others to know what Jack was doing under the table, but she also didn't want to give in to his teasing.

"Seriously, Jack, knock it off," she whispered, trying to sound firm.

But Jack just laughed, and his foot moved even higher up her leg. "You know you love it," he whispered back.

Y/n tried to swat his foot away, but he was too quick for her. She could feel her body getting more and more aroused as Jack's teasing continued, and she knew she had to put a stop to it before things got out of hand.

"Jack, seriously," she said, her voice trembling with desire. "Stop it, or I'm going to have to punish you later." she said now with full confidence.

Jack's eyes widened with excitement at the thought of being punished and smirked knowing she wouldn't last long. "Oh, really? And what kind of punishment are we talking about here?"

Y/n leaned in close to his ear and whispered something that made Jack's eyes go wide with excitement. He grinned at her mischievously, and then finally withdrew his foot.

Y/n let out a sigh of relief, feeling a mix of desire and frustration coursing through her body. She knew that she and Jack were going to have a lot of fun later that night, but for now, she was content to enjoy the rest of her dessert and the company of her friends.

[alessiathepirate]

Now You See Me 2

MIDNIGHT ON THE THAMES: Dylan Rhodes/Shrike x fem!reader

Summary: The reveal happens at the stroke of midnight, in the middle of the Thames, on New Year's Eve - and she couldn't be happier. Or maybe she could, because Lula and Jack won't be the only ones kissing that night.

Notes: English isn't my first language. I apologize for any mistake I made while I wrote this short story.

This man is so underrated, it's a crime. He deserves some love - please love him.

Warnings: a bit of swearing, but nothing more

•••

No matter how many successful reveals they pull off, she still feels the same amount of excitement, happiness and slight nervousness at the end of every trick and show.

Yet, the strongest feeling out of all of them was the happiness. The happiness because everything turned out just fine in the end, because this tiring performance is close to being over and mostly because her friends are also smiling with honest, wide grins and letting out excited chuckles.

This one though, this one wasn't easy to pull off. It was possibly the hardest show they had to put together with the trouble and issues they had to overcome. It was tiring, stressful, but also kind of fun and thrilling.

After this they'll sleep through a day if not two, she smiled at the thought as she let go of Lula, who was the last to end the group hug.

As Walter, Tressler and Chase slowly, reluctantly left the plane, stepping into the light, not understanding what is happening around them; the last act was about to start -- and this, this will be her favourite.

Those three absolutely ruined her whole week, made her almost choke on tears and worry and made her hate their whole existence and the fact that if they wanted to fool them, they had to let them believe they won was hard to swallow. Now they will get those smirks off of their faces and make them realize how easy it was to fool them. They were greedy and arogant and now they are losers -- nothing more.

God, how much they had to go through to reveal their real faces to the world.

"No, no, you should feel pretty good about yourself man. You predicted it correctly." Atlas started to tease the three of them for her pleasure, as they looked around with nothing but pure shock on their faces. "The Thames, stroke of midnight. New Year's Eve. Happy New Year!"

The people, the hundreds of curious fans who decided to come and see the final act shouted in happiness and excitement. Before these people tonight, there'll be nothing they'll be able to hide. That thought alone made her smile wider.

"We would like to acknowledge not just our old friend, Arthur Tressler, but his young and brilliant son, Walter Mabry!" Daniel continued. "Who has performed one of the greatest feats of illusion even we have ever seen. He has, amazingly, brought himself back from the death!"

The audience roared again, but this time the happy laughter wasn't the thing what made her heartbeat unevenly fast. It was the presence of the person who could both calm her down and make her uneasy with butterflies. Dylan's hand landed on her arm, squeezing it gently, lovingly, making her mind into a mush and her tounge forgot how to function to speak - and it's soon her turn to say something. She didn't know what that meant, but it was a sign of something - something soft like a silent 'thank you' or 'congratulations'. Even if it was slightly confusing, it felt nice. Too nice.

"But before he did that, he revealed someone. And we think it only right to give him a proper introduction. He is our friend and he is our leader, Dylan Shrike!"

His hand slowly left her as he turned towards their audience and began to speak.

"So normally only the magician, his assistant, and a few trusted stage hands know the secret of a trick..."

His voice faded away as she looked at him, quietly admiring him from afar, letting him enjoy his place in the spotlight. Her mind was full of memories. Memories of him, memories of today. The day she thought she'll actually choke on stress and worry.

God, how thankful she is that he's okay. That he's alive and up here with them, not down there in the water.

They were close, so close she felt comfortable in his presence. He was a person she could trust with anything, a person who didn't tease her like Merritt or Danny did sometimes. They were play fights, she knew that, but still there was something special between her and Dylan, a different kind of honesty.

And knowing that he could die from the digusting 'magic trick' those three tried to pull off with him made her cry. Like actually cry, many tears with a dry and quiet voice.

After he climbed out of that damned safe, she followed him around like puppy, sitting next to him on the stairs as they discussed what to do next. She sat next to him, not daring to hug him, but craving it -- yet instead she just let their knees touch slightly. It was enough to give her some energy and acknowledge that now they are going to war.

A slight nudge made her let go of those memories, getting back to reality, to a moment she should enjoy. Jack was the one talking now, explaining the secret behind 'Find the Lady' and this time Merritt was the one standing next to her.

"Don't daydream yet, lover girl. We still got a show to run." he patted her back and then walked away with a knowing a smirk.

Damn mentalist, she thought just as Lula began to explain the secret behind the airplane. He knows everything he can use to tease people with.

"Basically, we showed them everything." she finally spoke up herself, still laughing a little as she watched how Merritt teased his brother, finally getting the upper hand. "The switch, the plane, the manipulation... Yet they were still too blind to see." she turned towards Walter, a smirk forming on her face. "And you kidnapped us to steal the very thing that is in your pocket."

Walter was about to reach into his coat's pocket, to see if their homemade special card is really there; but Atlas was quicker.

"Whoops!" he said as the card appeared in his hand, seemingly out of nowhere. "You know, this thing here, which you said you could use to adjust markets, manipulate goverments, and spy on whomever you choose."

"Also, you could, as you said, control the public from outside the grid." she continued as the public groaned in frustration, realizing what their words really meant.

That reaction filled her heart up with pride.

"These men destroy people's lives. Spying on the world, robbing you of your right to privacy." It was weird, how well she recognized Dylan's voice and how well her heart did as well - as it was beating faster. Their eyes met and even if he was speaking the harsh truth, his gaze was still soft. It was always soft with her. "And they do that by hiding in the dark. So in true Horsemen tradition, we are here to expose them."

"Tonight, they, like all of us, are finally stepping into the light." she was grinning as the people reacted, shouting, screaming happily, because the truth was finally out. "Thank you everybody!"

"We are the Horsemen and we will be back very soon!"

And the moment came - when the show ends, the tiredness appears. Her chest was heavy with pride and happiness, justice found those three men who ruined their lives for days without stopping. Now they got what they deserve.

And then the coundown began. The audience shouted, like if the wait until New Year was part of the show... They shouted as the sirens were turned on, meaning the FBI was on its way. It was time to leave -- and then finally rest.

And then she felt it, the push - the literal, physical push she knew she needed, which got her closer to Dylan, almost bumping into him. She didn't know who it was, although she could bet her right arm on one of her friends -- but it didn't really matter. Thoughts didn't really matter. She was there, close to him, their eyes met.

It was their moment.

"So fun's over, huh?" she tried to joke, but her throat was dry and she could feel that her cheeks were pink for sure.

And then it happened - the need in her was satisfied, they touched the other. That kind of closeness was new and intoxicating, but not at all uncomfortable. It was something what both of them longed for since forever - and now here they were.

Their lips touched. It was a quick and short kiss, but it was a very meaningful one. She felt it. She felt it in how warm his lips were, how he touched her cheeks and how he was slightly shaking just like her, because what they wanted finally happened. It was soft, but it was full of passion. All the unsaid feelings were pushed into that one, simple kiss.

"I love you." his words were simple, they were nothing special, but they still made her insides warm.

"Hey, we are on the clock here!"

Damn the clock!

They had to run, sure. But even that couldn't wash the lovesick smile off her face. It couldn't, because Dylan Shrike loved her. He said it himself and she knew it was true.

Dylan grabbed her arm, he held onto her firmly as they started to run - just in time, because the boats arrived and agents started to get out of them, running towards them.

"I love you too." she said as they hurried away. "I think I've loved you since you interrogated me."

"Ever since then, huh?" he chuckled.

"What can I say? I think it was the suit. You look really good in suits."

They both laughed even if they were a little bit out of breath.

Dylan suddenly stopped and so did she. She took a deep breath as she looked at the water of the Thames, which was only a few meters away. People shouted behind them, possibly the agents who were sent here, only to fail their mission once again. They never really learn.

He turned towards her and touched her cheeks once again, his thumbs drawing shapes gently into her skin.

"I need you to go, okay? I'll be right behind you, but there's one more thing I have to do."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

She leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek and then she looked up at him with a shy smile.

"I'll see you soon."

And just like that she was gone. Gone, disappeared into the night like the magician she is, making a fool out of the FBI once again.

Dylan stayed there, waiting for an agent to turn up so he can finish what he started and give them the proof they need against Tressler and his son. He stayed there as the shouts came closer. He stayed there and looked after his lover, knowing that he'll adore the moments he'll spend with her once they finally get to a safe place where they can finally rest.

[heliads]

Hiya Lisa my love!! I think this may be the first request I’m sending you (omg!?) But I am so excited to do so, and of course for our best boy Jack Wilder <3

Okay this one’s a little silly but I’m thinking Jack Wilder x reader where the reader is part of the Horsemen, but Jack and her don’t exactly get along all too well (enemies/reluctant allies to lovers). I’m thinking they’re sent off together to check out and map a location for the Horsemen’s next big act (maybe a fancy gala! That’d be so fun!), but the whole time they’re just bickering and shooting jabs at each other and the other guys are on comms and are just So Tired™ of their bullshit 😭

amber i love you for this

masterlist

You don’t think you’ve ever seen the magical enigma known professionally as J. Daniel Atlas and familiarly as a pain in all of your asses as stressed as he is right before the start of a new job. The Horsemen are world renowned for their intricate performances and flawless setups, which only serves to increase the pressure on all of you to keep one-upping yourselves every time you appear in the spotlight. Danny has taken it upon himself to make sure that all of you stay perfect, and that responsibility is manifesting itself in the form of a lecture right now.

He’s standing in front of you, eyes wild with the fire of what could be creative genius or perhaps too much coffee, and rattling off a series of questions to make sure you know what you’re doing.

“Where are you going?” He asks first.

You meet his gaze steadily. “The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Specifically the busiest areas during the Met Gala.”

“How are you entering?” Danny queries.

“Two ways. First, as a tourist, to spot the security cameras. Then, I’ll go again at night, to lay some cameras of our own and run some more thorough investigations.”

Danny takes a step closer. His hands are steepled together, making him the perfect picture of a plotting supervillain from one of those bad action movies Merritt keeps playing. “What, specifically, are you looking for?”

You want to roll your eyes, but you learned a long time ago that showing any sort of emotion except for intensity in front of Daniel Atlas during his mad planning sessions is only asking for trouble. So, you keep your cool, or you try to, at least. “The normal stuff. Alcoves and closets where we can hide. Areas with low security presence. Entrances and exits. Janitors. Extra uniforms. That sort of thing.”

Daniel nods once, the only sign that you’re not outright bombing his little pop quiz. “And who is going with you on this reconnaissance mission?”

This time, you can’t disguise your sigh of disgust. “I’m taking a stubborn child.”

Danny gives you a cool stare. “Try again.”

You give him a look, but Daniel is prone to winning staring contests, especially when he’s in this sort of mood, so you cut your losses and give in. “Fine. I’m taking Jack.”

To your side, someone starts clapping. “Perfect response!”

You and Daniel both turn in unison to see your recon partner applauding your sarcastic answer from his chair a few paces away. His feet are kicked up on the table in front of him, and although he had been aimlessly scrolling through his phone this entire time, he’s put the device down temporarily so he can remind you just how strong a bond the two of you share. Which is to say, in no uncertain terms, none at all.

Daniel glances back at you. “You’re not going to let the two of you working together be a problem, will you?”

You fold your arms across his chest, affronted. “I won’t. You might want to double-check with my so-called partner, though. Who, by the way, is free to answer any of these questions on his own. I don’t see why I’m the one who has to know everything while he gets off easy. Aren’t we sharing this responsibility? And by extension, this interrogation?”

Jack just flashes you a thousand-watt smile. “You seemed to have it covered, sweetheart. Besides, I just like hearing the sound of your lovely voice.”

You flip him off. He blows you a kiss, then does the same. Daniel looks ready to burst a blood vessel. “Focus, you two. I want no slip ups. We’re stealing the show of the Met Gala. If we make a mistake, I think Anna Wintour will personally kill us.”

“She’s going to do that anyway,” Jack muses, “We’re interrupting her little fashion show. God forbid someone focuses on us instead of all the celebrities who aren’t even dressing to theme. If I had that money, I could do way better, is all I’m saying.”

You shoot him a perplexed look. “Since when have you paid attention to the Met Gala outfits? Last time I tried talking about it, you told me that was all absurdist nonsense.”

“Maybe I was just talking about you,” Jack answers vaguely. “I’m allowed to, like, develop interests.”

You toss him a glare, then turn back to Daniel, who for some reason looks somewhat entertained. “Can we go back to the plan, please?”

Danny straightens up. “Yes, I’d like that. I’ve briefed both of you on the entrances and exits I need you to scout out–”

“Too many times,” Jack cuts in. He’s not wrong. Danny’s been over this every hour on the hour since you got the call to stage your own show at one of the most famous fashion opportunities of the year.

Daniel, however, seems to think that he hasn’t mentioned the details enough. Now Jack is on the receiving end of not just your glare but Daniel’s as well. “As I was saying,” Danny continues smoothly, “You’ll get in and get out. Try not to move too quickly, you don’t want to attract attention, but don’t linger too long, either.”

“We’ll be fine,” you assure him. “Not our first rodeo.”

Danny nods hesitantly. “I know. Just your first rodeo together in a while.”

That’s no big secret. You and Jack may both be Horsemen, but that certainly doesn’t mean you have to like each other. In fact, you couldn’t be farther from it. You’re not enemies, so to speak, an enemy is the FBI or the CIA, but referring to whatever exists between you as friendship is stretching the truth. You’re more like uncertain, unhappy allies. You’ll work together so long as you get paid and stay in the spotlight while you’re at it, but you’re not likely to grab drinks after a show together.

However, the Horsemen come first above any personal squabble. Always. That’s the one thing you and Jack can agree on. What you’re working on is bigger than the two of you, it’s bigger than all of you. To most of the world, you are magic. No rift between teammates is worth damaging that ideal.

That’s why Jack straightens up at last, and dons an expression verging on solemnity. “We’ll do our part, Danny. No need to worry.”

“There had better not be,” Daniel comments, but he backs off after that, and leaves to track down Merritt to deliver a similar speech.

Now alone, Jack’s familiar cavalier attitude comes back in a flash. “Can’t wait for our little date tomorrow, L/N,” he tells you.

You roll your eyes. “It’s going to be so much fun.”

The next morning, you and Jack wait your turn in the entrance queue at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. You’re both disguised with baseball caps pulled low over your heads, then paired with sunglasses, and you each have fake IDs in your pockets just in case. It’s surprisingly easy to get around undetected; although the Horsemen are famous the world over, no one expects to see them outside of one of your performances. It makes no sense to spot one of you in a coffee shop or in line ahead of you, so their minds just glance over you as if you were never there at all.

It’s certainly convenient. You could always go to an outside source for intel, but if there’s one lesson you’ve learned throughout your time, it’s to never trust anyone outside of your immediate circle. There are always people who’ll sell off your secrets, or debunkers frothing at the mouth to show how you do what you do.

No, it’s best to keep everything under wraps, even if it makes disguises necessary. There’s a brief moment of panic in which the security guard checking Jack’s bag lingers on his face a little longer than usual, but he’s waved through soon enough and then you’re able to wander further into the museum.

A voice crackles over your earpiece. “What was that about?” Danny, paranoid as always.

Jack shrugs, directing his voice towards you so no one will suspect he’s talking to anyone else. “Probably just a newbie convinced they’ll catch a would-be robber by checking my hand sanitizer close enough. They didn’t plant any bugs, we’re good. Most likely, she was just captivated by my exceedingly good looks and got distracted.”

You scoff. “Or maybe she was just fascinated by your hideousness and wanted a better look.”

Jack clutches a hand to his heart, feigning agony. “My hideousness?” Y/N, I’m hurt.”

“Good,” you smile saccharinely at him.

Daniel sighs in a gust of static over your earpiece. “Focus, you two. Please.”

“Aye aye, Captain,” Jack says. “We’ll get to work.”

You and Jack slip through the exhibits, pretending to examine paintings in sculptures when, in reality, you’re looking harder at the security features in each room. The Horsemen already have a rough plan in mind for how you’re going to enter and exit, but the security presence could change which specific entrance you use.

When you loiter a little too long near one oil painting of two nobles dancing at a lavish ball, Jack doubles back to your side. “Everything alright? We haven’t been noticed yet, have we?”

You shake your head, snapping yourself back to reality. “No, we’re fine. Just looking. I love this year’s theme for the gala. If I had an actual invitation, I would have worn something like the dress in this painting. I would want to, at least. Of course, that would only happen if we weren’t breaking in, but. Yeah. That’s what I would do.”

You realize you’re rambling and try to cut yourself off, but you’ve already been going on for a while. You wait for Jack to tease you, but instead, the corner of his lips tugs up in a soft half-smile. “It would look good,” he admits, “You would. Maybe we should petition Danny to let us dress up. We could recreate the painting.”

He swoops closer, placing one hand on your waist and taking yours with the other, spinning you into a waltz just like in the painting. Jack pulls you close in an exaggerated dip just like in the painting, one that takes you a little too near the painting. One of the security guards surges across the room to tell you two to move away again. Jack lets you up, then exaggeratedly apologizing, slapping the guy on the back as a gesture of camaraderie. As the guard walks away, you can see the tracer he’s planted, one that will give you two much-needed information on the paths each guard takes on their shift.

“Nice one,” you breathe.

“Yeah,” Jack says, but he’s still looking at you, as if mentally cataloging each and every place his hands had been just moments before. “I am nice.”

You swat him on the shoulder, and he winks. Rather than give that an answer, you head to the next exhibit. The two of you tag the next few guards you come across, noting janitor’s closets and fire exits while you’re at it. 

It’s easy to settle into a rhythm. You go from room to room, you snipe at each other, you get the job done. Jack passes a sculpture of a nude woman and suggests that be the costume you wear to the Gala, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively; you tell him that you’ll do it only when he’s got biceps the size of the Greek hero statue next to it.

Eventually, you only have one tag left. This one, though, will be the most difficult. The chief security guard has access to the central security station of the museum; by bugging him, you can get the passcode to the main room, which would be a significant help. The only problem is that you’ll have to get close enough to talk to the guy, and he looks far more suspicious of everyone around him than any of the other guards.

You volunteer to do it, and weave your way over to the guard in charge. It takes a heady dose of flirting, but you’re able to get the job done eventually. You do have to shell out a fake phone number, but he’ll only find out the number isn’t yours later that night. No harm, no foul.

Or, not according to you, at least. When you walk back over to Jack, though, your partner in crime has his arms folded tight across his chest, and he looks more annoyed than you’ve seen him all day. At last, something has managed to pierce his armor of sarcastic, joking indifference, but you’re not sure what.

“He seems nice,” Jack says, voice unnaturally calm, “Maybe you do want to take him out on a date after this, like you said.”

You laugh. “We both know that was an act, Wilder. No need to get jealous.”

“I’m not jealous,” he insists, “I have nothing to be jealous of.”

“Nothing?” You ask, one brow raised. “So you wouldn’t mind if I went back and gave him my real number?”

Jack slings an arm around your shoulder in a pretense of affection, but it feels more like he’s pinning you to him, making sure you can’t go back and do as threatened. “That would be ridiculous. It would ruin our whole act.”

You grin. “What act?”

“That we’re here on a date of our own, obviously,” Jack says.

“We haven’t done anything of the sort the whole time we were here,” you point out. “It makes more sense for him to think we’re just friends.”

“Then we’ll have to fix that, won’t we?” Jack suggests, and although you do notice the glint in his eyes when he says it, you’re still not expecting him to lean forward and kiss you. The kiss is– startling, yes, but not bad, not at all, and when he finally breaks away and looks triumphantly over at the guard who’d been flirting with you, you get the feeling that Jack thought so too.

“I think we should do this all the time,” Jack whispers to you. “Maybe we should ask Danny to change our assignments around.”

“Actually,” a voice crackles over your earpieces, “I’d rather neither of you ever spoke to me again. If I have to think about you two making out one more time, I’ll pour bleach directly into my brain.”

You slap a hand over your mouth to stop from laughing. “Oh, no. Daniel, how long have our comms been on?”

“The whole time,” your showman says, “I hated all of it, thank you for asking.”

Jack snorts. “And you didn’t remind us to turn off our mics?”

“Merritt wanted to see if you’d actually commit enough to do it,” Danny says, sounding supremely unhappy. “Now we’re both traumatized. Just get your asses back here and never bring this up again.”

This time, you can’t hide your laugh. “Alright, we will. Try to stay away from the bleach in the meantime.”

“I make no promises,” Danny grumbles, sending you and Jack into a wave of laughter again.

Jack reaches up to switch off his own earpiece, then does the same for you, gently brushing the side of your face with his hand while he’s at it. “Well,” he says slowly, “We might as well make the most of our time right now, hadn’t we? I’d hate for our ticket money to go to waste.”

You grin. “Quit the theatrics and kiss me.”

Jack Wilder doesn’t usually do as told. This time, though, he makes an exception.

requested by @hiya-itsamber, i hope you enjoy!

now you see me tags: @mayfieldss

[castielli]

How to request:

Send your request featuring the character you want, the plot (+ANGST, FLUFF…) and anything I need to know about the reader.

MASTERLISTS:

MOVIES/TV SHOWS

KDRAMA/KPOP

OCs PROFILE:

@nathan-ocs

Fandoms I write for under the cut!

——————————————

NCIS

Timothy McGee

Jimmy Palmer

Nicholas Torres

CRIMINAL MINDS

Spencer Reid

Penelope Garcia (platonic🫶)

Luke Alvez

CALL OF DUTY (MW/WWII)

John Price

Soap MacTavish

Ghost Riley

Gaz Garrick

Alex Keller

Alejandro Vargas

Phillip Graves

Vladimir Makarov

Rudy Parra

Red Daniels

William Pierson

Joseph Turner

Robert Zussman

Frank Aiello

Drew Stiles

SHAMELESS

Ian Gallagher

Carl Gallagher

Lip Gallagher

Mickey Milkovich

Kevin Ball

THE WALKING DEAD (+TELLTALE GAME)

Rick Grimes

Daryl Dixon

Glenn Rhee

Negan Smith

Shane Walsh

Lee Everett

Kenny

Doug

Mark

STRANGER THINGS

Steve Harrington

Billy Hargrove

Robin Buckley (platonic)

Eddie Munson

Jim Hopper

Jonathan Byers

Peter/001

Jason Carver

Dimitri

THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY (I still need to finish the last season😊)

Viktor Hargreeves

Klaus Hargreeves

Diego Hargreeves

Number Five

Luther Hargreeves

Ben Hargreeves

SUPERNATURAL

Dean Winchester

Sam Winchester

Castiel

Crowley

Bobby (platonic)

Chuck

NOW YOU SEE ME

Jack Wilder

J. Daniel Atlas

Merritt McKinney

Dylan Rhodes

Chase McKinney

MARVEL (Avengers/X-men)

Wanda Maximoff

Tony Stark

Bruce Banner

Thor Odinson

Loki Laufeyson

Steve Rogers

Stephen Strange

Peter Parker (Tom/Andrew/Tobey)

Clint Barton

Deadpool

Bucky Barnes

Sam Wilson

Peter Quill

Quentin Beck/Mysterio

Eddie Brock/Venom

Druig

Ikaris

Charles Xavier

Erik Lehnsherr

Peter Maximoff

Wolverine

Scott Summers

Hank McCoy

Bobby Drake

Alex Summers

Phil Coulson

Marc Spector/Steven Grant/Jake Lockey

Scott Lang

Pietro Maximoff

Mobius M. Mobius

Matt Murdock

Shang-chi

STAR WARS

Anakin Skywalker

Luke Skywalker

Obi-Wan Kenobi

Kylo Ren

Poe Dameron

Finn

TEEN WOLF

Stiles Stilinski

Scott McCall

Derek Hale

Isaac Lahey

Jackson Whittemore

Peter Hale

Theo Raeken

Liam Dunbar

Jordan Parrish

Mason Hewitt

Danny Mahealani

Aiden Steiner

Ethan Steiner

Corey Bryant

THE BOYS IN THE BAND

Bernard

Harold

Hank

Donald

Cowboy

Alan McCarthy

Michael

Larry

Emory

WHITE COLLAR

Neal Caffrey

Peter Burke

Mozzie (platonic)

Clinton Jones

DIVERGENT

Peter

Caleb Prior

Four

HARRY POTTER

Neville Longbottom

Sirius Black

Cedric Diggory

Seamus Finnigan

Viktor Krum

Remus Lupin

Draco Malfoy

Tom Riddle

Charlie Weasley

Fred Weasley

George Weasley

Percy Weasley

Ron Weasley

Oliver Wood

FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM

Gellert Grindelwald (Mads Mikkelsen)

Newt Scamander

Credence Barebone

Theseus Scamander

Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law)

HUNGER GAMES

Peeta Mellark

Coriolanus Snow

Sejanus Plinth

MAZE RUNNER

Newt

Thomas

Gally

Minho

911 (and LONE STAR)

Evan Buckley (Buck)

Howie Han (Chimney)

Bobby Nash

Eddie Diaz

TK Strand

Carlos Reyes

Paul Strickland

Owen Strand

Jud Ryder

Mateo Chavez

RIVERDALE

Jughead Jones

FP Jones

Archie Andrews

Hiram Lodge

Sweet Pea

Fangs

Kevin Keller

Reggie Mantle

Chic

Moose Mason

BROOKLYN99

Jake Peralta

Terry Jeffords

All the others (platonic only)

CHRISTIAN BALE

Patrick Bateman (American Psycho)

Bruce Wayne (Batman)

PEDRO PASCAL

Joel Miller (TLOU)

Din Djarin (The Mandalorian)

Javi Gutierrez (The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent)

Javier Peña (Narcos)

Oberyn Martell (Game of Thrones)

Agent Whiskey (Kingsman)

Silva (Strange Way of Life)

Francisco Morales (Triple Frontier)

Marcus Moreno (We Can Be Heroes)

Dieter Bravo (The Bubble)

DETROIT BECOME HUMAN

Connor

RK900

Hank

Markus

Luther

Simon

Gavin

Josh

BARBIE

Ken (Ryan)

Ken (Simu)

Allan

SHERLOCK

Sherlock Holmes

John Watson

Jim Moriarty

Mycroft Holmes

FNAF (movie)

Mike Schmidt

Steve Raglan

SUITS

Harvey Specter

Mike Ross

LA CASA DE PAPEL

El Profesor

Berlín

Palermo

Denver

Río

I WON’T WRITE:

-Smut (for anyone)

-R*pe

-Female readers/GN readers

-Suic*de

-inc*st

-Crossdressing

-Romantic/Suggestive stories for underage characters (only platonic, basically)

If the character you wanted to request is not on the list, you can try and ask me anyways.

[royalydamned-archive]

Make Believe - act 1

(Merritt McKinney x Reader)

Summary: The Horsemen's plans are coming together, all according to schedule. One more step remains: taking you out as the possibility of leading the investigation. In order to get to you, one of them has to become your partner for the time being. That being said, Merritt didn't even expect to be part of the equation, let alone your ultimate choice.

-

OR: Merritt pretends to date you. Before knowing how, he starts to believe it's real too.

|AN|: I can't believe people are still reading the first Merritt fic (and so many!!!). I love this guy so much, I just love that lil' something Woody Harrelson adds to his characters, I don't care what anyone else says, it's attractive. Here's to me being THE Merritt writer.

Anyway, this was supposed to be a one-shot, but since I am dumb like this, it will be spread out into a few chapters, but it will allow me to write more parts (and again, make this longer than it needs to be but such is life).

_____________________

These were some of the strangest few weeks in Merritt's life. Undoubtedly not the weirdest but some of the weirdest. Maybe he will end up in prison, maybe he will finally prove something in his life, chances were 50-50. God, who was he kidding? They were likely 97-3, and he was massively fucked.

Well, at least it's going to be fun, right? Gotta go out with a bang.

"The most important part should be in motion." Pretending to be busy, Merritt quickly sat up as he heard Atlas burst through the door, laptop balanced only on his arm, furiously typing with the other. With every step and dab into its keyboard, the laptop swayed on its laughable support, it must have been that real magic they had promised him keeping that thing from crashing down. "Tressler's assistant contacted me about a meeting."

"Is he paying?" the man ignored his remark, unappreciative of the effort to lighten the mood, and rushed past him, already dialing the others. Not that they knew each other well enough, but that guy was a massive dick, that much was clear.

"What are you even doing here? It's a dump."

"It's filled with the warmth of comradeship and our effort, much homier than my apartment," Merritt smirked, watching Atlas run around in a mix of slight panic and thrill of success. "Jesus, Danny, you look so cute wagging your tail like that."

The only answer was to him was a disgusted look. Good enough, he thought to himself.

Daniel's phone rang for a few times, before the distinct sound of a voicemail came through, followed by a groan of frustration. God, if Merritt had known not being here would stress him out like that, he’d go for a nice long walk with a phone turned off – at least a little payback for the bossing around he had to endure from the guy. He wasn’t even aware they had a leader among them, let alone a self-appointed one. Maybe it was time for a mutiny. 

"Henley, come over to the apartment right now, we all need to talk." Canceling the call, Danny carelessly threw the phone on the small table, a bit too far to toss it like that, and ran his hand through his hair. "And where's Jack?"

"You should take a breath Danny-boy," Merritt said, teasingly.

"How about you help out? That would also be great."

"Whoa, I'm sensing hostility. Someone needs to let out some steam. You know I know a great girl you could– "

"I am not listening to that!" Daniel cut him off, already walking the opposite direction, hands thrown in the air.

"Hey, I'm just trying to help," he put his hands up in defense, fighting back a giggle. "It's not like Henley– "

"Henley what?" she asked, coming into the room, two paper cups in hand. She gave Merritt a pointed look, rising an eyebrow as she silently demanded an answer to whatever she had walked on in. If he knew the answer, he would have told her, but he hadn’t been given much to work with.

"Hey–"

"You're late," Daniel snapped, returning to the room, arms resting on his hips, the image reminding Merritt he truly is in their hideout more often than he would have like because somehow, it seemed normal.

“I’m not late, we don’t have a schedule. Here,” Henley handed Merritt one of the cups, on it with a black sharpie and a terrible handwriting was scribbled Baldy.

“Rude,” he complained with a frown to no one but himself as the two had already started arguing, and sat back onto the run-down couch him and Jack brought in last week since they were tired of sitting on the floor. It wasn’t bad, oh who was he lying to, they found it on the street, but at least it wasn’t the floor, despite both Henley and Atlas insisting they’d rather stand the whole time.

“Great, you’re late too!” Danny called out, breaking up the argument briefly when he noticed the youngest member in the doorway, who now stood frozen when all the attention turned to him.

“Sorry, I didn’t know I was supposed to come a specific hour,” Jack said, slowly moving to sit next to Merritt, who was delightfully watching the whole ordeal.

“Nobody did, kid,” he reassured him, receiving a nasty glare from the other.

“Alright, it doesn’t matter. Can we please start.” All four of them looked at each other in silence, and when nobody protested, Danny continued in much calmer manner. “So far, the most difficult part should be over. We have caught Tressler’s eye and if there are no unexpected surprises the Eye have not thought of – which I doubt – the rest of the Horsemen project will go smoothly.”

“That means that’s it, right?” Jack asked. “All we have to do is play along until we can go big enough with our shows.”

“No, absolutely not,” Atlas laughed dryly and grabbed his laptop, typing something furiously while explaining. “We still have to deal with the feds. Fortunately, the plan involves a clear way out with this. Most agents in there are described to be easily tricked with the right strategy and, of course, we have plenty. There’s a file on every single one of the people that might be involved and all of them have a pretty balanced record, some wins, significantly more loses, lucky for us, except one.”

“Perfect score. Might be fun to beat them,” Merritt said, looking around the room for support from the others. None came.

“Not really, we have to take them out of the game.”

“Whoa, hey, when we agreed to do this there was no mention of killing anyone,” Jack blurted out nervously.

“What? No, we’re killing anyone. Jesus. We’re going to make them not want to do the case, voluntarily take themselves out.”

“How would we do that? I suppose blackmail is off the table as well.” Danny shot Merritt an unamused glare and continued as if he hadn’t said anything.

“We need make them personally involved, so, I hope all of you are single, because one of us will date them as long as we need to.”

“How would we even get in contact with them?” Henley asked.

“Stalking, social media, dating sites– “ Merritt started counting on his fingers.

“And we have a general location of the area they live and spend time in. All we need is a few days of closer observation before we can narrow down some kind of a habit. Everybody has one. There, we will meet.”

“So, stalking it is, great choice.”

“What makes you think they even would be interested in any of us, even if we do find them?”

Danny turned the laptop over, showing your file, completed with a picture and general information. “Everybody will have to try, we have four shots at this, which are pretty favorable odds.”

“You guys can rest assured, very few can resist the good old McKinney charm.”

“Yeah, right. I was thinking more like Jack. Realistically speaking.”

As overdramatically as possible, Merritt placed a hand over his heart, faking shock. “You wound me, Daniel. I thought we had something.” The other man simply rolled his eyes, refusing the entertain him in such a situation – any situation, for that matter.  

“We are on the right track, let’s not screw it up with this.”

____________________________

“At least they’re hot,” Merritt stated, sitting tucked away in a booth, close enough to see you, yet far enough to remain hidden. The bar was pretty empty, and they seemed almost over-dressed – some more than others, he thought, watching Danny’s cry for help outfit – but the opportunity had presented itself for them. What was a better time to pick up a stranger sitting alone at the bar than Thursday evening, looking like they had just finished a magic show? Literally.

“Focus,” Atlas snapped, taking out a small stash of notes from the inner pocket of his suit jacket. Not creepy at all. “This has to work, everybody read the cards?”

“The completely legally obtained extremely private information about a person we have been following for the last six days?” Merritt replied, sarcastically, receiving a glare. “Yes, memorized it in a very non-creepy way, in tune with this mission.”

“It’s not a mission.”

“Definitely feels like a mission, no pressure,” he mumbled to himself, stealing a secret glance at you. You were looking at your phone, trying to hide a smile with your hand, half drank glass by your side. Something came across his mind. “Hey guys, what do we do if they’re taken?”

“What?” Danny froze and started flipping through the papers. “No, that would be incorrect, every source says they are single and have not found any close personal connections, of course excluding family.”

“Again, not creepy,” he commented off-handedly. “Have seriously nobody thought of this possibility?”

“Nobody had to think of it because it’s not a factor,” Danny shot back through clenched teeth, his foot under the table tapping in an anxious rhythm. Not so sure, huh? Merritt lifted his arm in defense.

“I guess we will have to trust the Eye. And the wizard behind the curtain. They know what they’re doing,” said Henley in a calm voice, gaze fixated to the spot you were sitting in. “So, who goes first?”

“Jack will,” Daniel replied, leaving to room for others to protest. “It’s our best bet.”

“Put that pretty face to a good use for us Jacky, if this doesn’t go well Danny here might have an aneurism.”

“I won’t– “ he glared at Merritt before taking a deep breath to calm the obvious nerves buzzing under his skin. “Alright, fine. Make fun of me if caring about doing well is so funny.”

“A bit,” Henley interjected, still watching you in case you moved and disappeared from their sight. For a moment, Merritt wondered whether you could feel her intense glare stabbing your back.

“Alright, I’m going.” Slowly, Jack rose from his seat, cringing at the loud sound his chair made when scraping against the floor, and before disappearing, flashed them a reassuring smile.

“God, I remember when I looked like that,” Merritt muttered, watching the kid make his way to you with a confident smile, leaning over the bar by your side and flashed you a charming smile. He said something, a greeting, a pick-up line – not that it mattered when one looked like him – and you smiled back, answering immediately and forgetting whatever it was so engaging on your phone.

“In 1938?”

“Hilarious Danny, has your mother never taught you respect towards your elders?”

“Guys, shut up.” They exchanged a silent look, a challenge neither of them really meant, before dropping it per Henley’s request – well, command really – and turned their focus back towards the bar.

They couldn’t hear you two, it was nothing but a mute movie, leaving them guessing what you’re talking about, whether it’s doing well or…well, how else would it go? Jack had his way with people. Merritt could be the one reading them, controlling them even, but he didn’t have the social talent that just couldn’t be learned. It was natural, came as breathing. Merritt could try and make them laugh, make them uncomfortable and intimidated by his skills to gain the upper hand in the conversation, but sometimes he thought about how it must have been, to enter a room and be instantly liked.

Jack leaned over, getting closer to you, to which you smiled again, telling him something and he acted like he was listening intently, nodding his head with serious expression on his face. Merritt watched you lick your lips, studying his face. How easy was that? A mere few minutes and he had you wrapped around his finger, saving their whole plan – until he wasn’t. Until he understandingly nodded, polite smile still gracing his features, and pushed himself off of the bar, returning back to the remaining three Horsemen waiting for him.

“Wh– Jack what happened?” Daniel asked, confused as Jack finally came close enough to hear them. The younger man only shrugged and took his beer, taking a short sip.

“Wasn’t interested,” he answered simply and slipped back into his seat.

“What do you mean ‘wasn’t interested’ that wasn’t the plan.”

“Hey I did all I could, I can’t force myself on them.”

Danny groaned into the palms of his hands, trying to calm down. It was fine, surely it was fine. Strange, but fine, there were three more people at the table that could try – three more shots at success, but this is not what they had expected. It should have been done instantly, sending their best man for this type of work. If he hadn’t succeeded, there wasn’t too much hope for the others.

“Alright, it’s OK. A slight hitch, nothing we have not encountered or will not encounter along the way yet.” Danny started talking quietly, more to himself than the others, trying to calm all the thoughts and possibilities racing through his head so fast Merritt saw steam coming out of his ears. “Henley, you should try it.”

“What about a please?” she shot back calmly, seemingly enjoying his little breakdown.

“Please, don’t do this right now,” he sighed, his leg under the table speeding up. Merritt took a sip of his drink, trying to hide the grin behind his glass, and watched Henley make her way towards you, un-effortlessly striking up a conversation.

“What was it that got you rejected anyway? Did you say something creepy? Did you slip and tell them their personal detail we so legally obtained?”

“No, they just said I wasn’t their type.”

“Oh, great, so Henley should be ok,” Danny said, suddenly looking relieved, and leaned over the table where you and Henley were already chatting, as if trying to hear your conversation. “Wait, what is she doing?”

“What?” Merritt mumbled, his head snapping towards the pair at the bar. “Oh, she’s leaving too.”

“Fuck,” he said, flipping through his notes once more, eyes scanning the words, trying to find what he had missed. “God, I can’t believe we’re going to fail before we can even execute the plan.”

“Hey, look at it from the bright side, maybe this is the fastest someone had failed trying to get into the Eye,” Merritt grinned and raised his glass, offering Danny a toast, but shrugged and finished the drink on his own when he just sent him an annoyed look. “I mean, we still have two more shots.”

“We are fucked,” Danny murmured under his breath, eyes unfocused, looking at particularly nothing, just the few weeks of their work flashing before them like war flash-backs. “I’ll go now.”

Before Henley could have arrived back to the table, Daniel was already leaving, making his way towards you. With a charming smile, he leaned over the bar, but before he could open his mouth, with a friendly expression, you shook your head, presumably sending him away.

“Oh, ouch,” Merritt winced watching the interaction. “That one had to sting.”

“Eh, he got over worse,” Henley said, sitting down next to him, the glass in her hand refilled. “I take it you’re our last chance?”

“It all comes down to the McKinney charm. Like I said.”

“I don’t doubt its efficiency.” He winked at her as they shared a brief look of amusement before Daniel managed to get to the table.

“I’m going for a smoke first.”

“Are you kidding, everything now depends on you.” Merritt grimaced as he heard Danny’s voice, shouting in a shushed tone, way before he could feel his presence behind him, he was like a walking ball of stress that one could hear vibrating even from a distance. And moved surprisingly very quickly, like a little hamster. 

“I bet that one must have hurt to admit,” he grinned teasingly, and took out a box of cigarettes out of his pocket, waving way too close to the other’s face before his hand got slapped away. “Give me five minutes, I’m sure they need a break too.”

Without waiting for an answer, he pushed past him, away from the overwhelming chatter and into a silent back alley. Nothing but a distant traffic and cold night surrounding him and suddenly, he felt like he could breathe again, every exhale visible in the cool air even before he managed to light one of his cigarettes.

Not even a year ago, he was just one bad evening away from quitting magic all together, losing the passion to the struggle of his everyday life, and to the fact he indeed, didn’t have any money. At all. Who besides middle-aged bored women believed in hypnotism anyway these days? No one. His stream had dried out, days of his glory way in the past and he just seemed like he had no hope, no future.

Barely he managed to blink, he was a part of a straight up insane scheme, one that could only had been set up by a complete madman – or a slightly insane genius – either way, whether the Eye exists or it’s one of the best manipulation tactics he had ever seen, he was well on his way on becoming a criminal for a possibility. Maybe even just an idea.

Maybe, at the end of this all, it would be revealed the Eye is just a concept, the work they have done and the justice – or well, so it appeared – they have brought. With Merritt’s luck, he will end up in jail, the warm feeling of using his “power” for the “greater good” the only thing warming him while he would be sleeping on a metal bench with a shared toilet right next to his head.

The door of the bar opened, and his head turned towards the sudden sound, a lone cigarette he had taken out of the box loosely hanging between his fingers. Before he could register what had happened, before he could he could have caught up on the reality he found himself standing in, one where you walked out the bar door, mumbling something about the weather under your breath as the unfavorable temperature hit you, your eyes landed on him, stopping for a few curious seconds before you slowly approached him.

“Hey, you were with the three others that took turns on me tonight.”

Slightly thrown off, he straightened his posture and fixed his hat. “So you noticed, huh?” he said with a smirk, surprised when you came even closer.

“Was very hard to miss. You had a bet or something?”

“God no, but there was an almost fight about who gets to try their luck first. You know how hard it is to come across good-looking people lately. We are a rare breed.”

You laughed, leaning against the wall next to him, arms crossed over your chest and one leg propped up. “Oh? A humble one, aren’t you?”

He just shrugged, putting the almost forgotten cigarette to his lips and lighting it. After a big drag, he rested his head on the cold brick wall. Watching you from the corner of his eye. In anyone else’s mind, the stars had aligned, the last struck of luck – a destiny maybe, but despite being a magician, Merritt didn’t believe in magic.

“I have to ask though,” you said into the silence, turning your head towards him, studying his profile for a few seconds. He hummed in response, his own head slightly rolling to the side, straining his neck so he could watch you directly. Notice every detail he needed, every slight twitch of a muscle, every time you avoided direct eye contact. He couldn’t forget this wasn’t his everyday life, this wasn’t a fun banter with a hope for a night with a happy ending. This mattered, and even though he would rather lick the inside of Atlas’ mouth than to admit it, it scared him. “Why were you the only one that didn’t come to try?”

“I am trying right now, aren’t I?”

“Are you really?”

“That depends.” Now, he turned his whole body towards you, the shoulder he was leaning his whole weight on suddenly painfully crushed by the wall, but that way, he could see your fully – your form, your face, the subtle gestures of your fingers and the way you stood (leaned) in front of him. “Is it working?”

“And if it is?” you asked, voice low, and Merritt had to look away for a second to fight a smirk.

“Then I’ll have to run back to my colleagues there and gloat a little, I’m afraid.” You laughed again, Merritt found himself enjoying the sound, not many even had such a positive reaction, if any, truly. “But maybe I could invite you somewhere, ideally less cold. With food as a bonus?”

“I’d like that.”

Tags: @wicked1will0sparkles

[ongaku-ato-kakikomi]

Can I have a contortionist! Reader who was daniel atlas's assistant but he let her go because she's not what an assistant looks like in his mind. He is basically a douchebag about it

Henley drops her luggage on the floor before she flops onto the room’s sofa, a groan of relief escaping her throat as she feels the soft pillows on her back. “Gosh, that flight was so long!”

Merritt chuckles at her behavior, sitting on the left emtpy space right next to her feet. “Good thing we now have that nice little hotel room to relax! Thank to our mysterious employer...”

“I don’t know about you guys...” Daniel walks through the room with a large grin, his eyes already looking at the mini-fridge in the corner. “... but I’m starving! I could eat a horse right now!”

“Hey, look!” Jack smiles wildly as he approaches a tiny box set up in the middle of the room, his eyes lighting up as he picks something that was put on top of it. “A new card!”

His three comrads immediately turn their heads towards him as soon as he pronounces those last words, Jack turning the card around so he can read the written words out loud.

“Enjoy getting to know your new partner.” Jack frowns as soon as he reads those words, his eyes turning towards his as-confused teammates. “We’re getting a new partner?”

Daniel chuckles, showing off the empty room. “Do you see anyone else here?-”

He gives out a shriek when the box violently jumps, as if something inside was trying to get out. Jack doesn’t waste a second to step away from him, his eyes wide with fear. Both Henley and Merritt stand up from the couch, slowly taking a few steps back as they observe the box move some more.

“Gah...!” Jack screams when the box opens, the young man taking a few more steps back. “What the hell is that...?”

He rapidly points at a human leg coming out of the box, soon touching the ground a few seconds later. They all silently watch an arm come out next, unsure how a human being could even fit inside such a tiny box, only for to tense up when they see a human head come out.

“Hi.” You say those words with a wide grin, pulling your other arm out as you speak. “Nice to meet you all.”

“Oh-oh-oh!” Merritt’s eyes gleam up as he grins wildly, pointing at you with a certain pride on his face. “A contortionist! That should come handy!”

“Finally, another girl.” Henley’s lips stretch out onto her cheeks, her head giving a few looks to her partners. “No offence, but the team’s had an awful smell of testosterone.”

“Wow, dude!” Jack walks towards with a shaky hand, trying to lower his heartbeat when you take it. “That’s incredible! How long were you in that box?”

“An hour or two, I’d say.” You use Jack’s help to get out of the box, a shiver running down his spine when he sees your arms and legs move in an inhuman way. “Just long enough to get cozy in there.”

You turn your head towards the fourth member of the team, your smile faltering down to an annoyed frown.

“Hi, Daniel.”

He blinks a few times at you, annoyance coming to his features a few seconds later. “Hi, (Y/N).”

“Whoa, wait a second.” Merritt points at the two of you, his lips stretching out onto his cheeks. “I’m sensing a little history there.”

“Yeah, um...” Daniel makes a move with his hand, trying to find the right words. “(Y/N) used to be my assistant back in the day...”

Henley gives out a gasp. “You too?”

“Yeah, I was.” You glare at Daniel, your teeth tightening. “Until he fired me.”

Gasps are heard around the room, his eyes falling onto Daniel as soon as you speak out those words.

Merritt squints his eyes at him. “You fired her?”

“Dude, she literally crawled out of a tiny box!” Jack points at the empty box behind you, confused and in complete disbelief. “She must have been awesome!”

“What?” Henley crosses her arms over her chest, an annoyed look spread onto her features. “She wasn’t pretty enough for you?”

“Um...” Daniel scratches the back of his head, his mouth opening and closing a few times. “Not exactly...”

“He said ‘I didn’t look like an assistant’.” You emphase your words by mimicking air quotes with your fingers, your eyes glaring at the brown-haired man. “Thought it’d be better if I stopped the contortionist act and wore more sexy outfits.”

“Okay...” He gives out a hard smile, frustration spreading on his face. “I did not say it like that.”

Henley scoffs. “Yeah, right. It was probably worse.”

“Oh, will you stop?” Daniel gives everyone an annoyed look. “She was creeping out the customers. If she had listened to me, I wouldn’t have need to fire her!”

“Yeah, keep saying that...” You make a point to walk past him so you can get to the kitchen, your eyes looking him up and down with a disgusted look on your face. “I’m sure it helps you sleep at night.”

His hard smile widens. “As a matter of fact, I sleep very well. Thank you for asking.”

You silently mock him as he speaks, making a stupid face as you do so. That’s enough to bring a snort out of Merritt while both Jack and Henley smirks, leaving Daniel with a frustrated look.

“Are you... are you seriously mocking me right now?” He squints his eyes at you, finding this situation unbelievable. “We’re not five, (Y/N)!”

“Yet you act like you are.” You open the mini-fridge to take a look inside, your hand reaching to pick a water bottle. “You’d better grow if we’re gonna be partners again... unless you wanna fire me again. Oh, wait!” You turn your head at him, a hard grin on your face. “You can’t.”

Daniel groans as he hears his partners snicker behind his back, a flush of embarrassment taking over his cheeks. “Are you gonna be like this the entire time?”

“You mean if I’m gonna enjoy making you miserable?” You walk past him a second time, sending him a wink on your way over to your new partners. “Why, yes, I will.”

“Oh, I love you already.” Henley intertwines her arm with yours, already leading you to one of the other rooms. “Now, please tell me every douchebag thing Daniel as done.”

“Hey!” Daniel screams out that word just as you two disappear, his eyes filled with an unreadable expression. “Hey, I forbid you two to talk about me!”

“Man...” Jack snorts, his arms crossed over his chest as he grins at Daniel. “You’ve really got a bad streaks with girls, don’t you?”

Daniel glares at him. “Save it.”

“Ooh.” Merritt wiggles his eyebrows, sharing a teasing grin with Jack. “The man’s sensitive.”

“Oh, shut up.” Daniel grumbles out those words as he walks towards the room’s exit, no longer wanting to stay around any of them. “I’m going to the bar. Don’t wait for me.”

His teammates laugh at his reaction just as he walks out, the noise still being heard through the door.

The worse thing: seeing you again only brought his guilt back.

[h0nkch0c0late]

J. Daniel Atlas

Now You See Me x Reader

Summary: at first Atlas just wanted to see her scared when they got on the Ferris wheel, considering her fear of heights. But once they got to the top, everything changed.

"No, no, no, NO! You are not leaving me here with Atlas!" Y/n stated, looking towards Merritt, Jack, and Henley, her finger pointed angrily at Daniel who had a wide smirk on his face.

"Oh, Come on Y/n I thought we were on a first name basis? We've known each other for three years." Daniel spoke up.

Y/n's eyes narrowed as she turned her head towards the man, "first name basis? We literally don't know your actual first name! And plus, you don't even deserve it! I'm absolutely sick and tired of your cocky, know-it-all attitude! And I know I've delt with it for three years but you've gotten especially irritating lately!"

Daniel threw his hands up defensively, "woah Ok calm down babe-"

"Do not call me babe I swear to God I will kill you Atlas." Y/n snapped.

The rest of the group had separated from each other, each going to different rides and leaving Y/n alone with Daniel.

Daniel looked away from Y/n to see the line for the Ferris Wheel moving up, his smirk was kept on his face as he suddenly grabbed her wrist, a thought coming into his mind.

"Hey! Let go of me Atlas! What the hell are you doing?!" Y/n grunted as he pulled her further into the line.

"We ourselves are going on the Ferris Wheel." Daniel said calmly, pretending not to notice her fierce attitude.

Y/n looked at him confused, "what do you mean "ourselves"-" She cut herself off when you noticed that the others were gone, "-oh. God damnit I told them not to leave me with you." She grumbled in annoyance.

Daniel chuckled, a dangerous glint in his eye as they walked closer to the Ferris Wheel as the line moved up.

Y/n looked up at the Ferris Wheel, her gut doing flips as her nerves took over. To say she was scared of heights is an understatement. In fact, she's absolutely terrified of them. She wouldn't have come if it weren't for Merrit and Jack teasing her so much about it. She tried her best to hide it from Daniel, but the uncontrollable slight shaking of her hands didn't exactly help her.

Daniel looked over at her, "oh cmon L/n you'll be fine. There's nothing to worry about, you'll be locked in tight with me right by your side." He remarked.

Y/n's eyes narrowed at him, "oh good, a dream come true. Being trapped up there with you." She responded sarcastically.

He just smirked at her.

She groaned, rolling her eyes and turning her head away from him, looking down at the ground as they moved forward again. "There are so many bad things that could happen. The wheel could break down right when we're at the top, our seat could come loose and fall off, and-and-UGH. There's just so many things that could go wrong." She whined.

Daniel rolled his eyes at her, "you don't always have to be such a worry wart."

Y/n stayed silent, keeping her eyes on the ground, her hands shoved in her sweater pocket. "Im not a worry wart I'm just...scared of heights." She mumbled, so quietly that she hoped Daniel hadn't heard.

Unfortunately for her he had. "You're afraid of heights??? How did I not know this about you?"

Y/n sighed with a shrug of her shoulders, "I just didn't want you to know because I didn't want this to be added on the list for something to tease me about. I already get teased enough by Merritt and Jack, I didn't want you to join in. God I was lucky that you were too busy looking at yourself in the bathroom mirror to hear us."

Daniel chuckled, "oh, you'll be fine. Hey, maybe this experience will help you get over it." He joked.

Y/n glared at him, "If I die on the Ferris Wheel I'm blaming it all on you, Atlas." She punched him on the shoulder lightly.

Daniel smirked, "go ahead. Nothing will go wrong though."

Y/n scoffed as she saw it was their turn to get onto one of the seats and yanked Daniel's arm, pulling him with her quickly and sitting down with a huff.

Daniel chuckled at her for the fourth or fifth time that night and put the bar down over their legs, making sure they were secure.

Y/n said nothing, her eyes focused on her lap as she tried not to look down. They hadn't gotten very far up yet, but the thought was still scary.

Daniel looked at the woman, judging her slightly. "We're not that far up yet. You can look up."

Y/n shook her head, "I don't care. I don't wanna be here in the first place. Especially with you." She grumbled.

Daniel raised an eyebrow, "if you didn't want to be here, Why'd you go?"

Y/n shrugged, "I just...I didn't like Merritt and Jack teasing me so much. And when they said that I would be too much of a wuss to go on the Ferris Wheel at the fair I just-i just needed to prove them wrong. It would have been better if one of them had gone on with me, but of course the douchebags we call our friends just had to leave me with you. GOD and they know how much I hate you!" She said in frustration, though trying not to yell because she didn't want to ruin everyone else's fun who were on the wheel.

Daniel went silent as he stared at her. She really hated him that much? I mean yeah he gets why she wouldn't like him because of his cocky attitude and always wanting to be right but...hate? Was he really that mean to her to make her hate him so much?

Y/n looked up when she didn't hear anything come from him, "what? You finally don't have a snarky remark, Atlas? You've finally run out of things to say?" She challenged.

Daniel blinked, snapping himself out of his thoughts, replacing his stoic expression expression a smirk, "what have I said about you calling me Atlas?"

"You can tell me I can call you by your first name all you want but that won't make me call you that." Y/n crossed her arms.

They were almost to the top, Y/n completely unaware as her focus was on Daniel.

Though they were already close due to the build of the seat, Daniel had somehow found a way to get closer yet not close enough for their noses to touch. "Well, I am very capable of finding ways to do everything. I'm sure I can find a way for you to start calling me by my first name." He whispered just loud enough for her to hear.

Y/n went silent, her cheeks starting to heat up as she noticed how close he was. They were staring into each other's eyes, neither noticing how the gap between them was getting smaller as they leaned in closer.

But before anything could happen Y/n pulled away, pushing Daniel's chest so they could be farther apart again.

She looked away from him, hoping to avoid eye contact but it's kind of hard when the guy she is now trying to ignore hasnt stopped his staring.

Y/n looked up at the sky, looking everywhere but Daniel and the ground. "Stop staring at me Atlas it's rude." She grumbled.

Daniel shrugged, looking down at the ground he could tell that they were all the way at the top and so far nothing has gone wrong. "Whatever. Hey look! We're all the way at the top and have we fallen out of our seat yet?"

Y/n's head slowly turned and she looked down to the ground, seeing he was right. "...No."

"Has the wheel broken down and made us stuck up here?" He just loved to tease her.

Y/n shook her head slightly, "no b-"

They spoke too soon. As soon as the words came out of their mouths the Ferris Wheel suddenly stopped, making everyone on the ride gasp in shock and surprise. Whispers from some of them could be heard.

Y/n's breath hitches at the sudden stop, her hands automatically finding their way to Daniel's arm in fear.

Daniel looks at her with a raised brow and a slight smirk, although it fell when he saw how terrified she looked. "Your okay, it's fine." He reassured.

Y/n turned her head towards him, her eyes looking at him in confusion, he's suddenly acting nice to her which is very out of character for him.

The tension between them started to rise again as their eyes locked, neither of them being able to look away.

Daniel decided to break the strong silence, "we should kiss."

"Yeah, we should." Y/n agreed, unwrapping her hands from his arm.

And without any hesitation they both leaned in, Daniel cupping her face in his hands as Y/n put her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her as much as she could to close the gap between them, though there wasn't much in the first place.

All previous thoughts left the woman's head and were replaced with the thought of how his hands felt against her cheeks, the way she could feel his lips on her own. And, well, which led to some not so child friendly thoughts come through.

They only stopped when they felt the wheel start to move again and cheers coming from the people below and the people on the other seats (well, mostly it was actually because because the two needed oxygen but anyways).

They pulled away from each other smiling as they reached reached ground.

They got out of their seats, holding each other's hands as they caught sight of their friends, who had gathered back to the Ferris Wheel to see what all the commotion was about, to which they saw the kiss between the two magicians.

Each of them had smirks on their faces, Merritt going to say something before Y/n cut him off.

"We don't speak of what just happened. Okay? I-" Y/n started to speak.

Daniel cut her off, "WE don't need to hear any of your opinions, because we know what you're going to say."

Y/n nodded, "now, let's go shall we?"

They all agreed, starting to walk to the exit, Y/n and Daniel behind the group.

Daniel leaned in and whispered into her ear, "do you wanna finish what we started?"

Y/n smirked, "of course I do." She whispered back.

"Your room or mine?"

"Yours."

"Good enough for me."

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

God I really hoped this all saved 😭😭😭😭 sorry for the crappy ending but I didn't know how to really end it and it was getting really long. Also if you saw me post it before when it had no ending bc it didn't save...no u didn't.

[jb3islife]

Love is Like a Playing Card (J. Daniel Atlas) Chapter II

“Sutton? Sutton?”

Sutton heard the voices, as fuzzy as they sounded. Her vision was still spinning. She felt herself moving, standing on her feet. Her legs lifted with a weight she never felt before.

“Sutton, honey! Please!” Henley’s voice choked out. 

“No.” Sutton felt the words leave her throat, not sure if they actually made it past her lips.

Sutton felt the cool sensation of the doorknob in her hand. She felt her wrist bones crunch as she turned it, every involuntary movement suddenly aware to her. She heard the crash of a door behind her, her body turning to lock the door. Her body slid into a sitting position on the floor, the soft feeling of the mattress hit her back. Arms wrapping around her legs, she felt her body suddenly fall to the side.

“Maybe it will all go away,” Sutton whispered to herself, her eyes closing, “and Henley won’t leave me.”

~~

“I can’t leave her alone,” Jack stated, getting up to follow Sutton after the door crashed shut.

“No, Jack,” Henley told him. “Let her sleep through this.”

“Excuse me?” Danny yelled, annoyance and anger laced in his voice. “You’re going to leave without actually speaking to Sutton? Your cousin? The one person in this room who loves all of us unconditionally?”

Henley huffed, wiping at her tears. “Maybe it’s for the best, Danny.” She stood, moving toward the door. 

“Like hell it is!” Merritt exclaimed, standing in her path. “I told you I respected your decision, Henley, on one condition- give Sutton the closure she deserves. If you walk out this door without doing that, I promise you, that girl is never going to speak to you again.”

Henley turned around, tears in her eyes once more. She looked at Danny, his hands in a ball in front of him, his jaw clenching and unclenching. Despite her better judgement, Henley sat beside him. 

“I’m sorry,” she told Danny, her voice small. When Danny didn’t look at her, Henley placed her hands on his. “Danny, I have my reasons. I’m not doing this to hurt Sutton.”

Danny swallowed, shaking his head. “What reason could be great enough that you would leave Sutton, Henley?”

Henley glanced at Merritt and Jack. They nodded, signaling her to tell Danny the truth. Henley huffed. “I want more, Danny. There is more to life than magic and secret societies. I want to find someone who loves me the way that you love Sutton.”

Danny looked at her, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. “I-I’m not even sure what that is supposed to mean.”

Henley chuckled lightly, smiling to herself, amused by Danny’s inability to see how great his affection for Sutton is. “Danny, how can I find someone who loves me if I’m in hiding? You and Sutton have known each other from the start of this crazy journey. What am I supposed to do? Tell the guy, “Oh, by the way, I robbed a bank,” on the first date?”

“You know,” Merritt interjected, “that’s really like a fifth date thing. Even better, I already know your history!” He opened his arms for a hug. Jack laughed.

“Anyway,” Henley said, rolling her eyes, “it’s just not possible. After watching you and Sutton these past two years, I have really fallen in love with the idea of having someone to love me, maybe even a family.”

“But, we are a family,” Danny stated, not even registering what he was saying

Henley put her hand on her heart, tears threatening to fall once more. “You will always be my family.” She looked at Jack, Merritt, and Dylan. “You’re all my crazy, messed up, criminal family.” They all chuckled. “And maybe,” she looked back at Danny, placing her hands around his once more, “maybe someday, we will be a family in that official-type of way.”

Danny looked over at her, a smirk crawling across his lips. “Yeah, maybe someday.”

~~

“Sutton? Sutton?” 

Sutton threw her hands over her ears. She was hearing the voices again. A hand touched her shoulder, forcing Sutton’s eyes open.

“Hey, beautiful,” Danny smiled down at her. “How are you feeling?” he asked, sitting down on the floor beside her.

Sutton rubbed her eyes and let out a heavy sigh. “It wasn’t a dream, was it?” she asked, sitting up beside Danny. 

“No, baby,” Danny stated, moving the hair out of Sutton’s face. He kissed her forehead. “I’m sorry.” Danny took Sutton’s hand, rubbing the back of it with his thumb. “You need to hear Henley out.”

Sutton lifted her eyes to Danny’s. “Did she tell you?”

Danny nodded. “She has her reasons, Sut. Just listen.”

Sutton sighed, leaning her head into the crook of Danny’s neck. “But are they good reasons?”

Danny gave a slight chuckle, running a hand up and down Sutton’s spine. “Better than I would have thought.”

Sutton leaned back, studying Dann’s expression. Deciding he was being sincere, she pecked his lips. Danny helped Sutton up off the closet floor, wrapping her tightly in a hug.

“Whatever it is,” Sutton spoke, “it won’t change us. Right?”

Danny was caught off guard by her question. Sucking in a breath, he said, “Never.”

[art-ro-vert]

Danny/Dylan

Posted NYSM fanfiction to the ao3. Go check it out. Not sure if this fandom is still alive😅

The Worst of It by Lana_Rav

Tags: J. Daniel Atlas/Dylan RhodesJ. Daniel AtlasDylan RhodesMerritt McKinneyLula MayJack WilderAmbiguous/Open EndingAngstEmotional Hurt/ComfortAngst with a Happy EndingFriendshipHugsThe Horsemen as FamilyPre-SlashCanon CompliantNear Death ExperiencesPost-CanonSlow Burn

Summery: After the events in Macao Daniel has issues. Merritt helps Dylan to make it up to Danny before it's too late.

Basically, Danny is blaming himself over everything that happened, and Dylan doesn't know how to show his feelings.

[dannyyatlas]

Merritt: Danny, you’ve been ignoring all my texts!

Dylan: that’s funny, he calls me every night to make sure I actually get to sleep.

Danny, whispering and turning red: Dylan-

Dylan: Oh! Uh, I mean not. Definitely not. Danny definitely doesn’t do that. Nope.

[hermionegalathynius]

Found Family (3/?)

Fandom: Now You See Me

Pairing: Daniel Atlas x Reader

Warnings: none really, just Lula’s fake severed hand.

Part 2 Part 4

Your alarm woke you up at seven o’clock on the morning of the big day. 

  Stretching out your stiff muscles, you threw on a wooly blue jumper and made your way down the hall to the main room. Danny was already moving about the kitchen, clad in tracksuit pants and a unzipped hoodie over a T-shirt, making you both coffee. It had become a routine for the two of you to drink coffee together in the mornings. Conversation occasionally accompanied the tradition, but usually you just sat in comfortable silence and you both slowly woke up. 

  Today was different though. It was clear as soon as he handed you your Yoda mug full of that life-saving substance that he had a few things to discuss. 

  “Morning,” you greeted softly, knowing if you didn’t he would probably just launch right in to whatever topic he had in mind. 

  “Morning,” he said, sitting down opposite you at the kitchen table. 

  Taking a sip, you quirked a brow at him, “Alright Danny, spit it out.”

  He nodded, stalling for a brief moment by sipping from his own mug, “Are you feeling okay? About today, I mean.”

  You gave him a teasing smile, “Why? You worried about me, Atlas?”

  He didn’t answer, opting instead to take another sip of his coffee. He is worried about me, you realised with no small amount of warmth. 

  “I’m okay, Danny. Really,” you said gently, “It’s not my first rodeo.”

  “This uh… this isn’t like any other show though,” he mused, fishing his deck of cards out of the pocket of his hoodie and mindlessly shuffling the cards. You watched, mesmerised by the fluidity of his movements and the ease at which the cards flipped between his fingers. 

  “I know. After all this Lula and I will officially be fugitives of the law, just like you, Jack and Merritt. But we knew what we were signing up to, Danny. I’ve made my choice and I’m sticking with it.”

  Swallowing he nodded, placing the cards down on the table. With a grin you grabbed them, performing your own shuffling ritual and spreading them out on the table skilfully.

  “Pick a card, and look at it.”

  He chuckled, leaning forward to pluck one from the spread. After a single glance, he placed it back in a different spot. 

  “Now shuffle it yourself,” you instructed, nodding towards the cards.

  “You know it’s not a mystery to me, right?” He reminded you as he shuffled.

  You winked, “I know, but it’s still fun. Who else can say the J Daniel Atlas was the volunteer for one of their magic tricks?”

  With a jerk of his eyebrows and that small knowing smile of his, he placed the deck down on the table again, “Fair enough.”

  Grabbing the deck, you chucked it into the air behind you, eyes trained on Danny as the cards fluttered to the floor. 

  “And the point of that was…” he trailed off, leaning back in his chair, the epitome of carefree. 

  Flicking your wrist, a playing card appeared in your hand for him to see, “Was this your card?”

  “That’s actually pretty good,” he admitted, “I didn’t even see your slight of hand.”

  “But you know how I did it,” you stated, not meaning it as a question at all. 

  “Naturally.”

  The two of you finished your coffee and got ready to meet the others at Dylan’s place. Knowing you wouldn’t have time to change properly before the show, you got into the outfit you were to perform in. It consisted of a black halter top tucked into a slater skirt with opaque tights and your leather jacket. 

  Applying a bit of mascara and eyeliner to finish it off, you walked out of your room to wait for Danny to finish up putting on his numerous disguises.

  “Woah,” he muttered as he stepped into the main room and caught sight of you leaning against the kitchen table, “you clean up nice.”

  Your eyes widened and a blush made its way onto your face. Through your spiralling thoughts and nerves about what you were going to take on today, you hadn’t thought about what Danny’s reaction would be to your being dressed up. 

  “Uh, thanks,” you mumbled, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear, “We should probably go.”

  “Yeah, let me just grab my keys.”

  ———

  Two hours later you, Merritt and Lula waited in the van parked strategically for a getaway. 

  “I have to go in 5 minutes, so any last advice,” you asked, trying to keep your breathing even. 

  “Have confidence in your own abilities,” Danny said, meeting your gaze from where he sat opposite you, “These past few weeks have proven that you’re skilled at magic and good at adapting to your situation.”

  Your breathing relaxed as you gazed at him, a grateful smile blooming across your face, “Thanks, Danny. That means a lot.”

  He shrugged, the corner of his mouth quirking up, “It’s the truth.”

  “Oh my god, my sister’s gonna get with Atlas before I get with Jack,” Lula huffed, throwing her head against the headrest of the passenger seat. 

  “I’m sorry, but was that not obvious from the first time they interacted?” Merritt drawled. 

  Your face was red. You were sure you looked like a tomato. 

  “Can we all just focus, please?” Danny snapped, then with a quick glance at you, “You should probably get going.”

  You nodded, “Yeah, okay. I’ll see you guys in there.”

  “Break a leg,” Merritt called, not bothering to turn around. 

  “Yeah, good luck Y/nn!” Lula said, using the nickname that up until this moment you had hoped the other Horsemen would never hear. 

  Sighing, you climbed out the back of the van and gave Danny one last smile, “So long, Atlas.”

  He just winked, “I’ll see you on stage.”

  Then you were off, walking at a natural pace to the front of the building. Grabbing a colourful silk scarf and a large pair of sunglasses, you donned them, hoping they took enough attention away from your features so no one recognised you later on. The front doors were automatic and slid open as you neared them. Once inside you were instantly surrounded by the hum of chatter and the beep of metal detectors. 

  There was a line to check in with the security guards, and you joined the one to the far left. 

  “Keys, cell phones, iPads in the bin,” a familiar voice was saying as you neared the front of the queue, “Thank you sir.”

  The line moved on and the woman in front of you placed her bag on the conveyor belt, “Can’t have you texting, tweeting, recording, or… eating.”

  Jack held up a banana he’d grabbed from the woman’s bag with an apologetic smile, “Sorry, we will take very good care of it for you.”

  She walked off and you stepped forward. 

  “Morning miss, can I see your employee badge?” Jack asked, the corner of his mouth tilting up in a knowing smirk. You tried not to smile back at him. 

  “I um… I was actually sent an email by Octa. I’m a vlogger…?” you said, holding up your phone with the forged email displayed on the screen.

  “Oh, great, let me just see…” Jack said, making a show of inspecting the email, “Everything seems about right, just place your bag down and come right through.”

  Then you were off again, palming the earpiece Jack hand slipped you once you were through the metal detector and placing it in your ear. 

  “Dylan, I’m in,” you whispered into your arm as you tugged off the scarf and sunglasses, depositing them in the nearest bin.

  “Great, so is Jack. Atlas, you’re up.”

  “No, Dylan I can’t,” Danny said, distress evident in his tone. 

  “Why, what’s the problem?”

  “No no no, there’s too many people, I can’t-“

  “Atlas, they got Owen landing now!” Dylan ordered. 

  “Okay.”

  You took a deep breath, heading through a door into a big room with loads of tables and chairs.  There was what seemed like a buffet along one end manned by immaculate-looking people in chef uniforms. You caught sight of a flash of dark hair and your sister winked at you. 

  Moving to a corner, you made a show of walking along the side, admiring the displays of technology while keeping an eye on Lula. 

  “Atlas, the stooge has left the building,” Jack’s voice came over the coms. 

  “The circuit board is ours, I am moving backstage,” Danny informed.

  Taking a deep breath, you made eye contact with Lula who was adjusting her chefs hat.

  “Alright, Lula,” Dylan said, “Show these guys what you’re made of.”

  You watched as your sister took a deep breath and hurried over to the meat counter, interrupting the man with the saw. 

  “I can take over from here,” she said, smiling at him, “Clark says your on a break.”

  He frowned, “What break? Who’s Clark?”

  Lula laughed, “Who’s Clark! That’s funny… you imagine if I told Roger that? He’d freak out!”

  She punctuated her sentence by spraying something on the meat that created a sudden puff of flame. 

  “Don’t do that!” The man exclaimed, reaching out his hand as if to physically restrain her. 

  “What?!” 

  You took this as your cue to begin drifting towards the counter, still gazing speculatively at the displays. 

  “Who the hell is Roger?” The man continued.

  “Does Lisa know that you don’t know Roger?” your sister continued, her strategically baffled expression flustering the poor man. 

  “I don’t know who Lisa is.”

  “Are you kidding me man, you don’t know who Lisa is now?”

  “No I don’t.”

  “Oh my god.”

  “Just get away!”

  “No give me that! Don’t make me have to go to Brian!”

  “I don’t know who that is! This is a dangerous tool, maybe you should-“

  “Why are you acting like thi- aaahhh!” Lula screamed. 

  “That’s my cue,” you whispered, head shooting up just in time to see the saw dig into your sister’s arm. 

  Grabbing your first aid kit from your bag, you hurried over to the panicking chefs with your sister screaming in agony in the middle. 

  “Move please! Move! Paramedic coming through!” You commanded, pushing through the crowd of white uniforms. 

  “Someone hand me a towel!” You instructed, holding out your hand as you gripped Lula’s arm. 

  Somehow a black napkin made its way into your hand and you began tying it around the wound. 

  “Alright, try to stay calm, Miss. I’m going to take you to the bathrooms to get this cleaned up and looked after,” you said loudly, trying to draw as much attention to the commotion as possible. Out of the corner of your eye you saw Merritt lead Owens away. Good, the distraction was working. 

  “What is this? A miracle towel?” Lula was muttering, “You know what? This has shown me that I’m not cut out for this kind of work!”

  With that, she slapped the man she’d been arguing with across the chest and allowed you to lead her away. 

  “Thank you, and goodbye!” She exclaimed, swinging her ‘injured’ arm and causing the fake severed hand to fling across the space and land in the meat spread. People gasped in disgust as the two of you quickly hurried out of sight. 

  “Nice job,” you whispered to her as you entered the bathrooms, checking to make sure it was empty before helping Lula out of her chef uniform and taking off your own floor length coat to reveal your leather jacket. 

  “You too. Now let’s go do what we’re actually good at,” she said with a grin before rushing out and down the corridor to the backstage area. With an amused shake of your head, you followed her, combat boots beating against the tiled floor. 

  Once backstage, you stopped next to Jack who was saying to your sister, “I’m actually nervous, and I’m not even going on stage.”

  “You know, some say it helps — when your nervous — to picture each other naked,” she said, making you sigh. 

  “It’s uh, actually picture the audience naked,” Danny said, sliding up next to you. 

  You grinned at him, winking. His serious expression thawed and he smiled.

  “No, no this is new. This is a new science. So we should…” Lula trailed off. 

  “Not in the right mood,” Jack said with a nervous laugh. You gave her a reassuring pat on the back. 

  “That just leaves you and me, old buddy,” Merritt said to Danny.

  “What do you- oh. Picture each other- no. No thank you,” the illusionist said, shaking his head adamantly. You giggled lightly. 

  “Fine then. Y/n? How about it? I know from the neck up there are some issues, but from the neck down… the David.”

  “Okay, that’s… nice,” Danny said, sarcasm dripping from his tone. 

  “Aw, don’t be jealous Atlas. I’m just having fun,” Merritt teased. You slapped his arm gently, rolling your eyes. 

  “…Owen Case!” The announcer said, indicating it was almost time for the four of you to make it onto stage. 

  “Good morning, Octa-lites,” Merritt murmured beside you, repeated by Owen on the big screen. Your mouth quirked into a knowing smirk. 

  “Now I’ve made the claim that Octa 8 is pure magic. But the truth is, that’s just one of those things I say… when in fact, I mean something else.”

  The audience was beginning to get suspicious, catching on that something strange was happening here. You grinned at Danny as the two of you along with Merritt and Lula made your way to the space behind the big screens. 

  “What else do I mean?” Merritt and Owen continued, “Well, here to fill you in on all of my fabulous lies and hypocrisy, and to perform some of the most dazzling feats of magic you have ever seen…”

  You could hear the audience’s excitement bow as they began to clock on to where this was going. The reality of the situation made you take in a shaky breath. In response, Danny’s hand found yours, squeezing it gently. You turned to look at him, breath caught in your throat.

  “You’re gonna be great,” he whispered, “They’ll love you. It’s impossible not to.”

  You gave him a grateful smile as you all braced yourselves.

  “They are the world’s greatest magicians, here to expose me for the fraud I truly am. Ladies and gentlemen, here are the Horsemen!”

  The four of you ran at the board, aiming for the trap doors you knew were hidden in them. With a jump, you broke through, landing on stage in front of blinding lights. 

[ajaxpetropolisismyhusband]

How the NYSM2 men would react to your kidnapping...

Daniel Atlas

Daniel would be the first to take action to rescue Y/n.

He would use his charm and connections to gather information on her whereabouts and devise a plan to get her back.

He would be determined and focused, putting all his energy into finding and rescuing Y/n.

Daniel would be extremely protective of Y/n, especially after her kidnapping.

He would take it upon himself to make sure that she is safe and would go to great lengths to keep her out of harm's way.

Daniel is a strategic thinker and would use his skills in planning and execution to come up with a plan to rescue Y/n.

He would carefully consider all options and weigh the risks and benefits of each one before taking action.

Daniel has a natural charisma that would make him an effective leader in a crisis situation.

He would be able to inspire and motivate his team to take action and would be able to think on his feet to adapt to changing circumstances.

As a master illusionist, Daniel has a talent for thinking outside the box and coming up with creative solutions to problems.

He would use his skills in misdirection and sleight of hand to distract the

Despite his confident exterior, Daniel can be emotionally vulnerable at times.

Y/n's kidnapping would bring out a more vulnerable side to him, and he would rely on the support of his team to get through the ordeal.

He would also be more open with Y/n about his feelings towards her, which may surprise her given his usual suave and confident demeanor.

Jack Wilder

Jack would be the most visibly upset and angry by Y/n's kidnapping.

He would be laser-focused on finding her and would stop at nothing to bring her back safely.

He would be willing to take extreme risks and use his skills in sleight of hand and pickpocketing to get any information that might help in the rescue.

Jack is a master thief and pickpocket, so he would blame himself for not being able to prevent Y/n's kidnapping.

He would be wracked with guilt and would feel responsible for her safety.

Jack is known for his daring and risky moves, and he would not hesitate to take dangerous actions to rescue Y/n.

He would be willing to break into high-security locations, confront dangerous criminals, and even put himself in harm's way to save her

Jack is a highly skilled and resourceful thief, and he would use all his talents to track down Y/n's kidnappers.

He would follow every lead, use his contacts in the criminal underworld, and even use his skills in illusion and misdirection to uncover information and rescue Y/n.

Underneath his tough exterior, Jack is a sensitive and emotional person.

He would be devastated by Y/n's kidnapping and would struggle to keep his emotions in check.

He would seek comfort and support from the other members of the Four Horsemen, and would be willing to let his guard down and show his vulnerability around them.

Jack has a strong sense of loyalty and would feel a deep connection to Y/n, especially since they have worked together as part of the Four Horsemen.

He would be fiercely protective of her and would stop at nothing to ensure her safety, even if it meant putting his own life on the line.

Merritt Mckinney

Merritt would be devastated by Y/n's kidnapping, but he would remain calm and level-headed in order to help with the rescue mission.

He would use his skills in hypnosis to gather information from people involved in the kidnapping and to aid in the rescue efforts.

Merritt would blame himself for Y/n's kidnapping, even if he had no direct involvement in it.

He would feel guilty that he couldn't use his hypnosis skills to prevent it from happening.

Merritt would use his powers of hypnosis to try to gain information about Y/n's kidnappers.

He would use his knowledge of psychology to get into the minds of the kidnappers and figure out their motives and weaknesses.

Merritt would be the most compassionate and empathetic of the group towards Y/n.

He would be able to connect with her on a deeper emotional level and understand what she might be going through.

Merritt would be the voice of reason in the group, encouraging the others to stay focused and calm during the rescue mission.

He would remind them that their actions could have consequences and to think before they act.

Merritt would also be the most creative in terms of coming up with ideas to rescue Y/n.

He would use his knowledge of hypnosis and psychology to devise unique plans that the others might not have thought of.

Overall, Merritt's skills in hypnosis and psychology would make him a valuable asset in the group's efforts to rescue Y/n.

He would be both compassionate and creative in his approach, and would be a calming influence on the others during a high-stress situation.

Dylan Rhodes/Shrike

Dylan would be extremely determined to rescue Y/n, but he would also be pragmatic and calculated in his approach.

He would use his position as an FBI agent to gather information and coordinate with law enforcement to ensure a safe and successful rescue operation.

Dylan would feel personally responsible for Y/n's safety, as he had recruited her to be a member of the Four Horsemen.

He would be deeply troubled by her kidnapping and would take it as a failure on his part to protect her.

Dylan would be methodical in his approach to the rescue mission, carefully analysing every detail and potential lead.

He would work closely with law enforcement to gather information and coordinate the rescue operation.

Despite his professionalism, Dylan would be emotionally invested in the mission to rescue Y/n.

He would be willing to take risks and make difficult decisions in order to bring her back safely.

Dylan's loyalty to Y/n would be unwavering, even in the face of danger.

He would be willing to put himself in harm's way to ensure her safety and would not hesitate to confront the kidnappers directly if necessary.

As the leader of the Four Horsemen, Dylan would take responsibility for the actions of his team and would work tirelessly to ensure that Y/n is rescued without any harm coming to her.

He would be determined to right the wrongs committed against her and ensure that justice is served.

Walter Mabry

Walter would initially be indifferent to Y/n's kidnapping, but he would eventually become involved when he realizes that his own interests are at stake.

He would use his wealth and connections to gather information on Y/n's whereabouts, but his actions would be motivated more by self-interest than concern for her safety.

As a wealthy businessman with a history of shady dealings, he is not unused to dangerous situations and would likely prioritize his own interests over Y/n's safety.

However, as he becomes more involved in the search for Y/n, Walter would start to become more invested in her fate.

His self-interest may evolve into a desire to protect Y/n, as he sees her as a valuable asset that he wants to keep under his control.

Walter would use his connections in the criminal underworld to gather information about Y/n's kidnappers and would likely try to negotiate with them for her release.

However, his involvement in the situation may also put Y/n in greater danger, as his actions could draw attention from other powerful and dangerous people.

Ultimately, Walter's motivations for rescuing Y/n would remain murky. It is unclear whether he genuinely cares about her or if he is simply trying to protect his own interests.

His actions would likely be complex and multi-layered, with his true intentions remaining unclear until the very end.

If Y/n were to be rescued, Walter's reaction would depend on whether he succeeded in protecting his interests.

He may be genuinely relieved and grateful, or he may view her rescue as simply a business transaction that he was able to successfully negotiate.

Regardless, he would likely remain a complicated and ambiguous figure in Y/n's life.

[echowritten]

danny :  so really, if you break it down far enough, everything becomes math. the temperature of the coffee in your hand. the curvature of a baby’s smile. we are all just numbers and equations and lines on a graph trying desperately to figure ourselves out.

merritt :  let’s talk about your trust issues.

danny :  no.

[plus-size-reader]

Trust

Jack Wilder x Plus size!reader

Word Count: 1477 words

Warnings: none 

Summary: The others not telling you about the plan to keep it from coming out and you have to deal with finding out he's not dead until after

——————————————————————————————————

Someone should have told you.

They should have told you the truth about what they were planning, but evidently, that didn’t cross any of their minds as you jumped into that shoot, with Jack staying behind.

You barely got to say goodbye to him, only giving him a quick kiss on your way out, before the FBI headed up the staircase. You thought you knew what was going on, thought you had a plan, but you were wrong.

The crash could have been heard down the block, and when the car exploded, it was a miracle you missed it.

However, it was only a matter of time before the news of Jack’s death could reach your ears, and once it did, everything else came crashing down around you.

When you agreed to be a part of this whole thing, to be a horseman, you didn’t hear a thing about something like this. This wasn’t supposed to happen, but now that it had, nothing else mattered to you. The magic meant nothing if you didn’t have him.

Nothing mattered if you didn’t have him.

“Why did we leave him? Why did it have to be him?!” you yelled, gingerly grabbing ahold of Daniel’s shoulders as you tried to understand how it had gotten this out of hand.

This was never part of the plan, he wasn’t supposed to get hurt.

“You just have to trust me” he whispered, but you didn’t care for any of that. All you wanted to do was get out of this cab and go do something, but there was nothing you could do.

Jack was dead, nothing was going to change that.

“Trust you? You want me to trust you? Trusting people got Jack killed, I’m not doing that anymore”

There were no words for what you were feeling, nothing you could do to change what you were going through, and you made up your mind. At this very moment, you were over it.

You didn’t care about the eye, you didn’t care about the magic, you didn’t care about any of it. Without Jack, even making magic wasn’t going to even be what it was.

Everything was ruined.

All you could do now was sit here and wait for this whole nightmare to be over. Maybe then, you’d be able to finally catch your breath and just do what normal people did. Maybe then, you’d be able to mourn the man you loved.

It was the least you could do for him, after everything.

~

It was Daniel’s idea for you to stay behind with the armored truck, tucked away behind a pane of glass that would keep it hidden from the peering eyes of any guards or feds that happened upon it.

They would see the second truck, the decoy, and just assume that it was the one with all the money in it. Then, when Henley, Merritt, and Danny finally finished up the big finale, they would come get you and all the money.

All you had to do now was wait, and really, you had no problem with that.

After the day you’d had, the last thing you wanted was to have to put on your stage persona and make it all okay again. You were more than happy to just wait here, until it was all over.

It wouldn’t hurt anything if you just sat it out.

Besides, this way, you could personally oversee the cash and make sure that nothing happened to it.

In the plans you’d been given, every single detail was perfectly laid out, so that if you followed them blindly, it would go off without a hitch.

Keeping you in the dark had been Daniel’s idea. He didn’t want to risk Jack’s death not looking real, and having his girlfriend perfectly fine after he burned to death would be a definite problem.

You had to think it was real so the public would too.

They all knew how close the two of you were, and as much as it hurt the other horseman to lie to you, it just had to happen that way.

This was all bigger than each of you individually, after all.

That was all you had to keep in mind.

You had been sitting on the floor, cross legged and ignoring the outside world when you heard it.

There was talking on the other side of the glass.

...but that wasn’t possible.

You were the only one who knew the glass was here, so for anyone to be here already meant that something had gone wrong.

Atlas was supposed to page you if things like this happened, but you didn’t get anything. Whatever this was, you were just going to have to deal with it yourself.

Though, when you realized what it was behind that thin pane of glass, dealing with it seemed to be the furthest thing from your mind.

“Step back. I’m gonna break it”

It was nothing more than a command from the other side, something you knew better than to argue with.

However, even if you wanted to, you weren’t sure that you could have. That voice, it wasn’t just one you recognized, it was one you never thought you’d hear again.

It was Jack.

Even thinking about it, you felt like you were out of your mind, because it wasn’t possible.

Crazy or not though, you would’ve known that voice anywhere. It had to be him.

You had no idea what was going on, and your head was spinning, but you didn’t have much time to mull it over before the glass was shattered all around you. It didn’t pose any danger to you from where you were behind the armored truck, but you heard it break from where you were.

...and standing there, in the midst of all that broken glass, was Jack.

You weren’t crazy.

It didn’t make any sense, and you couldn’t have ever seen it coming, but you knew it was him. In your heart of hearts, you just knew.

He was alive.

Jack was alive.

You wanted more than anything to go to him, to say something, to do something, but there was nothing to do.

Ten minutes ago, you thought that he was dead. Seeing as that wasn’t the case, you weren’t really sure where to go from here. It wasn’t something you could have planned for.

“Holy shit”

It was all he could muster up in the moment, but in his defense, he hadn’t been expecting you. When Daniel told him what his role would be in this whole thing, he initially thought he would be alone.

“I know” you shrugged, hoping that this would somehow make you hate this less. You had been blindsided this whole time, mourning the death of a man you loved when he wasn’t dead to begin with.

You felt like an idiot.

Not only that but now that he was here and you had a second chance to tell him all the things you wanted to tell him, you were coming up blank. You had no idea where to go from here.

There just weren’t words for situations like this. It wasn’t like you had an instruction manual for this kind of thing.

“I thought you were dead, you aren’t dead? How are you not dead? I saw you explode” you asked, each question coming faster than the last. You had no idea what was going on, and you felt like your head was spinning.

This was too much.

“I was all part of the plan, did they not tell you?” Jack questioned this time, making that decision from the second he saw your face. He was going to kill Daniel as soon as he saw him.

What would the point of lying to you be? From where he was sitting, you never should have been in this position. You were the love of his life, but for some reason, no one told you that he was alive.

It didn’t make any sense.

“No. Evidently, I’m out of the loop” you huffed, doing your best not to lose your mind over this. You had only been crying your eyes out for days, and planning your life without him.

It wasn’t something you wouldn't just be able to get over, that would be insane.

“I’m so sorry baby, I should have told you” he sighed, gingerly wrapping you up in his arms, pressing a small kiss to your forehead and then another to your lips. If he’d known they weren’t going to tell you, he could have been prepared for this and you wouldn’t have been so blind sighted.

Right now, he couldn’t make it up to you but as soon as this whole thing was over with, it would be like it never happened. Besides, maybe you’d feel better after you kicked Danny’s ass.