#my head's above the rain and roses

[schattenfanger]

"Sometimes instead of therapy you challenge Mt. Battle 100 days in a row."

Oh buddy.

[divineei]

TOOTM  zero. old beginnings

! go kyungjun x fem!reader

# relationship lore, first meeting, heavy infatuation, mentions of kyung jun having daddy and mommy issues

a/n. chill yall i swear im putting my whole authorussy on this

months before the school trip…

rain pours on top of the bus stop's roof. although tiny, the cover is enough to prevent kyung jun's clothes from getting even wetter.

if only he had brought an umbrella. he was in such a rush to get out of his house after yet another fight with his parents, he didn't even hear the water falling from the sky before it was too late and was already running around the streets.

kyung jun had no idea how long had passed since he stormed out, not that he cared anyway. he considered this ten times better than all the yelling at home. when he managed to ignore the cold, the little bus stop was peaceful; quiet.

or it was.

he dug in his pocket to take out a cigarette and put it in his mouth when the sound of hurried footsteps stepping on puddles distracted him. he turned his head towards the noise, immediately setting eyes on the figure sprinting towards him: a girl in winter clothes held a bag above her head as a shield from the rain while she ran in his direction. she stopped right next to him, breathing heavily and drenched in water.

kyung jun turned his attention back to his tobacco. he paid her no mind. why would he? he had enough to deal with seeing as he also fell victim to the pouring rain.

he felt the weight of the stranger sitting at the other end of the bench as he took out his lighter. however, rolling the flint wheel was useless as only a spark came out. he tried again. and again. and again, but still no flame. kyung jun's breath rose erratically and his pent-up frustration with it.

"fucking piece of shit", he sent the thing flying with as much force he could manage, making it break into pieces. was nothing supposed to work in his favor? he can't stop misbehaving like he promised his mother, he can't be the top of his class like he promised his father, he can't stop himself from lashing out right in their faces; for fucks sake he can't even light a cigarette. maybe they were right: he was worthless.

out of the corner of his eye, he saw something being handed to him. the stranger had reached her arm out with a lighter in hand. kyung jun's eyes varied from it to the face he'd been ignoring: drops of water were falling from her hair to her cheeks, she wore headphones around her neck and a lit cigarette between her parted lips, with eyes that stared at him through wet lashes, waiting for him to accept the offer.

he reached for the lighter, brought it close to him, and finally took a puff of his cigarette.

"you okay?", asked the pretty girl.

he looked back at her, seemingly taken aback by her interest but nodding nonetheless.

their interaction was cut short with a quick smile from her as she put her headphones on.

in his mind, kyung jun caught himself juggling feelings from shame to disappointment, realizing maybe he wanted somebody to ask if he was alright. he wouldn't have minded an opening to more conversation, even if it was to forget his troubles for just a few minutes. but he understood. i mean, who would care about a stranger on the streets anyway? who would care about him anyway?

the time passed as quickly as did his pack of cigarettes and now, with an empty box in his pocket, kyung jun's anger was rising once again. not because of the distress of his mind though but because of the loud music disturbing his peace.

after what felt like hours of trying to ignore the noise, he decided he had enough and aggressively waved his hand to catch the girl's attention.

"mmh?", she looked at him and removed one of the speakers.

"turn that shit off."

"excuse me?" she scoffed raising her brows.

"i said," kyung jun pointed at the headphones that were now around her neck, "turn it off. it's fucking annoying me."

she let out a teasing chuckle. was she... laughing at him right now? "fuck off. i'll listen to my music however i want."

...the fuck? his mouth opened in disbelief. this was a first. nobody, and i mean nobody, would even think of talking back to him like that.

"who do you think you're talking to?" he turned his body to her with a scowl intimidating enough to make anyone at his school go running with their tail between their legs.

"someone with no taste in music, apparently."

damn, she really was laughing at him.

kyung jun's mouth opened to fight back but no words came out. he couldn't believe it. he was stunned. did the rain wash out every threatening aspect of him?

it could be the cold, the shock, the contagious smirk of the pretty girl, or maybe the exhaustion finally catching on to him, but for whatever reason, he couldn't find it in him to say anything back. so he laughed. just slightly. some probably would consider it more of a defeated sigh. but he did.

"what?"

her smile was taunting him, provoking him to keep talking.

"nothing", yet he didn't have the energy for it, not right now. so today, he'd let it slide.

her smile shifted from cheeky to genuine when he brushed her off. as much as she enjoyed the banter, she had enough awareness not to tease any further.

"you know what," instead, she disconnected her headphones before handing her phone to the guy. "if my music is so annoying to you, show me something better."

kyung jun frowned, but a small smile graced his face, betraying his attempt at indifference.

and so he accepted her offer, for the second time that day.

minutes went by with surface-level conversation and recommended songs. it was a pleasant distraction for him, at least enough to make him miss the way his pulse merged with the beats of the tunes. they enjoyed their time together until the faint sound of wheels appeared in the distance. turning off the music, the pretty girl stood up in front of him.

oh right, the bus.

for a second, he forgot where they were.

"well, that's my ride" she announced, just seconds before said ride stopped before them.

for a second, time seemed to freeze.

the girl said something else, but whatever it was fell on deaf ears. it felt like his senses were failing him all of a sudden.kyung jun sat there, helpless and paralyzed, as he watched her walk away. a chill ran down his spine, causing goosebumps to break out all over his body. his mind was screaming at him to do something, anything, to make her stay just a little bit longer. he wanted to ask for her name, to strike up more conversation, to find out who she was and where she was going. but he couldn't bring himself to move. all he could do was see her disappear, without time to wonder what might have been.

when he came to his senses the bus was out of sight, and the empty spot on the bench felt heavier than ever.

kyung jun looked at the sky. there was not a single ray of sun to be seen, but at least the rain had finally stopped. he leaned back and just as his hands came to rest in his pockets he touched something cold. he took it out, eyes falling on a lighter. her lighter.

he could feel the beat of his heart against his ribcage. why? where did all this adrenaline come from? since when has he become so soft as to let such a flimsy little thing make his head spin and his face fire up?

"fuck", he cursed to the skies.

as the days went by, his intense but short-lived experience with that stranger remained fresh in the back of his mind. no matter how many times he tried to blur her face she was like a ghost that reappeared every time he looked away, a fading memory he couldn't fully forget. 

at the back of the school's building kyung jun took the last puff of his cigarette just when the bell announced the start of classes. he dropped what was left of it on the floor at the same time his two companions dropped the innocent student they had been tormenting. they walked together to their classroom with the same enthusiasm as a kid who received a pair of socks for christmas and sat in the back row. 

"good morning, class", the teacher greeted as she stood in front of the students, who immediately saluted back.

kyung jun rolled his eyes and laid down on his desk with no thought other than finding the perfect position for the three-hour nap he was about to take until his next break, wondering if his dreams would finally be undisturbed by images of the one he couldn't fail to recall again and again. 

"alright," the teacher clasped her hands to get the class' attention. "before starting our lesson, i'm pleased to inform you that we have a new student coming in today and i hope you'll help them accommodate to the school."

already starting to doze off, kyung jun's eyes remained closed even after someone knocked on the door and the tutor welcomed them in. "welcome, please come in and introduce yourself."

"hello everyone, my name is yoon yn. i hope we get along well."

what the...?

his eyes shot open. 

there's no way. no fucking way.

he saw the new student politely bowing at the front of the room like she wasn't the same that had been living in his mind rent free day, night, and day again. 

"thank you. please, take a sit."

she walked like in slow motion towards the back of the room and, for a split second, their eyes met. the idea that he must've already fallen into a deep slumber invaded him when she sent him a subtle smile before sitting just a few sits away from him.

the teacher regathered the attention of the room and started her lesson. needless to say, his plan of breezing through the school day with a nap got ruined.

hours passed insanely slow until the bell rang through the speakers and announced a much-needed break. 

having pulled up two chairs by his side, jin-ha was cracking up at something on seung-bin's phone. whatever it was, kyung jun couldn't care less. his eyes were set on the crowd surrounding the new girl as his classmates smothered her with questions and compliments.

"are you new in town, yn?"

"what school did you use to go to?"

"were you in any clubs?"

"well–", yn tries to answer in between the frenzy.

"O-M-G, you should join our cheerleading group!" interrupted mi-na.

"im not interested in any clubs, thank you" yn declined with a smile.

"oh, of course." said so-mi, "someone like you was probably on the student council, right? you can always help me and jun-hee with-"

"i'll pass. thank you, so-mi."

"woaah, the class president got rejected!" heo yool pointed out and the small crowd joined in the teasing.

in the chaos of it all, she managed to find him staring. the moment was brief, yet enough for kyung jun's heart to skip a beat. 

"you know her?" 

"huh?"

"do you know her?", jin ha repeated. "the new girl."

kyung jun hesitated but shook his head, "no, i don't."

"could it be?", seung bin dramatised. "does ko kyung jun have a crush?" 

his friends patted his back, mocking him, and giggled in unison. 

"shut up," kyung jun sighed and leaned back on his chair closing his eyes with his arms crossed, trusting they'd get the hint that his temper was better off not tested.

"he didn't say no," seung bin whispered, gaining a repressed chuckle from jin ha.

boring lessons and occasional glances between the delinquent and the new student continued throughout the day until finally the moment to get out that hellhole arrived. 

by the time kyung jun had his bag over one shoulder and ready to go the class was almost empty. yoon yn was putting away her stuff without any rush as if she wasn't the only one left in the classroom.

"hey, kyung jun!" seung bin shouted from the door. "you coming or not?"

"nah," he answered without turning his eyes away from the girl. "i'll see you tomorrow."

with a shrug, seung bin left the room with jin ha following after him, not before exchanging a knowing look.

"move, nerd!" was the last thing heard from the two vandals out on the hall before they left. 

kyung jun approached yn with the same caution you do a stray cat in fear it'll run away and with each step, his pulse accelerated. as the girl cleaned up her belongings, he leaned on the desk next to hers wth his hands inside his trousers' pockets.

"the uniform doesn't suit you, you know?"

she turned to him–smirking–their eyes met and, for the first time today, neither looked away.

"i could say the same for you", yn crossed her arms.

"i'd say it's better than wet clothes.", he shrugged.

"please," the girl rolled her eyes, "it was just a little rain."

"a little rain?", kyung jun repeated. "you were literally running with your bag on your head."

"you were watching me?", yn put a hand over her chest and furrowed her brows, yet her smug smile remained. "you weirdo."

"look who's talking, you fucking stalker."

"excuse me? why the fuck would i stalk you?", she pointed at him.

"you tell me," he teased, lifting his hands. "you're the one in my school."

kyung jun kept staring at yn waiting for another one of her snarky comments but instead she tightly closed her lips together.

"what?" he provoked.

unable to hold back any longer, she let out a peal of laughter which made kyung jun's eyes widen as much as his own smile. he couldn't help it, her laugh was contagious and the situation was amusing. randomly meeting someone and obsessing over them to later find out they just enrolled in the same school as you is something you would only see in movies; or fanfiction.

yet here they were.

"nothing", yn smiled, finally gathering her stuff and putting her backpack over her shoulder, ready to leave.

leave?

flashes of the day he thought he'd never see her again flooded kyung jun's mind. he couldn't bear it. to someone else, this might seem extreme; desperate. now that they were classmates he'd most likely see her every day, so why even panic in the first place? but maybe, just maybe, he was desperate. to him, seeing her leave felt devastating. like a reminder of the day his whole body failed to even ask her name. but if the universe saw it necessary for them to meet again, that meant he wasn't supposed to let her go, right?

kyung jun clumsily opened his backpack and took out the trinket he'd been carrying around since that rainy day, handing it to her.

yn stared at him with her eyebrows wrinkled.

"here", the guy insisted, slightly shoving the lighter toward her.

"why?"

"'fuck you mean why? it's yours."

"i told you to keep it. you didn't hear me?"

"oh," he felt what seemed like a heatwave run through his neck and ears. "i guess not."

"all that shit you gave me about my loud music and look at you." she mocked.

the guy lowered his head. he would have run away right then and there to avoid any more embarrassment if it wasn't for the little pride he still had.

"hey, uh..." she paused. "sorry, what's your name?"

all this time and he still hadn't introduced himself? fuck, he really couldn't do anything right, huh? 

"ko kyung jun."

"right. so, kyung jun, since it's such a nice day out i was wondering if you'd be free to show me around?" 

like on queue, sunshine started squeezing through the window’s blinds.

he wasn't sure if it really was the world roaring at him to see the signs or if she just happened to take pity on him, but whatever it was he felt relieved, and his anxiety washed away the moment he lifted his head to look at the girl with her arm extended.

this was it, wasn't it? the opportunity he keept missing? 

how many times will she have to reach out until you take the chance, dumbass?, screamed the universe.

"sure", kyung jun uttered. "i can do that."

she offered her hand, and for the final time, he accepted.

🏷️ @flaneurpastel - @jwijii - @watamotee33

© to @divineei on tumblr; do not repost or steal

[desires-of-chain]

Cause it's raining out and it heavily inspired me Character: Time Warnings?: None other tags: Soft sex, praise, hint of cock-warming Words: 352 Tagged: @angry-trashcan, @neverchecking, @fanfic-fairy-fountain Reader is AFAB, usage of They/Them MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

The rain had him all but twitching for the urge to run out in the gentle downpour, with his sword on his back and Epona at the ready. The desire to quell the itch for another adventure, yet how could he leave his darling wife? Not when they begged so sweetly for more of him, arching their back, pressing their front against his chest. Gutterally groaning when they cupped the back of his head, gathering the long blonde strands that fell in rivers down his shoulders into their hold and gently pulling on them. His head dropped into their neck, laving a tongue along the heated flesh before digging those teeth into the skin, then suckling to leave his mark there.

His skillful, calloused hand ran across their stomach, humming as the skin rosed under his touch, halting above the desired place. He placed a chaste kiss against the tip of their ear,

"What do you want babydoll?"

They squirmed under his voice and praised, "Y-you."

He chuckled, "That, I do know, but what do you want?"

"M-my...clit," they whined, "please, touch my clit."

"Good girl," he rumbled.

He licked his thumb, placing it directly on the little pink bud, rotating the pollex in slow circles, humming, almost purring in delight as they melted further into the pillows and cotton covers. He rolled his hips up, grinning when a shrill gasp left them, 

"You're so pretty. Just a sweet girl surrounding me; look at this cute pussy," he pinches the bud, biting his lower lip when the sensation of them clenches down onto his cock nicely.

"Oh? You love it when I praise you, don't you, babydoll?"

They whined at the harsh thrust, 

"How nice it is for my wife to have a warm pussy for me to fill up on a cold, rainy day. You certainly don't mind me using it anytime it rains, do you?"

A shake of their head with glazed eyes had his heart soaring; he took their hand that held the ring and pressed a gentle kiss against the gem there.

"Such a sweet wife, I have."

[dontwantnoneunlessyougotmunson]

hey!!! I was wondering if I could request an Eddie fic!😍

Basically something fluffy where Eddie has a major crush on the new girl at Hawkins High. She’s very shy, and he decides to ask her to hang out back at his place! Plus omg he’s just super super sweet and gentle when he talks to her😭 You can decide what their interaction is like at Eddie’s trailer (like what happens and what not)! It’s all up to you 🤩

New Girl

Hello! You absolutely can~ Anything about Eddie that comes from my brain is more than likely going to be fluffy. He just deserves all the warm fuzzy feelings. I hope you like this! <3

You started to cry and slumped against the wall outside your house. Damn it, you had the key to your old house and not the new one in Hawkins. Your parents were out of town for the weekend, so the likelihood of you getting into your house without breaking a window was.. zero.

You slid down until you were fully sitting on the ground. You pulled your knees closer and dropped your forehead onto them, a pitiful sob rising in your chest. A flash of lightning bolted across the sky, followed by a massive punch of thunder. The rain had come from out of nowhere. You scooped up your things and huddled under the pitiful excuse for an awning, still not sure what to do.

The rumble of a vehicle cut through the thunder and you looked up, panicked and confused as you saw Eddie Munson jumping out of his van and running across the road and to your door. He rushed up to you and shrugged out of his jacket, holding it above your heads. You quivered as you looked into his eyes.

"What... are you doing here?" you forced out.

He paused, checking your face for any indication he was making you uncomfortable.

"I'm honestly a bit surprised I'm here. You just looked cold. And sad. So I thought I could help.. with my jacket."

He emitted an awkward laugh and you covered your mouth before bursting into hysterical giggles. You leaned into him, forehead grazing his chest and his heart thumped heavily at your gentle touch.

"Aaarrreee you okay?"

His mouth was twisted in worry as you continued to giggle. Your laughter eventually subsided, transforming almost immediately into heaving sobs. He put an arm around you and held his jacket up awkwardly with the other. He shuffled you to his van and helped you up, catching you when you slipped on the edge of the door frame. He ran around to his side after closing the door and tossed his soaked jacket in the floor. He turned to you and slowly reached his hand out to pat your shoulder.

"Hey, hey, whatever it is, I'm sure it'll be okay."

You sniffled before swiping at your eyes and groaning when you saw a black smear from your mascara on your hand.

"It won't be okay. I'm new and I don't have any friends close enough to stay with and my parents are gone for the weekend and my key doesn't work and I can't handle it! And now, my makeup is getting smeared and I look like a raccoon!"

"A cute raccoon."

You turned to him in surprise and his mouth was open in a small 'o' having clearly surprised himself. He grinned awkwardly and ran a hand over his frizzy waves.

"Sorry," he mumbled shyly.

The silence stretched between you as you sniffled and tried to clean yourself up with the mirror above your seat.

His cough startled you from your haze and you turned to see him twisting his rings on his fingers nervously.

"I know it might be a bit uncomfortable, but you're welcome to stay at my place this weekend. If you want?" His voice rose in question, offering but fully aware your options seemed to be extremely limited.

You shrugged and offered a half-hearted smile. "Why not? Thanks, Eddie."

~~~

The ride was quiet, almost pleasantly so. He navigated carefully through the rain and pulled in beside his trailer, gravel crunching under the wheels. He turned off the ignition and sat for a moment, waiting for your cue. You flipped the mirror in front of you back up and pulled your school bag over your shoulder. He hopped out and came around, shielding you with his arms and running after you up the steps, his hand hovering behind your back just in case you slipped.

He turned the key in the lock and opened up the door. He opened it up into the area right across from what looked like the bathroom. He ducked his head around the corner and waved to someone, before ushering you in and reaching back to shut the door.

"Hey, Uncle Wayne. I've got somebody with me." You stepped around the corner and Eddie's uncle smiled at you kindly, offering a small wave. Eddie continued, "She got locked out of her house and her parents will be out of town this weekend. So, I brought her here. That okay?"

Wayne nodded and shrugged. "She needs a place to stay; she's welcome here."

Eddie grinned brightly and turned, gesturing for you to follow him to the back room. You stepped in, a bit unnerved. You'd never been in a guy's room before and weren't sure what to think. His clothes were strewn about and he hurriedly tossed a clump of them into a basket in the corner. He went to the wall and ran a finger down the guitar that was hanging there. He watched you in the mirror as you looked around his room and clutched your bag to your chest.

"Uh. Eddie, I don't have any clothes."

"Heh. Uh.. Don't worry! You can borrow mine and we can wash yours with the rest later on."

"Oh, I didn't see a machine."

He was a bit bashful as he responded, "Yeah, not one here. We tend to wash em in the tub when we don't go to the laundromat."

He pulled out a pair of shorts and a t-shirt and handed them very gently to you. He stepped out and tossed a towel on the bed for you before shutting the door and going to the living room to sit on the couch. His uncle eyed him for a moment before smiling and sitting next to him.

"That her?"

"Mmmhmmm." Eddie's teeth were grinding together as he looked in his uncle's eyes. "I don't know what to do."

Wayne coughed a laugh. "You're doing a good thing. Just make sure to be respectful of her and get her what she needs. That's all you gotta do, kid."

He patted Eddie on the shoulder before hauling himself off of the couch and heading to work.

Eddie groaned and leaned forward, pressing his face into his hands. His body twitched at the sound of his door opening and he turned to look at you. His breath caught as his eyes swooped over you, seeing you in his clothes for the first time.

You noticed his deer-in-headlights expression and your brow furrowed as you looked down and twisted around to look at the back. You spun in a small circle to see and heard a 'pfft' behind you. You turned back to him and put your hands on your hips.

"Eddie Munson, are you laughing at me? It's not funny. Is there something wrong with the way I look?"

The amusement dropped from his face immediately and he stumbled over his words, "Ah, no! You look pretty girl, I mean- Pretty good, you look pretty good."

Your head tilted and you turned to the bathroom, attempting to hide your smile as you dropped your clothes by the tub. You stepped back out and blushed as you brushed against Eddie. In the dim light, you could have sworn he was blushing, too.

After a short time in his room, he came back out, wearing a similar outfit and grinned at you.

"Ready to wash some clothes, new girl?"

~~~

Laughter bubbled out of your chest. After filling up the tub with water and mixing in detergent, you'd tossed the clothes in and he'd stepped in on top of them. You tilted your head, confused and he held out his hand. "Come on in and agitate some clothes with me."

You laughed and held onto his hand, carefully stepping in and on top of the clothes. You wiggled your toes, feeling the fabric underneath.

"What now, Eddie?"

"Just one step at a time, new girl."

Your eyes met and the world stopped for a moment before a grin spread across his face and he started stepping side to side. He hummed a silly tune and lifted your hand, spinning himself carefully under your arm. You started to giggle again and he laughed back and soon the two of you were in a fit of merriment.

Your heart felt a bit lighter. Washing your clothes like this felt like a call back to the younger days when you would splash in a kiddie pool. You kicked your feet a little and danced around over the clothes, mixing them up and working the detergent into them. Eddie watched you, his chest contracting painfully tight as he resisted the urge to pull you close. He was enamored with your cheerful smile and the little 'hehehe' sound you made when you started to laugh.

You watched him out of the corner of your eye as well. His tongue poked out in concentration as he tried to clean the clothes. After some time, you both stopped, chests heaving and cautiously made your way onto the bath mat. You stood closely together and he reached for the towel he'd left on the counter. He quickly dried his feet off and then handed it to you.

You put a hand on his shoulder for balance and he stopped breathing for a split second. He knew he would remember every detail of this forever. The press of your fingertips through his shirt. The subtle scrape of your nails. He turned his head to look at you and was surprised to find you already looking at him.

~~~

The process of draining the tub, wringing out the clothes and hanging them over the shower curtain rod to dry had worn you both out and you plopped on the couch while Eddie stepped into the kitchen. You heard a soft murmuring and then a click before he rounded the corner.

"Pizza will be here soon."

Your stomach growled in response and he chuckled as he sat down next to you. You crossed your legs and shivered for a moment before you felt a blanket settle over your shoulders. You looked around and saw there wasn't one for Eddie so you pulled it off and tossed it across both of your laps. He turned his head away and you sighed, thinking maybe it wasn't realistic for him to like you and that maybe you'd made it all up in your head. His fingers pulled at the frayed edges of the blanket, the room so loud even with no sound occurring.

The sound of the doorbell was like a jolt to your bodies and you both sprang up. Eddie ran to get the pizza and you went to the kitchen to hunt for plates. You distinctly heard Eddie thank the delivery driver and hand off the money, but somehow you missed him coming up behind you. He tapped the cabinet over your head with a small smile. Your back was pressed to the counter and you hadn't moved yet, entranced by him. He stepped forward and pulled the cabinet open, reaching past you for plates. You couldn't look him in the eyes as his body brushed yours again and your cheeks heated up.

"Hungry?" he whispered beside your ear. His voice came out slightly choked and you nodded.

~~~

You barely registered the taste of the food as your brain had been running nonstop since your encounter earlier with Eddie. He had put a movie in the VCR and you had no idea what was playing and with one glance to him, it looked like he wasn't sure either. His eyes were staring blankly into space and he still fidgeted with the edge of the blanket. He was brought back to awareness when he felt your fingers graze his arm.

"Eddie? I'm a bit tired. I think I'd like to lay down."

He stood up and went back to his room. He rooted around for a minute, trying to set it up for you before he came back to see you curled up under the blanket, a small pillow tucked under your cheek.

"What are you doing?"

"Um. I thought I'd try to sleep."

"In here? Not a chance. Guests get the bed. Come on."

You slowly sat up and clutched the blanket close before dropping it back on the couch and following him to the back. He'd attempted to smooth the covers and the sheets and pull the blanket back for you. You scooted in and sat up straight before he patted the pillow behind you. You lowered yourself hesitantly and pulled the blanket up right under your eyes. You smelled him on the fabric and tried to resist burying your face into the scent. Your feet rubbed together under the covers.

After a quick assessment, he turned to go and started to turn off every lamp. When he got to the last one, you cried, "No! Please. Please leave it on. If that's okay."

He nodded. "Yeah, of course. I'll be in there if you need anything. Night."

~~~

You tried to fall asleep. But you were yet again in an unfamiliar place. All your childhood you'd grown up thinking it would be the last time and it never was. Finally, your father had retired from the military. Maybe this would be the last stop. But it didn't prevent you from being unsettled in Eddie's room. Unable to take it anymore, you sat up and flung the covers off of you, yanking the door open and stepping quickly down the hall to the living room.

Eddie was dozing on the couch, one leg poked out from under the blanket and his arms crossed over the small pillow that was held across his chest. You walked over and gently poked his shoulder.

"Eddie. Eddie, wake up."

He gave a muffled 'mmf' and rolled over facing the back of the couch. You sighed in desperation and bit your lip, unsure what to do. But your anxiety was coming on quickly and you couldn't wait. You shook his shoulder a bit harder and he flipped back over, squinting at you.

"Hm? What is it? What's wrong?"

Tears pooled in your eyes and you mumbled, "I can't sleep."

He blinked himself more awake and noted your worried expression, arms crossed protectively over your body.

"Alright, what do you need?"

"Can you.. can you come back there and lay with me?"

He was for sure dreaming now. There was no way you were here asking him that. He pinched his arm and yelped when the pain shot through him.

"What are you doing?"

"Mm. Nothing," he muttered.

He stood and you looked worriedly at him before he stepped past you and said, "Come on. Let's go."

He walked ahead of you and felt your fingers gripping the back of his shirt as you tip-toed close behind him. You sat on the bed and waited for him to shut the door behind him and crawl in beside you. He patted the bed again.

"You can lay down. You're safe."

You slowly lowered yourself and then immediately moved close to Eddie. You hid your face in his side and his arm came around you, pulling you closer.

"This alright?" he asked.

You nodded and snuggled closer, your leg hesitantly sliding over and between his.

"Shit, your foot is so cold."

You started to pull back before his hand looped around your knee.

"No, no. Stay. It's not that bad."

Your hand crept across his chest and you gripped the fabric on the front of his shirt in your fist this time. In the quiet of the night when it was just the two of you, anything seemed possible. Eddie seemed to feel it, too. His hand brushed smoothly down your back and then up again as he dragged his nails against the fabric. You shivered when you felt his fingers over your skin through the shirt. He pulled the blanket up over you, tucking it in around you both as best he could. Soon, your breathing slowed, but now he was the one wide awake.

~~~

The morning was quiet, a peace covering the both of you. You woke first and watched Eddie in the gentle light that was peeking through the blinds. His breathing was soft and his cheeks looked so squishy with his chin tucked to his chest. A light layer of stubble covered his jaw and your fingers itched to touch him. You lightly dragged the back of your knuckle against his cheek and brushed your thumb over the other side.

He started to wake up, feeling a gentle touch on his face. He didn't want to scare you so he kept his breathing at a slow pace. His eyes fluttered open and he glanced to you. You had your hand pulled back and tucked to your chest. Your eyes were wide as you watched him, trying to gauge his emotion.

He reached for your face and brushed his thumb against your cheek. You tilted your head into his touch and sighed softly. He turned toward you, both of you yearning and reaching like sunflowers to the sky. You leaned in and he followed your movement. You hesitated to close the gap between you, worried. Scared. His hand came up under your chin. It slid along the side of your neck and moved to cup the back of your head. His fingers gripped your scalp lightly so he could pull you in closer.

His movements were delicate and gentle so you could pull back anytime. But you couldn't really. Not when you'd been watching him as much as he'd watched you. And somehow you'd both missed the cues from the other person. Somehow every day at school you'd been in a dance, too afraid to scare the other person away, terrified to get too close, to open your heart. Attachment meant surrender and giving someone the power to hurt you.

But maybe. Maybe in the refuge of this bed. In the haven of his arms, it could mean sharing a part of your spirit. It could mean receiving. And maybe if he were to share part of himself, then allowing him a piece of your heart wouldn't be such a loss.

[sandgambler]

Rises the Moon

I wanted to write about my ttte forest guardian au, but like make summn a little sad and bittersweet to do with Edward, I’ve never posted writing on here before so I hope you enjoy

———————————————————

Edward knew he was old. 

He had always been old. 

Since he first stepped hoof onto the rough dirt and bare land, he knew he was old. He could feel it in his heart. This time though, as he took his first step onto the shore from which the moon was rising over the ocean behind him, he felt it in his body. 

The way his legs protested as his hooves and claws sunk into the wet sand, his movements slow and shaky as he walked further onto the beach and onto the dry land. He bit back a groan, shaking his fur and tail to get rid of the salt water that clung to his body. 

It didn’t help that the moon always rose above the ocean, thus dropping poor Edward into the cold water and causing his joints to tense and freeze up. 

He steadily made his way across the white sands and up towards the dunes, knowing just beyond that was the start of the forest. The place where he would remain before the moon had to set again. 

And then rise. 

And then set. 

A never ending cycle, something he had been doing for well over thousands of years, since the moon first appeared upon the horizon. 

He let out a soft sigh and forced a smile, making his way up the dunes and soon onto coarse grass. Marching across the plains and to the forest, wanting to take refuge amongst the safety of the trees and shrubbery. 

Edward noted that the sun was yet to rise, knowing that he’d still set before the sun. ‘Early to rise and early to bed’ is what an old friend once told him, and Edward bit back a snort at that memory. 

It was tough remembering humans who had come and gone. Edward never got too close to any of them, but he was always fond of those who stayed, exchanging wisdom and tales with the other creatures. 

Another memory struck and Edward paused, letting it take over; 

‘I wish I could extend my life like you can’ a human - an old friend he had forgotten the name of - once said to him as they watched the sun dance across the ocean. 

‘Why would you say that?’ Edward had asked honestly, confused as to why the human wished to extend their life. 

The human had looked up at him, a smile forming. ‘There’s always so much to do, and such little time to get everything done. Living forever seems like a much better choice’ 

He had sighed, shaking his head as his tail moved to curl around the human. ‘Living for so long isn’t what it’s chalked up to be. You just feel tired after so many years, all worn down.’ Edward warned, frowning down at the human. 

‘So why don’t you just lay down, Edward?’

He snapped out of that memory, pushing it down as he pushed forward and forced his aching legs to keep moving, passing the many large trees. Edward could feel his cheeks go red from tiredness and he felt a little pathetic. So old, forcing his body to replace tissue and fur again and again just to extend his life.

Was it all worth it? 

To see his friends it was definitely worth it, to watch them grow and interact with him and the world around him. They each had important jobs; James brought the sun and Gordon brought the winds and rains, Henry helped the trees and plants to grow and be healthy, little Percy had his magic to protect them, and Thomas was their saviour.

It was worth it.  It was always worth it. But Edward was so tired. 

He soon reached his favourite small meadow, a little waterfall and stream running through the tall grass and wild flowers, completely untouched by humans. 

He let out a sigh of relief and slowly entered the small plain, his hooves and claws heavy and dragging against the ground. His dual ears lowered and his tail trailed after him, splitting apart the tall grasses. 

He just felt tired. 

As Edward settled himself down, catching his breath and getting into a comfortable position near the waterfall, listening to it trickle, he thought back to the memory. He didn’t have an answer then, unsure of how to answer or what to say but this time he had an answer. 

It was okay to lay down. He didn’t have to rise again if he didn’t want to. He was old, too old. The moon would rise and set again without him, and the world would simply move on. New creatures would come and go, and Edward would simply be a fleeting memory. 

And so Edward laid his head down, curling it around his front legs and bringing his tail up around his hind legs. 

It was okay to stay down, he thought quietly, he had earned this. 

When they would find his body in the grasses hours later, it would already be cold, but Edward would look at peace, as if he was merely sleeping. Several wild flowers blooming and wrapping around his prone body - moonflowers in bloom, despite the fact it was day - keeping him grounded and down to earth. 

The moon would set without him for the first time, and the creatures would be without their oldest friend for the first time too.  

[shaanks]

I wrote something. Lmfao. It was initially just meant to kind of expand on my text post from earlier, but it turned into a little ficlet so I figured I'd share it. Why not, right?

fem!oc x Eustass Kid. sfw, cw: memory loss, unreality. (everything will be tagged in the actual tags section for blacklisting purposes)

word count - 2392

genres: hurt/comfort, horror if you squint, fluff towards the end, modern AU for the aesthetic lmfao.

**

There was a sound like an explosion, the blare of a car horn wailing over screaming metal, the scent of rubber hot and acrid in the air. In the light of the vending machine, Av jumped, whirling around, air catching in her throat only to find—nothing.

The street behind her was empty, devoid of everything but the blinking yellow of a streetlight, and the gentle pattering of rain. The asphalt was pristine, the clean lines slick with rain shone gold in the intermittent light, the sidewalk empty of trash, of age, of anything that might suggest human interaction.

Av craned her neck, head half-turned away from the bright white glow of the machine, looking up at the apartments around her. Neat, identical rows, 10 across, 10 high. All of the windows were darkened, the curtains drawn; each balcony held one or two suggestions of an occupant—a hanging plant here, a chair there, the peek of a bike seat or a laundry line extended across the space, but it was impersonal. Nondescript. A facsimile of habitation, without any indication of personhood, of decision, of individuality.

She looked down, frowning at her shoes, the light of the vending machine ever-present in her periphery. Her sneakers, at least, looked old. Well-worn, if a little plain, the white soles marked with dirt and use. She could see that the shoelaces were wet from the rain, could feel the water soaking through the threadbare canvas, her fingertips grasping at her jacket sleeves in absent concern. That was real. She felt real. Beneath her the ground felt solid, her face felt cool and damp in the slight breeze.

But what had made that sound? Another glance behind her confirmed the space to be empty still, and she hadn’t heard anything else. No voices raised in alarm, no distant car alarms blared to life, jostled by the impact—or what she had assumed must have been one. The night seemed undisturbed, save for the pounding of her heartbeat, just a little too loud in her ears.

Worrying at her lip, she turned back towards the glass display case, eyes flickering along the rows of drinks for sale. Black coffee with sugar, black coffee with no sugar, coffee with cream, with sweet cream. Six different energy drinks, a glass bottle of 7-UP that looked like it was from 30 years ago, and a solitary bottle of unlabeled water.

Surely that sound had been important, hadn’t it? It had been real enough to make her ears ring, to spike adrenaline through her like a live-wire.

Black coffee with sugar, black coffee with no sugar, coffee with cream—

Av frowned deeper, digging around in her pocket for the soft pack of cigarettes and her lighter. She was forgetting something, she knew she was, something that fluttered infuriatingly around the edges of her mind like a disoriented moth. She slotted the cigarette between her lips, the paper filter sticking slightly from the damp, the flame of the lighter momentarily adding a heat and warmth to the night that felt almost alien.

Smoke filled her lungs, hot and acrid like burnt rubber.

Six different energy drinks, a glass bottle of 7-UP that looked like it was from 30 years ago—

Inhale, exhale, plumes of breath and smoke that rose from her lips towards the dreary, impenetrable darkness of the sky above her, towards clouds that roiled thick and heavy with rain and nothing else. Surely, she thought, nothing else, although part of her knew that even when she’d tilted her head up to examine the apartment building, she’d been careful not to look any higher.

The worn rubber of her sneakers tap tap tapped against the sidewalk, making small wet spattering sounds as the movement displaced a puddle, and still she stood, smoking, making no decisions.

‘I should be cold,’ she thought, exhaling again, flicking ashes onto the street in a move that felt almost spiteful against the unnatural perfection upon which she stood. ‘How long have I been out here? What time is it?’

Her body shook a little, though she felt no colder than she had moments ago. She couldn’t bring herself to speak, her voice stopped in her throat—by disuse, perhaps. Or by fear.

The sound of sizzling brought her attention momentarily to the present, as a fat droplet of water fell, extinguishing her cigarette halfway through. Av took it from between her lips and stared at it. It felt...cruel. Intentional, perhaps. Irrationally, she wondered whether the street itself hadn’t responded to the slight bit of ash by extinguishing its source. Something about that wording made her shiver again, and she glanced around for a trash can, somewhere appropriate to throw it away, but of course, the street was devoid of any such thing.

A desire welled up inside her to simply throw it on the ground, to grind the ash and paper and unused tobacco into the sidewalk just to see what would happen...but in the end she thought better of it, and tucked it into her pocket instead. Her clothes would probably stink, but that was okay, she could just hang them out to dry.

Hang them out to dry. Out to dry.

Black coffee with sugar, black coffee with no sugar—

Did she have a clothes line? A balcony? She couldn’t remember for some reason. Had she even locked the door on her way out?

Av glanced around, the bright blue-white of the vending machine blinding in her periphery. Did she live on this street? Had she walked far to get here?

Was one of these nondescript apartments hers?

—the blare of a car horn wailing over screaming metal, six different energy drinks, a glass bottle of 7-UP that looked like it was from 30 years ago—

The sound was deafening, the smell of coffee like cigarette smoke like burned rubber like asphalt like hot metal stinging her nose and she squeezed her eyes shut, tepid fingertips curling into fists over her ears, she wanted to scream, to run, but she couldn’t remember where she lived, where to go, the sky pressed down on the wet asphalt and the white-blue burned out the gold of the street light and the darkness was bright bright bright through her eyelids and—

“You okay?”

Av yelped, her voice tearing free of a throat that felt like musty old paper, as she whipped around towards the sound. The voice.

There was a man standing about ten feet away from her, the campus buildings behind him looking ghostly and pallid in the blue-white of the vending machine light. Av blinked, the ghosts of a car horn, of a flashing yellow light, of melted rubber and blank apartments and a roiling dark sky fading from her mind like a half-remembered dream.

They were at school, she thought, the words wafting over her mind like a cool breeze, like rain. School. University? He was an adult, at least, and she felt like she must be one.

The man had retreated several steps at her startled sound, and he raised his hands slightly in placation before tugging at the straps of his backpack, pulling them tight in a motion that seemed too absent to have been intentional. He was nervous?

‘Most people get nervous when strange women linger by vending machines and scream when you address them, I’d wager,’ she thought, sighing with something between exasperation and relief.

The sound was normal enough to lower the man’s hackles. He was awfully tall, and seemed aware of it, ducking his head slightly and squinting into the light of the vending machines to see her better. Golden-orange eyes flickered in the light like traffic lights, on and off, on and off as he took a tentative step towards her. Calculating, like he was trying to make himself seem less threatening, like he didn’t want to spook her further.

It had been too long since he’d spoken to her, too long that she’d just been staring at him with distant, distracted eyes, but the startled noise had done little to awaken her actual voice. It was an effort, like raising an anchor from the bottom of the sea, to answer him, the words sounding willowy and thin in her ears.

“Ah yeah—sorry. Long day,” Av rasped softly, gesturing around. The big guy grinned a little, droplets of water falling from thick, red hair, and she found herself frowning again.

“Figured,” He said, tilting his head slightly, watching her expression carefully before continuing, “stopped by chem to bring you lunch and they said you didn’t show. S’not like you,” He paused, tilting his head the other way, and she felt her heart begin to race.

She knew him. They had classes together, he was bringing her lunch. Friend? Brother? Boyfriend? She felt her cheeks heat up at that last, glancing over him, and decided perhaps that must be the case. He’d closed the distance at some point when she’d been digging through her memory for clues, and she almost jumped when he smudged a thumb over her cheek, running a raindrop across the blush. Would have jumped, in fact, if the motion hadn’t seemed so tender, so intimately familiar.

“I don’t remember why I’m out here, Kid,” his name fell from her lips without thinking, more muscle memory than conscious thought, that willowy quality of her voice accompanied by embarrassment, by a fear that made her feel small.

He didn’t answer her for a long moment, those strange golden-hued eyes flickering intently over her expression. If he felt anything beyond concern, he gave no indication of it, instead lifting his hand from her cheek to ruffle it through her hair. Eustass Kid was warm. She sighed into the contact. Maybe she had been cold before. Maybe there just hadn’t been enough contrast to notice.

Eustass Kid. Black coffee no sugar. Black coffee with sugar. Black coffee with c—

“Hey hey,” he finally said, pushing her hair back from her forehead, tipping her head up to look at him in the process. The sky behind him loomed, too dark, too thick with clouds, wrong in a way that she couldn’t settle upon.

They were at university. She was taking a chemistry class. This was her boyfriend.

Six different energy drinks, a 7-UP b—

Her eyes settled back on his, her hand moving to grasp at his shirt and she breathed. Breathed.

Kid seemed to mull over his words, rolling them around in his mouth as he tried to find the right order, the right tone. He opened his mouth, thought better of it, closed it again, and then sighed softly, running his thumb over her forehead now, in an arc up into her hair.

“Doc said this was gonna be a shitty day. This time of year’s probably gonna suck for a while.” His voice sounded rough too, she noted, his expression pinching into a grimace around the words he seemed reluctant to say.

A scar, still angry and red and new, dipped jagged over his eye, down onto his cheek, spilling like red paint into her vision. How had she not seen that before? Had it always been there? She raised her hand from his shirt, fingertips ghosting up towards his face. He made no move to stop her, just watched until her hand was close enough to lean into, his skin warm against her palm.

There was a sound like an explosion, the blare of a car horn wailing over screaming metal—

Av’s face crumpled as she stroked her thumb over the scar.

“Because of the accident.” she whispered, her voice soft and wet like pattering rain.

“Yeah,” he kissed her palm. She nodded.

She still couldn’t remember much about the street, about the car that had swerved into them, about the hours and days in the hospital. Just the sound of the car horn, the way the tires had screeched and bled acrid smoke into the night air, the way not one light had turned on in the balconies overhead.

The doctors had said that memory loss was common in cases like this, with head injuries, with sudden traumatic events. The symptoms would fade, she’d been assured. Routines would help. Familiar scenery. A return to normalcy. All these things would speed her recovery. And yet, as with everything else, she still couldn’t quite remember how long they said it would take.

Her therapist had suggested grounding exercises for when she got lost, or her mind began to race, but the only thing she seemed capable of remembering with any consistency was the stupid vending machine outside of the dorms.

Kid followed her gaze to the faded offerings behind the glass, expression twisting into something half amused as he knocked against it with his knuckle, releasing her head to do so.

“S’funny, you’d think they’d restock the fucking thing eventually,” he said, the gravel of his voice low, thoughtful. “Hasn’t had anything in it since we’ve been here except—”

“A solitary bottle of unlabeled water,” Av supplied, grimacing a little at how practiced and robotic it sounded, but Kid just laughed.

“Yeah, that. Couldn’t even spring for some fuckin Dasani,” he muttered, fumbling in his pocket for a second before retrieving his wallet. He fished out a crumpled dollar bill and fed it into the old machine, fighting with it for a moment before it finally accepted the offering. The sound it made when he hit the button was like grinding metal and she tensed at the sound; wordlessly, he pulled her against his large frame, and this time when she breathed there was no hint of burning rubber or wet asphalt. He plucked the water bottle from the basin when the thing finally decided to relinquish it, and pressed it into her hands with a flourish.

“Bone apple teeth,” Kid intoned, grinning as if to show off his, and it was so absurd in that moment that she laughed, breath pluming up towards the sky. His grinned widened, clearly pleased that the joke had landed—relieved to hear the warmth in that sound.

“C’mon,” he squeezed her, turning her away from the blue-white light of the vending machine, towards the comforting darkness of the night. “Let’s go, it’s fuckin freezing out.”

Av, fingers blissfully cool around the water bottle, smiled back. “Yeah.”

**

[rosewaterandivy]

tabernacle, reconstructed

Summary: tabernacle - house of worship, a dwelling place (archaic).

Pairing: Steve Harrington x fem!reader, if you squint (it's really more of a character study)

WC: 1.2k

Warnings/Themes: 18 +, MINORS DNI. Graphic depictions of violence and sex. Psychological horror/trauma, memory loss, body horror, dark and sacrilegious themes, and mutual corruption.

A/N: please re-read the warnings/themes section above because this is not for everyone. if you can't watch a David Cronenberg film or have issues with any of the warnings above, please move along. and before you can ask, yes, this is a quasi-winter soldier!au

Please do not interact if you aren't 18+.

Nota bene: Reblogging, commenting, and liking my work is always appreciated; reposting, however, is not.

Enjoy! 💜

series masterlist | playlist | currently spinning:

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November 1992

For as long as you can remember, there’s been a knife twisting inside of you. 

An ache.

Not debilitating, of course. But just uncomfortable enough to keep you alert and moving.

Stowing your weapon underneath your coat, you step lightly over the mangled bodies and puddles of blood against the gleaming tile floor of the mezzanine. 

A wet slice cuts through the air, a soft puff of air released as another body hit the floor. 

You wait at the entrance, watching droplets of cold rain flow down the glass door. You hear him before you see him, know his gait well enough by now to anticipate his movement. Hand finding home on his left arm, you allow yourself to be escorted into the dreary winter night.

Warmth flees from your hand, though the cool metal of his arm is hidden under his coat. Stolen from you like so much else; no matter.

He’s quiet after a job. Well, he’s more quiet than not, really, but especially so on this night for some reason. 

Passing under a streetlight you pause to adjust his cravat, lips moving imperceptibly. “Lovely job as always, mon lion.”

His mouth curls up, ever so slightly, bemused. “Much obliged, ma louve.”

The rasp of his voice sends a shiver down your spine, pitched lower to avoid suspicion and slightly hoarse from disuse. Your fingers smooth the silk fabric against the column of his throat, watching as he swallows. A brief close lipped smile and you’re off once more.

Into the cold Moscow night.

Someone has been trying to contact you.

The old woman at the pharmacy tells you as much and passes you a scrap of paper hidden under the palm of her hand. 

“Be careful, my dear,” she whispers over the crinkling plastic bag. 

You nod, pocketing the paper and make your way outside. 

The paper burns a hole in your pocket as you descend from the street to the subway platform. A quick case of the joint quells your nerves— just the 5 o’clock rush. 

Retreating to the back of the car, you pull a newspaper from your bag and set the note below the fold. 

Laika.

Your heart thuds in your chest as you read.

Tretyakov Gallery. 6 PM.

Committing the information to memory, you crumple the note and let it fall from your hand as your exit the car. It falls between the train tracks and will soon be demolished beyond all recognition. 

Everything, it seemed, was coming to a head.

December, 1989

Another stint of playing fake aristocrat and no one was the wiser. 

A month ago, as the Berlin Wall came down, the pair of you attended the Berlin Ballet’s production of Swan Lake. Regimes rose and fell everyday, and it didn’t matter. A simple change of leadership or economics wasn’t going to effect lasting change.

For something like that, more immediate action was required.

An easy mission, get in, get the intel, and get out or, stay for the ballet. Your first without a handler, a test of loyalty, if you will. How ready Moscow was to put its faith in the pair of you: the asset and his protege, the she-wolf and her lion, Adam and his Lilith.

“Entschuldigung.”

A man apologizes for bumping into you at the bar. Tall and broad, the faintest traces of 5 o’clock shadow coming in. 

You partner catches your eye from across the lobby, brows furrowed in concern— hazel eyes bordering on molten gold in the light. 

A nod and a smile to both men, assuring one of your safety and the other of your attention.

“Not at all,” you murmur back in English, ear catching the slight clipped nature of his speech. A dead giveaway to the trained ear. “What’ll you have?” 

He doesn’t seem to catch your meaning. You nod to the bar expectantly.

“Oh, uh, vodka.”

Turning from him, you order and turn back to the American. 

“Far from home, no?”

He laughs, “Surprisingly, not the farthest.”

“Oh?” Your palm meets the crisp edge of the highball glass as you pass it to him. “A world traveler, are we?”

He sips without the expected flinch. “Something like that.”

And then, the American does something very interesting indeed.

September 1990

Robin has always had a knack for languages. Took joy in the simple pleasure of a new conjugation or well honed nasal inflection, rolled r’s, and an indiscernable accent.

It only made sense that she’d pursue languages in college. What was unexpected is that the CIA would take notice. They first made contact while she was working through her capstone in Slavic languages when Hop showed up during office hours.

“Hey kid,” he greeted, in his usual unassuming slouch. As it turned out, he’d been working with the Feds for longer than the party had realized. A quid pro quo for keeping El safe and out of the government’s hands— you do this for us, and the girl will be safe.

“Y’know,” she replies, turning from her reading, “You don’t look like a Ralph Emerson from Russian 101 to me.”

“You caught me.” Hop says shutting the door, settling into the club chair in front of her desk. “Got some news for ya.”

“Really?”

She tries not to let her eagerness show through, learned through hard, long years to keep the hope at bay.

He nods and slides a worn paper across the desktop.

Murray’s cramped handwriting is discernable enough, to the trained eye.

S.H. = KGB asset; per LAIKA

The breath Robin had been holding stutters out.

“D-does this mean—”

“We don’t know,” Hop allows, “Yet, at least.”

“Who’s Laika?”

He prizes the note from her fingers, “That’s classified, junior.”

She bristles at the name, “I have a badge y’know.”

“So do I.”

It wasn’t much, not by a longshot. But if this Laika’s intel was sound, then there was hope.

November 1992

The American met you at the gallery, as planned. Extricating yourself from your partner, however, was more of a trial than you’d bargained for.

“C’mon darlin’,” he drawled from the bedroom, sheets rumpled about his waist and hair askew, a cigarette dangling from his lips. “Just stay in bed,” he takes another drag, smoke plumes falling from his ruddied mouth. “I’ll make it worth your while.”

“I know you would, pодной,” you step out from the bathroom securing a necklace around your neck. “But I can’t get out of it.” Pausing in front of him, you turn your back and ask, “Zip me up?”

He begrudgingly obliges you and promptly pulls you into his lap. His right arm snakes up to splay his hand against your collarbones, a warm comfort you know is meant to sway you. 

Turning in his grasp, you smile and brush an errant lock of hair from his face. “I won’t be but a moment,” you promise, plucking the cigarette from his lips and taking a drag for yourself. 

You allow yourself a moment to study him. Bed-mussed hair, longer and darker in the winter, framing his chiseled face. Hazel eyes, always quick, with a halo of gold. Stubborn skin clinging to the vestiges of summer, the faintest hint of bronze coloring him. And kiss-bitten lips, your handiwork, naturally.

“I’m doing this for us,” you say, passing the cigarette back to him and moving to rise.

He cocks his head in interest, eyes flitting down your form. “Okay malishka,” he allows, pressing a kiss to your wrist. “I’ll see you soon.”

Quickly turning toward the door, you reluctantly drop his hand and gather your belongings. You take a steadying breath before opening the door. 

See you soon.

If the American pulled through, that wouldn’t be true for long.

[staytheword]

content creator year in review

I was tagged in this by the insanely talented @straywrds and @cb97percent so I thought I'd give it a go, I hope that's ok ♡

∷ First creation and most recent creation of 2022

I haven't been here for very long but my first creation was Be My Mistake! It's my first attempt at a skz fic, posted in August ♡ The most recent in 2022 was the last part of LMLY ♡

∷ One of your favourite creations from 2022

I will say Roses just because I had so much fun writing it. I completely let go, just wrote what came to mind, no overthinking. It's not for everyone, but that's ok. I just had a great time writing it ♡

∷ One creation you’re really proud of

Definitely Be My Mistake. It's not perfect, and a part of me is disappointed in myself for many aspects of it, but I'm still proud! It's my first completed work here and I'm proud of the love I could show Changbin in this. I'm also proud because it allowed me to meet so many people and truly connect with readers.

∷ A creation that took you forever

Everything takes me forever lmao. Let me tell you... I have so much stuff sitting in my Google docs waiting to be edited/finished/posted. The writing itself doesn't take me long - it's the publishing process.

∷ A creation from 2022 that received the most notes

I'm pretty sure it's Falling Rain. Cheers to you Bangers ♡ I'm happy about this one shot. It was comforting to write and I feel like it is comforting to read for a few of you, so that means the world. Thank you.

∷ A creation you think deserved more notes

None of them? Truly I don't mind the notes because I keep having really meaningful interactions with people. Maybe Be My Mistake just because it's so meaningful to me? But yeah. It sounds like "oh I don't caRE for notes" I know, and I do, but each work is different and I'm just happy for the exchanges we can have.

∷ A new fandom you joined and a creation you made for it

Well I only wrote for SKZ who took over my entire life in 2022 and i'm so so so so grateful for it ♡

∷ A creation you made that breaks your heart

Something that sits in my Google Docs that will probably never get published for different reasons. I really wish you guys could read it.

∷ A ‘simple’ creation that you really love

Definitely Falling Rain! The premise, the story, it's simple to me, but I still like it a lot.

∷ A creation that was inspired by another one

I guess I could say that all my works are inspired by others. Don't we all gather things from all we read, watch, etc? Roses was inspired by Sons of Anarchy, LMLY was inspired by my favorite movies from when I was a teenager... But I think I can safely say that Be My Mistake was inspired by Sharp Edges, by @straywrds . Not in its plot or characters, just in the actual writing of it. As soon as I read Edges, my first skz fic, I wanted to sit down and try something too. Mari inspires me a lot through her exploration of love languages and the beauty of simple things. I can never hope to write something as beautifully as she did, but she definitely inspired me a lot. So thank you Mari. ♡

∷ A favourite creation created by someone else

Oh I have SO many. I read so many beautiful things this year that really moved me. I'll mention Sharp Edges again, just because it changed things for me, reconnected me with writing in a new way and also brought my friend back into my life. But for Mari I will definitely also mention Just Stay With Me. It's recent but it brought me SO much comfort in a period of my life where I really, really needed it. Mari kept my head above water with this. And I want to mention A Lullaby on His Throat because I adore that story. It's special to me, maybe because you wrote parts of it while at my place Mari, but I love demigod and everything about it. But truly all of her stories are amazing and I'm grateful for each of them. I could write paragraphs for each. (also shout out to hwang estate and my beloved husband)

My favorites can be found here, but I'll still mention a few other stories. Dawn to Flight, the first chapter of Miu's Hogwarts series (and her Bad Habit god I'm still not over it). Ren's mindblowing Daechwita series and her Maniacs one shots (still shaking on Do Me A Favor...). Ren you are so talented and all the stories I read from you changed my days for the better. I can't wait to catch up on your masterlist in 2023. Also a BIG BIG shout out to Tan for her Christmas Evel stories that kept me alive and breathing through a very hard December.

∷ Some of your favourite content creators from this year

I definitely want to read more in 2023, from so many of you. But for now, thank you to @straywrds @cb97percent @hwan-g @j-0ne25 @ballelino @ppiri-bahng @sstarryoong @ipegchangbin @strayerthanfiction @linoguistics and all those i forget. for making my life better. for inspiring me, for helping me find beauty. You are all amazing writers ♡

∷ Tagging : not tagging anyone because I don't like doing that buuut feel free to do it too! ♡♡

[the-letter-horror-lover]

BORUTO ALTER: Last Shinobi by SongofVedas

Anime » Naruto Rated: T, English, Adventure & Fantasy, Naruto U., Sasuke U., Boruto U., Sarada U., Words: 112k+, Favs: 48, Follows: 49, Published: Dec 2, 2020 Updated: Jul 19

21Chapter 10: SAVE HER, SAKURA! TSUNADE'S INHERITANCE

BORUTO

ALTER

HIMAWARI'S SCREAMS filled the operating chambers. The young girl was surrounded by Sakura and other medical nin- each of them sitting cross legged as their chakras worked upon Himawari.

The girl's bellows shook candles that surrounded carvings etched underneath them all.

Sakura grimaced, sweat steadily dripping down her forehead. Chakra whipped outwards from Himawari, slashing against the floor with baneful howls.

Sakura pressed shaking hands together. Fingernails drew blood from her skin, cascading down to her wrists before pooling in a puddle at crossed legs.

This Chakra! It's..

Sakura, for a moment, saw not Himawari, but Naruto. She saw his frayed blonde hair standing up within a shield of discernible chakra.

Red eyes staring ahead, enraged as they lost recognition of friend and foe alike. Three tails snaked from behind him as a quivering body reduced itself down to feet and palms.

He crouched like an animal.

violent, evil chakra exploded from him.

When Naruto lost control.. he became something else.

Something inhuman.

But now..

Whatever is inside Himawari.. possess chakra worse than the Kyuubi's!

Their goal was to remove the bones from Himawari's organs- but not only that. They needed to repair her spine to a level where it could heal, and remove remnants of poisoned chakra that, in time, would corrupt Himawari's body. However..

A stretch of skin on Sakura's forehead ripped away. Blood instantly fell into green eyes as she lifted her head forward.

Due to my seal's interactions with Himawari's chakra network.. it has to be lessened! It's the only way for her to survive the healing process!

Another blast of chakra erupted from Himawari. One of the medical nin fell over, screaming as blood streamed from his eyes.

Other medical nin moved to help him-

"Focus! Don't you dare move!" Sakura yelled. She weaved hand signs, perfecting the flow of her chakra to maximize technique.

The chakra within Himawari had grown stronger. Sakura had expected that. But for the chakra to be of this density..

By my calculations.. we're only lessening the seal by three percent!

Another medical nin was thrown backward. Sakura saw him crash into the opposite wall in her peripheral vision. Multiple screams filled the air- all of them pained.

Sakura closed her eyes.

Hyakugo!

Sakura felt limitless energy well up from within her as wounds began to heal underneath a rain of hissing smoke.

A curling, snakelike tattoo spread across her forehead and down past her eyes.

The Hyakugo Seal.

A secret technique bestowed upon her by Tsunade..

Sakura continued forming hand signs.

This is the only way.

She stood as Himawari's chakra nearly rose to attack her, focusing its energy on the closest target.

"Lady Uchi-" One of her assistants yelled.

"Do not move!" Sakura shouted. Some of the medical nin were weeping.

Sakura stood above Himawari now. She unclasped her hands.

I'll have to realign the old seal, simultaneously creating gaps within it. Then, I'll have to form a lesser seal, a continuous feed of energy safe for Himawari to rely on without causing her death..

Sakura grimaced.

She thrust her hand into Himawari's chest. Blood gushed from the wound instantly. The girl roared. Chakra from her slashed at Sakura's back, ripping her clothing.

Sakura ignored the pain.

I'll have to match the very same chakra levels I had back during Himawari's birth.. while creating a more complex seal!

The legendary nin closed her eyes.

She saw herself standing within blackness. A wavering stream of white lines formed a visage of herself. It stared back at Sakura almost violently.

Sakura smiled at her inner self.

Ninja Art Creation Rebirth- Innate Balance Technique!

Sakura's chakra flowed about Himawari in a protective shell. It entered the wound created by the Kuinochi, instantly healing her as Sakura pulled her hand free, falling backward.

This technique was an advanced Creation Rebirth jutsu.. and the first of its kind.

It shared principles with Fuinjutsu, but further it was an evolving seal. It was able to instantly react to incoming chakra from within Himawari.. intercept it, then re-distribute it back to her body. It would allow her to utilize the foreign chakra to her benefit.. without immediately overtaking her body.

Sakura fell onto her back. She breathed haggardly as her heart thumped.

The technique was a costly one, however. By using Mitotic regeneration at the same time, Sakura guessed she had shaved away about three years of her lifespan.

"Well.. what did you expect me to do.." Sakura whispered.

Naruto..

Suddenly, her eyes widened as she heard medical nin stepping around Himawari.

She rose to a seated position.

"Don't move her! She'll die!" Sakura ordered.

"If you want to help someone, help me up." She said with a tired grin.

Two of her assistants came to lift her, aiding Sakura at her shoulders.

"Will she be alright?" One of them asked.

Sakura followed his gaze, seeing too the steady stream of blood that still came from underneath Himawari.

"She's healing right now. That's the trick of the seal. It varies its own strength, constantly adapting to feedback from Himawari." Sakura said softly. She felt dizzy.

Sakura nodded.

"Bring me out to them."

Naruto sat beside Hinata. Across from them, Boruto was seated. His arms were crossed, head lowered. Long black hair shielded his eyes. But Naruto knew Boruto was attempting to sense something- anything from what was going on in the chambers beyond.

I'll seal the room. You're not going to want to hear this, Sakura warned nearly six hours before. They also couldn't feel the chakra.. slight ebbs of it seemed to grace them with unease.. but they had no idea of the progress.

Naruto grimaced.

Hima..

Did he do the wrong thing?

He saw Himawari when she was just a toddler. She was smiling at him, running excitedly to him. Her blonde hair shined in the sunlight as he scooped her up, twirling her around as she giggled.

He remembered the simple conversations they would have as he carried her about his shoulders. Her instant rambunctiousness, her need for attention. Her desire to be liked and loved.

For all of that to be gone.. forever.. due to a decision Naruto made-

Please, Sakura!

Naruto prayed as tears threatened his eyes. He choked. Hinata held his arm tightly, pressing her head against his.

Suddenly, the chamber doors opened. Boruto immediately reacted. He jumped to his feet, standing but not moving to the door as smoke steadily whispered towards them.

Two medical nin shuffled Sakura forward. All three of them were splotched with blood.

"She's going to live." Sakura said instantly as the chamber doors closed.

"Sakura-" Naruto rose to his full height as Hinata cried silent, relieved tears.

Naruto lowered himself to his hands and knees, bowing to Sakura as he sobbed.

I thought I was prepared. Naruto thought within himself.

This system.. this world of Shinobi..

"Naruto.. you especially.. listen to me." Sakura began.

Naruto rose his head to meet her towering gaze.

"She will survive.. but.." Sakura paused.

She swallowed. She looked over to Boruto, who had remained silent but watchful the entire time. Then, Sakura glanced over to Hinata, who met her eyes.

Hinata nodded.

Sakura continued.

"The chakra within her.. whatever passed between your daughter and the nine tails.. it's different from the Kyuubi. It's denser. Far more volatile. Further.." Sakura dismissed her assistants as she shakily balanced herself.

"It's possible it may passively affect her emotions. Her thoughts. You will need to be watchful and patient with her. She's not instantly going to be the same. She will be frustrated by that."

Sakura's face softened.

"But she is alive. And she's going to survive. She has all of you." Sakura smiled warmly.

"You've done the impossible for us, Sakura." Hinata's white eyes began tearing once more.

"She will need more operations. But for now, she's far more stable. The successive operations won't be nearly as intensive. Most will be able to be performed with little chakra." Sakura nodded towards Naruto.

"The seal I placed on her will basically function as an improved version of your own healing factor. It will be determined by Himawari's current state, not an influx of chakra controlled by something else. That way, it won't affect her lifespan harshly."

"To do such a thing..Sakura.." Hinata began.

Naruto understood as well.

Like all powerful jutsu, this no doubt carried great personal cost to Sakura.

"Anything that you or your family needs.. we are indebted to you." Naruto said.

To Sakura's surprise, Boruto addressed her next.

"Thank you, Mrs. Uchiha," Boruto whispered. Tears sped down his cheeks as he clenched his hands into tight fists.

Sakura smiled.

"We're like family. And I'll be here for her every step of the way too."

YOSHIKA ITO.

Rank: Outer.

Yoshika breathed haggardly.

Of course I ended up carrying Kamimura the entire way..

He sat on an ornate floor. Painted flowers spiraled from underneath him, sprawling across a wide hall. Dark hallways snaked about in the distance, while stairwells twisted and turned into dark corners beyond.

Signs of damage scattered about at various places within Yoshika's gaze. Blood splattered walls, burn marks streaked against the floor. He could even feel the residual echo of violent chakra chuckling within dark corners beside him.

To his immediate left, Han Sifu stood.

Han's hands were hidden within his sleeves. The man's painted eyes stared ahead ominously, blind yet seemingly aware.

To Yoshika's right, Kamimura Goro still slept. He hadn't woken once during their trek to the palace of Rivers- a fact both he and Han Sifu were silently aware of.

Yoshika slightly distanced himself from Kamimura's slumped sprawl.

He ran a hand through short brown hair.

Yeah, he's definitely dead.

Almost as if on cue, Deepa emerged from shadows. The man was tall, pale and muscular. He wore a metal brace that covered his chest and traveled down his right arm while exposing his stomach.

His left arm was outfitted with a strange gauntlet consisting of a clockwork of interlocking gears that ticked incessantly. As Deepa walked, purple cheek length hair bounced beside triangle shaped tattoos underneath red eyes.

A half cloak was tied at his waist, traveling behind him like a rolling cloud.

"Lord Deepa," Yoshika greeted. He stood- then instantly bowed.

Han Sifu mirrored the motion.

Deepa's eyes instantly fell upon Kamimura.

Yoshika caught his Lord's glance.

"He.. hasn't woken since performing his teleportation jutsu to get us out of Konoha. He couldn't get us all the way back." Yoshika said plainly.

"Will he recover?" Deepa asked softly.

Han Sifu answered.

"His chakra levels are stabilizing. He may awake in about a day or two."

"And you have the scroll?"

Han Sifu nodded, his unblinking eyes unnaturally apparent in the dark.

"Of course, my Lord."

Yoshika felt the air shift.

Deepa was suddenly on top of Kamimura. He held Kamimura by the throat.

To Yoshika's surprise, Kamimura's eyes opened.

Deepa smiled as he lifted his free hand, then struck it downwards onto Kamimura's waiting forehead.

Deepa continuously struck the man. Yoshika looked away as the sound of Kamimura's skull cracking open filled the hall. Han Sifu was silent as well, doing nothing as Deepa beat Kamimura to death.

Finally, the sound stopped. Yoshika tentatively turned his head back towards his Lord. Deepa was standing now, his fist dripping blood and bits of skull. Kamimura's body was limp. His head was completely gone- it was a pile of bloody flesh smashed against broken flooring like a plate of spilled food.

None of them spoke.

Then-

Wait!

Alarms instantly went off in Yoshika's mind. Deepa whirled around, his eyes crazed. Han Sifu twirled on black slippers as a figure approached from one of the winding hallways.

Chakra whirled about him. It was quiet.. but instantly apparent. There was something different about it too- it seemed almost as if it didn't even come from him.

Sweat began to form at Yoshika's brow.

The man actually appeared to be younger than Yoshika himself. He had dark skin, and dreaded locks that descended from his head down to his shoulders.

Two X's were tattooed on both of his cheeks. Narrow, black eyes met the gaze of Yoshika and the others in turn. He was dressed in a black kimono, while a shoulder length cape followed behind him, an odd sword was strapped lengthwise to his waist. It seemed to bear the shape of a katana, but it was entirely bandaged in sealing tape from hilt to point.

"You've finally arrived.. Subutai Ekei!" Deepa pronounced. Yoshika lowered his gaze.

Deepa is acting boastful.. but even he's scared! Is this one of the higher ups within Kara..?

Yoshika closed his eyes.

He hadn't seen Deepa use his full potential.. but judging from the chakra coming from Subutai, the swordsman was far, far stronger.

Yoshika swallowed.

Just who are these people? They're.. they're monsters!

"I apologize for my intrusion." Subutai said. He spoke politely and simply.

"The scroll.." Subutai began.

Han Sifu reached into his sleeve, producing the scroll.

However, Han did not move.

Yoshika scrambled forward, taking the scroll from Han and bringing it to Subutai with a bow.

Subutai smiled, taking the scroll softly from Yoshika's hands.

"We are comrades in the pursuit of the Divine Tree. I will ensure Lord Jigen is made aware of your personal successes. The progress made from this point is owed towards you." Subutai said.

Yoshika was.. surprised.

He's.. nice?

Yoshika stepped away. Subutai turned, returning to the hallway he had come from.

"Are you.. an inner..?" Yoshika called out.

Subutai stopped, answering without turning his head.

"I am an Upper." Subutai answered before resuming.

He's of lower rank than Deepa?! Yoshika thought in shock.

Finally, the man's presence was gone.

Deepa sighed.

"You're lucky Yoshika moved, Han." He teased.

Deepa turned, chuckling as he shrunk back to the shadows.

"Subutai was going to kill you. I felt it." Deepa laughed.

Yoshika watched his Lord until he couldn't see the shine of Deepa's armor. Then, he turned his attention to Han.

"We should probably get some rest too." Yoshika said.

He looked at Kamimura's corpse.

"Too bad for Kamimura, though."

Han still didn't move.

"Hey-" Yoshika reached for Han.

Han's head snapped towards Yoshika. He grasped Yoshika by the wrist with trained speed and accuracy.

"Tsk! It's me!" Yoshika shouted as he formed a jutsu sign.

Purple crystals formed around Han Sifu's head, pointed for his eyes and neck.

Han Sifu relaxed his grip, before finally letting go.

Yoshika broke free, backing away from the blind warrior. He dispelled his jutsu, crystals falling to the floor with a delicate crash.

"Sorry," Han said.

"Lord Deepa.. he's right." Han Sifu continued as Yoshika widened his eyes.

"... I couldn't move. I've never felt a killing intent like that before." Han said softly.

"I couldn't feel anything." Yoshika said.

Han Sifu smiled as expressionless eyes stared ahead.

"That's what makes such power terrifying." Han mused.

The two men retreated to their respective new chambers, each one reflecting on the realities of their own existence.

Kara would use them, then spit them out. But if they could gain their dreams.. survive until then.. it would be worth it.

A dream.. is worth everything.

SUBUTAI EKEI left the palace. He held the scroll closely to his chest as he walked.

Yes, this was truly the key.

Subutai could tell from the way his sword reacted to it.. the scroll was a relic from that time.

Subutai smirked. That Amado.. his assumption may have been true after all.

Otogane-sama would be pleased.

The answer to evolving Kawaki's body to a point suitable as a vessel..

Amado's prized project, borne from Otogane-sama's past.

Kashin Koji..

The Swordsman stepped into a swirling black pool filled with strange, pulsating eyes. The pupils and scelra were multicolored, and had swirling lines like the Rinnegan, in addition to three tomoe akin to a Sharingan. Subutai closed his eyes, sighing in relief as lady Otogane's chakra enveloped him.

NEXT UP: KIRIGAKURE ARC- LAND OF THE BLOODIED MIST!

11: TRAINING BEGINS? SASUKE'S TERMS!

BORUTO ALTER

NARUTO NEXT GENERATIONS

TRAINING BEGINS? SASUKE'S TERMS!

"THE POLITICAL landscape of the Mist is dire." Sai began, reading a letter they had received that morning.

Dark hair traveled down the sides of Sai's head and forehead as he looked up to regard Naruto. Naruto himself was seated at the Hokage's table, hands clasped into one another as advisors fanned outwardly from the left and right sides of his desk.

It was late. This session had been postponed to allow Naruto to stay with Himawari and the rest of his family for the day. However.. As Sai continued, Naruto knew that they were officially on borrowed time.

"Chōjūrō's grip on Kirigakure grows weaker with each passing day. While some in the village support a new direction for the Mist, a growing faction has spread whispers of inefficiency and rebellion. You sent me here on the auspices of creating a joint medical research facility, but now there are talks amongst clans that this mission is evidence of takeover."

Sai looked up at the group before returning to the letter.

"I recommend two teams be sent immediately. If these rebel clans gain more strength, we could quickly find ourselves embroiled in a conflict worse than the one in Sunagakure two years ago. I will remain, and work with the teams jointly once they arrive."

Sai rolled the scroll back into itself and then held it before him with both hands.

"Lady Tsunade's message," Sai said with a bow as Naruto rose from his chair, taking the scroll. He unfurled it once more, blue eyes going over the words Sai had just spoken.

Worse than Sunagakure..

Two years ago, a distant member of the Kazekage clan started a bloody conflict that threatened both Gaara's immediate family and the stability of the nation itself. The war had been won not only by Gaara, but by his son, Shinki. Naruto knew Shinki was the result of a marriage alliance between Gaara's regime and a branch of the Kazekage clans.. one that was closely related to the Third Kazekage.

The Kazekage clans possessed no proper surnames as was Suna tradition. However, these royal families had meticulously recorded bloodlines.. to keep the peace, governorship and land was divided amongst them based on the purity of each clan. Gaara's marriage was seen as a grab for power- and created a civil war that gave Shinki the name Chi no Ko.. child of blood.

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he reread Tsunade's plea. It was possible that the near success of the Sunagakure Rebellion emboldened the mist clans. For some time.. the world was at peace not only from the fallout of the Great Ninja War, but also out of fear. Fear of the great nations and also the leaders behind them- Naruto especially.

But now..

Peace brought boldness. And within the minds of Shinobi who see their opportunity and livelihood vanish with each passing day-

Boldness carries ambition. Even though the rebellion failed, the fact that Gaara- one of the great heroes of the Fourth Ninja War and legendary Kazekage, was nearly brought to heel was not unnoticed.

We're no longer immortal, Naruto thought to himself.

The voice of Kakashi brought Naruto out of his private ponders.

Kakashi massaged a chin masked in blue cloth as he spoke.

"Do we know anything about the rebelling clans?" He asked.

Sai nodded.

"Tsunade provided only one name: The Hoshigaki clan."

Naruto furrowed his brows.

"The same as Kisame." He whispered.

"More specifically, Nagayasu Hoshigaki. The current head. His son Shizuma seems to lead a small faction as well.. a group claiming to be the new seven swordsmen of the mist." Sai said coolly.

Kakashi scoffed.

"New seven swordsmen? These kiri nin are putting on quite the show aren't they." He said.

Shikamaru frowned.

"Regardless of their bravado.. the threat is real. Tsunade is right. This is a situation that can easily grow out of control. Not to mention..if this Nagayasu is even half as powerful as Kisame was.. Chōjūrō isn't strong enough to face him."

"Then the question is: which teams do we send?" Kakashi replied, nodding towards Shikamaru.

Shikamaru pondered for a moment.

"It would be best to send one genin team and two Jonin. Perhaps Tokubetsu rank." He said.

Naruto nodded in agreement.

"We're still dealing with our own problems here. I'd like to keep as many teams and their leaders within Konoha as possible." Naruto rose from his chair.

"We'll send Team 10 along with Mugino.. and you, Kakashi-Sensei." Naruto said with a slight smile.

Kakashi chuckled. "An S-rank mission huh.. its certainly been awhile."

Then, Naruto turned to Shikamaru.

"If you have any concerns with my decision-" Naruto began.

Shikamaru waved his hand.

"He's ready. Almost a little scary. Takes after his mom a bit too much for my comfort." Shikamaru said with a sigh.

"Anyway.. I know the same goes for his team too. They've been training. Ever since Sunagakure." Shikamaru said softly.

All of them were silent for a moment. Team 10 had been the only ones sent to Sunagakure during the civil war. They almost didn't make it back.

With that said, it was this experience that made the genin team a highly specialized one- and in some respects, almost as skilled as the Tokubetsu Jonin accompanying them.

"Now that that's settled.. Sai, your report from the barrier team?" Naruto said, motioning his hand towards Sai.

Uncharacteristically, Sai faltered.

Naruto said nothing, but narrowed his eyes while Sai averted his gaze.

"There has been.. a new development. One that I personally attempted to control. As such.. a suspect has escaped." Sai whispered.

Naruto remained silent, as did Kakashi.

It was Shikamaru who spoke, his voice controlled but incensed.

"Escaped?! What's going on Sai! What happened with the barrier team? It has to do with the Yamanaka clan, doesn't it?" Shikamaru accused.

Sai's face contorted into a stern frown. His eyes locked onto Shikamaru, steely raising his voice.

"I am the head of the Anbu. I am trying to shield this village from the darkness Danzo brought to it. There are more clans involved than simply the Yamanaka, Shikamaru!" Sai hissed.

"Shikamaru.. please." Naruto offered a smile to his old friend. Shikamaru folded his arms, inhaling deeply while Sai resumed.

"As you know, the Inuzuka clan was placed in control of the police force. Due to their innate tracking abilities, they worked closely with the barrier team.."

"What's the Inuzuka clan have to do with this?" Kakashi asked.

Sai answered.

"Kiba rather independently leads not only the police force, but his clan. It seems he kept something from us."

"Well? Don't play coy." Shikamaru scoffed.

Sai ignored him.

"About eight months ago, Kiba banished Shota Inuzuka from Konoha. He then suppressed the information. We found this out due to coming across Sachi Yamanaka.. a barrier team member. She was in a relationship with Shota." Sai said.

"However, it goes further. Her interrogation was strange. She showed signs of distress. Sweating. When asked about the lapse in security in terms of the barrier team, she completely broke down."

Kakashi understood immediately.

"So that's your suspect. But you said she was lost..?" Kakashi questioned.

"As this situation now seemed to involve two clans.. I attempted to shield Sachi. I wanted to speak to her directly. But something scared her. She must've somehow sensed Anbu tailing her. She was able to evade our guards, and escape the village."

"It's clear then.. It's possible Sachi helped this group enter the village. But in terms of what they did.. it doesn't make sense." Shikamaru said.

Naruto raised his eyebrows in confusion.

"What do you mean, exactly?"

"You would assume Sachi would help the group out of revenge for Shota. But stealing the scroll has nothing to do with the barrier team nor the involved clans. The shinobi killed weren't intended targets, just people in the wrong place at the wrong time." Shikamaru explained.

Naruto understood.

He's right. Why would Sachi help a rogue group enter the village.. to no gain of herself or Shota?

Kakashi seemed to grasp it as well.

"The motive is strange. I would say the connection was tenuous, had she not run." The sixth Hokage offered.

"Her actions definitely speak of a panicked person. But now we lost our prime suspect and witness." Shikamaru said pointedly to Sai in all but name.

"Then we have no choice. Tomorrow, we will go to the military police force compound. I will speak to Kiba directly.. and find out more about this Shota Inuzuka." Naruto said.

"We'll give Team 10 and Mugino a day to prepare. You as well, Kakashi." Naruto added.

Naruto wished his advisors well, personally walking with them out of the Hokage's chambers. They were all tired.. peace seemed to have afforded conflicts more complicated than war. As Naruto returned to his office, his thoughts again drifted to his children.

Boruto. Himawari.

Earlier that day, Boruto had remained entirely silent as they watched over Himawari's healing. His sister still hadn't awoken.. as Naruto looked at his son, he recognized the emotions that were written on the boy's face.

Anger. Resentment. Shame.

Naruto clenched his fist, swearing to himself as he sat back down.

I couldn't protect them. Despite all of my power..

"Oi.. Naruto."

A shadow loomed to Naruto's right. The Hokage nearly jumped in surprise as Sasuke's tall, cloaked frame shambled into view.

"Sasuke?!" Naruto exclaimed.

Sasuke frowned.

"Tch.. loud as always, Naruto." Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

Naruto understood his closest friend almost immediately.

"What is it you found, Sasuke?" Naruto asked.

"They're not like we assumed. Their society isn't built like ours. They're small in number.. but incredibly powerful. Kaguya.. seems to descend from some godlike bloodline, even amongst their kind." Sasuke answered.

They.

The Ōtsutsuki clan.

"They're still active, Naruto. I was attacked by one. It seemed to be defending a small temple, but decided whatever was within it wasn't worth being fully discovered." As Sasuke spoke, he reached into his cloak.

Naruto's eyes widened. Sasuke produced a glowing talisman- it was covered in a flowing script that seemed to pulsate within the air. Chakra whirled amongst it almost as if it was a living creature.

"What is that?" Naruto instinctively flinched away.

"An Ōtsutsuki tome. Though this is the first one I've found that is still.. for lack of a better term, alive." Sasuke answered.

Before Naruto could ask, Sasuke continued.

"Ōtsutsuki tomes are recorded with memories. They're living artifacts of their civilization. However, if the tomes aren't able to feed off of a steady stream of chakra, they become defective. The ones I've found before this one were like that. It made translation almost impossible."

"But this one.. you can read it?" Naruto questioned.

Sasuke slightly dipped his head.

"It will take time."

Then, Sasuke's eyes met Naruto's.

"They will be coming soon. I can feel it. That's why they didn't commit to their attack when they faced me. They want to maintain their surprise."

"Ōtsutsuki.. there's something happening here, too. A group that may be in possession of a dojutsu that looks like the Rinnegan." Naruto said.

Sasuke's eye widened in shock.

"Like the Rinnegan?" He hissed.

Naruto nodded, explaining not only the group, but the brutal attack on Himawari as well.

After a long silence, Sasuke spoke.

"The village isn't ready, Naruto. Not even the Jonin are strong enough." Sasuke looked towards the buildings outside.

"I know." Naruto replied.

"Hmph. You look tired." Sasuke said curtly.

"I am. All of that happened in the past day, y'know." Naruto responded sheepishly.

"Then I'll let you find a semblance of rest. It's time I return home." Sasuke's voice seemed a little lighter than usual.

Naruto grinned.

"Don't let me keep you." He said.

Sasuke nodded brusquely, opening a nearby window as he stepped outside.

"It's good to have you back, Sasuke." Naruto smiled.

Sasuke nodded again before jumping into the night sky.

Sasuke leapt from building to building, sliding down nearby railing before alighting down to Konoha's streets. The moon was fat in the air, while stars exploded onto a canvas of black above.

Sasuke stopped walking.

He stepped backward as a kunai sped past inches away from his nose, thudding into a wooden fence to his right.

A figure leapt into the light of the moon.

Sasuke remained still as the figure landed underneath the shadow of an adjacent building.

Sasuke smirked.

He's fast.

Movement exploded-

A shape charged for Sasuke, sandals slapping against the wood fence as it ran across it. Chakra began to hiss in the air-

"Lighting style: thunderclap arrow!"

A spear of light zipped for Sasuke-

"Wind Style: multiple gale palm!"

Sasuke was genuinely surprised at this-

From behind?! I can't sense him!

Sasuke spun on his feet, extending one hand behind himself as he absorbed the incoming lighting jutsu.

He focused his eye on the crescents of compressed air that threatened to behead him-

Amenotejikara!

Sasuke switched places with one of the blades of air- and in the process, honed in on his target.

Sasuke's Rinnegan glowed as an orb of gravity swirled into existence in midair. It threw his attacker to the ground, holding him in place as Sasuke softly landed with a plume of smoke.

"You're certainly skilled. I couldn't sense you for a moment." Sasuke said as he looked down at the subdued assailant.

The boy clawed at the ground, attempting to free himself of the gravity that imprisoned him.

"You're- Sasuke.. Uchiha! You almost defeated the H-Hokage!" The boy said.

Sasuke chuckled.

"And who told you that, young shinobi?" Sasuke asked.

"My father.. the Hokage!"

Sasuke smirked inside himself.

I had assumed as much.

The boy had long dark hair.. but in the light of the moon, Sasuke could see the resemblance between the boy and Naruto. They had the same shaped eyes, the same marks on their cheeks.. and seemingly, the same single minded determination that irritated Sasuke to no end.

But there was something that intrigued Sasuke. The boy's line of attack.. it was planned out. Not only that, he had evaded Sasuke's senses until the very moment he struck. At the very least, he had more natural talent than Naruto did at the same age.

"I never had any chance of defeating your father." Sasuke said plainly. He dispelled his jutsu. The boy's body instantly relaxed as he rose, hands on his knees as he coughed.

"I needed to steal chakra in order to even pose a threat to him. But your father wasn't even fighting to kill me. Had he been, I would not be speaking to you now." Sasuke spoke easily despite the admittance.

"That doesn't matter! You're- you're Sasuke Uchiha. The power you wield.." the boy trailed off. Then, he struck his chest with his fist.

"I need to become stronger. My dad.. he doesn't have what it takes to get me where I need to be. But someone like you-"

"Why were you out here?" Sasuke interrupted.

The boy paused.

"...I followed my dad to the Hokage's office.. I was trying to listen in on their meeting. I heard some things. They're sending my friends to Kirigakure. That's also why I have to-"

"I can't train you." Sasuke answered coolly.

The boy's face fell. However, instead of getting offended, his determination seemed to grow even bolder.

"I know I'm weak now. But I can get stronger."

"That's the problem. If I trained you now.. you would die. There would be no point to it." Sasuke said with a bite of finality.

He continued on his way, leaving the boy standing at the intersection of two sidewalks.

Sasuke heard footsteps running behind him-

He turned, frowning-

The boy caught up before falling to hands and knees. He desperately began entreating Sasuke.

"I need to improve. Right now.. I'm too weak. I can't protect anyone. Not even my sister.." Blue silver eyes lost in pained reflection suddenly snapped towards Sasuke.

"Please. Help me." The boy asked.

Sasuke grimaced.

"Maybe I was wrong to have been impressed by you."

The boy sharply drew in his breath.

"Wallowing in self pity.. begging others to show you the path to strength. I can tell that you lack it."

".. it?"

Sasuke turned from the boy again.

This time, as Sasuke walked, he heard the sound of a blade slashing across skin. Sasuke spun on his feet, eyes wide as the boy now stood, defiant in the moonlight.

The boy held out his palm, unmoving as a steady stream of blood gushed from where he had sliced it open.

"I promise you.. Sasuke Uchiha. I will never be this weak again.." the boy said. His voice was strong. Resolute.

Sasuke scoffed.

"What is your name?"

"Boruto.." Boruto lowered his bleeding hand, cusping it into a tight fist.

"Boruto.. Uzumaki." The boy finished.

"Can you perform the Rasengan?" Sasuke asked.

Boruto seemed to be surprised.

"No-"

"If you can learn the Rasengan..." Sasuke's cape billowed as he turned from Boruto for the last time.

"I'll accept you as my student.." Sasuke's voice seemed to fade with him as he escaped into the darkness beyond the reach of the moon.

Boruto stood, alone as he bandaged his palm.

The Rasengan...

He clenched his wound, blood dressing new bandages a shade of deep red.

SHOJOJI bit deeply into bone. His tongue slurped up the blood and flesh still on it, as sharp canines broke bone into splinters, marrow gushing from between white cracks.

Shojoji was crouched over a young woman. He was within her blood covered home- The woman's dead husband was a few meters away in the kitchen, where Shojoji had beaten him to death. Aside from the sound of Shojoji's eating, it was eerily silent.

He was lucky. Both were non combatant shinobi, but they possessed the chakra natures Shojoji needed. He wouldn't go as far as to steal their bodies, but their power.. as little as it may be, would serve his personal ends.

Shojoji threw his head backwards, his meal plummeting into his stomach with a sickening splash.

He-

Shojoji..

The man nearly vomited. His vision spun as he tumbled over, catching himself on his hands as he tried to focus. Pain split from the base of his head to the tip of his belly button, rupturing up and down his spine.

Otogane Gamou..!

Shojoji swore. She hadn't contacted him in nearly ten years.. what could Kara possibly want with him now?!

Shojoji.. I know you hear me..

Another gust of pain plowed through Shojoji.

This time, he did vomit.

I- I am here, Lady Otogane, Shojoji spoke within himself.

the walls of the woman's home suddenly turned black.

The center wall, the one closest to Shojoji, began to swirl as if a pool of water. Dozens of pale faces suddenly surfaced amongst the blackened liquid, circling around the head of a young woman- beautiful with long onyx hair.

Otogane Gamou.

"Shojoji..You haven't forgotten your oath to Kara, have you? I have been lax with your discipline. But you are still amongst my lower guard."

Shojoji chuckled.

"I'm the only one who's survived." He rasped.

"It pleases me that such a plain truth has clung to you, Shojoji." Otogane said.

Shojoji adopted a dead tone. He knew better than to resist Otogane. He was thankful she had ignored him for as long as she had.

"What would you have me do, Lady Gamou?" Shojoji bowed his head.

"A team of lowers encountered two groups of Konoha shinobi." Otogane began.

The leaf village?

Shojoji raised an eyebrow, but remained silent as Otogane continued.

"One of them encountered a chakra.. a chakra that for a split second, felt almost like my own." Otogane said.

Shojoji immediately refused the information he had just been given.

"That's impossible. If it was like yours, that would mean it was fr-" Shojoji stopped as pain, pain worse than before, erupted behind his eyes. He cried aloud in torment, throwing himself to the floor as he desperately clawed at burning pupils. The faces within the wall laughed as Otogane's voice boomed.

"Do not presume to know truth, Shojoji. I know what I have felt." Otogane rumbled.

Shojoji wept as he spoke.

"Of course, Lady Gamou!" He pleaded. He didn't care what he said. He just wanted the pain to end.

Otogane smirked as Shojoji's agony did indeed slowly fade away.

"To see someone so cruel speak with such earnest innocence.. it's almost insulting.." Otogane seemed to laugh.

"...Konoha.." Shojoji said, breathing heavily.

He looked up. the walls-

They were normal again, albeit covered in the former owner's blood. Shojoji was alone.

He knew why Otogane was sending him. He could navigate under the radar of Jigen.. not to mention he was the only member of Kara who could entirely change his appearance and chakra natures. Still.. for Otogane to be driven to these lengths.. she obviously didn't want Kara to know of this mission.

Especially not Jigen.

Was it really possible she sensed something like that? What living being could possess such chakra-

Shojoji was frozen for a moment. But then, he shrugged. Such questions were beyond him. His only objective was to find out who that chakra belonged to. To which, Shojoji smiled.

His methods were cruel.. but such was the life of Shinobi.

NEXT CHAPTER: FORMATION INO-SHIKA-CHO!

12: FORMATION: INO-SHIKA-CHO!

BORUTO

-KIRIGAKURE ARC-

SHIKADAI sighed, opening green eyes. The sun cast shadows about the forest, each of them like little black pools underneath clouds of leaves.

Beside him, Chocho Akimichi stood. She wielded a tantō confidently, tapping her feet in excitement. To their backs, Inojin Yamanaka was found. The youth had long black and blonde hair, split down the middle and framing a pale face down to a pointed chin.

Shikidai knew Inojin was at the ready as well- scroll in one hand, brush in the other.

It was silent...save for the incessant chirping of birds.

Shikadai smiled, looking every bit like his mother as he did so.

When will you make your move... Sensei! He thought.

With Chocho at his right, they could defend themselves from not only both directions, but also from the ground and the air.

With Inojin at their flank, he could use his-

Each of the young genin suddenly heard sandals clacking against bark from the branches above.

She's coming!

Shikadai expected an attack from the trees-

The ground between them ruptured violently, spears of rock striking upwards from within the genin formation.

Earth style-!

The genin leapt into the air, using chakra to increase their speed. Despite their status as students, Shikadai estimated that their agility far exceeded the rank they currently held.

Shikadai somersaulted backwards, crouching against a thick tree trunk. Inojin landed in the branches above him, while Chocho reformed at Shikadai's center right.

Despite the surprise attack, we maintained our formation. However.. sensei isn't fighting seriously yet..Shikadai frowned.

Is she trying to catch us off guard? Create a variance in her strategy?

Chocho spoke aloud, slightly breaking Shikadai's concentration.

"You're going too easy on us, sensei!" She boasted.

Inojin chuckled from the trees.

"Shut up, fatso." Inojin said with quiet politeness.

Chocho whirled her head up at Inojin.

"I'm- I'm not even using my dad's jutsu right now!" She yelled.

It was true. Chocho was able to revert between body sizes- a genetic mutation of the jutsu she inherited by the blood of the Akimichi clan.

Her "normal" body could infuse chakra and use the body expansion technique.. while her "fat" body was able to retain chakra that Chocho infused over days.. months.. and even years.

While in this form, she could expend that chakra instantly, unleashing a torrent of power that not even Chocho can currently control. In fact, the form could kill her if not used properly.

Despite her somewhat self absorbed attitude..

Chocho was strong.

"Water style: water severing wave!" Moegi's voice rang throughout the forest as the sound of gushing water filled Shikadai's ears.

A high pressure stream cut through wood, toppling trees as it mowed towards the assembled genin.

Suddenly, a massive ink wall formed between the genin and the spearing water. the ink solidified into a tangible painting of an ornate oni gate, complete with swaying charms.

Inojin's jutsu.. the Material Imitation Technique. Unlike his father, Inojin was unable to perform Beast Imitation Art. However, his jutsu seemed able to create "inanimate" non living objects- anything from bridges to spears. Even rocks, fire, and water.

Despite his relative inexperience, the art Inojin could create was far denser than that of regular Beast Imitation Drawing, meaning it was harder to destroy- and in some situations, far better suited for defense and offense.

"Good, Inojin!" Chocho complimented, unbothered by Inojin's earlier insult. She planted herself on the ground, fingers curling around the handle of her small sword.

She can sense what's coming too- nice Chocho! Shikadai remained silent as four snaking rods of wood burst from between quivering trees.

Moegi's speciality..

Wood release.

Moegi had created a facsimile of the First's jutsu. It lacked the chakra controlling properties and overall strength of Hashirama's original ability, but maintained the same versatility. It was that same versatility that hurtled towards them now.

Heh.. now this.. this could actually kill us! Shikadai thought with a bit of sadistic humor.

Chocho held her sword outwards vertically. chakra plumed from her- causing light red hair to waver in the air.

Then, a gust of wind followed flashes of steel.

Smoke billowed beside Shikadai as the sound of wood punching against metal bounced between trees.

Chocho's speciality..

Weapon expansion.

The Akimichi clan possessed the ability to expand their bodies into massive, bulbous forms. However, Karui Akimichi was able to create a new jutsu.. a combination of the Akimichi's Chō Haetataki and Kumogakure kenjutsu.

As the smoke cleared, Chocho could be seen wielding a massive blade- one that nearly rivaled the nearby trees in length. She held it defensively as Moegi's branches pummeled Chocho's sword with a hail of thundering blows. Despite this.. Chocho's weapon was resolute.

The principle was simple. By imbuing her Tanto with her own blood, she was able to transfer gigantism to it. Karui created the Jutsu.. and Choji mastered the technique. With that said..

Chocho has the potential to utilize it to greater extents than either of them!

The sound of bark scraping against metal ceased. For a moment, it was silent.

Chocho leapt backwards, shrinking her weapon back to its normal size.

Inojin kept to the trees as they all heightened their awareness, chirping birds tentatively resuming song during the calm.

Shikadai's eyes leapt from leaf to leaf, left to right.

Where will she strike next..

"Shikadai.. I'm not sure if she's doing it on purpose or not.. but I can sense her." Chocho whispered.

Shikadai lowered his head.

"Far away enough that you're talking, huh?" He responded with a slight smile.

Ironically, it was Chocho, not Inojin, who was the strongest sensory type on the team.

Chocho frowned, unamused as she formed a jutsu sign.

"Obviously.. So what do we do?"

Shikadai pondered.

She wants us to attack her.. that much is clear. Which means she's going to put up a real fight this time. We'll have to be careful.

Shikadai intrusively scratched at a bandaged wrist.

I could use it.. But I'd prefer not to risk any damage during a training exercise..

Whatever.

"Inojin," Shikadai threw his head backwards and up, blond ponytail swinging behind his neck.

"Draw as many ranged projectiles as you can. Arrows, swords. Anything you can manipulate and throw."

[cherrys-spice-cabinet]

Sunday Morning

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: ...I'll get back to y'all on those.

Word count: 1.6k

Summary: Like most days, Sunday mornings are quite typical for Viktor. However, he is awoken to the sight of you in his bed, and scenes from last night give this morning an... atypical turn for the young inventor.

Note: Hello! This is both my first fanfiction-related post in years, alongside the first post with a renovated blog! As per the rating, this is an 18+ work, so minors, please do not interact with this work. For those of you who are of age to do so, enjoy, and please let me know if there's anything I can improve upon or you'd like to read in the future!

Much love,

Cherry <3

Rain pattered against the large window of Viktor’s room, causing him to stir slowly.

A dull ache radiated from the side of his neck, and a warm arm wrapped itself around his torso.

From the corner of his field of vision, Viktor saw you in all of your post-orgasmic glory: hair sprawled out across the pillow rather gracelessly, makeup smeared from the desperate cries Viktor tore from you during your activities, and yet, a blissful expression graced your unconscious countenance.

Memories from the night before played back in his mind: you coming in and bringing him sweetmilk

You drinking his sweetmilk, if y’all catch my drift

And of course, you servicing the man in any way possible to keep him away from his work wife, science.

Despite his protests, he followed, entranced by your, ahem, methods of distraction

Especially in the office, where Jayce, Heimerdinger, anybody could come in and see the two of you.

For a man who was fairly reliant on a routine, he appreciated the hiccup in the routine he had at the lab, and maybe the hiccup escaping from your throat after you swallowed more so.

He rose from his seat after that, beckoning you to follow him to his room. His silence was a bit too telling to the fact that you were about to get punished, so you tried to sweet-talk yourself out of it.

It absolutely did not prevent the punishment you’d received when you’d gotten back to Viktor’s room

You honestly didn’t wish for it to, Viktor’s hot when he gets like that.

Viktor’s reminiscing was interrupted by you stirring, the warm arm that held him in place stretching skyward.

“G’morning,” you groaned, voice hoarse. Viktor smiled, watching you rub your sore throat. He swallowed a bit, a bit of pride swelling up in his chest.

“Good morning, darling. Did you sleep well?” he inquired, caressing your cheek.

You leaned into the touch, pressing a kiss into his wrist. “I slept quite well after the fact, but my throat is still sore thanks to a certain someone,” you shot back, a mischievous glint sparkling in your eyes.

Viktor chuckled, his hands reaching over to gently massage any areas he was unnecessarily… rough with the night before.

“Does anything hurt, love?” He inquired, barely above a whisper as his fingers ghosted over patches of skin that were still red. You shook your head, wrapping your arms around Viktor’s neck.

Before he knew it, he had fallen atop your naked figure, the two of you crashing into the pile of pillows and blankets below the two of you.

The small chuckle that began in Viktor’s throat erupted into a fountain of laughter,

“I love you, darling,” he murmured between laughs, kissing along your jaw downwards towards your neck.

A moan had escaped you, fingers grasping at his hair. He smiled softly, beginning to move lower. Your eyes followed the deft ministrations of your lover as he moved painfully slowly down your body.

Chapped lips wrapped themselves around your nipple, sucking gently as a pair of fingers went on to twist the other.

For perhaps the first time this morning, a loud moan tore from your throat, in turn causing your eyes to shoot open in shock and partial embarrassment.

You pressed your lips together to not make so much noise, only for Viktor to pull away and look at you sternly.

"I want to hear you." he breathed, amber gaze taking in your sheepish countenance. If last night had been any indicator, you knew he'd stop if you continued this sudden act of modesty.

You released your lips from their seal, which was quickly rewarded by Viktor with a sweet kiss.

"Mm-!" You exclaimed, smiling into the kiss.

Viktor pulled from the kiss, smiling down at you. You took a second to kiss his neck, sucking a small hickey on his adam's apple. A moan came from the man's throat, head thrown back in pleasure.

"You've certainly got a way with your mouth, sweetheart," Viktor croaked, his fingers intertwining with yours.

"Oh but my love, this is only the beginning!" you said, your words exaggerated sweetly.

Your hands trailed from his shoulders, down his chest, lurking lower painfully slowly.

Viktor’s breath hitched as you peeled back the covers, all to be met with a springing cock and a shaky inhale above you.

A smile stretched across your lips as you leaned down towards Viktor's trembling cock.

The licks you gave his member were gentle at first, maybe even teasing a bit.

From above you, Viktor gasped and groaned, frustrated by your teasing motions. He shot you a look, eyes somewhere between a glare and a plead to get on with your ministrations.

And so, you did. You took all of Viktor in your mouth, eyes fluttering shut.

It was no doubt the man was big, and you always seemed to struggle just a little bit to get all of him in your mouth.

"Mm! J-just like that," he moaned, his fingers lacing themselves in between strands of your hair.

His encouragement made you moan, causing his cock to vibrate in your mouth.

With a burst of determination, you lowered your head, finally taking in all of him. Another push to the back of your head had the entirety of Viktor's length in your mouth, the head bumping the back of your throat eagerly.

A gag escaped you, tears prickling in the corner of your eyes. Viktor's gaze shot down towards you, eyes glazed over with lust.

"Are you okay, my love?" He breathed, chest rising and falling heavily. His hand reached down towards you, wiping a stray tear from your cheek.

You nodded, leaning into his touch. "'m okay, just wanna make you feel good," you mumbled, face lowering towards his cock. Viktor held the back of your head, stopping you.

"Ah! This can't wait, (y/n), I need you." He moaned, flipping the two of you over. A gasp escaped you as he towered over you, tufts of soft brown hair falling in front of his eyes.

You smiled at him fondly, gently moving the strands behind his ear. "You're beautiful." You whispered, holding onto either side of his face.

Viktor laughed, holding one of your hands to his cheek. "I believe I'm supposed to be the one to say this to you, no?" he asked teasingly, smiling down at your figure splayed across the pillows.

One of Viktor’s long fingers dragged itself down your torso, stopping just before he tapped your clit.

You stared at your lover quizzically, brows pinched together in desperation.

Viktor smiled down at you, leaning until his lips barely grazed your ear.

“Patience, sweetheart,” He whispered, kissing your earlobe.

A shiver ran down your spine as your carded your fingers through his hair. Two fingers parted your lips to reveal your wet pussy. Viktor stared at it, eyebrows raised and a teasing smirk playing on his lips.

“All of this for me? You shouldn’t have!” He joked, swiping his middle finger through your juices. You bite back a moan, fingers twisting themselves in the sheets.

You couldn’t quip back for the moan that you let out in its place. Viktor simpered, seeming rather pleased with his work.

Without delay, Viktor pushed his cock into you slowly, peppering kisses across your twisted countenance.

“Shh, you’re okay,” he cooed, smoothing down the hair on the side of your head. You unscrewed your eyes, gaze desperate to be somehow closer to your lover. Viktor bottomed out at last, hissing

Upon being given your permission to move, Viktor began thrusting slowly into you, pulling out until only the throbbing tip of his cock remained inside of you, then pushing in slowly once again.

As your moans grew, Viktor's thrusts sped up, little by little. At some point, his length hit that spot that had you seeing stars and thanking the universe for your lover's sudden boldness in the morning.

You held onto Viktor desperately, incoherent babbling spilling from your lips as he thrust. There wasn’t much for him to understand, much to his amusement.

“You are quite talkative when you are close, did you know?” he inquired cheekily, pressing a kiss to your swollen lips.

A soundless scream escaped you as you came, pussy spasming around Viktor’s cock desperately.

The two of you fell back against the bed, chests heaving. The large bedroom was still low in light as drizzle had turned to rain, and grey skies a murky black.

It was then that Viktor sighed, heaving himself up and out of your grasp to reach for his cane. You sighed, cursing your boyfriend's sense of duty to work.

“Vik, it’s Sunday. You don’t hafta do anything, we can clean up later,” you groaned, face still half smooshed into his chest.

Viktor’s laugh bounced off the walls of his room, eliciting a comforting vibration for your head.

Viktor considered his options, cleaning his girlfriend up and leaving her to huff and puff about the lab, or to stay in and "relax with the love of his life", as you put it. A sigh escaped the man as he turned to you.

“Since my angel has asked so nicely, maybe I will consider the notion," he announced mockingly, settling back into the pillows below.

You tucked your head further into his chest, turning to pepper kisses along his skin. That same laughter you loved so much seemed to bubble up from Viktor’s chest.

Exhaustion washed over Viktor’s body. Amber eyes fluttered shut, and a satisfied sigh escaped from his lips.

Perhaps a day off was in order after all.

[schattenfanger]

”… Mikey? Are you doin’ okay?” | @skullkxd

"i'm not fucking okay, ree!" its more aggressive than he's ever been with them, but even ree isn't enough to quell the rage that's finally succeeded in taking over him. "i'm here because i'm not okay, but it hasn't changed a damn thing!"

[strangeinternetwasteland]

Imprint- Werewolf Bakugo x Fem! Reader Pt 1

A/N: I wrote this for @chaoticyuna and her summerween event which can be found here …this probably will be a multipart series…

WC: 1.7k

Warnings: None really this part is pretty SFW

There were always stories about your college UA. The ghosts that moaned and haunted the hallways, the skeletons they found buried deep beneath the school, the vampires that roamed openly on campus at night. None were ever as exaggerated as the tale of the werewolf that runs through the forest at night.

Of course, you didn’t believe any of this. The closest thing to ghosts or vampires were the pale-faced, sleep-deprived students you attended the school with. The fact that wolves even lived in the forest around the school seemed absurd. So when you started your first year at UA, the seniors would try to scare the freshmen.

You never gave in nor did you believe the stories. So when you decided to join a sorority, of course your initiation was to spend a night in the forest. Honestly, it was pathetic that so many gave into the stories like this. You refused to do such an act and were not accepted into the Sorority.

You tried again with another sorority that seemed to align with your ideals concerning the “supernatural” existence of beings. Your initiation was similar to the other sorority, only you had to go to the forest on a full moon and spend the whole night there. To you it wasn’t anything, you’d been camping many times with your family since you were little. One night wouldn’t hurt.

So you packed your sleeping bag, a few snacks, water, and some extra clothes. The warmth of the fall day gave false hope. You had checked the weather and made sure that it wasn’t going to be raining that night or extraordinarily cold. Everything seemed to have been perfect.

After dinner, you took your stuff and ventured off into the forest. You found a nice clearing not too long after the sun had just set, just before it became too dark to see. You set up camp, built a fire, and let your thoughts take you wherever they pleased while looking under the starry sky. You had drifted off to sleep fairly quickly.

A few hours later, you were awoken by the sound of a low growl of a wolf. The sound meant danger, and even in your half-sleeping state, you knew something was wrong. You quietly, and quickly tried to pack your things without attracting too much attention, you backed up slowly and felt yourself press up against something soft. You held your breath as you slowly turned to face a massive carmel colored wolf with red eyes. The last thought you had before everything turned cold and dark was, ‘I am going to die here, but why does he look sort of humane?’

You woke up just after the sun rose, in a cold sweat. Unsure if you dreamt of the giant wolf, or if it really happened. You argued with yourself while you packed up your things, but a feeling of uneasiness settled over you, almost as if you were being watched. You shook it off and chalked it up to your imagination. You walked back to the sorority house and reported your finding of nothing.

The next two weeks passed quickly, without much of anything happening. You were part of the Sorority, participating in house parties, thinking of charity events, and of course school. It was almost two months into school when you got a new student in your business marketing class, which was normally not a thing that happened often. When he entered the room all the girls in class stared at him. He oozed confidence and cockiness. Whispers were murmured amongst the girls.

When you looked up to see the commotion, you saw him walking toward you. Something about his stance and aura made you not want to make eye contact with him.

“Is this seat taken?” He asked you gruffly while pointing to the one directly next to you. You shook your head no, and kept your head down and gaze averted.

“I’m Katsuki Bakugo.” He told you while holding his hand out to you. You really wanted to look at him, but everything inside you screamed not to. You ignored him as best as you could, but your interaction  made the whole classroom whisper again.

“Alright, everyone settle down. Today’s assignment and your homework is to create a business model that you think would have sustainable growth in a five year model. You will be working with a partner. You have two weeks to complete this and present it to the class.” You swore you saw all the girls' eyes glued to Bakugo as the professor spoke.

“Bakugo, since you’re new to this class, I will let you pick your partner first.” The Professor said, but all the girls sat up a little straighter trying to get Bakugo’s attention. “I advise you though, that just because you are starting so late, I won’t make any excuse for you not to get your work done. You have quite a bit to catch up on.” He continued.

You saw Bakugo give a sly grin when the Professor said this. He nodded his head curtly.

“I choose Y/N as my partner for this assignment.” Bakugo spoke aloud, and you saw all the girls in the room deflate a little bit. You didn’t know Bakugo so how did he know you? You thought to yourself.  When you looked at him after he spoke, for the first time since he entered the room, something about him seemed so familiar. His eyes softened a bit as you looked at one another before he tore his eyes away from you. You felt his whole mood shift from confident to anger. You couldn’t explain it, but you knew something was off with Bakugo.

After everyone was partnered up, and you heard a few quips from the other females about how unfair it was that Bakugo picked you, the two of you were set off to work. As uncomfortable as Bakugo seemed with you, or the classroom, he had a lot of ideas for the assignment. Just before class the two of you exchanged numbers and planned to meet at the library tomorrow night.

Every other night you and Bakugo spent time at the library together until close. He always seemed very tense when around you, and you thought perhaps, it was just your personality that he didn’t like. He’d walk you to your dorm or sorority house when needed. The night before your presentation to the class, you were supposed to meet him, but he never showed up.

You walked around the school looking for him. You caught up with one of his friends Kirishima, who told you that Bakugo wasn’t feeling well. You thanked Kirishima, and gave him a message for Bakugo. You noticed that it was a full moon, and a cool fall night. You walked toward the forest where you felt most at peace. As you felt the cool crisp air biting at your cheeks, and feel your troubles melt away, you walked aimlessly.

Suddenly, you were in the darkest part of the forest, where very little moonlight filtered through the trees. You felt that uneasiness once again, and realized you were lost. Behind you, you heard a branch crack and break. Your heartbeat raced and you realized that you heard a low, warning growl from a wolf. This time you knew you weren’t dreaming.

In front of you was a snarling shadow with the bluest eyes you’d ever seen. You were shaking from adrenaline and while you should have ran away, you heard the gruffest, “Don’t Move” inside your head. So you obeyed. From above you lept a lighter colored wolf, who placed himself in front of you.

The two snarled at one another for a bit, but seemed to be communicating somehow. The sight was incredible and unbelievable. When the other wolf left without your legs gave out and you fainted once again.

When you woke you were surrounded with the feeling of warm fur, and the smell of carmel that pulled you back into sleep. You didn’t dream of anything more, but hours later you woke up in a fit, and inside your dorm. When you exited your dorm to rush to class, you were greeted by Bakugo.

“Hey, Y/N. Are you okay?” You eyed him suspiciously, he wasn’t as tense as he normally was.

“I am fine. I’ve just had nightmares as of late.” You snapped at him.

“Alright.” He said nonchalantly. The truth was you had a million questions for him, but you knew you couldn’t ask him.

“I meant, last night, I found you passed out in front of your dorm when I was walking back from the store.” He told you. You opened your mouth and then closed it.

“You know what? I don’t need this fake sympathy from you. Let’s do this stupid presentation and then we will never have to speak again.” You shouted at him.

He fell behind you as you walked as quickly as you could to the classroom. You both gave your presentation and ignored Bakugo as best as you could for the rest of class.

After class, you were the first one out and ran straight back to your dorm. You turned off your phone and fell asleep for the rest of the day. Your dorm mates Momo, Mina, and Ochako came and went.  Mina, whom you shared a room with, asked you if you wanted to join them. You told her no, and she knew that sometimes all you needed was space, gave you a head pat and left.

When they all left you were able to sleep again and at one point you swore you heard a knock at the door, but ignored it and everyone for the rest of the day. When you turned your phone on the next day, you saw the 5 missed phone calls from Bakugo. You were angry looking at that. The long apologetic text message didn’t seem to help either, nor did the box of Flamin’ hot Cheetos, which you assumed was Mina. However, you spotted the little note scribbled on top from Bakugo, you sat down angrily on the couch in the common area between your room and the other one, and ate the chips angrily. You were determined to ignore Bakugo for as long as possible.

[thesunicarusfellfor]

Your so great at writing omg- so could you do a part two of the yandere techno and philza?

And other idea for a different request!

Maybe ghostbur? 👀 With florist reader? And someone burned down there shop so they are very upset so ghostbur comforts them and helps build then a new one?

Again please take as long as you need.

- Your beloved Moosh ( platonically! :3)

Moosh, darling! Hello! How are you doing today? Part two of the yandere Tech and Phil chapter is up! Thank you for your requests, your ideas are just chefs kiss!

This is a tad bit short. I really really have to get out of the habit of writing 10k+ stories, because then I have no energy to write the other requests that have been waiting for a while <3

Also. This turned out to be angstier than I had hoped...

TW: Depression, emotion repression, large mentions of past Wilbur x Reader

Dead Blue Flowers (C!Ghostbur x GN!Depressed!Reader)

How...? How did this happen?

You tried so hard to remain neutral in this war, even going as far as to avoid telling people your opinions on things. Wasn't raising your tax weekly back when Schlatt was in control enough?

You just gave people flowers, for god's sake! Why did they have to burn the shop to nothing but cinders?!

Standing in front of the charred frame of your shop that had once been your prized possession. Every dollar you had raised, every smile that appeared on the faces of people you gave flowers to... You remembered the genuine smile on Wilbur's face when he gave you this plot of land to build whatever store you wanted...

Now it was all ashes that slipped through the cracks between your fingers...

"(Y/n)?" An echoing and airy voice echoed through your ears and you glanced up slightly to see a pair of shoes levitating a few inches off the ground, "What happened to your shop- Oh, you're crying, here. Take some blue. Calm yourself."

Crying?

While the levitating figure dug around, trying to find this so-called blue, you rose your hands up and touched your cheeks to find them slightly damp. When you pulled your hands away, a small cold pouch of blue dye was carefully placed in your hands, causing a small shiver to crawl down your spine, "Thanks, Bur..." You whispered softly, trying to smile to calm him down, but you just found your eyes welling up with more tears, so you put your head down in an attempt to hide them from your ghost friend.

"Did it not work? Perhaps that blue was broken..." Ghostbur reached into his small bag with his dye-stained fingers, digging around for a pouch of dye that wasn't 'broken'. You could feel a faint bit of panic in his voice as he mumbled about how blue always worked for him, so he didn't know why it wasn't working for you.

"No, Bur... It's just... I don't know what to do. My shop is gone. It was my pride and joy. Now I don't have anything left..." You murmured, holding the, now two, dye-filled packages in your cupped hands, "Even the cornflower seeds I used to make the blue flowers I gave you... They're nothing now... His mem- I'm nothing now..."

Ghostbur was panicking and the blue clutched in his hands was evident of that, "No, no! Don't say things like that! Come, come-" He gave a few coughs, his negative emotions seeming to affect him physically as well as emotionally.

You slowly pushed yourself up into a standing position, rubbing your eyes with your sleeves as your fingertips were tainted with dye. While you didn't feel much happier, despite Ghostbur's best efforts, you knew that emotionally he couldn't handle your sadness, "Thanks, Bur. I do feel much happier thanks to your blue. I'm gonna head home now." You gave him your best smile, watching as the sweater-wearing spirit studied your eyes to see if you were lying.

"Oh, okay!" The ghost perked up slightly, but his smile looked a tad bit hollow in your eyes. Guess you were in no place to judge, you did just give your best friend a smile to get him to stop panicking... Was this emotion suppression? Probably. Yeah. Ah well... As long as he's happy now. "I'm gonna go see Phil now, maybe you should come to visit sometime soon. He makes really good tea and biscuits."

"Yeah... I'll hop by his place sometime soon." You gave him the empty promise, knowing very well you didn't want anything to do with social interactions for quite a while until you found something else to put your time towards.

Over the next few days, Ghostbur would wait outside your house for you to come out and walk with you to your flower shop, but he then began to realize that you had nothing to walk to. Hell, you didn't have a reason to leave your house anymore... There was no point in coming outside. After standing under the awning above your front door for a few moments, he got an idea in his head, so he set off towards the house of Alivebur's father.

"Phiiiiiil?" He called softly, opening the front door to see the injured avian sitting in his chair in front of the fireplace, "Ah, Philza! Just the man I wanted to see!"

"Hey mate," The blond greeted softly, setting his cup of tea down on the table before getting up to properly interact with the ghost of his son, "What do ya' need from me?"

For a few seconds, hesitance filled Ghostbur's veins. He hadn't completely thought through this idea and didn't even know how you or Phil would react to it, "My ange- best friend, (Y/n)... Well, they were very very important to Alivebur, and I still have many happy memories of them... But they aren't happy now because someone burnt down their flower shop... They haven't left their house in a few days, and I'm getting a really bad feeling, Phil!" Despite the fact that a pouch of blue was tightly grasped in his hands, the ghost didn't seem to be feeling any calmer, ultimately chalking it up to the flowers he had made the dye out of must've been from a bad place.

Philza grabbed onto the ghost of his son, giving a faint hiss of pain at the icy buzz that attacked his palms, but ignored it and kept his hands on his son's shoulders. Or what was left of the son he killed, "Wil- Ghostbur. Calm down. I want you to go visit them and make sure they're still okay-"

"But I think they'll only be okay if their shop is built! I want to rebuild it for them!" Ghostbur whined softly, not exactly understanding why he felt so strongly towards you, "Alivebur really really cared about them, which means I care about them. And they're sad, even with the blue I gave them..."

Phil pursed his lips together, trying to keep quiet about exactly why Wilbur cared about you so much, "Okay, okay... I want you to go visit them and find the blueprints of their shop... If-If you can't, then I'm sure we can build something similar... Just please, make sure they're alive, eating and taking care of themselves..."

"Alive? Of course they're alive- right? right, Phil?" Ghostbur hiccuped slightly, bringing up his dye-stained fingers to his mouth in shock when the avian hesitated, "Phil?"

"Just, go check on them Wil... Please."

Without another word, the ghost hurried out the door and looked up at the rapidly darkening sky, as he floated towards the person his alive self adored so greatly. "(Y/n)... Why did Alivebur care for you so much? Why did he want you in his life so bad?" When the transparent male arrived at your door, he hurriedly pounded his fists on the door before pressing himself against it to hide under the awning as rain began to sprinkle down from the sky, "(Y/n)! Please, it's raining!" He cried, not wanting to melt.

There was a few seconds of silence before there was a rushing sound of footsteps coming from the inside of the house. Before the ghost could react, the door flew open, causing him to tumble onto the floor inside the house, "Bur! You should've checked the weather!"

He looked up at his saviour... And gave the softest smile he's ever worn. Even it had only been a few days, he began to realize just how much you meant to him as well, not just Alivebur. You were a guardian angel... A saviour from reality...

"Y-yeah, I know..." You murmured, trying to flatten down your unbrushed hair before shrinking away from your friend's gaze and into your oversized sweater that had once been Wilbur's, "I haven't really bothered to... Uhm... manage my appearance..."

"No worries, angel..." He blurted out, causing you to flinch as you stared at him. He didn't even know why he called you that to be completely honest, but he pushed himself off of your floor and dusted himself free of invisible dust, "Why haven't you been coming outside? I've been waiting outside for you every day... Phil was also worried about you losing a life in here alone!"

Pursing your lips together, you couldn't help but avoid the gaze of the ghost as you shut the door, "Sorry Bur, I've just been really tired..." You gave him a tired smile, but this time it didn't work on the poor ghost.

"I- I uhm... I know I'm forgetful, I know I'm an amnesiac, but I still feel this... I still feel things, and I try my best to make sure no one else feels it... But it's not working for helping you." He nervously grabbed onto a pouch of blue in his messenger bag, gritting his teeth together for a moment, "I figured out why that shop means so much to you... It's because it was a gift from Alivebur... Your lover... And now you feel like you have nothing left to hold his memory."

He watched as your eyes went wide and beginning to fill with tears before he went to his bag, going to grab some blue for you, but he paused upon seeing something else. A cornflower, one that never got turned into a dye, but it was withered and dead from being in the bag for so long, "Wil-Gho... Bur..." You hiccuped, trying to form words to create an apology, but your throat felt like it was tied in knots.

"That's also why you call me Bur... Because you don't want to accept that Aliv-... Wilbur... Is now a ghost..." He walked closer to you and put his hand on your arms, thankfully you were wearing a sweater to prevent frostbite from attacking your skin, "And that's okay! It's okay, (Y/n), you loved him... And he loved you, which means I love you... but I know you need time to cope with Al- Wilbur's... Death..." He carefully reached up and took your wrist, bringing your hand up into view so he could press the dead cold cornflower into your palm, "Until then, I'll stay by your side as your best friend..."

You slowly reached up and put your hand against his cheek, even though the contact burned your fingertips and he hardly felt solid... He was there... "Thank you... Ghostbur." You lowered your hand and smiled down at the dead flower in your palm.

"Now, come on, let's get you cleaned up! Me and Phil will help you rebuild your flower shop... When the rain lets up of course!"

[moonbaby26]

Title: Escape

Pairing: Peter Maximoff x Reader

Notes: Actual pairing interaction starts in the second section after the Reader character gets out of the elevator, feel free to skip down to that if you like. Reader thinks about Peter in the first section, but it is more setting up how they got so separated from the others, plus a Wolvie cameo. I wanted Peter x Reader to be able to have more interaction away from the group.

Summary: Continuation of previous chapter. Set during X-Men: Age of Apocalypse. You and the others have been taken to Stryker’s base and must survive to find your way out together.

Warnings: Wolverine cameo advisory with a 100% chance of stabby stab. Mild language.

Chapters: Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Taglist: @drikawinchester , @n0obmaster69 , @alexloveskili , @what-a-silver-lining , @bluesprings18 , @weakmoony-stuff , @slytherinsi-mp

Peter Maximoff x Reader Masterlist

——————————

“The day of reckoning is here.”

Your eyes opened at once, that unmistakeable voice now reverberating through your mind as fluorescent lights passed one after another above you.

“Professor?” You breathed aloud, immediately trying to sit up on the moving gurney.

But the restraints were drawn too tightly as your head only rebounded backward just as quickly when your torso didn’t rise in tandem.

“Shit!” the guard to your left cursed, his hand drawing back from the gurney rail at your sudden movement.

You turned your head towards him, confused, even as the professor’s words continued in your mind.

Yet Xavier’s voice sounded strange, forced. And you didn’t understand the context. Was it a warning? A threat to someone?

It didn’t really seem to fit the current circumstances to say it was directed at you or your captors. But he only kept speaking.

“The dawn of a new era will emerge. For there is nothing you can do...to stop what is coming.”

The two guards were looking around too then, reacting in sync with the telepathic message leaving you no doubt that they could hear it as well.

But why would Xavier be in their heads too? Did he already know where you were?

One guard chided the other, as if the two of them didn’t both have the same frightened expression. “Damn stun pulse is wearing off it is all, just hurry up and finish this transport. Colonel Stryker wants it taken to the lower testing bay,”

“Don’t tell me you aren’t hearing that voice?” The other guard retorted, “What the hell is that?”

Did they just call you an ‘it’? What was this place? Not a hospital surely. But you could barely dwell on the implications of the guard’s words ‘lower testing bay’, and the impending threat that represented as your last memories finally began to bubble up.

The X-Mansion in rubble, the helicopters swooping in over the trees, the students and staff unconscious in the grass, that soldier cracking your ribs, and-

Peter.

He was a stranger to you still, but he’d been right there against you. Surely you had drawn more attention to him just because your powers had let you resist a few moments longer than the others. Because you’d been so stubborn, not going down until you’d been forced to.

If these men had hurt any of your friends, you would be furious. But if Peter, who had also saved so many of your friends was now in more severe danger because of your actions, you wouldn’t forgive yourself.

“Where did you take the others!?” You arched against the restraints abruptly, your palms opening to face upward, trying to summon any bit of your energy at all. A wisp, an orb, anything that could have helped you right now. You had to find your friends.

But nothing came. Not even a glow or flicker of what you truly were as you now had both guards’ full attention.

“Freak! Just shut up!” One of them shoved the gurney in retaliation to your outburst, the caster wheels rattling across the concrete floor before the bed rail hit against one of the walls, jarring you painfully.

“Those with the greatest power. Protect those without. That's my message to the world.”

Xavier concluded his words then. And somehow, that sounded more like himself than any of the rest of it. The real meaning still eluded you, but hearing him in that tone at least meant he was okay. He was somewhere urging the rest of you on. At least this part you knew was true as you took a calming breath, realizing panic and anger would serve you nothing right now.

Something was blocking your powers. That much was obvious. It would be unrealistic to think that the effects of any stun weapon would be this long lasting though.

On the other hand, you knew chemicals existed that could also temporarily block mutations. Hank used one almost medicinally whenever he didn’t wish to be in his true “Beast” form. But it had to be injected direct into the veins to have any real effect.

You could feel that they hadn’t removed any of your clothing, nor had they rolled up the long sleeves you were wearing. You doubted they would risk a chemical like that wearing off at an inopportune time and likely would have started an IV if they possessed anything of that nature.

There were no tubes or lines attached to you that you could tell, only the restraints now holding you to this bed. Leather straps across your body, metal cuffs on your ankles and wrists-

But wait, you were able to move your head as you’d already discovered. You shifted it again, trying to get a better feel of what was around your neck. Metal as well, but loose as you could still lift your head up enough to see it just a bit. It and its dull, red status light.

Inhibitor collar, you realized with an all new dread sinking in. You had heard of these of course, but it was the kind of thing that students sheltered at Xavier’s school would never have to dream of really. Something you never thought you’d have to experience personally.

How naive.

But you still couldn’t give up. Your mind was racing as you tried to come up with any strategies now. Your options were so limited, but they couldn’t keep you tied down forever. Surely they’d have to move you to a more permanent containment at some point, untie you if even for a moment.

Yet, there were guns as well. You hadn’t missed that detail, but you considered it more fully now as you glanced to the long barrells swaying behind each guard’s back as they pushed you along.

They were slowing now though. You raised your head enough again to see elevator doors nearing. The lower testing bay, you remembered them saying.

But just as one guard had started to reach for the keypad beside the doors, an alarm blared, all three of you startling at the sound.

Orange lights lit up along the walls, spinning in time with the sirens.

“Weapon X is loose. I repeat, Weapon X is loose!” A man’s unnerved voice sounded over speakers you couldn’t see, echoing down the corridors.

You could only watch as both guards spun around on their heels at that, guns immediately drawn. The one thing you could be absolutely sure of then, was that you were now the very least of their concerns.

Before you could consider how to use this surprise in your favor though, screams and the echo of gunfire erupted seemingly on top of you all.

The guards were terrified. This could be your only chance.

“Take this collar off of me, please! I can help you!” You weren’t begging as much as you were truly trying to reason with them. “Look, this is serious right!?”

More men were screaming just around the corner. Only feet away now. Clearly their time to consider had run out.

You saw one of the guards glance down at you, weighing your offer if just for that moment. The other was still staring straight ahead, gun braced, body rigid.

“FIRE!” The one not looking at you screamed, and that was it. It was too late.

You flinched as the gunfire rang deafening in your ears, the muzzle flashes just above you while empty bullet shells rained onto the floor.

You didn’t know how many bullets their gun magazines could hold, but the barrage seemed to just go on and on until an inhuman snarl rose even above the pounding gunshots.

Like a blur he was upon them. One guard was immediately thrown against a nearby wall, as if he were made of paper. His gun didn’t even faze the attacker.

You were frozen as you had to watch him die in front of you. Metal blades impaled the guard, blood splatter running down the wall as his body fell. You wished the other guard would have just turned and ran, but that probably would have been fruitless now too if you were being honest.

The attacker had turned immediately back around, one slash knocking the gun away from the remaining guard, and the second taking out his throat.

You were too in shock to do anything but close your eyes in the moment you felt some of the blood hit you. It was warm was all you could really process, before you opened your eyes again to now see the killer standing over you.

His breath was fast, eyes black, no emotion evident but rage. He had no clothing on him above the waist, just muscular and bloodied with metal cords coming out of his body and attaching to some sort of helmet.

You heard the random sound of more bits of metal hitting the ground, and thought you saw a few bullets working out in reverse from his flesh.

He was one of you then, a mutant.

But you were afraid to speak. Anything could set him off again.

He was looking down at you, through you really. You thought you saw his eyes go to your throat. The collar? Or maybe you just imagined it. Everything was happening in just seconds.

His arm swung suddenly, those blades were part of him you realized, attached to his fists as they came for you. At least it would be a quick death.

You felt a burning, heard ripping and even the metal of the bed breaking as he struck more than once.

“He’s here!” Someone else screamed from back down the hallway and the gunfire started all over again.

You moved at the sound, why you didn’t know, it should have been all over regardless. But in your amazement, you realized you could move. His claws had broken through the restraints, broken the bolts that held you to the bed. You were bleeding, but only from cuts as he’d grazed you.

He’d freed you.

The gurney tumbled over with a clatter as you jumped from it. But bullets were hitting all around you as the guards continued to fire at him. You still had the inhibitor collar on, so you couldn’t defend from that. You weren’t bulletproof like him.

And he was already charging them again, but there were so many this time. A bullet grazed your arm, and you knew you had to get out of there now.

You turned, hitting the elevator keypad. You had no choice as you wouldn’t make it out of this hallway otherwise. You ducked inside as soon as the doors opened, trying to stay against the sides even as bullets were now hitting the back of the elevator. The only way was down, and you took it.

As the doors closed, and the elevator finally sank below the firing line, you allowed yourself some real breaths.

To think, just hours ago your main concern had only been whether or not you were ready for Hank’s organic chemistry final. You’d laugh if you weren’t still trembling a little, clothes torn and blood all over, most of it not even your own.

Now it was time to find the others and a way out.

—————————

“(Y/N)?” You heard in your mind, pausing in the abandoned hallway you were now wandering down. You’d left the elevator behind some time ago, but hadn’t yet found any other way back off this level.

“Jean?” You answered aloud, both surprised and relieved. “Are you okay?”

“Yes. We are now. I saw them take you too, but where are you?”

Talking to a telepath was always a bit strange. You could feel her own stress and anxiety as she began to fill your mind. She wanted to see what you were seeing.

You looked around you to oblige her, but from what you could tell every corridor only looked like more of the same in this labyrinth.

“I got into an elevator when all the shooting started, when that man-“

“Logan. We met him too. He’s escaped now, he-” She paused, your recent memories now visible to her. “He helped you.”

“He did.” You felt she both was and wasn’t surprised at this.

“Anyway,” She continued as if something was distracting her, like she was physically talking to someone else, while mentally talking to you. “The Professor needs us. We’re sending Peter to find you. He’ll bring you to us and then we’re leaving together.”

“Okay,” Was all you could answer, as you felt Jean leave your mind abruptly at that. You remembered Xavier’s odd speech earlier, something you really hadn’t had time to deconstruct any further with everything else that had happened immediately after. You supposed they would fill you in when you were all reunited.

But you did feel a significant weight leave your shoulders at the mention of Peter’s name, even though it sounded like this horrific day was still far from over. He was okay too then at least. You hadn’t screwed up enough to get him hurt in a way you couldn’t take back.

Yet how long would it take for him to find you? Should you just stay in place, or go back to the elevator now? You hadn’t found any stairwells or other-

“(Y/N)?”

You’d be lying to say you didn’t almost fall over in surprise as a tiny gust of air was the only other thing that announced him as Peter was suddenly standing beside you.

“You’re as bad as Kurt!” You gasped, before you could stop yourself. You clenched one fist at your side, at least having the self control not to punch him right in the arm as you might have done with some of the boys at school if they had given you that kind of scare.

“That’s the blue kid with the tail right? Not to be confused with the big blue hairy guy, he’s the one that told me your name by the way, or the blue famous chick from TV?” He shook his head, but his eyes were amused. “You guys have some kind of quota on the color blue or what?”

You stared at him. He did like to talk didn’t he?

When you didn’t respond right away, you saw his eyes wander down, then back up. “Red said you’d be a bit of a mess, but you sure you’re okay?”

Your shirt was torn from well, now you knew him as Logan...that man’s claws. Those cuts were still bleeding a bit, but the guard’s blood was on you as well. The metal shackles were also still on your wrists and ankles, though their chains had been broken, and the inhibitor collar was around your neck. Yes, you must look quite a sight.

“You mean Jean,” you corrected. She must have given him some warning at least before sending him. “Yeah, I’m fine. So you found another way out of here, we should-”

But he didn’t seem to be listening, either that or you weren’t very convincing on the being okay sentiment.

He looked quite serious all of the sudden. “I’m sorry I didn’t help you when Colonel douchebag was trying to work you over.”

You blinked. What was he talking about?

“Stryker I guess they said his name was, the guy that kicked you back at the house.” He just continued. “That piece of shit bailed already.”

“How did you know about that?” You asked honestly. Peter had been unconscious as far as you’d known.

“I mean I was in and out,” He answered, seemingly understanding your confusion now. “But uh...” He hesitated, kind of an awkward smirk building then. “I definitely remember you laying on me. The impact wasn’t that great, but afterward was pretty nice.”

Your felt a heat rising to your face immediately. The absurdity of being physically embarrassed at his implication and tone, as you stood here literally bleeding in the belly of some mutant torturing black ops lab was not lost on you.

“Look, I...” You didn’t even know what to say, but you knew if you didn’t start talking now you were never going to recover control here. “I’m really glad they didn’t hurt you, and I’m sorry too if I got you involved deeper in all of this. And I want to thank you for pulling everyone out of the mansion this morning. We owe you so much. I just-” Oh man, where were you even going with this? You looked to him still feeling like you were just digging yourself deeper, “You can stop me anytime now you know?”

He was now outright grinning. “You’re welcome, babe.”

Not helping. AT ALL.

You were staring at him again. “They’re going to be waiting on us, you know,” You felt you were going to be pleading with him in a moment.

“I know, places to be, worlds to save...” He just moved closer and you tensed a little bit. He noticed, but stood his ground. “I have to brace you or you’re just going to be hurt even more when I run you back to them.”

“So is that how you do it, then? You’re just that fast?” You asked honestly. His actual mutation wasn’t something there’d been any chance to discuss. You could infer only so many ways he would have been able to evacuate those in the mansion almost instantaneously. But you knew teleporters too, even people who could move through reality on other planes. There was always more than one way to do something.

“I’ll show you mine if you show me yours,” He chuckled, smirking enough for you to know he was still just picking with you as one of his hands went behind your head and the other to your ribs to brace you. He really did know where you’d been hit then.

His hands were warm, and you could smell that damn cologne again now as you tried to ready yourself for whatever was about to happen.

You didn’t know what you had expected. You knew how it felt to take off in a jet, or slam the gas pedal down in one of the Professor’s expensive cars, or ride on a really intense roller coaster. But this wasn’t that. There wasn’t even any time for your brain to register the acceleration. It felt like just a single heartbeat before you were standing back in front of those elevator doors with him.

It was the deceleration that hit you. By the time your body knew it was moving, it had already stopped again, your organs lurching and your equilibrium completely thrown off as vertigo took over. You leaned forward immediately, trying not to dry heave as puking seemed almost imminent.

He took one of your hands, his other hand moving down from your ribs to your waist as he helped support you still.

“It’ll pass. It happens to everyone the first time,” He spoke, probably the softest tone you’d heard from him to this point.

“You’re telling me there are people who have been-” You swallowed, fighting that nausea back down. “have been with you multiple times?” You meant to say multiple times like that. People who needed to be rescued this way multiple times. You stood up, still queasy as you tried to face him and correct this blunder immediately. Why did this guy have you so flustered!?

“I’m not normally like this,” you stammered, waiting for some great retort from him as you’d just left yourself wide open with that slip.

It was only then that you realized he still had one hand on your waist, and you were now facing him, just inches apart. And the silence was worse. It was much worse while he was just looking back at you.

“No,” He finally said, “I uh...I don’t have anyone that’s stayed around long enough for that.”

He wasn’t joking at all now and you knew it.

“I didn’t mean...” You started, but stopped again when you didn’t know how to finish.

But the vulnerability was gone just as soon as it’d come. His smirk returned as he let go of you, moving forward to hit the keypad for the elevator. “I did look for stairwells by the way, if you were wondering. It only took me as long as it did to find you down here because this damn elevator is slow as hell.”

You actually were a little relieved to finally be focusing back to the task at hand. But you still felt an unspoken conversation lingering that would need to be continued later. You wanted him to know who you really were.

And honestly...you now wanted to know who he really was.

The harsh buzz from the keypad brought you back to attention as Peter hit it again.

A tiny screen blinked “CODE ERROR” in red as he groaned. “It didn’t need a damn code to come down, that makes no sense!”

You responded in a few moments, realizing the likely truth fairly quickly. “But it would make sense if you were more concerned about things getting out of the lab than you were of things getting in.” The same would be true for the lack of entry and exit points. They surely weren’t concerned with fire safety or anything else but keeping their specimens captive when they built this place.

“Ugh, that’s dark,” He answered, glancing at you and then back to the keypad. “You’re almost making me not feel so bad for all the guys that looked like swiss cheese on the way down here. But lucky for you, you’ve got me, and these five hombres.” He waved his fingers at you before immediately beginning to punch in multiple codes in faster succession than of course would have been possible for anyone else.

“Peter, I don’t think-” You started, already having a good suspicion of how this might play out, before the keypad abruptly quit accepting inputs, the tiny screen then blinking LOCKOUT. The only thing that did surprise you was a new even thicker door suddenly closing over the original elevator doors.

And you couldn’t help it then. You laughed. A real laugh. It was just the dumbest icing on the cake. “Okay, Han Solo. I think that will do.” You didn’t care if he would understand the reference or not. You needed that laugh right now.

But he didn’t let you down. Not even for a moment. “Okay then Leia, then you show me how we’re getting past here to save the ugly little ewoks.”

You were still snickering a little, but you shook your head. “I can’t,” You motioned to the inhibitor collar still around your neck. “Not with this on. It’s blocking my powers.” You had hoped once you were all back topside that Hank would be able to disarm the thing. It was probably radio controlled or something like that. “We’ll have to wait on Jean and the others to realize we’re taking too long, they’ll come for us.”

“I don’t wait,” Peter retorted. “Besides, like I said, I showed you mine. Time to show me yours.” He tilted his head, eyeing you. “Really, I’ve been dying to know.”

“Sure you have,” You were skeptical, but it was actually hard to read him right now. Was he actually that curious about you? “And I’ve already tried to take it off, it doesn’t budge.”

“Again, babe. You didn’t have me before.” The smug tone was back, as he evidently had some plan you didn’t know if you were going to like or not.

“You realize, this thing is nearly against my jugular veins, right? What are you going to do?” You had every right to be hesitant you thought. Especially after the keypad failure.

“Just be still. I’m going to vibrate it apart.” He answered confidently.

Okay, now you really didn’t like this. “Again, head, throat, things I need to stay in one piece. What if it has some self destruct thing and explodes?”

“I can pull you away from that before it even burns you. How do you think your friends lived when your house blew up this morning?”

You could have mentioned Alex’s fate then, but that would have been needlessly cruel. Alex must have already been gone before Peter even entered the building. He did save everyone else you thought.

“Trust me,” Peter looked you in the eyes and you could feel yourself relenting.

You really did believe him it seemed. Hopefully that faith was not misplaced. “Please be careful,” You closed your eyes, going stock still.

“For you? Of course.”

You heard his jacket move, which told you he was raising his arms. Internally you tensed-

And then all you heard were pieces of metal and circuitry skittering across the floor in every direction. You were still standing exactly as you had been as you opened your eyes to a too pleased with himself Peter.

“Some shrapnel did try to go into your face, but I moved the pieces. No kaboom though.” His expression changed then to happily expectant, “So come on, I’ve helped three times now, the stage is now yours,” He made an exagerrated motion to the big metal door now blocking the elevator. “What’s your poison?”

Poison? An interesting way to put it, but you knew what he meant. All mutant abilities were both a gift and a curse. Yet even after all these years of meeting people of your own kind, it was still very personal to show someone your real self for the very first time.

Especially when you evidently cared what he thought of you as you realized your nerves were suddenly about much more than just being able to get open a door or not. How would he react?

You took a breath, still extremely aware of his eyes on you as you turned your palms upward. It was always easiest to start with your hands. But you’d need to bring the energy all the way through you to get the kind of power it was going to take to pull this door out.

There was a slight relief in you as your hands began to glow white after a moment. At least you knew you were no longer defenseless, that these people hadn’t taken your abilities permanently.

In your peripheral vision you could see Peter shift, but you didn’t look to him, trying to concentrate as the energy spread up your arms and you closed your eyes. It always felt so warm, like being in the sun on a clear day. It spread to your chest, legs, up your shoulders and over your face. Even through your hair as you willed the energy to lift you up, now completely enveloped until you were a silhouette of a person. Glowing in soft white light and levitating about a foot off the floor.

You opened your eyes again, feeling you had things in control enough now to speak to him. The tone of your voice changed slightly in this form though. There was a hum to it, the energy moving across your vocal chords like every other part of you.

“I’m going to try and pull the door out of the way and into the hall. Please be ready to move as I won’t have a lot of control over it once it gives. My effort is going to all be on breaking it.”

You looked to him after a moment though when he didn’t respond. You knew he was fast enough to keep himself safe obviously, but you had to be sure he was ready. Was he really just staring at you? “Peter?”

He blinked. “Yeah, uh. That’s...” He stepped back from the door, but never took his eyes off you, this weird expression on his face. “That’s cool.”

“Please mind the door,” You reiterated gently, not quite sure what to make of his reaction to your powers.

“Sure, sure thing.” He sounded more like himself then. “Do your deal.”

Your deal as he put it, involved willing this same energy now in a field around the door as you rose your hand up to control it. Once you were sure you had it solidly, you began pulling your hand back, trying to pull the door out of its railing.

It gradually started to creak, but like you’d thought, this was going to take some real doing. You pulled harder and harder, the metal just groaning louder. “Come on,” You spoke, not really sure if you were talking more to yourself or the door.

Your arm was starting to really ache with the effort. But just when you thought you might have to try something else after all, you finally felt the door give. And when it gave, it did so spectacularly. This massive chunk of metal collapsed, exploding out of its rail as it rocketed down the hallway. You just moved to the side to avoid it, the smaller pieces hitting you harmlessly in this form.

To your eyes it only looked like Peter disappeared and then reappeared as he also easily missed all the debris.

Once that obstacle was out of the way, you glided down, back to the normal elevator doors. They were slightly damaged from the removal of the larger door. But now it only took minimum effort to force them open.

You entered the elevator, the inner keypad was also blinking that same “LOCKOUT” error from earlier. So the elevator itself was going nowhere. But this was now no longer an issue for you.

“I can carry us up,” You looked to Peter, though unsure how comfortable he would be with this new idea.

He was standing at the entrance of the elevator already, watching you still. You could see the wheels in his head turning. And then he finally asked. “So, you’re glowing...and flying. Is this like radioactive glow, or I just need some sunscreen kind of glow?”

“It’s just light energy in the visible spectrum.” You answered reflexively. “But not even UV, the wavelength itself doesn’t cause any damage. It’s only when I make it solid or make it unstable that I can do anything harmful with it.”

You could see he may have skipped the lessons on long and short wave energy and radiation in science class as he just kept staring.

“You’re fine, it’s safe” You smiled. Certainly not the first time you had heard such questions. “The Professor and Hank had me tested from the very beginning, I never would have been allowed so close to other students without more precautions if I was that dangerous.”

“So you’re...close to some other students?” He asked almost tauntingly, one eyebrow raised, and it took you a moment before you realized he may be getting back at you for your comments from before.

It was probably just the fact that you were in your energy form now, but you felt confident enough to respond just as quickly, “It’s more like the Brady Bunch than what you’re thinking. Like having a whole house of little brothers and sisters.”

You had already opened up the ceiling of the elevator while the two of you talked, looking up now to the empty shaft and elevator cables. It’d be much easier to move the two of you rather than to try and lift the whole elevator. You reached a hand out to Peter. “I can lift us up the shaft to the floor that the others are on and open the doors, then you can take us to them. Deal?”

You had trusted him to bring you here, as well as to remove that collar from you. Would he now trust you to bring him up several floors without dropping him?

He was looking at your hand. “I probably could just run up the walls you know.”

You paused, realizing you hadn’t considered that. You didn’t really know what all he was capable of truly. But just as you started to lower your hand, he surprised you by grabbing and holding it.

“Yet how many guys can say they flew with you, huh?”

“Practically none,” You admitted. “I don’t make a habit of picking up my friends.”

“You aren’t quite building confidence here.”

“I’m sure that door weighed more than you.”

“And look how it ended up. Again, not comforting.”

This guy was truly something else. “Come here, we take much longer and they really are going to be sending a search party for us.”

You extended the energy from your hand across his body gently. He was obviously much lighter than the door, and the closer you kept him, the easier it would be to move the both of you.

You tried not to make eye contact with him again as you levitated the two of you through the top of the elevator and up through the shaft. Even though you knew you were fully capable of doing this, you still didn’t want to lose focus.

But his voice didn’t sound frightened at all as he spoke up to let you know how high to go. “They’re on the top floor, we’re stealing a jet to get out of here.”

“Wow, but okay. Got it,” You sped up a little at that, no longer worried about passing your landing point as you went straight to the top.

When you reached the highest doors, you were able to force them open with a turn of your free hand, bringing you and Peter safely through and back onto solid ground.

You powered down immediately as your feet met the floor, the light fading back into your body until you were just standing there in your torn, bloody clothes once more. “Okay, I’m ready to get nauseous again, let’s go.”

He actually squeezed your hand before he let go of it in order to brace your head and ribs again. “For the record that felt pretty good. You’re really warm. Zero g’s was cool too. Thanks.”

“Um...you’re welcome?” You answered, a little flustered all over again to your own dismay, and really not knowing what else to say before he whisked you away in an instant.

It really was going to be the longest day ever.

——————————

(Continued in next chapter here)

[starshipsofstarlord]

Hey!!! I'm so glad you liked the blurb night idea :) 💞 Can I request a blurb with Peter bumping into the reader while she's kinda lost at times square and he's dressed as spiderman so he tries to flirt with you, but it makes you laugh instead?

I loved the idea hun, thankyou sm for helping me with this idea xxx

“You’re a guy?”

Pairing | Peter Parker x reader

Summary | based on the request

Warnings | mentions of crime, brief mention of death and drugs, mention of sex

2K blurb masterlist

Quick link to my masterlist, if you’re interested in reading more of my crap 😬

“And there was this girl. She was really pretty, but-“ May quirked her head at her nephew, hardly understanding his blabber as he sped through his words like he was racing verbally against a cheetah, though, she was manage to uncover that particular sentence.

“Whoa, slow down kiddo.” His aunt laughed lightly, bracing her shoulders on his arms as he caught his overexcited breath. “How about you start from the beginning, and take a breath?” May had much practice with calming the boy down, she sincerely remembered how that night his parents had dropped him off, how worried he had been for them not to return. And they didn’t.

Peter bobbed his head in a eager nod, doing as he was recommended by his legal guardian, puffing the air in through his cheeks, as he inhaled and exhaled normally through his nose.“I was out patrolling the city, checking out for any bad guys, and then, I saw her...” her, the girl that had captured his attention, and distracted him from his friendly neighbourhood duties. She was much like a magnet, pulling his north face into her axis spinning world, distracting him from the things that he was actually meant to be ensuring did not happen on his watch.

“Weren’t you supposed to be patrolling?” The elder of the two quirked a brow, earning a splutter of a response from the teenager under her roof. She wasn’t a strict guardian concerning his heroic antics, though, she made sure to keep him on track for his own sake. Peter had quite the tendency to become overrun with stress from the amounts of responsibilities that he took on, and him being only young did not help the situation.

“I’m getting to that!” He was fast to defend himself, huffing his chest in as he prepared to tell May his story, from the beginning. It was quite the tale, he’d say, combined with the embarrassment of his own presence entangled in the random and friendly interaction that he had felt promiscuously lulled to create.

Queens, it was new to you. There were so many streets, filled to the brim with people that seemed to know where they were going. Unlike them, you didn’t, in fact, you’d go as far to admit that you were lost. Lost in a place that was known for the chaos that wrapped it off with a tarnished bow, and made the collateral practically fashion within its various newspapers that rounded every corner to divulge their companies’ obscure theories.

A panicked look struck your eyes, as you turned, shaking your head and pressing through the mass of citizens and finding an empty lot, scrolling through your phone, diverting your attention quickly towards google maps. It was the only thing that you could think of, it’d be a shame if you were to disturb one of the many passersby from their clearly packed schedule; you did not need that, nor berating them on your conscience.

“You lost or something?” A voice asked, making your shoulders jump as a figure, twisted in the colours red and blue, with a seam of black fell from the roofs above. Your heart rate imploded, more so when you realised who the mask wearing vigilante was. The wearer, although unknown, was infamous for the successions of saving lives that they had participated in, including defending the galaxy against outside threats.

It was Spiderman, the neighbourhood dubbed avenger, that tried their utmost to return stolen or lost bikes to their rightful owners, and protected banks from armed and overnight robberies. There was known to be something different about this particular hero, they were young and clearly had time to improve their skill set, for they were quite the clutz, and spoke significantly more to those he faced off against than what was necessary.

But this one hero, stood out amongst the rest. Not only was their suit designed by Stark technology, as you had written about in a work article, but it was far more concealing, and not to mention restricting, for the person beneath the red concoction to wear. Yes, you were in town for a new job, specifically to delve into the details that regards the world of heroes, and exploit all possible angles to how they deserved as much recognition for their stunts, as the president received for his noble speeches.

“I-“ you paused, think back over what you were preparing to say. It was without a doubt, that you had not expected the vigilante to appear in your spectacle gaze the first time that you stepped foot on the premises that he roamed, and protected. But here the spider enthusiast was, leaping down to stand beside you, burdening you with more knowledge that you could use, such as the person beneath was not as tall as you had expected, and there was definitely no way you could see their true eyes through the shallow white cases that covered them.

That was something you could write about, and make various descriptive theories about. ‘Seeing in white vision, sparked by the purity that glazed their unknown signature irises, Spider-Man halts all with the sparing of their true self. They may have reasons for shielding their eyes, much like Daredevil, not needing to see when they are overcome with various other senses that convulse their body into attentiveness,” -no, that sounded absolutely terrible.

And not to mention, if you spread that horrid writing about, Murdoc would be ashamed of ever deciding to get your aid in uncovering the route of the villainous underworld, that had take over Hell’s Kitchen and turned it into their own ring for drugs and more. The battle of New York had many repercussions, that being one, another influencing you into the career choice of being said reporter that you now proclaimed yourself as.

“Yeah, I am.” You responded with the company of a smile, and Peter swore he could feel his heart convulse beneath his suit. It’s pace was vaguely rapid, disheartening him from thinking of any more to say, he was practically speechless. “I’m looking for New York Times, you ever heard of it?” Yes, he most definitely had, it was the average run of the mill newspaper company, though, he did not know that you intended to change that into something much more.

“Funnily enough I have.” He scratched the back of his head, his arm subconsciously flexing as he did so, feeling like he had failed as your eyes remained focused on the wideness of his suit’s intense eyes. “It’s about three blocks from here, I could take you there if you want, I have nothing more to do.” From his proclamation you quirked a brow, crossing your arms amusedly.

“Don’t you have a city to watch over?” You asked, watching as Spider-Man’s false eyes widened, and he visibly panicked, realising that you had been right. “I’ll find my way, I’ve been to New York, many a time, Queens is bound to be a piece of cake. Also, a map is always handy.” A shrug rippled off your shoulders, Peter watching and walking closer as he thought of something more to add to the initial acquainting conversation.

“I’m Spider-Man.” Inwardly, and beneath his mask, Peter cringed noting how his voice rose, and it could be perceived as boasting. That though was definitely not his intent in the slightest, but he worried of how it may have come across to you. He wasn’t sure how you may have read it as, but a swarm of relief filled his lungs as he watched the corner of your eyes crinkle up, humoured by the tone of his that had significantly heightened. “Im a guy by the way.”

He felt the need to state that, especially considering people’s perceptions in the past. But instantly after saying it, he was regretful, through, he had to admit, he enjoyed listening to you laugh, it was like a melody that he wanted to listen to until the end of time. “You’re a guy?” You released a dramatic gasp, aiding your phoney response. “Yeah, no. I completely thought that you were a girl.” Sarcasm, he had well gotten used to frequency of it thanks to Mr Stark, who... well, he wasn’t around any more.

“You’re funny.” He smiled, shaking his head whence he realised that you could not see his hidden expression. “I don’t know, maybe, would you like to go to coffee with me, if you have time before you have to get to the news place? I mean, I don’t drink that much coffee, I get told that if I have too much caffeine that I get a little hyper, but I mean, I’m trying to ask you out and I have a really bad track record of-“

“Sure.” You spoke, ignoring the map that had finally loaded onto the screen of your phone. It was to your luck that you weren’t required to make your presence known at the business until tomorrow, and there was always time to kill, so you thought screw it, and decided to find it so that you didn’t get lost the approaching day. “Are you going to be wearing that, or you know, take it off?” You pointed at him, making peter surprised.

“It’s not that kind of date.” He quickly responded. “I meant just for a drink, not to hook up in the back of an a- oh, you meant the suit, didn’t you.” With a roll of your eyes, you nodded, pursing your lips together, as Peter felt the rain of relief once more. “Oh, that’s good, not that I wouldn’t want to, you’re gorgeous, that just wasn’t my intent and I’m rambling again, aren’t I?”

“Basically.” You wrinkled your nose, with a laugh, the way you scrunched it up was adorable to Peter. “So I’ll meet you here in two hours, I’ll let you finish up your duties, and change into something that doesn’t make you look you’re wearing a thong, because I can tell you from experience that those things are not comfortable. That good for you Spidey?”

“That works.” He spoke, trying his best to contain his overflowing excitement, biting his lip to do so. “That definitely works.”

“Hi.” The familiar voice of Spider-Man spoke, and you turned around, watching as a young man, not much different in age from yourself rounded the corner. He was clothed in a blue and white chequered flannel, and grey jeans, and you had to say, that whilst the amazing Spider-Man was quite the sight, this was something else.

“Oh, I was waiting for a girl actually.” You informed him, clearly messing with him, as you walked closer, a stretching smile pinning up the corners of your lips. “But I guess you’ll do webslinger.” He could feel his heart racing, but he walked closer, watching as you eyed him, a stranger met with the sight of a vigilante unmasked. “Where to, red and blue?”

“There’s this really good place on main, they sell the best sandwiches. And trust me, once you buy from there, you won’t stop...” the two of you began to walk away together, and towards Peter’s secret destination, where the two of you learnt the others real name.

[weasel-b33]

500 Miles (j.p x fem!reader)

Description: A few years after the birth of your son Harry, you and your husband James recall the beginning of your relationship. (NO VOLDY I CAN NOT DO THAT TO MYSELF) 

Warnings: Fluff, Kissing, A little Swearing, idk Cute Daddy James, Prolly many spelling errors I wrote this late and I am very tired...

 (THIS IS MY FIRST TIME EVER WRITING SOMETHING KINDA SIRIUS hehe SO IM SORRY IF IT IS TERRIBLE) 

Also the dates may be a bit wrong so im sorry in advance!! 

italicized is flashback!! 

Lyrics used in the song are from “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” by The Proclaimers (I KNOW THE SONG CAME OUT IN ‘87 BUT SUSPEND YOUR DISBELIEF PLEASE)

(not my gif)

The rambunctious laughter of the four year-old toddler and his father echoed throughout the large estate.

“Daddy!” exclaimed the messy haired Harry, “Can I please have a story.” Heavily emphasizing the puppy dog eyes he learned from his godfather, Sirius, a few years prior.

James Potter, the man unable to say no to anyone, tried to recall a story he had not told his son. Thinking back to the fairy tales of a prince slaying a fictional dragon, even though they are very much real, to save the princess that his mother used to tell him, James realized he was all out of good material. 

“I’m sorry bubs, I have nothing new too share,” the bespectacled man added lamely. The disappointment was instant on the child’s face, but luckily before the waterworks began, Y/N Potter strolled through the foyer into the den.

“Mommy!” Harry exclaimed, jumping up and bonding over to his mother, nearly knocking her over with his brute strength.

“Umph- Where’s the fire lovey?” you questioned with a slight chuckle. The dramatics of your son were never a surprise. Between his father and Sirius, you were surprised he had not acted much worse. Walking, more like sliding due to the child gripping your calves, over to your husband and lightly pecking his lips you ask, 

“What’s wrong now?”

Rubbing the back of his neck, he sheepishly stated, “I sorta don’t have a new story to tell him... he’s a bit peeved, if you couldn’t tell.”

A loud laugh tore through your throat as you pet your son’s hair affectionately.

“Come off Harry, Mommy has a perfect story to tell you,” you crooned softly.

“You do?”Harry questioned, rubbing the tears out of his stunning green eyes.

You picked him up and sat down near James, “Yes poppet, I have a very interesting story about how two very special people fell in love.” 

James quickly turned his head and quirked a questioning brow, “It all started when they were 15...” 

November 7, 1975

Quietly sitting on the vermilion couch of the Gryffindor Common Room, you began to fade out the noise of Lily ranting about the recent History of Magic exam, and Marlene’s long monologue over if she should or should not cut bangs. Instead, you were beginning to rip out each and every one of the hairs on your head because your Potions essay was nearly finished, yet you could not get those final words to conclude it all. 

Across the common room, a rowdy group of teenage boys, better known as the Marauders, were planning the newest prank on Snape. 

"We should give him that shampoo that will change his hair pink,” Sirius added.

Remus shook his head disapprovingly, “Pads, we did that last time come on..”

“WE HAVE NOTHING! WHAT IS WRONG WITH US, MOONY, HELP I’M DYING OF NO CREATIVITY!” Sirius exclaimed throwing himself across the scarred boy.

Although, many people turned their attention to the dark haired pureblood, James seemed he could not take his eyes off the girl nearly burning holes into her parchment, the girl he has fancied since he was 12. 

While playing with the snitch he stole, he said, “What if we tried that new rain spell we learned in charms today?” 

“Too difficult, we have not had enough practice.” Remus dismissed. “Well what if I found someone to practice on?” James added quickly turning to face his werewolf best friend. 

“Sure... Whatever, I could care less- Pads, get the bloody hell of me before I kick your arse,” 

“I’D LIKE TO SEE YOU TRY REMUS JOHN,” Sirius yelled beginning his quick climb up the stairs to the boys dorm, with Remus and Peter quickly following.

“You comin’ Prongs?” Remus asked to the brunette still staring at the girl with shaky hands.

“No, I’ll come up in a few, still want to try to figure this prank out...” he said quietly. The lanky boy followed his best friends line of sight and quietly smirked to himself.

“Alright, don’t wear yourself out too much.” 

Even throughout the commotion, you still made no move to change your line of sight. That was until Marlene nudged you and whispered into your ear.

“Psst! Oi! Y/N! Why is Potter staring at you?” 

You quickly shook your head and waved off her question, opting to continue to find the right words.

Well until your blonde friend gripped your jaw, and turned your head to the direction of the boy. You instantly made eye-contact with the messy haired Gryffindor and quirked a brow. He smirked and turned his head away. You thought nothing of the interaction, until you felt a sudden drop above your head...

Instantly, it seemed as though there was a storm in the common room. Looking towards the ceiling you saw the dark rain cloud above your head. Quickly turning your head to the essay you were writing you noticed it completely wet and ruined. You jumped into action, trying to salvage what you could, but it was too late. Ignoring the screeches of your friends and fellow housemates, you began to look for the source of the cloud.

That was until you made eye contact with the laughing and smug James Potter.

“POTTER!” you yelled. Almost immediately the rain stopped, but the damage had been done. “JAMES POTTER! YOU BETTER HAVE A REASON YOU STARTED A STORM IN THE COMMON ROOM!” 

Hearing the commotion, the rest of the Marauders came down to the common room to witness what was happening. But all they saw was a yelling match between you and their brunette best friend.

“YOU ARE A DICK JAMES POTTER! KARMA IS A BITCH AND SHE IS COMING! IT’S GONNA BE SO NICE TO SEE YOUR FACE WHEN ALL YOUR ACTIONS FINALLY COME TO KICK YOU IN THE ARSE!” you yelled.

“What? I did nothing, I don’t mean to dampen your mood, but I have no idea what you are on about.” James replies smugly.

“UGH- YOU ARE A BULLY AND A RIGHTEOUS, STUCK UP, EGOTISTICAL ARSEHOLE! I HOPE YOU ARE ENJOYING THIS BECAUSE-- OH MY! I-” You were quickly being dragged away by your red head companion. 

“Y/N, he is not worth it... let’s just leave.” 

“NO! I HAVE TO RESTART MY ESSAY! I WAS THIS BLOODY CLOSE. UGH- YOU ARE AN ARSE JAMES POTTER I HOPE YOU KNOW THAT!”

“Y/N, it was just a prank, its no big deal relax.” James said.

“RELAX! ARE YOU KIDDING... I-” you paused taking shallow and rapid breaths, ‘you know I can not believe you think its funny. You truly have no regard for people and how they feel do you?” you asked slowly and meticulously. 

“Prongs, just apologize and lets go..” Remus said quickly.

“I- I didn’t realize it would be that big of a deal.” James tried to say to you, but it was no use because you had already dragged Lily and Marlene out the common room and to the library to re-start your assignment. 

“Oh, COME ON! I did not” James stated jokingly.

“Darling, you must certainly did, I barley passed that essay as well. I blame you for me getting an E in that class.” You replied giggling.

“Moooommmyyy! Story, get back to the story,” Your son said dramatically, grabbing your cheeks and turning to face him for extra effect.

Hearing a chuckling from James in the background, “Alright bubs, back to the the story”

January 23, 1976

After months of back and forth between you and James, he was fed up trying to get your attention. From roses to chocolate, to even a firework show in your honor, James believed he had done everything to apologize to you for his stupid prank and prove his affection.

Tired of his friends constant whining, Remus and Sirius decided to take matters into their own hands and talk to someone who knew you better than anyone else, Lily and Marlene.

“Oh Evans, Mckinnon, we are in grave need of your beautiful minds” Sirius flirted. Remus smacked him across the head adding, “Ignore the git, we need some help its about-”

“James?” Lily and Marlene said in unison.

“Yeah...how did you know” Remus questioned. “Are we gonna ignore the fact they spoke at the same time” Sirius said, once again receiving a blow from his friend.

Rolling her eyes, Lily remarked, “Well, Y/N has been complaining about him for months,” Marlene quickly interjected, “...and you never are without him so its an easy assumption. 

Now its was the boys turn to roll their eyes to the back of their heads. “Anyways, he will not shut up about getting her to forgive him... so we were wondering if you had anything that could work to get her to forgive him?” Remus pleaded with the best Sirius puppy dog eyes he could muster.

“Fine,” Lily and Marlene said jointly.

“THEY DID IT AGAI- OH NOT YOU TOO AS WELL!” Sirius exclaimed rubbing the now sore bump on his head. 

Ignoring the dog’s dramatics, the group of four began conducting a plan for James that would knock Y/N’s socks off.

At this point, Harry had nestled between his parents and fell into a deep sleep.

The two of you put him to bed and settle down back into the living room.

Looking longingly at his wife, James says, “Well, might as well finish the story love... it is the best part.”

Giggling at the antics of your husband, you shrug and began to finish the story...

February 14, 1976 

The Great Hall looked as though Cupid had just went on a decorating rampage. The room lined with pink and red hearts and the sight of loving couples nearly made you want to gag. Then, you remembered the boy who has dying to get your attention for the past months and can not seem but to get excited.

What does he have planned for you? Is he gonna get me a gift? Do I look presentable? 

“WHAT!” you quickly think to yourself, “Why in Merlin’s name am I excited to to see Jame- Potter. Godric I can’t feel like this for him... He his as a fly that buzzes and will not leave me alone... but he is not the worst to look at”

You quickly snap out of your thoughts as Lily starts to put food onto your plate. You begin to eat, but can only think of one thing.

James Potter.

“Why?” You begin questioning again, “Godric, Y/N You like him... No I do not.. You realize you are having this whole conversation within your brain, right? It is obvious you like him...” you grumble to yourself as you realize your psyche has won once again.

Lily noticing your strange behavior begins to question if you discovered what they have planned. 

Almost as though the boys heard Lily’s thoughts the beginning of the plan is activated.

Instantly, the candles in all of the Great Hall extinguish and there is the beginning of a song plays.

Suddenly, a spotlight shines onto the teachers table where atop, James and the rest of the Marauders stand, Remus and Sirius with guitars and Peter on the drums. James holding a mic begins to sing...

When I wake up, Well I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who wakes up next to you.

Your head snaps to the noise and there you see in all of his glory, James Potter holding a microphone staring straight at you.

When I go out, yeah I know I'm gonna be I'm gonna be the man who goes along.

Quickly shoving the breakfast roll down your throat you nearly choke as you see the boy slowly make his way towards the front of the Gryffindor table.

When I get drunk, well I know I'm gonna be I'm gonna be the man who gets drunk next to you.

Your eyes widen comically when you see James Potter jump onto the Gryffindor table. 

And when I haver, hey I know I'm gonna be I'm gonna be the man who's havering to you.

Slowly, the boy begins his walk across the table to where you sit. You try to make a run for it, but Lily and Marlene quickly grab your arms and anchor you down to the bench 

“What friends you are!” you hiss at the two.

Marlene just rolls her eyes and Lily pinches your hip.

And I would roll 500 miles And I would roll 500 more Just to be the man who rolls a thousand miles To fall down at your door

Once the boy is standing in front of you he reaches down for your hand. Stubbornly, you ignore his gesture, well until your two friends throw you up onto the table with the love struck brunette. 

When I come home well I know I'm gonna be I'm gonna be the man who comes back home to you And when I grow old, well I know I'm gonna be I'm gonna be the man who's growing old with you.

You grip onto the boys biceps for stability and are forced to look into his ravishing hazel eyes...

In that moment you forget all that he has done to you in the past and all you can think about is him and you. 

But I would roll 500 miles And I would roll 500 more Just to be the man who roles a thousand miles To fall down at your door.

Smiling, to yourself, you grab the face of the boy in front of you and mold your lips together. Ignoring the cheers of your classmates, the only sounds you hear are the background noise of the boy’s best friends signing backup. 

Da da da  Da da da                                                                                                            Da Da Dun Diddle                                                                                            Un Diddle Un Diddle Uh Da Da.....

Smiling to yourself and grabbing the hand of the man you love you start laughing.

“What’s so funny, love?” James asks.

“Nothing.... Just we began dating because you performed a whole song and dance in front of the entirety of Hogwarts.” you reply breathlessly.

“Well, hey, look at us now... happy, healthy, and a true family.” he replies smiling at your antics.

You lay down your head into the lap of your husband, and look up into his hazel eyes you got lost into all those years ago, “Such a sap, Potter, such a sap...”

Kissing your cheek softly, “Only for you, my darling girl... only for you...” 

“I love you Jamie”

“I love you more, my love.”            ______________________________________________________________

AHHH I HOPE YOU ENJOY!!! IM SORRY IF IT IS SO BAD!! THIS IS MY FIRST FIC PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF I COULD DO ANYTHING BETTER!!! AHHHH (but like kinda like this story... kinda proud ;))