#nothing here is really spoiler-y besides the one panel

[lilbitofmac]

Incoming obsession over young Tony from the newest issue of Ultimate Spider-Man…

[ayamturd]

late│technoblade

summary: three times you said i love you, and the one time technoblade says it back

prompt: “I’d do anything for you, whether or not you ask me to”

warnings: fluff and major angst, blood and death descriptions, dsmp spoilers

pairing: in-game romantic!technoblade

a/n: this is my entry for @burntcilantro​‘s 500 writing event!! much love and congratulatory to min, they’re an amazing writer and an even better person (they’re so nice, give them the support they deserve)

also i separated some of the dsmp events and spaced them out (so there’s more time between for plot purposes lol)

wc: (2.0k) - m.list

“Why are you so stupid?”

You were sat on top of a chest, holding one leg with your arms while the other was currently being wrapped by Technoblade. While you giggled at his insult, you winced once he tightened the gauze on your ankle with a glare. 

“It’s not funny, y/n.” He leaned down to bite off the rest of the wrapping, finishing the fold as you huffed at his seriousness.

“I told you to watch the house, not climb onto the roof and play a fun game of risk. What were you thinking?”

His stare was heavy and made you feel little as he looked down at you. The tone of the room changed as you lost the humor in the situation, his concern overpowered by the anger laced in his voice.

“I just wanted to help,” you stated, turning your face away, discouraged, with your arms crossed. “You’ve been getting the all the resources lately and haven’t let me even step off the damn property.”

Looking down, you fiddled with your fingers as to avoid his gaze. “I wanted to try and fix the wood panelings that have been leaking, that’s all.” 

The silence was harsh, and you swallowed deeply at how uncomfortably stiff the air became. Technoblade opened his mouth to speak but quickly closed it shut with no words to voice.

With a shaky breath, you gripped the edge of the wood and slowly lowered yourself onto your foot; you didn’t plan on staying here just so he couldn’t say anything more. Technoblade was quick to steady his arms around you in case you fell, but you immediately pushed his hand away aggressively and stood with all your weight on your healthy foot.

Arms out to balance, as you tried to take the first step on your bad foot, you crumpled into your self with a yelp from the pain and collapsed. Ready as always, Techno caught you from behind and guided you to the nearest chair. 

You flinched from the small movement but sighed once sitting again. Techno crouched in front of you to check how you physically were, but your eyes were closed shut as you tried to collect your breathing. 

“Y/n,” Techno call out. Calming yourself down, you opened your eyes to meet his; he was much more sincere before, his face soft as he spoke gently to you. 

“Hey, I’m sorry.” Looking down, Technoblade paused as to gather his thoughts before explaining himself further. 

“I know I’ve been overbearing since the attempted execution,” you reached a hand towards his cheek when he mentioned the recent event, which he leaned into as he continued with closed eyes, “but please know it’s from a place of concern. I just- I don’t want anything to happen to you. I can’t let anything happen to you. I-I…”

“I know. Trust me, I know.” You spoke for him as you pulled him into your chest, hugging his large frame as best as you could. He relaxed into your hold with a sigh of relief. 

“I love you, Techno.” You kissed the top of his head, and he only burrowed himself deeper into the hug.

“I’m so sorry, love.”

Technoblade was hunched over on the front lawn, hands on his head while trembling from the overwhelming pain of the voices. He whimpered at your words, indicating he heard you to some extent.

He had come home, alone, and fell to his knees at the sight of you when you opened the door. Immediately, you had rushed over to him and skid to your own knees to comfort him, but he grunted from your attempts to touch him; even when under the influence, he was still conscious enough to fear for your own safety relative to the blind rage of the voices. 

You had tried talking to him, attempted to get him to give you any context to what was causing his anger, which he answered with snarling growls in return. “Tommy… left… betrayed. Chose government.” 

While broken into murmured words, you understood instantly and tried to bring him back in spite needing to quench your own anger from Tommy’s departure. You rested your palms into the snow, lowering your head as much as possible to meet his bowed head. 

You peered up at him despite his own eyes screwed shut from the unbearable chaos that roared within his head, and called out to him as softly as you could. It was a stretch, but you hoped you could soothe him down by talking.

“Hey bubs, just listen to my voice, alright? You hear me now yes? You can understand what I’m saying?” Patiently waiting, you watched him closely until he gave the smallest nod, fists still pushed against his skull and twisting from the ache. 

“That’s good, that’s really good, love. You hear my voice, now listen to my words.” Slowly, you leaned close enough to whisper to him directly. 

“I’m here, okay? I’m so sorry about Tommy, I know how much you cared for him. I still care for him too, and I know it hurts right now, but rest assured I’m still here. I’m here Techno, and I’m never leaving you.”

With clenched teeth, he let out a sob at your declaration and pushed his head against you. You took his permission to touch him promptly, gripping him with as much strength as you could carry so he felt stable and secure. 

You squeezed him, desperate to ground him from slipping further, and rocked the both of you. He released a shuttered breath, and you kissed his skin gently.

“I love you, you know? I will always be here and I’ll always love you, no matter what.”

He clutched you with his entire being, your words and presence more than he could ever ask and want. 

“Why do you have to be too reckless for your own good?”

You grinned widely at his words, smile almost sadistic as you glanced at him with your arms propped on the axe you carried above your shoulders. 

“What ever could you mean?” Despite the roll of his eyes, he did nothing to hide his own amusement to your eagerness to the upcoming destruction you were to bring. He chuckled, his deep laughter making you smile more softly to how genuine he was as you walked besides him. Hand raised to wave his rocket launcher, he focused ahead proud. 

“We’re quite the pair, aren’t we?” Turning to look at you again, you stared at him adoringly and smirked slightly while bashful to his confident manner. “We are indeed.”

It became relatively silent as you walked through the layered snow, feet crunching from your steady pace. You continued to take random glances at him, Technoblade doing the same until you both heard a loud groan. 

“My god, you two are insufferable, I can’t deal with this right now.” Dream sneered at you specifically, as if you were the cause for his own discomfort, and walked through you both.

“I’ll meet you guys there instead, but hurry.” Swiftly, he pulled out an ender pearl and threw it a few yards ahead towards the portal, his figure disappearing altogether. 

You stared in disbelief from his actions until a cough interrupted your thoughts once more. “You know what,” Phil avoided looking at you both, his hands tapping together awkwardly as he walked ahead as well but turned to address you while moving backwards. 

“I’ll see you guys there too, just, be sure to be quick?” You both nodded wordlessly, and he took his leave in fast haste. 

Standing there alone, you risked another glance at him and met his eyes, laughing loudly at the circumstances. 

Technoblade held a hand to his face, body shaking from his laughter while you were endlessly giggling, holding your stomach from the pain. Eventually, your fits faded with large smiles, and you faced him with a shake of your head. 

“I didn’t realize we’d be one of those couples.” Technoblade sighed, though you could tell it was for play, and nodded. “A shame really, I never thought this day would come.” 

You giggled again, and chose to move closer, tilting your head upwards at him with a sweet beam while leaning onto your axe. He gave you a small smile in return, however his faded immediately after. 

Lifting his open hand, he cupped your cheek and bent down to kiss your forehead, touching yours together after with his eyes closed. “Promise me you’ll be safe? I trust you to protect yourself, but for me, stay safe when things start to go bad?”

While you knew it was impossible to guarantee you’d stay away from the majority of the danger, you knew better than to leave his concern unanswered and open. 

“I promise,” you murmured, “for you, I promise.”

He pulled you against his chest this time, engulfing you completely and holding the back of your head earnestly to his heart. 

“I love you,” you voiced, your words muffled into his armor and coat. He hummed while looking ahead, his eyes trained on the glowing portal that called towards him. This was a war he refused to leave with mercy, the price of your peaceful lives together on the line. 

“No…”

There was too much blood. The thick liquid stained every surface and soaked through his coat that he pushed against your wound. 

Internally panicking from your tight expressions of discomfort, Technoblade desperately searched through his inventory for something, anything, that could heal or at the very least help you. He was forced to face the reality that he used all his potions during the midst of battle and combat. He couldn’t do anything. 

“Why, why why,” he snarled, his eyes clouding with an outset of tears he couldn’t care for. “Why are you so stupid.” His voice caught in his throat from his conflicted emotions and he tightened his hold on the fabric pushed against your stomach; the pain had faded at this point, and you were numb to the constant pressure he tried to hold. 

“I’m so sorry, love. I lied.” Your voice was light and strained, but Technoblade refused to accept the situation for what it was. He turned to a perched crow, screaming at it to get Phil and scaring it away with a slash of his sword, before tucking his head down in an almost silent plea. 

“Why do you have to be too reckless for your own good?” he whispered. Though he tried to be delicate, he couldn’t help how tight he held your hand. 

“I’d do anything for you, whether or not you ask me to.” You gave a tired grin as your eyes began to droop, hand tightening on his, however incredibly weak in comparison. 

“I asked you to be safe,” he cried, body stricken with grief as he abandoned his hold on your stomach and instead shakily held your face, your own blood smearing against your skin from his callous fingers. “I needed you safe.”

You placed a hand over his, using all your strength to relish in his touch and kissing the inner of his palm. “Yet you needed my love more.” 

He choked out a sob from your admittance, and pulled you into his chest, your body limp, as he rocked you slightly. “I’ll always be there for you, and love you more than I could for my own safety.”

The ruins echoed the wails of a tormented heart on the broken landscape of a haunted battlefield that called for death and devastation. The smoke and clouds of destruction reigned above, and despite the final end to the corrupted nation that was built on nothing but lies and deceit after a helpless man’s death, Technoblade couldn’t bring himself to care. 

“I love you,” he uttered, the words he struggled for oh so long to express finally free from its cage. “I love you, y/n. I love you so much.”

His words fell on deaf ears, and he screamed in agony at the truth that laid before him.

He was too late.

[ahsokasleftbicep]

Name and Soul: Chapter 6

It's finally here! I am SO SO sorry for the delay. This weekend has been insane. But anyway, let's go.

@mqgriett @darkangel4121 @thelambandthewolffe @maulscrosshair @trash-dino-5000 @lightning-wolffe @killtherandomness @shadowwing1324 @sydnubabu @lafy-taffy @photowizard17

Crosshair x F! reader

Word Count: 2042

Warnings: SPOILERS for episode 6, Rampart being a *ahem* douchebag, super conflicted Crosshair, internal conflict, Tech being amazing, Wrecker kicking ass, there are a few curse words but nothing too bad, I think

“Y/N… Y/N!” Omega tugs on your hand.

You shake your head and look down at her. “Huh?... What?” The girl points at the makeshift target painted on the far wall.

“Good job, Omega! You’re getting there!” You ruffle her hair and she smiles. “How about you try again?”

Omega nods and readies herself with the Zygerrian bow. You look out the door and tune everything out. After you saw, well thought you saw him, you stood in the middle of the streets until someone bumped your shoulder. It couldn’t have been him. That’s impossible, he would be on Kamino. And he didn’t have any weapons besides his knife, he never brings only one weapon. And his eyes… It had to be him.

You refocus when Omega lets out a frustrated groan.

“But I’ve already hit the target three times.”

Echo rests his hand on her shoulder. “Out of 12. That’s luck, Omega, not skill.”

“He’s right.” You hop off the gambling table and nod at the target. “Soldiers need to be consistent and that comes with time.”

Omega tries again but misses, glaring at the Weequay and Ithorian. “I was doing better until those two showed up.”

Echo glances at you before looking back to Omega. “You have to learn to tune out distractions, which comes with practice.”

“Try again, Omega. You can do it.” You smiled at the girl and winced when she missed again.

“Not exactly a natural, is she.” Cid walks up and nudges Wrecker off of his seat. “Playtime’s over, I got a job for you.”

You all gather around the table, making yourselves comfortable. Omega reaches up to you and you pick her up so she can see.

“I assume you guys know what a tactical droid is?... They were the opera…”

“The operational brains of the Separatist military-” Tech butts in.

“Ba-ba-ba-ba-ba.” This is my briefing, Goggles.”

Tech steps back offended while you and Echo try to muffle your laughter. Tech elbows you with a small smile before refocusing on Cid’s briefing. This is going to be a fun mission.

--

He was tired. God, he was so tired. Crosshair lied on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. Despite his exhaustion, he had been trying to go to sleep for hours.

Why did I run? Why did I leave her there? Why did you go in the first place, you should’ve killed her. I love her. She betrayed the Empire, tried to kill you. I tried to kill her first.

Crosshair sat up from his bed and removed his necklace. He turned the ring over in his hand, looking at the engraving. O'r gai bal runi…

Y/N… I’m sorry. Please, forgive me.

“CT-9904, report to my office immediately.”

….“Yes, sir.”

--

“We’re approaching the decommissioning site. We can land at the dockyard and go in on foot.” Tech turns his head to look back before landing the ship.

You put on your helmet and look down at Omega. “You ready kid?”

“Definitely!” The girl runs ahead before Hunter holds her shoulder. You all crouch behind a wall. You raise your brow at Tech and poke his shoulder.

“What’s with the police droids? Cid never mentioned those.”

The man rolls his eyes and looks at his vambrace. “They operate on a rotating quadrant scan. If we time it correctly, they have a blind spot.”

“That’s our way in then.”

“Precisely.”

When the time is right, you make your way to the site, going up a ladder.

“It’s okay, Wrecker. Don’t look down, just like Skako Minor.” You glance down at the man and he nods.

“You say that like it’s easy, Y/N.”

You all enter the facility and huddle together.

“Wrecker, cover us up top.”

“But being the lookout was Crosshair’s job.”

“That’s why Y/N is going with you.” Hunter nods at you.

“Sounds good to me… C’mon big guy, let's get up there.”

--

This really could be going better. You dodge a few shots from the police droids, firing something back.

“Wrecker, Y/N. Get to the main control panel.” Echo’s voice comes through the comms

You and the man run up but stop when you reach the panel… on the other side of a river of molten droid parts. Lovely. Crosshair would’ve loved this.

“Echo, we can’t reach the platform. Unless you want us to fall into a molten river.”

“It’s the only way to reboot the whole facility. Figure it out!”

Wrecker looks at you, “That’s easy for you to say.” The man paces erratically and grips his head.

“Wrecker, we need to hurry. You can do this.” You stop the man and hold his shoulders. “I’ll cover you.”

The man groans and mumbles to himself.

“Wrecker, what are you waiting for?”

“Wrecker, you need to hurry!” A blaster shot flies over your head, and more police droids surround you both.

Wrecker jumps to a claw and swings to the platform, hitting his head in the process.

“Wrecker! Get the system online, we’re running out of time!” Police droids gather together, converging on your position. The man flips the switch before collapsing.

“Wrecker!” You fire off a few rounds and use the claw to get to the platform. “C’mon Wrecker! We gotta get out of here!”

You grab Wreckers blaster and fire at the closer droids. “Dammit, Wrecker!”

“H-Hunter, Y/N… I’m stuck on the conveyor. I need help.”

“I’m surrounded by police droids and Wrecker is incapacitated at the moment. Hunter?”

“I’ll get Omega. Just get down here as soon as you can.”

You fire off more rounds, then kneel down. “Wrecker… Wrecker! You couldn’t have hit your head that hard. C’mon.” You push his shoulder.

More droids converge and you move around the platform. Wrecker mumbles but you can’t make out anything. Good soldiers follow orders.

--

Good soldiers follow orders. Good soldiers follow orders. Good soldiers...good soldiers.

“CT-9904? A moment?” Rampart approached the grey-haired man, who placed a toothpick between his lips.

“Sir.”

“I believe we have gotten off on the wrong… foot.” Rampart stands, looking out the window. “You see, Private L/N and her skills will be very useful for my current project. I understand that your relationship with the soldier-”

Crosshair shoves the man against the window, holding the sharpened point of his toothpick at Rampart’s neck. “I am holding this right over your carotid artery. If I slip just enough, you will bleed out in minutes, possibly less. Now I don’t know who you think I was to that woman, but if you keep pushing it...” Crosshair presses his toothpick harder. “...then I suggest you watch your back.” Crosshair lets go of his collar and Rampart falls to the floor, gripping his neck. “Oh and Admiral. If you tell anyone about this, I’ll still have enough time to find you.” The sniper narrows his eyes and disappears down the hallway.

--

“Y/N, Wrecker, get down here now!”

“I’m working on it, Echo! Wrecker’s still-”

“We’re on our way.” The man grabs his weapon from you and nudges your shoulder.

“Oh, so glad you could join us! How was your beauty sleep?” You punch his shoulder. “We need to get to the others.”

The man walks up to a chain and crouches down. “You remember that mission on Tatooine?”

“How could I ever forget?” You smile and get up on Wrecker’s shoulders. “Let’s do some damage.”

Wrecker jumps down the chain, the two of you firing off. “Sorry, we took so long!”

“We got tired of you guys having all the fun!” Wrecker lands with you still on his shoulders. You hop off and start covering the rest of the group.

“Y/N!” Omega runs up next to you, a few smudges on her face.

“Omega! You got a little something on your cheek, nothing a rag and water can’t take care of.” You pat her on the head for a moment before returning more fire.

A moment later, old battle droids begin to stand up and fire on the police droids.

“Well, that’s new… I take it, that’s our cue to get the hell out of here.”

Tech runs next to you, “Yes, it is indeed.”

“Good shot, Omega!”

“Thank you! You and Echo were right about those distractions.”

“We’ve dealt with this our whole lives, you learn to forget about them over time.” You kneel behind her and provide cover. “Let’s get going… I’m starving.”

“You and me both!” Wrecker runs past you, knocking the remaining droids to the ground.

--

“Trace, right?”

“Yes! And you’re Y/N.” The girl smiles at you.

You place your hand on her shoulder. “Thank you for going back to Omega.”

“She’s a good kid… And a good shot.” Trace chuckles.

“Well, she’s getting there…”

“Y/N! Let’s go! I thought you were starving!” Omega sticks her head out of the ship, waving her arms.

“Okay, jeez. I’m coming!” You wave to the sisters and run to the ship, sitting in the cockpit. Omega comes up and tugs on your arm. “Y/N… Uhm, can you help me train for a bit?”

“Yeah sure, but no target practice. Let’s do strength instead! Then you need to rest, you’ve had a big day.”

“Okay! Now c’mon let’s go!” The girl grabs your hand and drags you to the back.

--

Crosshair stood in the shower, staring at his necklace. He hadn’t moved in minutes, just letting the water run down his body. He was thinking… about everything. Sleep is unknown to him, his brain won’t shut up. He won’t shut up.

You should’ve gone back for her. You should’ve killed her. I love her. No, you don’t. What do you know...You’re not me. I love Y/N, and I always will, I promised her. Ha, with what? That stupid necklace, that ring? You tried to kill her and you think she still loves you? You betrayed everything you promised. You don’t know Y/N like I do. She knows, they all do. She saw me that day, she knows that I’m still here. And she knows you’re here too. She’s not stupid. Oh, I’m sure. Just shut up and let me sleep, please. Hm, I’ll think about it. No, I don’t think I will.

--

“Y/N? Why are you up?” Tech walks into the cockpit, devoid of his eyewear.

“I- couldn’t sleep. Haven’t been since…”

“Since the day we left Kamino… Am I correct?”

“Yes… It’s so odd. It’s like I can feel him.”

“Crosshair?”

“Yes, it’s like I can feel his presence. Like when someone stands behind you, but you can feel them there before they speak. And I keep thinking I hear him, and I see things. Like nightmares...horrible nightmares.” Tears gather in your eyes and they fall down your cheeks. “I- I must be losing my mind, right?”

Tech places his hand on your shoulder and kneels in front of you. “Y/N, you are most definitely not going crazy. But what you’re experiencing does sound very strange. I know how much this… has affected you and I don’t- I don’t have all the answers. I do wish I did, but circumstances have prevented me from fully dedicating-”

“Tech, you’re rambling again.” You put your hand on his shoulder. “I know you are doing everything you can, and you have a great assistant.”

The man chuckles, “Apologies. Yes, Omega is a very nice assistant. She is quite intelligent.” Tech stands up and yawns, “I believe some sleep is necessary, for both of us.”

“I’ll go in a moment, I promise.”

“Very well, I would hate to drag you back.” Tech nods before heading back to his room.

You turn your head, looking out into hyperspace. Crosshair… I don’t know if you can hear me. I was looking at the stars… I miss you. Maybe you’re looking at the stars too if you can even see them, but I hope you are. They look so pretty tonight.

--

Crosshair turned his head to the window, looking through the clouds of Kamino. He finds a small opening in the clouds, revealing a dark, clear sky above. I found the stars… You’re right. They do look pretty….

I love you, Y/N.

… I love you, Crosshair.

[certifiedskywalker]

To Tython - Din Djarin

Anonymous said: I'm sorry if I'm bothering you, but I was wandering if you could do a mandalorian x male reader for the new season? I don't have a specific idea, but maybe some fluff? Please and thank you!

AN: Of course, this has Season 2 spoilers for The Mandalorian. I hope I made it fluffy enough for you! Also, Male/Masc!Reader x Mando/Din

“That exercise really knocked him out,” you observed as Din tucked the Child, Grogu, into the makeshift bed you had made. “How long did Ahsoka say he was trained for?”

“Many, at least that’s what it sounded like. Many Masters taught him, she said.” Once settled, Din pressed a button on a nearby control panel and the small port to the sleeping nook hissed shut. With Grogu snoring safely inside, a mild wave of relief washed over you. Din, feeling the same wash, sighed before turning his helmeted head to you. As you often found yourself doing, you stared intently into the visor; vainly hoping for a sneaking glimpse of Din’s eyes. As you often found, you saw nothing.

“Have you set a course to Tython?”

You shook your head in response. “I was waiting on you.”

For a long moment, Din’s visor was fixed on your figure. Despite not knowing for certain that he was staring at you, your skin warmed. Not knowing was what living with Din confusing. Not knowing was what made loving Din all the more complicated, helmet and creed aside.

“Alright, then let’s get moving.”

Din started towards the cockpit. As he passed you, Din’s gloved fingers brush against the bare skin of your hand. The touch was enough to stifle your breathing. Air caught in your throat and it took you a second to remember to exhale. When you began to breathe again, you turn on your heel and follow Din to the cockpit. 

When you clambered up the steps, you found that Din was already sat in his chair. You watched as he plugged the coordinates to Tython into the navigation console. Each button chirped as he pressed them, the sound akin to the few bird-like creatures you had seen on Corvus. You wondered if those flightful beings ever wanted to fly somewhere less gloomy. Somewhere less filled with the smokey death of an Imperial grip. 

“You think the planet will recover?” The question slipped from your lips without you giving it much thought. Din primed the engine and thrusters before he replied.

“Maybe. If it’s left alone.” 

You nodded and took the seat behind him, stewed on his answer. As you do, Din pushed the thruster lever forward. The Razor Crest hummed to life and lifted. You peered out the viewport and watched at the surface of Corvus grew smaller and smaller. 

Alone. Since the bounty for the Child, you and Din hadn’t been alone together in cycles. The constant moving, jumping from one planet to another, and the stress of being hunted didn’t help that either. When you did find time to sit still, it never lasted too long. Though, perhaps the lack of alone time was a blessing, a secretly beneficial machination of the Force or whatever it was that the Jedi worshipped long ago.

While neither you nor Din had breathed a word of the tension, the affection between you, you both knew it was there. So, maybe, it was better that you hadn’t had time alone to talk, to really feel the weight of the silent want. Maybe, like Corvus, it’s better if it’s left alone.

“You should get some rest.” 

Din’s voice broke you out of your thoughts. The pilot’s chair, grey metal chipped with wear and tear, stood out against the darkness of space shown through the main viewport. With another lever flip, the stars lurched and turned into fine lines of white light as the Razor Crest made its hyperspace. You let out a sigh at the sight.

“You’re one to talk. When’s the last time you slept?” At your question, Din turned in his seat. Now that he faced you, you stared into the visor of his helmet.

“I’m fine,” he said, turning back to the ship controls. 

A tilt in his tone, a cold edge, told you that Din had lied. Quietly as you could, you stood from your seat and stepped over to Din. He was still as you looked at him from over his shoulder. Gloved hands had stopped their idle ministrations and flicking switches on the Razor Crest’s main console. You couldn’t see his eyes, but you could sense the distance. His graze was shot out into the bright hyperspace tunnel the ship was racing through. 

“Din,” at the sound of your voice, his helmeted face turned to meet your gaze. You raised your brow slightly in the hopes of coaxing him into talking. When he didn’t, you added, “I know we haven’t really talked in a while, but you still can’t lie to me.”

“I never could,” Din replied softly. Your heart swelled at the gentleness of his tone. 

“Then tell me what happening behind the beskar.” You were half tempted to tap a finger against his helmet but you resisted. 

“The kid,” Din started, “I’ve gotten used to having him around.” A silence fell between you, not quite tense but heavy enough to make you worried.

“Me too,” you agreed as you peered down to where Din sat. “Are you worried about him? About finding the Jedi?”

“Yes and no,” Din turned his helmet’s visor from your gaze to the hyperspace tunnel of blurred stars. When he let out a sigh, you knew he had broken. “What...what happens after?”

The pitch of Din’s fell into an echo of quiet. Small and trembling, his voice coaxed an ache to bloom in your chest. An ache so stirring that you moved to lean over him, block the view out of the front to the Razor’s Crest. Din’s visor lifted and a shiver crawled down your spine at the sight. You did not have to lift his helmet to know he was crying.

“We do what we’ve always done: survive and fight,” you leaned in towards Din before you continued. “We survive and fight to see him again, ‘cause we will. We’re going to do what you Armorer said, give him back to his people, but we’re his people too. We’re his family, practically his fathers.”

The statement, the sentiment slipped from your lips before your mind realized the gravity of it. Every muscle in your body tensed when the last word leapt from the tip of your tongue and into the air between you and Din. You have expected Din to nod quietly and wait for you to awkwardly excuse yourself in a vain attempt to climb out of the hole you dug in your heart.

So, when Din chuckled, you didn’t know what to do. 

“We are a clan of three,” Din murmured. Hs tone was soft despite the modulator in his helmet. Your eyes meet the darkness of the visor and, for a fleeting moment, you swear you saw a pair of darker eyes looking back at you, back lit by the light of hyperspace.

“A clan of three,” you echoed, with your eyes still fixed on him. Lightness permeated your being and you savored the sensation of weightlessness, however brief. Din shifted suddenly and broke you from your starry-eyed trance. Your body felt the heft of gravity again and you straightened your posture, prepared yourself to leave the cockpit to stew on the closeness you had shared with Din; stew on your sore feelings.

“Wait. Y/N?"

Tight and strong, Din’s hand gripped your wrist. You stilled your movements and looked down into Din’s visor with your brow quirked up in question. How he sat, strong in the pilot’s chair, made your stomach twist with want. He was so in his element. Any other day or night, Din would have been unshakable; but he was different, sat at an uncomfortable angle. 

When you leaned downwards, you noticed that he was on edge. He was hunched over slightly, shoulder drawn forwards in an unrelaxed manner, and his arms moved seemingly without any goal. Even the arm, the hand that held your wrist shifted. You admired the nervous tick with a small smile on your lips. Though, the second you felt a rush of warm confidence, Din had finally collected himself.

“Come here.”

His free hand found a landing spot underneath his helmet as he gave the order. Distractly by the tone of his voice, you had no time to react as he pushed up on the obscuring mask of metal. In all the time you had worked beside and lived with Din Djarin, you had only seen slivers of his skin. Exposed wrists, the curve of his chin, and a bit of his ankle as he pulled on his boots some mornings. Each time, you took that sliver of him in with eager, big eyes. 

As he lifted his helmet, you drank in the sight of Din’s scruffed jaw and pink lips with eyes wider than ever before. Then the smile lines that graced his cheeks, the tip of his nose, and then, finally, after yearning for them for so long, his brown eyes. They were familiar. Dark and warm, like nights on Tatooine.

“Din.” 

His name came out of your mouth loved and in a restless breath. Wordlessly, Din pulled you closer by your wrist until you had to brace yourself against the adjustable armrests of the pilot’s chair. So tantalizingly close, you could smell the sweat on his skin. Fingers twitched against the cool metal of the seat, itched to reach out and touch.

Hungry for him, in any way, a gasp fell from your lips when his nose brushed against your own. The contact sated you for only a moment and then you were starved for more. 

“Din,” this time you said his name more pleadingly. 

Cycles of drowning out your feelings for Din had weakened your resolve. Now, each twinge of longing you had ever felt bubbled up to the surface. Though, you still couldn’t breathe. 

When Din finally kissed you, a rush of fresh air filled your lungs and nourished your tired heart. Needy and sloppy, you deepen the kiss; grateful that Din had decided that he, unlike Corvus, was not better off alone. You knew, as Din pressed his lips to yours, that whatever awaited you, the clan of three, on Tython and beyond, you would be alright. As long at you were together.

[canonconspiracy]

Stepping The Line of Shojo (Akaashi Keji x Fem!Reader)

Fanfiction By: @rmorningstar21

Fandom: Haikyu!!

Pairing: Akaashi Keji x Fem!Reader (Time Skip)

Cross-posted on my AO3 under Haikyuu!! x Reader Oneshot collection (rmorningstar21).

Warnings: Tenma meddling!  Honestly, no real warnings in this one besides spoilers for the manga time skip (which, actually puts us in 2018ish).

AN:  The collection itself is still on hiatus until I finish a few things, but this one came to me ridiculously quickly and I couldn’t set this on the back-burner.  Thought this was a cute concept.  

Word Count: 2554

"Ten, was that the door?" You asked your roommate with a quirked brow, popping your head of y/h/c locks from your room.  Even despite your words, your focused roommate had seemed to be non-moving, sitting at his art desk with an intense gaze in his eyes.  You nearly sighed in aggravation, though his absent words cut you right off.  

"Yeah, can you get it?" He asked, his grey eyes glancing up to you for a split second before glancing back down to what he had been working on.  "It's my coworker." 

"Well, since you asked so nicely," you replied with an eye roll, reaching a hand to straighten your y/h/c locks out as you closed your door quietly, making your way to the main door through a couple of the rooms.  The apartment you shared with Tenma had been quite large for the two of you, but as you both preferred your own working space, it was the perfect size.  "Did you at least leave a cup of coffee for me?" 

"Could you brew a pot while you're out that way?" He called out quickly, though you could tell by his absent tone that he had still been focusing.  

"Yeah, yeah," you replied, before placing your hand upon the chilled door handle.  Turning it, you opened the door rather carelessly, knowing that it had just been someone from the Shonen company that Tenma worked for.  As your y/e/c eyes landed upon who stood at the other side of the door, they widened for a moment, your face indescribable.  

Akaashi blinked upon recognition from behind his glasses, curiosity clear in his deep blue eyes.  "Maybe I have the wrong address," he openly questioned, overthinking the moment that he saw your familiar face.  A tinted blush rose in his cheeks as he moved to adjust his glasses, clearing his throat.  "I'm sorry-"

"Akaashi, get in here," Tenma called out, overhearing his coworker's confusion.  "Y/N/N is going to brew some coffee if you want some." 

"Ah, yes," he spoke, "Coffee would be great if it's not an inconvenience." 

You stepped aside, allowing Akaashi to walk in as you still held the dumbfounded expression upon your face.  "It's nice to see you, Akaashi," you said finally as you watched him standing in the front room a little awkwardly.  "Tenma's right through those rooms."  

Akaashi bowed to you formally, a soft, awkward laugh escaping his lips.  "I'm sorry for being rude," he said softly.  "It's really nice to see you again as well, Y/N." 

"No worries at all," you reassured him as you guided him through the first room, though you pointed further as you stayed in the kitchen to brew up the coffee.  As Akaashi's footsteps traced back to Tenma, you finally allowed your guard to be let down for a moment, crimson blush flourishing against your cheeks as your y/e/c eyes were wide.  Even if you were to spend the rest of your day cooped up in your room, you still would need to walk past the handsome male in the first place to get there.  

I wish you'd learn to warn me, Ten, you thought to yourself in your fluster, though you tried your best to focus on the task at hand.  Within a few minutes, the coffee was made, and you pulled out one of Tenma's cups for his coffee.  For Akaashi, you went into your own stash, grabbing one of your favorites to send Tenma a little S.O.S. You never allowed anyone to touch your cups, especially your roommate, and you hoped the astute male would notice.  

Akaashi took his coffee with the slightest hint of milk and no sugar, you recalled from your days as manager of the high school volleyball team, and despite your jittery hands, you managed to make it as such.  Tenma took his coffee with significantly more sugar than Akaashi, but no milk, and it was a coffee you had made plenty of times, over and over, in the last year of rooming together.

You left your cup in the kitchen so that you could have two free hands to carry their coffee, silently handing the two their coffees and receiving varying thank you's.   Internally, you had been panicking, while externally, you looked calm as the day was long.  Striding back out to the kitchen, you grabbed your coffee, before heading back to your room.  

Before you were able to get a hand upon your door handle, Tenma caught your attention.  "If you have nothing to do today, maybe we can bounce some ideas off of you," Tenma suggested, a glint of mischief in his eyes as his gray eyes met your own y/e/c eyes.  "You followed the men's volleyball circuit in high school, didn't you?"  

Y/e/c eyes widened before narrowing upon your mischievous roommate.  Before you had the chance to say anything, Akaashi chimed in, completely unknowing of your plight.  After all, he had been your plight. 

"You were our manager after all, Y/N," Akaashi chimed in heartily.  "It would be informative to get your viewpoints." 

If Tenma had been the only one to chime in, the only one to show an interest in your opinions, you knew exactly what you would have said to get yourself out of the situation.  Don't take my day off for granted, Ten, is what you would have said, though you held your tongue.  Instead, you thought to yourself that just maybe you shouldn't have sent your roommate the sign that you were in a pickle, realizing that instead he was using it to your disadvantage.  For whatever reason, Tenma wanted to poke the flustered feelings inside of you, and surely you would make sure he got an earful later.  

"Yeah," you replied, a crack to your tone as you forced your lips into a smile.  Though your exterior had an attempt at calmness, you found your exterior slowly beginning to break.  Your grip tightened upon the coffee cup in your hands, but your other hand slipped from the doorknob, y/e/c eyes scouring the room once more to find where around your own desk you placed your chair.  Grabbing it quickly, you flipped it around backwards as you leaned yourself against the backrest.  Taking a sip of your coffee, you forced your smile to stay.  

The first questions, first ideas, had not been strenuous for you to answer.  With the way that they were working the idea, it had been placed around Bokuto, whom you had watched as the manager all throughout high school.  Graduating a year before Akaashi, you had an extra year of your knowledge of the ace player.  Even so, you admitted, it had been the second year and forward that the team truly shined.  

"How about you look at these panels and tell us what you think," Tenma said, motioning to his desk.  Catching the glint of mischief in his eyes, you had to wonder if it had been the fact that you would have to get closer to the two to look over at them.  "Akaashi here is our editor, but I want to know how you feel about the storyline so far." 

Setting your coffee cup on your desk, you rose from the chair, striding over to Tenma's desk.  The way that Tenma moved to the side made it so that you were the closest to Akaashi as you hunched over the desk, the slight heat from the man causing your breath to hitch in your throat.  As your y/e/c eyes slid across the manga panels, you tried your best to hide your fluster, no matter how much you were thinking of how close the previous setter had been.  

"The team learned more into the second year how to account for the mood swings," you murmured as you glanced over the pages.  "Though, as a whole, it's well-made, clear and concise." 

As you shifted further down to what Tenma seemed that he had worked on once Akaashi came in, your cheeks darkened in blush.  Y/e/c eyes shifted from the page to shoot a glare at Tenma, tight lipped before you moved back to your seat.  When you sat down, your expression had changed back to that of a guard, though your words had a slight bite to them that you knew your roommate would catch.  

"So, you are basing it off the second year," you spoke.  "Though, based on your ideas, I would have assumed you to focus solely on the Ace." 

"It takes six functioning players to make a team," Akaashi confirmed, though you were sure he had not seen the debauchery that Tenma planned to tease you with.  

"Even so, the last panel teeters the line of Shojo," you spoke absently, glaring at Tenma as you had not thought of the consequences of pointing it out.  It was a rough depiction, and clearly wasn't something Tenma would have been keeping in the panel lines.  Even so, speaking those words, you watched Tenma's lips draw upwards, your face draining of it's color as you watched Akaashi move to see what you had been speaking of.  

"You may be right," Tenma confirmed as his gray eyes switched to see Akaashi go wide-eyed at the frame in question, "but personally, I'm thinking of making that big enough to frame it." 

Akaashi cleared his throat, straightening himself back out upon his chair as he questioned Tenma.  "How accurate is your depiction, though?" He questioned curiously.  "The panel itself is based off of a much later look, and therefore wouldn't fit into the proper timeline." 

Pinching the bridge of your nose, you moved your free hand to grab your coffee of your desk as you spoke.  "It should definitely be removed, as it takes away from the actual storyline," you exasperated.  

"I'm unsure of what Y/N/N looked like her second year of high school," Tenma spoke with a shrug, moving himself back to where he had been sitting previously, "but I'm sure the rest of it was accurate." 

Deep blue eyes shifted from behind black rimmed glasses to you, while deep gray eyes shifted maliciously to you as well.  Both men awaited your refute, or your answer, as you found your stomach churning.  A complete minute passed as the two awaited your answer patiently. 

You sat with wide y/e/c eyes in disbelief, your breath hitched in your throat.  Akaashi was rather astute, and yet, surely he had never caught your stray glances in the past.  Tenma had a bit of a mischievous side you rarely saw, the man typically pretty laid back.  Even so, he still had golden intentions, and a knack for getting under your skin.  

"The writing itself is a little over the top," you finally replied, your y/e/c eyes shifting from the two as you found yourself shifting under their gazes.  "Though the concept itself holds accuracy, yes." 

Tenma smirked coyly before standing to his feet, his tired expression shifting to you before shifting to the hallway.  "I'll let you two chat for a bit," he spoke, shrugging his shoulders as he walked out of the room, towards his own room.  The silence that Tenma left in the room could be cut like a knife, weighing on the two left.  

"So," Akaashi finally spoke, breaking the silence, "You've had feelings for me since high school." 

Akaashi always had a way of being far too blunt for his own good, and this was something you had been far too used to.  Normally, Akaashi had been pointing out a fault of Bokuto, though, so you never felt the same chill of actually having the words used upon you.  Your voice came out as more of a squeak than anything as you simultaneously bit your lip.  "Correct," you spoke, before mentally slapping yourself.  Trying to calm yourself, you reminded yourself that it had been all Tenma's fault that you were stuck in this position.  Knowing that, your following words came out with a little more bite.  "Tenma didn't tell me you were coming over, and I'm sure once he put two and two together, that's why I was brought out to bounce opinions off of." 

Akaashi found himself laughing, his lips curling upwards as a small hint of blush stretched across his pale cheeks.  "With you, I always over-thought a lot in high school," he admitted through his laughter, his lips still holding a smile as it stopped.  "I thought you'd be interested in someone more brazen, like Bokuto." 

"On the contrary, I don't think I would have been able to handle his energy," you replied with a soft chuckle, fondly remembering the difference between the year before Akaashi joined and the year that he had.  "You always had something about you that made me go shy, and I thought it was pretty obvious." 

"Now that you mention it, I noticed that, but I always thought you just didn't like me," he admitted sheepishly.  "I'm sure you were more into my look during high school, though.  You...you've only gotten more beautiful, but I-." 

You quirked a brow at his second sentence at the start, blush coating your cheeks at the word beautiful, but by the point that he started refuting his own looks, you set your coffee down.  Moving to Akaashi, you had been a little bold, pressing your finger against his lips to stop him from belittling his appearance as you shook your head.   Reaching a hand out, you offered him to his feet, where he still stood about a head overtop of you.  

"If you want to tell me I wouldn't be interested in you because of your glasses, I will laugh right in your face," you replied in a bored tone, your cheeks reflecting the fluster of crimson despite your nonchalant words.  At the point that he called you beautiful, you were almost sure that you knew where this was all going, giving you the slightest hint of confidence.  "For one, I think you've grown far more handsome than high school…"  As you spoke, you moved to press two fingers upon where his heart would be, gently as you spoke the rest.  "But I also fell for what's in here, Akaashi."

Instead of words, instead of overthinking everything you had said to him, he moves gentle fingertips to your cheek, pulling you into his lips.  At first, his lips move untrained, unsure as he tastes you for the very first time.  Something about what you said swelled in his heart, solidified that the woman who stood in front of him had been the same Y/N he fell for.  

At first, you had been taken aback by the action itself, but you soon found yourself melting into the kiss.  Tasting the coffee upon his lips, the two of you melded as one in the moment, your heart beating wildly in your chest.  Arms moved to wrap around the man's neck, deepening the kiss as you held him closely.  

As the two of you separated, he rested his forehead against your own, moving his slender arms to wrap around you.  "Call me Keji, Y/N," he murmured softly.  "Because I'd like to call you mine." 

[pepsi-beat]

chapter 1. the prey

pairing: Din Djarin x fem!Reader

series title: The Way

word count: 2,8K

warnings: angst maybe?, The Mandalorian s2 finale spoilers, canon typical violence, blood and injuries, 3rd person pov, Din Djarin pov, lack of “Y/N”, reader is called “Girl”, amnesia, reader's species is unknown, a little ooc Din Djarin

summary: Greef Karga assured him it was an easy job. Find a woman. Get her to the husband she ran away from. And that's it. But... not exactly.

a/n: Hello there! I’m pretty new when it comes to writing and publishing here. I hope you like what I have for you. I write it so I could get away from my uni responsibilities. I don’t know if I can finish this, but I really liked idea. So we will see.

Chapter 1

THE PREY

Naboo. A sparsely populated planet located in the Mid Rim in the Chommell sector of the Naboo system. Occupied the third position in the system, provides a standard gravity and breathable atmosphere. It had three moons.

Naboo was known for its natural and cultural values. The inhabitants were famous for their beautiful, perfectly refined products that made an impression throughout the galaxy. People did well here, the place has always seemed completely cut off from the rest of the Galaxy. Slow, free, peaceful.

Din wasn’t used to chasing his victims in places like Naboo. Usually he had to wade through the Outer Rim Territories. Through inhospitable and harsh planets, where survival required quite a bit of cunning or a deep pocket stuffed with credits.

He landed a Dragonfly on a meadow covered with lush green grass and colorful flowers. He turned off the engines, put the computer to it hibernate mode, then he turned with a soft sigh to the co-pilot's seat. His heart tightened with fear as he found it empty. But before he could jump up from his seat and start searching, he painfully remembered that it didn't make sense. His throat tightened with regret, and he walked briskly through the cockpit and then through the hull to the stern, where he made his way out.

Two months have passed since the events on the Imperial cruiser. Two extremely long and surprisingly lonely months.

As the Jedi departed, taking Grogu with him, Din had to deal with the issue of the Darksaber. Bo-Katan refused to take it and Din refused to keep it. Finally, they decided to duel. Bo-Katan chose a time and place – some deserted rocky planet. Din knew that if he had given up the fight, the Mandalorian woman would have been offended and wouldn’t have taken that damned saber. On the other hand, he was reluctant to fight the woman, but he quickly realized that all his fears were baseless.

Bo-Katan was highly trained warrior, so the fight was levelised. It took a long time, but in the end the woman fairly won, becoming the new ruler of Mandalore. Before they finally departed, she asked him one more time to join her.

Din refused, but promised that if she needed his help, he would come back. Then Boba Fett left him and Cara on Nevarro, where the marshal kept her word. She called for New Republic, who took Moff Gideon and Din received his prize. Credits. Lots of credits. Suddenly, he became so rich that he could easilly to buy a ship, weapons, and substitute the equipment he had lost with the Razor Crest. And he still has some left.

The Dragonfly was a good ship. Pre-Empire, but was still newer than Razor Crest. After many modifications and modernizations, it could easily compete with newer models. Unlike the Crest, it was much more slender and more agile. The Dragonfly was oblong with a tiny but comfortable kitchenette, refresher, workshop, small armory, several bunks, couches, and a lot of space. The Dragonfly had so much space that Din was uncomfortable. However, he bought this ship, because of all the trouble Cara had gone to find it.

Then, he went back to work as a bounty hunter. He felt that he had to fill the void in his heart with something and returning to hunting seemed to be the best solution in his situation.

Of course, Din visited his tribe's old hideout, but found only useless equipment. The Armorer had left Nevarro some time ago and Din had no idea where she might have gone. So he promised to himself, he would find another Mandalorian’s hideout, but it was easier said than done. Especially after the long time he spent on the run with Grogu.

Din put the beskar spear in its place and returned to the hull. He reached for the control panel, the durasteel door swung open and the platform touched the ground.

Naboo was… different. Brighter, happier, more vivid than any other planet he had ever seen. The colors were more intense, the sun was warmer, the wind was kinder and gentler and the animals were fearless as if they never met a human before and never been hurt by their hands. Naboo was so different that he wanted to take off his helmet and take a deep breath. Get some fresh air, not the air he was breathing through the filters.

Din checked the tracker, the last coordinates of his target and compared it with his current position.

It didn't take long. An hour, maybe two. During this time, he managed to find the X-Wing with which his target had undoubtedly arrived. It was good news. The bad news was that there was another ship in the meadow besides the X-Wing. Din didn't recognize it, but he knew who it belongs anyway. To another bounty hunter. And that was bad news.

He analyzed the footprints. Those belonging to the target were a bit older, unlike those belonging to the bounty hunter.

Blaster shots. Female screams. Din's body reacted instinctively. In one quick move he pulled the blaster from his belt, then ran where the sounds were coming from. The direction coincided with the footprints.

He ran between the trees. The shots stopped, but the closer he got, the better he could hear the conversation. He distinguished between the frightened woman speaking in the basic and the squawk of a Rodian. Finally Din ran into a small clearing. He froze with a blaster aimed at the Rodian when the bounty hunter spotted him and shouted in Rodese.

"Calm down" said Din. ”I'm in the Guild.”

Suca Chodasso, the target by which Din had ventured as far as Naboo, knelt weeping among flowers. She was holding another woman's body in her arms, pressing her face against the hollow of her own neck. The target threaded herfingers into the deceased's disheveled hair. After each sentence she spoke, her mouth touched the top of the girl’s head.

The Rodian said something in Rodese again, but this time he was addressing Suca Chodasso. But he was so nervous that Din found it hard to understand him.

"I have nothing! I didn't steal anything! " Suca called back. Her voice was trembling and her hands were shaking.

It was uncomfortable situation. He tracked down his target, used a lot of fuel to reach Naboo and yet he wasn't the first. There were such situations, but he was still upset that someone else had received the puck.

As the Rodian addressed him urgently, Din sighed so softly that the vocoder couldn’t register it. He nodded, but his eyes went to the crying Suca. She must have felt his gaze as she tore her eyes away from her companion's face and turned her head toward him. Her eyes seemed to be begging him to do something, but Din's hands were tied.

He turned on his heel as there was a soft moan. Din stopped and looked over his shoulder. The girl he had considered to be dead before, moved slightly. She slowly raised one of her limp hands and touched her temples with her fingers. Suca Chodasso looked at her in horror. She leaned in slightly, possibly saying something in her companion's ear, but Din's attention was absorbed by the Radian's next words.

"Leave her! She has nothing to do with it! " Suca sobbed. She bent over the girl, covering her with her body as the Rodian was about to shoot.

Din's blaster smoked slightly as the Rodian's body fell onto the grass. The Mandalorian turned to the huddled women, but he already knew he was late.

Due to Suca's position, when she shielded her companion, the laser pierced the top of her head, passed through her neck and spine. Her body lay pitifully with a smoky, nasty wound that made even Din grimace.

Quick, shallow breaths, which the Mandalorian recognized as signs of an impending panic attack, brought him back. He walked over to Suca Chodasso's body and pushed her unceremoniously aside.

"Easy now," he said. "Take it easy, girl."

The girl didn't even look at him. Her wide eyes stared at the sky. She was gasping for air through her mouth in gusts like someone who was choking. Her face and chest were stained with red blood stains.

Din frowned at the large gash on the girl's temple and the bullet hole on her arm. Right above the heart. The blood that flowed from the wounds was very thick, silver and pearly.

"You’re safe now."

The girl stopped breathing. She froze in an unnatural stillness that worried Din, but as soon as his hand touched her shoulder, she moved again. The girl closed her mouth and eyes and began to breathe calmly. Very calmly. Way too slow.

"Girl?"

"Who are you?"

She looked at him… weirdly. Din couldn't tell what it was, but something was clearly wrong with her. She had pretty eyes, but at the same time they were cold, as if they belonged to a dead man.

The Mandalorian stepped back a bit. He helped the girl get to a sitting position, but he didn't say a word as she looked around. Din flexed all his muscles in preparation for what was to come. He expected screams, crying, and accusations. He had expected the girl to panic, attack him, but she… was calm.

She looked at the dead Suca Chodasso for a long time. She touched her face, then ran her fingers over her own temple as if looking for something there. But she found nothing. Even her wound was on the other side of her face.

"Girl?"

She looked reluctantly at Din. The bounty hunter held out three fingers.

"How many fingers do you see?"

"Three."

He repeated the test two more times and the girl answered well each time.

"What's your name?"

Girl opened her mouth, but said nothing. Only then did panic spread across her face.

She looked at something over Din's shoulder, but before the Mandalorian could say anything, he was thrown to the ground. He heard the sound of a blaster laser hitting a durasteel, so he rolled over, picked up his gun and aimed it. He aimed blindly at first, but as another shot bounced off his chestplate, he knew where to shoot. After a moment, he heard a heavy body fall to the ground, so he rose to his feet.

The girl groaned in pain or surprise. Din looked at her and saw her hand tighten on her arm, more of this weird thick silver blood leaking from between her fingers.

"Wait here," he said. Before the girl could reply, Din was already on his way to the shooting direction.

It was another bounty hunter. Din found the tracker in his pocket. Useless because the target was already dead. But still. The tracker.

The Mandalorian frowned. It was also suspicious. Greef Karga assured him it was an easy job. Find a woman. Get her to the husband she ran away from. And that's it. Even the prize offered for her screamed an easy going.

Din wasn’t interested in why Suca Chodasso was escaping at all, and he never thought about it. Only looking at his target holding this girl in her arms made begin to wonder if it was some kind of scandalous romance. He was willing to believe it.

If it werent for the Rodian's allegations or for the third bounty hunter. Another puck. Another tracker.

He had seen it once before. When he had pledged to track down Grog some time ago and then had bounty hunters on his tail. When he got involved in the affairs of the Jedi and the Empire. He was done. He didn't want to play it again, so a part of him was even glad that the target was no longer alive.

He trow the tracker away, then returned to the girl. She sat curled up where he had left her. Her face in her hands. She sobbed, shook. Hearing his footsteps, she sobbed a little softer, as if she was holding back. Then she wiped the tears with her hands, but that only smeared her silver blood over her skin. She watched as Din knelt beside her and reached a hand to her injured arm.

She must have been hit when she threw Din to the ground. She saved him even though she didn't have to.

"You're hurt…”

"I don't know who I am," she whispered at the same moment. There were even more tears in her eyes. Wide with fear. "I-I don't know. I don’t know. Who am I? My mind is blank.”

She gasped like a wounded animal and hid her face in her hands again. Din could only watch her silently and wonder.

Was she lying to protect herself? Did she know something about the Rodian's allegations, even though Suca Chodasso had clearly stated in her last words that it had nothing to do with her? So why was she protecting him from the shot, then? Wouldn't it have been better for her if Din had died?

Or maybe she really didn't remember? She had been hurt in the head, but it was just a scratch. Not life threatening and certainly not the cause of memory loss. On the other hand, Din knew that people fell ill. He was aware that some of the weak psyche displace more painful events from their memories. But…

He could only watch, bewildered, until he painfully realized the gravity of the situation he was in.

If there were three trackers, there could be more. More bounty hunters might be on the way.

He sighed heavily. He reached for the cape and touched with it the wound on the girl’s head. She jumped back and Din held his hands out in front of him as a sign of peace.

"You're hurt. I want to wipe your blood and see if it's serious.”

But the girl wouldn't let him. She grabbed his hands and squeezed tight. Din wouldn't expect such strength from her.

"Tell me ... W-Who am I? Who is she? Why is she d-dead? Who are you? A-Are you okay? Does anything hurt you? You were shot! Stars! Why were you being shot at?”

Din blinked quickly. He knew his face showed shock and disbelief, which was why he was so grateful for the helmet he had to wear.

"They didn't shoot at me," he said finally, when the girl's insistent gaze became unbearable. "You were.”

"M-Me?” She whispered, her voice breaking.

She released Din's hands and began to back away until she found Suca Chodasso's body. She started to breathe spasmodically, but Din didn't have time for that. He got up. He glanced at Suca Chodasso, thought for a moment what he should do and then walked toward his ship.

"Wait!" The panicked girl exclaimed. "Don’t leave me! Please!”

"I'm done with babysitting.”

"Please!”

Something in her voice made Din suddenly believe her. He stopped. Turned slowly until he came face her. She seemed lost, scared… As if she really didn't know what was going on.

Maybe she was just a victim? Maybe she was an ordinary inhabitant of Naboo and Suca Chodasso met her by chance? Maybe she asked for help and this poor girl agreed to help, not knowing what she write on? Maybe she really didn't know who she was? She was shocked. Suddenly she found herself in the middle of a shootout between three bounty hunters. Din could believe it was too much for her.

He made a decision.

He walked over to the girl and held out his hand. She stared at him with terrified eyes, but didn't hesitate. Din helped her up from the grass, then walked over to Suca Chodasso's body, which he slung over his shoulder. Then he began to head towards the ship again.

"Why… Why are you taking her?” The girl asked with panic in her voice.

Din suppressed a sigh.

"She's wanted. Alive or dead, you will receive a reward for her head.”

"Me?”

This time Din sighed loudly. He wasn't happy with the fact that he had to explain himself.

"I don't know what you remember about what happened. But I didn't get her. The bounty hunter who tracked her down is dead. You probably know her, so you will get money as compensation.”

It was cruel. Din knew this, but he had no idea what else to do. So far, this seemed to be the best solution.

He really couldn't take the money for Suca Chodasso. It wouldn't be fair, so he might as well give it to the girl who was definitely the first to deal with the target. And if she ever remembers that she knew her… well. Din hoped to be very far away from the girl then.

The girl fell silent. She really didn't make any sounds. She moved noiselessly, causing Din to keep checking to see if she was following him. But she was there. She walked, wrapping her arms around herself, staring at the toes of her shoes. She was dirty, beaten, wounded. She looked pathetic.

And to think that he should have learned long time ago to not take seemingly easy jobs. They are the most problematic ones.

[discopiratetanis]

Ghosts from the past [Part 1] [mandalorian x reader]

Summary: You are a honest scanvenger living their simple life on Lothal. The Empire is dead, finally. The Rebellion has transformed into the New Republic. You know it’s all the same cycle. But you don’t mind. You like your life. Then one day you feel something is coming. And it brings you bad memories from the past.

A/N: This a experiment and my very first pj x reader fic. English isn’t my first language. No beta because we die like heroes here. Super slowburn. Please forgive me and all my deep (and not that deep) sw lore. Post!Season1. Beware of possible spoilers.

Word count: 1584

* * *

You know something would happen that day.

You don't know what, but you're sure something will happen, anything, that didn't happen every day. It's not the first time, it wouldn't be the first time. You identify the signal, is a tingling sensation that runs through your body, nice and nasty at the same time, because it makes you feel excited, watchful and alert at the same time.

Is it a good thing, like when you knew when that terrible drought would end the day before it finally rained?

Is it a bad thing, like when you knew the bandits who tried to raid the village would show up?

You have no idea.

That morning, like every morning, you woke up to the clucking of your neighbor's hens and the thundering meow of the stray cat that prowls around your shack. Though it's not as if the whole village wasn't home to a colony of cats who had decided that living in the meadows was not appropriate for them. You got used to it a long time ago. It was the first thing the mayor had said to you when you arrived: Lothal is full of cats, so get used to it. You really prefer it. You still remember how sad and empty the village was when the Empire was occupying the planet and controlling absolutely everything.

You still remember... a lot of things.

"Good morning, [Y/N]!" someone says when they see you leaving your house.

You greet them back without saying anything, but with a smile, and walk quickly up the street, with your bag wobbling behind you, to the pub, where some of your neighbors and parishioners greet you with joy before continuing with their respective breakfasts. You sit down at the counter, are served a bowl of milk sprinkled with cereal, and bread. You have breakfast between comments on how the day is going to go, and you listen and tell something funny about the day before. You pay: New Republic credits. You say goodbye to everyone there, hang your bag over your shoulder and leave as quickly as you had entered.

Like you do every day.

Only that day the tingling sensation distracts you enough that you listen to half of everyone else's conversations and comment on nothing but isolated monosyllables, and wonder what the kriff is going to happen to make the tingling so strong.

It hasn’t been that strong before.

When you leave the pub you take a deep breath and look up at the sky. It's clear, sunny, but the wind is fresh and strong and it's shaking your hair playfully. You walk down the street, retracing your steps from your home. When you get there, you go to the backyard, where you have a little old speeder parked, so run-down that no one knows how it hasn't fallen to pieces yet. You get in, you start the engine. The speeder makes a hoarse, cavernous roar after coughing up a single puff of black smoke.

You leave the village.

The grasslands of Lothal, even as far as you are from the Capital City, are still full of junk. Scrap from ships and machinery of the Rebellion and Empire, forgotten by all but the scavengers who are willing to take advantage of even the smallest piece of metal. However, you know that Lothal's scrap dealers are not as wild as on other planets. You're grateful for that, because you've heard real horror stories from travelers and traders from the Middle Rim.

The tingling makes you drive slower than usual. Numerous cats run beside you, but they don't get in your way, meowing curiously. You don't mind. The place you're going is not far away and you're not in too much of a hurry. The junk won't move from where it is, and you have a considerable stock of decent material in your basement anyway. 

Just in case.

You park the speeder near your prey, the skeleton of an X-Wing fighter, from which you have been extracting the useful parts for quite some time. The ship is embedded in a small mountainous formation, in the middle of the seemingly endless high grass plain. You don't know how long it's been there, but it can't be more than seven or eight years. 

You get to work quickly, with the efficiency of routine and experience. You know perfectly well what to take first and what to leave for later, to sell at the best price in Capital City. Some would say it's hard work, or boring, but you like it. Surrounding yourself with metal, feeling the touch of grease, the warm smell of dry oil. It makes you forget about other smells, the touch of the earth, or the whisper of the ears of wheat, the tingling of the skin when...

You rip out part of the wire mesh from the cockpit control panel. It's a bit damaged, but you think it might be useful. At least to someone. Bit by bit you get several pieces that you put in your bag. With each one you think about the traders, the price, and that maybe you will be able to buy a new speeder soon with your savings, which are not many but enough to feel safe. Maybe you could take a trip to the Capital City in a few days, when the tingling feeling passes and whatever has to happen, happens.

Just thinking that, something immediately makes you feel it's not going to be that easy. It confuses you. But you keep on working, until the sun almost reaches its zenith and your stomach growls with hunger. You pick up everything, equipment and tools, and march home. The feeling doesn't go away. It's not just an itch, you perceive it as if someone scratches you on the back of the neck, with the nail, weak but insistent, or as if there was something to remember but you do not know what. You want to stir in the speeder seat. 

And it makes you feel more nervous, anxious.

What is it, what's wrong? You think, over and over again.

Sometimes you wish you couldn't feel any of it.

You park the speeder in your backyard, as usual. And as usual, you leave the pieces and the stuff you've fetched in the basement. You wipe off some of the sweat and dust from the trip in the kitchen dispenser, and head for the pub. It's always full of your neighbors at lunchtime, as few people make their own meals at home. As soon as you enter some people greet you, but you feel a strange, dense atmosphere.

Heavy.

You stop just for a second at the doorway, feeling the tingling stronger than ever. More than in the morning. You take a deep breath, hold it, and finish coming in, feeling like you're stepping on eggs. As you approach the counter you hear some comments, whispers. The voices are low enough that you don't hear much, but you hear a word:

Mandalorian.

You put your hands on the counter, and they serve you the usual things: a bowl of good stew, a glass of good liquor, but you don't eat or drink right away. Instead, you keep your eyes on the food, quietly, stiff as a stick.

Mandalorian.

You take a drink from your glass and swallow it hard, the alcohol burning your throat. It's been a long time since you've heard anything about mandalorians. It brings you... bad memories. But you can't help it, and after tasting a spoonful of the stew, you casually look around the pub. And you see them right away, of course. It's impossible not to spot them, stuffed into those recognizable, distinctive armors of theirs. They are sitting at a lonely table, with a bowl similar to yours, although it's obvious that they are not eating from it because they are wearing their helmet. You roll your eyes away from them, trying not to calculate how much the beskar of their entire armor is worth. You know it's a little disrespectful, even though they're not going to know it. You take your glass to give it another drink.

Then you notice something pulling at your pants.

You glance.

And you see something you didn't expect to see for the rest of your life.

The child chirps at you, happy. It's green, tiny, with little black eyes and ears as long as your hand. You let go of the glass, which crashes to the ground and frightens the creature. You take a step back, unwittingly stumbling over a stool and tipping it over, holding on the counter with your fingers so hard that your knuckles are white. Your heart beats furiously, and you're scared, your eyes sting. You hear screams that you know no one else hears. You blink too many times, trying to calm down.

But you can't.

"Uh," you babble. "S-Sorry, Rach, I'll pay you the glass,"

You dig into your bag quickly, take out a handful of credits, more than the cost of the food, and leave it on the counter. You leave, dodging the child, ignoring the strange looks of your neighbors, and not realizing that the mandalorian has stood up the table.

You walk with long strides first, then you ran until you reach your home. You enter the house and close the door behind you. Your breath is fast, broken. You shake your head.

Then you notice.

The tingling feeling is gone.

[duker42]

💜Through the Looking Glass💜

Y/N sighed heavily as she set the manga down. How in the hell could Isayama do that? They couldn’t leave it like this for so long. She just needed to know what had happened to Levi.

She picked up her phone, eager for the new spoilers that were due to come out. She opened her Tumblr app with a quick prayer that she would see something about Hanji and Levi.

Her hopes were dashed as she looked at the panels that had been translated. While Levi was in the pages, it was obviously a flashback. Sasha was alive, so it was nothing in the current timeline.

She threw her phone down and looked around her house aimlessly. She knew that it was ridiculous to feel so passionately about a fictional character, the figment of someone’s imagination, but she couldn’t help it.

She had fallen in love with the entire list of characters that had made up the Attack on Titan universe, with a few exceptions. She wanted to kill those bastards Floch and Zeke herself. But she had cried when Commander Erwin had died, wanted to strangle that little bitch Gabi when she had shot Sasha.

But her favorite character had always been Captain Levi. Maybe it was because she was older, but he was the one that she had been drawl to. She had read all the fanfics she could get her hands on, raided Pinterest for art of the raven haired man and even had some dreams about interacting with him.

She wasn’t crazy, she had a normal job and life outside of her obsession. She had friends and family that knew about her love of AoT. Okay, maybe not her entire obsession, but still. There was just a feeling in the pit of her stomach like it mattered, that she needed to look out for the man.

She walked into her bedroom and finished getting ready for work. It was time to go be a productive member of society.

~~~~~

That night, she walked into her house to find a strange glow coming from her bedroom. It didn’t look like she had left a light on, more a pulsing whitish glow that made her think of the paranormal.

She cautiously made her way through the house to her closed door, praying she wasn’t walking into something from Poltergeist and turned the knob. The door swung opened and she stared at the light, dumbfounded.

She was looking into the AoT universe. She had to be, it was that or she had really gone crazy. She saw Hanji struggling to get out of the river, pulling something with her. Y/N’s heart leapt in joy, it had to be Levi. She didn’t hesitate, she grabbed the bag she always carried with her and ran for the portal.

~~~~~

Her body tingled as she went into a world that was in no way like her own. But she came out of the portal in one piece and was happy to see that it hadn’t closed.

She rushed over to the taller brunette woman and startled her when she grabbed Levi’s other arm to help her drag him out of the water.

Y/N held her hands up in surrender when Hanji shoved her away from the bleeding man, hovering over him protectively and assessing her threat to them.

“Whoa! Whoa! Commander Hanji! I’m not the enemy!” Y/N said calmly, trying to show her she meant no harm. “Please let me help Captain Levi!”

“How do you know who we are? Why are you dressed like that?” Hanji demanded, her grip on her comrade and friend tightening as she stared at her with her one good eye.

“My name is Y/N. I come from a different world from yours. Look over there.” Y/N pointed at the portal that was still open to look into her bedroom.

Hanji’s eye widened as she saw strangely unfamiliar things, fascinating things through the white opened tunnel. She turned back and looked at the girl that was wearing strange clothes and carrying an unusual bag.

She nodded slightly, not understanding why, but feeling like she would trust the girl that had appeared.

Y/N fell to her knees and pulled Levi gently away from Hanji to settle him on the ground. She checked for a pulse but didn’t find one.

“Shit.....Levi, NO!!!” Y/N said as she opened his mouth and tilted his head back. “You can’t die, not you.”

Hanji watched in fascination as the girl started CPR. She had no vested interest in the Captain’s life, but was acting like he was the most important person to her. Hanji was glad she had shown up, she was exhausted from the swim and battling the currents to drag him to shore.

Suddenly Levi started coughing up water from where they had been underwater. The girl, Y/N, turned his head to the side and put her fingers on his neck again. Hanji knew that she was looking for his heartbeat.

She smiled a bit when she felt his heart thumping under her fingers. She started looking at his injuries. She knew that he was missing his fingers, but that Hanji had left them on the riverbank when she dove into the water with Levi.

He still needed medical attention. She knew he had to be bleeding internally and the risk of losing his eye was very severe.

“Commander, let me take him back to my world. I can get him to a hospital.” Y/N looked up as she posed her plea to the woman. She opened her bag and pulled out the first aid kit she kept in there. Ripping open the gauze, she gingerly wrapped his fingers and used the large bandage to hold it in place.

Hanji looked at the portal, the strange things in her world. She knew that Levi was suffering and they were hours away from proper help. She looked around the empty field, looking for any sign of a nearby house, but knew that there wasn’t. If she was where she thought she was, they were at least five miles from the nearest house, and the Yeagerists would be searching for them.

She looked down at the deep cuts on her friends face, the blood still seeping from his wounds and the fragments of his sword still embedded in his skin. He had given up so much, suffered so much in his life. She couldn’t let him die like this.

She looked back at the girl who was holding out what looked like a glass bottle of water. She took it and realized it wasn’t hard like glass, it crumpled slightly in her hand. She stared at the cap, trying to figure out how it worked when the girl reached over and twisted it off. Hanji put the bottle to her lips and drank thirstily.

She sighed and looked back at Levi. “Take him from here. Save him.” She said as she brushed his hair back one last time. They had always been good friends, but if she could send him to a world that was better than this place, save his life, she would do it. She, however, needed to stay.

She helped Y/N get Levi up and carry him over to the entrance to the portal. “Don’t let him try to come back here.” Hanji asked.

“I’ll try, but you know that Captain Levi still wants to kill Zeke.” Y/N said, making Hanji’s eyes grow wide at the information the girl had.

She murmured her farewells to her friend and stepped back, watching as they disappeared into the portal, a tear slipping down her face as it slowly closed behind them.

~~~~~

Back in her own world, Y/N managed to get Levi out to her car, grunting at his not so insignificant weight.

She drove to the hospital as fast as she could, reaching the facility in record time. She ran into the ER and yelled for help as she went back outside to open the passenger door.

The doctors and nurses wheeled a gurney out an started pulling Levi out of her car.

“What happened?” The doctor demanded, assessing his wounds and listening to his breathing.

“He had something blow up in his face, I don’t know. I just heard the noise and found him like this.” Y/N said.

The doctor didn’t look over at her. “Are you related?”

“He’s my husband. Please! Don’t let him die.” Y/N begged as the doctor started barking orders and they wheeled the man into the emergency triage area.

Y/N followed and was given paperwork to fill out. She made up the year of his birth, omitting other information and putting her own down. She marked married under marital status so that she could make decisions concerning his care. He probably wouldn’t be happy about that when he woke up, but she would worry about that later.

~~~~~

“Mrs. Ackerman?” She jolted from her thoughts as the doctor came out to the waiting room.

She sprang to her feet and looked at the doctor anxiously. “Yes, Levi, how is he?” She asked.

“He’s going to be alright, however without his missing digits, we were only able to clean and stitch the wounds. He will have scarring, but you can always look at skin graphs in the future. He didn’t lose his eye, so that is good. We just need to monitor him for the next day or so. When he wakes up we can assess him further, but the scans didn’t show internal bleeding.” The doctor explained as she strained to look in his room. “Why don’t you go sit with him?” He asked, motioning for her to enter the room.

Y/N went in and looked down at the man laying in the bed. The beeping of the monitor told her his heart rate and vitals, but all she cared about was the fact that his heart was beating. The nurse finished up and left the room quietly, turning the lights down to a dim glow and shutting the door behind her.

She sighed as sat down beside him. She couldn’t believe that he was here, in her world. Levi Ackerman....Humanity’s Strongest Soldier in the AoT universe was laying in a hospital bed, real flesh and blood.

She wasn’t disappointed by his looks, if anything, the manga and animators had downplayed his handsome features. He wasn’t as small as the manga made him out to be, making him look like a child. He was definitely all man, just with a leaner build, more like a professional athlete.

She took the opportunity to lean up and brush his hair, marveling that it truly did feel as soft as she had always imagined it would. She let her fingers card through his hair gently as she listened to him breathe.

She laid her head down next to his shoulder and wondered what he was going to think when he woke up and was in her world, a world without Titans.

~~~~~

When she woke up, he was starting to stir. She leaned back, wary of what he might do upon waking up in a strange place. His grey orbs opened and blinking groggily several times before darting around the room to stop on Y/N.

“Who are you? Where am I? Where is that monkey?” Levi growled, his voice hoarse from the sedation and disuse.

“Captain Levi, I’m Y/N. I am from a world where there are no Titans. I found a portal between my world and yours and brought you back here with Commander Hanji’s permission to save your life.” Y/N quickly explained, unsure of when a nurse would pop in.

His eyes narrowed as he gauged if she was telling the truth as he looked around the room. His brow furrowed at all of the strange equipment and he tensed slightly when he saw the tubes running out of his arms.

“You are in a hospital. An infirmary that does much more than your world could do.” Y/N said.

“How did you know about me? That I was injured?” Levi asked.

Y/N swallowed, this would be the most difficult part to convince him of. “You-“

The door opened to reveal a nurse’s bright smile as she popped her head in. “Oh, Mr. Ackerman is awake! I know you must be so relieved.” She exclaimed as she pushed into the room and started checking his vitals, adjusting the monitor as Levi watched her very carefully.

Y/N held her breath, her eyes pleading with him to not say anything about what they were talking about, or anything about his own world. She didn’t need to have him locked up, the doctors thinking him crazy.

Levi’s lips thinned as he frowned. He was silent until the woman walked out, promising to bring them some breakfast now that he was awake. As soon as the door closed, his eyebrow rose as he silently demanded an explanation.

“In my world, you aren’t real.” Levi looked at her like she was crazy. “There is a manga, a book, called Attack on Titan. It’s a multiple chapter story that tells all about the war with the Titans, Paradis and you.” She said as she held eye contact with him.

“You are a character in the story. Not real in our world except for the in mind of the creator.” She finished, waiting for his outburst.

He was silent for a long time until he asked sarcastically. “If I’m not real, how am I here?”

“I don’t know. The portal opened in my bedroom. I saw you and Commander Hanji where she had pulled you out of the river. She had found you after the Thunder Spear in Zeke exploded. She dove into the river with you to keep Floch from shooting you.” Levi’s eyes widened as he listened to the details. He had been alone with the monkey when that had happened. How did she know that?

“How do I know you aren’t full of shit?” Levi asked, confused.

Y/N got up and opened her phone. She pulled up the pages from her favorite volume of the manga. It showed Levi soaring through the air on the ODM gear, battling the Interior Police, even Levi throwing his blade at Kenny shouting his name on the rooftop after Nifa had been killed.

His eyes widened even further at the sight of himself on the small screen. She flipped to the next page and his breath caught. It was a page from A Choice With No Regrets, a drawling of Falan and Isabel with Levi, the short story where he arm wrestled the shop keeper for the tin of tea. She flicked over to the next page to show him Kuchel holding what was obliviously him close to her body, lovingly.

“It’s not real? None of it?” He whispered, in shock at the things she was showing him. “All of our pain, the deaths, the suffering?”

Y/N nodded and covered his hand with her own and sat back down, letting him process the world altering news. She watched his mind whirling as he relived his worst memories and tried to grapple with the fact that they weren’t real, at least not here.

He was silent as the nurse came and delivered two trays of food. He looked down at the covered dishes as Y/N lifted the top off to reveal bacon and eggs with some toast. Orange juice and a cup of coffee finished out the meal.

He picked up his hand and for the first time, noticed the missing fingers. He looked at Y/N and she stared back sadly. “You were hurt bad. Hanji didn’t have time to find your fingers. If she had, they might have been able to reattach them.”

He looked thoughtful at her comment as he looked around the room again carefully. His thoughts unknown as he did. His intense grey eyes locked on to hers again. “Why do you care so much?” He asked.

Y/N flushed as she looked away embarrassed. She didn’t answer and after a moment Levi just hummed and turned his attention back to the tray in front of him.

“Just don’t react when they call you my husband. I told them that so I could stay and make decisions about your care with the doctors.” Y/N told him, making him stop and pierce her with his intense gaze again.

After a moment, he looked away again and she released the small breath she had been holding. She was proud of herself for not squirming and holding his gaze. She had never realized that it would feel like he was staring into your soul. He really was intense.

She went over to the bag them at they had left in the room with all the personal belongings they had removed from the Captain. It was all covered in the blood, making her hesitant about him wearing it when they discharged him. There was no way that she was going to let him wear these things out of the hospital, even if they hadn’t had to cut them off of him.

She got on her phone and pulled up her shopping app. She heard him click his tongue as he tasted the coffee. She grinned to herself as she could imagine his look. She got a rough estimate of his sizes and ordered some clothes and personal items to be delivered through the app. Even daring to estimate his shoe size, he couldn’t wear the tall boots that he had worn in his universe out on the streets.

It was to be delivered within the next two hours, so Y/N put her phone away and came back to find that Levi had finished his food, except for the coffee. “Would you like mine too?” She asked, nodding towards her tray.

Levi gave her a long look before nodding once. Y/N traded with him immediately and watched as he started in on the new plate. She knew that in their universe eggs and bacon were a luxury the military had very rarely seen. She had never actually seen a panel with him doing anything other than drinking his tea.

She had an idea and went to pick up the phone in the hospital room, and rang down to the Starbucks that was downstairs. She arranged to have a venti black tea brought up along with a chai for her, pulling out her credit card and paying over the phone. He looked at her again as she came to sit down and she could see the questions swimming in his eyes.

She didn’t get an opportunity to explain before the doctor came in and started talking. Y/N thanked the heavens that he didn’t falter when he started talking to Levi about how he had worried his wife. He poked and prodded at the injuries, making notes about their appearance before announcing that he would be back to examine him again after he had a shower and they would possibly discharge him then.

Levi had kept him mouth shut, just nodding as the doctor turned from him. She saw him watching carefully when the doctor had put his hand on her shoulder while giving her instructions on how to keep his injuries dry. She ignored him and listened intently as he told her different things to look for and smile at him gratefully as he said his goodbyes.

When the door hand closed, Levi hadn’t looked at her just continued eat before dryly asking “You know him?”

Y/N shook her head. “Met him last night when you were brought in.”

“Hmmm. Brave for a man that knows you are supposedly married.” He commented.

Y/N explained that things were different here. People were a bit more open with affection, easier to touch. Levi pursed his lips in thought before looking away again. His voice was hesitant. “When can I shower?”

Y/N got up and opened the bathroom door. She started the water, just in case there wasn’t indoor plumbing in his universe and went back to help him out of the bed. He pushed her hand aside with a scowl, slowly making his way to his feet and walking towards the bathroom door.

She stopped him and cautioned him about his face, and wrapped his hand up like the doctor had instructed. She knew that he was not going to ask for much help, but she asked him to leave the door unlocked, just in case.

She blushed as she cause a glimpse of his ass through the back of the hospital gown, turning away to give him a bit more privacy. She heard him groan and curse as he stepped under the hot water, but it seemed like it was more from relief than anything else.

There was a knock on the hospital room door and the shopper that had bought the clothes delivered the bags. Y/N started pulling out the new fabrics and taking the tags off the items, getting everything ready for Levi to put on after his shower. She opened the toothbrush the toothpaste and deodorant, walking into the bathroom and setting it on the sink for him.

He grunted in acknowledgement as she heard him move behind the curtain. “Levi? Do you need some help?” She asked.

“No.” His reply was terse.

“Okay. I’ve got you some clean clothes to put on after you get out. The toothbrush and deodorant are on the sink.” Y/N could practically hear the questions rolling through his head. Apparently deodorant wasn’t a thing, but she knew he would figure it out.

She went back out, pulling the door closed and turning to find that the teas had been delivered. She took hers and started drinking it appreciatively as she waited for him to emerge from the bathroom.

When he did, all she could do was stare.....The manga was sooooooo wrong. He was built like a damn God. Hard muscles and smooth skin, Y/N had a hard time pulling her gaze away as he came out with a towel around his waist.

He looked at her for a moment before turning to the bed and looking at the clothes she had laid out for him. Y/N dove into her phone, looking studiously down as he dropped the towel and started to get dressed. Her cheeks were burning red as she ordered herself not to watch him.

“You can look brat. I’ve got the shorts on.” Levi commented dryly.

Y/N looked up and answered. “Underwear. You’re standing in this world’s version of underwear.”

“Oh.” Levi looked back down at the clothes and wondered what he was going to do. “Can I get back?” He asked.

Y/N shook her head. “The portal closed after I brought you through, I have no idea how it opened or why. Hanji told me not to let you come back.”

Levi scowled at her answer, unimpressed with the idea of not fulfilling his promise to Erwin. “So what do I do in this world of yours?” He asked, starting to get dressed.

Y/N stood and handed him the tea she had bought. “Whatever you want. But for now, you can stay with me until you learn what you need to survive in our universe.”

Levi sniffed the paper cup before taking a sip and closing his eyes in bliss. “This place can’t be that shitty if the tea is this good.” He opened his grey eyes again and looked at Y/N. “Alright. I’ll follow you.”

Y/N smiled as she thought of how interesting the future was going to be.

~~~~~

“Brat! Get in here, now!”

Y/N set the casserole down on the counter and took off the oven mitts. Levi sounded a bit overwhelmed and she rushed to see what the problem was.

She laughed as she saw Isabel running around the house without a diaper on, Levi reaching for her as she giggled and dodged his hand. Farlan was squirming under his other arm, still with his dirty diaper on.

“What Captain? Can’t handle a few rowdy subordinates?” She tease as she scooped up her dare devil daughter as she made another pass around the room.

Levi threw her a scowl and grumbled as she came to sit beside him on the floor. “My old brats didn’t shit themselves and make me change it.”

“Kids are messy, Levi.” Y/N told him. He just grunted in agreement and focused on changing Isabel’s twin brother.

“Remind me why we have them?” He muttered as he quickly covered Farlan back up as the boy started peeing again.

“Because you love them, no matter what you say.” Y/N shot back, grinning.

The past three years had been and adventure with the stoic former Captain of the Survey Corps. He had come home with her and been mistrusting of everything about the world she lived in. He had spent hours pouring over the mangas that she had collected, reading about events that he had lived. Coming to terms that his past wasn’t real in this world.

Finding work after breaking the law a bit to create his background, Levi had started to adjust to a place without Titans, without the constant fear of losing everything.

One night, after Y/N had gone out with friends and come home a little tipsy, she had admitted that she had always had a thing for him, stupidly showing him her blog.

She had woken up the next morning with a fierce hangover and to a very amused Levi waiting for her in the living room. She had never known him to be such a tease as he read some of her humiliating works out loud.

She had went to go back to the bedroom, to hide away for the rest of her life in embarrassment but he had stopped her. He hadn’t said anything, just let his eyes laugh at her as his lips pressed against hers.

Y/N looked over at the man that she loved as he picked up their son and blew a raspberry on his stomach before setting him down to toddle away. He looked over at Y/N and gave her a small smile before leaning over for a kiss.

He had come so far. Showing her affection and opening up. She felt like they had bonded, whatever was in his blood in the manga had come over into this world. She was interested to see if the kids showed the same intense strength as their father. She was so glad that she had seen through the looking glass and been able to save her favorite character in AoT. Levi Ackerman, the man she now called her husband for real.

[shhh-no-ones-home]

december 10 - din djarin

title: no business like snow business

++++

no spoilers for the new season and its not my best but oh well lol

prompt: "This is my first ever snow, i didnt imagine it would be this wet."

request from:

tag list: @cynic-spirit

++++

I sat quietly behind din in the cockpit of the razor crest and tapped my legs, zoning out as I looked through the window. he had told me this was his first life day with the kid and he wanted to go somewhere he could actually have fun. I didn't know what that meant exactly but per usual I was just along for the ride.

"We're close."

He said and I perked up, exchanging glances with the baby.

"Okay."

I said happily, hearing the panel beep.

"Is it that white one?"

I asked, pointing and he nodded.

"It is."

I drew a brow.

"Interesting."

I said and he hummed. The baby looked at me confused and I shrugged. I watched diligently as he landed, hearing the landing gear crunch into the ground.

"Ready for some snow fun kid?"

Din asked, picking him up from his seat and carrying him down the ladder.

"Snow."

I said softly to myself, looking down at it through the window. I knew I was sheltered and didn't have a reason before now to leave my planet... But what the hell was snow? It looked soft whatever it was.

"You coming?"

I heard din say, shaking me from my thoughts.

"Yeah I'll be down in a sec."

I said, taking one last look before moving to the ladder. I climbed down it slowly, jumping to the floor and turning to see din wrapping the child in another layer. I raised a brow.

"Does he need that?"

I asked and he paused, staring at me for a second.

"It's a snow planet. It's cold."

He said, setting the child on the ground. I drew my brows.

"It's cold."

I repeated, taking the poncho-like blanket from him and draping it over my shoulders. I looked to him as he opened the hatch, walking forward down it and into the snow. I was amazed as it floated around lightly, now standing at the edge of the door and looking out into the white wasteland.

"What?"

He asked, looking back at me unmoving. I held my hand out, smiling as the flakes melted into my palm.

"This is my first ever snow, i didnt imagine it would be this wet."

I said softly, looking from my hand to him. The child just cooed, tilting his head to the side. din nodded.

"I hear most children like to play in it but we can try that later. right now I wanna get inside and get a fire going before it gets dark."

He said, taking off towards the cave opening. I dropped my hand, shaking the water off it and stepped forward, sinking a little bit and hearing the snow crunch under my feet. It made me laugh as I trudged forward. This was a lot harder to walk in than I thought it would be but I kept moving anyway, trying to catch up to him.

"Is it always like this?"

I asked when he stopped, setting the kid down. He looked to me, seemingly confused.

"Is what always like this?"

"the snow?"

he laughed a little to himself as he started the fire.

"no. it changes but im not really sure how."

i nodded, sitting on the ground and crossing my legs under me.

"what is it normally like?"

i asked, looking to him as he crouched down to move the pieces of kindling around.

"uh im not sure how to explain it. sometimes its wet and you can mold it, and sometimes its wet and falls apart. im sure theres more versions of snow but thats all i know about. nothing too exciting."

i frowned.

"is it always so wet?"

i asked and he laughed again, moving to sit down himself.

"yes, it is always wet."

i grabbed my legs and rocked forward.

"thank you."

i said and he paused, looking up at me.

"for what?"

he asked and i smiled widely at him.

"for making this the best life day ive ever had. i mean, i know we are here for the kid, but still. this is all so new to me and im glad ive found good company in you."

we sat in silence for a second, the kid standing beside me now and pulling my attention as it babbled.

"i didnt know this meant that much to you."

he said softly, watching me as i picked the kid up.

"this life day im thankful for you mando."

"din."

he said and i tilted my head.

"my name is din... and im thankful for you too y/n."

i melted a little bit at his words. i couldnt believe he trusted me that much.

"who else would take such good care of him after all."

he said, pointing to the child, him making a confused sound as he looked up to me.

"happy life day din."

i said, watching the child waddle to him.

"happy life day."

[spider-manholland]

You’re Not Alone | Peter Parker

Pairing(s): Peter Parker x Female Stark!Reader

Warning(s): angst, fluff, mentions of death, major Endgame and Far From Home spoilers

Summary: After the death of your father, Tony Stark, you started to push everyone away, including your boyfriend, ending your relationship with him in the process. You expected your life to never cross paths with Peter Parker’s ever again. That’s until you received a distressed call from him, and now you have no choice but to help the boy that held your heart in his hands.

Requested: Yes / No

Author’s Note: I’m currently in the works of the third chapter of “crossed hearts” but had this and one other one-shot in my mind so I decided put them out first. I also changed up some of the dialogue in the jet scene to fit with Peter and Y/N instead of him and Happy.

Masterlist

You thought your heart could finally heal after months of being separated from your boyfriend, and you were. That was until you received a call from Happy that Peter needed help from the Netherlands, saying that it was urgent.

So here you were, standing in the center of a beautiful flower field, feet apart from the boy that still held your heart. Your eyes were wide with worry as you taken in the features of him. Seeing the blood that stained his cheeks, the bags under his eyes, his torn clothes and the limp he had.

“Y/N?” His voice was weak, almost trembling as his tired chestnut colored eyes stared into yours. “Is that really you?”

“What?” You asked, chuckling before nodding your head. “Yes, of course.” You slowly began to walk towards him but he then raised his hand, almost like he was scared or something. “Stop!” He shouted, taking a couple cautious steps back. “Tell me something that only you, the real Y/N would know.”

“Why?” You questioned, clearly confused as to why he’s acting like this. “Just tell me something only you would!” His voice raises, his hands clenching into fists, like he was ready to defend himself he had to.

“Okay,” you nodded your head, putting your hands carefully up, showing him that you didn’t mean any harm. “Remember two years ago?” You started, seeing Peter’s brows furrow. “On our first date you took me to Central Park. You had this perfect plan,” you laughed, the memory resurfacing your mind. “You had packed all sorts of food to have a picnic but halfway through it started to storm so we just ended up eating under a bus stop roof.”

You could see Peter’s eyes soften. “You thought the date was ruined. But to me, it was perfect.” You watched as then his fists unclenched and he began to limp his way towards you, you meeting him halfway and your arms instantly finding their way around his neck as his wrapped around waist. You two held each other as close as possible, making no space between you two. “It’s really you,” his voice was weak, “It’s actually you.”

“I’m here,” you said softly, running your fingers through his soft brown curls as his face nuzzled into the crook of your neck. “You’re okay.”

After you pulled away from him, you slid your hands down his arms and took his hands into yours, pulling him towards the private jet that was behind you. “Come on, let’s get you inside and fix you up.”

- - -

“I thought you had super strength?” You smirked playfully as you slowly and carefully stitched up the large gash that was on Peter’s back. “You dealt with pains far worse than small stitches.”

“Doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt.” His voice low, his hands gripping onto his chair’s armrest as you added another stitch.

“Just relax.” You told him, placing a soothing hand on his shoulder as you finished putting in the last stitch. “Don’t tell me to relax, Y/N!” You then jumped, frightened when Peter slammed his fist angrily onto his armrest before shooting up from his seat to face you. “How can I relax when I messed up so bad?!”

You could feel your heart ache at the sight of Peter’s broken state in front of you, his red, teary eyes staring into your wide e/c ones. “I trusted Beck, right? I thought he was my friend so I gave him the last thing your dad gave me and now he’s going to kill my friends and half of Europe so please, don’t tell me to relax!” He snapped, sitting down in one of the chairs in front you and gripped onto his wet brown curls.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized, immediately feeling guilty for snapping at you. “I just—really miss him.” His voice cracked, staring at you with glossy eyes as yours also was filled with tears. “Yeah,” you nodded, feeling a couple slide down your cheeks. “I miss him too—so much.”

You stood up from your seat and sat down beside him, reaching over and lacing your fingers with his, feeling those familiar sparks erupt in your chest. “I don’t know what to do, Y/N.” His grip on your hand tightening, his thumb caressing the back of your hand as his forehead tested against yours. “Mr. Stark—your dad was always there for me, to save me and now...” His voice was trembling, his other hand landing onto your thigh, gripping it as a couple tears spilled from his eyes. “I’m all alone...”

“You’re not alone.” You corrected him, shaking your head before running your thumb through his cheek, wiping the stray tears that trailed down his face. “You have me,” you smiled softly.

“So tell me what I can do to help you stop this piece of shit.” And that’s when Peter felt himself smile for the first time since this agonizing school trip started. “Okay,” he shot up from his seat, “I need a new suit.”

“I got that covered you.” You smirked before also standing up from your seat, walking over to the control panel that was beside the cockpit door and pressed a button. Peter then turned around when a large door slid open, revealing a secret room in the back of the plane that your father used to craft his suits whenever he was traveling.

Peter was hesitate at first before stepping up to one of the suit chambers and began to work on his brand new suit. You watched from afar, cant help but seeing your father in him.

“He sorta reminds you of Tony, doesn’t he?” You jumped, turning to see Happy standing in the doorway that led to the cockpit, a small smile on his lips. “You scared the crap out of me!” You held your hand over your chest, trying to recatch your breath before returning your attention back to Peter who was heavily concentrated on the tech in front of him. “But yeah,” you smiled, “He does.”

“Have you talked to him about you know what?” Happy then asked, causing you to shift uncomfortably, wrapping your arms around yourself. “No,” you shook your head. “But I will.”

- - -

A few hours then passed and you soon found yourself standing next to Peter, watching his suit slowly being crafted, your eyes watching as red and black fabrics were being stitched together. “It’s beautiful,” you spoke softly.

“Yeah, it is.” Peter replied. But when you faced him you saw that eyes weren’t focused on his suit. Instead they were on you.

You turned away from him, trying to hide the blush that covered your cheeks. You could also feel your heart beat hard against your chest, knowing that Peter could hear it too.

“I’m sorry, Peter.” You suddenly apologized, deciding that it was the best time to finally actually talk to him, seeing that he wasn’t busy with his suit anymore. When you lifted your head to look at him, you saw his eyes filled with confusion so you continued, “For everything. For ending things with you all of sudden, leaving and vanishing for seven months.”

“What was your reason?” Peter only asked, his lips curled down into frown and his brows furrowed. “For leaving and all.”

You could feel your eyes fill with tears, staring down ground and anxiously playing with your fingers. “Everywhere I went I saw my dad’s face. He was on newspapers, tv channels, toys, artwork, and it was hard seeing him, knowing that he’s actually gone and never coming back.” Your voice cracked, nibbling on your bottom lip. “So I decided to leave the country, hoping that it’ll help me recover if I don’t see him everywhere I go.”

“Did it?” Peter asked, his body inches from yours, staring down at you due to your height difference with sympathy in his eyes.

You nodded your head, “Only for a while. And I didn’t want to break up with you, Peter.” You then added, “But I just thought you deserved better. You deserve someone that could give you a normal life, and you can’t get that with me. Ever since my dad passed my life was filled with constant darkness and I didn’t want you to be part of it, be held back because of me.”

“I thought I was doing the right thing by leaving you,” you continued, “But then Pepper told me how heartbroken you were after I left and there was nothing more I wanted to do than come back and fix everything.”

“What stopped you?” Peter questioned, “You were gone for seven months, Y/N!” His voice raising, causing you to wince at his sudden change of tone, but knowing that you deserved it.

“I was scared,” your voice cracked. “I was scared that you hated me and wanted nothing to do with me.”

“I could never hate you.” His words slipped from his mouth before he could even register it, causing you to feel even more guilty.

“And as I time went by the more paranoid and scared I became.” You continued, “But when Happy called me saying that you were hurt and needed help I immediately came without any hesitation. And all those paranoid thoughts of you hating me were replaced with the idea of losing you and I can’t-” and that’s when the tears began to spill from your eyes.

“-I can’t lose you like I lost my dad. I can’t lose you, Peter. And I’m sorry for causing you so much pain, I’m so sorry-” You didn’t realize you were full blown sobbing until you felt Peter cup your face into his hands, wiping your tears with thumbs, your teary eyes staring into his soft brown ones.

“It’s okay,” he cut you off, smiling, trying to reassure and calm you down. “All that matters right now is that you’re here, with me.”

And without saying anything else Peter leaned down and pressed his lips against yours softly. You immediately kissed back, your arms wrapping around his neck as his hands rested on your waist, holding you as close as possible to him, almost like he was scared that if he’d let go you’d run away again. The kiss you two shared was filled with many different emotions. Love. Forgiveness. Passion.

“Just promise you won’t leave me again. Please?” He mumbled against your lips, begging as his grip on your waist tightened, holding you close, your chests pressed up against each other. You pulled away from his lips, smiling softly as your hands moved towards the brown curls that dangled in front of forehead, sticking to his slightly dirty skin from his sweat, pushing them away so that you had a clear view of his beautiful brown eyes.

“I’m never leaving your side again, Peter Parker.”

Hope you guys guys enjoyed this one-shot. Let me know if you want to be tagged in ALL of my works.

- Tags -

@laic2299

[bitchinrichie]

Fears of the Past, major IT ch 2 spoilers!!

Adult!Stanley X Reader

Ch 2

AU

*******************************

“I’m sorry, a ritual? That’s how we’re gonna stop IT?” Richie pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Yes! Come on guys just hear me out,” Mike was pleading as everyone stood around in disbelief and panic. Bill stepped forward, putting a hand on Mike’s shoulder,

“I’ve seen it, the ritual, it works. We have one chance to do this right, we owe it to each other.”

“IT touched us all, changed us. We’re the only ones who can do this,” Mike looked back at Bill, who nodded and then looked back at the group. Everyone glanced around and one similarity appeared, fear, no one knew what was going to happen this time.

One by one, belongings were put back, some lingering around the staircase longer out of anxiety. Stanley had remained by your side, standing closer than reconnected friends probably should but then again, you and Stan were something else.

***

Following Mike through the quaint, little town almost to the edge where the barrens were, you felt homesick. Not for Los Angeles but Derry, 27 years ago give or take a couple years. After fighting IT the first time, you all stuck together, obviously some closer than others but you stayed friends nonetheless.

“I hope he’s not just taking us to the barrens to kill us or be smothered by poison ivy,” Stan chuckled beside you and before you could reply,

“Not every plant is fucking poison ivy, Stan-” Richie yelled before pausing in shock,

“That was intense deja vu, holy shit,” you looked at Stan with wide eyes and his drowned in confusion before you burst into laughter.

You reached the destination Mike had set out for in the barrens, which you realized to be close by to where you all had a rock war with the Bowers gang. But the spot was special because it’s where the losers clubhouse was.

“This is where the clubhouse was!” Ben ran ahead in search of his beloved creation that he had built. He did find it- by falling in.

***

One by one you all climbed down into the cavern below, that Ben was so proudly showing off and frantically trying to fix small broken panels. Richie climbed into the hammock with a comic, Eddie and Bill sitting on old buckets, Bev smoking, Mike swinging in an old wooden swing that he found and had Ben help him put it up, and you and Stan sitting close with your head on his shoulder. It was peaceful for once but it didn’t last long enough, Eddie and Richie started bickering like an old married couple they pretended they weren’t while everyone stared in fake annoyance trying to hide their laughter.

“Why are we here, Mikey?” Richie’s eyes held fondness but his tone had concern.

“This was a place we came to together but we weren’t together that whole summer. To perform the ritual we have to collect a token from the past so we can kill it.”

“A token? Mike come on-”

“Richie just listen to him, we’re trying to win against a demon clown and this is what you’re worried about?” You had snapped, you didn’t mean to but you just wanted some answers and a way out of IT’s claws. Richie mumbled an apology and rubbed the back of his neck, you were considered the mom of the group so everyone tended to listen to you.

“You’ll find your tokens in places where you were alone, so we should split and find them, it’s our best bet,” Mike nodded at you as a thank you.

“No, nope, absolutely not. We’ll have a higher chance of dying if we split up.”

“I’m with Eds on this, I mean he’s the risk analyst after all,” Richie paused while everyone just stared at him- “What? I pay attention.” You shake your head knowingly as you hear Stan laugh quietly behind you.

***

After the terrifying experiences at Neibolt and Richie blowing up at Bill because Eddie and Ben were seriously hurt, you all split up for awhile. Stan walked you home in silence which you eventually broke,

“My dad’s gonna kill me, he told me not to go to Neibolt.”

“Just tell him you went to help your friends, he’s bound to understand that,” he smiled at you but you looked at him confused.

“Are you not my friend?” his eyes widened and he started sputtering answers which made you laugh- “I’m kidding Stan, I got it.” He glared playfully before laughing too. Giving you a quick hug goodbye, he starts walking up the street as you unlock your front door.

***

You were standing in front of your old house, you didn’t know if anyone lived there anymore, your dad moved out to California five years ago. You went around back to the fence that hid your small backyard to find the gate open, not that it surprised you, that gate never stayed locked. Inside was an old bench you helped your dad build next to a small swing set you remember begging your dad to buy.

Your mom died when you were 6 due to breast cancer, so you only had your dad. He worked a lot to make enough money to take care of you and your bond was unbreakable, he would do anything for you. You peered up toward the house and saw the window to your bedroom had been opened, thinking it was just an old house, you decided to climb up to it like you had many times before coming home from secret dates and hangouts.

It was dusty and gross but for the most part exactly how it looked when you lived here, it was set up different, you guessed due to another family living here. Crouching down on the floor, you look under the bed and find a wooden box, opening it to find your old diary with secrets you’ve withheld for so long.

***

“Are you ever going to let me see what’s in your diary? I see you writing in it all the time, if it’s full of your drawings you have to show me!” Stan whined as you put your diary back in its box and under your bed.

“It’s not my drawings, those I would show you because I know how much you love them, it’s not important,” you wrapped your arms around him and leaned into his chest. He held you close and pressed kisses to your temple and nose.

“Hey are you two just gonna sit up here and make out or are you gonna join us downstairs for the movie?” Richie made gagging noises and Stan whacked the back of his head before following him out and looking back at you.

“I’ll be down in a sec, I need to grab something,” Stan smiled and nodded, continuing downstairs. You pulled your diary back out to finish what you were writing but as you got the box out, it wasn’t there. Confused and a little angry, you marched downstairs to confront Stan about it but there was no one there. You looked around the living room and the kitchen but nothing,

“Guys this isn’t funny, don’t do this to me you assholes!”

“WHAT’S NOT FUNNY Y/N? YOU CAN’T HIDE FOREVER BUT I CAN HIDE YOUR FRIENDS” You let out a broken sob as you lose feeling in your body, collapsing on the ground. IT- Pennywise appeared before you, holding your diary and all you could is sob.

“THEY’LL NEVER BELIEVE YOU Y/N. THEY’LL CALL YOU A LIAR, YOU’RE FAKING IT” IT just laughed and leaned over you, drooling. IT fucking laughed at you and you screamed, cowering in fear. And then it was like nothing happened, IT was gone and you were still in your bedroom, clutching your diary.

You had been reading through it and you found the last entry you wrote in it:

October 12, 1989

I started finding Bev really attractive, more and more girls have started looking back at me and I get butterflies in my stomach. But my feelings for Stan haven’t wavered.

I don’t know what to do. Who am I?

@peteporkers @dry-brian @unamused-fangirl @chipoisaloser @multi-parker @happyhanlon @tropicaluris @finnie-wolfhard

[marvelousmarvelimagines]

Mine

Pairing - Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

Summary - Since Dr. Banner started embracing his Hulk side, and Peter started his second year at MIT, other than your little sister, the lab has been pretty lonely. Fortunately, drunk facetime conversations with Peter keep it interesting.

This one shot had multiple sources of inspiration. This is my entry into @starksparker‘s writing challenge, and my prompt was, “I’m so tired.” Then I saw this post and thought it was cute as hell, so I went with part of that too. 

Word Count - 1,802

Warnings - Language, Underage drinking, Endgame Spoilers are mentioned, but not really dived into.

Quiet nights at the tower were rare, but not unheard of. 

The only constant workers were Dr. Banner and you. Of course he was in it less and less since he was now embracing the whole superhero thing more often. Peter also visited, but since he had started his sophomore year of college, he was also coming by less. Four hours wasn’t a . . . terrible distance, accessible by jet and suit which you had access to, but during the week . . . it wasn’t logical for him to come around. 

So while nice . . . the quiet was also lonely. 

You let out a sigh as you ran over the various designs on your screen again. After a whole four days of having to deal with Stark Industries board meetings and press that you wanted nothing to do with, getting to work on Peter’s suit was a relief. It was a surprise you had been working on for a few months now, and you couldn’t wait to show it to him on Christmas. He had wanted to skip the only class that hadn’t cancelled today and come up early, but you had told him no. You had fed him some line about spending time with his friends that he wouldn’t see over break. It was all to buy more time to work on his present. 

Now that you realized you were stumped, you wished that you had told him to come ahead. You still had one last hope though. “Maguna, can you come here?”

Your eight year old sister made her way over to you from where she had been messing with her tablet, a smile on her lips at being included. 

“This is Pete’s new suit. I think it’s missing something. What do you think?” You asked her, pulling the designs out from your screen into holograms and spreading all the different pieces around so she could see and manipulate them. 

You watched with fond eyes as she studied and played with all the parts in front of her. In times like this, it was so easy to see your dad in her, and it made a smile come to your face, knowing how proud he would be. “You remember how daddy’s planes sometimes go invisible?” 

With a nod and a big grin, you realized where she was going. “I do. Retroreflective Panels.” 

“Can you do something like that? If they can’t see Pete they can’t hurt him, right?” She asked, shrugging her shoulders. 

“That’s right, Morgan, and a brilliant idea.” You ruffled her hair with an affectionate smile. “It’s also a break through that should be rewarded with juice pops before bed. What do you say? I won’t tell Pep.” You promised, closing out all the files and turning off the screens. 

“Can you braid my hair after?” She asked with hopeful eyes that there was no way you could turn down. 

“Of course! What fun would juice pops be if I didn’t braid your hair after?” You said, as you led her out of the lab and to the apartment floors. 

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

It surprised you how relaxing braiding your sister’s hair was for both of you. By the time you were almost finished, both of your eyelids were drooping, until a familiar ringtone started playing on your phone. “Is that Pete?” Morgan asked with a big, albeit sleepy, smile. 

You nodded, sitting straighter to wake yourself up more. “Do you want to say hi before bed?” 

Morgan nodded sitting up herself as you accepted Peter’s facetime request. 

God it was incredible what the sight of him did for you. Your shoulders relaxed, breath found its way into your lungs easier, and a content smile formed on your face. “Hey, P, someone here wanted to say goodnight.” You told him, pointing the phone down so he could see Morgan. 

“Oh my god, guys it’s Morgan! Morgan! I’m so happy to see you!” Peter almost yelled into the phone, looking a little too excited to see the girl he adored. 

Morgan picked up on it too, giving you a ‘what the fuck’ face that you were sure she had perfected from Pepper. Of course, one look at that lazy grin and bright eyes, and you knew what was going on with Peter. “Are you coming back tomorrow, Pete?” 

“What? Of course - of course I am! I can’t wait to see you.” Peter replied, his tone enthusiastic. 

“Can you take me swinging again?” Morgan asked, her body bouncing up and down in excitement. 

“Excuse me?” You interrupted, giving her a disappointed look followed by giving one to Peter on the screen. “You took her swinging?” 

Peter waved his free hand in the air before settling it in front of his lips, his movements exaggerated. “Shhh, Morgan, you weren’t supposed to tell her!” 

Morgan giggled at his response, and you shook your head. “Okay, Morgan’s going to bed now. Night sis,” You told her, kissing the top of her head and tucking her in. “Say goodnight to Peter.” 

“Goodnight Underoos!” She replied with another giggle, hiding her face under the blanket while you snorted. 

“Y/N! Did you tell her to call me that?” Peter asked, faking outrage. 

“Of course not,” You lied, biting your lip to hide your smile as you closed her door and headed back to your room. “Anyway, when I said you should go out and experience college life, getting drunk is not what I meant Parker.” You teased. 

His eyes widened in comic disbelief. “How did you know?” 

God he was so cute. His hair was disheveled, his eyes glazed, not to mention the red in his cheeks. “Because you’re about ten times more adorable than normal.” You replied, climbing onto your bed and curling up with the pillow he frequented. 

“I’m not adorable. You know who’s adorable?” Peter asked, pointing at the screen, his eyes serious. 

You raised your eyebrows at him. 

“You.” A smile formed on his face, so big and sincere it made your stomach flutter. “You’re so adorable and pretty and funny, and smart and I like . . . I wake up every morning and look at your picture and am like . . . woah. She’s my girlfriend. You know how perfect you are?” 

Unable to find the words at the moment, you shook your head, a fond smile on your face as you watched him. 

He grabbed a piece of pizza from some guy who was standing beside him, which after a, “Hey! Give that back, Penis Parker!”, you realized was Flash, and held it up to the camera. “For you, I’m going to drop a slice of the best pizza in Massachusetts.” Peter told you and then proceeded to indeed drop the slice onto the dirty sidewalk. “See? I love you that much.” 

“Oh my god, P,” You replied, covering your mouth to keep from laughing and hiding how goofy your smile was at the same time.

“But, I should pick that up because that’s littering and yeah.” He rambled, hurrying up to pick the pizza back up and put it in the nearest trash can.

God you missed him. “What a cute, environmentally conscious spider boy I have.” You said, affection leaking from your voice. “I hope Ned or MJ is there to make sure you get back to the dorm okay.” 

“No worries, Y/N, we’re going up now.” You heard Ned say from somewhere off camera as they walked into the dorms they were living in. 

“Hey, Y/N,” Peter said, looking very much like the excited puppy he was. 

Curious to see what on Earth he could say next, you replied, “Yes?” 

“I love you,” He said simply. 

No matter how many times he said it, you could never believe you were lucky enough to hear it from him. That boy was the embodiment of everything that was good and pure in this world. You, on the other hand, were not, yet somehow he loved you, and God did you love him too. “I love you too, Peter,” You said in a quiet voice, your smile turning soft as you watched them enter their dorm room, and Ned help Peter into his room. 

As soon as he was in his room, you watched him flop down in his bed, curling into the pillow beside him much like you were, looking at you with large eyes. “Am I in trouble for letting Morgan swing?” He asked with a pout. 

You couldn’t help but giggle at his reaction. “Not as much as you would be if Pepper found out.” 

Peter’s eyes widened so much it was comical. “Oh god, please don’t tell her. She scares me.” 

“Maybe you can convince me when I see you tomorrow.” You said, winking at him with a playful smirk on your lips. You could definitely think of a few ways the handsome boy could convince you. 

“Mhmm, tomorrow,” Peter replied with a happy smile as well until a large yawn interrupted it. 

“You tired, Pete?” You asked with a frown. “You should get some sleep.” 

You could tell at this point he was fighting to keep his eyes open. It was one of the things that didn’t take you too long to learn about Peter Parker. He could be wide awake, but the second his back hit a mattress, he was out. You assumed it had to do with his late nights as Spiderman and his body having to adjust to fall asleep as fast as it could so it could at least attempt a few hours of good rest, and he could heal. “Don’t wanna,” he replied, rubbing his eyes. “Miss you too much.” 

“I miss you too,” You replied, biting your bottom lip. Why had you told him to come tomorrow again? “How about you go to sleep, and I’ll be there when you wake up, and we can fly back together?” You proposed. 

“Really?” Peter replied, sounding hopeful as his eyes began drooping. 

The way that he often resembled a puppy was way too adorable. “Really,” You replied. In fact, you’d do whatever Peter wanted if it meant extra alone time with him. 

His eyes closed while his mouth curved into a lazy smile. “Mkay. That’s good,” he let out another yawn, this time still leaving his eyes closed. “‘Cause I’m so tired. Just didn’t want to stop talking to you.” Peter mumbled. 

A laugh left you lips, and your fond smile returned. “Go to bed, P, I’ll be there when you wake up.” 

Peter couldn’t even respond, snores already leaving his lips. 

You ended the call, cuddling the pillow tighter against your chest as you inhaled the scent of the boy you had been talking to. 

Yeah, quiet nights at the tower were nice when they happened, but you couldn’t wait until tomorrow when they wouldn’t be so quiet anymore.

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

GIF Source

[littleteatimestories]

[TF Cyberverse] Hot Rod x Technorganic! Reader: The ‘Thing’

A/N: So, TF fans, who here watches TF Cyberverse? Because your author right here does! I actually watched its first season of it (because at that time, I finished watching TF Prime) and when I heard there’s going to be a second season, I am hooked even more. To be honest, I only watched TF Cyberverse because I had nothing to watch anymore. And I got more into it when I divulge myself with the MTMTE/LL comics (It’s Rodimus’s fault that I found out that he’s Hot Rod before and there’s a Hot Rod in Cyberverse so you know what I mean).

Anyway, so, I wrote this one-shot because I love Hot Rod (I might even do a Cyberverse Soundwave one, too, because I also love him). Before you attempt to read this, please make sure that you have watched at least Episode 3 of Season 2 because there’s a spoiler alert here. Otherwise, you may continue onwards.

Also, just imagine that you’re as the same height as Windblade (Cyberverse) because weird science.

And also, this one-shot is a cheesy one so, yeah.

-

“Moon… Cheetah?” you reiterated the same words that Bumblebee was also asking about.

“Yeah. A creature with yellow color and black spots,” Bumblebee clarified.

“I know what a cheetah is, Bee, but telling me that you saw one on the moon is highly impossible. No organic life survives there without a helmet. You’ve seen me wear a helmet even though I’m technically like you.” You crossed your arms.

The Autobot scout ex-vented loudly. “I swear I saw that creature…”

“Hey, (Y/n)!” a familiar exhilarating voice reached your ears.

“Oh, hi, Hot Rod,” you monotonously greeted back.

This flame-colored mech would be more tolerable for you if he wasn’t obviously trifling with you. Everywhere you go, he’s always there. He kept on blabbering random things; no offense, most of them you didn’t enjoy. Still, Hot Rod is a sincere and kind-hearted bot like Bumblebee.

“So, Grimlock’s having a party tonight. I was wondering if, you know, you’ll go?” he asked almost shyly (and you find that rather cute).

“Ummm… I guess so? Well, if Windblade’s going, I guess I’ll go.”

You and Windblade were like the best of friends. She was like a sister you never had. Everytime something bothers you, you share it to her secretly. Recently, you told her about your current predicament regarding Hot Rod. She just laughed on it and told you that Hot Rod probably has a ‘thing’ for you, which you actually believed. (You weren’t even sure if that’s a good or bad thing.)

“Windblade’s going!” Hot Rod assured excitedly.

“Oh. Alright. Then I’m going.”

Hot Rod wanted to squeal and jump for joy, but he remained composed and cool. “That’s great! I’ll see you around then!”

“Hey, Hot Rod,” Bumblebee caught his attention. “You didn’t really see the Moon Cheetah?”

“Moon Cheetah? You mean the creature that you told me that you saw on the moon?” He peered at you and you just shrugged your shoulders. He looked at Bumblebee again. “I was there, Bee, and I didn’t see anything.”

Bumblebee frowned. “Awww. I guess I’ll just have to ask Wheeljack. Thanks, you guys.” He transformed in his vehicle mode and sped off.

“I feel bad for him,” you remarked.

“I think he hit his head onto something. Anyway,” Hot Rod turned to you. “Wanna refuel?”

“Is that a date?” You raised a brow.

Hot Rod was flustered all of a sudden. “What?! N-No! I-I mean… Do you think it is?”

Again, just a shrug of your shoulder and you started walking. Hot Rod ex-vented. He felt his cheek plates warming a little and his rotors starting to spin. He didn’t expect you to confirm one of the biggest questions in relationships.

“You coming?” you called to him.

“U-Uh! Y-Yeah!” He jogged to your side.

***

30 minutes later…

There was a beep on Hot Rod’s communication monitor panel. Optimus Prime appeared on the screen, announcing, “Attention, all Autobots. Until further notice, you must keep your distance from Grimlock. He is currently not stable as according to Wheeljack. For the time being, be careful. Prime out.”

“Strange. What do you think happened to Grimsy?” you asked. (And yes, you and Hot Rod were still hanging out together.)

“Not really sure…”

You then heard metal feet fast running towards your direction. It’s Grimlock!

“Grimsy?!” you reached out.

There was no time to process what was going on as both of you weren’t able to get out of his way. You both got ‘magnetized’ as Hot rod got stuck on the Dinobot’s back strut while you were only beside the former. It was like laying on the berth together.

“Whoa! This is awkward!” Hot Rod was nearly yelling.

You were almost blushing as you shifted your head to the side. Your current positions are indeed embarrassing.

“Grimlock, stop!” You heard Windblade’s voice.

The femme bot activated her wings out and sent a flurry of strong winds through her thrusters. Grimlock, however, was slowly moving forward, not attempting to halt. She was, though, interrupted when she, too, was ‘magnetized’ and got stuck at the Dinobot’s back neck cable.

“Heya, Windblade!” Hot Rod acknowledged her happily despite their current situation. “Going to Grimlock’s party later?”

“I was thinking about it!” she answered nonetheless.

“Heard that, (Y/n)? She’s going!”

“Hey, (Y/n)!” Windblade hailed your presence. “Wow, didn’t think you two are a ‘thing’ now.”

You tried to scowl at her. “No, we’re not! Shut up, Windy!”

“We’re not a ‘thing’ yet? I was hoping we are!” Hot Rod was finally going over his confession.

You could just do a facepalm right now. “Now’s not really the time! How are we getting out of here?”

A radio just came into Hot Rod’s chassis and another one at Windblade’s upper shoulder blade. “I’m not really sure! Hopefully Wheeljack knows!” the red winged femme exclaimed.

A small cube box came onto contact on your upper arm (because you’re still made of metal in the inside). “Really now?!” you irately yelled.

“Remind me why we’re all made of metal?!” Hot Rod bemoaned.

Windblade finally instructed Grimlock to get out of the Ark and the latter couldn’t agree more.

***

A blaring alarm went off: “A BLACK HOLE HAS BEEN DETECTED!”

The gravitational pull of the mini black hole was strong as Grimlock tried to keep moving forward. Hot Rod was finally pulled out of the Dinobot, but he was slowly being dragged by the mini black hole.

“Hot Rod!” You and Windblade desperately reached out.

“(Y/n)! Just so you know, I really like you!”

Your eyes only widened whist Windblade screamed, “No!!!”

***

That was a close call. Optimus saved the day, though you and Windblade were still stuck on Grimlock who was still running nonstop inside a force shield. What’s more shocking is that you two would be stuck with Grimlock for the time being until his hyper energetic self wears off by the next day; much to Windblade’s dismay.

“I guess you’ll be stuck there for a while. So, what about an actual date tomorrow?” Hot Rod hopefully grinned, talking to you while you’re still glued onto a running Grimlock inside a force shield.

“Hot Rod, are you-“

“Oh, come on, (Y/n)! He already confessed! Just say yes!” Windblade chided. She knew you liked the flame-colored mech, too. You just didn’t want to admit it yet until you’re sure that he’s ‘the one’.

“Y-Yes! Tomorrow! You pick me up at Wheeljack’s lab,” you finally said.

“Yes!” Hot Rod cheered as he raised his arms ups. “Finally, (Y/n) and I are a ‘thing’ now!”

“Hey, don’t get too excited! I haven’t said anything yet!” you defended.

Optimus only smiled. Wheeljack guffawed. Bumblebee gave his friend a thumb’s up. Now everyone’s happy.

[phantom-thieves-imagines]

Jealousy- Chapter2 (Goro Akechi x reader)

Wooh here’s the part 2 thats overdue, watch me decide to make this 20 chapters long lmafo

ooh ooh warning- the events in chapter 2 and onwards are cannon to the actual game meaning Akechi is...

chapter 1 can be thought of as part of this, or as a separate fic where Akechi hasn’t done...things...

spoilers ahead

-mod goro 

Makoto took a deep breath, pulling herself fully upright as she brought the microphone to her mouth, “Well then, we will now begin today’s panel. Our guest of honor is Goro Akechi.”

A bright spotlight reigned down on the detective in center stage, who gestured  with his gloved hand, smiling. “I feel kind of bad considering how many people have gathered....I’m sure you all would’ve been happier to have a singer or mascot appear, wouldn’t you say?”

 The crowd laughed, as Makoto continued, with more confidence. “We’d appreciate it if you could tell us about your experiences with the notorious Phantom Thieves.” She copied Akechi, turning up charm to the max and lathering on her words like honey, “It’d be wonderful if you could let us hear more about your actual investigative process.”

Akechi leaned on the podium in front of him, not one to lose he put on his own sweet-tooth smile. “I’m not used to being the one interrogated...so please go easy on me.”

Once again, the crowd laughed, Akechi had a way with people you knew that for sure.

“...How much do you think he knows.” Ann whispered to your group, up in the rafters. Below sitting in the crowd you could see the floofy hair of Haru and the blazing head of orange hair that was Futaba, sitting in her same frog-crouched position. The two had managed to grab two seats in the packed auditorium- Goro Akechi had literally sold out the gym. Ann had managed to snag a key to the rafters from a male who worked for the drama club, the 5 of you creeping quietly as to not attract any attention- it was highly likely the rafters were off-limits, that didn’t stop you all from positioning yourself with a good view of the stage. she nearly throttled Ryuji when he tripped on the stairs, causing the smack of metal against skin to vibrate throughout the hall. Luckily, with how loud the gym was at the time and how focused everyone was looking on stage, waiting for Akechi to show, you all managed to sneak up without being spotted. 

“Either he has an idea who the true culprit is, or...he has uncovered the identities of the Phantom Thieves.” Yusuke mumbled, 

Ryuji leaned on the railing, beside Ann. Apparently they didn’t care about being seen anymore. “C’mon Makoto....! You gotta get it outta him....!”

Yes, Makoto was under a lot of pressure. She was tasked with prying information about the phantom thieves out of Akechi, despite that fact that you were a friend of Akechi, you wouldn’t want to go head to head with him in a situation like this- this was his stage. 

“As much as you’re allowed to say, would you tell us how far along your investigation is on them?” Makoto continued.

“Getting right to the point, I see.” Akechi commented. 

You made a slight ‘tsk’ sound. Akechi was cocky, and pointed out every single thing Makoto did and why, just in a different, roundabout way.

You had a bad feeling, thing’s weren’t going to end well.

“Well, if it’s as much as I’m allowed to say, then everything on TV and the internet is all of it. We don’t have any leads yet, and the methods behind their crimes are still unclear.”

“I see...Even with this country’s power, arresting them is proving to be difficult....is that the case?” Makoto asked.

Akechi turned it over in his mind. “I wouldn’t phrase it that way...but well, something like that.”

“Something like that my ass.” you growled. The police had nothing, you knew that for a fact. If, and only if, they had something- it would have to be from Akechi. 

For that one, one reason, because of his one comment.

“Thank you for answering that question.” Makoto hummed, voice sweet like a child’s. Alright, at the very least you all know that the police can’t arrest the thieves at the moment, without fabricating piles of evidence and having fake witnesses. “...By the way, it seems you’ve denied a correlation between the Phantom Thieves and the murders...Why the sudden change? Until now, haven’t you upheld your stance that the Phantom thieves are dangerous? How are you so positive that they haven’t committed murder?”

Akechi breaks into his TV- oriented smile. “Aren’t you a little too comfortable interrogating people? Why, it’s as if you’re a prosecutor.” An attempt to derail the conversation and also stabbing at the fact that she’s acting like her obviously corrupted-sister. A disguised low blow.

The crowd laughed, god they must be tired of it by now. 

Makoto flushed slightly, embarrassed and a twinge of bitterness making her brow crease in the slightest as she closed her eyes. “Ah, excuse me. This is something I’ve personally been interested in so I couldn’t help it...” She opened her eyes, focusing on Goro. “But won’t you tell us...?”

‘Atta girl Makoto, keep up the heat.

“What reason is there that you’d claim their innocence when you previously stated they were unjust?”

Akechi turned to the audience for the first time since the interview started. “Every person whose heart they changed have truly been criminals, including Okumura. Why then, was he the only one who needed to be killed?”

“Why is that?” Makoto smiled, throwing the question back at him. That was the best way to do it, never put in your statement, just keep asking the same things out of the person to avoid them trying to interrogate you.

It was like watching two lions fight. Makoto and Goro both looking for the other to slip up and to gain the upper-hand.

Akechi looked forlorn, “I must admit...I couldn’t deduce a reason. That’s why I believe that case should be through of as if a different party is responsible.”

He leaned back off of the podium, the same natural look plastered on his face, “And if- This is all hypothetical, mind you, If the Phantom Thieves are the ones I know of, I can’t possible imagine they would kill anyone.”

A cry of shock rang throughout the auditorium, you felt a stone drop in your stomach. Down below you saw Futaba’s hair whip towards Akechi. Beside you, Yusuke tightened the grip on his arm, gnawing on his lip.

Makoto, startled, stuttered back into character. “Y-your comment just now...Does this mean the police have already identified who they are?”

“Dammit, fuck!” you felt like punching the wall. If this conversation continued...

Akechi frowned, but you knew he was really smiling, he realized it too, Makoto had fallen into his trap. “Oh, no. The police haven’t gotten that far yet.”

He paused, to let the audience laugh, before turning to look directly at those standing in the rafters.

“But I have my own conclusions about the true identities of the Phantom Thieves.”

Your blood ran cold. 

“He’s gotta be bluffin’!” Ryuji barked, slamming his hands on the railing.

Ann smacked his arm, “Pipe down!”

Haru and Futaba were huddled together, mumbling. Makoto had a dear-in-headlights look, her brain frantically trying to say something that could steer the conversation off course.

Akechi smiled, barely hiding pride. The lion was defeating the lioness. “You’re not going to ask me who they are...?” He asked oh-so-innocently. At this point he was just daring her to try him. ‘Do it, weren’t you so confident in getting information out of me? Where did that honey-like smile go?’

“He’s just playing her like a fiddle.” you mumbled to yourself. It was hard to believe this was the same guy who less than 24 hours ago, was talking in the courtyard with you about being friends, how he wanted to be friends, how he wasn’t used to being friends with people.

You wonder how much of it was fake, could be fake.

Ann gripped the railing so hard it made a noise.

“...it may have repercussions on the investigation. Are you sure you can share that with us?” Makoto was not even trying to hide her glare. She was frustrated. 

Akechi raised his chin, “It’s only my personal opinion, so announcing that here wouldn’t pose a problem.”

“However....” He continued. 

While looking at Makoto, his eyes momentarily drifted back again towards the rafters, he locked eyes with you for a moment and you help your breath until he looked away. 

“...There is a possibility that everyone present will hear the truth before the police or media...

“The truth...?” Ann whispered, fear lacing her words.

Makoto huffed,“That’s quite the confidence you have....if you’re so certain...then very well....”

She took a breath, steeling herself. Once she asks this, there was the high probability Goro would call her out right then and there, in front of the crowd. If that happened she needed to be ready, to act, to deal with the situation in any means necessary. 

Her last words, before, now that you look back on it, was the last moment before you would pretend that everything was okay, that you could continue attempting cracking the ice-tough detective without any fears of something sinister hiding underneath Goro Akechi’s mask.

She opened her mouth. 

“I’d like to ask you then: Who do you think the Phantom Thieves are, Akechi-san?”

Akechi-san, the lioness is wounded is trying her best to soften the blow she know will kill her.

“That, idiot!” Ryuji hissed.

“No, Ryuji,” You murmured, tugging his arm. “She had no choice, you have to know that.”

He met your eyes, you and Ryuji had been through a lot- being your first friend since you got to Shujin, besides Ann, and eventually Akira. He respected you, unlike Ann who he always bickered with, he always tried his best to please you. Taking you out to eat, friendly talks between classes- nothing there was ever implied to be more than friends, and you both were okay with that.

He sighed, rubbing his eyes with his palm, he’s just scared, and you know that, understand that.

“No...there’s no way he could have any evidence.” Yusuke mumbled in terror.

You’re not so sure you believe that now.

“They’re people you all know quite well.” Akechi started. “The identity of the Phantom Thieves are-”

Almost comically and to the relief of your group, Akechi’s phone rang.

He pulled it out, “Oh, it’s mine. I apologize for the interruption, but I can’t turn off my phone due to my job....would you mind if I step away for about...ten minutes or so...?”

“I’m terribly sorry, everyone, but we’ll be taking a break.” Makoto said, trying to keep the relief out of her voice. “We’ll resume the panel in ten minutes.”

Akechi pocketed his phone, grinning. “Please don’t troll me online for this interuption, ok?” 

For some reason, you felt the strong urge to go online and do just that.

Akechi bowed, and then walked over to Makoto. The two of them exchanged a few words. Akechi moved behind the girl, whispering something in her ear.

For some reason, you felt the hairs on your arm stand up, your teeth clench tighter.

Makoto gave Akechi a side-eye glare, biting her lip before the two disappeared behind the curtain.

“H-hey, it’s Makoto.” Ann mumbled, motioning to the IM app on her phone. You checked on your own as well,

Makoto, 2:47pm: P.E faculty office. Now. Everyone.

“Dammit!” Ryuji mumbled, rubbing his head. “It’s that damn Akechi!”

“What should we do...?” Ann murmured in a trance-like state. 

Akira, who hadn’t said anything since the panel started, finally spoke up. “I think, we should be on guard.”

Yusuke shivered, the lanky boy had probably burned all of his calories out of fear by now. 

Below you, Haru and Futaba were squeezing past people in the rows to get out of the gym. 

“We only have 10 minutes, we should hurry.” Akira said. Yusuke, Ann and Ryuji all hurried down the stairs, legs shaking. You stayed behind to wait for Akira, who was still standing, looking at the stage, the gleam from his glasses hid most of his face.

“Kurusu...?” You called out. He snapped his head towards you. “We should go.”

“Right.” He nodded, following you down the stairs, pushing the double doors and out into the blinding light of the sun.

---

Akechi slapped down three photos on the table. From the cries of Haru and Ryuji, you knew the plan of ‘trying not to look suspicious while Akechi interrogates us’ flew out the window with any other logical thoughts.

“Please, let’s not feign ignorance.” Akechi purred. Goddammit did his voice find a way into your blood, you shivered again. “All of you can go to that other world too, yes?”

Akira stepped up, as the leader, picking up his broken team in his own hands. “What do you mean, ‘us too’?”

Akechi smiled, “It’s not just all of you. I am aware of that world too...” 

Hidden behind a stack of boxes, you could see the tuffs of Morgana’s fur. He was sleeping on the grass while the panel was going on (Ryuji almost stepped on his tail while rushing out of the gym) and you all informed him of what had happened on the way to the office. 

“What? He was about to reveal the identities of the phantom thieves?” Morgana’s tiny voice cried, running to keep up with everyone power-walking.

“Yeah, now we’re in deep shit.” Ryuji cursed, trying to calm his nerves. 

“Well, what’s done is done, all we can do is try to either play dumb or work out a deal.” Akira mumbled.

Morgana’s tail twitched, left to right and back again.

“I found out about that world a month ago.” Aekchi stated, pulling his phone to show the currant-red eye of the Navigation app. “This had been installed onto my phone without my knowledge.”

You winced, Akira hummed, Morgana’s tail flicked up, once.

You sincerely, sincerely, sincerely hoped you were wrong, but even so, you can’t hide the fact that the evidence is looking right at you in the face. 

No one else, except for 3 out of the group seem to have realized it.

Ryuji rolled his arm, grabbing his shoulder, as if he was going to fight. “We’ve been listenin’ to you blab on for a while now, but cut the delusional-”

Akechi shut him down promptly, “All of you are acting as Phantom Thieves in the Metaverse. I can say so with conviction because I have the same power as you.”

Everyone was quiet and tense for a moment, no one no knowing or wanting to say anything.

“That’s right.” Akira spoke up, his hands taken out of his pockets. “And what now?”

“So, you don’t deny it then.” Akechi hummed. “To be honest, I’ve been curious about you since the time of the Madarame case.”

“We didn’t kill anyone!” Haru gave a shrill cry. Of course she’d feel the need to say that, it was her own father that was killed after all.

“I believe that, as well.” Akechi confirmed. He seemed like he was telling the truth, at least. 

Makoto cradled her hands nervously, “How can you be so sure?” 

And Akechi was willing to answer that as well.“Because I saw another- the real culprit.”

Instantly, everyone in the group recoiled. Shock and fear turned into anger, this was the person that was framing the Phantom Thieves, intentionally or not, for murder. 

Akechi hushed any outcries. “I couldn’t identify his face...he had a mask on, after all.”

“He?” You questioned, speaking Akechi for the first time since the day before. “So you know this person is a male.

Akechi winced, it was so small that it only looked as if his eye was twitching but it was there nonetheless, then collecting himself, answered. “Yes, from his figure I could assume it was male.”

He cradled his head, face scrunched as the retold his story. “Actually, when I took these photos, I entered that world too. That’s when I saw someone else moving about, besides all of you....He shot at me the moment he noticed me.”

Yusuke folded his arms, shifting his position. “That’s who killed president Okumura?”

Akechi removed his hand, nodding. “Most likely. At the very least, I was almost killed by him...’I can’t die here, I need to determine the truth.’ When those thoughts overcame me, I awakened to that power- a most fortunate accident.”

And all this happened, a month ago.

“This guy has a persona too...?” you heard Morgana mumble from his position behind the boxes.

Akechi jolted, his eyebrows raised up past the edges of his fringe. “This cat...” 

Morgana’s tail shot up in astonishment.

Goro shook his head. “I-i swear it just.....talked....!”

Ann spoke up, words flowing out of her in a rushed breath. “Morgana. Our teammate who taught us about the Metaverse.”

Akechi recoiled, before slowly returning, even closer to inspect Morgana. It slowly became more and more difficult to stop yourself from laughing- Goro always acted polished, calm and collected at all times. But when something threw him off guard he’d always try really really hard to keep his cool, though he wasn’t very good at it, to your humor. 

“Really...? This is unbelievable...” He murmured. “But it is true that you know things that I don’t...”

He cleared his throat, collecting himself to be the TV celebrity he was. “Say, Morgana. Were you also the one who instructed them on how to change people’s hearts?”

Morgana saw no need to stay in hiding he jumped up on the boxes. “We go in the Metaverse- we call them palaces- to steal the core of their desires: their treasure, those who’s treasure are stolen have a change of heart.

Word jumble that you’ve heard what is it...one two-  this is this 6th time now. You extended your arm out to Morgana, his ears flicked forward as he carefully climbed up your arm and came to a rest on your shoulder.

You scratched under Morgana’s chin, causing him to purr. You (Besides Haru, Futaba and maybe Ann if she tried) could pet Morgana like this, like he was an actual cat. Akechi’s eyes met yours for the third time that day, he looked away quickly.

 “...Ah, hahaha...” He chuckled, rubbing his face dejectedly . “There’s certainly no way anyone could figure out such an MO...”

“Anyways!”Ryuji couldn’t take how slow the conversation was moving at, his foot tapping against the tile with vigor.“Back to what you were talkin’ about! Are we in this mess ‘cause of that guy?!”

Akechi turned to Joker, your leader, speaking to the group.

You only half-focused on that , you kept running the calculations in your head, making sure what you were assuming was right. Morgana noticed, hissing(literally). 

“Hey, are you listening, what he said was important.”

“Yeah.” You mumbled back, ruffling his fur. He yelped, along with Ryuji and Ann both freaking out over blackmail and the threat with being arrested. 

Akira sighed, removing his glasses to rub the grime from the lenses. “You’re asking a lot.”

Akechi frowned in return. “I see...I don’t think it’s a bad deal though....well.” he smiled, one that seemed to spring naturally from his mouth. “Considering this is you we're talking about. I believe you’ll come to a favorable reply.

The smile was short lived, it was quickly replaced with 100% pure synthetic Akechi smile in a short second. “I’m glad we could talk. It’s been a while since I’ve been able to spend such a meaningful time like this.”

His words were meant to be ones of praise, but to you they just felt like slaps to the face. As if he was implying his time with you had been-

Meaningless.

‘This line of thought meaningless’ you thought.

“We should be getting back.” Akechi pointed out, observing his phone. He spoke to Makoto, brows furrowing in regret. “About that...I’m sorry, would it be acceptable if we ended the panel here...?”

Then he broke into a smile fitting for a cat like Morgana. “The reason why you called for me in the first place was because you wanted Intel,correct?”  He seemed passive-aggressive towards Makoto and from the look he gave him back, you assumed this would be another ongoing thing, like Ryuji and Morgana, great. 

Another tally for Akechi, he’s winning against the Phantom Thieves 1000-1.

“Ill deal with it somehow.” She finally said, seeming relieved to just be done with the situation. She held her hands, when you looked down you noticed- they were shaking.

Makoto Nijima was just as scared as everyone else.

Akechi walked past the group,not bothering to formally conclude things, or maybe he just didn’t know how to. 

He stopped to whisper in your ear on the way out, “I look forward to your answer.”

Morgana’s fur bristled, you locked eyes with Akechi, hoping to get some reason or clue from his eyes, anything that might change your mind-

Nothing, absolutely wiped and blank. 

He left the room.

Ryuji stomped his foot in rage. “Dammit! He had complete control over us!” the fear that seeped into his voice was evident. You tried to reach out for him, to help him but he stormed out of the room, slamming the door before you could get the chance. You made a mental note to go run with him to help burn off his adrenaline later.

No one had the strength to say anything else, with heavy hearts, everyone slowly filed out of the office. 

You, Akira and Morgana remained in the room.

“Hey, they’re going...” Morgana hoped down from your shoulder, voice somber. The cat sighed, shaking his head.

Akira looked at you, you both knew what each-other was thinking. It was pity. Pity because your so called friend, the one you tried to be friends with, the one Akira knew you had feelings for was-

Morgana’s tail swished, sadly. 

“You realized it too, then.” 

[nagatsukinura119]

Analysis on Touko’s obsession to be Mio and her relationship with Yuu [Yagate Kimi ni Naru]

…

….

…..

An extremely lengthy post. Spoilers alert. You have been warned.

Well, for starters, YagaKimi is a one-of-a-kind manga, for me at least. Because this is the first time I read a manga that focuses in romance, but the main character is an aromantic, meaning someone who doesn’t experience any romantic feelings. Many yuri manga/manhwa I read so far are very “physical”, or at least very quick to become “physical” and let’s just say, overdramatic, or just too happy and easy-going. Even if there were some milder drama, the drama is too common like, the struggles of being in a homosexual relationship such as being afraid of being judged by family and friends, . And there’s also another common drama like a very uptight family or love triangles that prevent some relationships to bloom. I get that these problems are real but they’re becoming bland due to being overused. 

Let’s also talk about the art first. YagaKimi has one of the best art styles I’ve ever seen in yuri manga. While I also like Citrus’ art style, YagaKimi’s art style has a sense of innocence and more diversity in terms of the setting. In the manga, we get to see different types of settings, ranging from the school, Yuu and Touko’s houses, the camp, the aquarium, and the fateful train road railway. By being exposed to the world of the manga, we can feel more connected to the story, which I think Citrus kind of lacks. And when it comes to the character designs, I can’t help but adore the way they are drawn. While most characters’ face shapes and hairstyles/colors are more or less the same, there are still subtle differences like some have plump cheeks and some may have narrower face shapes. There’s just something in Nakatani Nio-sensei’s style that makes me say “Awww…” and melt.

(Touko always makes my heart melt when she blushes and smiles. AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH Y U SO DAMN ADORABLE!!!)

So the story mainly revolves around the main character, Koito Yuu, a freshman and a second-year student, Nanami Touko, who is a student council member. At first Touko claims that she also doesn’t feel anything when she gets confessed to. Because of this Yuu finally feels like someone is related to her. But after confessing her aromantic tendencies to Touko, Touko suddenly confesses to Yuu.

This is why I love about YagaKimi. It covers so many real things such as aromantic topics, self-loathing, and identity crisis. Not to mention the level of melancholy in the this manga is what I’ve been looking for (angst is my cup of tea!). Touko and Yuu’s relationship’s complication and trying to figure out what’s in both of their heads and predicting the ending of this manga is what makes me so invested in this series.

We’ll start with Touko first. At first glimpse, Touko appears to be your typical Student Council President-type; beautiful, kind, smart and hardworking. But it turns out this is a façade that she decided to take after her older sister, Nanami Mio, died seven years prior to the series. Throughout the series, we are told by Touko herself that when she was a kid, she was very shy, had no many friends and always hid behind someone, and to put simply; normal. Meanwhile, she saw her sister as the perfect role model, both at home and school. After Mio died, she was told by people to live for Mio’s sake and be like her. For the 9-year old Touko, who was clearly still in shock over the loss of her beloved sister, these words clearly changed her and from here she decided to stop being a nobody and then she thrived to BE Mio. 

(A flashback of Mio that greatly resembles the current Touko)

In reality, Touko is still a timid person who would shake when she gets nervous enough. However, in order to not disappoint people who have high expectations from her, and to not destroy the image that she has built over the years, she keeps putting on the mask of the ‘perfect’ Touko. While most people may think that she wants to be Mio in order to be a somebody, I think there’s a more story behind it. In a dream that Touko saw, she remembers the day when Mio was about to get killed in a traffic accident. In that dream, we get to see that while the sisters were chilling in the family living room, their mother asked Touko to buy a drink (or sauce). Acting like a regular child, Touko didn’t want to go so she and Mio decided to play rock-paper-scissors game. Mio lost which resulted her to go instead. Later Touko woke from her nap because of a constant bell ring, impending the news that Mio got into an accident. This implies that Mio died because of Touko. And I believe that Touko knows this. Out of guilt, she decides to replace Mio who was beloved and admired by everyone. At the same time, she can get rid of her own identity. Touko claims that she hates herself and I think her self-loathing began when she realized that Mio died because of her selfishness. So that covers Touko’s obsession to be someone else besides herself.

Why Touko falls in love with Yuu was a very big question mark to me. Why Yuu, and why now? In Touko’s mind, she wants to be special to everyone because that’s when people praise her. But when people start to confess to her by saying something like, “I love that about you” which translates to her, “If you stop being like this, I won’t love you anymore”. Automatically she feels that if she stops wearing the ‘perfect’ mask, anyone who confesses to her would be disappointed with the real her who is a nobody. We covered from the first chapter that Yuu just can’t feel excited over romantic confessions. It’s not that she’s willingly disinterested, she just can’t and doesn’t know how. Because of this, she can’t find anyone special romantically. To Touko, this makes Yuu seem the nicest person because Yuu wouldn’t judge or discriminate her if she doesn’t have to wear the mask of perfection because she knows that Yuu won’t love her. One may think that Touko only sees Yuu as someone who she can vent out her feelings to, but not because of love. I can’t blame anyone for thinking this way because there is one time when she does treat Yuu like a friend with benefits (without the sex, of course). This happens in chapter 28 when Touko feels extremely stressed that she wasn’t acting like Mio perfectly and her own best friend tries to talk her out of it. She turns to Yuu and tries to kiss her for comfort. Not really a cool move there. But I think that Touko really does genuinely love Yuu. We can see it a lot of times throughout the story where we get to see how much she would do for Yuu, such as asking for a cheesecake recipe from Yuu’s sister Rei, after knowing that she loves cheesecakes, and in the same chapter we can see Touko fangirling when Rei shares a picture of Yuu sleeping (Rei is the best Touko supporter lol).

Now, onto the more complicated part of Touko and Yuu’s relationship. While Touko has made it clear that she loves Yuu to the point she just casually says “I love you” to her. This is pretty hypocritical from her side because she doesn’t want anyone to love her because the word itself acts like shackles to her. And she is doing the same thing to Yuu. In chapter 10, she tells Yuu to stay by her side, don’t fall in love with anyone else and don’t come to hate her. To put it simply, she wants Yuu to only stay with her, but don’t fall in love with her because she can’t stand with the idea that someone that she loves is in love with something that she hates: herself.

For Yuu’s part, as we progress through the story, we get to see her feelings towards Touko develop and change. At first she believes that she is only being nice to Touko simply because she’s too sympathetic to everyone, and not because she finds her special. But as the story progresses, we get to see Yuu’s way of thinking start to shake a bit. After Touko leaves her house, Yuu states she does want to fall in love with her. Right after this, she tries to tell herself that she doesn’t need to fall in love with Touko because it’s not she was lonely. But in chapter 10, her monologues have more conviction that she wants to love Touko. 

But before she can even say these things to Touko, Touko tells her that she would rather die than being told that she can be just herself and she can stop from being Mio. This forces Yuu to say this:

But from these panels we can see how it hurts Yuu to say this. Because at this point, she can’t love Touko NOT because of her inability to feel romantic attractions, but more to she can’t afford to love Touko. This clearly is very painful to Yuu since she has always wanted to experience the excitement of being in love. As this scene goes on, Touko makes her promise to stay by her side without falling in love with her. Yuu knows that if she rejects, Touko would be separated from her, so she agrees to do whatever Touko tells her to do. Then in chapter 22, Yuu tries again to convince her to stop being someone else, only to face Touko’s stubbornness again. What’s interesting is that near the end of this chapter Yuu intercepts her own monologue for the first time.

Many of her monologues act more like self-assuring sentences, sentences that she tries to convince herself to believe. This can especially be seen in chapter 31 by the end of the play, Yuu’s monologue where she says Touko would be fine without her, thinking that Touko has accepted to just embrace herself, she keeps on repeating that it is a good thing. When she reads Sayaka’s line “I was special to you” and then shaking her head, to me is like her telling herself to let Touko go if Touko does learn to be herself which would mean that she feels she is no longer needed by Touko. Another example would be chapter 16, where she keeps convincing herself that the way she finds Touko’s unconditional love is nothing special and that the fast heartbeat she hears is Touko’s, and not hers. It is like implying that she denies herself that she loves Touko. 

It seems that she is afraid to even admit to herself of her own feelings because she’s afraid that she would succumb to her feelings eventually. However, by the end of chapter 22, Yuu finally finds something she really desires; to change Touko. For someone like Yuu, who has always been the type of person who’d just get along with the flow, this is a life-changing thing to do. Here, we can see how Touko has changed her and she doesn’t hate it whenever they kiss or when Touko gets close to her.

While at this point Yuu and Sayaka share the aspect to not admit how they really feel to Touko because they’re afraid of how their relationship with her would change, I like the fact that unlike Sayaka, who is afraid to tell Touko that her obsession is a bad thing, Yuu wants to change Touko to stop hating herself and embrace the fact that people accept her for the way she is, and things that they do are for her, and not Mio. And we agree to this because what Touko does is self-destructive since she would be lost once she finishes what Mio couldn’t do when she was alive; the school play. Touko herself knows this as she questions herself in front of Mio’s grave.

What to predict:

At this point I can’t think of how the story is going to progress. After the play finishes, Touko tells Yuu this:

Now, I’m not so sure what this line actually means. It could mean that now that the play is over, she doesn’t have to replace Mio anymore, but her relationship with Yuu can still go on. The reason why I think this is what the line means is because of how Yuu takes the line positively as she now thinks that Touko can go on without her. And there’s also the fact that Yuu is holding the crutches that Touko used in the play. In a way, she herself has been acting like crutches for Touko. And the fact that she’s holding onto them as Touko walks away is like an allegory that Touko no longer needs her crutches aka Yuu. So perhaps there’s an incoming angst for upcoming chapters as Yuu tries to deal with being no longer needed by Touko.

 While the play’s ending implies that Touko may have embraced the idea to accept her true self and stop becoming someone else, and while I think this could be an interesting turning arc for the series and development for the story, I don’t think Touko is ready to embrace herself like the character in the play. She’s just too stubborn for that and I think she still needs more push to stop her obsession. It is something that she’s done for years and it’s not going to just disappear in a snap. Also, I don’t think Touko’s going to stop relying on Yuu yet. She makes it perfectly clear that now that she knows how it feels to be in love, she’s not going to turn back. Also, when Yuu refused to kiss Touko, she looked extremely broken, like her only emotional line was snapped, and the only thing that was ‘real’ to her was rejecting her.

(Just look at how BROKEN and EMPTY she looked like after being rejected by Yuu)

[lykezoinks]

[ This ficlet is a formal apology for all the klangst as well as a birthday present for two of my best friends, @t1dalwav3 & @tokyocrisis!! Go wish them happy birthday, ‘cause they’re the best. This ficlet is based off of our Voltron first responder au fic, Breaking Point, that you can find here if you wanna give it a read! The ficlet under the cut is a spin-off bit for something we have planned for future chapters without being spoiler-y. Happy birthday to my babes; I hope y’all enjoy! ]

title: are we there yet? words: 2,795 ship: klance rating/genre: T for language, humor, shippy nonsense of two dorks flirting and low-key being super into each other

Not to sound like a total black sheep, but Keith has a long list of things that he will never quite understand about society. Now he can add the romanticization of roadtrips onto it. From watching daytime television, sitcoms have led him to believe that roadtripping is supposed to be some grand adventure that friends and families embark on in their pastel colored hippie buses or wood-paneled station wagons. There’s supposed to be sightseeing and maps with overlapping red lines, road games, and songs that should probably never leave a summer camp full of seven year olds. It is not supposed to be a temperamental firefighter crammed in his red pick-up truck with the most aggravating ocean rescue guard on the planet. But here Keith is. With Lance. For sixteen hours.

So far on their impromptu road trip, Keith has compulsively eaten two bags of Twizzlers— empty wrappers now properly stuffed in his cup holders— finished ten pages worth of Sudoku puzzles, and begrudgingly agreed to a game of ‘I Spy’ for the first and last time. Lance kept it going for a full forty-five minutes, and there is no doubt in Keith’s mind that if he has to say the phrase “with my little eye” one more time, he will spontaneously combust.

And thinking about that game makes Keith realize it’s been awfully quiet for the past twenty minutes. And his eyes are getting a little dreary as he drives down a mostly vacant highway. When he glances over at Lance, he sees a head of shaggy brown hair drooped forward like a palm tree leaf.

“Lance,” Keith says gruffly, crashing his knuckles into the other’s arm just hard enough to hurt.

“Ow!” Lance rubs at the sore spot on his arm, and Keith can see Lance pouting from the corner of his eye. “What the hell—”

“You are not falling asleep on me, or so help me, I will make sure we stay in the sleaziest Motel 6 I can find.”

Lance lets out a groan, slumping in the passenger seat with a whine and rubbing at his eyes with a yawn. “You can’t honestly expect me to stay awake while you’re playing…” He snatches at Keith’s phone, watching the screen light up with a grimace. “Dear And The Headlights… Where the hell do you even find these bands?”

Keith is pretty sure his eyes are gonna get stuck mid-roll one of these days. And it’ll probably be Lance’s fault. “Wasn’t driver picks the music your rule?”

“That was before I knew you were gonna play trash.”

“It’s pronounced acoustic,” Keith corrects, ignoring Lance’s mock gagging. “And you have no room to talk if you’re gonna play nothing but Britney Spears and Nicki Minaj.”

“Well, if you’re gonna play ‘acoustic’,” Keith is sure he didn’t say it that pretentiously, “you can’t honestly expect me to stay awake.”

“Put on whatever you want!” Keith’s short fuse is about to be blown, and Lance just perks up in his seat with a wiggle of his torso.

“Relax, geez. Let’s see what’s on the radio…”

Lance starts punching the pad of his finger against the seek button, giving each station a few seconds. Static… Static… Commercials… Some 80’s ballot that should be buried along with the leg warmers… Static.

“Lance, would you please just—”

“Shhh! Sh!” Lance shoves a hand up against Keith’s arm, releasing it as he listens closely to what sounds to Keith like gibberish. It takes a few seconds for it to register that the disc jockey is speaking in Spanish. “Did he just say Fotographía?”

“I don’t speak Spanish, I have no idea what he—”

“Shhhh!”

He’s gonna kill him. Keith is actually going to commit first degree murder and dump Lance’s body out in the desert.

When a steady melody of guitar chords drift through the air, Lance starts bouncing up and down in a way that makes the car shake.

“Wait, this is acou—”

“Yes. But this is Juanes. So shush.”

Keith opens his mouth to speak, has a rant loaded and ready to go on his tongue, but then his breath catches in his throat. Lance has never sounded less annoying. In fact, he sounds… Amazing. His voice is like honey, sweet and soothing as it carries through the car.

“Cada vez… Que yo me voy… Llevo a un lado de me piel…”

Keith forces himself to close his mouth, absently remembering something his teachers used to say about flies nesting. Did it get colder? Why does he feel goosebumps? Whatever snarky comeback Keith had begins to fade from his memory.

Then the chorus rolls in. It occurs to Keith that something is very wrong with his heart. It should not be beating this irregularly.

Lance is completely unaware of the fact Keith is having both shivers and hot flashes, gazing out the window as he continues singing along softly. “Es por eso que debo decir— que tu sooo-lo en mis fotos estas…”

Lance stops his singing, and Keith can’t wrap his head around why a tinge of disappointment settles underneath his ribs. The female voice in the song gracefully begins the next verse, and Lance chuckles softly, looking back at Keith.

“I’m not allowed to sing this part,” he explains, some dreamy smile brightening his face. “This is my older sister Carmen’s part. It’s a dumb rule she made up when I was, like, ten. Which is probably for the better, ‘cause I can’t hit Nelly Furtado’s notes—”

“Y—You… I d—did… I didn’t know you could, you could sing…” Something’s wrong with Keith’s tongue too.

“What are you talking about?” Lance snorts, throwing his feet up on the dashboard, something Keith has told him not to do a million times. But he can’t remind Lance again on account of heat flushing his entire face. “I sing all the time.”

“Singing Ke$ha in the shower does not count as real singing,” Keith explains, narrowing his eyes a little at the road. He sighs, flickering his eyes between Lance and the windshield a few times. “You’re… You’re really… Good at it.”

There’s a few long moments where Keith thinks Lance didn’t hear him. And for a split second, Keith catches Lance in the corner of his eye and could swear Lance looks flustered. But that can’t be true, because then Lance is pushing his hair on top of his head, holding it up with long dainty fingers, and beaming, neck craned and eyes closed. “Well, I didn’t take choir for four years and get half the solos for nothing.” Yeah, okay, that sounds more like him.

Keith doesn’t comment, just shakes his head and lets Lance finish out the song while trying not to choke on his thickening throat.

Lance hums out the last of the notes, sitting back in the seat and sighing contentedly. “Man, I almost completely forgot about that song. My dad played Juanes around the house all the time, so my siblings and I are kinda cursed with knowing most of his songs. It’s like they’re ingrained, dude.” Lance taps his temple for emphasis.

Keith can’t help but feel warmth pooling in his chest. Lance has a way with storytelling. Sometimes he makes it feel like Keith is there. And though he’s not familiar with the feeling of nostalgia first-hand, he thinks he can feel it through Lance. And it feels warm and sunny, bright and rustic, like sepia photographs.

“So,” Lance says casually, rolling his shoulders. “Do you sing at all?” He dips his head into Keith’s periphery, waggling his eyebrows suggestively before Keith rolls his eyes again.

“Do you wanna grab dinner soon?”

“Oh, hell no. You are not changing the subject. You’re turning red, by the way.”

“Ugh.” Right when he thinks they’re getting somewhere. “I mean, I don’t know. I was never in choir or anything like that. And I have sung, just… Never for an audience, I guess.”

“Well, you got an audience of one right here,” Lance gestures to himself, placing his fingertips under his chin and grinning brightly. Keith is sure he isn’t red anymore, because he can feel the color drain from his face.

“No. No way in hell. No.”

“C’mon, Keith!” Lance whines in a tone that makes Keith’s eye twitch a little. Then comes the chorus of pleases.

“Fine! Fine, okay. Plug my phone back in and… Pull up the RENT soundtrack.”

Lance snorts, quirking a brow at Keith. His silence prompts Keith to turn his head toward the other— reluctantly— and sigh.

“What?”

“Nothing, I just never pegged you as a showtunes guy.”

Keith looks back at the road, taking one hand off the wheel to emphasize the finality of his statement when he says, “It’s a rock opera.”

“It’s a musical.”

“A rock musical. Totally diff— Wait, you know RENT?”

“Dude, everyone knows RENT… Or at least ‘Seasons of Love.’ Besides, Mama McClain is obsessed with musicals, so I’m guilty by association, and I know a lot of them.” A pause. “Including your ‘rock opera’… What’s your passcode?”

“Fire.” Silence again. Keith doesn’t bother turning his head this time, groaning instead. “What?”

“That’s creative,” Lance tells the firefighter, sarcasm thick in his tone. “How did you come up with that one?”

“Motel 6,” Keith warns, shooting a half-second glare. “Full of roaches.”

“Alright, alright… So what are you serenading me with, huh? A little ‘Tomorrow 4 U’?”

“God, no—”

Lance interrupts, already starting to sing in the most flamboyant tone possible, “Today for youuu! To-mor-row for me!” slinging his shoulders in some pathetic excuse for a dance move.

“Okay, as gay as we know I am—”

“Incredibly.”

“—yes, incredibly— you are not subjecting me to perpetuating my own stereotypes by singing the song of the drag queen in the show, as much as I love Angel. Besides, that song’s reserved for sing alongs with Shiro.”

“It’s what?” Lance is smirking, and Keith kinda hopes that he can develop the ability to teleport.

“I’ve said too much— Just! Put on ‘One Song Glory.’”

Lance makes some noise that sounds like protest, and Keith adjusts his hands on the steering wheel.

“What?”

“You would pick Roger’s song, you freaking emo.”

“Put it on. Before I lose my patience.”

Keith is bluffing, and Lance knows it. Keith can’t sing, and he’s just not willing to admit he’s not good at something. Lance has had this conversation with Hunk and Pidge several times. They came to the conclusion that if Keith could sing, they would have caught him doing so in the shower at least once by now. They’ve caught Shiro shamelessly belting out Queen songs when he thought no one would be home. Hell, even Pidge gets down to some Slim Shady every now and then. And if Keith could sing, he wouldn’t adamantly refuse to come to Karaoke night with them on Wednesday nights. Or at least come up with a better excuse than, “I really don’t need the second hand embarrassment from middle-aged wine moms trying to sing Shania Twain.” Because all the roommates know Keith can’t resist at least tapping his foot along to Shania Twain.

No way in hell can Keith “Voicecrack” Kogane carry a melody, plain and simple.

But Lance might as well lean back and enjoy the trainwreck. Tapping his thumb on the song title, Lance settles into his seat. He has to give Keith props, though. ‘One Song Glory?’ It’s ballsy. Especially when Keith probably sounds like a screeching cat—

“One song… Glory… One song, before I go. Glory. One song to leave behind…”

Okay… That was clean. Really clean. And low and a little raspy in a way that makes Lance’s lungs malfunction. But that’s probably just surprise given that Keith doesn’t sound like a dying animal. Yet. Lance will wait for the key change. That’s the real testament, anyway.

“Time flii-ii-iies… Time diiiiies! Glooo-oo-rr-yyyy-yy-y!” No. Fucking. Way.

Lance gapes, hearing Keith hit notes and run with them, vibrato low and husky in a way that… Well, Lance is pretty sure he gets a fever or something. And his mouth isn’t really working, so he can’t comment. He just listens to Keith sing the entirety of the song. Then the fact that it’s less than a three minute song pulls Lance back to reality. He just barely registers the fact that ‘Light My Candle’ has started, so he pauses the song before Mimi can tell Roger her life story.

“Um…” Keith is the first to break the silence, shifting stiffly in his seat as he continues to drive down the road like nothing happened. “So—”

“You have the voice of an angel.” What?

“What?”

“What?”

“You just said…”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“… I… I heard you.”

“Nope. Never happened.”

Keith starts pronouncing a mess of stuttering vowels, and Lance perks up, brushing his moment of weakness off of his shoulders.

“So! That was… Decent. A little pitchy, but decent.” He hums for a moment to fill the silence before an idea sparks in the back of his mind. “So how about a duet?”

“Ugh, Lance—”

“C’mon! It’ll be fun…” He starts thinking up a song the two of them would know, scrolling through a mess of playlists. “Wait, you lived with Shiro before you guys moved in with us, right?”

“Yeah… What does that have to do with anything?”

“That means you’ve seen ‘Grease’ at least fifty times, right?”

Keith deflates, lips pulling into a somewhat pathetic frown. “Seventy three.”

“Perfect!” Lance wastes no time in pressing his finger down on the song. “Oh, I didn’t think about who’s doing what part.”

“Does it mat—”

“Dibs on Danny!”

“Oh, c’mo—”

“I got chiiiiills! They’re multiplying!” Lance starts, snapping along to the beat and avoiding Keith’s more than apparent eye roll. “And I’m loooosing controoo-oool! From the power! You’re supplying. It’s electrifying!”

Keith seems to get over his masculinity in a matter of seconds, crooning along to Sandy’s voice. “You better shape up. ‘Cause I nee-eed a man… And my heart is set on youuu. Better shape up…”

They swap back and forth, neither of them caring to follow the melody all that closely by the time the chorus comes along. Somewhere mid-way through the song, they’re hardly harmonizing. Lance lets himself have fun with the song, throwing his hand against his chest dramatically, belting out the notes with all the breath his lungs can muster. Keith joins in, and it suddenly becomes a contest as to which one of the two can look more ridiculous. Keith fakes a swoon, throwing the back of his hand against his forehead and dipping toward Lance in a way that makes Lance break out in a fit of laughter before he can carry on with the verse.

As the song fades out, they’re both swinging their heads from side to side, snapping and twisting like they belong in a 1940′s dance hall more so than a pickup truck.

By the time the song is over, they’re both laughing wildly until tears form in their eyes. Sucking in a few gasps of air, Lance runs the edge of his finger against the brim of his eye, still snorting a little.

“Oh my God,” Keith chuckles, shaking his head. And when Lance looks at him he’s grinning. Keith. Grinning. It’s almost unheard of.

Lance pulls himself together quickly, mock gawking at Keith with something like horror in his expression. “Keith… Keith, I think something’s wrong with your face…”

“Huh?” Keith says, placing a hand to feel against his cheek, brows furrowing. “What? What is it?”

“You’re…” Lance points a finger. “You’re smiling.”

Keith deadpans, turning his head to stare at Lance for a solid three seconds before he laughs, shaking his head. “You’re such a prick.” On the last word, Keith reaches his arm out and shoves at Lance’s shoulder, setting Lance off balance for only a moment as giggles bubble up his chest.

But then he halts. Keith doesn’t seem to notice, too busy pulling the car over on the side of the road. And Lance is frozen. Because that was a shoulder shove. A Keith Kogane Shoulder Shove, Keith’s number one flirt move when he’s joking around with virtually any guy he thinks is even moderately attractive. And he just….

“Alright, you seem awake enough to drive now,” Keith says absently, throwing his truck in park before slipping out of the driver’s seat.

But Lance is frozen. There is no way Keith was flirting with him, right? But… The Shoulder Shove.

“Yo…” Lance turns his head to see Keith holding the passenger door open. “C’mon, Chinese fire drill. Rapido, por favor.”

Rather than point out how Keith just butchered that pronunciation, Lance undoes his seatbelt whilst pondering life as he knows it.