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leia-imogen · 3 years

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aaron & the family he's found all by himself; vol. 2 // vol. 1

( ft. short jokes, a belated birthday shopping trip, & an ultra-chaotic winter break )

( for @criswisstuff & anyone who enjoyed the first one <3 )

savannah, who is 5'9, is constantly teasing aaron and cleo for being short. katelyn's good at 5'6, and also a bit impossible to tease bcs she's the actual best, so she gets to escape this

cleo ( 5'2 ) is perfectly delighted to have someone shorter than her for once in her life, even by only 2 inches

aaron: guys, just try and see this from my point of view

sav: [ collapses ]

katelyn: [ crouches down ]

cleo: [ sits cross-legged on floor ]

aaron: dude you're literally 2 inches taller than me

cleo: 2 and a quarter

sav is so smug about this but in a good-natured way, in that she and cleo call aaron "kid" or "kiddo" or "pipsqueak" and he doesn't mind bcs they always say it w such a huge smile and he likes to respond to sav with "how's the weather up there, tall-ass?"

and katelyn thinks it's ridiculously adorable how tiny aaron is and obviously she uses him as an armrest all the time

katelyn, petting aaron's hair: guys guys omg he's like an angsty mini blond kitten and i would kill for him <3

sav, popping up between them: mini-yard :))

before i get super distracted, i just wanna mention that aaron met sav and cleo towards the end of november, so they missed the twin's birthday

but sav still insists that she must take him shopping bcs sure his fashion sense is fine but there's always room for improvement, isn't there, aaron??

he relents, so long as she and cleo and katelyn ( who already gave him a birthday present?? why's she doing this??? ) don't spend too much money

sav drags him all around south carolina to the best thrift stores she can find and cleo and katelyn are amazed that she can get such fantastic deals on the supermodel clothes she wears

fr she's literally a fashion design major ( + minoring in business management ) and she shows up to class in skilfully done drugstore makeup and an absolutely killer outfit for like 15 bucks

she grew up poor, and she's still poor now, even if she ( thankfully ) managed to scrape a cheerleading scholarship

sav, flicking through a rack of dresses labelled $4 apiece: RIP to little miss rich bitch reynolds but i'm different ;)

no hate to allison she's awesome but she grew up in the lap of luxury surrounded by designer brands so she knows NOTHING about thrifting and rationing money in general

oh and sav and allison have kind of a frenemies thing going on bcs they're both fighting for the top spot of their fashion design course

they spend the whole day shopping and aaron ends up with a highly upgraded wardrobe that contains a lot of cute pastel stuff and sav's promise to do his makeup

aaron insists on paying for dinner at the really nice pizza place a short drive from campus even tho they all protest

and andrew knows he's found new friends, but has no idea that it's the vixens and he's dating one of them. nicky does tho, but he's sworn to secrecy

nicky thinks his new clothes are adorable and is stunned when aaron tells him the total cost

"oh my GOD that girl sounds like a genius."

"yeah, her name's sav. you guys,, would get along, i think."

okay now for the winter break part!!

i think that you can get permission to stay at dorms if you're an international student or something??

anyways since sav's super upset bcs her father straight-up told her not to come home bcs he has a new girlfriend ( god i hate sav's father )

katelyn would stay with her, but her dad can finally have her home in new york for christmas and she really doesn't want to miss it

cleo, the only one with a properly functional family, is going back to her big family house and loving parents and grandma and aunt and siblings and cousins. love that for her.

so aaron and sav are stuck at psu for 2 weeks and aaron's surprisingly cool with this. and sav's excited bcs for the first time since her mom died, she can spend her christmas with someone she actually wants around instead of her shitty-ass father and his constant stream of bitchy girlfriends

they spend a lot of time together, stealing food from the athlete's dining hall to make their own weird combos, which usually ends with aaron making something Cool and Interesting and sav gagging and spitting out whatever strange concoction she had previously insisted would taste good

i literally can't bring myself to give a shit about the twinyards' deal bcs andrew literally became best friends with renee?? and hooks up with guys at eden’s??? idk what's going on there but it's like andrew is trying to control aaron's life while he can do whatever he wants??? and honestly wtf????

also let me just make it clear that i ADORE andrew so so much he's one of my favourite comfort characters ever but i'm not gonna make excuses for his shitty behaviour. i fully believe he heals and puts away his pride to apologise to aaron, nicky, and kevin for his treatment of them

that's definitely not to say that aaron's internalised homophobia isn't eww, but with so many important people in his life gay, he makes a huge effort to get over it

so andrew just thinks that aaron is spending a lot of time in the library or out with nicky or something

and when aaron tells sav about this deal, she's kinda horrified, but it's pretty clear to her that aaron so desperately wants to fix his relationship with his brother, and she's not in any place to discourage him, is she?

the only thing she can do is hope that he won't come out all the worse for it

and stare at the boy curled up on the other end of the pale pink sofa cleo's parents had gotten, wonder just how much shit he'd been put through, and decide she was going to be his best friend

aaron's face has gone entirely impassive. sav nudges his fluffy-socked foot with her own, then reaches out to smooth the crease between his eyebrows. "careful, you'll wrinkle your pretty little face."

aaron is very caught off guard by this, and very promptly flushes bright red, which contrasts with the pale teal hoodie he stole from katelyn

"okay, enough talk about depressing crap. wanna go make christmas cookies now?"

"yeah."

so they make christmas cookies. well, it was supposed to be christmas cookies, but it turns into double chocolate fudge cookies somewhere along the line. neither of them knows how

them baking together is the definition of chaos. they're still blasting songs, and sav is singing along terribly

"yOu'Re A mEaN oNe, Mr. GrInCh," while poking aaron's cheek as he tries to mix something. he throws a handful of flour at her. "yOu ReAlLy ArE A hEel."

anyways obviously sav retaliates and that ends in a flour fight. it only stops when aaron deadass cracks an egg on sav's head and she smears chocolate into his hair

she also tries to make him sing along to baby, it's cold outside

"i'Ve GoT tO Go `wAAyyy~" she holds a spatula up to his face

"go away."

they video call katelyn, who takes one look at the mess in the cramped dorm kitchen and sighs so loudly and dramatically that her dad pops in and asks if everything's okay

aaron freezes up at the sight of him and sav quickly turns off the camera, bcs they both want to make good impressions on him, and being covered in various cookie ingredients just won't cut it, ya know?

the cookies turn out delicious and sav sends all their group chat various photos of the process, most of which consist of selfies with her making goofy faces while aaron is simultaneously baking and flipping off the camera

plus a several videos of sav enthusiastically dancing and mouthing the lyrics of, as follows, all i want for christmas is you, let it snow, and santa claus is coming to town and aggressively pointing a spatula at aaron

"c'mon aari, just sing! please??? please???? please you can do it i believe in you!!"

finally he just. gives up. "okay, you know what? fine, i'll sing to ONE and then you will STOP bothering me you insolent dumbass."

sav beams. santa baby starts playing. aaron is very clearly going through five stages of grief in 0.5 seconds

"go on," sav says sweetly as she slides in next to a pouting aaron, "i'll sing with you."

sav slings an arm around his shoulder and sways with him, so it's just her doing that and him grumpily mumbling the lyrics

and when the cookies are cooling down, they start cleaning the kitchen up. aaron rubs some spilled egg yolk into sav's hair but it goes pretty okay otherwise, since they're just listening to more christmas songs and chatting about light stuff, like aaron's biochem course, sav's fashion course, and their dumb classmates

aaron mostly listens tho, and learns that sav kind of hates allison reynolds for giving up her inheritance when she would do ANYTHING for even the tiniest fraction of that money

but she still thinks allison's gorgeous bcs c'mon

and that sav's dream is to one day open her own boutique!!

aaron spends most of the actual christmas day with the monsters at eden's bcs nicky and andrew wanted to

he spent a lot of the time texting on their group chat

doessavvyisgay: so u just go to a nightclub every week??

unaliveme: i mean yeah, i literally worked here for a while. we needed money and nicky was already working 2 jobs night and day

actualblessing: babe ur backstory is so tragic

unaliveme: i'm a fox for a reason ig

cleo.magda: Yes but-

doessavvyisgay renamed this conversation "aaron miniyard support group"

unaliveme: oh ffs

unaliveme: sav subject change go

doessavvyisgay: i'm at the clothes store what should i get?

actualblessing: something pretty :)

doessavvyisgay: sorry, i can't buy the cashier

cleo.magda: Wow.

doessavvyisgay: I DID GET HER NUMBER THO

unaliveme: lmaooo what's her name?

doessavvyisgay: uh

unaliveme: savannah istg u don't even know her name??

actualblessing: s a v

actualblessing: damn u really do be turning on the Charm tho

actualblessing: respect i didn't even talk to aaron till i asked him for notes bcs he has rly pretty notes and also a rly pretty face

actualblessing: and even then i was like :0

unaliveme: IT WAS CUTE I PROMISE

doessavvyisgay: u 2 = the only valid heterosexual couple

actualblessing: rt

unaliveme: oh shit i'm getting super drunk

cleo.magda: Aaron, you drink? That's not legal, get out of there right now. Kids these days-

unaliveme: cleo u have literally seen me get drunk af,, the first time we met,,, and anyways this is how my family bonds ✌🏻

doessavvyisgay: that's. so damn weird kiddo but go off ig

actualblessing: no go find better things to bond about other than alcohol and weird sweaty dancing

cleo.magda: Yeah, go watch some Christmas movies!

unaliveme: nicky makes us watch die hard every year

doessavvyisgay: see u in hell, kiddo ;)

cleo.magda: I meant things like The Polar Express and Home Alone.

actualblessing: merry christmas ya filthy animals!!

doessavvyisgay: merry xmas y'all i'm gonna go to that christmas party bcs i'm super bored

unaliveme: merry christmas mothers and fuckers

cleo.magda: Merry Christmas, you guys!

#aaron & the family he's found all by himself #okay this was most aaron and sav centric #but i love them so.#aftg headcanons #aftg #all for the game #the foxhole court #aaron minyard headcanons #the vixens #aaron minyard #andrew minyard #twinyards #nicky hemmick #katelyn aftg #katelyn finley #sav jameson #cleo magdalene

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mythiccheroacademia · 4 years

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“Say cheese, take a picture. Strike a pose, make a scene, take a picture.”

—Say Cheese | KiDi

Word Count: 1.3k Pairing: Todoroki Shouto X Reader Context: Soulmate!AU, Reader doesn’t live in Japan Warnings: hints of explicit content, explicit language

All characters are 18+

A/N: Welcome to the third installment of the 2.5k celebration! This wasn’t difficult but tedious? I rewrote the entire thing twice LMAO. Anyways, I think this is currently my favorite song on the list. KiDi is the man fr 🇬🇭 This is one of his newer songs and I hope I did it justice. I was thinking a fun long-distance relationship with a hint of “will you like what’s actually on the other side of screen?” No (real) angst this time! Enjoy <3

Todoroki Shouto | Say Cheese

Midoriya nearly winced as he watched his friend stab into his steak a little too harshly to be considered normal.

“Everything alright, Todoroki?”

This time, he actually winced when the icy-hot hero’s eyes flickered up to meet his own with a dirty glare.

“Right. Stupid question.”

Shouto merely grunted. Izuku sighed.

He had hoped taking Todoroki to his favorite restaurant would lift his spirits a bit after recent events. However, Midoriya should’ve known better when Todoroki got the steak instead of soba.

The green hero grimaced when he plunged the fork into the filet.

Izuku carefully chose his next words.

“You know…this doesn’t mean you’re out of the game.”

“Easy for you to say. Your soulmate didn’t ‘curve your ass like a grade’,” Shouto sourly huffed.

Izuku placed his hands against his mouth in a prayer like fashion in an attempt to hide his laugh.

What happened between you and Shouto had been a…surprise to everyone.

During a mission that required help from international heroes, Shouto had found you. His soulmate. One look at your matching birthmark and he was quick to approach you.

You two hit it off right away.

Your hero agency was only needed for a week, but Shouto had taken every opportunity he could to know you. From the way your nose twitched when you got annoyed to the silent flutter of your lashes when he softly kissed the skin beneath your collarbone. The moment he saw your smile, he adored all that was you.

The icy-hot hero had always been a bit skeptical over the concept of soulmates, yet he was ready to share his life with someone he hadn’t believed existed all but seven days ago.

When you left Japan, it was difficult.

However, you two kept in constant contact. Despite the time differences and the unconventional schedules that came with being a hero, you made it work.

Facetime calls were a must. Shouto wanted—needed—to see your face at least once a day. Whether it was to say a quick good morning or to end the night with heavy rants about hero politics, he wanted it. Even if it was just to observe you get ready for work, he’d quietly take in your beauty. He won’t admit to his secret album of screenshots.

If he couldn’t call you, he texted. Sometimes it’d be long conversations centered over food. Other times, it’d be random pics of things that reminded you of each other. He especially liked the ones he’d get late at night where the clothes you wore left little to the imagination and he’d quickly lock his office door so he could visually discover what was left behind the tiny strip of underwear.

The first “I love you’s” were exchanged over the phone and, afterwards, Todoroki had stared at your picture on his screensaver for half an hour.

Six months went by of calls, texts, pictures, and grandiose anniversary gifts, before you were able to meet again due to another mission.

When he offered to pick you up, you oddly declined. Shouto hadn’t thought anything of it.

When you finally met, you curved him.

At least, that’s how Bakugo put it.

He hugged you, you were stiff. He tried to kiss you, he caught your cheek instead. And for the rest of the day, you actively avoided him. He immediately confronted you about it and you said you were tired. That’s how you played it off for the last few days.

At first, Shouto was outright depressed. Then he was angry for a day. Now he was just bitter.

Everything was perfectly fine up until your arrival. Did he do something wrong? Were you two fighting? He didn’t understand it and it was driving him crazy thinking about it.

Izuku watched with concern as Shouto coldly rubbed the mark on his shoulder. He sighed as the temperature of the room seemed to drop.

“Don’t forget that you’re meant to be together, Todoroki. Just talk to them,” he reminded.

“How?”

“Remember how Momo’s having that pool party tomorrow?”

“Yeah…”

[Next Day]

“So, you gonna ignore your soulmate today too?” your friend, Jax, nonchalantly asked as he gathered silverware.

You miserably sighed and put your head in your hands.

“I’m the biggest dick of the century.”

“No kidding.”

“Now, now,” Momo softly chided. “You said so yourself. You were overwhelmed.”

Ochako, who stacked the food cartons, nodded in agreement. “You met your soulmate for a week and had to continue 99% of the relationship over long-distance. I can understand why you’d be scared to physically meet Todoroki again. It’s different. Especially after how serious you two got.”

“Still doesn’t abstract from your lack of communication skills,” Kai reminded. “You hurt the poor man’s feelings.”

Iida nodded. “Todoroki is…confused to say the least.”

You nervously looked up at them. “Be honest. How mad is he?”

Your friends remembered how Bakugo and Kaminari’s teasing made the usually mild-tempered hero burst into angry flames.

They looked to each other before collectively staring at you in silence.

You dramatically groaned.

“It’s not like I don’t like him anymore. I love him. I do. It’s just…I was nervous! When I saw him, I panicked!”

Unbeknownst to you, the kitchen door opened.

Iida motioned behind you. “L/N, I believe there is—”

“Shh, they’re having a moment,” Ochako quieted, oblivious.

“He’s just such a beautiful person. He’s so kind and thoughtful and he has so much good to offer the world. It blows my mind that someone like him exists. For me. It’s so easy to be my best self behind a screen. I’m just afraid he won’t like what he sees in real life…”

“Why didn’t you just tell me that?”

The soft sound of your soulmate’s voice made you freeze. You slowly turned to see him stare at you with an unreadable expression.

“We’ll be outside,” Jax said before your friends filed out.

You gulped beneath the intensity of Todoroki’s stare. Not only were you embarrassed, but you were hyperaware that you were in a swimsuit. It didn’t help your nerves as you took in his well-defined muscles and the happy trail disappearing underneath his shorts.

Why does he have to be so damn fine?

Todoroki’s thoughts weren’t far behind yours as he took in your physique, but he had things to address.

“Y/N, sweetheart, please talk to me.”

“Shouto,” your fear was clear in your whisper. “I’m sorry.”

He moved closer to you and you both felt the warmth from your birthmark when his hands found solace on your hips.

“You know I love you, right? Everything about you.”

“Everything I let you see,” you gently corrected, eyes to the ground.

The shame and insecurity in your chest made your eyes burn, but you couldn’t blink the tears away before Todoroki tilted your chin to meet your gaze.

“Then, show me the rest, Y/N,” he said, voice deep and genuine. You gasped as he kissed your birthmark. “I want the good and the bad. I want you. All of you, my love.”

You closed your eyes and sighed into his embrace, letting yourself finally feel his physical presence. It was like his words melted away your doubts.

He wanted you.

Why were you trying to convince yourself otherwise?

“Okay,” you whispered, laughing through your nose.

The red and white hero pulled away to soak in your features before diving in to capture your lips. It had been six months. Six full months since you two had tasted the other and damn if it wasn’t worth the wait.

With each passing kiss, he seemed to sink deeper into you. Soon enough, you didn’t know where your mouths started or ended. All you concentrated on was how his tongue massaged your own as his hands tried to memorize every curve of your body.

Todoroki impatiently groaned as he attached his lips to the sweet spot on your neck.

“Oh! Shouto wait—”

“I meant it when I said I want you,” he growled before his hands traveled downwards and squeezed your ass.

You quickly figured out you would also be seeing more sides of your soulmate as well.

#todoroki shouto #todoroki x reader #bnha x reader #mha x reader #mha x y/n #bnha x y/n #honorable mentions:#iida #ochacko #momo #midoriya who tried his hardest #and fucking bakugo and his mouth lmao #2.5k follower event and celebration!

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trickstermiraculous · 4 years

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You Had Your Chance To Help Years Ago And You Blew It

Summary: The heroes of Paris have been active for four years, they asked for help and were ignored so if the league thinks that Paris will welcome the justice league's help with open arms acting if they hadn't been wronged by them for years then they must be delusional.

Chapter One: An Event Being Interrupted By An Akuma Otherwise Known As A Normal Tuesday In Paris

Author’s Note: DON'T KILL ME! if I got the dc character's wrong, I'm sorry. it's my first time writing them and I only know their personalities from the cartoons like young justice, fanfiction, wiki and the small number of comics I've read.

Paris wasn’t happy but it’s not like they could express that, there was an event going on which was full of journalists who were from all over the world which meant if an Akuma were to happen, it would make worldwide news in a matter of hours.

Paris was aware that Hawkmoth was a villain that should be known worldwide but they had tried that years ago by sending the justice league video of the events and calls for help but because of the miraculous cure fixing everything, they were told to stop sending fake calls and blocked so no they had been dealing with this four years now, they had their own heroes who could and would handle this, they had no need for the so-called heroes that made up the justice league.

Clark was bored, nothing important was happening in Metropolis so he was stuck in Paris listening to awards be given out for the next three hours. The event was for awards given to people who were considered heroes due to their charity work and new ideas on how to improve the world. That meant Bruce was here as well so he wasn’t the only league member suffering.

“You look bored Smallville,” said Lois who was busy writing notes,

“You could say that” replied Clark with a sigh,

“Well not everywhere can be as exciting as Metropolis or Gotham” retorted Lois glancing at Bruce,

“Yeah that’s true but I still don’t get why we had to do this event?” Clark questioned,

“Because the other reporters had stories already or were ill” answered Lois, “It’s only one event and anyway were can spend rest of the time tour Paris since I doubt you’ve been here before”.

Clark just hummed in agreement as he went back to taking notes as the next Award winner was called. The winner only had a chance to grab the award before an Alarm started blearing and a policeman took the mic from the host. “Everyone remains calm, this is just the Akuma alarm if you follow the police instructions in order to get to one of the shelters you will be okay,” the man said pointing to the rest of the police who had entered one of the double doors.

Obviously there were people who were yelling in panic and running over to where the police were but most were just confused and followed the instructions calmly. “Do you know what’s happening, Bruce?” questioned Clark as he went over to join him away from the crowd, “no, this was not something that came up when I investigated the security of this place” Bruce muttered looking annoyed as he pulled out his phone.

“Will you three please leave” yelled on the police at Clark, Bruce and Lois who was filming the event on her phone. Before Clark could reply, he was cut off by red blur crashing through the glass window at the entrance of the event.

“Ladybug” yelled the same office running over to the person, “I’m fine officer but you need to get the guest out of here, this is the Akuma target” replied the red blur who was, in fact, a teenage girl dressed in red and black spotted spandex that was black at the back, stomach and legs and red with black spots at the feet, chest and arms. She also wore a black and red jacket with spots, had short hair, red and black spotted mask and wore stud earrings. The girl had claw-like scratches on her face that looked fresh.

“Get out of her” Ladybug yelled as she threw what looked like a yo-yo towards the broken window, it hooked on a metal beam and the girl swung forward as she kicked someone with a hammer in the face and out the window, hitting the concrete outside with a loud crack. “All of you out” the police yelled as he pulled the trio toward the exit where the rest of the guest had left.

“Who was that?” question Lois as the trio was pushed into the room that was currently holding the other guest. The man didn’t answer as he focused his attention on the project screen which was currently showing an emergency broadcast.

Clark looked the video being shown, there the girl along with other teenagers dressed up in animal-like costumes, three boys dressed in a dragon, fox, cat while girls were dressed as a snake, what appeared to be a bee and the ladybug girl. The group was fighting a cat-like woman who was wielding a large hammer which she used to throw the teens into buildings and the concrete streets.

“Ladybug, Chat Noir, Reynard, Medusa, Vouivre, Guêpe are dealing with the Akuma named Tomcat please stay away from the area at all costs as there have already been a few civilian casualties and just because the miraculous cure can bring you back does not mean you can go running into an Akuma attack” The newscaster stated, the last part seemed like dig at someone but no one seemed to notice.

“Their Paris heroes” stated Bruce looking up from his phone,

“What?” asked Clark confused on why they had never heard of them,

“They’ve been active for four years apparently” Bruce continued as he showed Clark a news blog called Miraculous Out that seemed to be dedicated to hero news,

“How come we didn’t know?” Clark questioned confused because normally the Daily Planet was one of the first ones to write about new heroes but to not know about a team of heroes for five years and ones that the justice league hadn’t heard about was confusing.

“Apparently Paris heroes tried to make themselves to the justice league but were called fake due to the ‘miraculous cure’ fix the destruction of the Akuma and were told to stop playing pranks then were blocked” answered Lois who finally got one of the police to talk to her, “Ladybug and Chat Noir was the first and main heroes before they chose more, they had temporary heroes before their id got out so were canned for good then a few months ago the other four others were chosen recently and are now permanent”.

“Which member of the league blocked them because I doubt Batman or Superman or Wonder Women knew about it?” asked Clark looking at Bruce who seemed to be angrily texting someone, probably the rest of the league,

“They don’t know because they never got a name on the emails” responded Lois who was closely watching the news as the heroes managed to grab the Monster’s collar with the cat hero turning it to dust in seconds with a purple butterfly flying away from the dust before getting captured by Ladybug’s yo-yo and turn pure white when leaving the yo-yo. The snake hero passed what looked like a small toy mouse to Ladybug only for them to throw in the air with the item turning into tiny ladybugs as they flew around reversing the damage.

“Wow, the rest of the heroes could use powers like that” stated Lois,

“Yeah” agreed Clark as he got a text from Bruce saying that they would need to find those heroes later tonight to have a chat with them but for now just gather as much info as they could.

Author’s Note: Hey, I've wanted to write a miraculous ladybug and dc crossover for a while now because I like idea of it but I don't have an exact plot at the moment so updates will be slow while I figure it out.

dragon → vouivre: https://www.interglot.com/dictionary/en/fr/translate/dragon wasp → guêpe: google translate

AO3

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pandawritespoorly · 5 years

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With Time: Chapter 35 - Concours D'arts Musicaux

Author’s Note: Here we go!!!

I'm not entirely satisfied with this chapter, but I do enjoy it a lot. Also, I'm sure you were all expecting a strong language warning, and you would be correct! 'Pissed' and 'Bitch'. Not nearly as many as you expected, huh?

Chapter Summary: The music competition. 🎉

First | Previous | Next

“You sure you want to go?” Allan asks.

“No one would be upset if you backed out,” Claude reminds her.

Marinette sighs shakily, glancing out her window towards her former school. She’d honestly been doing a lot better when it came to her classmates, but she hadn’t been back to the school itself since…

Since that day.

She massages her wrist unconsciously, thinking of the confrontation, the yelling, the fall. She still can’t really remember much past Chloe finding her in the bathroom.

Claude, Allan and Felix are in her room with her, on their way to the competition. Felix puts a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Marinette?”

She turns back to them, taking a deep breath to steady herself. She can do this.

“Y-yeah. Yeah, I’m still going to go. Worst case scenario, I leave early, right?”

“Indeed,” Felix agrees.

Nodding, she leads them out of her room, and the group makes their way out of the house. They walk across the street, and stare up at the school for a moment.

Marinette walks up the stairs, taking in the sight of the main courtyard, packed with students from all over for the competition. Oh, Kwami, there’s so many people-

“Marinette?!” A quiet voice says, barely loud enough to be heard.

The three boys ready themselves to deal with more of Bustier’s class. To their surprise, Marinette quickly finds the speaker and breaks into a grin, hurrying over.

“Marc! It’s been so long! How have you been?” She’s speaking to a dark haired boy in a red hoodie. Not part of Bustier’s class.

“I-I’ve been f-fine. Art club is s-so quiet without you, everyone was s-so worried, because you just disappeared, and your c-class was awful. Nathaniel said…” he trails off, frowning.

Marinette copies him. “What happened?”

“He w-was just saying a-awful stuff, and we br-broke u-up… he wouldn’t even work with me anymore, because L-Lila said she’d get him c-connected to a real writer-”

Marinette bristles. “He did what?”

Marc shrugs helplessly, “I- I think he figured it out eventually, he’s b-been sitting away fr-from everyone now.”

“But he hasn’t spoken to you? Hasn’t apologized?”

When he doesn’t meet her eyes, she gets her answer.

“Come on, we’re going to talk to him. He has no right to treat you like that and not apologize.” Marinette leads the boy up the stairs. Claude, Felix and Allan, who had watched the entire interaction smile and follow after her.

She’s doing well so far.

They arrive outside of what must be the art room, if the inside is anything to go by. Nathaniel, who they do recognize, is sitting inside, doodling idly.

Marinette’s got that look in her eyes, as she steps inside. “Nathaniel.”

His eyes snap to her immediately, and he stares at her in shock for a little bit before speaking, “M-Marinette? Y-You’re here?!”

She just stares at him, raising an eyebrow.

“I-I’m so sorry! About-”

“I’m not the one you should be apologizing to.” She pushes Marc forward gently, he’s looking at the floor, “Did you really abandon him like that?”

Nathaniel fidgets in his chair, “Well, Lila a-also said-” he realizes what he’s saying, “W-wait! I meant it differently! That came out wrong! I just… I’m sorry, Marc, I didn’t think a-about anything really, and, I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” he mumbles.

There’s tension in the room, from the unresolved issues between the boys. Marinette knows this doesn’t involve her. She shakes her head. “I think I’ll let you two talk.”

As she walks down the hallway, Claude stays back a moment to address Nathaniel, “She may have said otherwise, but she deserves an apology. The way she was treated here was vile and inexcusable.”

Only when Nathaniel nods shakily does the actor hurry to catch up to their friends. Marinette is speaking, “I just can’t believe that Nathaniel and Marc broke up! They had a great relationship! Lila really did a number on the class.”

“Don’t give Lie-la so much credit, Dupain-Cheng. It was you,” Chloe interrupts, appearing out of nowhere.

“What?” “The morons here get akumatized so much for a reason. You were the only one who tried to actually communicate, and the class fell apart without you. Everyday Ladybug and all that. All the couples have basically broken up, with the exception of Lahiffe and Césaire, because Lahiffe has no backbone and Césaire thinks they’re the definition of a healthy relationship.”

“Don’t exaggerate, Chloe. They’re perfectly capable of sorting out their problems on their own,” Marinette argues.

Chloe scoffs, shaking her head but dropping the conversation.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng! Do my eyes deceive me or has the storm finally passed and our shining rainbow is back?!”

Marinette turns, sees Aurore standing a little ways down the hall, “Aurore! It’s been so long!”

She runs up to give her a hug. The taller girl rolls her eyes, “And whose fault is that?”

Marinette shrugs sheepishly, “Sorry, I-” “Not yours, little cloud! It’s that horrible hurricane that’s swept through here! She’s blocking out the sun, and that’s all we had left without you!”

“Oh, I know about that.”

At Marinette’s expression, Aurore smirks, “Ooh! There’s a storm brewing!”

The designer winks. “Perhaps.”

While the two girls chat, Chloe stands with the three boys Marinette had come with. “Marinette really downplays how many people loved her here. I’m not even sure she realizes she was pretty popular.”

Allan shrugs. “She hasn’t noticed at our school either, but she definitely is.”

“Good. She deserves people who appreciate her.”

Eventually, Aurore and Marinette part, and the group wanders away. Marinette shows them around the school as best she can. At one point, they get separated for some time and Marinette ducks into a classroom. She wanted to get out of the way of the people in the hallway to text her friends quickly. That plan is forgotten when she sees who is inside.

Lila and Alya stare at her in shock momentarily, before Lila shudders and pretends to hide behind Alya in a terrified manner. The former journalist pats her ‘friend’ comfortingly before standing and turning to Marinette.

“What are you doing here, Monsternette?”

The girl recovers from her shock and sighs sadly, “I’m here for the concert.”

Lila gasps. “I won’t let you harass my boyfriend!”

Marinette scowls, uneasiness giving way to fury. “I’m not the one harassing Adrien, and he’s not your boyfriend willingly!”

“Just because you’re some jealous creep, doesn’t mean you get to attack my bestie like that!” Alya yells.

“Oh, would you grow up?!” Marinette growls, gesturing wildly, “This isn’t some tv show where every action I take is because of some boy! Despite what you may think, I have a life outside of a romantic one!”

“Sure, so the fact that you’ve finally dropped the kicked puppy act has nothing to do with the fact that Adrien isn’t here?” Alya retorts.

Marinette stares at her. “What.”

“Please. Do you think we’re stupid? Everything you’ve ever done has been an act to gain sympathy. Thankfully, we had Lila to open up our eyes. All those times you pretended to do nice things? They were all so that we’d like you, honestly-”

“Do you even hear what you’re saying? You’re delusional! You think that was all an act? Do you think I pushed myself down the stairs and sprained my own wrist for sympathy points from a class that already hated me and a boy who wasn’t even there?!”

Alya opens her mouth to argue, but Marinette isn’t finished, “No! No! You do not get to downplay my feelings or how I was treated! Do any of you even realize how long it took me to properly heal from all that?!”

“It was just a few bruises-” “Emotionally! I didn’t even think that the people hanging out with me regularly for months even considered me their friend despite how obvious it was until I heard them call me that when they didn’t know I was around! I spent months feeling like any slip up would cause a repeat performance of what happened here! Do you have any idea how tiring that is? The effects it can have on someone?!”

Alya’s face softens, and she looks concerned for a moment. It really hadn’t occurred to her that Marinette might have been the victim. Then Lila speaks, “N-nice story, but I’m sure A-Alya won’t fall for it the way L-L-Ladybug d-did.”

Alya scowls, sympathy gone, “Of course not. Unlike anyone dense enough to like you wherever you go now-”

“I do not appreciate you insulting the entire population of the school we attend,” Felix interrupts.

Marinette turns to see Felix, Allan and Claude standing in the doorway, each of them looking beyond furious. She beams, running to give them all a tight hug.

“Now, whether or not you’ll excuse us, we have better things to do than try and carve stone with a stick,” Claude retorts as they turn away.

Down the hall a little ways, Allan is hugging Marinette tightly, and the girl is giggling slightly.

“Allan, it’s okay, I’m fine.”

“Still gonna’ hug you, ‘Nette. I can’t believe that of all the times you had to run int’ them it was the one time we weren’t there.”

Claude races over and joins the hug, and Felix just smiles at his friends.

When they separate, Claude looks at Marinette worriedly, “We heard some of that before we arrived. Did you really spend months thinking we didn’t consider you our friend?”

Marinette’s face colors a little and she looks away slightly, “In hindsight it was kind of dumb, but yeah. I thought you were all just being nice.”

“Nope!” Allan hugs her again, “You need more hugs.”

“For sure!” Claude agrees.

She only laughs, returning the gesture. When she’s finally freed, Felix gives her a quick one as well, having waited out the group hugs.

“Let’s not let them ruin our fun, I can keep showing you around!” Marinette suggests. The others readily agree, and they all move on. Lila and Alya aren’t their priority at the moment.

Soon enough, it’s almost time for the performance, so they go over their final preparations to reveal Lila once and for all.

“Alright, so first we show the slide with the public records proving she was in Paris when she was ‘traveling’, then her interview so that Jagged and Ali will speak up, then we can play the museum recording, and by then her mom will probably have some choice words, and by that time the police will have arrived, anything else?” “Nah, too much could over do it. We’ve got plenty more evidence if it’s needed though,” Allan says.

“Ms. Marinette! I was 87.3% certain you would show up for this event!”

The four turn to see a small robot floating nearby, “I wish to speak with you! I believe that Max is ill, as he seems to be suffering from delusions. He caught it from his classmates and I noted that you had immunity, and was wondering if you could help me!”

“You’re adorable,” Claude whispers.

“Markov!” Marinette greets the robot, “Actually, you might be able to help…”

---

The concert is over, and everyone did splendidly - to the surprise of no one at all. Allegra is back with her friends, and they’re all congratulating her.

It’s bittersweet in that Adrien can’t be with them yet.

The large projected image on the wall glitches, catching everyone’s attention. For a moment, it seems as if it goes back to normal, before it glitches again, changing to show a very different image this time.

Displayed on the wall are the dates in which Lila had supposedly been traveling with her mother. Directly next to them are public records showing her mother had been in Paris.

Some quiet murmurs begin to get around. Mostly confusion, either visitors who didn't even know of Lila, or people beginning to suspect the truth.

Next is a video, straight from the Ladyblog (someone had saved all the posts and made a site to act as an archive), of Lila claiming to know Jagged Stone and Prince Ali. This had been a ‘special feature’, a two-in-one interview of Lila talking about both of them in one clip.

“Oh yes, Jagged and I are very close. Basically best friends - well, after Ladybug of course - we first met when I saved his kitten from a runway. That’s when I got tinnitus. Anyways, I met with Prince Ali soon after because that’s actually why I’d been at the airport. Ali and I basically grew up together and I was on my way to visit.”

She continues, blabbering on about both celebrities for some time.

When it ends, there’s an outraged cry from the back, “That’s so not rock n’ roll! I’ve never met that girl, and she makes me sound like some creep! That’s defamation! Not cool!”

The crowd turns to see a fuming Jagged and Penny. Soon after, another woman stands, Prince Ali beside her, “Prince Ali would never associate with such a blatant liar. His only childhood friends are in Achu.”

The murmurs get louder, until a voice calls over the noise, “Lila Diablo Rossi, what is the meaning of this?! You haven’t been traveling, you said the school was closed! You said that Ladybug was incapable and that Paris was unsafe!”

Mrs. Rossi is fuming, trying to spot her daughter in the crowd. Everyone is furious now, because no one gets to speak about the city’s heroes like that.

Before anyone else can speak up, the screen changes again. There’s some text, with audio playing in the background.

The following audio was recorded when Ms. Lila Rossi happened to find a former classmate at the Louvre. This classmate had always claimed Lila was lying, and Ms. Rossi drove them out of the school through intense bullying. It has been edited to keep this person anonymous.

“-is you! Here I thought this would be a boring field trip! This is a spectacular surprise though!

“See, I told you I knew what I was doing. No one’s seen you in months and they all still hate your guts - rightfully so of course.”

There are footsteps as the speaker approaches the phone.

“You know, they call me their everyday Ladybug now? I’m honestly insulted - not only did they give me your old dumb title, but they’re comparing me to her. They were that is, until I changed that.

“Look at you! You’re pathetic! I can’t believe I considered you a legitimate threat to me. I could have just left you be and they would have eventually left you in their own time.

“Those morons could walk in right now and would still believe me if I told them you attacked me. They just despise you that much. Not that I can blame them - you’re just so detestable.”

There’s a stunned silence as everyone takes in what they just heard. The doors burst open, Ladybug and Chat Noir stand tall, accompanied by multiple policemen and people in suits with stern faces.

Ladybug steps forward, “Lila Rossi. You are under arrest for working with and assisting a known terrorist for your own personal gain.”

You could have heard a pin drop.

“There has been plenty of circumstantial evidence, but Chat and I never had any substantial proof. Then, a civilian got footage of you capturing an akuma and using it to akumatize yourself.”

The room erupts. People are shouting and screaming, Mrs. Rossi looks shell-shocked. The crowd pushes the girl forward, and she’s fighting.

“No! You can’t do this! I have immunity!”

“No. No you don’t,” Mrs. Rossi manages.

Lila pales. “...what?”

Her mother doesn’t respond, looking faint.

“I’m Gabriel Agreste’s future daughter-in-law! There’s no way-”

Chat interrupts, “Oh yes, that. We know all about that. The deal you made? We aren’t sure of the exact details, whether you made a deal with Mr. Agreste or with Hawkmoth who went after Mr. Agreste, but we know. Adrien was forced into that relationship, so there’s probably a few more charges to add to your list since you were well aware that he didn’t like you in that way.” “Sexual harassment isn’t okay,” Ladybug chimes in, “And surely you’re aware that’s what you were doing?”

At this point people have their phones out and are recording the whole thing. One of the people with stern faces steps forward, “Mrs. Rossi, you may want to come with us.”

She nods, following the procession weakly.

Ladybug and Chat take off. Soon enough, Marinette and Adrien slip back inside, showing up behind their friends, “Look who I found!”

Adrien waves awkwardly, though no one notices as he’s crushed in a tight group hug. He laughs happily as he returns the hug, it’s good to be back.

The moment he’s released, a yellow blur nearly knocks him to the ground.

“Hey, Chlo’.”

She hides her face, and while she may be silent, he can tell she’s likely crying. After about a minute or so though, she pulls away, looking as pristine as ever.

“Well, I say we get out of this place and away from these utterly ridiculous people.”

No one argues, and they head outside, quickly heading into the bakery. Adrien is ushered inside Marinette’s room where he’s bombarded with more hugs, everyone talking at once.

After they separate, they find their own spots to sit, and Marinette turns to the model, “So, what do you want to do?”

He hesitates, unsure, “Hmm… video games?”

“Yeah!” Claude cheers.

Marinette gets the stuff out and offers a controller to Adrien. Felix opts out, and conveniently enough, Allegra and Chloe are also left to wait. The girls sit next to each other, blushing lightly and pointedly not looking at each other.

Allegra’s hand lightly moves to rest over Chloe’s. She turns to look at their hands, then back to the braided girl beside her, who is suddenly very invested in the game. Chloe smiles, turning back to the screen as well.

Neither notice Felix sneakily taking a picture and sending it to the group chat.

---

Earlier:

Today’s the day! Alya is so excited for the competition! It’ll be fun to see Adrien perform, and maybe they can hang out afterwards. Lila has been an absolute godsend when it comes to convincing Gabriel to allow Adrien more free time.

It’s such a shame that she sprained her wrist again and can’t conduct the concert as she usually would.

Lila is nervous that all her usual bandmates wouldn’t be happy to see her, seeing as she ‘abandoned them’ so Alya is comforting her in an empty classroom.

“Lila, I promise, no one-”

The door opens.

She steps in.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

Alya can only stare, unprepared for this. Some traitorous part of her is happy to see her. Missed her.

Alya is disgusted with herself.

Lila shudders, attempting to hide behind her real friend. That’s all it takes to shake Alya from her stupor, she pats Lila gently and turns to her former bestie.

“What are you doing here, Monsternette?”

She sighs. “I’m here for the concert.”

Lila gasps. “I won’t let you harass my boyfriend!”

Alya’s heart goes out to her. Even when faced with Marinette. Her love and loyalty to Adrien shows no bounds. Alya is relieved that she is beginning to make progress. When it had been several months and Lila hadn’t seemed to recover at all from Marinette’s bullying, the class feared that the damage done was irreversible.

Marinette scowls, glaring at the two, as if they were the bad guys here. “I’m not the one harassing Adrien, and he’s not your boyfriend willingly!”

Oh she did not just-

Lila’s self-esteem is bad enough, and she’s confessed to Lila that she worries people will think she’s not worthy of dating someone as great as Adrien. Alya wonders if Marineitte was the source of that, because though they haven’t seen her in a while, it certainly sounds like something she would do.

“Just because you’re some jealous creep, doesn’t mean you get to attack my bestie like that!” Alya yells.

But there is no other explanation! Alya wants to shout. Why else would someone like Marinette bully someone like Lila?! Some part of her- some jealous part of her reached out and corrupted the rest of her, dragging that sweet girl that Alya once knew into some pit of cruelty.

Alya had been her best friend long enough to know that Marinette can go to extremes when it’s something she cares about.

Even if she shouldn’t care.

Even if it isn’t her business.

“Sure, so the fact that you’ve finally dropped the kicked puppy act has nothing to do with the fact that Adrien isn’t here?” Alya retorts.

The other girl looks at her incredulously. “What.”

“Please. Do you think we’re stupid? Everything you’ve ever done has been an act to gain sympathy.” If Alya had to tell the truth, she’d admit that she’d been… hesitant to believe at first that all of the nice things Marinette had done were just a ruse. Of course, now there’s no other explanation. People don’t just change personalities like a switch. If Lila’s testimonies were anything to go by, Marinette is not the girl they all thought she was. “Thankfully, we had Lila to open up our eyes. All those times you pretended to do nice things? They were all so that we’d like you, honestly-”

She makes good points, but it’s not like Adrien wouldn’t have found out! Then he would have been hovering over ‘poor Marinette’ for being injured! Lila had explained it! It made sense!

Or did it?

Alya opens her mouth to point this out, but Marinette cuts her off, “No! No! You do not get to downplay my feelings or how I was treated! Do any of you even realize how long it took me to properly heal from all that?!”

This time Alya does get a chance to point out the inaccuracies. “It was just a few bruises-” “Emotionally!” Marinette interjects, “I didn’t even think that the people hanging out with me regularly for months even considered me their friend despite how obvious it was until I heard them call me that when they didn’t know I was around! I spent months feeling like any slip up would cause a repeat performance of what happened here! Do you have any idea how tiring that is? The effects it can have on someone?!”

Oh god. Was it possible? Had they been wrong all along?! But… then they’d… Marinette had-

Lila whimpers. “N-nice story, but I’m sure A-Alya won’t fall for it the way L-L-Ladybug d-did.”

Alya scowls. She’s disgusted with herself for almost falling for that. “Of course not. Unlike anyone dense enough to like you wherever you go now-”

“I do not appreciate you insulting the entire population of the school we attend,” A vaguely familiar blonde boy interrupts.

Marinette’s face lights up at the three boys who have occupied the doorway. She rushes to hug them, and one of them speaks.

“Now, whether or not you’ll excuse us, we have better things to do than try and carve stone with a stick.”

And then they’re gone.

---

Lila had never understood why villains in stories were described as ‘cackling’ until she’d started doing this.

The pure power she feels every time she gets her latest sheep to turn against one of their own.

The way the target she chooses looks.

Utterly broken.

Completely destroyed.

It’s sensational!

It’s marvelous and she’s completely addicted.

It had been borne of boredom, but now it’s her very lifeblood. A high that never ends.

Until it does.

She’s stricken with horror, unable to do anything but stare at the projected images on the screen.

How?!

She’s been doing this for forever, and she’d never been caught by anyone other than a few insignificant brats. They’d been dealt with.

Her own mother didn’t even know!

And now…

Everything is fast forward and everything is slow motion.

The crowd pushes her forward and she finally remembers herself.

She is Lila Rossi. She’s made of stronger stuff than this! So she fights, because that’s all she has left. Pure animal instinct to kick and scream and shout.

“No! You can’t do this! I have immunity!”

“No. No you don’t,” her mother whispers.

Lila feels her remaining spirit drain away. “...what?”

At her mother’s silence Lila pulls herself together. Fine. So no diplomatic immunity. That’s fine. She can still work without that. She’s got her will. There’s always a way out. She is better than these imbeciles! They can’t just treat her like a commoner! A nobody!

“I’m Gabriel Agreste’s future daughter-in-law! There’s no way-”

Then Chat Noir speaks and all the rest of her hope disappears. She’s lost everything.

She doesn’t bother fighting anymore, submitting to the authorities.

There’s no use anymore. This is her end.

It’s all come crashing down.

---

Alya is next to Lila when it happens. The screen glitches and changes.

Everything changes.

Lila lied, and they all turned on Marinette.

Marinette, who had done nothing.

Nothing at all to deserve this.

Marinette who had done nothing.

Nothing to get back at them for all the pain they’d caused.

She’d just left them. Slipped out of their lives, and carried away like a leaf in the wind.

She had every right to be furious with them, and instead she just walked away.

Left them.

Alya knows she should be beyond pissed, though she’s not sure if it would be for Lila, or for what they all did for Lila, or even solely for herself.

And yet…

The guilt is what hits her first, and once it digs its dark claws into the pit of her stomach that’s all she can feel. Her heart feels torn to shreds and her knees can barely support her. With the guilt comes the shame, and it’s not nearly as potent but it’s just the cherry on top.

She’s not paying attention, because nothing matters right now because good god what did they do to Marinette?!

---

In a few hours time, Marinette and her friends are all decorating cookies in the kitchen.

One drops, and it breaks apart. Claude grins, and Allegra glares at them.

“Well, I guess-”

“Don’t. You already-!”

“-that’s just the way the cookie crumbles!”

Allegra sighs defeatedly. Adrien looks up. “What do you call it when you use a deer-shaped cookie cutter?”

Allan smiles. “What?”

“A cookie doe!”

Marinette and Allegra sigh. Felix just shakes his head.

“This is really friend-chip goals, huh?”

“Claude, these are sugar cookies,” Felix remarks drily.

“Hey, why did the Oreo go to the dentist?” Adrien turns to Claude.

They feign innocence as they turn to him, “Why?”

“To get his filling replaced!”

It’s almost impressive how many puns they get through without repeating while everyone finishes the cookies.

When the cookies are done, they turn on the TV, finding a news broadcast. Nadja Chamack is turning to the camera seriously.

“Shocking news in Paris today. If you’re just tuning in, you’re going to want to stay. During a musical arts competition at Collège Françoise Dupont, it was revealed that one Lila Rossi has been actively working with Hawkmoth himself for sometime now, doing everything from akumatizing herself, to manipulating others to be prone to akumatization themselves..”

“This is called karma, bitch!” Chloe cheers from where she and Allegra are sitting together.

“Language!” Adrien calls. The blonde only sticks her tongue out defiantly.

“Ms. Rossi is being held outside of the city pending investigation, but authorities assure us that this was investigated thoroughly before they made the public arrest. Ladybug and Chat Noir themselves assisted in the investigation, revealing that Ms. Rossi’s motivation was, in part, forcing Adrien Agreste to be her boyfriend. That’s right folks, Paris’ favorite couple has been revealed to be nothing more than an abusive relationship consisting of an involuntary victimized Adrien Agreste and a teen terrorist in the making.”

Everyone cheers at that.

“The Agreste brand has issued a brief public statement saying that they are unaffiliated with Hawkmoth, and that they were unaware of Ms. Rossi’s crimes. Adrien’s location is unknown. It is assumed he is taking a break from the media spotlight, and everyone agrees that after going through what is now known to be regular sexual harassment, he certainly deserves the break. Gabriel Agreste is under public fire for how Adrien was treated and some theorize he could be a close accomplice to Hawkmoth, if not the man himself. He is not the only one under fire though, as it was revealed that Collège Françoise Dupont allowed Ms. Rossi to get away with an astonishing amount of offenses while enrolled there. She faked disabilities, missed months of school with no real proof of where she was, and even caused one of her former classmates to leave the school due to the intense bullying she received while there. Speaking both as a mother and a friend of the child’s family, I am appalled that such behavior was not only allowed, but actively encouraged. Authorities assure us that investigations are underway - both into the school and the Agrestes, but many can’t help but feel that this is not enough. No amount of investigation can undo the pain caused by this individual.”

The broadcast continues, but the group tunes it out. Marinette sighs, “She’s gone. She’s gone and she won’t be coming back!”

“Finally.” Chloe rolls her eyes.

“It is a relief,” Felix comments, “that we will not have to deal with her nonsense anymore.”

“I’m glad that those awful classmates won’t have any reason to bother you now Mari,” Allegra sighs.

“About that…” Marinette raises a finger hesitantly. Allegra and Adrien look at her, while the other boys just frown. Chloe scowls.

“Yeah, they had a run-in before the performance,” Claude sighs.

“What did they do?” The two blondes say in unison.

“Nothing really,” Marinette shrugs. Adrien disagrees, if the way he hugs her tighter is anything to go by.

“We got separated and she ran into them in a classroom. Lie-la was up to her usual tricks, and Alya was defending her from Mari,” Claude starts.

“She held her own pretty well, but we got her outta’ there once we got there.” Allan smiles at the pigtailed girl proudly.

“Then she was hugged,” Felix states a-matter-of-factly.

Claude looks at Marinette meaningfully, asking permission. She understands and nods.

They sigh, “We also found out that Marinette didn’t think we considered her a friend for a few months.”

“Apparently, we were just being nice,” Allan remarks.

Allegra squawks, turning to Marinette, who is being held even tighter by the model beside her, “I will come over there and hug the low self-esteem out of you!”

“Already on it,” Adrien says. Marinette giggles as Allegra hugs her too.

Chloe is fuming, “Ugh, I think Queen Bee should come out of retirement just so Pollen and I can sting some people. Both of those wannabe faux foxes and their lackeys.”

Allegra turns to her, though still hugging her friend, “I think Honey Bee would be perfectly willing to do that herself.”

“I don’t think Kit Mime deserves to be compared to either of them,” Allan pipes up. Claude smiles.

“No superheroes are going to do anything to anyone,” Marinette reprimands. Adrien recognizes her Ladybug Voice™.

Chloe sticks her tongue out, “You’re not the boss of me. I’m also not hearing any protests to me just beating them up without the miraculous.”

Marinette glares at her.

“I don’t think you need to do much,” Adrien interjects, “I’m sure it won’t take much convincing for Chat Noir to pay them a visit.”

“These are all wonderful ideas.” Felix nods approvingly.

Marinette sighs in defeat.

---

Adrien and Marinette wave at everyone as they go, each with their own share of cookies (Chloe with extras for Sabrina). Marinette turns to him, “When do you have to-”

His phone rings, and he sighs, “Speak of the devil.”

She waits, watching. He keeps his face impassive as he hangs up and turns to her.

“Well?” “Father says that it may be for the best to ‘hide from the media’ here if it’s alright with your parents,” he reveals, grinning cheekily once he’s finished speaking.

She hugs him, “He’s basically bribing you with a sleepover, but right now I’m just glad that you get to stay over!”

Hurrying inside, she calls to her parents, “Maman? Papa? Can Adrien stay the night?””

Sabine pokes her head out from a doorway, “Of course, dear!”

That’s all Marinette needs to hear before she leads Adrien upstairs to her room hurriedly.

“If you’re not careful, I might just think you’re excited to have me over, Princess.” He smirks.

“I am! Usually you’re stuck in my room! Not to mention that you’re finally free from her.”

“I’m with her, Kid,” Plagg mutters lazily.

“I’m so proud of both of you! Both of you went through terrible things that you didn’t deserve at all, and you made it out without even being akumatized. You deserve a break!” Tikki chirps, “I’m so sorry you had to go through all that.”

Marinette smiles softly, petting Tikki until the Kwami smiles again, “It’s not your fault, Tikki.”

Tikki just looks at her mournfully, and the two Gods fly off to speak, giving their charges a break.

Adrien flops across Marinette, looking at her happily. She’s about to tease him when he slow blinks at her and she blushes lightly. He grins, then grins more when she returns the blink.

He snuggles against her, purring happily. She laughs, her hands finding his hair. They sit contentedly in silence for a little bit until Adrien notices Marinette drooping slightly, holding back a yawn. They’ve been sitting together for a while, his head in her lap while she scratches his scalp idly. She’s slowed, and stares forward blankly, blinking slowly every so often and seemingly just a few moments from dropping to the floor. She doesn’t realize she’s been found out yet, continuing to scratch where his cat ears would be.

He frowns, she wouldn’t normally hide being tired, unless-

“Marinette, I thought I made you promise not to overwork yourself,” he reprimands.

She flushes slightly, “What are you talking about? I’m fine.”

“You’re exhausted. When was the last time you slept, and how much sleep have you been getting most nights?” He sits up, studying her.

She slumps, knowing there’s no use trying to hide it. “I technically never promised. I just wanted to make sure that this went smoothly. For your information though, I slept last night.” She sticks out her tongue at him.

“How long?”

“...four hours. Three or less for the past week and a half?”

He gives her a look, and she just grins sheepishly. Shaking his head in feigned exasperation, he scoops her up into his arms. She kicks her feet, “Hey! I don’t need to go to bed, I can just sleep in tomorrow!”

“Yes, yes you do need to sleep now. I know how awful being overworked is, but you don’t have someone making sure you have time for sleep, so I will be doing that.”

She harrumphs, wrinkling her nose.

He reaches the top of the steps to her bed, turning and flopping backwards onto the mattress. The pair bounce slightly, and Adrien lets Marinette go to allow her to get into a more comfortable position.

“Oh, so you’re planning on just watching me to make sure I sleep?” Marinette teases.

Adrien shuts his eyes. “Nope. I’m a cat, so I’ll take any o-purr-tunity I can to nap.”

He knows she rolled her eyes, even if he can’t see her. She lies down next to him, huffing so he knows just how awful he is for having the audacity to make her rest properly.

After a few minutes, he feels the mattress shift as she carefully sits up, trying to go down and presumably work on some project. His eyes fly open, and he grabs her wrist. “Excuse you, I believe you’re supposed to be sleeping. I guess we’ll be doing this the hard way then.”

Before she can protest, he pulls her arm out from under her, catching her as gravity pulls her down.

“I’m not tired.”

“That’s because you’re being a stubborn baby bug.”

She scoffs, “Alley cat!”

“And proud of it,” he murmurs, pressing his face into her hair.

He leans against her pillows, dragging her with him so that she’s farther from the edge of the loft. Nestling her head under his, she reaches her arm over to give him a sideways hug. His other arm is wrapped around her back, and he carefully undoes her loose pigtails with his fingers. She hums appreciatively.

“I’m not tired you know,” she mumbles.

He just purrs louder, holding her closer.

She yawns, “Still… not…”

She never finishes the sentence.

Adrien grins, hearing her breathing beginning to even out. He rubs soothing circles on her back, trying to get her to rest sooner. He knows he was successful when her soft breathes line up with the pattern of sleep.

It’s not long before he goes the same way.

---

Author’s Note: There's a lot happening here, where do I even begin?

Anyone curious as to Lila's middle name? It means 'devil'. Very fitting.

Don't you love it when the resident supervillain is too busy doing PR to cause anything?

Sabrina is with her father, sipping her tea and watching Lila's world burn.

I sincerely hope you all enjoyed this long awaited chapter!! As I said in the beginning note, I'm not satisfied with it. Something just feels off, but who knows? I could be crazy! I hope this lived up to all the hype! 💖

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave any thoughts, theories, constructive criticism, or anything really in my ask box, in replies or through reblogs. I love seeing what you think!

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gloxinian · 5 years

Text

ik i talked to him abt wanting to still be friends but, after thinking a lot, i’m really not comfortable still talking to somebody that was that toxic to me fr so long. and ik posting this might not be the “classiest” thing to do but i feel like i have to get it off my chest bc otherwise a part of me is pushing to say “it wasn’t that bad” or to excuse it bc “well he apologized and said he wouldn’t do it again” even tho he kept doing these things and showed literally no signs of changing. and i’m so tired of entering these conversations and having it lead to no change or be twisted to be about pitying him. this isn’t really a callout or anything so i’m leaving his name out and there aren’t receipts or anything. it might sound trivial bc i’m starting with the small stuff and working forward but idk. i’m just tired and felt like i needed to write smth out.

im not sure the best way to word this, but i never felt like i could enjoy things or have things just fr myself. the only way i could talk abt things was if i was criticizing them or it was smth he loved. these are just a few things and alone each of them would just be annoying, but it all just compounded into making me feel miserable like i wasn’t allowed to love anything.

when i showed him a series that was very important to me, the first the he did was insult the art style, characters, story, etc.

when i started getting excited about pokemon swsh and the new pokemon, he immediately started mocking my favorite ones and sending me posts/articles talking abt how the game was going to be garbage, even after i asked him to stop.

when i got my first noise cancelling headphones and was excited abt how well they worked, he immediately told me that it was a good thing they were noise cancelling so i wouldn’t be able to hear him crying.

constantly glancing over my shoulder and making fun of what he saw me playing or enjoying. new game he doesn’t play? looks stupid/cheap/boring. not doing great? makes fun of me for doing poor even after i repeatedly tell him to stop.

and whenever he said something particularly upsetting like that headphones thing, he would immediately say “oh it’s an intrusive thought” or “oh it was just a joke” when i got upset and confronted him about it. and he’d immediately turn around and make the situation about him and how i should be pitying him.

the worst examples of this come from over a year ago when i was still in college. my depression was hitting me really hard bc i was back living at home instead of dorms, i was struggling really hard with classes, and had teachers that mocked me whenever i tried to ask questions. i was actively suicidal during this time and had repeatedly expressed worries to friends and family that i wouldn’t be able to support myself in the future, that i was a failure, and i felt like my only option was to drop out so i would have at least some control in my life. this was the lowest point i’d ever been. i’m going to list a few things that happened from smallest to worst and it’s important they all happened during this time. and he was aware this is how i was during this time.

he was friends with somebody that actively hated me. fine, not that big of a deal bc friends don’t always get along with boyfriends. but how this was handled was absolutely horrid. this friend insulted me whenever i spoke, even told me i shouldn’t talk period. he kept being friends with them and insisting we hang out more. that friendship only ended after (1) they accused me of being a pedophile bc i felt physically sick hearing ppl talk abt loli/shota stuff. and i was the only one who called this out for being so. fucked up. to call someone that for being distressed by even seeing cp terms. he only said he’d talk to said friend after i was incredibly/vocally upset abt this.

one night depression almost got the best of me and i stopped responding to any calls/texts/etc. said friend got annoyed he was scared i might actually be dead. this was the event that actually ended that friendship and honestly i’m mostly upset it took that friend literally not caring if i was dead for my boyfriend to actually give a shit how i was being treated.

he fucking. cheated on me. and told me how he was planning on moving in with the person he was cheating on me with “in case things didn’t work out with me”. he knew i was suicidal over being uncertain about my future and did this, even telling me he was cheating on me BECAUSE of me being suicidal and uncertain.

the worst thing for me is that ofc he managed to make this about him. maybe it doesn’t make sense for it to feel worse, but it does to me for some reason. last time we even spoke about him cheating on me, he went on and on about how he hurt he was bc he felt used by the person he cheated on me with. bc that person stopped talking to him after he told them he didn’t want to do sexual stuff anymore.

things didn’t really get “better” or anything once i graduated. if anything, they just got more stressful. i was still stressed at whether i’d be able to support myself, but a bit more stable now that i had a job and a degree. my ex moved in with the promise that he would be working to get a job so that he could support himself, grow confidence, and keep things equal. i don’t. have the energy to detail everything and don’t know if it’s right. but the short of it is that i constantly had to nag him to even send out applications and he didn’t even want to go to interviews. things got really stressful between us and it eventually came out (after i told him the relationship was unhealthy and unbalanced, that i had no desire to support him entirely as this was a source of extreme stress and a lot to ask of someone new to the work force, etc) that he expected me to fully support him financially and that was what he wanted.

he wanted me to fully support him financially, to take responsibility for improving his entire emotional maturity and recovery without taking any initiative, and to fully care for him once i got home from a full day of work (as i’ve been doing). there was never a “what can i do for you?” or any signs/desire for positive change. it was only “what are you going to do for me?”. the relationship was incredibly unhealthy, unblanced, and it was clear that i wasn’t a partner but a surrogate caretaker. and when i broke up with him, he accused me of breaking my promise to support him.

and i just. i’m tired. the whole relationship felt manipulative and unhealthy, looking back. i don’t know. maybe i’m wrong. but i just don’t feel comfortable continuing to speak to somebody who repeatedly put me down, treated me like an expendable resource, and targeted the thing they knew i was most vulnerable about (my own independence and being able to support myself) when he knew that had made me suicidal in the past.

i know we have some shared friends and he’s probably going to paint me like some villain to you guys. he already compared me to his previous abuser multiple times. i don’t want to start some stupid “war” or drama or whatever and won’t push back or argue or anything because i have a ton on my plate both health and financially right now. i don’t have the energy for stupid drama. maybe i included more details than i should have, but i also left out a lot of details because i’m not really sure how much is appropriate here since this isn’t a callout or whatever. there aren’t “receipts” since many of these things were personal interactions and i’m not looking to prove anything or make a callout. you don’t have to believe me or read this or idk.

i just wanted to get this all off my chest.

#ahritext #negative #long post

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splattershotsundae · 6 years

Text

Ink is Thicker Than Water --- Chapter 9: Are you Skwidding me?

Bato had been browsing his computer when he’d gotten his next text from Stacey. His last mission had been a few days ago, and he hadn’t told her he’d been discovered by Oana, and honestly he didn’t think she needed to know. Everything had gone well, perhaps better than planned, and now he didn’t have to worry about the secret getting out, at least in his own house.

What really concerned him was the contents of Stacey’s texts.

3: 4, I need you. 3: Suit up, then sit down. This is a lot to take in.

He quickly got to his feet and pulled his agent gear out of the back of his closet, texting her back when he sat down to put on his shoes.

B: Suited and sitting. What happened?

3: Someone broke into prison and freed a prisoner. From the sounds of it... It must have been Orvokki behind it. 3: Don't have the details of how, but that's not the concerning part. 3: I've narrowed down where she might have gone, but she won't be there for long, and we have three places to check. My old man's home, so he can watch -her- while I'm in the field.

B: Alright B: ... what's the concerning part?

3: You sure you can take it?

B: I asked to join you, didn't I?

3: She's taken Yuri.

He let out a strangled sounding gasp as he read these words, glad that she’d told him to sit.

B: What!? B: Why?

3: Don't know, can't be good. 3: One of the possible places she may have gone is our old warehouse. 3: apparently 1&2 got all the sensitive information out after the last raid, but then we abandoned it. She's high enough ranking she could have known about it, and it's out of the way.

B: Okay

3: Exercise extreme caution. 3: Switch to the official communicator when you're on scene.

B: Understood.

3: Good luck.

He took a deep breath and grabbed his brush and inktank before hurrying out of the house with only a rushed call to his mothers before he left. What could Orvokki be planning? Obviously she wanted to do more… water… ‘shenanigans’, but to what end? Revenge? Probably. He felt his throat dry, and wished he’d had the forethought to grab some water. He didn’t have time to go back now, and so he rushed to the train station.

---

The ride to walleye warehouse was full of many stares, and shushed whispers, but he did his best to pay them no mind as he sprinted for the agent’s warehouse. As he ran, he spied an old shipping crate, laying dejected off to the side. Was that the one he’d hid from the rain in? Dear Judd, it seemed like an eternity and a half ago that he’d been here after they’d met Hachi, but he supposed it had only been two, three weeks? Oh how much the world had changed. From there he was able to quickly find the warehouse, blending right in with all the others, except for the fact that it was borderline run down. He ran for the keypad, reaching for it… only to find that it had been broken off. This was less than ideal. He pulled out his sleek, new, agent communicator and fumbled for a moment while he tried to remember how to use it. “Agent 3? Agent 3 this is 4, I’ve reached the target location, but the keypad has been broken off.”

He was almost about to try sending his message again when Stacey’s voice crackled through the speaker. “That’s new, and probably a sign that you’re on the right track. Circle around the building, there’s a wooden crate counterclockwise from the main entrance which had a trapdoor under it, it’ll be quieter.”

"Got it." He said, jogging around the corner and up to the wooden crate, freezing when he saw that the crate was next to a trapdoor, and not on top of it. He knelt down to take a better look, bushing his hand over a metal pull ring which was embedded into the surface, next to another keypad. “What’s the code to get in?” He asked.

"The code on that keypad is 1376." She replied.

He nodded and entered the code, then grabbed the handle as it popped out, hauling up the heavy metal door with a slight grunt. Inside was a ladder leading down about eight feet, then at the bottom there was a sort of tunnel, so small that he’d probably only be able to fit if he squidded. He gave a quiet sigh, then carefully climbed down the ladder, allowing the trapdoor to close behind him, plunging him into darkness. He felt around carefully for the tunnel, then squidded and slipped through as fast as he dared.

Even has he felt like he was rushing, it was still agonizingly slow, with no way to gauge how fast, or how long, he’d been going. Eventually he heard a muffled sound above, like someone’s voice. A moment after he emerged into a small chamber like the one he’d come in from, and he found the ladder before climbing up and feeling for the exit. As he found the handle for the trapdoor and opened it a crack, he was finally able to make out the voices he’d heard.

"-ous about why? About how? You were a breakthrough!!" Shouted Orvokki. “You changed the world!”

"S-Stay away from me!!!" Yuri yelped. It was surprising how a voice he barely knew was so terrifying to him, and yet so full of terror itself.

"There's nowhere to run, all the doors are locked and broken. You're stuck with me." Ovokki continued.

"NO! I'M- YOU'RE-... I won't cooperate!! So.. Meghh!"

Bato carefully pulled himself out of the tunnel, lowering the trapdoor as quietly as he could, praying it would be quiet enough that Orvokki wouldn’t hear.

"I don't understand why you're being so modest about it." Orvokki said. "I can return your ultimate power to you!"

"I'm. Not. Why won't you just LISTEN to me??" Yuri said, on the brink of screaming.

He let out a quiet sigh of relief as the two kept talking, then carefully sidled along the crates toward where the two were talking.

"Think about how many people you could dominate!" Orvokki said. “You can overpower everyone who stands in your way if you would just HELP ME!”

“NO!” Yuri shrieked.

He peered around the corner, looking into the central area of the warehouse, where planning of many sorts used to take place. Instead a lantern was on on the central table, now otherwise barren, and Orvokki had cornered Yuri, advancing at him slowly. It was then that he realized he had no part 2 to this plan, he hadn’t asked Stacey what to do if he actually found them. Contacting her now might give himself away.

He looked up quickly as Yuri lunged at Ovokki, only for her to wrap her arm around his neck and flip him onto the ground. "That's not very nice of you. And after I offered you such generosity!" She exclaimed, giving him a small kick on his side. “You don't have a choice. You're going to help me. Do you understand?”

Okay, that was it, he had to act. Bato drew his brush and stepped forward, yelping as Orvokki immediately turned and pulled out a pistol. She fired, the shot arcing wide and hitting the crate wall behind him. “You.” She grimaced. “You’re the one who broke into my room...”

He pulled his brush close and ducked behind the wall of crates as she fired another shot, trying to keep his composure. “You’re the one who tortured my friends!” He called back, surprised at how firm he sounded, despite his legs beginning to shake as Ovokki’s tentacles began to come around the corner.

“So you are that one...” She murmured. “The one with the odd ink.”

He felt his ink run cold, swinging his brush instinctively as she came around the corner, but all he succeeded was in painting a line between them. In everything that had been happening, he’d forgotten about that.

“Well then… you’re a siren.” She commented as she leisurely aimed the pistol at him. “So tell me, where’s Ophelia?”

He kept his eyes fixed on her, slowly edging his foot into the ink he’d left, taking some solace in the idea of a quick escape. "She's safe, and that's all you need to know."

"Safe?" Orvokki gave a short chuckle, though there wasn't any amusement in it. "She's not safe, not as only as my sister’s on the loose."

He felt that chill again. “Onella, where is she? She’s still water, and out there!”

“You think I don’t know!?” Orvokki demanded. “You think I don’t know the trouble she’s causing out there with my tech!?”

“I mean… you might not.” He said, then yelped as she raised the gun to fie again, transforming and slipping into his puddle of ink while the bullet zipped overhead. That felt close. He changed back, slapping his bush down. "Dear Judd, you are a miserable shot, aren't you?" Now face-to-face with Ovokki, he found the barrel of the gun pressed against his forehead.

"Well, I'm not going to miss this time am I?” She asked. “Now… would you care to be more respectful?”

He took a shaky breath, thinking through his words carefully. “What are you planning? Why do you need… Yuri?”

“Hm.” Orvokki murmured. “How about I ask you this; Where is Ophelia?”

His breath caught, mind racing. "... Orvokki, they took her to protect her, from people who actually do want to hurt her. If you really care about her safety, you need to stop looking." He watched her even as he spoke, ready to squid if she so much as twitched.

"And I said, she's not safe. So you TELL ME WHERE OPHELIA IS." Orvokki shouted, tentacles changing... texture. Small bumps began to rise on the surface of her tentacles, like small ridges…

He didn’t have time to understand that now; he met her gaze, the gray steel circle eyes of the mask she was wearing. "... You're not the only one who wants someone to be safe." He growled, then squidded and swam quickly through the ink, cringing as another shot went off. He popped up behind her, grabbing the gun and pulling it from her grasp. Immediately after however, Orvokki’s tentacles lifted up and then grabbed his face, pulling him into relative darkness. Her font two tentacles wrapped around his neck, beginning to cut off his air.

"You underestimate my sister, squidling!" She exclaimed. “She knows exactly what’s going on, and she--” Bato took her opening to slam the butt of the gun down onto Orvokki’s head, causing her tentacles to pull away. He began to run, only for her to grab his arm and twist it backward so hard that the pistol slipped from his hand. He screamed, then felt her foot drive into his gut, and he crumpled to the floor, attempting to catch his breath through the pain. “YURI! WE’RE LEAVING!” She called, turning and running back into the clearing. “YURI!?”

Bato clutched his arm for a moment, then grabbed his brush and made himself stand and run after her, quickly catching up and swiping a puddle of ink at her feet. “You’re not going anywhere!” He grunted, then shoved the handle of his inkbrush at her, knocking her of balance and sending her sprawling into the puddle, getting rather stuck. Satisfied that he had a bit of time to get his barrings, he looked around for Yuri, frowning when he was nowhere in sight. Since he hadn’t run past them while they were fighting, there were only two places he could have gone; over the walls, or into the other half of the maze.

“You better be here when I get back!” He said, then touched his brush to the ground and ran into the maze, stopping in his tracks as he reached a fork in the crates. Here had to be some way to tell which way he’d--

“EEP!” He heard Yuri squeak, and saw him dart off around the corner down the right fork. He touched his brush down again and ran after him, he couldn’t waste any time, no matter how much his leg complained around his now mostly-healed stab wound.

As he turned the corner, he saw Yuri slip on a few loose pieces of newspaper, sending him sprawling to the ground in a heap. He flipped over as he drew close, beginning to crawl backward in a desperate manner, not breaking eye contact. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, It’s… it’s you! No no no!”

"Yeah, the feeling's mutual, kid." He said flatly, trying to keep as much of a ‘power posture’ as he could. "Come on, get up, we don't have time for this."

"I won't go back, s-she's crazy!!" He protested, eyes wide with fright.

"I know. Believe me, I know," He replied, casting a quick glance back over his shoulder. "My current plan isn't to take you back to her; hell, if it means she can't go ahead with whatever she's doing, I'd rather keep the two of you separated for as long as I can... And hopefully get a chance to talk to you before she finds us again."

"How do you expect me to trust you!?” He demanded. “Also; The squid sisters called and said they want their outfit back."

Bato’s eyes went wide in moderate horror; How had the Sisters-- oh. Wait. He was making fun of the uniform. He tried to cover up his moment of surprise, rolling his eyes. "Very funny, smartass… Look, it's either you behave, or I’ll tie the both of you up together, which I don’t think you really want.”

He cringed, raising his hands quickly. "Ok... Ok!" He slowly stood up, treating one of his arms a bit gingerly; perhaps Orvokki’d pulled a similar grab on him. "Doesn't mean I'm going to be happy...”

"Good, 'cause neither am I." He replied, then cast one more quick glance over his shoulder before pulling out his phone, he didn’t want Yuri to hear any plans they had for him. “Now sit tight for a moment, I have to talk to… an acquaintance of mine.”

“Whatever...” He mumbled, hunching over and breaking away his gaze.

Bato just huffed, typing as fast as he could without typos.

B: Found the targets, unsure how to proceed.

(NOT DELIVERED: RESEND?)

B: I currently have Yuri with me, however Orvokki is somewhere in the maze, I trapped her, but it’ll only last for so long.

He grimaced as he checked his signal; he’d forgotten how bad signal could be down by the coast. He waved his phone around in a vain attempt to get a stronger signal, then jumped and almost dropped it as a loud slamming sound echoed through the warehouse.

“EEP!” Yuri exclaimed, sticking both of his hands behind his back.

“What was that?” He asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

“What?” He demanded. “I didn’t make that sound!”

“But what are you hiding behind your back?” He pressured.

“It’s nothing!” Yuri said, taking a few steps backward.

{"Agent 4, do you read? Agent 4!"} Stacey’s voice rang out.

Bato blinked, then felt at his waist for his agent communicator, only to find that it was gone. "... What the hell, man?" He growled, holding out his hand. “Give it back!”

Yuri lifted up the blue and back communicator with a grin. "Oh, this?” He asked, then pushed down the talk button on the side. “'Agent 4' isn't here right now, can I take a message?" He snickered.

{"What? Who is this? What have you done with 4?"}

"Yuri, this is not the time!" Bato snapped, starting towards him quickly. "Do you want Ovokki to find us because you decided to screw around?"

"Is this your acquaintance? You didn't tell me she was a lady with a pretty voice." He teased, holding it as far away as he could. “I bet you wish you could talk to her!”

{"You're Yuri Sqwidd, aren't you?"}

As soon as Stacey said that, Yuri froze, and Bato successfully reached around him and snatched the communicator away from him. "I'm here, 3. I forgot how much someone likes to mess with things that aren't his.”

{"Can you flip him off for me? I was pretty worried there."}

"No problem." He said, doing so with his free hand.

{"Are you in a secure location?"}

"As secure as we can be for the moment." He replied. “I’m in the middle of the maze, with Yuri.”

{"So you found him. Has Orvokki been detained?"}

".. No, not yet."

{“That needs to be top priority. She's causing more than enough trouble and it has to stop."}

"Understood." He said, though he did cast a quick glance at Yuri; how was he going to keep an eye on him while he was taking care of Orvokki? ... Though, he didn’t know there was a trapdoor, and the maze otherwise was such a mess that it would be quite a feat if he got out of here.

{"I'm on my way to assist; Keep me updated, I’ll be there soon as I can."}

"Got it." He said, then put it back at his hip. “I suppose you heard all that?” He asked, looking back at Yuri.

“Maybe...” He huffed. "You are NOT going to use me as bait, I REFUSE!"

Bato hadn't really considered that... it was pretty tempting, if he was perfectly honest. "... If you were, though, I would be close enough to you that I'd be able to stop her before she got too... much more creepy." He pointed out. "If I left you here and went to find her on my own, I could be on the other side of the warehouse by the time she found you."

Yuri's eyes widened. "She gets more creepy!?" He asked, noticeably paling at the thought.

"Ooh yeah." Bato replied, then sighed. “We don't have time to just stand here. Are you going to help me find her or not?"

Yuri hunched his shoulders, kicking at a piece of newspaper on the floor."... Fine... But if she hurts me... You're.. you’re going to regret it!"

"I'll.. keep that in mind." He replied dryly, looking Yuri up and down for a moment before turning to the crate wall. "... First thing, we have to get to the center of the maze; then we can get an idea of which direction she went.”

“Fine...” He mumbled, hands still in his pockets.

He sighed, then began to follow his ink trail back, glancing over his shoulder multiple times to make sure Yuri was still following. Eventually he made it back to the center room, but Ovokki was nowhere in sight. He should have secured her better! “Stay here for a moment.” He told Yuri, walking toward the ink puddle to investigate… only to find that it was no longer one ink puddle, but several, spelling words out across the floor.

‘Marianas street X Puffer drive 00:00 Hide’

What? Was she telling them to... Damn it! He pulled out his communicator again. "3, she's gone."

There was a split second of silence. {"What?"}

"I'm where I stalled Orvokki and I don't see her anywhere; she left a message in the middle of the room and left." That bang they'd heard earlier... had it been a door closing? Shit, this was all his fault.

{"What's it say?"}

" 'Marianas street X Puffer drive, 00:00, hide'." He said. “She wants me to meet her it sounds like.”

{“She wants you to hide in a park at midnight, that doesn’t sound like a meetup, she didn’t even say to bring Yuri.”} Stacey said. {“Something’s not right about this.”}

“Yeah.” He agreed. “… I think I’m going to go.”

{“Are you sure? This is a risk we don’t have to take.”} Stacey said.

“This is going to give me a chance to capture Orvokki; I’m going to take it.” Bato said. “I let her get away, I’ll fix this. And even if I don’t catch he again, if it might give us an idea of what she's planning to do next, than I think it's worth the risk."

Stacey gave a long pause. {"Alright. Get prepared. Take a nap, scope out the area for good hiding places, get there -early.- We want to give her as little of an upper hand as possible. Keep the exact words of her message on a photo or written down, memory can be unreliable sometimes."}

"Understood." Bato said, then paused. "... What are we going to do about Yuri?"

{"We’ll take him back to jail."}

"You're going to WHAT?" Yuri yelped.

“Are you honestly surprised?” Bato asked. “Think about what you’ve done! Besides, Juvie’s not that bad, is it?”

”They won’t put me back in there!” He yelped. “I heard about what they did to Alison!”

“Who?” Bato asked, blinking a few times.

“She tried to get out and they put her in grown up jail!” He exclaimed. “Don’t take me back!”

He was surprised at the twinge of guilt he felt, he’d never expected to sympathize with… Yuri of all people. But for the sake of his friends, he decided that he needed to turn him in again. “Yuri, there are.. consequences for actions...”

“I was being good!” Yuri said. “She took me out! I didn’t do it!”

He took a deep breath. “… I’m just doing my job.”

Silence fell for what felt like several minutes before Stacey cleared her throat. {“Ahem, I’m still on my way to look for Orvokki, let’s start dealing with Yuri.”}

“… Yeah, on it.” Bato said, then clipped the communicator back onto his vest. “Come on, let’s go.” He said, pointing down toward the way he’d entered the warehouse, his other hand gripping his inkbrush threateningly. Yuri looked like he was going to protest, but then thought better of it and followed his directions, carefully edging around the ink puddles on the floor. Bato kept a constant eye on him, especially as they turned a corner. Up ahead the newspapers on the floor had been swept aside dramatically and seemingly in a frenzy, leaving the trapdoor clearly visible. Bato felt his hearts sink just a bit; this was certainly where Orvokki had left from. He gave a heavy sigh and bent down to open the door, urging Yuri to go ahead of him once it popped open. "There's a tunnel at the bottom, just big enough to squid through, and at the end of that there's another ladder and trapdoor that opens up on the outside.” He said. “Don’t try anything.”

“What can I try?” Yuri asked as he deliberately slowly began to climb down the ladder. “Oh no, He’s biting my face off! Help help!”

"Keep going, Skwidd." Bato sighed, then climbed down after him once he’d slipped into the tunnel, unable to keep from worrying that Yuri would in fact actually bite his face.

As he came out on the other end of the tunnel and changed back to humanoid form, his face slammed into the sole of Yuri’s shoe, and he had to stop himself from gagging. “Yuri, what are you doing?”

“Trying to open the door!” He exclaimed, perhaps a bit too loudly for this small of a space.

"There should be a lever you have to pull first." He said. "That unlocks it from this side."

"Yeah, I'm PULLING ON IT!" He snapped, voice strained from effort.

Bato almost suspected Yuri of trying to fake it, except that it... certainly sounded like he was really pushing on it. But why else would it--Oh... oh no. "She put the crate back over the door, didn't she?" He said quietly. “Get down before you hurt yourself, let me try.”

There was a jarring ‘clank’ sound, and Yuri yelped in pain. Looked like his warning had come a bit late. Regardless he climbed the ladder, pulling the lever, and then pushing his shoulder into the door as hard as he could, but it barely budged. He took a second to catch his breath, then pulled the communicator out again. "The outside door won't open, I think she might've put the crate back over it."

A sigh came through the communicator. {"I'll be right over. Hang tight."}

"Got it." He said, leaning back against the wall; he didn't trust himself to try and hook the communicator back on in the dark, so he just held it, faintly comforted by the dim blue light it gave off. "So, how much did Orvokki tell you about what she was planning to do? Why did she need you?" He asked, he might as well try to get info while he was here.

“Why should I tell you?” Yuri huffed. “I’m going to be stuck in jail forever anyway… But maybe if you let me go…”

"You seriously think I'm even going to consider that?" He demanded, carefully climbing back down the ladder. "A good part of everything that's happened is thanks to you, who knows what else could happen if I just let you go off into the world!”

“I won’t go back! You can’t make me!” Yuri said. His voice had some sort of edge to it which… he wasn’t quite sure what it was.

"You're not in any position to be making demands." Bato said, his voice rising a bit in volume. "Why did Orvokki need you?"

“I DON’T KNOW!” Yuri screamed, stomping his feet. “I don’t know who she is! I don’t know what she wants! I don’t know why she cares so much about what happened to me! I don’t know why she wants me to do that again, I don’t know ANYTHING!” He gasped for breath, and Bato frowned, lifting the communicator a bit, revealing long streams of tears flowing down his cheeks. “I don’t want to be around her…!”

He didn’t know what to say. He felt bad. For Yuri. Orvokki was quite the frightening person, he had to admit… but he was also still angry with him for everything he’d done. He finally decided to just keep pressuring him for information. He’d cracked, maybe he’d spill something. “You got us targeted by octarian soldiers, if you think I’m going to go easy on you, you’re wrong.”

“… I got you what?” Yuri sniffled. "... I've been in jail. How could I have done anything to you from in there?"

Bato sighed. "You got into my friends' heads after the octarians turned you to water. After that, they tried to find us, and sometimes tried to kill us.”

"Get off my back! I found out they did this to me half an hour ago, I didn't know that was going to happen!" He said, more tears flowing down his face.

“Yeah, I get that now.” Bato said. “It’s still a point of bitterness.”

“You just want to blame me for everything!” He exclaimed. “You want to feel good about yourself for putting me away! You want to feel good about what’s going to happen to me, because you’re a sick asshole!!!”

He gritted his beak, these insults hitting hard. Was he right? He didn’t break out, he shouldn’t be punished for that… but at the same time he felt a wave of guilt for even considering being sympathetic to Yuri; like he was betraying his friends. His friends, who would feel so much safer if they knew Yuri was doing time.

… Time which he didn’t deserve.

He began to feel dizzy. There didn’t feel like there was a right answer. “We’ll talk to 3.” He said, voice croaky. “See what she thinks.” She was his commander, wasn’t she? It was her job to make the choice.

“I hope you die!” Yuri sobbed, slumping to the floor and putting his face into his knees.

Needless to say, that reaction did not make him feel any better.

A few minutes passed… and then there was an ear-grating sound above them, and finally the trapdoor popped open. "Need a hand?" Stacey asked.

Bato glanced up, then wiped a bit of the wateriness out of one of his eyes. "Yes please."

“Don’t take me back to jaaaaail!” Yuri sobbed, finally looking up, rows of tears still falling from his eyes.

“I… told him you’d decide if he went back to jail or if we let him go.” Bato said.

“We’re not letting him go.” Stacey said, extending her hand. “I’ll handle this.”

Yuri sobbed louder, covering his face with his hands. Bato had to haul him up to the ladder to get him to start climbing, and he tried to pull away from Stacey as she took his hand and helped him up. “4, go home, find that address, and nap; you’ll need plenty of rest for tonight.”

“Alright, I will.” He said as he climbed the ladder, and then watched as Stacey began to drag Yuri away, still feeling twisting guilt inside of him. Stacey had made the choice, there was nothing he could do now without making things worse, and very awkward. He sighed, and started for the train station once more. He had a lot of work ahead of him.

---

“Where have you taken me?” Yuri sniffled, rubbing his face as ‘agent 3’ stopped outside of an apartment door.

“Shh! Keep your voice down.” She hissed, squatting down to look him in the eye. “My colleague and his friends hate you, you have to listen to me if you want to stay out of trouble, okay?”

Yuri nodded, sniffling again.

“You’re going to be living here.” She said, opening the front door of the apartment. “But you can’t leave, or else people are going to catch you. I’ll do my best to keep you happy, but you have to remain a secret to everyone outside this house, understood?”

“Yeah, understood.” He nodded, wiping his face on his sleeve as he followed her inside. “… Who’s that on the couch?”

“That’s just the Octarian queen, don’t mind her.” Agent 3 said, and then closed the apartment door.

Bato is Knitter’s character.

Stacey, Orvokki and Yuri are Shuckle’s characters.

Splatoon belongs to Nintendo.

Please consider liking or reblogging if you enjoyed, it’s nice to know we’re doing things right.

Shuckle has a patreon if you would like to provide additional support!

[<PREV] [INDEX] [NEXT>]

#Splatoon #inkling #Octoling #splatoon fanfiction #splatoon oc #SS Bato #BS Stacey #Octo Orvokki #misc yuri

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codematurgy · 7 years

Text

A guide to Tumblr Localization

English has been the default language around Tumblr; it is so overwhelming that you will often find theme makers typing cosmetic text or even phrases essential to navigating a blog in English, directly onto their codes. Such habit(one I once partook) seems to forget that blogs can actually be set to a multitude of languages, and such function will only work if coders play by Tumblr’s rule. Below, a guide to Tumblr Localization and a sometimes painful process.

Index

An introduction to localization

Localized theme strings

Language blocks

On setting your own localization

A few useful translations

An introduction to localization

The first contact anyone familiar to the Tumblr Documentation on Custom Themes probably had with localization was probably deciding between {NoteCount} and {NoteCountWithLabel}. The difference between these two variables is that the first one will display only the number of notes of the post it refers to, while the second one will display the number along with the word “notes”, which may appear as a singular “note” if the post only has one interaction. This little “notes” text, actually, will be translated to whatever language the user has set their blog to.

While it would only make sense to pick the second one for most designs, I always chose {NoteCount} and wrote “notes” directly beside it on my code. It was only years later when I realized that, well, not everyone wants their blog with random pieces of text in English when they’re actually blogging in another language; even more so if these pieces of text are essential to the blogging experience.

Tumblr has taken that in consideration when creating {NoteCountWithLabel}, and is also aware how much more can be done regarding localization. That’s why there is an entire documentation on that.

Localized theme strings

The most important page in the process of localization, unless you want to torture yourself with self-made localization, is the Tumblr Documentation on Localizing Themes. The actual text is quite short and mentions language blocks; these will wait for the following section as they’re mostly unused if you stick to this section and avoid potentially dangerous situations(such as translating dates).

Upon clicking this page, you will be introduced to a gigantic list of pre-made phrases—here called strings—for you to use on your theme, including even some I think none of us are using any time soon. Some of them already include links in themselves, such as strings regarding who you reblogged a post from. There is even a string for “Close”.

As pointed out at the top of the page, all these strings come with capitalization, but you can easily lowercase or uppercase them through styling.

Regarding this page, a last cry out: while it seems to not appear in the English version of it, other translations, such as the Chinese one, include an area to submit string suggestions for translations. Beware: it has not worked for me, not even after begging when sending a message to Support. If you do not wish to be frustrated, simply go and make your own translations, like I suggest in a later section.

Language blocks

Language blocks are most useful, or at least I believe so, when you’re looking foward to make your own translations. There are two different sets; the one used to show something when a certain language is selected, and the other for hiding things when they’re not in a certain language.

English {block:English}{/block:English} Deutsch {block:German}{/block:German} Français {block:French}{/block:French} Italiano {block:Italian}{/block:Italian} 日本語 {block:Japanese}{/block:Japanese} Türkçe {block:Turkish}{/block:Turkish} Español {block:Spanish}{/block:Spanish} Pусский {block:Russian}{/block:Russian} Polski {block:Polish}{/block:Polish} Português(PT) {block:PortuguesePT}{/block:PortuguesePT} Português(BR) {block:PortugueseBR}{/block:PortugueseBR} Nederlands {block:Dutch}{/block:Dutch} 한국어 {block:Korean}{/block:Korean} 简体中文 {block:ChineseSimplified}{/block:ChineseSimplified} 繁體中文 (台灣) {block:ChineseTraditional}{/block:ChineseTraditional} 繁體中文 (香港) {block:ChineseHK}{/block:ChineseHK} Bahasa Indonesia {block:Indonesian}{/block:Indonesian} हिंदी {block:Hindi}{/block:Hindi}

The second set looks essentially the same, except you add a Not before the name of the language in the block; for example, {block:NotEnglish}{/block:NotEnglish}.

Now, for using the language blocks, you would guess you should simply do something like {block:English}some english phrase{/block:English} and repeat the structure for every language with its respective translation, right? Well, it is half the job.

When we deal with language blocks, you have to point out to the page in which language the text will be written in; this is fortunately not required for default strings. To let the page know in which language it is written is done through a simple attribute add to the html tag: the lang attribute. In fact, the lang attribute can be used anywhere, but we are adding it straight to the html tag to guarantee its global use, like this:

To consult what language code(the abbreviations seen in lowercase) is to be used, you can check W3Schools' reference. The second bit in uppercase refers to the country, which is key for languages with many variations available on Tumblr, such as Portuguese and Chinese. For this, you can check this awesome reference on GitHub.

The use of these blocks are not limited to translations, though. I’ve mentioned on the previous section that you could code all your themes with the pre-made strings Tumblr offers without needing language blocks as long as you avoided complicated situations, such as dates.

The thing is, people do not tell dates the same way around the world. In fact, English seems particularly abnormal when I compare to my native language because it both prioritizes telling the month first(not specially dangerous) and insists upon using suffixes for the days of the month. In fact, Tumblr offers {DayOfMonthSuffix} to be put besides the day of the month, and it adjusts accordingly; however, it does not take in consideration which language is being used in the blog to decide whether or not the suffix will be displayed, causing it to stand near your date even though the language does not use any suffix.

And that’s why you could simply do something like {block:English}{DayOfMonthSuffix}{/block:English}.

On setting your own localization

First, you will want to add the lang attribute I've mentioned before. Otherwise, Tumblr will assume the page is in English and your translation will always be in this language.

Before you write down everything on Google Translate, consider using Tumblr to your favor. When I need something translated, I search through the pre-made strings for something similar, then I put it on a test blog; I keep changing the blog language, check the translations, copy them and adapt. If you can't find it on the strings list, try Tumblr itself: you can also change the language of your dashboard.

A few useful translations

These translations have been extracted from Tumblr since they're not available on the localization page and should be quite useful.

"Reblog" {block:English}Reblog{/block:English}{block:German}Rebloggen{/block:German}{block:French}Rebloguer{/block:French}{block:Italian}Reblogga{/block:Italian}{block:Japanese}リブログ{/block:Japanese}{block:Turkish}Yeniden Blogla{/block:Turkish}{block:Spanish}Rebloguear{/block:Spanish}{block:Russian}Реблог{/block:Russian}{block:Polish}Rebloguj{/block:Polish}{block:PortuguesePT}Reblogar{/block:PortuguesePT}{block:PortugueseBR}Reblogar{/block:PortugueseBR}{block:Dutch}Rebloggen{/block:Dutch}{block:Korean}리블로그{/block:Korean}{block:ChineseSimplified}转发{/block:ChineseSimplified}{block:ChineseTraditional}轉格{/block:ChineseTraditional}{block:ChineseHK}轉載{/block:ChineseHK}{block:Indonesian}Reblog{/block:Indonesian}{block:Hindi}रीब्लॉग करेंे{/block:Hindi} "Like" {block:English}Like{/block:English}{block:German}Liken{/block:German}{block:French}J'aime{/block:French}{block:Italian}Mi piace{/block:Italian}{block:Japanese}スキ{/block:Japanese}{block:Turkish}Beğen{/block:Turkish}{block:Spanish}Me gusta{/block:Spanish}{block:Russian}Нравится{/block:Russian}{block:Polish}Lubię{/block:Polish}{block:PortuguesePT}Gostar{/block:PortuguesePT}{block:PortugueseBR}Curtir{/block:PortugueseBR}{block:Dutch}Vind ik leuk{/block:Dutch}{block:Korean}좋아요{/block:Korean}{block:ChineseSimplified}喜欢{/block:ChineseSimplified}{block:ChineseTraditional}喜歡{/block:ChineseTraditional}{block:ChineseHK}喜歡{/block:ChineseHK}{block:Indonesian}Suka{/block:Indonesian}{block:Hindi}पसंद करें{/block:Hindi} "Unlike" {block:English}Unlike{/block:English}{block:German}Entliken{/block:German}{block:French}Je n'aime plus{/block:French}{block:Italian}Non mi piace{/block:Italian}{block:Japanese}スキ解除{/block:Japanese}{block:Turkish}Beğenme{/block:Turkish}{block:Spanish}Ya no me gusta{/block:Spanish}{block:Russian}Не нравится{/block:Russian}{block:Polish}Nie lubię{/block:Polish}{block:PortuguesePT}Deixar de gostar{/block:PortuguesePT}{block:PortugueseBR}Curtir (desfazer){/block:PortugueseBR}{block:Dutch}Vind ik niet meer leuk{/block:Dutch}{block:Korean}좋아요 취소{/block:Korean}{block:ChineseSimplified}取消喜欢{/block:ChineseSimplified}{block:ChineseTraditional}收回喜歡{/block:ChineseTraditional}{block:ChineseHK}收回喜歡{/block:ChineseHK}{block:Indonesian}Tidak Suka{/block:Indonesian}{block:Hindi}पसंद हटाएँ{/block:Hindi}

Updates

[02/01/2019] I found out the language blocks for Chinese and Chinese(Taiwan); also included translations for unliking a post, with an alteration to Portuguese(BR) to make it match the liking version because otherwise I'd be mad at it.

At last, a big thank you to user kkga on Github for this Tumblr blog template that made me understand how to make localization is set. Thanks also to user jack 321 on the Microsoft Forums for this post that made me realise what the Chinese and Chinese(Taiwan) language blocks where.

This post will most likely be updated if new languages arrive or if I wish to add more to the translations section.

#localization #tumblr localization #tutorial #tumblr themes #resources #codematurgy code

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izzy-b-hands · 6 years

Text

K screw it we’re talking about the TV show. I have an idea of a title, but it isn’t set in stone, but maybe I can tag it with that, so if you don’t wanna see this stuff you can blacklist it?? Y’know what, let’s go with this one: ‘aly’s show in progress’. I searched it first to make sure it doesn’t coincide with anything else on here as a tag, lol.

If you guys read this all (and it is a lot, lol) and wanna talk about it, have thoughts, or just like the idea of it and wanna let me know, please do. Any feedback on this baby of mine makes me so happy.

Also, I’ll throw the rest of this behind a cut so if I ramble it won’t take up as much room for y’all.

Guys if I had a way to make this now, I so would. I even have bits of soundtracks ready to go (orchestral backing tracks--the theme song I keep hemming and hawing on who should create it, but probably not me, lol.) I know they say don’t share your stuff in progress, but right now this is such a far shot from ever being produced that I feel safe in talking about it (also because like with all my other works that I have planned to sell or produce, I’m getting copyright on just to be safe.)

So to be honest, I can’t recall how much I’ve written about it on here, and it is 12:30 AM and I can’t be bothered to search my own blog so we’re starting from scratch.

Working title is Liminal Space--a show about people who have no reason to be together in the place they are, but that’s where they’ve ended up. For now, they can’t seem to leave (that’s elaborated on further in the series) and why would they--when food is somehow replenished, and money isn’t a concern to survive. Sure, the woods sometimes glow and strange people and creatures keep showing up, but every place has something weird, right?

Specifically, we focus on a set of adult characters-names come about within the first few episodes, but in the credits they are noted as their roles in what is essentially a drive thru town-an abandoned school, a two-level hotel/restaurant set up, a wildly unnecessary car sales lot and building, an abandoned cabin, woods, and a haunted house that magically appears one day. All of this facing a highway (the haunted house on one side of it, everything else on the other.)

Our main cast consists of:

The Kids--A boy and a girl, about six and ten respectively. They are literally found by the Waitress one day near the highway, and since no one appears to claim them, the town just sort of adopts them. This means everything from home schooling them about a world that no one else really remembers for sure, plus keeping them safe from the weird shit that goes on in the town. Is it a lot for two kids? Yeah, but they could have been dead on the edge of the highway, so things are pretty good overall for them. Not sure on who to cast for these either, since young kids might outgrow the roles pretty quick--plus they might not be in every episode, if only to allow for some scarier plot lines and more serious topics to be addressed. They end up rooming in the haunted house, via a secret tunnel and a plot line in one of the very first episodes.

The Waitress--unsure of cast member. It keeps rotating between various actresses and musicians, to be honest. She works at the restaurant/hotel, despite it never really having customers (except for a few episodes with guest stars.) Nobody questions how or why they keep it running--it gives her something to do, and she gets to chat up the Pianist (which is a big Plot Point later on in the series so I will only elaborate so far here lol.) Rooms at the restaurant/hotel, in whatever room will open each night (the keys to all the rooms aren’t always there.)

The Pianist--Johannes. In part because I have no clue if he can play piano or not, but if he can’t then we get a silly in-joke here that the Pianist is supposed to play at the restaurant/hotel where the Waitress works...but then we never see him play it. This character is a lot of dry wit, and I feel like he’d carry that well. Rooms in the restaurant/hotel, sometimes in an actual room, sometimes under his piano on the floor if he’s writing music and no one (read: the Waitress) puts his ass to bed.

A quick key thing to note about any cast members--they don’t have to change how they look outside of the show, aka no band members have to chop off their hair or anything like that to play their role. What they look like outside the show, is how their character appears.

The Teacher--Henrik. He’s a little bit quieter a person, just like this character. He also seems to have a knack for reactions (aka every photo of him making a face or video of him rolling his eyes dramatically suggests he’s someone who can actually use his face to act and not overdo it.) That’s what I want from this character--when shit’s going down, he’s the book smart person in the room; he’ll help look up and figure out a solution, but we get to see him rolling his eyes or giving us some reaction that suggests he isn’t doing this passively (I also have some choice sarcastic lines for him--the ones that aren’t supposed to hit you until a beat has passed, then you and the other characters realize they just got burned horribly.) He is the one who gets to try and home school The Kids, despite only have a few books to work with--but he’s smart enough to teach them a lot of things without text books, and generally dislikes the ones they have since a. half of them are out of date and incorrect or b. show info from a universe that isn’t theirs and so aren’t useful. Rooms in the abandoned school, which he often makes repairs to himself (because they can’t exactly call out for a contractor to do so, and because he’s got the brains to not just fix but improve the building with what he has on hand.)

The Man Out of Time (aka yes, a time traveler)-- John. I can’t quite explain why he feels like the best fit--the character came into my head, already as John. I can’t explain this character’s full deal without giving a full ep synopsis, but to give some summation--to save the town, he sacrifices his ability to travel back to his time. He’s a straight up good guy; he wants to help these people even though he ended up in their time and town on accident and barely knows them. He ends up residing in the abandoned cabin, as a happily accepted new neighbor. He’s a nice guy, plus that’s one more person to make sure The Kids aren’t accidentally killed by like, an inter-dimensional squid or something--that’s a nice bit of stress alleviation for all the other adults.

The Car Salesmen--Jack Black and Charlie Day. A set of very panicky brothers, selling cars that have never worked (like, they literally have no engines or wheels...) But they insist that they are needed, and that the cars will work, when It comes for them. What is It? Why should they fear It? All anyone gets is panicked laughter as an answer, so they just roll with it all. Besides, who doesn’t like window shopping, even if the cars aren’t necessarily something you could ever use or buy? Everybody tries to be accepting and calming towards these two, who are almost always convinced that It is on the way. They mean well, the poor things. They room in the building of their car sales lot--there aren’t any display cars in it, so they can keep sleeping bags on the floor.

The King--I swear to god, I thought up this character before Avatar Country came out. It is a pleasant coincidence that Kungen is who I chose for this role (in part because I mean...his nickname literally means The King. As of Avatar Country’s release, we have proof he is a good king. Why not keep a good thing going?) And he is literally a king--who shows up one day, claiming to be king of their town (that is really barely even quantifiable as a village.) No one knows what to make of it, so they roll with it, because he doesn’t actually make them act like much of subjects--he might ask for food randomly during the day from the Waitress, or ask them how the ransacking of neighboring towns is going (it isn’t, because no one ever leaves the town, but he never seems bothered by that.) Otherwise, he just likes to hang out and ask everyone what they’re doing and educate them on the Royal History--how and why he became king, what he’s done as king, etc. For a king, he’s down to earth and just likes to visit with people. Maybe he’s lonely--they’ll never know for sure. Rooms wherever he feels for each ep he’s in--but ends up a lot a the hotel/restaurant, as it has the most rooms of any building in town. Technically a series regular, but yet not--kind of like the Kids, in that sense. This is subject to change as I keep writing though; he’s ended up in a lot of eps so far, lol.

The Waiter--Tim. Can’t fully reveal this character’s deal without major spoilers, but he plays a big part in the Waitress’ story arc (a no duh, per the character title, lol.) I needed someone who has good natural humor, good comedic timing, and can do good impressions (for a few episodes particular story arcs.) That, and someone who seems like they’d be up for a character with a weird backstory--not a bad one, The Waiter isn’t a villain, but it is a complicated one. Once he’s in the town though, things are good--and his character is well-liked, for a whole variety of reasons that again, if I elaborate on more I give away a bunch of Big Ass Plot Points. So maybe later, lol. Rooms at the hotel/restaurant, and works there too once his character is introduced.

The Doctor--Brendon Small. Catchphrase is “I dunno, I’m not a doc...wait, I am. Still, I dunno.” A very tired physician who drove in one day to catch a cup of coffee after driving all night, then found after he left the restaurant his car was gone. One of the only citizens who isn’t wholly chill with being perpetually stuck in the town--he can sense something’s up with this place, but he can’t quite explain it. Despite his catchphrase, is actually a very good doctor--sometimes possessing knowledge of how to heal things he’s never seen or dealt with before, which kinda freaks him out. Rooms in the abandoned school with The Teacher--which leads to occasional shouting arguments between them, if only because you can’t always put two very smart and active minds together like that with time to spare to talk, and expect them not to argue over some things (like what the town would do if a plague rolled through, why don’t the Kids seem to grow at all, etc.) Despite this, they do enjoy each other’s company, really.

Guest Stars consist of so many--like so many you guys. I can’t fully explain these all without giving away full episodes, and some I can’t even mention yet, so a lot of these are gonna be a bit of a mystery unless any of you guys want to message and talk plots:

The Drifter--Rob Zombie

The Pianist’s Brother--Ville Valo

The Fixers--the McElroy brothers, because these characters require chaotic weird energy and a variety of personalities, and I think they would have all that covered very well. What do they fix? Well, if I told you that I’d be giving something important away.

Slash--as himself. Yes, really. He’s baffled as to why he was given directions (incorrectly) to this place, when it was supposed to be directions to a regular gig.

The Skeleton in the Closet--Tobias, but in Papa I gear (provided he agrees to ‘reanimate’ the papas for this lol.)

The Priest--Tobias, but in Papa II gear. Shows up to try and fellowship with them (for Lucifer, of course.) Ends up a bit disappointed and confused--not because they refuse to believe, but because he’s informed he just missed Lucifer by about five years. Its a fun episode, this one.

The Flirt--Tobias, but in Papa III gear. Literally just Papa III being lost and utterly useless at reading a map to find his way elsewhere. Takes a liking to all the adults, aka all the adults are getting hit on (but will he actually sleep with any/all of them? That’s a secret for that particular plot synopsis.) Eventually gets on his way, but is missed.

The Pied Piper--Tobias, as the Cardinal. Playing along with the Rats thing here a bit. But he doesn’t lead the Kids, nor rats out of the town--what is it then that he takes with him? Another Plot Point to remain hidden for now.

The One of the Woods--Doug Jones.

The Trickster--Taika Waititi. This isn’t even really a role, I’m more or less just asking Taika to come have fun for an episode and vamp it up.

There’s more guest stars I’d love to note here, but if I do I again risk major spoilers that I’m not quite ready to give up, lol. More to come later, perhaps.For now, yes, three out of 12 are technically the same person. Tobias would hopefully be up for all of that, lol.

Setting: Ideally, somewhere in Sweden, since by the time I get this anywhere near production I’ll hopefully have been living there for years. May as well keep it local, plus there are certain locations out there that I have in mind and want to use. But I’m open to other places--so long as it is appropriately creepy and deserted like. That is to say, the highway this town is by is only rarely busy. Otherwise they barely see cars, and the few they do see rarely stop. So essentially an abandoned highway is what I need, lol.

I could go on here (even just about the soundtrack I’m working on) but I’ll stop because I think this is getting long. Like I said before, if anyone has feedback, or any interest in this and wants to talk about it--you’ll make my year if you let me know! If not, that’s cool too, but I’m sick of letting all this rattle about in my head--I want to share it and talk about it, even if I can’t make any of it happen right now!

#text post #Alyssa talks about her writing #aly's show in progress #Avatar and Ghost fans that follow me #hit me up on this lol #I doubt any of my dream cast would ever agree to this show #but I can hope right?

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flowerconcept-blog · 7 years

Note

Hi! Can I request a thug/gang Jung Taekwoon AU? Thank you 💓

here u go angel!!! hope this is ok!!! i also incorporated @mamamochi‘s req for secret flowers, it is a really small part of this but i hope that’s alright! 🌸💐🌹🌺🌷

gang!leo

taekwoon is the right hand man in the gang, but honestly he’s even more scary than the leader hakyeon. because at least hakyeon smiles……….. taekwoon does not smile. ever. at least not in public

when the gang started out it was really about money because they needed money but once it picked up taekwoon kinda fell into the role and became a lot stonier whereas hakyeon and jaehwan (the other main man) stayed mostly the same

he’s only ever seen wearing black and usually wears a white face mask and has dark circles from not sleeping well everyone (who isn’t vixx) in the gang is petrified of him, it’s been said that once a rival gang member heard the name “jung taekwoon” and that was all it took to get info out of them

hyuk is still sort of scared of him. he pretends that he’s over it but one time taekwoon tapped hyuk’s shoulder and he shrieked

his role in the gang is a lot of planning w/ hakyeon but he’s also really strong and tall and yknow terrifying so he’s been known to interrogate rivals and also sometimes do some physical damage to them

but you don’t know any of this!!! you only know the jung taekwoon who comes into your bakery with his niece and sister once every couple of weeks

because taekwoon may be a big scary gang member but he loves his family and he especially loves his little niece minyul, so he and his sister and niece spend a lot of time together and it just so happens that you run a bakery right by his sister’s apartment and minyul loves it

and he doesn’t talk to you other than ordering their food but you’ve sort of been entranced by this mysterious man since he first came in

because at first….. he looks scary, in his steel toed boots and heavy black wool coat and dark eyes, but when he talks to minyul (you know her and her mom because they’re regulars) his face gets soft and it’s like his whole persona shifts

and you can’t help but think that it would be nice to be on the receiving end of that sweet stare, plus it doesn’t help that he’s so handsome and has such a nice voice and carries himself like a prince

you feel silly, but whenever he comes in your heart picks up a little….. you tell yourself that it’s not like he knows so who cares

but he knows!!! because he has to notice when people are staring at him he can’t miss that sort of thing, it might get him killed

at first taekwoon is pretty sure that you’re a rival spy and are undercover to kill him because why else would you be staring like that??? but when he tells hakyeon about it hakyeon is like, “idk why they must be crazy but it sounds like they think you’re cute”

taekwoon is like: sounds fake but ok

but over time he picks up on things, like you always fumble with the plates when you clean them up from one of the tables and your hair usually has a bit of flour in it and either you’re really good at pretending to be a klutz or you’re actually a klutz, and a klutz would not make a good spy

it’s not like he’s watching u though……. he just…….. has to make sure you aren’t trying to kill him (hakyeon somewhere is laughing at this dummy)

one night you’re walking home from work and you hear footsteps behind you and at first you don’t think anything of it, but it’s been three blocks and the footsteps keep getting closer and you’re starting to get nervous

it happens in a split second but suddenly a hand is around your mouth and pulling you into an alley and at the same time you see taekwoon coming out of an apartment building from across the street(he was visiting his sister) and before the creep who pulled you into the alley could even take a breath ……..

u thought taekwoon was gonna be ur knight in shining armor???? sike, you took self defense classes for a reason!!!!! you bite down hard on the creep’s hand and bash the back of your head into his face as hard as you can

by the time taekwoon arrives the dude is cradling his bloody nose and looks like he’s about to grab you before you can pull pepper spray out of your bag

but then taekwoon steps in and decks him in the face and he literally

knocks him out with one hit???? and you’re like ???????????? before he looks at you and instinctively you’re like “i could’ve taken him”

and taekwoon is looking at you like you’ve grown a second head, here he thought you were just a klutz but it turns out you’re a klutz who can break a man’s nose?????

before he can say something you stumble a little bit and ur like hey should the world be spinning???????????can i sleep here?????

taekwoon’s like……….. no you probably have a concussion

hakyeon had told him he had to go pick up jaehwan but looking at you he knows that there’s no way he’s willing to leave you like this (because you remind him of a drugged puppy or something…. not because he thinks you’re cute and wants to take care of you…….)

so he mumbles “come on” and takes your hand (if you weren’t yknow just concussed you would pull away immediately but as is….. it’s happening) and brings you to where his car is and fastens your seat belt and is like. ok please stay awake i’m taking you to the hospital

but you already look like you’re dozing off so taekwoon has to fr*cking talk to you the whole 20 minute drive to the hospital to keep you awake, and if it was anyone else it would be the worst but your sweet little “mhms” to his stories about minyul make it slightly okay

but he would rather DIE than admit that

so you get to the ER and for some reason he gives the staff a fake name and waits by your bed until the doctor comes and runs some tests and is like “looks like it’s a very minor concussion, your s/o will be fine!!!!” and taekwoon is like … they’re not…… but the doctor has already dipped

he tries to get your address out of you but you’re practically asleep at this point and since the doctor said it was okay for you to sleep taekwoon is like fml guess i’ll take them home

when taekwoon walks into the big fancy apartment he shares with hakyeon with you clinging to his back (you refused to wake up and he had to CARRY you inside) hakyeon’s like …… literally wtf

taekwoon just sighs and puts you on the couch then brings out a blanket for you

because like…….. ur cute but ur not cute enough to get his bed……….

you do this thing …. where he tucks you in and is going to leave but your hand curls into taekwoon’s shirt trying to pull him closer and his heart STOPS and he blushes but he just gently gets you off of him and heads to bed because its like 1am at this point

he explains the deal to hakyeon first tho because otherwise he would get murdered

hakyeon is not amused ™ at first but when you wake up in the morning confused as hell he offers you breakfast

and honestly he finds it sorta cute because he’s never seen taekwoon blush before and it’d probably be good for the guy to date, maybe people will stop thinking he’s a psychopath

anyways when taekwoon wakes up and ur like um thank you so much for everything but also i gotta go home i called an uber he’s like…… give me ur phone

and u do because why not and he puts his number in and is like. text me when you get home and has to resist the urge to kiss you when you stammer and duck your head to hide your blush

it takes taekwoon like a whole month to work up the nerve to ask you on a real date (when it takes him .0001 seconds to get info out of a rival???) but during that month he like….. secretly sends you roses at your work labelled “from your admirer” and texts you every day asking if you’ve eaten and how you’re feeling and you’re practically head over heels by the time he asks you out to dinner

he takes you to a super fancy restaurant and when u see him in his fancy outfit (black blazer black fitted shirt tie black slacks) u……. gape and he’s like “what?????” and ur like “NOTHING”

he kisses you after seeing you to your apartment and you highkey invite him in but he just smirks and goes “next time”

(next time he does take you up on the offer)

there’s a month of honeymoon bliss and taekwoon is literally the perfect boyfriend except he has to leave at weird hours and sometimes he picks up your calls and is extremely cryptic and also what is his job???? and also why had he given a fake name at the hospital?????? and part of you knows something is up but you aren’t about to ask because you’ve fallen in love with him and as long as he isn’t getting hurt that’s okay

until one day he comes to your apartment with a black eye and split lip and you’re like. ok i have ignored weird things so far but That’s Enough What the Hell is Going On

taekwoon’s first instinct is to get angry but he’s also in love with you so he swallows that down and runs a hand through his hair and is like……………………… i’m in a gang…….

a long long long argument/conversation ensues and it ends with both of you tearfully confessing your love and he kisses you so so so softly and keeps murmuring he’s sorry until you finally fall asleep all tangled up in his arms

after you find out your dynamic is much different, you insist that he tells you what he’s doing when he’s able to and that he’s honest with you and you also insist that he does his best to avoid being hurt and to avoid hurting others

when he does come home hurt you kiss his bruises and bandage him up and he softly sings you to sleep so you don’t get upset

he pretty naturally starts to stay over at your place rather than his because you don’t have a roommate and also that way he gets to sleep with you engulfed in his arms

all of his closest friends know you and hakyeon likes to tease taekwoon for the way he goes soft for you but they’re all really grateful because you bring out the kind side of him that they worried was going to disappear

taekwoon in all black and you in a breezy white sundress at the beach: aesthetic

minyul calls you auntie!!! and whenever taekwoon sees the two of you interacting he thinks of raising a child with you and when he tells you that the first time you cry

he doesn’t pda much but he likes to hold your hand to remind himself that you’re there, and in private he always wants to have some contact with you, even if it’s just his hand in your hair, to know that you’re real and haven’t left him

eventually, a couple years after you meet, he leaves the gang and proposes to you and the two of you settle down to start a family and are incredibly domestic and love each other with your whole hearts

#vixx scenarios #vixx imagines #leo scenario #leo scenarios #leo imagines #taekwoon scenarios #jung!taek!woon!#i think im gonna reply to asks w/ the scenario to make things cleaner!!! hope u guys like it #💌

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irphanfic · 7 years

Text

Moonshot - Chapter 7

I’m back! I don’t know how I managed to finish this chapter this week but somehow I made it so I’m pretty happy!

Hope you enjoy it and any type of feedback is welcome!

summary: Phil had a feeling that this Friday was going to be different.

That didn’t mean he was ready to meet his favourite baseball player, Daniel Howell, while he was cleaning the windows of a building.

or the au in which Phil is a shy window cleaner and Dan is a famous baseball player. This is their story.

words: 4.1k

no trigger warnings

Read on ao3 - (x)

Chapter 1 // Chapter 2 // Chapter 3 // Chapter 4 // Chapter 5 // Chapter 6

Chapter 7 - Between Books

Phil was in heaven. He was sure he had died and gone to heaven the moment Dan and him kissed in the jellyfish’s room. And then again in the manta ray hallway. And then back at Dan’s doorstep, where he could tell both of them hadn’t wanted to say goodbye.

He had enjoyed seeing Dan in such a carefree mood, smiling the whole time, his eyes sparkled everytime a new fish appeared in his line of vision; relaxed from his baseball player ‘persona’. Even though Dan was pretty honest when it came to fame, Phil was sure there were some traits about his personality that he hadn’t been able to show the world, and this was one of them.

Dan also opened up about his childhood, about how being a professional baseball player had never been in his future plans but he could have never asked for more, how he likes to go back home and see his family and dog but cannot as much as he likes to and a few other things Phil was sure very few people knew about Dan.

It had been such a perfect first date it was unbeliveable and Phil was glad he had managed to capture some of it. They both had taken pictures of sea creatures they’d spotted, but more than once Phil was drawn by Dan’s presence, just looking at his backside or profile contrast with the blueness of the tanks that Phil couldn’t resist and took a few pictures without Dan noticing. He even sent them to Dan after their date, hoping he wouldn’t be mad at Phil for taking them without permission, but Dan was fine about them (even thanking him with some heart and fish emojis) that he even posted a picture on his Instagram, not giving any hints about his date but clearly making everyone see this 'new’ side of him.

Speaking of photos, at first, he hadn’t thought about the fact that their privacy could be invaded by photographers or press, just being happy next to Dan was enough. But what if being spotted with someone like Phil was bad for him? Dan had always dated other famous people and Phil was just… Phil. A window cleaner slash wannabe author. Either way, Dan reassured him that it was fine, as long as Phil was comfortable, of course.

Phil was glad Dan took into account his shyness. He wasn’t sure what would happen if they appeared somewhere, would he be uncomfortable? Nervous? Upset? Happy? Phil wasn’t sure yet, so once it happened, it happened, and that was it.

But Wednesday was gone now, letting Thursday in and Phil had to go back to his present life, where he had just finished watering the houseplants and was checking for new emails, refreshing the page every now and then to see if any of the editorials to which he had sent his manuscript wanted to publish his story. He had sent a few of his oldest stories some months before, but none of them were 'interesting enough’ or it wasn’t 'what they were looking for at the moment’ for them, making Phil feel a bit frustrated at all his attempts.

A ping from his phone alerted him, picking it up from the table, seeing it was a new message from Dan and instantly smiling. 'Don’t make any plans for this Friday. And yes, it’s a date.’

Phil could already feel his cheeks heating up. Why did he have to blush so easily!? Dan Howell asked him on a date and even though they had already been on one, Phil was squealing inside (and maybe on the outside too). A second date with Dan sounded great. More than great.

'Okay, what a shame I’ll have to raincheck my plan of eating an unhealthy amount of Doritos on my couch while watching anime to go with you.’ Phil joked, getting an immediate response from Dan, continuing their conversation till Dan had to leave, promising to text later.

Without Dan distracting him,, his mind started filling up with unanswered questions, 'Where will Dan take him? Would they go somewhere so public like the aquarium again? What if it rained? Was it safe to go outdoors tomorrow?’

Setting all those thoughts aside, Phil left his phone back on his deck, picking up his laptop and refeshing the email page once again, only to see its’ inbox still empty.

He could only hope for a miracle now.

______________

“Why did I do that?” Dan groaned loudly to himself just after exiting practice, remebering what had happened this morning.

As soon as he woke up he was still thinking about his and Phil’s date yesterday. Dan didn’t remember being so comfortable with a… crush? No. Friend? Surely after those kisses the friend barrier was already far away… What were they?

That question aside, he really wanted to go on another date with Phil, see if he could clear out their situation of where was their friendship? heading to, so he did. Sleepily, he picked up his phone and texted Phil, knowing that after lunch on Fridays he was pretty much free.

As soon as Phil sarcastically answered him, he continued their conversation, having to rush out of the door to arrive on time.

Now, hours later he had just remembered a little thing…

Where would he take Phil on the date? He hadn’t thought about that detail.

'Great thinking, Dan. Ask him on a date and take him nowhere, you are great at this romance thing!’ He really had to stop texting while his brain was still not properly functioning.

“What? What did you do? Wanna tell me?” Eric asked back, startling Dan back to reality.

Dan jumped a bit and sighed, not having noticed Eric next to him. Maybe he should explain to Eric all this mess?

“I might have sent a text without much thought to someone this morning and now I’m pretty much in trouble?” Dan questioned. He knew he would came up with some idea sometime, but Phil had agreed on going on a date tomorrow and he was pretty much freaking out.

“Okay… was that text that bad? Is that person going to block you or something?” Eric questioned.

“No, it’s just… I wanted to…” Dan stopped mid-sentence. Did he really want to explain everything what was happening with Phil to Eric. Dan thought he deserved it after he had helped him with that panic attack… “The story is a bit long, you have time?”

“Yeah, let’s go. We can grab a coffee.” Eric said, walking towards his car so they could drive to a nearby café.

That’s how he and Eric found themselves deep in thought on a popular cafeteria on a sunny Thursday after practice.

“Okay, have you thought of anything while you were telling me about Phil, yet?” Eric asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

“The only thing I know is that the aquarium is out for sure. We went there yesterday for our first date,” Dan said, blushing a bit as he remembered how a great time he had had, “and coffee too. As I told you we meet in person for the first time on a little café so I don’t wanna repeat it.”

“From what you told me Phil likes books and wants to be a future author, right?” Dan nooded along with what Eric was saying. “What about a bookshop? They have just opened a new antique vintage-y bookshop just down this neighbourhood and they have many classic and new novels.”

Dan’s eyes widened instantly. That was it! A bookshop! Phil would love that! And Dan liked to read too, not maybe as much as Phil but he was sure he would enjoy it anyway.

“Eric, I… Thank you so much, really. I don’t know what I would do without your advice.” Dan said, honesty clear in his voice.

“You’re welcome, Howell. I mean, from all you have told me you really like this Phil guy, right?”

“You have no idea how much, Eric.” Dan exhaled dramatically, briging one of his hand to his hair, messing his curls in the process. “I want to take this further, you know, ask him to be my boyfriend, but I’m a bit scared to do so. What if I lose him as a friend? I never felt this connection with someone, I don’t know how to explain it, but…”

It wasn’t like the world would end if Phil said no to being his boyfriend, but it was the first time Dan felt something so strong for someone and he wanted to make it right this time.

“Even though I’m pretty sure that if you ask he will say yes, Dan, you need to start following what your heart says so, not what your mind tells you. Otherwise, you will be scared forever.” Eric said to him, patting him on the back a few time before standing up from his uncomfortable chair, “C'mon, think about it on the ride home, I will drive you.”

Dan just nooded, starting to think of any way that he could ask Phil to be his boyfriend.

______________

“Martyn? Can you talk?” Phil asked as soon as he heard a greeting form the other line of the phone. Dan was picking him up for their date in around ten minutes, so he guessed he had a bit of time to calm his nerves by speaking to his brother. He had done that also on their first date and it kind of worked so, what if he tried again?

“Yeah, is something wrong?” Martyn said, voice a bit cracky.

'Stupid phone reception.’ Phil said to himself. The flat was so badly designed the signal could only be reached by almost on the street, that meant going almost outside and the best next option was the front door.

“No, but wait, I’m gonna go into the entrance hallway for better reception, I cannot hear you well.” Phil rapidly walked to it, instantly noticing the difference, “Okay, you can talk now.”

“You were the one calling me, you talk!”

“Right okay, um… I have another date with Dan and I’m a bit nervous. Distract me please.” Phil quickly said, rushing the words so much that Martyn almost couldn’t understand.

“Oh, another date already? Where are you two going? Are you going to kiss under the stars now? Or in front of a bridge?” Martyn teased. Ugh, older brothers. Phil kind of regrets telling him all about the date.

“I don’t know where he is taking me! And… and what if I don’t like it? I mean, I…” Phil panicked, trying to calm himself as he paced around the narrow entrance.

Phil noticed Martyn’s silence on the other side, he was about to ask if something was wrong when he heard a much serious voice. “Phil, don’t worry about that, okay? The place doesn’t matter, the only thing that should is that you are comfortable spending your time with Dan.” He must have sensed Phil’s nervousness before and was trying to be a nice older brother. And even if Phil didn’t want to admt it, Martyn was right.

It was Dan’s comapany that mattered. Phil would enjoy being with Dan everywhere, even if that meant spend 10 hours seein cars go by. He would be happy with Dan by his side.

“Thank you Martyn. You are right, but distract me a bit more please?” Phil asked again. Even if he was a bit more relaxed he could still feel tickles in his stomach.

“Okay. Following the Dan subject, let’s talk about baseball!”

Phil almost groaned but didn’t. His brother couldn’t leave the baseball subject for a minute since he ahd started talking to Dan, telling him to ask Dan about the Rocky Planets. A thing Phil had totally refused to do.

“The Rocky Planets are playing their first game of the season soon, tickets are almost out… you wanna try and get a few?” Martyn always asked the same thing before every Rocky Planets game. Phil had tried a few times and couldn’t go, the tickets were too expensive and he couldn’t spend so much on a baseball game if he wanted to eat for like two weeks.

“Martyn, you know I cannot spend that much money. I would love to see the Rocky Planets play, you know that. See them play for once at the stadium since I have never been there, but I can’t.” Phil sighed. “Maybe if I saved a bit of money I could, but I mostly use all my salary for everything.”

“Phil…” but before Martyn continued Phil cut him off, continuing his speech.

“And I would love to go and maybe surprise Dan. If everything ends up going fine with him, of course! I’m not saying it won’t go badly, but it could somehow… It’s just our second date I’m sure I could mess it up before something even remotely serious…”

“PHIL!” Martyn’s loud voice startled him from his rambling.

“Yeah, sorry. I…” but he couldn’t speak much more since a loud doorbell sound echoed around all the walls of his flat.

“Dan is here.” Phil said, mostly to himself, not even realizing Martyn was still on the phone.

“Well, have fun little brother! Speak to you tomorrow!”

“No, no! Martyn don’t you dare hang up…” but the line was already dead, leaving Phil still more nervous than before. 'Thanks for nothing, Martyn.’

Phil didn’t want to keep Dan waiting, so he pocketed his phone, hand-ironined his red bomber jacket a bit, rearranged his glasses and cleared his throat before opening the door with a smile on his face, even though the freaking zoo he had in his stomach wasn’t going away.

“Hi!” he greeted Dan, who was sporting a soft smile behind a small bunch of flowers, making Phil smile instantly. “Is that for me?” Phil asked, pointing at the bunch.

“Of course, I though you could have a colourful spot around all your houseplant collection” they both laughed at Dan’s remark, “It’s more of a thank you for last time so yeah, here.” Dan handed him the bunch, which Phil gladly picked up, sniffing it.

“I’ll put this in water and we can go, okay?” Phil said as soon as Dan nooded at him.

Phil quickly managed to arrange a vase with water and displayed the flowers in his kitchen table, proabably thinking of moving them to his bedroom when he came back from their date. He wanted to be reminded of this every single day he woke up, to be honest.

“Let’s go, then!” They both headed into the street as soon as Phil closed his front door, instantly brushing hands that Phil decide to lace together so they wouldn’t get lost in the busy street.

They walked slowly, trying to make the most of their touch of hands, dodging the many pedestrians that got in their way not minding if anyone stared, lost in their little bubble as they talked and laughed about random topics.

“We are almost here,” Dan suddenly said, pointing at the right turn that was ahead of them, “I think you will like the place. I have to confess I didn’t have this place in mind when I asked you on another date and I really hope you haven’t been here yet but yeah… this is it.” Dan finished as they turned to the right, ending up in an alleyway where Phil could spot a small bookshop.

The outside was painted a dark green, with big crooked brown letters hanging on a pannel, decorated with a few round bubble shaped farily lights. Right by its’ entrance there were two wooden shelves, a woman stood by the left one, searching for some paper book or newspaper looking around the thousands in there.

It was truly Phil’s dream place.

“You like it? I though that as you dream is to be an author, what a better place to be than a bookshop, uh?” Dan’s soft voice startled him, making Phil look at him with a surprised expression.

“I… I love it Dan. It seems so nice! Can we go in, please?” Phil knew he was acting as a child wanting to go into a candy shop, but he guessed bookstores for him were the equivalent of one.

“Sure,” was all Dan managed to say before Phil tugged him in, crossing the entrance and instantly gasping at the amout of shelves filled with old and new books, a strong smell reaching his nostrils, reminding Phil how much he loved books.

Phil walked through the narrow passages, drawing his fingers through the hard-covered books stopping at the horror/sci-fi section, his favourite genres of all, spotting a few novels he had been wanting to read for a while now.

“They have a few armchairs on the second floor of the bookshop if you just want to read,” Dan said to him, seeing as he had picked a few books already in both hands.

Phil looked down at the books and back up at Dan, realizing he was on a date with him, not wanting to leave him here alone, it would be a rude thing to do so. “No, I can read them other time, I don’t wanna ignore you the whole time. If this is a date you should enjoy it too!” Phil knew Dan liked to read, but he wasn’t as passionate as Phil towards books. Maybe spending three hours reading on worn out armchair wasn’t that appealing to Dan.

“What about we sit and you read to me? A few chapters at least. I really like hearing you talk, Phil.”

Phil, as it turned out, blushed at the comment but nooded, climbling up the small stairs that headed towards the dark blue velver armchairs scattered around with a few coffee tables also around.

It was surprisingly empty, just a few students around, making notes on their computers who didn’t even lift their heads as Dan and Phil walked by the far end of the floor, seatting across eachother in the old cushioned chairs.

Phil didn’t waste a minute and picked up a book from the pile he left on the small wooden coffee table in front of him, dangling his feet around the armrest of the armchair, resting his back againt the other, his soft and low voice instantly filling the little space Dan and him were in.

He got lost in the words that tumbled from his mouth carefully, creating different tones for the different characters that were starting to appear as he got further into the story, really liking how it was easily developing.

Phil continued reading, passing the pages with his fingers, loving the feeling of paper beneath his fingers and before he knew it he had almost reached the middle of the book, realizing they had maybe spent a few hours already there. Him reading and Dan listening.

“End of chapter 4.” Phil read, instanly blushing again as he spotted Dan with his phone out, taking a picture of him as he looked like a big child. Phil was sure his glasses were almost falling from hin nose, his red bomber jacket hunched in a few spots due to the posture he was in as he moved his feet around the air back and forth, right and left, right and left.

“Dan!” he almost shouted, laughing a bit and dragging the 'a’ of his name, knowing he couldn’t be mad at him after he had done the same thing at the aquarium.

“You look too damn cute, I couldn’t resist!” Dan said grinning.

Phil felt his face turning pink again, hiding behind the open book he had been reading not wanting Dan to see his rose coloured face so many times in a day. He hated how easily he blushed!

He heard Dan laughing softly from the other side, followed by a few steps meaning he had gotten up and was walking… “Don’t hide, please”

Phil noticed how Dan lowered the book form his face, picking it up and closing it, setting it down next to the others that were still in the pile as Dan sat in a free space of the coffee table, looking straight into Phil’s eyes.

“I love it when you blush, Phil. Pink suits you, you know.” Dan said, chuckling, making Phil blush more if that was even possible.

“I don’t like it, it makes me look like a tomato all the time!” Phil complained, crossing his arms against his chest and looking down to his lap.

“Come here, you.” was all Phil heard Dan say as he felt his fingers on his chin, moving Phil’s face closer to Dan’s, kissing his pouty lips with a few pecks, the kisses gradually growing longer as they moved their lips in snyc slowly, enjoying the other’s lips on theirs.

Phil sat up straighter, posing his hand on Dan’s soft cheek and guiding his head, not deattaching his lips from Dan’s as he bit his lower lip for a deeper kiss.

They were so caught up in their kiss they didn’t even realize one of the workers had entered the floor, ushering everyone out as it was almost time to close, only separating from each other as they heard a few awkward sounding coughs coming from the other side of the floor.

“Excuse me gentelmen,” Phil separated from Dan, both of them looking at eachother before turing thir gaze at the voice, “we are closing soon, if you could leave this floor it would be great. Thank you.”

The worker disappeared quickly, almost running down the stairs, a bit embarrassed she had just witnessed the both of them kissing not so platonically.

“We should go,” Dan said, his voice deep making Phil just want to kiss him again.

Phil nooded repeatedly, not trusting his voice after those kisses. As he had done a few hours before, he grabbed Dan’s hand again and headed them both down the stairs. Once they had reached the main floor Dan stopped.

“What’s wr…?” Phil didn’t manage to say anything more as Dan cut him off.

“Wait,” Dan said, stopping and turning back up the stairs, coming back down with the book Phil had been reading to him.

Phil watched as Dan made it to the register, paying for the book and waving a quick goodbye to the still embarrassed worker that was pilling up a few books that had been scattered around.

Lacing their fingers once again, Dan lead them both outside the bookstore, taking a few steps in the direction they came from.

“I’m glad you enjoyed the first chapters of book, it’s really good.” Phil spoke as soon as they exited the alleyway, “I had been waiting to read it for a while now, I think you will get a better experience now that you can read it for yourself.” Phil said, pointing at the novel.

“No, I bought it for you.” Dan stopped in the middle of the street, putting himself in front of Phil so he could look at him, “Yeah, I enjoyed it, you voice is relaxing and you know how to involve someone in a story but… I liked more the way your eyes lit up everytime you started a new page, how you manage to appreciate every inked word. You had the same expression as me when people tell me that you can see in my eyes that I love playing baseball, and that’s true and I want to see it many times more, with this book or with every other.”

Phil didn’t know what to say, he was completely speechleess. Dan had practically confessed he wanted to keep meeting Phil and enjoy his company as much as he could. “Dan… thank you. I don’t know what…”

“There is no need. Here, take it,” Dan handed Phil the novel, who brought it to his chest, clutching it tightly as it was going to escape from his hands, “that way you can still read it to me but in a more comfortable seat. Promise?”

Phil smiled widely at him and nooded. He would love to keep reading books to Dan even if he had to seat on a chair made of spikes, he didn’t care.

“Promise.”

Only a few more words were exchanged while they walked back to Phil’s flat, the sunset painting the path in orange and red tones, guiding them through the few people still left on the street, finally reaching their destination and managing to steal a few goodbye kisses before the night settled in.

Chapter 8

A/N: For this chapter I was inspired by the Shakespeare and Company bookshop that is in Paris. (Check it on Google, it’s cool) I was there for a semester and I didn’t know that it was there and I found out when I came back to Spain so yeah, I wanna go back and visit so bad!

#moonshot #moonshot - chapter 7 #phanfic #phanfiction #phanfic au #phanfiction au #irphanfic #phan #amazingphil #daniel howell

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goldsteinsistersimagines · 7 years

Text

The Way We Were

Pairing: Tina Goldstein x fem!reader, Tina Goldstein x Newt Scamander (Modern AU)

A/N: I don’t know why but writing sad and angsty things helps my writer’s block so here’s a thing.

Warnings: Swearing, death

You sat on the rooftop of a parking garage in the rain and looked out into the city, letting the drops of water hit you. To say that today had been a rough day was an understatement. It had been two months since you moved to Philadelphia. You missed New York. You missed your friends. You missed Tina.

“Tina.” The name left your mouth ever so softly, barely a whisper. You hadn’t said it in over a year. It felt foreign yet familiar all the same. You looked at the apartment building you lived in and let out a sigh.

You felt your phone vibrate in your pocket and saw it was Queenie calling. You were confused, but picked up nonetheless.

“Hello?” You answered, confusion in your voice.

“(Y/N).” You didn’t like Queenie’s tone. It was worrying. Something was wrong.

“Is something wrong?” You asked.

“T-Tina, um...” The blonde hesitated through the phone and you grew anxious.

“Queenie, tell me what’s wrong.” You fought the knot that was growing in your throat.

“Don’t freak out, but Tina was in an accident. She’s doing well, but still unconscious so they’re keeping her over night. She was driving to Long Island to see Newt and-”

Your heart dropped to your stomach. You didn’t know all the facts, but you started walking back to your apartment to get ready to go to New York. “I’m on my way. Text me the hospital’s information. I should get there in 2 hours.”

You got to your apartment and quickly packed some clothes and other necessities in a duffle bag and headed back out to your car.

You plugged your phone in to the aux cord and opened maps and turned on some music to calm you down.

When you got to the hospital, it was already past midnight. You went to the floor Queenie texted you.

You walked up to the desk. “Um, Goldstein?”

“Are you a family member?”

“I’m her sister,” you lied.

The woman at the desk sighed and took out a clipboard. “Sign here. Turn left, third door on the right.”

“Thank you.”

You walked down the hall and took in all the noises that were going on. All of the nurses talking, machines beeping, breathing tubes.... Your mind raced while you walked towards the room. You wondered what you would see. You heard crying at the opposite end of the hall and soon the footsteps of nurses and doctors were headed in that direction. You squeezed your eyes shut for a moment and kept walking.

When you arrived, you looked at the door, hesitating to open it. You weren’t sure what you would see. You took a deep breath in and slowly turned the handle. You saw Queenie sitting by Tina. And you saw Tina, her face was bruised and she had multiple cuts. She had a breathing tube that almost covered her entire lower face. Her left arm was in a cast. You stood at the doorway in shock, the sound of the machines beeping flooding your ears.

“(Y/N),” Queenie whispered, walking towards you and pulling you into a hug. You heard the woman sniffle. You pulled away and Queenie began explaining the situation. “The doctor said it was lucky she was wearing a seatbelt. Otherwise, it could have been a lot worse.”

“Has she woken up?” You asked.

“No, not yet.”

“How did this happen?” You questioned, your eyes still focused on Tina.

“The other driver was high. But he got out of the accident just fine.” You could hear the bitterness in Queenie’s voice.

“That bastard,” you spat out.

You walked to Tina and sat down in the other chair on the right hand side of the bed. You took her hand and started rubbing circles with your thumb.

“I’m so sorry, Tina.” You felt your eyes sting, and you knew you couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. “I’m so fucking sorry.”

You wished you could turn back the clock. Back to when you and Tina were still dating. Before you broke her heart to selfishly protect yourself. Before you walked out the door and didn’t turn back. If you hadn’t broken up with her, she probably wouldn’t be in the hospital. Maybe you would have gone out to dinner in the city. Maybe you would have stayed in and binged a new show. You were certain about one thing: she wouldn’t have met Newt and she wouldn’t have driven to Long Island at night.

Queenie walked over to you and put a hand on your shoulder. You heard the door open and saw Newt walk in with two cups of coffee. He looked you in the eyes and nodded. You nodded back in acknowledgement.

“I got the coffee,” he said as he handed one cup to Queenie. He turned to you. “Sorry, I didn’t know when you would get here. I could go get you one now,” the man offered.

“That’s okay. I’ll go get myself a cup.” You got up and walked to the door. Before you opened the door, you turned back and saw Newt had taken your seat. He brought Tina’s hand up to his face and kissed it. You closed your eyes and wished you hadn’t looked back. You opened the door and walked out to find the coffee machine.

Eventually, you found the coffee station and saw a tall brunet man standing there.

“Rough night?” The man asked, taking a seat across the coffee machine.

You let out a small laugh. “I guess you could say that. You?”

“Not as rough as these other people have had. My niece’s appendix burst so she had surgery. But she’s fine and alive.”

“That’s nice,” you said mindlessly as you poured the coffee. When you set the coffee pot back, your hand loosened its hold and some of the coffee spilled on you and the counter. “Son of a bitch!” You called out, quickly grabbing some napkins. “Fuck me,” you muttered.

The man stood up and walked over to you, helping you clean up the mess. “You seem like you could use some alcohol, not coffee.”

“God, I wish.” You sighed. “It’s like a nightmare that won’t end and I’m too sober to handle all of this.” You gave a self-deprecating laugh. “You know, just when I thought this day couldn’t get any worse, I get a call from my ex’s sister saying she got in a car accident on her way to her new boyfriend’s place because some moron drove while he was high. And now I’m here getting coffee because said boyfriend came in the room and I just.. Fuck!” You slammed your hands down on the countertop and started crying.

The man looked around, unsure what to do. He awkwardly put a hand on your back to comfort you. “That must have been really rough.”

You wiped your tears. “I haven’t heard her voice in over a year. I don’t even think I really remember what it sounds like anymore. And you know what? The first thing she’ll say when she wakes up is probably Newt’s name. God, that fucking hurts.”

“It sounds like you really don’t like this Newt guy.”

“No, he’s a great guy.” You sighed as you regained your composure and took your coffee. You sat down in a chair and the man sat next to you. You sniffled. “She met him through her sister’s boyfriend. A college friend of his. He’s good for her.” You whispered that last part. It was hard for you to admit.

“Sounds like you aren’t too confident with yourself.”

You turned to face the man. “Are you some sort of shrink or something?”

The man put his hand out. “Doctor Raymond, at your service.But you can just call me Josh.” He winked.

You shook his hand. “Holy shit.”

The brunet laughed. “Sorry, sometimes I just analyze people without even realizing it. Second nature after doing it for so long.”

“No, it’s okay. I kind of needed it I guess.”

“Well if your ex already has her sister and boyfriend here, why did her sister call you?”

You shook your head. “I mean Queenie seemed pretty scared. Back when I was dating Tina, I was also pretty close to Queenie. She was my friend. Still is, I guess. Maybe she just wanted me here. I don’t really like to read into those things, you know?”

“Why not?”

“Because then you get hopeful about something that’s never going to happen.”

Josh nodded. “I see. Well, all I can say is to never underestimate your own importance in other people’s lives.”

“Yeah, I guess.” You took a sip of your coffee and made a disgusted face. “Ugh, that’s awful.”

Josh chuckled. “Yeah, it’s not the best coffee I’ve ever had.”

You rubbed your thumb against the cup. “It reminds me of this one diner Tina and I went to this one time.” You let out a small laugh. “It was the middle of the night and we were on the road to Florida. Spur of the moment idea. We had enough money and we said “fuck it” and decided to drive down so we could go to Disney.” A smile appeared on your face as you remembered the past. “It was 4 am and we were both hungry so we stopped by a small diner off the side of the road. The coffee was awful.” Your smile faded. “I told her I loved her for the first time there.”

Your mind flooded with memories. You missed her smile the most. The way her entire face would light up and it never failed to make you smile. The way her lips would curl up at the sides. You wondered if she smiled like that with Newt. You wondered if he also found it hard to resist the urge to kiss her every minute of the day. You mind floated back to why you let her go.

“Hey, are you okay?” Josh asked.

“Y-yeah.” You stood up, ready to go back. “Hey, uh... Are you going to be here all night?”

The man smiled. “Yeah. Gotta be there when my niece wakes up in the morning. But in the meantime, I’ll probably just stay near the coffee. Feel free to find me if you need to.”

“Thanks.”

“No problem. Best of luck.”

You nodded in appreciation and walked back to the room. Tina was still asleep, but her breathing tube had been replaced with a nasal cannula. You noticed Newt was gone.

“Where did Newt go?” You asked Queenie.

“He went home,” the blonde said.

You sat down in the other chair.

“You were gone for a long time. Is everything alright?” The woman asked.

“Yeah.”

“Your eyes are puffy,” Queenie pointed out.

“I know you’re worried about me, but I’m fine. Plus, I’m just here for the night. The moment she wakes up, I’m leaving.”

“(Y/N)...”

“I don’t really want to talk about this now.”

“Can you stop that?” Queenie was clearly frustrated, but she kept quiet so she wouldn’t wake Tina.

“Stop what?” You snapped back.

“Stop closing yourself off! It’s okay to have feelings sometimes, you know!”

Queenie’s harsh words were like a knife in your heart. Because that was one of the last arguments you had with Tina. The memories of you yelling at each other came flooding and it was too much.

You stood up. “I loved Tina more than anything in this world!” You yelled. It had nothing to do with the argument you were having with Queenie. It was a product of the ongoing battle in your mind. Your eyes filled with tears. When you realized what you had done, you slowly backed away to the corner. Queenie gave you a sympathetic look and was about to stand up and go over to you when Tina began to stir.

Tina groaned as she began to wake up. She saw Queenie, but failed to notice you since you were in the back of the room now.

“Queenie,” she mumbled.

“Hey,” The blonde took her sister’s hand. “You’re up.”

“Is Newt here?” Tina asked. There it was. Your prediction came true. You closed your eyes. It was like being hit with a truck.

“No. He was, but he went home.” Queenie looked up at you.

Tina turned to face you, wincing in pain at the sudden movement. “(Y/N)?” The woman croaked.

“Hi,” you said, trying not to cry. It had been so long since you heard her say your name. You walked toward her. “How are you feeling?”

“Like shit. But I’m alive,” the woman responded, a small smile on her face.

You laughed. “Same old Tina.”

“Well, you definitely look better than I probably do right now.”

You smiled. “Nah. You were always the pretty one.” The words slipped out without you even thinking about it.

“Shut up,” The woman said, a smile still on her face.

Queenie cleared her throat. “I think I’m going to go get some more coffee.” The woman excused herself and left the room.

Tina reached out with her right hand. You stared at her hand, unsure what to do.

“It’s okay,” The brunette reassured.

You slowly reached out your hand and let Tina hold your hand. Tina gently squeezed your hand. You gave a little squeeze in response. The woman released her hold and put her hand on your cheek. You turned toward her hand, cherishing the feeling. Tears started running down your face. Tina started wiping the tears away with her thumb.

“This must be serious if you’re crying,” The brunette commented.

You laughed through your tears. “You had us all pretty scared.” You sniffled as more tears ran down your cheeks. “God, I missed you.”

Tina’s hand faltered and she brought it back down to her side. She looked up at the ceiling. You looked down at the floor and immediately regretted saying it.

“Wow, you just went straight for the jugular.”

“Tina...”

“Maybe you wouldn’t have to miss me if you didn’t leave in the middle of the night with no explanation.”

“I didn’t mean to... I didn’t want to hurt you,” you said. You felt like you were fighting for air.

“Bullshit. You left because you were afraid of commitment. I told you I wanted to get married and you were so scared, you left.”

“That is not true!” You argued.

Tina scoffed. “Really? Because I seem to remember having that conversation literally two days before you left.”

“Yes, that happened. But I didn’t leave because I was scared of commitment!”

“Then why did you leave, (Y/N)? Really, I’m curious.” Tina looked at you, waiting for an answer.

“I... I left because I was scared...”

“I knew it,” The woman dismissed.

You looked down and shook your head. “I wasn’t scared of commitment, Tina,” you said in almost a whisper. “I was scared because I knew you wanted to settle down. Own a house, have kids, grow old together. And I wouldn’t be able to give that to you.” You paused and shifted your gaze to the door. “Earlier that week, I went to the doctor. ALS.”

Tina looked at you, tears brimming at her eyes. “No.”

You solemnly nodded. “My dad died from ALS. He was only 47.” You looked down at your hands. “My hands don’t work like they used to. Earlier, I dropped a coffee pot.” You looked at Tina. “I couldn’t let you see me like that. You deserve someone who’s capable of taking care of you.”

“You’re only 32...” The woman’s voice broke.

You let out a shaky laugh, half-crying. “I know. Today, I went for a run after work and my right leg just stopped working for a good moment. And I just thought about how soon, both of them will stop working for good. I’m fucking terrified.”

Tina took your hand. “Then come back to New York. We’ll take care of you.”

You shook your head. “No, I can’t do that to you.”

“Well it’s a lot better than eventually rotting alone in your apartment.” Tina’s words were like venom.

“I can’t just quit work.”

“Yes you can.”

“You still need to recover from this accident.”

“Oh please, now you’re just finding excuses. This is nothing, I’ll heal in a few months.” The woman looked at you. “You’re not going back to that trash hole of a city.”

You laughed.

“Please come home.”

You took a breath in. “If I say yes, will you get some rest?”

“Yes.”

“Then okay. I’ll come back.”

You kept your word and moved back to New York. After explaining the circumstances to your boss, you were given paid disability leave. You moved in with Tina and Queenie. You got used to the fact that Newt and Tina were now together. It was bittersweet for you, but knew that Tina would be well taken care of after you were gone. You didn’t worry about her crying alone on bad days or if she missed you. At least someone would be able to hold her and comfort her through all of that.

As for you, you were able to love and be loved by people. For the first time in a long time, you felt at peace with yourself. And that was all you could have really asked for.

#Tina Goldstein x reader #Porpentina Goldstein #Fantastic Beasts fanfic #fbawtft fanfic #Tina Goldstein fanfic #this got a lot more morbid than I anticipated when I first started writing this #I hope that's okay #also I know I kind of just threw Philly under the bus here #but I sort of live here so I get to make fun of it from time to time

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punkscowardschampions · 5 years

Text

Rio & Buster

Rio: Sorry about that Rio: her mans hasn't text her Buster: And that's closer to Drew's fault than it is mine Buster: But whatever Rio: I know Rio: she's really hurting this AM Buster: Yeah and he's got drugs Buster: What have I got? Buster: It's fine Rio: You know, father of the year coming through to save the day again Rio: Well, I appreciate all your help last night, even if she don't remember Buster: Good thing I didn't do it for her then Buster: I still reckon you should have left them to it and come with me Rio: Best I'm around in case it kicks off again Rio: Drew'll tire of it long before it's close to being sorted so Buster: I know Buster: I'm just bringing my selfishness into the new year Rio: I don't blame you Rio: Any other morning, like Buster: Let me know when he's gone and I'll circle back Buster: So long as Indie don't try and fight me about it, like Rio: 'Course Rio: Nah, sure her lad'll hit her up and she'll be outta here like a shot Buster: No offense to the kid but I hope so Buster: You got up so early 😒 Rio: Awh baby Rio: Knew she'd be laying there stewing otherwise Buster: Mothering duty calls I get it Rio: You know I'd rather be with you Rio: lowkey using the barricading skills you showed me rn so they leave me alone, like Rio: it ain't a party Buster: I'm getting breakfast and checking Edie's socials so lowkey feel like a dad Buster: Not a party either Rio: Hot 😏 Buster: Shut up Buster: You have no business looking that good in the AM without teasing me as well Rio: Now who's teasing Rio: I dread to think Buster: I mean it Buster: You're beautiful Rio: You're nice Rio: I feel like shit Buster: What can I do? Rio: Nah, nothing Rio: 'less you got an IV drip and a way to knock some sense into Indie and Edie without getting out the gloves, like Buster: I know places where that shit is trendy Buster: Among other things Rio: I don't doubt it, babe Buster: I can send someone round if you like Buster: It works Rio: With those two dossing in the front room? That wouldn't be shaming 🙄 Rio: I'll drink my water, don't worry Buster: Good girl Rio: Really Rio: I already miss you, don't be hitting me with that Buster: I can't help it Buster: I miss you too Buster: And Nance ain't bringing her A game to this outing Rio: Tell her she's gotta revel in the fact she weren't the holy show last night Buster: Already did Buster: Probably why she's pouting into her scrambled egg Buster: 😂 Rio: Aww Rio: There's still time, babe, make it your resolution and you've got all year Buster: I'm already trying to make her see that the barista is flirting with her not me Buster: My work is cut out Buster: She's gotta put hers in by firing back Rio: Fr, need a success story this morning Buster: She's as red as her hair, this ain't gonna happen Buster: I really did get all the game, like Rio: Leave her alone 😂 Rio: Poor girl Buster: Excuse me, you wanted me to play nice with the fam Buster: This barista is hot and Nance is welcome Rio: 😏 Appreciate the effort Rio: She clearly got your dose of shame too Buster: Unlucky Rio: Either that or she don't share your type Buster: That's a given Buster: I'm not trying to fuck no MILFS tempting as it'd be to piss James off by doing his mum Rio: Eww Rio: Too early for that, thank you Buster: She's not that bad Buster: a solid 7 Rio: Take your word for it Rio: Fortunately didn't meet her Buster: So that's a no to the threesome then? Buster: Shame Rio: 😂 Rio: Never say never, babe Buster: Picture the happy couple walking in on that, the only incentive you need Buster: Chlo thinks she knows freaky, nah babe Rio: She 'bouta find out Rio: he's weird as hell Buster: And she's vanilla as hell Buster: What a match Rio: Well out of it Rio: You reckon they even together still Rio: if they were Buster: I know they are Buster: Even both blocked I'm still seeing them somehow Rio: Lovely Buster: Do you want me to bring you some coffee or anything? Rio: That's okay baby Rio: Come back though, even if you have to bring work to do Buster: 'Course Buster: Soon as the coast is clear Rio: I don't care Rio: I live here too Buster: I just don't wanna make things worse for you, babe Buster: You know he winds me up Rio: We can ignore him Rio: I'm not sitting with them Buster: Alright Rio: You don't have to Rio: but I want you here Buster: I want to be there Buster: With you Rio: Good Rio: I fucking hate him, he's barely acknowledge what happened last night Buster: Yeah, I bet Buster: Such a cunt Rio: But I'm the one that's killing the vibe 'cos I don't wanna get high rn Rio: Okay Buster: It's literally morning Buster: I'm no pussy but come on Rio: Seriously, we ain't getting last night back, lads Rio: give it up now Buster: Should I bring food for Indie? Buster: She's gonna be fucked Rio: Yeah, get her back on side for sure Buster: She basically eats anything, yeah? Rio: Literally Rio: It's a madness where she puts it Buster: I'll grab some stuff for you too, if you don't want it I'm sure Indie'll eat it for you Rio: You're cute Buster: Getting my heroics in early, that's all Rio: Can't help yourself, right Buster: 'Course not Rio: Why I can't help but like you Buster: As long as it's not the only reason Rio: I know you want the list Buster: Yeah Rio: I'll work on it whilst you do your essays Buster: We'll see who finishes first Buster: Word count is key Rio: Damn, I was gonna hit it with the bullet points Rio: no slacking, I guess Buster: You're getting graded, babe Buster: Think on Rio: 🤤 Rio: Not got any 🍎s so I'll give it my all Buster: I'll take 🍑s you know Rio: 😂 we're alright then Rio: got that in abundance Buster: 😂 Buster: When did Nance get so chatty? Let me go Rio: You love it Rio: and I get a headstart, win win Buster: I love you Buster: And I miss you Rio: I miss you more Buster: Prove it Rio: How do you want me to do that today baby? Buster: Surprise me Buster: No offense to my sister but I'm bored Rio: I'll make it extra good then Rio: Hmm, gimme 5 Buster: Take 10 Rio: Generous as always Buster: You'll see how generous I can be when I get back Rio: You'll be feeling it Rio: Looking for that A, you know Buster: Yeah? Buster: Good Rio: [Snap] Buster: Well now you've got me thinking all kinds of things Rio: Yeah? Rio: Positively inspiring Buster: Babe Buster: Tell me I can't walk out and leave my sister sitting here 'cause that's all I want Rio: Be good now and I'll be as bad as you want Buster: That's why I love you Buster: Not that I'm writing you a list on a napkin right now, like Rio: Pretend it's for the waitress if you get caught, babe Buster: Obviously Buster: Doing my best as is to teach Nance how to flirt Buster: She's useless and it's weird Buster: People are gonna think we're a couple if she don't catch on to any of it soon Rio: 😬 She'd shut that down faster than you at least Rio: I hope you aren't matching today Buster: You know she'd make me change if we had been Rio: 😂 Rio: Bless Buster: Shame Chlo's blocked I could've sent her some twin time Buster: Really convince her of my incest kink Rio: 😒 Buster: Don't make that face Rio: [Sends actual grumpy face] Buster: You're so cute Rio: Then be nice Rio: I'm trying to think about you here, not that bitch Buster: I'm sorry baby Buster: I'll kiss you until I feel you smile again, okay Rio: It's a start 😋 Buster: And then I'll let you decide where you want me to go next Buster: Wherever cheers you up the most Rio: Want me to show you where I need it most? Buster: You know I do Rio: Tilt your phone, this ain't for anyone else, especially not your sister Rio: Sorry to disappoint, Chloe Rio: [Snap] Buster: I went into the bathroom, reckoning that would be the best idea Buster: I'm having so many flashbacks to last night Buster: Jesus Rio: You weren't wrong Rio: I keep touching, I can feel each individual hit, it's turning me on so much Buster: Fuck Buster: I need to touch you or myself right now Rio: Do it Rio: I can make you cum so fast if I want, we both know it Buster: Especially when you talk like that Rio: I want you to be as needy as me Buster: I'm there, trust me Rio: You're not Rio: Not until you've silently cum in that bathroom stall thinking about me riding you Rio: They're still here so I had to bite down on my pillow Buster: Rio Rio: Buster Buster: I can't be silent Buster: I can't Rio: I know Rio: It's one of the things that makes you so fucking hot Rio: I don't care, I want people to hear, know how I've got you Buster: If I bite my lip any harder it's gonna bleed, that's how you've got me Rio: You can handle it, baby Rio: Give me something to kiss better Buster: You can have anything Buster: Everything Rio: I want it all, all of you Rio: because you own me Buster: I'm all yours, babe Buster: This is for you too 'cause I want you so bad Rio: Fuck yourself like you'd fuck me if I was there with you Rio: I want you to cum so hard Buster: Baby I'm so close already Rio: Yeah you are Rio: I bet your dick is covered in precum now, I wish I was there to taste it Buster: Christ, Rio Buster: I fucking love you Rio: I love you Rio: You're everything, babe Buster: Tell me again Buster: Make me cum Rio: You're my everything, Buster and I fucking love you Rio: All I wanna do is make you happy and make you cum Buster: Oh my god, baby Buster: You're perfect Buster: I can't Rio: You can though Rio: it's why we work so well, you're just as bad as me Buster: Fuck Rio: You're cumming for me right now, aren't you, baby? Rio: Fuck Buster: I just came so hard saying your name Buster: Nobody better have heard that Rio: Jesus, you're so good Rio: too fucking good Rio: I wanted to hear it but I'll make you say it even louder when you get here Buster: Somehow I have to get my shit together so I can go and pay the bill Buster: It's fucking ridiculous what you can do to me without even being here Rio: Sorry, Daddy Rio: I bet you look so fucking good now, they gonna be too flustered to care Rio: It's the same for me, I never think about anyone else now, you're all my fantasies Buster: [sends pics because you know he would, shameless bastard] Buster: Keep thinking about me Buster: I'll be there soon Rio: 😻 Rio: Okay how are you real Buster: Says you Buster: On another level of beautiful, like Rio: You make me feel so good Buster: Good 'cause that's all I wanna do Rio: but I have one question Buster: Go on Rio: Can I touch myself or do I need to wait for Daddy? Rio: I wanna be good for you but it aches Buster: I want you to do it Buster: You need to feel as good as I do Rio: Your hands are so big and rough it feels so good on the most sensitive parts of me Buster: I know, babe Buster: It's why I never wanna stop touching you Rio: I wish we could just fuck forever sometimes Rio: Any time I'm not with you feels wasted Buster: Me too Buster: But you look so good wanting me too so it's not ever wasted Rio: You can watch me want you 'til you're hard again Rio: I'll do all the work, you've earnt it Buster: You've the hottest girl I've ever seen never mind met Rio: And I'm all for you Rio: Don't get mad 'cos this is a little fucked up to say but I hope he hears you fucking me, 'cos he could never and will never Rio: Me moaning your name over and over like a prayer Buster: I'm not mad Buster: You're mine and I want him to know it Rio: Good Rio: Me too Buster: I hope he gets mad Rio: Yeah? Buster: He needs to realise that you're never gonna want anyone as much as you want me Buster: And he's never gonna need you as badly as I do Rio: He really does Rio: and now I really want you to show him Buster: I will Buster: All day if that's what it takes Buster: I'll fuck you so hard and loud your whole street will know it Rio: Even if he gets the message before then like Rio: Please Buster: I know what you need, babe Buster: It's not about him, that's just a bonus Rio: Just when I think I can't love you any more Buster: You're gonna have to marry me, sorry about it Rio: Well, you have ruined me for anyone else Rio: No other boys are like you Buster: Don't forget it Rio: Promise Buster: I promise I won't let you either Buster: I'm always gonna make you feel this good Rio: You really mean that, don't you? Buster: Yeah Buster: I don't know how to do anything else, not with you Buster: It's how you make me feel Rio: Good, it really is all I want Rio: for you to be happy and for me to be happy with you Buster: Wish granted, like Buster: I'm finally leaving Rio: 🙌 Buster: I don't even have to give Nance a lift either 'cause she's shopping or some shit Buster: So actually won't be long Rio: Clearly doing something right, like Rio: God or 🍀 whatever you want working in our favour for once Buster: Yeah, as much as I'm the only god you really need, the other bloke ain't doing bad right now Rio: He's the OG wingman when you got him on side, I'm telling you Buster: I hope he ain't the jealous type then 'cause you know you're gonna be praying to me before him Rio: 'Course not Rio: Practically encouraged Rio: if we pretend the birth control ain't there but shh, he turns a blind eye to when I go down the clinic and I turn one to all the suffering, like Buster: Let's never pretend that though Rio: Doesn't do it for me either, I promise you that Buster: That's why you're the one I'm with and not the one we ain't talking about anymore ever Buster: Well, one of the countless reasons, like Rio: I'll take that, happily Buster: I love you, Rio. So much Rio: I love you too Rio: You make me forget that right now isn't perfect 'cos I feel it when you're around Buster: Me too Buster: You're so perfect I'll take that and deal with whatever shit I have to Rio: Together Rio: You don't need to do it all alone anymore Buster: You either Rio: Thank you Buster: You never have to say that to me Rio: I do though 'cos I don't think anyone has ever acknowledged I have shit to deal with Rio: not to be all woe is me about it but Buster: I know they haven't, but like I said before, I know what you need, babe Buster: I'm here for you whatever Rio: How do you know what I need Rio: It's crazy Buster: I don't know Buster: I just do Buster: Maybe I always have Rio: Yeah Rio: I think so Rio: That's how it feels Buster: It's like how you know who I actually am Buster: Not to be that cunt about it Rio: Exactly though Rio: I would've never admitted it, even a year or so back but Rio: I don't know Rio: I knew you were different Buster: Yeah Buster: Why do you think I couldn't come near you, like Rio: Yeah Rio: I know we had to get our shit together and heads sorted- ish Rio: but I wish I'd had you sooner still Buster: You did Buster: That kiss still happened Rio: True Buster: I wanted to be around you all the time back then Rio: When you had the misfortune of being in Dublin, like 😉 Buster: It used to make me so mad when I had to go home Rio: Yeah? Buster: Yeah, I loved it, being here Buster: I don't know when that changed Buster: How I chose London and all those cunts instead Rio: I get it Rio: It was more permanent, more stable Rio: you could only be here properly in the holidays, who wants to come somewhere and feel like they've missed out on so much Rio: Especially when Nance moved too Buster: When she chose here it was like I couldn't have it Buster: Even if I wanted to Buster: It's stupid but Rio: Nah, I see it Rio: I mean, it wasn't you why she left but, it hit too close for comfort for both of you Buster: Enough of it was me Rio: You both had some shit to sort Rio: who doesn't Rio: but I'd say you're both getting there now, yeah? Buster: I'm trying 'cause I didn't before, not hard enough Buster: I didn't want her to stay 'cause she knows me too, even if she didn't reckon I was still that same person, like Buster: It was too hard having her around so I didn't make it easy for her to be Rio: Yeah Rio: Shit is hard enough without giving yourself a hard time, you were doing what you had to for an easy time Rio: Doesn't excuse it or make it right but you can make it right now, like Buster: Yeah Buster: I'm gonna go to Uni here, I've decided Buster: Wherever Nance goes, this is still home for her Buster: And you're here, most importantly Rio: That'll be so good Rio: I'm really excited now Buster: We won't have to do this back and forth bullshit any more Buster: I'll just be here Rio: Have to go more places together to get that platinum membership now, like Rio: but still, what could be better Buster: Exactly Buster: That said, I am nearly there, so I have a few ideas of what could come close Rio: Oh yeah? I'm all ears, baby Buster: I'm gonna make you cum so many times that it won't only be Drew wanting me to stop Buster: You'll be so sensitive to me I'll have you begging Rio: 😩😩😩 Rio: This is me giving full permission to ignore me though because I want that so bad Rio: don't stop 'til you're fully satisfied daddy Buster: I won't be satisfied until you've said my name enough to lose your voice Rio: Oh my God, Buster Buster: Yeah, just like that, babe Rio: Just practicing 😂😋 Buster: Good Buster: Be ready for me Rio: We're beyond ready Rio: You shouldn't have let me play with myself Rio: I'm messy Buster: I'll clean you up, babe, it's okay Rio: If you don't stop, I'm gonna be saying your name before you even get here Buster: Say it Buster: Let him know how bad you want me already Rio: Okay Rio: I'm not even embarrassed, this is just how good you are Buster: Fuck yourself like I'm there watching Buster: I want you weak for me when I am Rio: Yes, sir Buster: Hurry up though 'cause I'm nearly at your door Buster: You have to cum before I get back, yeah? Rio: Fuck Rio: I'm so close, I can feel it Buster: Don't stop Rio: I won't baby Rio: Tell me to cum for you, oh God please Buster: Go harder now Buster: It's time to cum for me baby Rio: I'm fucking myself so hard he can probably hear exactly how wet my pussy is for you Buster: Yeah he can Rio: This is all for you Buster: Tell me you love me so he knows it too Rio: Buster I love you I love you Buster: I love you Rio: I don't know if I've ever cum like that just with my hand Rio: Jesus Buster: You've been such a good girl for me I'll let myself in Buster: Don't move Rio: I don't think I can, and that's without factoring in how much it makes me melt when you call me your good girl so Buster: If I need you in a different position, I'll move you, don't worry Rio: Come in here and show me how big and strong you are Buster: Just delivering Indie's food and checking out how mad Drew already is Buster: I almost wish you could move so you'd know Rio: Serious? Rio: You're gonna have to fill me in more ways than one then Buster: I will, I promise

0 notes

welcometophu · 7 years

Text

Denouement 1

Twinned Book 1: Commit to the Kick

Denouement 1

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Waiting for the ritual is the worst part.

Nikita returns to the dorm three days after the ice storm. Alaric manages to check in on her long enough to find out from Pels that she’s fine, but doesn’t get to talk to her. They’re all too busy trying to get through the final few weeks of the semester, with papers and projects looming, and finals coming all too soon after that.

Alaric feels as if he should be stressed, should be ready to jump out of his skin, but there’s no time. Instead he goes through the motions, focusing on working hard at taekwondo practice, getting his essays done for Magical Studies. Eating with groups, then everyone dispersing to their own classes. When Alaric goes over to OPT, he falls asleep on the couch in the middle of a party, the noise crashing around him. But it’s easier than it is to be in his dorm room.

The ritual scrapes at his skin, even when Rory’s just writing it down, making notes and marking runes on paper. Alaric sleeps fitfully, while Rory simply doesn’t sleep enough. There are nights when Rory doesn’t come home, staying at Pawel’s with Thorne and Dax while they dig through notes and try to come up with a way to do what needs to be done. Alaric doesn’t sleep then, either, his mind spinning with worry over Rory’s wellbeing.

When Rory finally comes home on Friday morning and says, “it’s done,” Alaric doesn’t know whether to be relieved or anxious. Rory climbs into his bed and falls asleep, and Alaric goes through the motions of the day as best he can.

He doesn’t ask questions, doesn’t bring it up. Doesn’t talk about it around anyone else, wanting to keep them all as far away from it as he can. When Corbin and Drea ask for details, Alaric puts them off. He can’t outright lie to them, but he can defer.

And when the time is set, when he knows when everything will happen, he simply avoids them altogether.

He has dinner at OPT that Saturday night, sits through a meeting with his fraternity brothers, then corners Chris at the end of it all.

“Can you give me a ride to Pawel’s place?”

Chris’s jaw goes tight, his scent sour. He motions at the door, and Alaric heads outside first. There’s noise from inside, music starting. Classes are over and everyone is studying for exams that will begin on Wednesday; Saturday’s a good day to let off steam for the evening.

Chris closes the door, follows Alaric down the steps. “You could walk to Pawel’s place,” he says, voice low.

“I know.” Alaric shrugs one shoulder, still uncertain exactly what comes next. “Figured you’d rather drive me. But you can’t stay. I don’t even know where we’re doing this—Pawel’s in charge. All I know is that we don’t want to be on campus.”

“How dangerous is it?” Chris bumps Alaric, nudging him toward where the car is parked. “How worried should I be?”

“Coaches would be pissed off if I fucked up now,” Alaric grumbles, trying to make light of it. “Nothing’s going to happen.”

“If you believed that, you wouldn’t be keeping everyone so far away from this.” Chris pushes Alaric back against the car, traps him there with his hands on either side of Alaric’s shoulders. “If you don’t think the plan is ready, don’t do it. No one else has died. We have time.”

“We don’t have time—what if we wait, and someone else does die?” Alaric’s been thinking about it for the last two weeks, worried that someone else he knows is going to be stolen by the shadows. This is their only option, and they have to do something.

“Fuck.” Chris has a palm against Alaric’s face, thumb light against his lip. “Don’t fuck this up, Ric.”

“Not planning on it.” Alaric goes with it when Chris presses close, rests his entire body against Alaric’s like a heavy blanket. Chris kisses like he’s going to drown in Alaric, or perhaps like he expects Alaric to drown in him instead. Alaric sinks into it for a time, forgets what he’s about to do, until the catcall of someone walking by reminds him where they are. He nudges Chris back, licks his lips. “I need to get over there.”

“Get in.”

The ride is silent, and Chris drops him off without fanfare. From the set of his jaw, the tension in his shoulders, Alaric expects to smell anger. Instead he smells resolve and concern. Fear.

“I’ll be fine.” Alaric leans on the open window, holding onto the car so Chris can’t drive off immediately. “Might not be back tonight, but I’ll text you when it’s all done.”

“Call me,” Chris says quietly, and Alaric nods before he lets the car go.

Rory leans against the doorway of Pawel’s house, arms crossed, lanky legs crossed at the ankles. He raises one eyebrow, and Alaric grunts rather than offer any kind of an explanation. “Where are we doing this?” Alaric asks.

Rory’s breath hisses out; he jerks one shoulder back, toward the house. “Here, actually. Pawel said he can control the environment better if he’s in his own warded space. Also, he’s got a privacy fence around the back yard, and there’s enough room for you to go all dragon. We think.” He unfolds himself, knocks into Alaric as Alaric passes by. “Mac and Pawel are waiting out back. We’ve got just enough light to get started, then it should be dark enough for the plan to work.”

“Did you tell anyone it’s tonight?” Alaric asks, voice low.

Rory ducks his head, one quick nod. “Thorne knows. He promised not to tell Mom and Dad and Dad until it’s too late for them to get here to try to stop me. Mom’s going to be pissed as hell. She’s already worried after what’s been happening, but she hasn’t tried to stop us so far. This, though? She’d think this is suicide.”

Alaric laughs dryly. “Great, that’s a fantastic recommendation for the plan, Rory.”

“How about you?” Rory leads the way through the house, straight into the kitchen and pushing open the back door. It seems empty, smells dark and dank, like an old basement. Alaric tunes his senses for any sign of Conor, but other than the constant prickling of ozone that seems to linger in the Szczek household, there’s nothing.

“Haven’t talked to Drea and Corbin since you came back yesterday morning,” Alaric admits. “Chris knows, though.”

A low snort of laughter, punctuated by the bang of the door behind them as they step out. “Kind of figured that,” Rory says. “Scale of one to ten, how pissed off is he at you for being an idiot?”

“He isn’t,” Alaric says quietly. “He’s scared. So am I.”

“So am I,” Pawel says, and that’s not at all reassuring. “We’re chasing a legend, something that half the magical world doesn’t believe exists. We’re chasing something that if it does exist is known for stealing people away.”

“Something that literally has death in its name, we get it,” Mac says, leaning back in a camp chair, her feet kicked up on the edge of a cold fire pit. “This is war, Pawel, and war sucks. I know that, and I’ve known it for a long time. If I’m going to be your weapon, let’s get this over with before I reconsider.”

There’s a darkness to her tone that Alaric hasn’t heard before, a rank edge to her scent, sweet like burning flesh. Her skin is cast grey in the twilight, her eyes dark. She’s dressed solely in black, her hair pulled back from her face with a thick headband, but left natural otherwise. When she pushes to her feet, she hesitates, grabs the arm of the chair to catch her balance. It takes her a few steps before she moves with her usual grace.

When she reaches Alaric and Rory, she drags them both in, her arms around them, head dropped against Alaric’s chest. “Don’t die. Okay? Just, don’t die.”

“That’s the whole point of all this preparation,” Rory says quietly, his hand curled around the back of her head. “So none of us die.”

“And so no one else dies,” Alaric adds.

Pawel clears his throat, and Mac steps back, lips pursed as she looks at him. “We need to get started before it gets so dark we can’t see,” Pawel says quietly. “We need some tactical advantage.”

“Do I get to know what the plan is?” Alaric asks, because he has a feeling he’s the only one still in the dark.

“You’re bait,” Mac says dryly. “And the weaponized tank. I’m the rescue crew. Rory’s the water we dump on the fire. Pawel just pulls the trigger.”

“Not quite how I would’ve put it, Mac, but it’s close.” Pawel motions for Alaric to step away from the house, moving into the more open area of the yard, past the fire pit and patio. “We don’t know enough about the Shadowwalkers or Deathstalkers,” he admits. “But we do know that magic—high power, unique ritual or Talent—seems to summon it. And we know it moves in the darkness. We have worked to develop a ritual that should, if all goes as planned, slip the dragon from your skin.”

“So both a new ritual and my dragon,” Alaric mutters. “And all your power.”

“And all my power,” Pawel echoes. “You aren’t the only bait here, Alaric. We’ve done what we can to overload this plan as much as possible, so we can hope for success. We need to lure the Shadowwalker here, so we can trap it.”

“What do we do with it then?”

Pawel’s gaze narrows. “What do you want to do with it?”

Rip its throat out. Devour it while it screams and regrets that it ever had anything to do with…. Alaric deflates before he finishes the thought. He shakes his head. “Revenge,” he says slowly. “But that’s not killing it. Do you think you can make it safe for us to transport it, if we catch it?”

“Catching it is the hardest part,” Pawel says. “If we can trap it, I am reasonably certain that we can continue to use those same methods for keeping it trapped.”

Alaric nods sharply. “Then I know what we’re going to do.” There’s no point in going over it, not until everything’s said and done. If they capture it, good. He’ll deliver it appropriately. If not, they’ll need a new plan, and hopefully a war won’t start in the meantime.

“Come here.” Mac sinks to sit on the ground, pats the space next to her. “I trust you not to hurt me when you become a dragon. You didn’t last time.”

“I’m still me,” Alaric protests, even though it’s half a lie. He doesn’t remember a thing from the last time the form came out. On the other hand, he doesn’t remember what the bear did to Marks, either; everything he knows is put together from watching the tape after. His mouth thins, shoulders hunch. “Pretty sure I’m still me.”

She leans her shoulder into his. “Take a good sniff and file it in the part of your brain that remembers friend with this scent.”

He dutifully inhales, even though he already knows Mac, already has her scent tucked away with the sound of her heart.

Pawel and Rory stand back, fire lighting in the pit with a whoosh. Flames make the shadows flicker, coming alive in playful dances around the edge of the yard. Alaric blinks at them, tries to makes sense of them and search for meaning, while the rise of magic pricks against his skin.

Mac shivers, pulls away. She twists around to watch Pawel and Rory, but Alaric can’t do it. He sits with his back resolutely toward them, spine hunched, arms around his legs as he keeps his knees drawn to his chest. The magic plays over his skin, skips across the exposed spaces, sparking against him. He blinks, exhales a rough cloud of smoke.

Mac shudders again, pushes to her feet. Thick, sour anxiety rises in the air, and she makes a sound under her breath. She twists behind him, her fingers brushing against his hair before she pulls back quickly. “Fuck,” she whispers.

“You okay, Mac?” Pawel’s voice is tight, concerned. Alaric feels the pause in the magic, growls softly.

“I’m fine,” she snaps. “Keep going. If I’m not fine, I won’t be here, you know that.”

Alaric inhales, choking on the thickness of magic in the air. He exhales in a rough cough, a spurt of flames that has him scrambling to his feet, hands and feet spread as he crouches.

“Again,” Pawel murmurs, and the magic shifts, wrapping around Alaric and slipping under his skin.

The dragon roars, exploding outward in a thunderous cry, wings flapping.

The shadows roil, and Mac disappears. She reappears at the far end of the yard, diving into the shadows that push toward Alaric. She reaches for something, but it’s gone, moving in a thick line, then disappearing before it reaches the light. Mac disappears again.

Alaric roars again, not sure what to do. Magic itches in his nose: ozone from Pawel and Rory, but also a different scent, one he recognizes from the traces lingering around Orson’s things.

This. This creature.

It was there when Orson died.

He flaps his wings, and Rory shouts, but Alaric can’t hear the words. He dives into the darkness, sweeping with claws, searching for solidity. Mac taps his shoulder, and Alaric spins, feels something brush against his spine. He swats at it, and they dance as Alaric chases shadows with Mac bouncing around them.

Alaric stops at a moment when there’s something in the darkness hanging in front of him. A face, two eyes burning as they peer at him, a smile sharp and pleased, scent bright.

Mac wraps her arms around the shadow from behind and wrenches. They both disappear.

“Fuck, not on top of me!” Rory yells out. “Shit, it’s gone. Mac!”

Alaric dives at them both, feels something grab his neck. He growls angrily, a gout of flame bursting forth.

“Watch it!” Pawel snaps, and Alaric rolls in the air, wings flapping, the air putting the fire pit out with a heavy whoosh.

Alaric snaps around, trying to loosen the grip of the thing. It tightens across his throat; he knows that if he were human right now, he’d be losing consciousness. He spots Mac, flies toward her as she blinks out of existence. Her weight settles on his back, pressing the thing down against him. “Get us back to Rory!” she shouts.

Why doesn’t she just teleport? There’s no time to argue as he simply twists in mid-air and flies back to Rory, landing on the ground and rolling as Mac flies free. Rory lands on Alaric, and Alaric feels the dragon slip away. By the time Rory reaches past his shoulder, Alaric is nothing but human, darkness wrapped around his throat and squeezing tightly. He grunts, tries to change, but with Rory flattened against him, magic at full power, there’s nothing he can do.

There are bright spots of light at the corners of his eyes; he squeezes them shut, tries to gasp in a breath. “Fuck.” The word is a low rasp, barely audible.

“I’ve got you.” Mac’s fingers wrap around his wrist. He feels her intake of breath, smells the resolve as she steels herself, and a moment later they are both ten feet away, watching Rory fall on top of the darkness, straddling it and holding it down.

Alaric can breathe, but the stench of ozone in the air strangles him. He coughs, turns his head and closes his eyes. Pawel chants, the magic intensifying, wrapping around that corner of the yard while Alaric shrinks away.

“Do you need me to get you out of here?” Mac asks, and Alaric shakes his head.

“I’m not leaving them alone with it,” he rasps, coughs again to clear his throat.

“I think we’ve got it.” Rory’s voice is strained. “As long as I don’t let go, I think we’ve got it.”

There’s a low laugh, sound reverberating in the room. It almost looks human where Rory’s wrapped around it, vaguely feminine features set into writhing shadow.

Rory’s expression twists wry. “It’s not easy to hold onto.”

“I’ve bound it. I’m not sure how long it’ll last, and I think that whatever plan you have, Alaric, we’d better do it now.” Pawel’s scent wavers, thickens again like sparks around a fire.

“Give Mac your keys,” Alaric says, “and lets all get in the car. We’re taking it to Haverhill.”

It’s disturbing the way the shadow laughs at his words, as if Alaric hasn’t managed to surprise it at all.

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#welcome to phu #welcometophu #commit to the kick #phu twinned #twinned #cttk denouement

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phoenixfire-thewizardgoddess · 8 years

Note

I'm really sorry to bother you but I'm scared and I don't know where else to go. I'm a danger to myself, I keep overdosing on various pills and I can't stop thinking about hurting myself. I was hospitalised at the end of last year and spent 6 weeks in the psychiatric ward but things are getting bad again but I don't want to be put away again and my ED is making a return I can't stop making myself throw up and I'm just really lost and scared I don't know why I'm like this

I can see you are looking for direction, or at least validation that what you think is the next step, is the right course of action. You cannot ignore what is going on, and you know that too or you would not be seeking assistance from someone else.

You need to go straight to your doctor, and tell them what is happening.Or a counselor, if you have one assigned to you/any ongoing mental health support, now would be the time to make an urgent appointment. Do it.

Take a support person you trust, and if you feel that it will be too hard to say what is happening, write down everything and give the doctor the letter/list/paper.

- - -

The reality is you may require hospitalisation again, and that’s okay. You need to tell yourself that that is a thing that may happen, and it is a necessary step towards getting back to who you were before this.

Look at the plain fact you have told me:>you are overdosing>your ed is flaring up and exacerbating the issue>you are damaging yourself through continuous induced vomiting, hich you say is compulsive>you stated you are experiencing severe suicidal ideation/self harm>you are scared of all of this and want to change the situation for the better.

Why is this happening?>Only through exploration of your psychosocial circumstances over a period of several sessions can a trained professional help you work that out. It could be anything, from extreme distress, to hormonal imbalance/mental health concerns, through to repressed trauma. Everyone is different, every individual has a reason; biological, environmental, social, mental, physical, psychosocial, physiological, or any combination.

>You need professional support to explore this, and ascertain both what has triggered this, and how to resolve it. Which may take some time, but all recovery does.

>You need personal support, emotional support, and someone who is on your side but non-judgmental. For some people they have a family member or friend who can fill this role of support person, but fr others they prefer a slightly more impartial person such as their counselor or psychiatrist.

The most important thing is seeking assistance from a primary healthcare professional, such as your doctor.

But if you require further support to make that step, or more resources, here are a handful of organisations who can give you a more personalised, anonymous, degree of support. Some can even help you make an action plan and schedule in to speak with you again, to check how you are going.

>Lifeline - Ph: 13 11 14They have a Crisis Online Chat, a 24hr phoneline, and specific resources for men, women, young people, indigenous persons, poc, parents and the elderly. They also have additional resources for your specific needs under their Resources tab.

>United Synergies the main website has links to various other help organisations that specialise in mental health, youth, homelessness, suicide prevention, homelessness, and other topics.>>United Synergies: Standby Suicide Callback Service - Ph: 1300 659 467Suicide Prevention & Support Service. Online Text & Video Chat counselling services available. For people who have experienced suicidal ideation, attempts, suicide in their social circle; for information, advice, assistance and counselling, and resource provision. They can plan to make contact regularly, if you need it.

>Kids Helpline (Youth & Young Adult 13-25yrs) - Ph: 1800 55 180024hr phoneline, online crisis chat & email counselling is available. Trained counselors can listen and provide you with resources, and/or support.

>BeyondBlue - Ph: 1300 22 4636Online Chat & Email Counselling available, as well as 24hr confidential phoneline. Specialise in providing counseling for depression, anxiety and suicide related issues, concerns, and sufferers.

>Alcohol & Drug Information Service (ADIS) - Ph: 1800 177 833This line can can provide information, advice, counselling, and referrals to a service in your area that will meet your needs.[Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs Services (ATODS) can be accessed through this line.]

>Eating Disorder Helpline: Butterfly National Helpline (Ph: 1800 33 4673)Also has email and online chat counselling available.

- - -

If you are in immediate danger, if you take pills or feel like this is the moment you need to no longer exist, call 000 (or your country’s equivalent) for immediate emergency assistance.- - -

In short the plan is simple, and you need to do this in order to protect yourself.

Step 1 (Optional): Find a friend or family member, someone you trust and know will be supportive and/or non-judgmental. Tell them that you need their help, their support, and if you can tell them what is happening. You can also do this in letter form if you wish.

Step 2: If Step 1 is not an option for you, then choose one or more of the above services and make contact in whichever way you feel most comfortable. I believe all the above have both verbal and non-verbal methods of counseling, which should allow you to express yourself in the way that is easiest for you. As some people experience heightened anxiety from talking on the phone, or talking about personal issues.It would be beneficial to you, even if you do have a support person, as the trained counselors on the other end of the phonelines/chat/emails will have experience in helping people in similar situations through difficult times, and can provide situation-specific resources for you.

Please consider calling at least one of the provided organisations above.

Step 3: Create an appointment with your preferred healthcare professional. If you do not have a doctor, sometimes it is best to go to the hospital directly and tell them what is happening in length. The more detail they have, the more they can help you, or provide accurate care.>Hospitals also have mental health departments and social workers who can help you with a full spectrum of your circumstances.

If the idea of making the appointment is stressful, you can ask your support person to make it for you and/or attend the appointment with you. That is the role of a support person.

As said before, if you feel more comfortable writing out your situation (as you have in this ask) and providing the letter to your doctor or healthcare practitioner instead, you do it. It doesn’t have to be a final-edit novelisation, it just has to be a statement of the facts with your feelings interjected.E.g. “I need your help, but I am not sure how to say it, therefore I have written it down. I am scared for myself, because of the actions I have taken recently. I cannot stop trying to hurt myself, through taking large assortments of pills (specify if you wish), and making myself throw up. The idea of my ed returning is causing me stress. Consistent throwing up has (list any physical side effects such as weakness, mouth pain, etc.). I am afraid of being rehospitalised for this; and it has made it hard to seek help directly. At the moment I have told (name anyone directly involved like your support person) and/or contacted (any agency you have spoken with), who have helped me to come and see you today.”

Because it gives them an overview of your situation. What has happened, who is involved, your personal feelings, and where they can support you most.If you have been given any medications/been taken off any medication recently; or have been taking any additional substances (self medicating), please let them know. This can change the diagnosis slightly.

And if there has been a significant event or stressor this is related to, please let them know.

Step 4: Understand that you may need to go to hospital, and prepare for it.What do you need to feel calm, what can you do to destress or decrease the anxiety associated with this situation?Otherwise, adhere to any plan you make with your doctor or further specialist/mental health physician. Including continued contact, medications, and/or hospital stays or assessments.

Use your support person, let them know if things are going well or not. Have a codeword or a plan for if you feel things are too much and you need immediate assistance.

E.g. If you text them, “Rainclouds” covertly, they need to call you and check how you’re doing/call to talk you into calling one of the above organisations (or your specified mental health professional). Or if you send them, “Chasm” it means you feel the need to hurt yourself, and they should call for emergency medical help immediately. Ambulance officers can respond to patients in distress who are experiencing suicidal ideation, and determine if you are safe. It is better safe than sorry.

Have a plan.

Also, use the organisations. Even if your support person is the closest person to you, if they are not trained in providing mental first aid or dealing with stressful situations, then it may be difficult for them too. They can also talk to any of the above organisations about their feelings on the situation; which will avoid tension and burnout in both of you.

Understand that you may not feel better for a while. And Relapses happen. But the more you persevere, the more likely it is that this can resolve and recovery will be in you grasp.

>If any medication you are given is having significant side effects (physical, mental, emotional, other) write them down, go see your physician. It does no good if they are making you feel worse, and it persists (your doctor will advise if there are temporary side effects).

Step 5: Write down how you feel.And I know that sounds incredibly “drink water and do yoga for your depression sweetie :)” but it is actually an important psychological tool.If you write down your thoughts, how you’re feeling, any intense emotions, your physical symptoms, on an almost daily basis or whenever you need to… it gives you a record. A physical thing that you can look back on, and track your progress.

For example: “Aprarch 37th, you felt lethargic and down. It was day four of your new medications (name it if you wish), but otherwise you felt good. You saw a Chihuahua today, it was adorable. That was good.”Or, “Janutober 82nd, I got a bad grade on my test, and I am tempted to Gollum into a nearby volcano… but I called (support person) and that helped. They didn’t do much better than me, and we laughed about it. I feel a little sick, but I think it’s the cold going around campus.”Etc.Overly simplistic, but like, that’s really just it. It can be nothing more than that.But it tells you what’s happening, when, and why.

Step 6: Know what your goal is.

You don’t want to feel this way, do you?You WANT to change, or you would not have sent this ask, and I assume the ‘help me please’ ask of the other day.

Your goal is to fight this, and become who you were before.And you are not alone in this, there are a lot of people who can provide you aid in this. So never feel that this is something you have to do by yourself.

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You have reached out and been heard, your concerns and experiences are valid. You are very strong for seeking assistance to locate your next step, and I am very proud of you for finding the inner strength to do so.

The next thing you must do is seek assistance, personal and professional, to help you move on to a better phase in your life.

If you find none of the above helpful, please make contact again.You are also free to simply leave a message to let me know how you are doing during this process.

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#Anonymous #long post #this took longer to respond to than initially assumed because I could not find one of my original service links #be safe

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