#plus a dash of 'i expected nothing less from you yet i am still disappointed'

[teecupangel]

OG anon of the Reborned Desmond in Unity. I'm mighty proud that my ideas spur you fun writing. I'll confess you a secret, I'm also og anons of the ideas I've sent you prior but I don't wanna have you see me aggressive or pushy because I enjoy your content immensely (I had bad experiences of people's harsh words in irl and online on my personality). Anyway, it's similar in Unity idea. What if Desmond is reborned in AC Rogue, like became Shay's childhood friend or Liam's older or younger brother. Or possibly in a time earlier so can Desmond be established in Brotherhood maybe master assassin for Connor's happiness. Haytham's confusion and frustration in some point in the plot that Desmond won't kill him but has a look of a disappointed or pained look of a family member and Lisbon is saved. Desmond and Shay could become platonic soulmates or slow burn childhood friends to lovers (up to you) or better yet Desmond unintentionally became mentor (he was supposed just be an assassin in the background damn it lmao) and Shay is like a bodyguard or right hand which had these intense sexual tension between the two. Sorry for messy and long ask

Ah, well, I don’t see a problem with your personality and I like the ideas you throw at me. To be fair, I do try to limit my time with everyone’s asks to a certain time so I can still write. So if you don’t see an answer, that only means it’s been pushed to next day or something.

Alright, let’s think about how to make this work.

As usual, we’ll keep the same limitation as the Unity AU one

Desmond remembers his life as Desmond Miles

Desmond will have his ancestors’ memories and skills but those memories will be vague

So he either gets reborn as Shay’s childhood friend or Liam’s older/younger brother. Since Liam is Shay’s childhood friend, we can combine the two and make Desmond’s Shay’s childhood friend who is also Liam’s sibling.

Now, according to AC wiki, Liam was Achilles’ first acolyte and it was Liam who also recruited the rest of the Colonial Assassins. He’s pretty much Achilles’ second in command and maybe even being groomed as the next mentor.

In this scenario, Desmond and Liam would both be inducted into the Brotherhood together (whether we keep the whole “Liam’s father got executed to save his son” part of his backstory is up to you, nonny) with Desmond being more of Liam’s shadow. Many will see him as the little bird who whispers in Liam’s ear. Everyone in the Brotherhood knows that if you want Liam on your side, you get Desmond on your side.

We’ll get to Shay later as we need to talk about how Desmond’s inclusion would affect the Colonial Brotherhood as a whole.

Achilles Davenport

Desmond would still remember how Ratonhnhaké:ton thought of him as a father-figure. He also remembers how Achilles sometimes treated Ratonhnhaké:ton like a stubborn child so he has mixed feelings for Achilles. What he does remember is that Achilles’ family would die. Here’s where we get a bit creative with this. Desmond doesn’t have actual medical know-how. What he did had was a Shaun who was more than happy to explain what killed Achilles’ family and how that could have been prevented, which literally boils down to “cleanliness”.

So, in this scenario, Desmond is kind of a clean freak. People assume it’s because he used to live in a dirty place and Liam never tried to correct them that Desmond had always been a clean freak since they were children. The homestead is always clean, especially the kitchen. Achilles learned to live with it because his son loves the ‘wash your hands’ song that Desmond taught him. In this case, Abigail and Connor live and that means that Achilles would be ‘milder’ than his canon characterization. (Maybe Abigail even treats all of Achilles' students like her children as well?)

Hope Jensen

The main difference for Hope in this scenario is how she controls her gangs. Desmond knows it would be impossible to stop crimes from happening but his words and his adherence to the Creed would resonate with Hope. Instead of having something akin to a Proto-Rooks, Hope would be in charge of something similar to how the media portrayed the golden age of the mafia. They’re criminals, yes, and they sell illegal shit but they’re organized and they have a code. They protect the people in their district and take care of crimes not their own. In exchange, the people (and maybe even the police) look the other way when they do illegal stuff. (Hope becomes a mix of Vito Corleone and Red Hood in this scenario… does this mean Desmond accidentally created the mafia in New York during the 18th century?)

Kesegowaase

Not much would change for Kesegowaase although he would consider Desmond as a close friend. They’re also hunting buddies and Kesegowaase would notice how many of Desmond’s movements are very similar to him or to other tribes that he knows of. Desmond would just wave it off as a coincidence or maybe even say “I had a great teacher”. Kesegowaase would seesaw between thinking Desmond had been trained by one of his people (or one of the other tribes) and thinking Desmond may have been blessed by one of their spirits.

Louis-Joseph Gaultier

Oooohhhh bbooyy. This one… okay. So… Gaultier will be the one that keeps butting heads with Desmond. A lot. Desmond would even argue against his inclusion as he sees Gaultier as violent and arrogant but Achilles will argue that his connection with the French army made him invaluable. Even his suggestion of just keeping Gaultier as an ‘ally’ would be denied because Achilles sees how loyal he is. “He is loyal to a master, not to the Creed!” will be Desmond’s main argument. So there are a lot of times that he and Gaultier would argue on what it means to be an Assassin and what the Creed means. Gaultier would emphasize on Desmond’s Irish immigrant heritage to belittle his knowledge about the Creed and Desmond will argue that blood doesn’t matter. On the flip side, Desmond’s constant arguments with Gaultier and critiquing of Gaultier’s actions make all the other Assassins have a better understanding of the Creed and what it means to be an Assassin.

Liam O'Brien

Honestly, I think Desmond should be his younger brother, mainly because that would make Desmond be of a similar age as Shay and because Liam just has big bro-vibes. Just imagine him being a protective older brother who likes to tease Desmond. In this scenario, Liam would feel responsible for Desmond’s safety (especially if we do decide that their father still dies for Liam’s mistakes) and he’s a bit overprotective at times which Desmond finds both tiring and also makes him feel warm inside. Liam would also be torn whenever Desmond and Achilles would butt heads. On one hand, Achilles is like a father to him, on the other hand, Liam also knows his brother long enough to understand that everything Desmond does is for what he believed is right. Achilles may have been the one to choose Liam to be an Assassin but Liam knows that it’s Desmond who embodies what being an Assassin is supposed to be.

And now, we get to Shay Cormac.

Shay met Liam first and Liam was the one to introduce Desmond to him. Desmond has no memories of Shay at all since, even before the memories of his Bleed took a hit, his memories of Haytham stopped before Haytham met Shay. Not only that but Achilles never told Ratonhnhaké:ton anything. All Desmond knew is that the Colonial Brotherhood will be destroyed by the Templars while Ratonhnhaké:ton was young. So he grew up treating Shay as a friend. They separated due to their family situations but Liam later reunites with Shay and invites him to the Brotherhood.

And this is where Shay gets hit.

Growing up, he saw Desmond more as Liam’s little brother. A small kid that Shay needs to keep an eye on because he can be a little strange and has a mischievous streak that no one would believe. Shay has lost count of how many times Desmond had made some asshole’s life hell without anyone realizing it was him.

So when he heard Desmond was one of the high-ranking members of the Brotherhood, he wasn’t surprised. Desmond had always been a sneaky little shit.

Then…

He saw Desmond as a young adult for the first time, maybe while he’s looking over reports Hope was showing him concerning the current situation in New York, and Shay just…

Stared.

Desmond as a child was cute. Maybe a little too thin but that was unfortunately normal for them. He always wore Liam’s old clothes which were too big for him.

But Desmond in his Assassin robes? Wearing clothes that actually fit him? Having grown up into a fit young man?

Shay gets hit hard. And Desmond is simply too happy to see him again to see it.

But Hope notices it.

And Liam freaking notices it too.

And now Shay doesn’t have to just deal with his growing affection for an oblivious Desmond. He has to deal with Hope’s teasing and Liam’s seesawing erratically between teasing him and threatening to eviscerate him. Shay’s crush is going to be the worst kept secret in the homestead that even little Connor Davenport knows about it.

But Desmond doesn’t.

Why?

Because Desmond is too focused dealing with the whole Kenway drama at the moment.

Because no matter who Desmond gets reborn to… He will always prioritize the three men he cared for the most.

And, at this point, Haytham Kenway was already in America (but Desmond has no idea where) and there were even slow ongoing talks of an alliance with Ratonhnhaké:ton’s tribe that Desmond has taken charge of.

And this is where I go back to my try-and-tested idea of Desmond spending lots of time with baby!Ratonhnhaké:ton and being bff with Kaniehtí:io. (*whispers*Ratonhnhaké:ton and Connor Davenport being brothers *whispers*)

But let’s focus on the first part of Rogue for this one.

One way for Desmond to learn that Achilles is messing with Isu bs is thanks to Hope. Hope and Shay were the ones to be ordered to find and analyze the precursor box and either of them could tell Desmond about it but, at this point, Shay is still ‘new’ and may be trying to get some brownie points from Achilles. On the other hand, Hope has long been converted to Desmond’s side and would definitely tell Desmond about all of these because she’s heard of how dangerous these items are from Desmond himself.

Desmond would strongarm his way to being part of the mission and might even sneak into Morrigan as a stowaway and only show himself when they were nearing Lisbon. Thanks to Desmond’s ‘affinity’ with POEs, Lisbon will definitely not happen (hell, we can even use some of the plot points from A Pirate's Son for this part XD) and the second part of Rogue would be changed to Desmond and Shay trying to secure all the other POEs in the manuscript they have.

And… maybe they start getting close during their travels and something develops between them during that time… (nudgenudgenudge)

Sidenote: This is also a bit similar to the idea I was thinking of based on @twitcherpated’s suggestion in AO3 of Desmond being reborn as the actual Connor Davenport. The only difference is that Desmond would be a bit young in that one and won’t be able to stop Lisbon but, even if he’s young, he can still comfort Shay and stop him from doing anything drastic while still in shock.

[starr-fall-knight-rise]

Humans Are Space Orcs, “Size Six.”

So I have been working on this for a few days based on a rquest form someone who wanted to see more stuff form when Adam was younger. I will, of course, be starting on the extra requested fluff for you guys tomorrow, but I hope this works for today. 

The bus bumped and jostled over the lumpy dirt road. Inside bodies swayed and juggle back and forth ramming into walls and steadying themselves against the antiquated seats before them. The bus was old, older than a large portion of dirt, old enough to have rubber tires, shitty suspension, and foam back seats, nothing like the sleek magno buses they used these days. Clearly their program wasn’t important enough to acquire a real transport vehicle. 

Their ride from the airport had been nerve wracking to say the least, and only some of it had come from the imminent threat that the bus would disintegrate into its component parts, most of the rest of it had come from the slow building of nervous energy felt by all the young teens as they waited to begin their first day at training.

There were forty of them in all, though less than half of that was predicted to make it through the training and actually become pilots from the program at Trans Space Combative aviation Academy. Of course the Academy didn’t have its own location, as new as it was and untested as it was, the burgeoning UNSC wasn’t likely to spend a ton of funds on a group of untested children. So they had been shipped onto Del Rio Texas where the air force flight academy was located, and allocated space, some instructors, and a few classrooms to get started.

Adam had found the other recruits from the program nervously waiting outside with their duffel bags and clothing. None of them were over the age of fifteen, and they consisted almost equally of boys and girls.

Adam was displeased to find himself the shortest among the boys, and about mid pack among the girls, a good portion of them probably weighing a good ten pounds more than he did, though none of them were out of shape.

He tried to ignore that doing his best to make friends with the other nervous recruits determined not to be the loser this time. Just as long as he didn’t show his weird to them straight off, maybe he was going to be fine. It seemed to be working, at least until the buss pulled up, and the group of them stared on with shock and disappointment at the monstrosity before them. 

They sort of hoped it wasn’t for them, but the ACU clad, army man stepping out of the door and onto the pavement dashed their hopes.

And soon they were on their way, jostling down the highway, eventually cutting through manned security gates, patrolled by armed guards, and finally onto the backroad that was taken around the airfield. Adam had his face pressed up against the window watching as a set of jets took off leaving trails of white behind them in the great blue sky above.

The implant in his arm buzzed, and he looked down to see a text from his  mother asking if they had landed yet.

He had to apologize for forgetting and assure her that he was, indeed, landed and on his way.

The further they went onto the base, the more people they could see, large muscular men and women running in formation wearing the same light grey T-shirts tucked into blue canvas shorts.

Voices roared past them as the men chanted in time with their cadence.

Low lying buildings pulled up on the horizon in front of them, crouched together in stumpy lines. Yelled commands wafted through open windows as more recruits rolled past kicking up dirt clouds as they went.

Adam grew nervous upon seeing them, big and adult.

He glanced down at himself and his baggy T-shirt and jeans held up only by a belt, the cuffs folded up over his shoes.

They belonged to his brothers, but were still too big for him.

The bus rolled to a stop just then jostling him forward so his face nearly rammed into the seat in front of him.A dust cloud billowed up around them obscuring his vision for a moment. At the front of the buss, the driver reached out and cranked the handle to the door manually forcing it open.

“Wow, this thing is a real piece of shit.” Someone muttered

Boots thudded onto the stairs, and the entire bus went quiet as a man stepped onto the front of the bus. He was tall, and serious faced with thick eyebrows and what appeared to be a shaved head, though it was mostly covered by a wide brimmed dumbass hat in dark, clashing seriously with his patterned ACUs.

They all waited on the edge of their seats.

Adam shrunk down into his expecting to get yelled at.

That’s what all the old army movies told him was going to happen.

Instead, however, the man smiled.

Adam didn’t buy it for one second.

“Welcome recruits to the first TSCA Academy class of 4013. I am Master Sergeant Kimball, and I will be one of your MTI (military training instructors) during this program. If you need to address me at any time during this course you will call me Sir or Master Sergeant Kimball. Now I understand that you may all be tired from your flight. We have recruits here from all across the world, so hopefully, today will be easy and relaxing.”

Adam eyed the group around him watching as the others began to relax.

Maybe this wasn’t going to be so bad after all? Perhaps because they were kids, they had been given some leeway during the training process.

I mean, were they really going to yell at a group of kids barely out of their teenage years.

“Alright everyone, Unload!”

There was a collective shuffling around the bus as the group of them took to their feet and began slowly shuffling towards the exit. Adam pulled his bag over his back, nearly tipping over backwards as the weight pulled his small frame off balance. Someone put a hand on his shoulder, ‘Whoa.” 

He glanced over and thanked the girl who helped him hurrying off the bus and down the stairs into the hot as hell Texas heat.

Stepping off the bus he found Master Sergeant Kimball standing next to two other MTIs, who were smiling at them, though their smiles seemed more wolfish than reassuring. 

My what big teeth you have he thought idly to himself stepping to the side so the others could walk through.

One boy came trudging down the steps last lugging an absolutely massive suitcase as a few of the others flopped to the ground resting against their bags eyes closed basking like lizards in the sun.

Sgt. Kimball stepped forward towards the last young man, “Here let me help you.”

The boy seemed rather grateful handing his bag down to the MTI taking some weight off his shoulders.

That was until Sgt. Kimball grabbed the zipper, opened the bag and dumped the entire contents of the suitcase into the dirt. He then got right up in the boy’s face and shouted, “NOW WHAT THE EVER LOVING FUCK DO YOU NEED A BAG LIKE THAT FOR. CHRIST SON, I COULD USE IT YO SMUGGLE YOUR CORPSE OUT WHEN I’M DONE WITH YOU.” 

The entire group jolted with surprise bolting upwards.

Even Adam was startled, and he had been expecting it. The poor kid was scrambling around in the dirt trying to collect his things, “GET YOUR ASS OFF THE GROUND YOU SORRY PIECE OF SHIT.”

The two other MTIs bore down on them their charming smiles revealed for what they really were. Wolf in sheep's clothing, snarling ravening beasts.

More bags were dumped on the ground, turned over, emptied until the contents mingled with the dust on the ground. The female MTI leaped over ripping Adam’s bag off the ground and tossing it’s contents into the dust. She reached down picked up a book and chucked it at him hitting him in the chest as he stumbled back, “YOU THINK YOU’RE GONNA HAVE TIME FOR READING!”

She moved on to the next student.

One of the recruits had burst into tears, and the MTI’s descended like vultures. One of them grabbed a water bottle from the ground and shoved it at the crying student, “BETTER GET STARTED ON CRYING ME A RIVER.”

Adam was scrambling to pick up his stuff and shove it back in his bag, “GET ON YOUR FEET!”

He bolted upright to find Sgt. Kimball in his face, or more looking down on him. His face was red and as he screamed little droplets of spit flew for his tongue. He gave Adam one long look over, “GOOD LORD BOY I’VE TAKEN SHITS MORE SUBSTANTIAL THAN YOU!”

“GO ON CLEAN UP THIS SHIT, IT’S FILTHY WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN DOING, THEN GET YOUR ASSES DOWN TO INTAKE.” He scrambled to put his things in his bag the MTI’s shouting at him the entire time. He nearly tripped over himself multiple times falling flat on his face in the dirt much to the amusement of the MTIs.

“LEAVE YOUR SHIT HERE.” 

He tripped and wobbled running after the others as they ran towards the building that had been pointed out to them by the screaming MTIs.

A few of the other recruits were crying, but Adam, well he had sort of expected it, and honestly he would have been disappointed if they hadn’t. IN fact he found himself grinning from ear to ear as he walked into the equipment room behind a line of other recruits.

The equipment officer turned around from his desk to glare at them. He was a heavy-set man in his late forties with biceps as big around as tree trunks.

He looked them over with a frown before jabbing his finger at Adam, “You there, smiley. Small or extra small.” He blushed, “er…. Extra…. Small.”

“At least he’s honest.” The man grouted turning around to rifle through his equipment coming back with two pairs of everything in stock. He stacked it on the counter in front of him.

“Two PT uniforms, Two ACUs, two shirts, sweatpants, jacket, gloves, hat, and.” He pulled up a set of tan combat boots then glanced him up and down, “What is your shoe size?” 

“Er….” More blushing, “Six.”

The man grunted ducked back behind the counter, “We only carry eight plus in mens, but a seven in women’s shoulder work.”

He tried not to wilt at the reminder of how small he was. 

He turned away again and motioned him off. He clambered to pick up everything he needed and wobbled away juggling the boots the pants and the jacket with some difficulty, dropping a glove on the floor and nearly dropping everything else when he went to pick it up.

Walking outside he was met by another MTI who yelled at him to get his ass to the barracks to change and put all his shit away. He hurried to do as he was told running and nearly dropping everything again as he made his way through the doors into a large room lined along either side with beds, a single trunk at the base.

He ran to one of the beds at the far end, opened the crate and placed his things inside struggling to pull on one of the PT uniforms as the others ran into the room to do the same, throwing their things in the lockers at the base of the beds as the MTIs continued to scream at them.

It was only as he was running out of the room that he noticed the horrible terrible thing.

The extra small pants…. Were too big.

He tried looking for a drawstring to make them tighter, but they were canvas with an elastic waist, and they did not go any tighter. He turned in his spot trying to figure out what to do, but as soon as he slowed down another MTI was screaming at him to get back onto the field and line up.

So he chickened out, holding onto his pants for dear life as he raced back to the training ground. 

Upon making it there he helped the other students line up into evenly space rows thinking that the MTIs might be impressed with them if they were to do that.

They did their best to stand like they were supposed to, though all of the instruction they had ever gotten was from old war movies, and they were all doing it horribly wrong, a fact for which the MTIs noticed and yelled at them for with great glee as soon as they noticed. Of course they were eventually whipped into shape standing in line in straight rows heels together hands at sides, shoulders back.

He could feel his pants slipping, though he was too embarrassed to say anything.

Sgt Kimball stepped out in front of them hands behind his back, “what did I say! Didn’t i say we were going to have a fun relaxing day! Are you having fun!” He was right in one of the recruits face now bellowing almost at the top of his lungs. He moved onto the next student, “Are you relaxed!”

Adam didn’t think the kid looked particularly relaxed. In fact, he looked so tense, that if he squeezed any harder his spine was going to go shooting out of his ass.

“Well!”

There was silence on the grounds.

“WELL!”

Adam scrambled his brain not entirely sure what to do before squeaking out, “Yes sir.” 

The MTI leaned in, “Why don’t you try and communicate in normal ranges of human hearing, son. I am not a bat!”

He looked back up at the rest of the group, “WELL!”

“YES SIR.”

“That’s better.” He turned to stalk away from Adam pacing up and down the line, “i will be straight with you when I say that today IS going to be fun and relaxing compared to what you will be going through in the next few years. If you manage to make it into this program I promise you we will destroy your social life, you will have time for nothing other than this program and sleeping, if I decide to allow you to sleep, that is.”

Adam was grinning.

Unfortunately that caught the Sgt’s eye, “THE FUCK ARE YOU SMILING AT!”

He waited.

Adam just stood there.

“ANSWER THE QUESTION GODDAMMIT!”

He scrambled, “Yes sir, sorry sir! I thought it was a rhetorical question.”  

“HEAVENS ABOVE HAVE MERCY ON MY SOUL. I SAID ANSWER THE QUESTION!”

His mouth opened then closed, “Er…”

“THE HELL KIND OF ANSWER IS THAT!”

“Um.”

“Sweet Jehova did you come out this stupid or is it a family tradition, a side hobby?”

“I’m sorry sir, I forgot the question.”

He lowered his head with an exaggerated sigh rubbing his temples , “Forgot the question. FORGOT THE QUESTION. I’VE MET GOLDFISH WITH BETTER MEMORIES THAN YOU! I SAID WHY THE HELL ARE YOU SMILING.”

He blushed, “Oh….. Um” “HURRY UP.”

“BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE A SOCIAL LIFE FOR YOU TO RUIN, SIR.”

That seemed to take the man back, and he simply sat there staring at Adam with a bemused expression.

“If you were any more pathetic, smiley, I might just cry for you. Honest to god, if you get any more pathetic I will cry real tears for your shame.” 

He turned away.

“Now everyone get on the ground and give me FIFTY.”

At least everyone seemed to know what that meant, though pathetically enough his arms were wobbling at twenty.

“JUMPING JUPITER RECRUIT, I DIDN’T EXPECT YOU TO MAKE ME CRY IN THE FIRST HALF HOUR. MY COUSIN COULD DO MORE PUSH-UPS THAN YOU AND HE’S GOT NO ARMS!”

The Sargent seemed to have a lot of disabled relatives. A blind granny, an armless cousin, a nephew with a pole up his ass from a tragic fishing accident.

By the time they were done , Adam was quite nearly ready to throw up.

“ALRIGHT FIFTY BURPIES GO,GO GO.” Oh no, anything but that.

He paused but was almost immediately screamed at to get his ass in gear. He knew what was coming before it happened, and couldn't stop it.

As he jumped down into his first plank and then back up, he could feel the waist on his pants slipping, at first just a little, but then, as his feet left the ground there they went right down around his ankles.

At first he thought he was at least lucky to be in the back row, but then scrambling to pick his pants back up, he realized none of that was going to matter.

Sgt. Kimball was staring at him, cheek twitching.

He himself was blushing excessively. 

He was quiet for a very long time before, “CONTROL YOURSELF RECRUIT, THE LAST THING I NEED TO SEE IS YOUR CHICKEN LEG FLAT ASS KIDDIE JUNK ON MY TRAINING FIELD. Fuck, as small as you are I’ll probably be indited for CP. Now go get some new fucking pants before you blind us all for a second time. And, since it seems you’ve never seen leg day, I want you to cluck like a chicken all the way there. Let everyone know the pantsless chicken boy is coming.”

He did as he was told rose red the entire time and beat red on his way back seeing as, they had given him the smallest size available in mens, so instead he had been given a pair of woman’s shorts, which, due to the cut, tended to ride up in very uncomfortable places of his anatomy.

It was a very good thing he was used to embarrassment.

Or this was going to be a very long couple of years.

***

Commander Vir blinked and put a hand to his head boots throwing up little puffs of dust in the Texas heat.

“You ok Commander?”

He sniffed at the air and took in a deep breath hands on hips, “Ah, the memories!”

[saiilorstars]

Tell Me Something

***One-Shot*** // Masterlist to other stories

Fandom: Criminal Minds

Pairing: Spencer x OFC

Summary: It's always been hard for Spencer to say what he feels. Words are just not easy for him but there comes a time when that simply won't do. And given his line of work, he should've guessed it was only a matter of time until the job forced it out of him in the worst situation ever. Aitana would've never guessed it.

Taglist: @ocfairygodmother @maaaaarveeeeel @anotherunreadblog [If you would like to be added to this OC's taglist please let me know!]

Author's Note: Hi! Hello! This is the first time I write for CM so I'm still pretty rusty but I do hope to publish a full story in the following months with the same OC! In the meantime I'll stick to one-shots and AUs to test the waters!

Pronunciation of the OC's name sounds like "eye-ta-na"

It wasn't supposed to happen like this. It was a case like any other, terrible and gruesome but nothing they hadn't seen before. But for some reason, this time around, things went terribly wrong.

"Go, go, go!" Spencer practically yanked the smaller brunette woman with him in a complicated run. One second less and they would be caught in the open.

Aitana pushed back her short curls and rubbed her freckled-face once then twice, and then a third. She tried pushing away those memories but if she was okay then it meant she had the duty to remember how things happened, how she let Spencer down. She didn't even register the ER nurse coming by her bed to stitch her right ankle up, nor the concerned Emily by her side.

"We have to try to get out of here!" Aitana yelped when Spencer made a swift turn down the left.

"The chances of us making a turn back and getting out through the front door don't look so well!" He said in a quick-paced ramble. He wasn't searching for a way back around the building. They started one way and they had to follow it until the end.

"Yeah, but they're coming!" Aitana could hear the running footsteps behind them.

"Which means we either have to be faster or hide!" His answer came in the form of a tight alcove.

"But—" Before Aitana even knew it, Spencer had crammed her in first. He then had to maneuver his way in. It was, admittedly, a bit painful being that type of squished but if it meant staying alive then so be it.

"Listen, there's a door a couple feet down from here. We just have to run for a bit but if we can reach it, we'll be good." Spencer was saying as he simultaneously tried peering out. They were coming. "On the other hand, we might need to compartmentalize and separate."

"What? I'm not leaving you!" Aitana exclaimed a tad louder than she should've.

"Shh!" He and Aitana made the mistake of looking at each other. Being squished and crammed meant there was zero space between them. Absolute zero. "Listen Aitana, I can't promise that you'll always be safe around me but I can promise that I'll always try to keep you safe. I'll do anything I can and right now, this is me trying." Spencer offered her a soft smile despite their current situation. Even then, Aitana felt the reassurance he was trying to give her. She believed him entirely.

Aitana couldn't remember another moment that had brought them that close to each other. If she concentrated hard enough, she could remember the feeling of Spencer's heartbeats against her chest. If she thought hard and pushed through her guilt, she could rival his eidetic memory by remembering every last detail of his face. So concerned, scared, and yet still kind. She had mainly been the middle kind but Spencer always knew how to pick and choose what to be in the worst of situations. He was logical.

"Aitana?" she flinched when Emily touched her arm. "They're done."

Aitana followed the pointing finger to her ankle. Stitches now adorned it. "This shouldn't be it," she muttered with disgust. "I shouldn't just have stitches."

"Aitana—"

"I should have more! I should have bruises and cuts and everything else because that is what I deserve!" Hot tears stung Aitana's eyes the more she went on. No matter what Emily tried to say, Aitana wouldn't desist. How could she get Scot-free with a few stitches while Spencer was God knew where...all because of her.

"Alright, we have one small window of opportunity here..." Spencer was no doubt making his calculations in his head. The footsteps were getting far too close. "We'll run and whoever gets to that door first keeps going no matter what.

" I am not leaving you behind," Aitana reiterated, though she had a good feeling that he would make it first. He did have long legs after all. If he got out, she would be fine. He would get the backup that they couldn't call for in that moment.

"On my count," Spencer started. He tried raising his hand to count off with his fingers but the moment he accidentally dragged them over the side of Aitana's waist he dropped that intention. He thanked the darkness that covered his momentary flush. Unknowingly, Aitana was thanking it too for the same reasons.

As soon as he reached 'Three!' they made a run for it. Not even 5 seconds later did they hear the "I see 'em!" that was followed by gunfire.

They were ridiculously outnumbered to try and fight back.

"C'mon!" Spencer reached the door first and yanked it open. He was mighty disappointed to see a small backspace with a gate closing them in but it wasn't that tall. They would have to climb.

Aitana yelped. A bullet had caught her ankle. "Son of a—" Spencer whirled around to see her doing a cross of a limp and run. "You need to go!" She waved him to get going. "Close the door and go!"

Spencer glanced back at the gate. He would be able to climb it pretty quick but leaving Aitana behind?

"GO!" Aitana yelled at him.

Spencer shook his head. "No!"

"What—"

He dashed back for her and pulled her with him even when her limp was getting in the way. She protested with the natural claims she was slowing him down but he wouldn't budge.

"I found 'em!" They heard one of the men announce. They could even see the silhouette of him getting closer.

"Spencer, let go and run!" Aitana tried prying his hand off her arm. "You said whoever—"

Spencer shoved her out the door and just in time because a second later a bullet crashed against the door hinge.  "Climb up and go!"

She knew his full intentions now and there was no way she would let him do it. "Don't you dare!"

"Aitana, just go! You'll be safe! Plus, someone has to know if Melody is alright! They won't kill me!" Just as Spencer claimed that, another bullet struck far too close to his arm.

"Spencer!"

"Go!" He pushed her again and shut the door on her.

"NO!" Aitana screamed and ran back for the door to open it. "Open this door right now! Open it!" She frantically banged her hands against the door with all her might. "OPEN IT!"

"Go!" she barely managed to hear Spencer because soon after, she heard more bullets.

Aitana's eyes snapped open. She gasped lightly. "Where's...?" She started shifting on the bed, reminding herself she was in the hospital.

"It's alright," Emily was beside her. "You had to be sedated."

"Seda..." Aitana briefly remembered the battle she ensued against the nurses and even Emily herself. "Oh God..." She pushed herself up in a sitting position.

"Hey, hey, lay back down," Emily tried to keep Aitana on the bed.

"You guys got away with a sedation the first time but not again!" Aitana was fierce but Emily Prentiss was more.

"You can't go anywhere! You got a bullet in your ankle!"

"A petty thing!"

"NO!" Emily's yell was enough to freeze Aitana and cause several eyes to come their way.

Aitana looked Emily in the eyes and, little by little, tears welled up in hers. "Emily, I..." Her lip trembled and soon, the tears rolled down her face. "I left him. I left Spencer in that place."

"He told you to go," Emily reminded her.

"But I wasn't supposed to actually go!" Aitana brought a hand up to her forehead and rubbed harsh circles over her skin. "We're friends, we're...I wasn't supposed to leave him!"

Emily doubted that Aitana remembered all the rambling explanations she gave when they first found her. Everything the team heard was enough to make their own conclusions. One of them had to make sure that their missing victim was still alive and putting one FBI agent in the mix would ensure that most of the potential harm came their way and not to the victim. Frankly, Spencer made a call that any one of them would've made too.

"I have to go help look for him," Aitana made another move to get up and since Emily wasn't in the mood to have another round with her, she told her what had recently happened.

"We already found him!" As Emily expected, Aitana froze midway getting up. Her expectant look prompted Emily to explain what happened during her sedation. "What you said helped us piece together where the unsubs could've taken Spencer to, where Melody could be held at."

"What-what happened? Is he alright? M-Melody?" Aitana swallowed hard. The way that Emily was looking at her had her heart skipping jolts. Emily pursed her lips together. "Emily, are they alright?"

"They're here in the hospital." That was subtly evading the true answer and Aitana knew it.

"And?"

Once Emily sighed, Aitana knew the real answer was finally coming her way. "Melody has a few cuts and bruises, nothing her body won't heal from."

"Apart from the mental torture, I'm sure. And Spencer? How is he?"

"Uuh, last time I heard was that he'd gone into surgery—"

"What!?" Aitana sprung from her bed before Emily even blinked.

"Hold on! Hold on!" Emily managed to grab Aitana's arm, thanks to the limp in Aitana's ankle, before the latter could fully ran out on her.

"Emily! You just said that he was in surgery! He's there and I'm here!" Aitana's face crinkled with disdain. "I left him and now he's in surgery!" She believed that was enough of an explanation for her behavior and determination to get out of the ER. Even if it hurt her ankle like hell, she was going to wherever they brought Spencer to.

It was for that reason that Emily decided to help her and not fight. She helped Aitana up the floors until they found the team in one of the waiting rooms.

"Have the doctors come by? How is he?" Aitana hobbled her way into the room. "And Melody? Is she—"

"He's still in surgery," JJ answered her before she started throwing more questions until she lost air.

"But surgery? Why did he need surgery?"

"There was a..." JJ trailed off, eyes drifting past Aitana to Emily, even behind JJ there was Morgan with a pretty grim face.

"If none of you tell me, I'm just going to ask one of the doctors," Aitana impatiently said. They could not be sugarcoating anything for the likes of her right now. She was already terrible enough.

"There was a bullet wound," JJ finally gave her the answer, though as soon as she saw the reaction on Aitana's face, she regretted it.

"Oh my God, where!?"

"Abdomen..."

The noise that came out of Aitana was not possibly human. "No, no, no!" Aitana stumbled back and because of her own wound, she nearly fell if Emily hadn't been swift to catch her.

"Aitana, don't go down that road," JJ said with all the experience lacing her words. "Decisions were made and you can't blame yourself for something that Spencer decided."

Aitana wrestled free from Emily's hands. "It's easy to say when it's not your fault he's in surgery."

"I've been there—"

"Then you should know better than to try and talk me out of it!" Aitana shook her head. "I need a moment." She turned and rushed out of the room without hearing another word.

"She shouldn't be alone," JJ said, about to go after her when Morgan caught her arm.

"Did you want to be around people when you were there?" He gave her a pointed look urging her to really think about her memories.

JJ sighed. No, no she didn't. Because when she and Spencer split up and he was kidnapped, she blamed herself. She didn't want anyone around her, much less people trying to tell her that it wasn't her fault.

"Hotch and Rossi are going to be here soon, maybe all of us together and coax her to let us be with her," Emily said. "I can't imagine what she's going through — what on Earth possessed Spencer to do this? I mean, we profiled the Unsubs as torturers, not killers. They wouldn't have hurt Aitana nearly as bad as they did to him."

"You really don't know why?" Emily didn't understand the look on Morgan's face.

"It's terrible but...Aitana was clear, Spencer reached that door first," she shrugged. "He could've made it out. Aitana would've been alright. We would've found her just like we found Spencer in the end."

"Yeah, and then Aitana would've been the one in surgery right now," Morgan shook his head. "Look, Spencer made the call based on what he saw and what he knew would happen. The unsubs were about to get Aitana and take her just like they had with the last victim. We know what the previous victims went through and so did Spencer. He knew exactly what would happen to Aitana if she stayed behind, so he decided not to let it happen. And you know what? If the girl I loved was in that situation, I would've done the same thing too."

That was a lot to take in for Emily and JJ but it paled in comparison to what the actual recipient of that situation was now going to go through.

"What?" Atiana had returned with Hotch and Rossi behind her. They'd convinced her to come back to the room so they could wait together for news about Spencer, but never did any of them think they would be walking into...this. Aitana felt like her head was throbbing but there was no way in hell she was going to let go what she was sure that she heard. "Morgan, what did you say?"

"Um..." Just like he was sure about everything he said prior to this moment, Morgan was also sure that he knew what Spencer would think right now. "Aitana, I didn't mean..."

"Morgan, I have had a very terrible day and it only got worse when Spencer went into surgery because of me so for the love of God repeat what you said right. now," Aitana's teeth gritted together.

Morgan exchanged looks with the others. Emily was simply puzzled but it seemed like JJ, Hotch and Rossi were all giving Morgan the same pity look. He had royally messed up, a la F.R.I.E.N.D.S' style.

Aitana snapped with the silence. "Derek Morgan—" she hissed, "—you tell me right now what I want to know! Does Spencer..." She was flailing with words and air at the same time. "Does he...love me?" The question had come in a quiet, frail whisper that resonated with her entire self right now. Never had she felt so small in front of the people she considered family.

And perhaps it was for that reason that Morgan decided to give her the truth. She suffered a lot already and he wasn't there to make things worse. With one simple nod, Aitana had everything she asked for. Her eyes teared up all over again when she truly accepted the answer.

"I need another moment," she said fast and pushed her way through Hotch and Rossi to escape the suddenly small room.

"That's going to be fun to explain to Reid," Morgan muttered with the longest sigh to follow.

~ 0 ~

When JJ found Aitana, the latter was outside of the hospital. The need for air became real that Aitana couldn't see herself staying in the building for another minute. As soon as she saw JJ, two things came to Aitana's mind: stay or leave? She could leave, go home, and possibly try to rest but...would she really be able to do that? The answer was a clear no. She had to stay and know what would happen to Spencer, it just didn't mean that things were any easier.

"Aitana..." JJ stopped a few inches from the bench Aitana was sitting on.

"I'm a frikin profiler and I didn't see it," she buried her face into her hands.

"Aitana, c'mon," JJ took those last steps to the bench and sat down beside her, "Did you really not see it?"

At her tone, Aitana lowered her hands from her face. JJ's expression was a mix of sympathy and amusement, the last things Aitana expected right now. "What? I don't..."

"It's like you said, you're a profiler — and a damn good one to — so did you really not see it? Or did you convince yourself that it was nothing?"

Aitana brought her index fingernail to her mouth for a good bite, a long time sign of her nerves. It was one of the things that the team pointed out when she first joined them. Right now, it was completely selling her out.

JJ decided to help Aitana out a bit. "My wedding, for starters..."

Aitana actually bit through her fingernail.

It hadn't taken much to start the party after JJ's and Will's wedding. There was finally a cause to celebrate for. No one was going to stay behind so when the drinks came along, no one refused. Some people should have after they hit their magic glass number.

Aitana could not remember a time where Spencer was as carefree as he was right now. It was fairly amusing and, if she was being honest, nice. Spencer always seemed to be cautious around her. Caution — from his perspective — wasn't a thing right now. He asked her to dance in the middle of a bemusing ramble of mythology. Aitana hadn't even heard it the first time and only realized it when Spencer pulled her towards the dancefloor. His lanky arms had scooped her in an awkward hug that somehow turned into an actual sway of a dance.

"I think you could be Asteria," he said just a tad loudly.

Aitana chuckled. "Really? And who's that?" She looked up in time to see him twitch his nose.

It seemed even the great Dr. Spencer Reid would have to think extra hard when he was drunk. "The...goddess of astrology, also sometimes known for nighttime divination."

"Ah, could be — I do like space but I don't really think it has anything to do with human affairs."

"Yeah, you're right. I'm a little slow right now. And sleepy." He slowly lowered his head to her shoulder.

She smiled with the tickle his hair left over her exposed neck. "I can't imagine how comfortable my shoulder must be right now."

"You've always made me comfortable," he said a bit too automatic.

For a moment, Aitana's smile dropped as something fluttered in her stomach. Her fingers sprawled over his back and for a moment she wondered if he even realized what he said. Of course not, the sharp voice in her head was quick to say. He's drunk.

"Aphrodite, you're Aphrodite," Spencer murmured. " Goddess of love and beauty. Or maybe Themis, for justice?"  He pulled his head from her shoulder and by the time he looked at her face, she was back to smiling like nothing ever crossed her mind.

Aitana exhaled deeply when she was finally able to shake the memory off. Spencer had gone through at least ten more goddesses she could be like, each one more insane than the last. He didn't stop dancing with her either, even when they were each asked by others for a quick song. Aitana convinced herself that it was nothing. Spencer was drunk, he would've clung to anyone in his state. It never meant anything, not even the next day when, in a better lucid state, Spencer presented her with his final decision about the Gods.

"I think you took this a little too seriously," Aitana  moved around the BAU bullpen with Spencer following closely behind.

"I don't remember much—"

"Ah," Aitana turned around with a teasing smile ready on her face, "So you don't always remember everything like you claim." It was hard not to laugh at his deadpanning expression.

"Anyways," Spencer made it clear that he wasn't even going down that road, not with the likes of her, "I do remember our conversation and I have it! Algaea!"

Aitana sighed. "It's too early to look like an idiot next to you so just...who is that?"

"Algaea was one of the 3 Graces. She was known as the goddess of glory, adornment, beauty and splendor."

"Okay, so far I like it. What's the intelligent explanation behind your reasoning?"

"Your name means glory!"

"Huh," Aitana leaned on one hip to review that fact with herself, "You're right."

"You love decorating for the seasons — hence adornment — and I think it's obvious why beauty and splendor are a good fit. You're...pretty." Spencer awkwardly cleared his throat. Aitana swore his fingers were squeezing his usual messenger bag's strap just a bit tightly. "What do you think? Do you like it?"

His hopefulness did nothing to calm the fluttering in Aitana's stomach. Why would he be hopeful about something as casual as this? They were just following up a drunken conversation, nothing more. There was never anything more.

"Aitana...?" JJ had watched her friend fall distant for minutes now and she could only hope that Aitiana was reviewing key moments that would make her see the reality.

"No!" Aitana suddenly exclaimed with a fervent shake of her head. "I didn't convince myself because...because there was never anything..."

"And yet you sound like you're trying to convince yourself right now."

Aitana snapped her head in JJ's direction. "Because it wouldn't make sense. He's, you know, him."

"Oh, I know who he is. This is the same person who doesn't know how to use chopsticks."

Aitana couldn't help the light chuckle fall from her lips. "It's endearing," she said offhandedly.

"Ah, 'endearing'?" JJ gave her a teasing smile. Aitana blushed but rolled her eyes in an attempt to be nonchalant. Just as JJ meant to say more, her phone buzzed in her pocket.

Spencer was out of surgery.

~0~

He would be outcold for God knows how many days given his condition. Aitana only found strength to breathe when she heard the Godly words of "he's going to make it". After that, it was a blur of how they each waited their turn to visit Spencer's room. By the time it was Aitana's turn — she'd been mysteriously left for last — she couldn't help the sprint in her pace even though it hurt like hell with her wound.

But there he was, just like promised, sleeping in his bed. Aitana scurried to his left side and stayed there, motionless. She was taking in his battered appearance and letting her heart slowly crack from guilt. There were the brands of stitches peeking out from his hospital gown sleeve. A bruise was already forming over his right cheek and Aitana was sure there were more under the gown. She was thankful it covered the obvious bullet wound.

"Look at you; all my fault," she mumbled grimly.

"Oh my God!" Aitana nearly squealed in the bullpen. Five minutes ago, she'd been the sleepiest agent the team had ever seen! She was gawking over the most charming glass coffee pot terrarium she had ever seen — it was the only one she had ever seen.  "Spencer, this is amazing!" she exclaimed. She was sitting at her desk with the coffee pot right in front of her.  She wanted to admire every last detail of it.

It had bright white sand on the bottom with blue river rocks sprawled over. Three air plants were arranged along the glass of the pot with green moss behind them. Amethyst and quartz crystals sparkled under the light and more so whenever Aitana shifted the coffee pot along.

"You like it?" Spencer still thought that he needed to ask but really it was just to see her reaction again. He always committed everything to memory but this was one memory he wanted to specifically hold onto.

Aitana fell right into it. Her small curls bounced with each nod of her head. "I love it! It has a nice space theme to it!"

Spencer smiled. "I was going for that." It was her favorite topic after all. "I figure the silver and violet from the crystals would compliment the blue river rocks. "I just wasn't sure about the green moss..." It was the only color he wasn't so fond of but it was all he could find.

"I'm in love with this, seriously!" Aitana stood up from her desk with the biggest grin on her face. "What possessed you to give me this?" For a moment, she swore he seemed to be in a struggle. She could even say she spotted a light pink tinge on his cheeks but she had to be imagining things.

"I know our last case got to you so...I just...I wanted to..." He was failing with the right words and that alone was concerning for Aitana. Why would he suddenly be out of words? "I wanted to cheer you up," he finally settled with.

It was then Aitana who sported a blush but she fought hard to push it away. Spencer was being nice, that was all. He was overly kind with everyone. She couldn't make things where there was nothing. "Mission accomplished," she smiled.

The coffee pot still resided in her bedroom to this day. Aitana loved seeing it every time she went to sleep and woke up. "You always give me the best things and what do I do in return? I give you this." His condition was all her fault and no one could tell her otherwise.

She pulled one of the seats in the room to the side of the bed. She wanted to stay with him for as long as she could. "I'm not going anywhere," she whispered to him. Her hand rested on the bed, inches from where his right hand laid.

~ 0 ~

Aitana lost track of time dwelling over her guilt. She was in the same position as before when Penelope walked in. She was the only one who had been missing earlier and her devastation of wasted time showed on her face.

"Oh my goodness," she rushed up to Spencer's other side. "Look at him! Oh, you poor thing! But don't you worry, we caught those men! They're getting what they deserve as we speak."

Aitana could find a smile for Penelope's concern and her overall way of being, especially when it came to Spencer. "They said he'll wake up soon..."

Penelope nodded and stepped back. The way she looked at Aitana told the profiler that she was in the loop of Morgan's grave mistake. "You know," she started and unknowingly caused a great force of dread to wash over Aitana, "he would want to hold your hand right now."

Because Aitana's hand still remained inches from Spencer's but with Penelope's comment, Aitana pulled it to her lap. "He doesn't like holding hands," she mumbled.

"With you he would," Penelope said with the most innocent shrug to follow. When Aitana said nothing, Penelope helped her out with an instant where that had been true.

Aitana was absolutely afraid and no one else seemed to bother with her. Apparently, her fear for the spooky street was misplaced.

'It's just decorations!'

'It's Halloween, have some fun!'

'It's all fake, you know!'

Morgan was the only one who seemed to be more on her side. Everyone else was game for the street decked as a haunted path for anyone who dared to go through.

"Nope, you can't make cross that thing," Aitana stood firm in her spot in front of the street. She wasn't in the mood to be chased around by God knew what with ungodly weapons. She did that for a living!

"It's not that bad," Spencer was beside her. Everyone had already gone in, including one hesitant Morgan. They were the last ones and Aitana knew that Spencer was close to running head into the street. He was all about Halloween, after all.

"If you feel like being spooked, go for it. I will happily wait on the other side." Aitana folded her arms over her chest.

"Hey!" Penelope walked up to them, absolutely excited just like Spencer. "Are we the last ones?"

"Yeah, but Aitana doesn't want to go. It's too scary apparently."

"It'll be fun!" Penelope said, making Aitana groan.

"If I hear that one more time—"

"But it is!"

"I'm scared, alright?" Aitana shook her head. "My brothers used to take me to these haunted house things and then leave me when something jumped out! It was hilarious for them but terrifying for me! I don't want a repeat!"

"Aitana, I promise that I won't do that to you." Spencer did the most unexpected thing and held his hand out for her. It left her wide-eyed — even Penelope had to look twice. "Trust me?"

"Well yeah, of course, but—" Aitana glanced at the street, "—what if we get separated or something?"

"I would find you," Spencer said a bit too fast to be completely normal. Aitana's head snapped back to him. He was still holding his hand for her and apparently he would do so until she agreed with him.

Even now, Penelope still 'aww'd' at the moment she'd been privy to. "That was so cute."

When Aitana felt her face go completely warm, she looked away. She remembered that moment all so well. She had eventually given in and taken hold of Spencer's hand. He had kept his promise not to let go until they were on the other side of the street. That same night Aitana had gone over that experience and asked herself why it had happened. Eventually, just like always, she convinced herself that it was just Spencer being himself. Overly kind.

"It was nothing," she tried to argue but it was far too frail for anyone, including herself, to believe in it.

"Right," Penelope snorted. "And I don't like cute kitty pictures." Aitana sighed. "Did you never really see it?"

"Penelope, I really don't—"

"Oh c'mon!" Penelope exclaimed. "I have been waiting for this to happen forever! You really didn't see anything?"

Aitana rubbed her face. "What was I supposed to see, Pen? He's Spencer, my friend, my co-worker!"

"Who always gives you the lovey-dovey eyes! If he was awake, he'd be doing it right now!"

Aitana looked over to Spencer, wishing nothing more than to see him opening his eyes. Even if it was to be under his scrutiny, she would take it despite the pain it would bring to her heart. She was scared out of her mind waiting for his reaction when he woke up. She was sure there'd be no such 'lovey-dovey' eyes for her.

"JJ was right," Penelope said quietly as she watched Aitana gaze at Spencer. "You really did convince yourself it was nothing...and if you did that it's because yooou like him too." It was against her entire being not to smile the way she was. "You love him."

Aitana wouldn't even get mad at it. Plus, she didn't want to look away from Spencer. "For a very long time now," she whispered.

Penelope beamed at the admission. The only reason she was holding in her 'Aha!' was because of the situation.

"Penelope, he was at that door first," Aitana started again. "He was there, he could have gone out and gotten help just like we planned. It's what we planned, what we agreed to..." Tears filled her eyes when she heard the bang of the door being shut in her face, leaving her and Spencer on opposite sides. "He pushed me out, Pen..."

"Oh honey," Penelope rushed around the bed until she could hug Aitana from beside.

Tears were already rolling down Aitana's cheeks. "I screamed for him to open the door again but he wouldn't. And then I heard gun fires..." She put her hand on the bed, inches from Spencer's.

"He made the choice, Aitana," Penelope rubbed comforting hands up and down Aitana's arms. "He made a selfless choice because that's who he is."

"But look where that got him?" Aitana sniffed. "Because of me!" She moved her hand over Spencer's until she had taken it completely into hers. Even when Penelope had left, it stayed the same.

Once more, Aitana lost track of time. She hadn't budged from her spot, not even with all the persuasion in the world. She couldn't leave Spencer, not until he was awake. By the time she actually felt him flinch, she was beyond exhausted. She didn't register him shifting until he opened his eyes.

She stumbled out of her chair to be closer to him when he was finally able to see. "Hey there," she greeted nervously. "Welcome back."

"Where'd I go?" He tried shifting his body but the pain caught up with him quick. He groaned.

"Oh, don't move so much," Aitana said, hands hovering over his body as if to keep him still herself. "Sorry, you're going to be sore for a while..."

"Right..." It was coming back to Spencer how it was that he landed in the hospital. "You think they could...bring in some jell-o?"

Aitana chuckled. "I-I can talk to someone about that."

Spencer took in a final breath in before his vision cleared up. He then easily picked up on Aitana's state. "You look tired," he said. "How long have you been here?"

"Doesn't matter," Aitana waved him off. "How are you feeling? Do you need something? I can get one of the nurses—"

"I'm good," he cut her off.

"Really?"

"Yes."

Aitana nodded. She was nervous beyond belief even when Spencer hadn't said anything yet. She was a fool to think that he wouldn't notice again.

"What is it?" he asked her.

There was no point in prolonging the inevitable. She had to say something and now was as good of a moment as ever. "Do you remember exactly how we were separated?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Of course I do."

Those words and his certainty pulled the tears from Aitana's eyes. "Spencer," she sniffed, "Why would...you were at the door first! We agreed, dammit!"

"Aitana—"

"Whoever got to the door first would go!"

"Aitana—"

"And you were there first! You had an opening and you came back for me! You pushed me out, Spencer! Why would you do that!?"

Even though his arms still felt pretty limp, Spencer tried his best to reach for one of Aitana's hands but since she was moving so much he found her forearm instead. "Hey!"

Knowing his condition, Aitana didn't dare to move and hurt him in the process. But the tears wouldn't stop. "Why, Spencer?" Her tone was frail. She needed a straight answer from him.

"You were shot," he answered as if it was the most obvious reason, and perhaps it was. It seemed that way to Aitana. It was nothing to what the others had said.

"Just that?" she asked for some reason. She expected the pain to come from Spencer's anger towards her for leaving him behind but this wasn't from that. Aitana knew it wasn't.

"Just that?" Spencer repeated, puzzled for a moment. He reviewed the simple question and by the third time he realized there was disappointment in her tone. "Why else...?"

Aitana plastered on a smile for him. "Of course not, there's nothing else. There never is, right?"

"What...?"

Aitana resolved to move on and focus on what was most important right now: his health. "I'm going to go find that jell-o for you," she announced.

"Aitana, hold on," Spencer called for her when she was midway out the room. "Are you upset?"

"What?" Aitana would've laughed if he wasn't in his current state. "Me? I wouldn't have any right to be! Look at yourself!" She came back to him in a hurry. "You're here because of me!"

"No, I'm not—"

"Yes you are! Just say it!"

"No!" He frowned.

"Say it!"

"I'm not—"

"Please just say it before I lose my goddamn mind!"

Spencer looked her dead in her teary eyes. "No." That was final.

Aitana had no idea what to do with herself. She ran a hand through her messy hair and focused, for the moment, on regulating her breathing. Watching her struggle that way made Spencer feel terrible.

"I'm sorry," he said.

Aitana, again, almost laughed. She dropped her hand to her side and stared at him incredulously. He was apologizing to her. He was apologizing to her. "You've got to be kidding m..."

"I think you should go rest," Spencer was sure that she was in desperate need of it. If he remembered correctly — the meds were still going strong — she was wearing the same clothes she had on the last time they saw each other. "I'm not going anywhere..." His light sarcasm had her wanting to smile and this time, even when she fought against it, she lost.

"I don't deserve your attention."

"My attention?" he raised an eyebrow at her.

"The attention you always give me," she shrugged. "I don't deserve it but for some reason I have it." She found his hand and curled hers around it.

"He doesn't like holding hands."

"With you he would."

One point for Penelope because instead of pulling his hand away, Spencer found a way to squeeze Aitana's hand. He then offered her one of his usual smiles.

"You should go home and rest," he told her again.

"I look that bad, huh?"

"Never." His smile widened.

Aitana shook her head. "For a moment there, you sounded like Morgan." Spencer laughed until his wound acted up. "Probably shouldn't do that," Aitana warned him. "I'm no doctor but, um, yeah..."

"I'll believe you," Spencer's face scrunched as he tried making himself comfortable again. "And about that jell-o..."

Aitana smiled. "I'll find it, promise." She regretfully had to pull her hand from his but she wouldn't move away from his bedside just then. She didn't know why — nor with what courage — but she leaned down and pressed a kiss to his forehead. Actually, she knew exactly why. "Thank you for saving my life," she murmured. She had done everything but actually thank him for what he did.

Unsurprisingly, it seemed like it was the last thing Spencer expected. Aitana did, however, take note of the flush of his face. It warmed her heart, as well as starting that fluttering in her stomach again.

"Uh, y-you're...u-um..." he stuttered. She had taken him by surprise, a complete and utter surprise. "I'm..." If he could just get his words out, everything would be good — things could actually be better. It was always his problem: getting things out. Here was Aitana, looking as pretty as ever, waiting for him to say whatever it was he started, but he was failing.

"I'll be back," Aitana said, completely oblivious to his inner struggle. However, just as she was moving away, he grabbed her wrist. If he was going to say it then it had to say it now.

No more backing out. For once in his life he had to take a leap of faith. "Um, Aitana, there's..." That was wrong. He was doing it all wrong!

"This is a stupid question to ask but are you okay?" Aitana could feel his tight grip around her wrist. "Should I call one of the nurses?"

"I'm just really bad with words." That was an easy admission for Spencer. It was something everyone knew.

"Sometimes but most of the time you say what we need to know, what we need to hear," Aitana smiled. "Trying to keep me safe? I think you did a very good job."

"Hm, don't think I didn't notice the limp in your walk," he said. "Your ankle..."

Aitana sighed. "Forget about that. I think you took the worst part of it. I'm really sorry about this. You were at the door, you could have gone out first."

"Can I tell you a secret?" He was looking at her oddly and even if he was smiling it still didn't make it any less puzzling. "I was never going to let you stay there."

"What?"

"It didn't matter who reached the door first, I wasn't going to leave you behind." It was funny how easily the words came to Spencer then. He knew exactly what he wanted to say, what he wanted her to know. Sure his heart may have been racing but seeing her genuine shock was more than worth it.

"But we made a plan..." Aitana whispered, even then going back to that moment to remember exactly what he'd said. "You said whoever reached—"

"I remember the plan we made, but I lied," he shrugged, an act that left him feeling a bit more of the pain. "What did you expect? I would never leave you."

"But I did," Aitana said quietly. Her gaze started lowering as new guilt fell over her shoulders.

"Hey," Spencer lowered his hand from her wrist to her hand, "I closed the door on you. I didn't give you another option. You did exactly what you were supposed to do."

"I never wanted to leave you," she sniffled. "But when I heard the gun firing...I had to get help."

"And you did," Spencer smiled at her. "I can always count on you."

"Why me?" Aitana found herself asking. "You said...the plan, it was always...why me?"

For a moment, Spencer felt all the courage in the world. "Isn't it obvious?" Everyone always said it was but it never seemed to be for Aitana.

"I don't..." she trailed off. She swallowed hard.

"Aitana, I love you. I thought...I always thought I was overly obvious — I was never really great around women. I'm still not, apparently. I just...I didn't really know how to put my words together so eventually I sort of just stopped trying. Plus, I felt my chances weren't all that great."

"No, they would've been — they are! Um, I did wonder sometimes but...I sort of convinced myself that it was nothing; those moments were just me overthinking."

"Really?"

Aitana nodded. "Y-yeah, I'm...I'm not all that great with words either."

"I think you're perfect," Spencer said far too easily and with the certainty that left Aitana startled. He smiled at her softly.

Eventually, Aitana smiled back. "You lied again."

"I did?"

"Mhm, you're perfect with words." She leaned down again to kiss him. It was short but fulfilling nonetheless. Aitana pulled away enough to meet Spencer's gaze.

For some reason, he was twitching his nose. "Did...did that really happen? Sorry, the meds are still going strong..."

Aitana laughed. "Yeah, it did."

"Okay," he nodded. "Can I...can we..."

Aitana couldn't help but laugh a second time. "Something tells me the meds aren't responsible for this fumbling."

"Yeah...that's-that's me..." Spencer sighed. "This is me."

"Good, I wouldn't want you any other way," Aitana told him with the same certainty he used earlier. She leaned over to kiss him another time.

~0~

It would be evening again when Spencer got a late visitor. He'd been waiting for this specific visitor to drop by ever since Aitana told him the story.

Morgan was cautious in ever way he could be coming into the room but it faded when he spotted Aitana's sleeping form next to Spencer on the bed. She couldn't have been comfortable but she made herself fit with Spencer's body in some way that didn't seem like she'd even tried. She just fit. One of Spencer's was around her, keeping her from turning away.

"Hey," he greeted with a cheeky smile.

"O-kay," Morgan started smiling the closer he came to the bed. "So I'm not in trouble?"

"I think I can find it in my heart to forgive you," Spencer said and looked down at Aitana. Even asleep she was careful not to hurt him. In turn, he warded off any nurse trying to get her off the bed. They'd have one angry FBI agent on them if they tried waking her up.

"I'm happy it worked out," Morgan gestured. "But I do have to apologize. I'm sorry I let it slip, kid. I didn't...I was explaining to JJ and Emily why you did what you did out there and—"

"Morgan, it's okay." Spencer knew there was no way Morgan would ever do something like that intentionally. Aitana made a convincing argument as well. "You know I was never great about telling Aitana how I felt but...back there...I didn't need the words. I just knew what I had to do."

He'd always been certain about what he felt for Aitana but he never found the right way to tell her. When he realized that he was better at showing her, he just went with that. If she was having a hard time, he always tried finding ways to cheer her up. He knew her favorite snacks she liked to munch on, her favorite movies to watch with her, her favorite places to go to — he just knew.

Where words failed, he tried making up for it with actions. The last time they were with each other, the line between words and actions became skewed. He told her what he always tried to do: keep her safe. He'd seen how terrified she was and he couldn't stand it. She needed to know what he would do for her. She saw it.

Morgan nodded. "Well, I think it's safe to say that now she knows exactly how much you care about her."

"I'm going to show her everyday," Spencer promised the sleeping Aitana beside him. He dropped a kiss to her hair. "And tell her everyday."

[zestycompress]

Ultimate Duo! Ch. 1

ok so BASICALLY... giorno & kars being homies and it’s a fic

here’s the ao3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25085071/chapters/60765478

For a few minutes, Kars didn’t realize he was back on some solid ground. He believed he was going to spend the rest of his immortal life in the cold dark emptiness of space. That caused him to stop thinking, why would he want to be aware of nothing? Kars was frozen, his muscles refused to budge no matter how much of his strength he tried using. It was all useless.

Eventually, his body returned to its normal state. Kars stretched his limbs, listening to the satisfying cracks and sighing. His mind was still a bit foggy, but he was able to remember some names and moments in his life. There were a few painful memories like losing his allies Esidisi and Wamuu and losing to that damn Joseph Joestar. Then there were better ones like becoming the ultimate lifeform. (Which he still is…)

Everything else was simply a blur, which annoyed him greatly, but that wasn’t something he was going to concern himself with. He was back on Earth and the first thing he was going to do is get revenge. Unfortunately, his legs were wobbly when he stood. They gave out and let him fall back onto the ground.

Kars let out a low growl before attempting again. He didn’t fall this time, but his legs still weren’t steady.

“Excuse me, signore.”

The voice startled him, almost making him fall back onto his knees. Turning around, a blond human was staring at him. He looked pretty young too despite his serious expression.

He recognized the language he spoke. It was Italian, wasn’t it?

“What do you want?” Kars hissed, giving the boy an intimidating scowl.

“Well, I saw you had a few difficulties standing and I just wanted to know if-”

“You wanted to know what?”

The teenager blinked, he was caught off guard. After clearing his throat, he began talking again. “I just wanted to know if you were alright, signore, that is all.”

Kars let out what seemed to be an annoyed sigh. He spent a few seconds in silence before speaking again. “Tell me, what is your name, human?”

“I am Giorno Giovanna, and you signore?”

“...Kars.”

Giorno hummed, examining the Pillar Man’s horns right above his forehead and the bizarre lack of clothes. He cocked an eyebrow, curiously tilting his head.

“I hope you don’t mind me asking this, signore Kars,” he pointed at him. “But are you even human?”

He only laughed in response.

~~~

It felt weird letting a stranger live with you, especially when you have such a small room. Giorno could tell Kars was judging everything in his room, probably saying “damn, you live like this?” in his head. He felt a bit nervous. He picked up books and flipped through the pages. It didn’t seem like he stopped to read anything written. Most of the books Giorno owned were about botany or zoology. When there was a picture, Kars spent a few more seconds longer on the page, then moved on.

Kars was hard for Giorno to read, he revealed little to no emotion.

The Pillar Man placed the books back to their original spots, then continued to explore the rest of Giorno’s room. As he did so, the young boy awkwardly stood near the doorway.

“I don’t have a place for you to sleep, but I could let you have my bed,” Kars immediately rejected his offer.

“Don’t bother, I don’t need sleep like you.”

...either he was really dedicated to pretending he’s not a human or he truly isn’t one. Honestly, he couldn’t tell. Giorno was never given an answer.

The teen glanced around, trying to figure out what to do next.

“Would you like me to get clothes for you? No offence, but I think you need some,” Giorno said.

“Go ahead, do whatever. But if you bring me something ridiculous, I’ll slice your head off.” Kars responded with a glare.

Giorno didn’t doubt it one bit.

When he went out, he made sure to pickpocket from a few strangers, hoping his new roommate didn’t have expensive tastes. He didn’t plan to buy much anyway, just a shirt and pants, maybe another thing if it matches the outfit. Giorno’s definitely not going to buy any undergarments for Kars, the man can do it himself. He bought a white collared shirt and black pants, Giorno may or may not have stolen some other clothes as well. As he walked back with some newly purchased (and stolen) goods, he spotted a slightly worn novel. When Giorno moved closer, he noticed it was something about history. Should he bring it back to Kars? After a moment of pondering, he snatched the book and left.

If the stranger liked the book, they wouldn’t have left it out like that.

~~~

“I’m back.”

Kars glanced at him while Giorno stared back at him with wide eyes.

His hand was gone, instead replaced with a plant. Not just any plant of course, but the pluchea glutinosa. From what he’s read, it was presumed to be extinct since the 19th century.

Yet, here it was, right in front of him.

“Are you a Stand user?” Giorno practically blurted out, summoning Gold Experience right after he asked.

“A Stand user? I don’t know what that is.” Kars’s gaze turned to the book. He flipped the page and the plant turned into a strange green goo, then became a different plant.

Was this not the power of a Stand? Or is Kars playing dumb?

“MUDAAA!” Gold Experience dashed forward, a fist inches away from colliding with the Pillar Man’s skull.

He didn’t even flinch.

Of course, the Stand didn’t even hit him, though it was quite close to doing so. Kars lifted his head up, turning his head to Gold Experience. He frowned and looked around with a puzzled expression on his face.

“Giorno,” He said. “Do you feel that?”

Curious, the teen moved forward and replied. “Feel what, signore Kars?”

“There’s a presence here,” Immediately, he stood up. “I can feel like, but there’s only us here.”

Kars searched around in Giorno’s room, opening his closet and checking underneath his bed only to find nothing. Giorno stared at Gold Experience and allowed the Stand to move closer to him.

He wasn’t a Stand user, but he could feel the energy of a Stand?

“Signore Kars, I think that presence your feeling is Gold Experience.”

His little exploration came to a halt as he turned to Giorno with a bewildered expression. It only remained there for a second before it changed, perhaps to rage.

“What the hell is Gold Experience? Are they human like you?” Kars yanked on Giorno’s collar, his face uncomfortably close to the teen’s. It felt like his ruby red eyes were burning holes through him. “No, that can’t be. It’s something else, isn’t it? You know, don’t you? Giorno Giovanna, if you don’t tell me right now-”

“It’s my Stand!”

Slowly (or probably hesitantly) Kars loosened his grip on Giorno. His gaze stayed on him, but it was less intense, but filled with suspicion.

“Explain it to me.”

~~~

Giorno explained all that he knew about his Stand and how only he was able to see it. Kars appeared to be fascinated with the new information. It was something that was worth caring about, but he wanted to know more. It disappoints him that Giorno’s knowledge was limited. He considered doing experiments on him, but he was the only Stand user he knows. It would be a shame to have something unfortunate cuts his life short.

Plus, it would be a waste as well.

He has lived for millennia and has never seen such a phenomenon. Maybe the hunt for the Red Stone of Aja prevented him from learning about peculiar things such as Stands. Now that he has achieved his goal of being the ultimate life form, Kars could explore other things in the human world. His expectations for humans are usually pretty low, so he’s not going to be surprised when they disappoint him.

A few hours had passed and it was that time when humans needed their rest. It took awhile for Giorno to fall asleep, he felt Kars’s eyes on him as he turned to get in a more comfortable position. It didn’t exactly help when the Pillar Man got up and walked around or tinkered with the pens and pencils he had on his desk. Occasionally, he would even hear drawers being open or his chair lightly scraping against the wooden floor. Giorno found it annoying, but didn’t bother with telling Kars to be quiet or stop doing whatever.

“Signore Kars.”

“Hmm?”

“I want to become a Gang-Star.”

“...Don’t let anybody get in your way.”

After the little chat, Giorno didn’t hear anything else. Seems like he managed to get some peace and quiet. Soon, he was fast asleep. Kars glanced up at the sleeping boy, then turned to the clothes he bought. He should try them on later.

~~~

When Giorno woke up, he noticed Kars on the floor with the random book he took. The Pillar Man didn’t bother giving him a “good morning”, he was too focused on the old novel.

“Buongiorno, signore Kars.”

In return, he just got a grunt.

...Good enough.

Giorno got ready for the day, putting on his clothes, brushing his hair, making the little curls, all that stuff. Finally, he tied his hair into a braid and headed out the door.

“Where are you going?”

The blond teen paused. “...Out?”

“With anybody? Or are you going alone?”

“I’m leaving by myself, why?” Giorno turned to face Kars, who had his book closed and right next to him on the ground.

Silence.

Kars picked up the book, opening to the exact page he left on. “If you meet any more Stand users, bring them to me.”

...Alright?

The way he speaks annoys Giorno, it's like this man has never been told no, or he’s used to giving commands to people below him. He turned back to the door and twisted the doorknob.

“By the way…”

Good grief, what did he want now?

“...Where are you going?”

“The airport, to scam tourists.”

“Ah.”

Giorno quickly left without another word.

“...What the hell is an airport?”

[going-dead]

What if..?

Hey back from months of making zero DP content, hyper fixation is back and here for a while. So here’s my entry for Danny phantom angst day as well as Ectober day 1 prompt: What if? (list by @fruitloopghost )  I wrote this in one sitting instead of doing something productive like homework so sorry for any errors, I’ll comb through and edit when I have time. Click the read more to read it.

What if they hate him, try to capture him, or just shoot him? What if he gets thrown out, allowed to live but not around them. That would somehow be worse Danny figured. “Well are you going to say anything?” Danny asked, staring at his parents. He would settle for anything talking, questions, yelling, any type of reaction just not silence. Transformation rings split once more leaving a dark haired boy in their wake. Jazz was nervously looking between their parents. Danny didn’t know what she was nervous about, it was his half-life at stake.

Maddie’s hands were shaking as she lifted them as if to ward off her son. Her face steeled. “No. Jazz take Danny upstairs and make sure he gets to his room. Your father and I are going to work this out, we will solve this Danny don’t worry. You’ll be rid of Phantom soon”

Danny’s face twisted in a mixture of hurt and confusion. “But there’s nothing to get rid of? I’m me still, kinda human still, I just have a bit extra tacked on. But that bit is still me, Phantom is me as much as I am Phantom. It’s not a ‘we’ scenario it’s me.” He tried to explain, turning his hand invisible as if to prove a point. He looked to his father pleadingly who had yet to speak up,

“It will be okay Danny, but we’re scientists. We observe the world with facts. And the fact is that we just found out our son as you put it is ‘half ghost’. This is an unknown and we are going to have to be wary until have the facts.” Jack gave a smile, but it was obviously forced. The man smiles so much it’s easy to tell when it isn’t genuine. He gave Jazz and Danny a shooing motion. Leaving no room for argument as he and Maddie descended into the lab with hushed argument.

Jazz rested her hand on Danny’s shoulder, a gesture of comfort, and led Danny upstairs. “Don’t look so glum Danny. Look on the bright side, they didn’t shoot you or try to take you into the lab!” They stopped outside his bedroom door.

“Honestly I’d rather have them try to attack me, at least that way I’d know how they felt about all of this.” He shrugged. Just because they were tolerant of him at the moment didn’t mean that their attitude won't change at any moment. He didn’t have to alert Jazz of that though she had enough worries.

“I’m sure they just need some time, they’ll see that your ghostly half doesn’t make them any less their son.” She gave him a hug before going to her own room. They had school tomorrow, it would give their parents time to adjust by themselves.

Danny gave a weak smile before retreating into his own room. He fell face first onto his bed and hugged his pillow. No matter the end outcome of this his relationship with his parents would never be the same as before. He let his thoughts fade as he drifted into sleep.

Danny didn’t wake up strapped to a lab table or connected to a bunch of instruments, so that was a plus. Did normal teens have to worry about that? Probably not Danny mused. He threw on some clothes and headed downstairs for breakfast. He was surprised to see the table set and filled with food. His brows knitted in confusion, usually he would have to make himself breakfast, his parents still asleep or already down in the lab. Jazz would cook occasionally if she woke up a bit earlier but nothing like this. 

Jazz herself came down a few seconds later, confusion evident on her face as well. The question of who was answered shortly after when Jack and Maddie stepped into the kitchen. “Ah good you’re both up. I was starting to worry you wouldn’t have time to eat. Your father and I decided it was time we had a family breakfast for once.” Maddie smiled clapping her hands together.

Danny and Jazz looked at each other in suspicion, but sat down all the same. Food was loaded onto everyone's plates, everyone except Danny started to eat. He poked his pancake with his fork, as if he expected it to explode. Jack was already halfway done with his food when he noticed Danny’s plate was still full. “Come on Danny-bo… Danny, the pancakes aren’t going to bite you.”

“Biting isn't what I’m worried about.” He mumbled, though food trying to eat the Fenton family members wasn’t unheard of, ecto-radiation was no joke. All the same he slowly took a bite of his food. He waited a few seconds, not passed out or hunched over in pain, he shrugged and continued to eat. That wasn’t to say he was comfortable, the moment the food passed his lips his parents seemed to watch his every move, studying him. He suddenly felt like an animal in the wild being observed by researchers. 

Not soon enough it was time for Danny and Jazz to head to school. Jack had already excused himself, Danny not sure to as where he went. He shouldered his bag walking with Jazz towards the front door. “Bye mom, I love you.” He called over his shoulder.

“Goodbye Danny.” Danny pretended it didn’t hurt when she didn’t say I love you back, she always said I love you back. But it was fine, teenagers aren’t supposed to tell their parents they love them anyway. Right? It didn’t matter, he had to get to school. At least that way he wouldn’t have to see the disappointment in his parents eyes everytime they looked at him. At least his teachers had a reason to look at him in disappointment.

School was uneventful, other than Sam and Tucker being relieved to see him okay. He was pretty sure the whole school could feel how nervous he was as the school day drew to an end. He didn’t want to go back home and have his parents treat him like something other. His teachers didn’t call him out when he fell asleep in class, even Dash stayed away from him that day. It wasn’t until he was in the car with Jazz did he figure out why. 

“Um Danny are you okay?” His sister asked almost warily.

“You mean other than the fact that our parents could turn on me at any second? Just peachy.”  Danny snapped. He was surprised to see Jazz almost flinch.

“Can you tone whatever you’re doing down a bit? I’d rather not get frostbite and feel an overwhelming sense of terror driving. It’s just not safe. You can talk to me you know that right?” 

Tone it down…? He looked down at his hands and saw his ghostly aura flicker around him, much brighter and far reaching than usual. And while the green and blue mixture was pretty to look at, that isn’t the case if a human comes in contact with it. Of course they can’t see it, but they sure as hell can feel something wrong. He flinched. “Oops sorry Jazz, didn’t even notice I was doing it. It’s probably just because of nerves. I really don’t need to figure out a random new power while mom and dad are watching my every move.” 

Jazz nodded her head in agreement. Shaking the effects of Danny’s aura off her she pulled out of the school parking lot. “If you want, I can spend the day with you. That way you don’t have to be alone in a room with mom and dad.” She offered glancing at Danny out of the corner of her eye.

“Yeah that’d probably help.” Danny answered. Secretly relieved and happy she offered. When they entered the driveway he took a deep breath, scaring his parents with his aura or ‘scary eyes’ would not help his situation.

Entering the house his parents voices immediately called out from the lab “Danny? Could you come down here for a second?” Danny shot a panicked look at Jazz. She motioned for him to breathe, grabbed his hand and walked slowly down the stairs and into the lab.

Jack looked up hearing footsteps descending down the stairs. “Oh hey Jazzy-pants, you don’t need to be down here. Just going to confirm some things with Danny.” Seeing Jazz’s glare he quickly backpedaled. “Not saying you have to leave though! More the merrier right hun?”

“Of course dear. No need to look so worried Danny, we’re your parents we wouldn’t ever hurt you intentionally.” Maddie walked over to her kids. “Nothing bad, we just need a few samples. Hair, saliva, vitals those sort of things. Only blood if you allow it of course.” 

Danny shifted on his feet uncomfortably, he couldn’t really say no now could he. Plus he was a bit curious about what they’d find. They led him to the chair near the computer and sat him down. Jack grabbed the hair, saliva, and blood samples, with Danny’s consent. While Maddie started on taking his vitals. “So what we were thinking was: What if we could find out what is causing your ghostly abilities. Could we remove them? Make you normal again?” 

Danny was about to speak up about being ‘normal’ but Jack interrupted. “Maddie come look at this!” He was leaning over a microscope. Danny took off the blood pressure cuff and followed his mom over to where his father was. Jazz was on her phone looking up occasionally to make sure Danny was fine. “It’s incredible, I haven’t put it through the scanner yet but I’d bet my fudge that is ectoplasm mixed in with his normal red blood cells. There that word was again normal. What if Danny didn’t want to be normal. 

Maddie took the samples and carefully put them into the scanner. She tapped her foot waiting for it to finish. She jumped to attention when the results showed up on screen. “DNA...blah blah blah...fifty percent… Oh no.” Maddie staggered away from the machine, looking absolutely crushed. “Oh Jack!” She pulled her husband into a hug. “There’s ectoplasm directly entangled with his DNA, we can’t fix him. Our boy Jack, he’s never going to be the same baby boy we held in our arms.”

Danny looked at his parents, not in fear or anger, no it was in defeat. “Does that really change the fundamental aspects of who I am? I’m still me still Danny, i’m still a teenage boy who sleeps in class and likes video games. I’m not a broken toy you can just throw out because I'm no longer what you want. I’m your son! You’re supposed to love me and accept me for who I am unconditionally.”

Maddie looked at Danny confused. “Of course we still love you. This is just a hard thing to accept, it’d be one thing if it were something like you and Tucker decided to date, we would support you fully. But you have to understand this from our perspective. We found out that our son who we’ve cared for since he was born, is part ghost.”

Danny shook his head. “I understand just fine. I’m the one who had to come to terms that I pretty much died. That I was the only one actually qualified to fight ghosts without obliterating them. I’m the one who had to figure out ghost powers while still going to school, alone except for Sam and Tucker. I’m the one who had to stitch wounds closed and hide the pain of broken bones, that thankfully only lasted a few days. Injuries I got trying to save people all while the government,  my classmate, and my own parents tried to kill or tourture me.  But no, you're right, finding out your son happens to be different, that has to be so much harder.” He gave a dry laugh. “I’m going to my room. I can figure dinner out myself. Come get me when you’re done mourning, not all that or that you’re the reason I’m like this in the first place, but a son who is still here.”

[griffinsanddragons]

In exchange for this lovely piece of art for OC Kiss Week, I wrote @sirconnie a story featuring our Hawkes, Persephone and Filia, that ended up much longer than I initially planned lol

But it was fun and gave me a chance to explore what Filia would be doing if she wasn’t ‘Hawke.’

Persephone felt bad for the poor man: A Lord with no fortune or money to speak of still desperate to keep up with the ‘best’ of them.

She watched as he made his way through the crowded ballroom, slithering almost, with all the peculiarities of a desperate, hungry,  gluttonous snake.

He seemed...suspicious, or perhaps worried, and that, in turn, worried her; Every few moments he tugged at the jewel hanging loosely from his collar and touched the upper pocket of his breast, an outward sign of clear anxiety.

Plus he eyeing the despair ham: A sign of human desperation in and of itself.

Other nobles, those with reason to be happy, whirled around the room in a dizzying array; laughing, drinking, and sneaking down the hallways.

But most importantly, and perhaps most frustratingly, they indulged themselves with endless gossip.

‘Have you seen?’ They snickered. ‘Have you heard?’

Each privy to the scandals of the city yet still hungry for more.

She didn’t like this, Persephone, these weren’t the type of secrets traded betweens lovers or shared amongst a group of friends--these words were wielded like weapons, like knives passed between bodies in the darkness of the night.

And they weren’t as above it all as they’d like to think (had they not each, at some point or another, required her assistance for something potentially life ruining?) but for her Mother, who did enjoy these extravagant parties, she’d smile, cringe (on the inside of course,) and bare it.

Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, there was something to take her attention from social niceties. Or rather someone.

Glancing over the throng of nobles surrounding her in a circle, Persephone found the Poor Nobleman again, skirting cautiously along the outer edges of the party as though he did not want to be seen.

[Keep Reading!]

It was difficult to move in these dresses her Mother seemed to conjure up from nothing, it was hard to fight in blue silk and lace,  but perhaps a simple conversation would calm the man--stop him from doing anything...unsavory.

Suddenly he looked up at her, however, but quickly turned away with a huff and a surprised looking face.

Odd. He couldn’t have possibly been looking at her, could he?

Curious, she followed his retracted gaze to a group laughing almost 10 steps away.

Most of the nobles were indistinguishable; like a bright, venomous, multi-headed beast that laughed and moved and seemed to breathe together.

Had it not been for the color of their clothing, Persephone could have sworn they were all the same.

One, however, stood differently:  taller (though still not as tall as she,) darker, more familiar than the rest.

Well, almost familiar--she couldn’t claim to know the woman well, if at all, outside of the occasional run-in at a party.

She knew her name, Filia--or that’s what she told her when they met anyway, back when they first met eye’s across the room and smiled.

It took several more meetings, however, and an attack by hired men for them to actually speak.

“...I've been searching for someone.” She admitted, someone who owed someone something (she was fuzzy on the details) but didn’t want to pay. “A terribly Orlesian way to go about things I know, but this is the only place I knew he’d be. Nobles never like missing out on a good party.” She smiled, taking the situation in stride as though it was little more than an inconvenience to her day.

“Thanks for the backup.”

“You’re welcome.” It was nothing really. She saw the suspicious men in red follow her out to the balcony, each grinning and clutching knives--of course she had to help. Had she not, an unbearable guilt would have tugged away at her insides.

Nevertheless, Persephone wasn’t sure Filia needed help after arriving at the scene of the would-be crime--a sword in hand, she struck the men down as if they were nothing.

But a bit of magic always helped, especially with the healing.

Their meetings were a little quieter after that, a little less exciting, though the premise was always the same:

She was looking for someone who owed her something, the nature of which she couldn’t quite say.

And tonight was no exception.

The Poor Nobleman, she figured, owed Filia something. (Poor Persephone was starting to wonder what exactly the other woman did for a living. A bounty hunter? Hired muscle? A bondsman for the city?)

Regardless, Filia looked back at her as though she sensed her watching and then smiled, the golds of her eyes brightening with a sort of pleasant surprise before grinning, a saucy expression overtook her face and was punctuated by a wink that stirred butterflies that rose and fluttered somewhere beneath Persephone's cheeks.

But she returned the smile and the look in kind--this part wasn’t new to their meetings either.

‘He’s been disowned by his family in Antiva and Orlais. There can be no other explanation.’

She lost track of the conversation, so the words of the Nobles stopped making sense. But it was nothing but more idle chatter--just the same as always.

As the night progressed, the crowd began dispersing to and from the food spread along the tables--though 'food' was a subjective label.

“And so we meet again.” Filia greeted, casually strolling to up Persephone's side and bending to adjust something in her boot. “You’re looking extravagant this evening, I feel slightly underdressed--and this isn’t me just fishing for compliments.”

“No need,” She suppressed a breathy laugh of slight embarrassment, "You look very nice.”

“Well I am quite dashing,” she joked, but there were matters more important than that, it seemed. “I’ve been looking for you--I should have figured you’d be taking a break from the festivities.”

‘Festivities’ was one way to put it, ‘boring nightmare’ was another.

Persephone took a moment to regain herself by stepping from the crowd, worn and tired of their follies. It was a long, horrible, dull evening. Even the Poor Nobleman seemed to find his ease amongst 'friends.' (They didn’t seem to do much talking or enjoy each others company.)

She’s yet to decide whether or not that was a good thing.

“You’ve been looking for me?” Part of her was glad of the reasonable company, the other was concerned. “Is there something I can help you with?”

��In a sense.You’ve...got yourself an enemy.”

“An enemy?” She thought back, eyebrows knitting themselves together in dismay. Like most people, Persephone had a few enemies (well, maybe more than most people.) She needed her dear acquaintance to be a little more specific. “Who?”

“Well I don’t know his name,” Filia scoffed, waved her hand flippantly as though that information wasn't vital, “but I hear someone lost all his money when a scandal involving slavery was exposed. Tragic isn’t it?”

Maker’s Breath, Persephone sighed. The Poor Nobleman? She wished she could say she was surprised.

“If he’s been dealing with Slavers he got what he deserves.” Her words were spoken with the stern dignity of a woman whose compassion did not run so deep as to forgive those who profit from slavery. How could she?

In fact, he deserved more than just the loss of his money.

“Well, he doesn’t think so.” Filia leaned across the table to grab a tiny cake, “in fact he thinks the opposite is true and now...well, now he’s a dead man walking--wanted by just about everyone: The Coterie, The Red Irons...he owes a debt to just about everyone in Kirkwall so he’ll be dead soon.” She shrugged and tasted the icing. “Or well...he should be. The problem now is that he has...a thing he can trade in exchange for at least one of his debts to be paid--And then he can hire some men to kill you. Blaze of glory and all that."

It always came back to unnecessary plots for revenge. Nobles were so dramatic.

“But if we can get to him first...”

“We can stop the trade before he hires the mercenaries.” Wait a moment. “We? You’re planning to help me?”

Filia nodded, unable to talk as she ate.

“You helped me the day we met. And besides, I’d like to get to him first.”

“Does owe you something too?” Persephone frowned, a look of disappointment stretching across the dark features of her face. Despite her more shady tendencies, she didn’t expect Filia to deal with such things.

“Not exactly. It’s...more personal than that, and I can’t get near him because of it--at least not alone.” She set down her plate. “He’s under protection until the deal happens but, considering he wants you dead and I want him dead...I thought maybe we could help each other?" She spoke carefully, as though she didn’t quite know how to ask.

She clearly doesn’t ask for assistance very often, if at all.

And it wasn’t a bad deal, Persephone admitted. She’s definitely worked on less before.

“When’s the deal happening? Do you know who he’ll be meeting with?” Whatever her reasons, the Poor Nobleman’s deal needed to be stopped--for both her safety and those who’d be harmed.

“I know it’ll happen toward the end of the evening--you how dramatic these nobles can be and, well, she person he’s meeting doesn’t seem to be here so we should wait. Two birds, one stone..."

The Poor Nobleman stood solemnly beneath the archway, looking as though these were to be his last moments alive.

The girls parted soon after their conversation, but their eyes met across the ballroom once they realized it was time.

They watched him pull something small and metal from his breast pocket and stare at it for a few long moments before turning into the hall heading to the parlor on the other side.

So they followed him--or rather they tried. The ‘protection’ Filia mentioned were the three men the Poor Nobleman was with before.

“Should we kill them?” Filia whispered, leaning up and to the right so her words could reach Persephone's ears.

“The others come this way all the time, and they’re just guards so they should let us through.” If they weren’t recognized anyway.

“Well in that case…” Taking this as an invitation, Filia wrapped her arm around Persephone’s, linking them together like a cozy couple with a wink. “We should at least look convincing.”

She wouldn’t disagree.

“What’re you two doing sneaking around here? Parties that way.” One spoke out rudely, stepping forward to block their way at the center of the long dimly lit hall.

“Oh?” Filia looked toward Persephone with wide, exaggerated surprise “Thank you for telling us--we didn’t notice that at all!”

“We need a few moments alone,” Persephone told them. “It won’t take long.”

“Speak for yourself.” Filia chuckled, but their act didn’t seem to change their minds.

“No one gets through.” Another man spoke with a thick Antivan accent. “Find somewhere else to fuck.”

“Well.” Filia released her grip. “I never!”

One of the men leaned toward the other, whispering something in his ear.

It seemed one of them was recognized.

Away from heavy crowds and prying eyes, however, the guards were done away with quickly--forced back against the walls with force magic and paralyzed.

Filia stole a sword off their bodies ‘just in case.’

She also, apparently, had a knife in one of her boot and another in her sleeve.

“But swords are better than knives any day.”

Even bad ones.

And today, Persephone thought, was a terrible day for her to have given into her mother’s whimsies. She smoothed her hand across the soft fabric of her outermost skirt. But if everything went well, and it never did, the fighting would be minimal--or they'd at least be quick about it.

Despite what she told herself, however, she found herself envying the tall boots and trousers Filia wore in preparation for the evening, knowing she'd have to fight.

“Let’s try to avoid bloodshed,” She warned Filia, who seemed to take the advice reluctantly. But these guards were just hired men and they didn’t want to draw too much attention from the ongoing party.

That, and she couldn’t get her dress dirty.

“I’ll try.”

The hall was lined with suits of armor and cases filled with hunting trophies. They became larger, more impressive, and intimidating as they crept closer to the end of the hall.

It was quiet on the other side of the large wooden doors but they both knew there would be someone waiting.

"Ready?"

The door was locked, but Persephone forced it open with a push of her will.

And he was--The Poor Nobleman, standing in the center of the room surrounded by guards who immediately attacked.

But the women fought their way through.

Magic, taunts, and the cool strike of metal hitting metal flew like birds throughout the room--the unconscious (and hopefully not dead) bodies of henchmen lined the ground easily, falling till none but the Poor and ‘Noble’ one remained, hiding himself beneath a table and acting as though he couldn’t be seen.

“How valuable is this information that he needs so much protection?” Persephone wondered.

“That depends on who you’re asking really…” Filia squatted down beside the table and greeted the Poor Nobleman with a friendly, out of place, ‘hello.’

“Remember me?”

“Please!” He spoke with an Orlesian accent, “Do not kill me!”

“‘Don’t kill me!’ She mocked him, “ You aren’t in a place to be making such requests now are you?” Gone were all the charms and the good-natured humor in her voice--in its place was something that spoke of a darker intent.

“I am only trying to win back what was mine! What was taken from-!”

“They sold slaves!” Persephone interrupted, just holding back the fire that threatened to come forth through her hands. “And you took that money--You don’t deserve anything!”

“I’ve lost everything!”

“You haven’t lost anything.” Filia threatened in a slow, deep voice. “But you will.” She slid the knife from behind her boot and pressed it to his throat with practiced ease. “I’ll even make it easy for you: Give back what you took and die painfully, or make me loot your corpse for it first.”

"Please!"

"I really did hope you wouldn't pick the looting option-"

“Wait.” Persephone interrupted. “We can’t just kill him.” As much as it pained her to say. “We should take him to the guard.” There was clearly some bad blood between them, but this matter could be reconciled without bloodshed--justice could be served without killing.

“Yes!” He shouted, “Yes. Please do not kill me--I can make a deal!” He fumbled around for a moment in the dark before reaching into his breast his pocket. With sweaty, shaking, hands he pushed a small metal pendant over with ease.

“This is what you want? Take it! It is not worth my life.”

“It’s worth more than that” Filia took it from him--and paused a moment to make sure it was what she needed to retrieve. “Did you see what was inside?”

“I could never get it open! I swear!”

“Then you got lucky.” She stood, drawing back her knife but kicking him in the head for good measure.

“That’s what he took from you? Your locket?” The Poor Nobleman was hysterical but Persephone lowered him down to sleep where he’d be till the City Guard arrived.

“It’s what’s inside that matters.” She pulled a small key from the chain around her neck and used it to open the hatches with a sigh. “And it’s here....Lovely.”

“Is it something important?” She’s chased people down for many things in the past, but never a piece of decorative jewelry.

“To someone. To me.” Filia slid it back into her pocket. “I suppose I owe you an explanation don’t I?”

“That would be nice.”

“I had to do something when I got to Kirkwall--so I started up with this guild. A few months ago they started meddling in this business with...well, I wanted out--but of course, they don’t allow for that sort of thing. ‘If you’re out, then you’re out.’” She rolled her eyes. “Not only did I bring them profits, but none of them could actually manage to kill me.”

She pointed at the guards. “However, in the words of my soon-to-be-dead employer, ‘everyone has a heart,’ someone or something you can use to exploit them. And mine.” She tapped on her pocket, “Can be found with this. That poor man probably didn’t even know what he had--he was probably just told to lift it off me.”

“Does your old boss really want you back so badly?”

“She isn’t the ‘letting go’ type. But for now, s-my secret is safe.”

“Won’t she send more men after you? Will you be alright?”

“She’s certainly free to try.” Filia grinned, turning toward the window to look out at the moon. “Alas--It’s getting late, and you should probably get back to the party before the City Guards come to ruin things.”

The Party, Persephone wanted to sigh. Filia was right. Her mother would be looking for her and she’d hate the explain why she went missing.

‘I left to stop a deal that would result in mercenaries coming to kill me’ was not a story she felt like spinning.

She could only be grateful she didn’t ruin her dress.

“Are you coming back to the party?” The crept out the room, walking past the bodies of the first three guardsmen on the way.

Someone wouldn't be happy about this.

“I have a bed waiting for me at home--I’d hate to keep him waiting.”

“Lucky you.”

“Let’s hope...but, anyway…” Filia stopped, pausing near the bright end of the hall. “Thanks for the help--maybe we'll get the chance to work together again someday. Wouldn’t that be exciting?”

‘Exciting’ was one way to put it.

“I would like that.” She’d probably fit in well her other friends.

“I would too.”

Filia stepped forward, closing the gap of space between them.

“I really do mean that. I...I don’t know what I’d do if this got into the wrong hands.”

“I was happy to help you.”

She placed her hand against Persephone’s arm and looked up at her--still not very use to doing that. Regardless she smiled, a cheeky little grin as she traced a circle on her skin with a finger.

“You really are too kind. I can’t believe the rumors were right about you.”

“There are rumors?” She felt herself blushing. Filia chuckled.

“Of course--and now I see that they’re true. I’m glad.”

“About what?" She looked her in the eyes as they spoke, a smile of her own tugging at the corners of her cheeks.

“About you.”

They locked eyes, golds meeting in the darkness of the night, pressing closer by the moment before closing.

Filia stood on her toes to kiss her, Persephone leaned over.

It wasn't magic, but something of a similar effect that left their bodies tingling. They parted for a moment only to kiss again, their lips pressing together in soft, fluttering heat.

It felt like a long time coming.

“I hope that means we get to meet again.” Filia fell back to her heels.

“Well if you need anything…”

“I’ll find you. And you can probably find me too--if you look.” Filia winked at her and stepped away as a moment of silence fell between them like drapes.  

“I should get going. I’ll let the guards know what happened--wouldn’t want you being blamed for the mess we left behind.” Filia turned around, heading back into the noise of the ongoing party. “Try not to get into trouble without me.”

“That's the type of promise I doubt I could keep.”

“I probably couldn't either.”

[smoothshift]

My journey to leasing an Alfa Romeo Giulia (also known as I test drove way too many cars) via /r/cars

My journey to leasing an Alfa Romeo Giulia (also known as I test drove way too many cars)

Ok, first things first, it isn't brand new anymore; I just now got photos back from my amateur photographer friend so I thought now would be a good time to post photos/my thoughts on the segment/brag.

Second, pictures. It is a 2017 Giulia with the sports package (and nothing else). 39 month lease with 12000 miles/year. And it took me a while, but I've name my car Im (pronounced "M"). Why Im? A friend called it my Italian Mistress and I got a kick out of that. My girlfriend still calls it Alfy because she likes to give me pain.

Up until May 1st of this year, I was driving the same truck I had been since I was in high school: 2005 Ford F150 Texas edition. It was a great truck that gave me everything I needed for almost 150,000 miles with very few issues (the belts used to control the windows broke probably 6 times between the 4 doors and the windshield fluid sprayer broke once, but I don't recall anything else other than routine maintenance). But I was finally making money and decided I wanted something that was a different type of fun. Now, I am not a dyed in the wool car guy like many on this sub; my parents always had nice vehicles, but my dad runs a small commercial contracting business so, outside of his 197-something Gremlin that he was so fond of, I think all he's ever owned are various trucks. Because of this, my knowledge of cars largely originates from haphazardly marathoning multiple seasons of Top Gear/The Grand Tour earlier this year and picking the brain of a friend of mine that is definitely a dyed in the whole car guy (who also happens to be the amateur photographer).

As someone completely knew to the segment (and cars in general), I did some fairly intense research and test driving. I ended up test driving a Giulia (obviously), a 3 series, an A4, a C class, an XE, an ATX, and an IS. Just as general background, I was looking for a daily driver (my office is less than a mile from where I work, but my family lives several hundred miles away and my gf currently lives over a hundred miles away as well) and I would probably say my priorities when I was looking for a car were looks/how much they stand out, how fun it was to drive, how comfortable it was to drive, and how good the infotainment was (really narrowing it down for you, I know). I ended up test driving everything except the ATS, A4, and the 3 series at least twice, partially to help me decide and partially because I wanted to see what various people thought about each car. I'll put my thoughts about each car in order from the one I liked the least to the one I liked the best. Some of my thoughts on each car are gone at this point, as I've been relentlessly lazy with regards to finally making this post, but I'll do my best to recreate my thoughts as I had looking at each car. I'll have a TL;DR for the reviews at the end as well.

ATS

Ok, my least favorite car was the ATS. All cars in this segment are great, but there isn't a doubt in my mind that this car was the one that appealed to me the least. In my opinion, this segment can be more or less described as a continuum of cars that are somewhere between a luxury car trying to be a sporty car and a sporty car trying to be a luxury car. The ATS felt the most like a luxury car trying to be (even if only at a perfunctory level) sporty to me. It had a deep, sonorous engine that felt more like towing power than raw speed. The inside looked great, perhaps the most luxurious interior in the class. The outside was definitely stately. But it felt and looked too much like a powerful boat for my tastes. Even though this was the third car I test drove, I think it may have been pivotal in pushing me over to the "sporty car trying to be a luxury car" end of the segment, because this car just did not speak to me when driving it. Perhaps, in 30 years, it will be exactly what I want. Just not now.

I also didn't much like a lot of the things going on inside. It was beautiful, but I felt like the center consul was too high, making my right arm uncomfortable. Additionally, I am not a fan of touch screen infotainment. I want to be able to focus on driving when I'm driving, not fumbling around, stretching to touch "next station".

A4

Now, after saying I was pushed to the sporty end of the segment, I of course have to rate lowly one of the more sporty cars, the A4. Now, the general, albeit definitely not word-of-God, consensus among car reviews I had read was that the A4 was the top or very close to the top of the segment. Plus, compared to the couch-on-wheels ATS, it is much more on the sport side of the spectrum, yet I rate it very, very low. Why? Three reasons (one of which is often brought up by the professional reviewers.

First: professional reviewers are correct in saying that you almost feel removed from the driving experience when you are in the A4. I don't know how to say it much better than that: the steering wasn't as tight or responsive as I wanted it, I didn't feel overly excited when I tried to gun it, and, personally, I thought all the cool tech in the car was a draw back that removed you from the driving experience. It felt like you were in a driving sim.

Second, I didn't like the cool tech at all. I felt it was overwhelming (not in that I am tech-illiterate, but in that I want to drive, not play on a computer). I didn't like the Nav jumping over in front of the driver (I just want to see my speedometer, come on). I didn't like the placement of the infotainment controls because the stick is in the way. I don't want to try to change the radio station and suddenly switch in to reverse on the highway. But, like some people disagreeing that the ATS is too far on the luxury end of the segment, I am sure people will disagree as the amount of tech you want in a car at least partially comes down to preference. Add in to that the fact that I think sticking an iPad on the dashboard looks ugly, and this car quickly got knocked off my list.

Finally, and I'm sure A LOT of people will disagree with this, I found the exterior styling to be lack luster. It doesn't stand out in a crowd, and I didn't think it looked all that much better than any of the cars in the cheaper segments.

3-Series

I have to admit, the 3-series was the most disappointing to me. As someone only recently taking an interest in cars, the 3-series was the car I had heard the most about and thought the most of. I was expecting, in the words of Reinhart, precision German engineering. Rather, the 3-series kind of suffered from the same lack of real driving feel that the A4 did. It did everything right but it just felt... blah. It looked right, but at this point, everyone and their mother (in Houston) drives a BMW, so it didn't stand out. The infotainment had a good balance of features and not separating you from driving, but I don't really remember being impressed (although, I will repeat that sticking an iPad on the dash is dumb). And as lame as it is to sum up the 3-series as blah... that's how I felt. Maybe I should have tried the M badged one or a 330 instead, but BMW lost me before that point.

C Class

This is the car that doesn't fit in with my "last few cars" that somehow made it there. Once again, drifting closer to the "luxury car trying to be sporty" end of the spectrum, but I felt like the C Class was on the right side of it. If the ATS was driving a tug boat with a low, powering engine, I felt like the C Class was a midsized boat with a good balance of luxury and sport. In terms of the interior, it was right there with the ATS. My two main qualms with the interior being the iPad on the dash (I really wish everyone would stop doing that) and the lack of a stick for the drive modes (I'm not a fan of the little dial to choose drive). The AMG version had a really good looking midnight combination available (I don't remember what it was called, but you can imagine what it looked like). I also believe it had some sort of phone to nav compatibility, but I could be wrong (this was one of the things I hoped more cars in the class would have standard). I recall the steering being heavy but responsive, which I liked. It had a sports and a sports plus mode, which helped it inch closer to the sporty end of the spectrum. Additionally, the idea of driving a Benz appealed to me at some level. It ended up just not being enough to really make last few cars.

THE FINAL CONTENDERS

These are the last 3 cars, all of which I was very close to at one point to getting. If you're tired of reading my thoughts, it'll probably only get longer. Sorry in advance.

XE 35T

For a while, I was almost sold on the Jag, just waiting for the right one to come in. Why? Well, because Jag cheated. This was the only V6. As I originally test drove the 25T, I will give a short review of driving it (everything else is the same as the 35T). It was uninspiring. It didn't feel as powerful as the luxury boats of the class and didn't have the pick-up and go that the last two cars had.

Ok, that's out of the way. What I liked about the 35T: V6 power. It felt fast. It was fast. It was probably the best sounding of all the cars. It was just as exhilarating to drive as the Alfa (but in a different way). I thought the steering felt right; it wasn't too heavy and it was tight.

It also, in my opinion, looked great. I liked the more aggressive design than most of the rest of the class. One color in particular, the deep blue, was absolutely gorgeous. It is more rare than any of the other cars on the list other than the Alfa, which I liked a bit as well.

Also, its infotainment isn't an iPad sticking out of the freaking dash. It also had an app that let's you work with your phone for navigation (but you had to pay for the fully nav), which I loved. It was, however, touch screen, which is a big negative for me. Doesn't feel safe, and,e ven if you use the steering wheel controls, it is just too much going on while driving.

But the negative for this car is a big one, and probably the reason I didn't go with the XE: Unless you want to drop an extra 5k for the upgraded interior, it looks cheap inside. As a car starting at around 40000, I don't want to have a scowl on my face every time I open the door. I also don't like the spin wheel for drive selecting (but it did pop up and down when the car turned off and on, which was a nice touch).

Finally, sun roofs were not optional. Some people may think this is cool, but it doesn't have a hard plastic cover. This means that, if you live in the South, you have to deal with heat and sunlight always, because a flimsy little piece of cloth isn't going to cut it when it's 100+ degrees and the sun wants to shit in your eyes. To be fair, several of the cars in this segment have the same problem, but this is the one that I remember it about.

IS 200T F-Sport

Lexus did a lot of things right with this car. For the price, there are a lot of good safety features that come with it (auto break when reversing, lane control, etc.). I was also a fan how it drove. It didn't have the disconnected feel that the Audi and the BMW had; the steering was pretty tight, there was a good amount of power and acceleration, and it was actually fun to drive. The exterior was good; not as good as the Alfa or the Jag, but it is still a great looking car. I liked the extra "edge" the F-Sport gave everything. I really liked the interior if you picked the maroon leather/accents (my girlfriend strongly disagreed, unfortunately). The infotainment, although being an iPad, was stuffed into the consul rather than stuck on top of it. This was the car my girlfriend wanted me to get (the lame, non-maroon interior one, anyways).

But there were a few things I wasn't a fan of. First, although the infotainment wasn't touch screen, it was a weird combo of drawing on a little pad and a mouse, which was not good in my opinion. Also, I was told they had google car play/equivalent, and when they told me they were wrong, it only brought up the line by line instructions (rather than a map), I basically decided to go with the Alfa.

Alfa Romeo Giulia

The main event. Finally getting to the most controversial car in the segment, especially in this sub. If I had to sum it up, it would be "the car is everything they say it is." What do I mean by that? The exterior is beautiful. I know a lot of people don't like the trade-mark grill or this or that, but I really think it is the best looking car in the class. You will get stares everywhere. People will ask you about your car when you stop to get gas. People will want to race you at lights (well, in Houston they do that anyways because the drivers are dicks, but I assume at least one person has done it because of the car). You will smile when you see your car. You won't see anyone else on the roads with your car. It's like being the hot girl in the class; everyone looks at you and everyone looks at you differently. And it's great.

I love the interior. I didn't opt for the wooden inserts, but those really were breathtaking. Even for the poors like me, the aluminium looks really great. There was also a red leather interior option available (again vetoed by the lady), which I liked. The paddle shifters are single, large pieces of aluminium as well, which look a lot better (and a lot less likely to break) than the little plastic ones some other cars in the class had. The infotainment isn't just an iPad! It's built in to the consul and looks natural rather than an afterthought. Also, at night there is a truly great soft (and adjustable) ambiance lighting.

Everything about the driving position is great. It is comfortable even on long distance drives (my experience is limited to about 300 miles in one go, but I think that's a pretty good indicator). The front seats are surprisingly roomy (the rear seats can get pretty tight, however).

As I've alluded to before, the driving is second to none in the class. As my girlfriend put it, she knew what I would choose because I had a goofy smile on my face the entire test drive. I felt like it accelerated better than anything else (barring the V6 Jag), and it also had the best handling. The balance of the steering wheel was perfect in my opinion.

Also, I think the infotainment is the best in class (I know a lot of people won't agree). It is intuitive. It doesn't require you to take your mind off the road. Each thing you can do is easy to feel. Even searching for contacts or songs is quick. The only real negatives I have about it is that 1) no google drive-type app available and 2) the quick-select song station thing is great, but could use a few more choices (6 would be enough for most, but I travel enough that it isn't and I have to mess with the favorites when I am in another city, which is 2-3 weekends per month).

The main thing I don't really like the car can be summed up on the one buzz word I've avoided this entire review: Reliability. I've had my car for 4.5 months and 4700 miles. I took it in once for optional software flashed (the dealership didn't even notify me they were available, someone mentioned it on reddit). A few days before my appointment, a CEL came on and went away on it's own about 2 days later (still before my apt). Not very inspiring. Other than that, however, I've had 0 issues.

Additionally, when compared to the IS, there aren't enough safety features that come standard. All those cool things that keep me from wrecking came with the Lexus for cheaper (albeit it was a former loaner car) than the Alfa was.

Finally, it is worth noting that the 2 worse dealership experiences I had were both Alfa (and I went to a freaking ton of dealerships). I ended up going to 4 different Alfa dealers (long story), but one wouldn't even let me test drive because they thought I was too poor (and then told me the leases start at $700/mo, which is a bold-faced lie, and gave us some perfunctory BS about why it was double other cars that cost the same MSRP). Another one I went to had a guy that summed up the different packages as "well, some will increase the price, some won't, and it's different for every car." Alfas were new, but he was obviously not very familiar with the product. He was a nice guy, just not prepared.

Anyways, 10 out of 10 times I would go with the Alfa again. ** TL;DR:**

ATS: I don't wanna drive a boat, I wanna drive a car.

Audi: I don't want to play a game, I wanna drive a car.

BMW: I don't wanna meh, I wanna car.

C Class: I don't want this much of a luxury car, I wanna sporty car.

Jag: I don't wanna pay for the interior of a car that looks like the basic package should look, I wanna luxury car.

Lexus: I don't wanna computer with a car around it, I want a car with a computer in it.

Alfa: I want an awesome car for my drive to the mechanic.

Thanks for taking the time to read all of this and for all the great advice I've gotten from various threads. Feel free to ask any questions you may have.

[just-pig]

Super Seventeen || Chapter Two

word count: [1391]

featuring: [...nothing really tbh, some meanie]

published: [july 10, 2017]

Mentally going over his dance one more time, Minghao couldn't help but worry. His friends all assured him that he was a top-notch dancer but he still wasn't quite confident in the new routine he had choreographed for himself.

Plus he had originally choreographed a different dance six months ago, leaving him plenty of time to polish it for the competition, but when he posted a snippet of the dance on his Twitter he had gotten a surprising amount of hate comments. An amount big enough to make him restart the entire dance, two weeks prior to the current date.

He had less confidence in this one. But the audience's opinion was key.

As the group of people in the waiting room slowly went in, one by one, leaving him practically alone in the room with two other boys whom he had absolutely no courage to even look at, Minghao started to panic. Should I just do the original dance? But then I would have to request a song change, and I already submitted the form with the music selection on it -

His thoughts were interrupted by a loud phone call, gathering the attention of the other two boys in the room. Their gazes were so piercing that Minghao would've dug a hole back to China right then and there if he could. Blushing, he bowed slightly and then muttered to himself, "Finally understand what a 'bitch face' is now.

"What do you want?" Minghao hissed into the phone. "I almost have to go on."

The other line was the frantic voice of Mingyu. "Minghao. We - we've got a problem."

Minghao felt something stir up in his stomach. Like something bad was about to happen. As a superhero, he got that feeling way more often than he would prefer. "What problem?"

Mingyu gulped, giving Minghao a dramatic three-count before responding. "The school... May or may not have just exploded."

~~~

Minghao supposed that that was the part in a book or movie or whatever where he starts freaking out, but he was strangely calm when Mingyu said this. Like the eye of the tornado.

"Okay. Is anyone dead?"

Mingyu, seemingly caught off guard by Minghao's question, took a while to respond before stuttering out, "N-No. No one's dead, as far as I can tell. So... what should we do?"

Minghao was a bit surprised. "You're asking me? Why not Hoshi? Or Jun?"

He should've expected the guilty answer from Mingyu. "Um. Well. We tried Hoshi's cell, but he isn't picking up."

Minghao couldn't exactly say he wasn't disappointed. Everyone knew that he did carry leader traits in him - he was, after all, the leader of his dancing group back in China - but here, in Korea where he wasn't even fluent in the native language, there was little chance that the members would turn to him for a change. He attempted covering up his true emotions and replied with the same reasonable voice. "Makes sense. He went on just a few minutes ago, he probably left his phone on mute or something."

Mingyu sighed. "Of all the times he could've went on. Anyway, do you have a rough estimate of when you can get back? We really need more people on deck here."

"Did you guys get Pristin?"

"Not yet. We're calling them next, and maybe even Yixing hyung and Taeyeon noona."

"Alright, solid plan." Checking quickly to see if the other two boys were listening, Minghao quickly dashed around a corner in fear of being overheard. "Split up the team that's there and get one team to go into the school and look for something that could've triggered the explosion. Just give the teachers some stupid excuse and then leave to change identities, they'll believe it with all this chaos going on. The other team can stay and deal with the entire rest of the school. All - what, nine of you? - going at once would be too suspicious."

There was a faint appreciative whistle, followed by Mingyu's voice again. "Damn, Minghao, you're pretty hot when you're in charge."

Minghao could feel his face rapidly heating up, returning to his usual shy self. "Uh. Thanks?"

"Yah." Minghao could hear Wonwoo slapping Mingyu's arm. "He has a boyfriend, dumbass."

"Well I'm your dumbass."

"Oh my - " Minghao practically threw up. "I'll leave you guys to your flirting. I have to go on soon anyway. Bye."

He then hung up without another word, exhaling in an attempt to relieve some stress. With the semester coming to a close at school, he had been swamped in an overwhelming amount of work and superhero duties. It had gotten to the point that he was even starting to regret ever giving in to the superhero offer. However, every now and then, he would just sit there and take a few deep breaths. It's going to be alright. It's going to be alright. It's going to be -

"Number 86, Seo Myungho."

"Shit!"

~~~

Chaotic.

If Chan had to describe his current life situation in one word, it would be chaotic.

First off, he basically flunked the competition after slipping on a random ribbon that was lying in the middle of the stage. Jun, who had accidentally seen Chan's performance after getting lost finding his way out of the theatre, assured him that it looked okay, but that was little help to Chan's self-esteem. It also didn't help that Soonyoung had came in a couple of minutes later with a smile on his face claiming that he had done better than he thought. There go my chances of  living up to Michael Jackson's expectations.

Second, Minghao had rushed in close to the end saying that their school pretty much exploded. Soonyoung, Jun and Jungkook had originally thought that he was kidding, but Minghao's detailed explanation of him and Wonwoo's phone conversation eventually convinced everyone. (Of course, he had left out any details hinting at their superhero life, since there was still part of the 97 line present).

So now they were cruising back to the school. They had purposely split up the group so that their little group of four could discuss on the way back without any chance of someone overhearing.

Soonyoung, who was driving, immediately turned serious once they acknowledged that they were safe. "Did Wonwoo say anything else?"

Minghao thought for a second before shaking his head. "I'm pretty sure he had me on speaker phone though, if that helps, since Mingyu also commented."

"Why am I not surprised," Chan muttered to himself. Honestly, those two were always together.

Minghao then launched into a description of his suggestion to the group. After contemplating possible outcomes, Jun then offered to call them, already taking out his cell phone.

Minghao leaned over to see who he was calling. Chan tried to as well, but since he had called shotgun and Jun was behind him, it proved to be a much more difficult task.

Once the other end had picked up they were greeted by the wonderful sounds of screaming, crying and that static-y noise when the person is fumbling with the phone. "Jun hyung! How'd the performance go?" Hansol partially shouted to be heard over the background noise.

"Now is not the time to talk about performances you idiot," Minghao chimed in. "Did you guys follow the plan I gave you?"

"Uh. Hold on. Let me find a better place - "

His voice then cut off. Jun raised his eyebrows. "He hung up on us."

Soonyoung, who had reached a red light, saw the opportunity to whip his head around in disbelief. "Are you fucking serious? I'm gonna - "

Jun's phone then interrupted them. Picking up, they once again heard Hansol's voice, minus the commotion in the back. "Crap, I'm sorry, I accidentally clicked the 'end call' button. Anyways, yes, we are following the plan. We've got the hyung line without Jisoo hyung and Wonwoo hyung along with Mingyu hyung on superhero duty or whatever you call it, and the rest of us are attempting to 'be among the other students'. I don't even know how Wonwoo hyung explained it."

"... okay. Have you guys gotten anywhere yet?" Soonyoung asked.

"What? They only just left, so probably not." Hansol said. "Unless you're talking about the student team in which case I've won three rounds of rock-paper-scissors - oh shit can't talk right now -"

"THIS BITC-"